Chapter 426

Chapter 426 But she had to go and confess to the crime of killing Consort Hui, delivering the accusation right to the Emperor's doorstep so he would have grounds to deal with her. Seeing how cooperative Noble Lady Xi was being, even the strongest fury ought to subside somewhat. Xie Run said, "Noble Lady Xi's confession doesn't explicitly mention the Empress's death, yet it references it everywhere." Otherwise, why would she repeatedly bring up her elder brother who died at the hands of the Second Prince of Yu? Concubine Shen didn't quite understand, but she felt that whatever Sister Xie said couldn't be wrong. Concubine Shen said, "Consort Hui's death can be considered a proper outlet for the Empress's grievances." Otherwise, with too many considerations weighing on the Emperor, he wouldn't have a legitimate excuse to deal with Noble Lady Xi. Xie Run smiled faintly and said nothing more. Concubine Shen continued, "Sister asked me to look into the Duke of Suguo's household, and I did make inquiries." "The Duke of Suguo's household doesn't have many promising sons. The third branch has one serving in the Ministry of Personnel, but he was previously involved in improper factionalism at court and was demoted and exiled. The eldest son of the fifth branch is decent at his studies and has hope of passing the imperial examinations in the future—unfortunately, he broke his hand." "The offspring of the remaining branches are nothing but mediocrities. They live comfortably off the legacy of their ancestors, completely oblivious to the precarious situation of the Duke of Suguo's household." "The moment news of Noble Lady Xi's crime came down, the entire household fell into chaos. They wanted to submit a petition of apology, but couldn't even find anyone to help deliver it." Xie Run was somewhat surprised as well. "How could a distinguished ducal household sink to such a state?" Having no one to help deliver a petition meant the Duke of Suguo's household had no influence whatsoever at court. Even their in-laws and friends were unwilling to help—either out of fear of being dragged down, or simply because they had poor relations with the household. Concubine Shen nodded repeatedly. "Exactly. I was quite shocked when I first heard it too. Both are ducal households, but the Duke of Yingguo's household is far more impressive than the Duke of Suguo's." Xie Run lowered her gaze in thought. "No matter how deep a great family's foundation, it cannot withstand generations of only taking without giving. When the descendants amount to nothing, the only recourse is to send women into the harem to cling to power." The Duke of Yingguo's household was more impressive than the Duke of Suguo's because the Duke of Yingguo was still alive, fighting on the front lines at his advanced age. Second, while the middle generation was unremarkable, there were one or two promising grandchildren who could be nurtured into something with proper training. But even so, the Duke of Yingguo's household couldn't avoid staking their bets by sending a daughter into the palace. If the Duke of Yingguo's household didn't secure multiple escape routes now, once the Duke passed, the Duke of Suguo's household would be their cautionary tale. Concubine Shen remarked with feeling, "I used to only envy the glory and splendor of the great families. I never thought about all the worries they have." "Where there is desire, there is worry. That has nothing to do with status or position." Concubine Shen nodded repeatedly, then sighed. "The affairs of the ducal households are too lofty and distant for me to understand. But Consort Hui... if she suspected Noble Lady Xi earlier, why didn't she report her to the Emperor instead of putting herself in danger?" "By going to the Cold Palace alone with her people, didn't she give the culprit an opening?" Xie Run said calmly, "Because no one would have believed her." "She only had suspicions, no solid evidence—just like when she made baseless accusations against Ben Gong before. When you've done the same thing once, and then you do it a second time, unless you have irrefutable proof, people will only think you're raving mad." "But more importantly..." Xie Run's expression grew somewhat grave. "She was not favored by the Emperor." Without favor, there is no trust. Every word Consort Hui said would only irritate people, making them think she was stirring up trouble over nothing. Had the same words come from Xie Run's mouth, even if the Emperor didn't believe her, he would have sent people to make arrangements rather than leaving Xie Run to scheme and plan on her own. That was the difference between being favored and being unfavored. Concubine Shen felt a pang of sympathy. Unfortunately, she too belonged to the category of those without favor—someone who even annoyed the Emperor. Had she been in Consort Hui's position, she probably wouldn't have been as clever as Consort Hui. At that moment, she resolved to just live her life quietly and obediently. Otherwise, if she made a mistake, the Emperor would be irritated just hearing about it—how could he possibly give her a chance to defend herself? Concubine Shen had arrived in high spirits, but returned in trepidation. The next day, word suddenly came that Talented Lady Xue had died in the Cold Palace. "Xue had long been bought by the Xia Dynasty. Her entire family committed treason, plotting sedition. Talented Lady Xue, skilled in martial arts, attempted to attack the guards watching the Cold Palace and was cut down by them." "The Emperor has already issued a decree to confiscate the Xue family's property. For treason, everyone has the right to execute them!" Consort Jingshu savored her tea slowly, only glancing at Xie Run after she finished speaking. She tried to read some emotion on Xie Run's face, but failed utterly. "Is Sister Xie not at all curious?" Xie Run smiled. "Ben Gong is actually curious about one thing. This month, you've already come to see Ben Gong twice." "The roads are slippery with snow. Sister should be careful on her way back." Xie Run also wondered what had gotten into Consort Jingshu. She hadn't even gone to the Retired Emperor's mourning hall this morning, and instead came running to Zhaohua Palace to find her? Consort Jingshu only held her tea and smiled. "Does Sister not wish to see me?" "That's not it. I'm just worried that with all the affairs in your palace, spending time idly here with me will leave you exhausted when you return." Consort Jingshu secretly ground her back teeth, then said teasingly, "Sister Xie's temper has grown considerably sharper since giving birth to the Tenth Prince." "You always seem to strike where it hurts." She knew full well that the palace was full of trivial and vexing matters. She had finally managed to steal a moment of leisure, only to be reminded to attend to palace affairs. Xie Run said, "Ben Gong has always had this temperament, but since we were not well acquainted before, you simply did not know me well enough." Consort Jingshu had no desire to endure Xie Run's sarcastic barbs, so she dropped all pretense and said directly, "I came today to ask Sister Xie whether the funeral rites for Noble Lady Xi should be held. If they are to be held, how should they be conducted?" "Although the Emperor demoted her to commoner status, he never said she should be denied funeral rites. After all, she is the Eighth Prince's birth mother." Xie Run had initially wanted to say, "You can go ask the Emperor yourself," but then thought better of it—there was no point in remaining at odds with Consort Jingshu. After all, if Consort Jingshu dared to face the Emperor, she would not have come running to her for answers. Xie Run did not decline the matter either, and only said calmly, "The palace has seen consorts demoted to commoner status before. Just follow the established precedents." "If you wish to show consideration for the Eighth Prince, find her a decent plot of land, so that the Eighth Prince will at least have a place to pay his respects in the future." To simply roll her up in a straw mat and toss her into a mass grave would hardly be proper. After all, she was a prince's birth mother, and the Emperor had not sentenced her to death. Consort Jingshu smiled and said, "Sister has indeed received much guidance from Her Majesty the Empress, and your handling of matters has grown more seasoned. You now possess a hint of the Empress's decisiveness." Xie Run was momentarily taken aback, then realized what had been said. The manner and style in which she had just handled the matter did indeed bear some resemblance to the late Empress. Xie Run smiled. "Ben Gong is merely the daughter of a scholar. Whatever ability I possess today is entirely thanks to the Empress's guidance." She made no attempt to hide the Empress's influence on her.