mesbooks Chapter 187 Irony
Chapter 187 Irony
Princess Hejing's words were harsh, implying that the Fifth Princess died young because of Ruyi's actions.
She is also a mother. Under normal circumstances, she would never use her child to attack Ruyi.
But whenever He Jing thought of her second brother's tragic death at her and Hai Lan's hands, she gnashed her teeth in hatred. What did a few words mean? She wished she could skin and bone them all, then burn their bodies!
That was her own second brother, and he was killed by someone. How could she not hate him?
Just a few words deeply hurt Ruyi's heart.
Her face was pale, her lips trembling slightly, and her eyes were empty and confused, as if she had lost all her vitality and brilliance. She clenched the jade bracelet in her hand tightly, and her fingertips turned pale and bloodless from excessive force.
Ruyi felt her heartbeat getting faster and faster, and her breathing became rapid. She couldn't stand such humiliation, but she couldn't refute it, so she could only endure it silently.
The concubines below cast their gazes full of curiosity and inquiry, as if they were expecting a good show to unfold. Ruyi felt her face burning, as if she had been slapped in public, leaving her feeling humiliated.
Yan Wan lowered her head and sneered. Now she was too lazy to hide it in front of Ruyi.
"Princess Hejing, why do you say that? The Empress is of noble birth, so how could she ever understand the hard work of her servants? From what I see, the Empress must have gotten used to it when she was a concubine, so this is... In the eyes of the Empress, these are just insignificant little things, unintentional mistakes, let them be..."
Yan Wan seemed to be kind enough to help Ruyi out of the predicament, but as soon as she said this, the whole place fell silent again.
Rong Pei was watching from the side. Princess Hejing was of noble birth. She was the legitimate daughter of Empress Xiaoxian and the Emperor, and was even more noble than the Fifth Princess. Naturally, she could not speak for her Empress and teach her a lesson.
But as soon as Yan Wan spoke, Rong Pei couldn't wait to retort.
"Your Highness, although you are a noble concubine, you must be careful with your words and actions. The Empress is the Empress, and you should not point fingers here. If this gets to the Emperor's ears, he will definitely think you are disrespectful to the Empress."
After hearing her say this, Yan Wan not only stopped making a fuss, but the smile on her face deepened.
"Look, you are worthy of being in the Empress's palace. Even a little maid dares to teach me a lesson. Well, if the Empress doesn't like to hear me, I won't say anything. But I have no intention of disrespecting the Empress. The master of the harem is in the hearts of the people. I respect the Empress very much in my heart..."
These words left Rong Pei speechless. She glanced at Ruyi's slightly ugly expression, restrained her anger, and stood quietly beside Ruyi.
When Ruyi heard Yanwan say this, there was a rare reaction on her face.
These words originally came from her mouth.
In that year, she accidentally wore the Yaohuang Peony and said the same thing in front of Empress Fucha.
This showed that the Imperial Concubine still held a grudge, still remembering how Concubine Jia had transferred Ling to Qixiang Palace and tortured her because she bore some resemblance to herself. Now, after so many years, she was still using this incident to target her.
"Well, Your Majesty, the Empress Dowager is broad-minded and will not hold these matters against you..."
He Jing looked at Ruyi's embarrassed expression and gave Yanwan an appreciative look with great satisfaction.
No matter how to embarrass this stepmother, the imperial concubine still has a way.
Ruyi was repeatedly harassed, becoming increasingly frustrated and finally unable to bear it. Feeling exhausted and helpless, she decided to endure this endless bickering and arguing no longer. So, she found a random excuse and announced the disbanding of the morning meeting.
Rong Pei carefully helped Ruyi back to the bedroom. Seeing Ruyi's pale face, she couldn't help but speak to comfort her.
"Your Majesty, you don't need to take these words today seriously. They have ill intentions on the part of the Imperial Concubine. She said these words just to cause trouble. If Your Majesty holds a grudge against them, wouldn't that just fulfill her wish?"
Ruyi nodded and sighed, "I understand all her little thoughts, but today I saw that Lujun looked unhappy, so I was worried about her health..."
"Now that Imperial Concubine Ling has been promoted to Imperial Concubine after giving birth to the Seventh Princess, she is now on equal footing with Imperial Concubine Chun. She must be unhappy about this, so..."
"For so many years, Lujun and her son have not been valued by the emperor. When Concubine Ling was still a palace maid, she once served the eldest prince in Zhongcui Palace. I think she is afraid of being retaliated by Concubine Ling, so she dare not speak." Ruyi nodded, finding an excuse for Concubine Chun's inaction today.
No matter how Ren Ruyi guessed, she would never have guessed that Su Lujun had already woken up and recognized who was the person behind the harm.
"It's okay for Concubine Ling, but what about Princess Hejing? You are her current Empress Dowager."
Rong Pei sighed and said that the Queen's life was becoming more and more difficult.
I think she only had a good time when she was the Imperial Noble Consort and was just canonized. In the past few years, everything has not been satisfactory, and the Empress has been tortured into her current exhausted state.
Rong Pei felt very distressed when she saw Ruyi's depressed state. She sighed softly and spoke slowly.
The Empress's life was becoming increasingly difficult. Recalling the days of her youth and glory, when she first became Empress, she had enjoyed such glory and splendor. But now, she was burdened by countless trivial matters, and her life was becoming so difficult.
However, in recent years, nothing has gone as planned. The turmoil within the harem has left the Empress exhausted.
Rong Pei looked at Ruyi, who was in a state of depression, and felt a surge of pity in her heart. She looked at the haggard face and dim eyes of the Empress, and felt as if her heart was being cut by a knife.
Rong Pei secretly vowed to stay by the Empress' side and share the pain with her.
"I helped the Empress Dowager persuade Princess Hejing to marry far away. When she returned and found that I had taken her mother's place, it's natural for her to feel unhappy. I won't hold it against her. Rong Pei, I think Ling Yunche will be there at the banquet tonight. Please help me give the things I made a few days ago to Ling Yunche and have him deliver them to Prince Yan's residence. I will be accompanying the Emperor on his southern tour after the New Year, so I'm afraid I won't be able to return to the palace until autumn."
Rong Pei nodded and said, "I will go and pack it up right away and hand it over to Lord Ling after nightfall. Your Majesty, don't worry. Prince Yan is blessed with great fortune, and the Thirteenth Prince will be fine."
Ruyi listened to her words of comfort and nodded slightly, but the sadness in her heart did not ease. Her eyes slowly drifted out the window, looking at the blue sky and flying birds, her eyes revealing a hint of confusion and helplessness.
At this moment, Ruyi's thoughts drifted in the air like petals blown by the wind. She recalled every little detail between herself and the emperor, and those once sweet memories now became so bitter.