mesbooks Chapter 186 Instigation
Chapter 186 Instigation
Her thoughts gradually returned to her mind, and Su Lujun picked up the doll that had fallen to the ground and put it back into the box.
She took one last look at the doll and slammed the lid shut.
Seeing that Su Lujun gradually became interested, Yanwan smiled and lowered her head, waiting for her to speak.
Su Lujun picked up the handkerchief and carefully wiped the tears from her face, looking at Yanwan with bloodshot eyes.
"I was wrong back then, and I want to say sorry to my sister. Thank you for telling me the truth. I am stupid and don't have any good ideas. I still need your guidance..."
"I'm glad you understand, sister. It's still the end of the year, so please forgive her for a while. I'm still preparing for my southern tour, so I'll have to trouble you with all the harem matters."
Looking at Yanwan's bright eyes, Su Lujun understood.
"It's okay. It's the duty of us concubines to share the emperor's worries. Don't worry, sister. I will take good care of the Yanxi Palace..."
Seeing that the conversation was almost over, Yan Wan stood up and just as she reached the door, she suddenly stopped, turned around, and glanced at the fruit plate on the table. The corners of her mouth raised slightly, revealing a sly smile.
Yanwan stretched out her right hand and pushed it gently. The fruit plate tilted suddenly, and the kumquats inside rolled out and scattered all over the ground.
"It's getting late, I'll take my leave now..."
Su Lujun put away the box containing the doll. After finishing everything, she nodded and called out, "It's windy outside, my sister, please be careful. Kexin, please help me see my sister off..."
Only after Yan Wan walked out of Zhongcui Palace did Su Lujun loosen her clenched palms. Her thoughts were tightly gripped by hatred, as if she had to turn this anger into substance in order to calm the rage in her heart a little.
When she finally noticed her hands, she found that her palms had turned red and were covered with crescent-shaped nail marks. Those nails dug deep into her palms seemed to be telling the pain and anger deep in her heart.
Two of his unarmored fingers were severely injured. Due to excessive force, his nails dug deep into the flesh, turning the surrounding skin a deep purple. The nail on his index finger even broke, revealing a tiny crack from which blood oozed, like a red gem embedded in pale skin.
This little pain is nothing compared to the years of loneliness and resentment she has endured...
The end of the year was approaching quickly, and a palace banquet was held on the 28th day of the twelfth lunar month. Princess Hejing went to the palace to personally pay a visit to the so-called stepmother.
After she returned to Beijing and learned the truth about the second prince's death, she became even more angry with Ruyi. She used this as an excuse and never formally met Ruyi except for paying her respects on the day she returned to the palace.
Although Ruyi was exempted from paying respects on ordinary days, she had to do so on Laba Day. When all the concubines were seated in the Yikun Palace, He Jingcai arrived late and sat down below Ruyi in an extremely arrogant manner.
"I'm late, please forgive me, Empress Dowager." Although she said the words of apology, there was no trace of apology on her face, instead, she showed a bit of disdain.
Ruyi was sitting there in a depressed mood. She was not annoyed when she heard Hejing's words, but just replied lightly.
"It's okay. Princess Hejing lives in the capital. There's been a lot of snow lately, so it doesn't matter if you come a little later."
"Thank you, Empress Dowager, for your consideration. When He Jing returned, he didn't meet the other empresses. Empress Dowager even forgot to pay his respects. So I can only take advantage of Laba Festival today to come and get acquainted with everyone. In a blink of an eye, the situation is very different from when my mother was on the throne..."
The smell of gunpowder in the conversation made the concubines present dare not speak. Yingpin and Kepin, who entered the palace later, looked at each other in amazement.
As expected, he was the only child left by Empress Xiaoxian and the Emperor, and even the Empress didn't take him seriously.
"Time has changed. The princess has been gone for so many years, so things are naturally very different now."
Ruyi looked at the concubines below who were silent and frightened, and replied indifferently.
In her eyes, He Jing was just a child, albeit a bit willful and capricious, but still a child after all. As the queen, she should have the magnanimity and understanding to tolerate and understand all of this. She was well aware of her status and understood that within the palace, she needed to maintain dignity and respect, while also displaying the demeanor and grace of a queen who was a mother of the country.
She would not be too harsh on He Jing's behavior, nor would she argue too much with a child.
"By the way, why can't I see Fifth Brother's mother? I heard that she made a mistake a few days ago and was punished by the Emperor. Now she won't even be released on Laba Festival? Fifth Brother is really pitiful. On such a day, he can't be reunited with his family..."
He Jing sighed, but did not forget to look at Ruyi's face. Seeing Ruyi's face gradually turning pale, the smile on her face became even more intense.
As soon as she finished speaking, the hall suddenly became quiet.
"Princess Hejing, you don't know this, but Concubine Hai was confined by the Emperor because she formed a clique in the palace and instigated Li Yu, a man close to the Emperor, to murder the heir. If it weren't for Concubine Ling's plea and her hard work in giving birth to the Fifth Prince, the Emperor would have taken her life lightly."
Seeing that Ruyi didn't say anything, Bai Ruiji took over and shook her head and sighed.
"Is that so? Fifth brother is so unlucky to have such a disgusting mother... It's been a long time since my mother passed away, and this palace has really changed. Look at everyone dressed up in jewels and gems, and extravagance has become the norm. It seems that the simple style when my mother was in power is gone. Empress Dowager, now that the Qing Dynasty is at war with Junggar, you should set an example for the six palaces, take the lead in practicing simplicity, and contribute more to the war on the front line..."
After these sermons were spoken, the hall became even quieter.
Logically, Su Lujun should have come out to rescue Ruyi at this time, but she just sat in her seat without saying a word, and even watched coldly as Ruyi was harassed by Hejing.
Ruyi waited for a few moments, and seeing that Su Lujun had no intention of speaking for her, she could only speak awkwardly.
"The prosperous times, the peaceful seas and clear rivers, are naturally different from when the emperor first ascended the throne..."
After saying this, Ruyi began to miss Hailan. If Hailan were there, she probably wouldn't be so lonely around her.
"It's just that people are gone and things get cold, eh? Since it's a prosperous era, how come I heard that the Empress Dowager reduced the reward for the midwife in order to pray for my fifth sister? The Empress Dowager is so adorned with jewels, any single item would be enough to reward someone. If it's about praying for blessings...mostly she gives out porridge and gives out money. This is the first time I've heard of withholding money from servants...If she hadn't withheld money back then, maybe my fifth sister wouldn't..."
Bai Ruiji smiled and lowered her head when she heard this. If her current status was not inappropriate, she would really like to say: What goes around comes around. Whatever evil a mother does will eventually be punished on her child.
The queen really deserves it. She has such a good life, but she has to live like this. She is so useless.