The Empress Dowager put down the Buddhist scriptures in her hand and said with a smile, “If you hadn’t said it, I would have really believed what the Empress said.”
Granny Chang was puzzled: “Empress has never met General Zhaoyong, so why did she come to this conclusion?”
The Empress Dowager’s smile deepened.
“She’s probably speaking up for her niece.”
“You mean, General Shen’s eldest daughter, Shen Tinglan?”
“That’s right! Before the New Year, she followed her father’s example and went to the battlefield, but she returned in disgrace with a defeat and the loss of 10,000 soldiers. The Emperor, out of consideration for the Empress, did not punish her, but only ordered Shen Tinglan to reflect on her mistakes in seclusion. Now that the one at the gate has returned with military merits, but Shen Tinglan is still not allowed to leave the mansion, the Empress has lost face and will naturally not speak well of the one at the gate.”
Although he said that, there was no sense of blame in his tone.
Empress Cihui was chosen by the Empress Dowager herself for the Emperor, so she wouldn’t take any minor mistakes to heart.
Besides, this can hardly be considered a mistake.
The Empress Dowager examined the small gold ingot and tossed it to Granny Chang.
“Since it’s for you, just accept it.”
She then instructed Granny Chang: “Let her in, I want to see for myself whether she is as good as you say.”
“yes.”
…
Outside the main hall, Liuzheng waited quietly with her head bowed.
Beside her, in a birdcage, was a parrot that could mimic speech.
“Prince Su! Prince Su!”
Liuzheng was startled and subconsciously turned her head, but there was no one else besides the palace maids and eunuchs.
Where is Prince Su?
The young eunuch smiled and said to her, “This is the Empress’s parrot. She says it’s clever, but after half a year, it has only learned one phrase: ‘Prince Su.’ General Ruan, don’t be fooled.”
I see.
Liuzheng nodded, said thank you, and lowered her head again, but her mind was still racing.
It must have been because someone frequently called out “Prince Su” to this myna bird that it learned the phrase.
And this person could only be the Empress Dowager; no one else dared to speak in front of this parrot that was mimicking others.
Liuzheng knew that the late emperor had two empresses. The first empress was the empress dowager’s cousin, and the two entered the palace together.
After the first empress died of lung disease, the empress dowager became the second empress.
The first empress’s sons, Emperor Jingyuan and Princess Huishu, were raised under the Empress Dowager’s care.
Afterwards, the Empress Dowager gave birth to a son and a daughter, namely Prince Su and Princess Zhaohua, who was the same age as Liuzheng.
After the late emperor passed away, everyone thought that the empress dowager would support her own son to ascend the throne, but unexpectedly, she supported the current Jingyuan Emperor to ascend the throne.
The mother-son relationship thus came to an end.
Judging from this parrot, the Empress Dowager probably holds Prince Su in high regard as well.
Liuzheng was also puzzled. If that was the case, why didn’t the Empress Dowager support her own son to ascend the throne?
But that’s not something she needs to think about.
Liuzheng’s eyes quickly returned to calm, but her hand trembled slightly again.
Before long, Granny Chang came out.
“Miss Ruan, the Empress Dowager requests your presence.”
Liuzheng nodded and followed Granny Chang into the hall.
The first thing you see are four gilded bronze incense burners and bronze tortoises and cranes. On the east and west sides are a sundial and a moondial, respectively. Further ahead is the gilded wooden throne of the Empress Dowager, with elaborate and luxurious decorations.
Liuzheng was neither dazzled nor frightened by this luxury.
She was not intimidated at all. She simply lowered her head and walked up, wearing a polite smile, and performed the full curtsy to the Empress Dowager on the throne.
He bowed, knelt, and kowtowed, without the slightest error.
When she raised her head, the Empress Dowager’s gaze fell on her face. The Empress Dowager, who was used to seeing beauties, was also momentarily stunned.
Good looks.
Beautiful, but not seductive.
Looking at her overall demeanor, she is even more dignified and elegant than Empress Cihui was when she first entered the palace.
The Empress Dowager disliked people who were too flamboyant, and Liuzheng’s appearance was exactly what she liked. Moreover, seeing that Liuzheng was not taught by anyone, yet her manners were impeccable, the Empress Dowager had a very good first impression of her.
In front of Liuzheng, she said to Granny Chang, “You’re right, Miss Ruan does indeed have an extraordinary temperament.”
Only then was Liuzheng allowed to get up.
“Please take a seat.”
“Thank you, Empress Dowager.”
Liuzheng curtsied before sitting down.
“I heard the emperor bestowed upon you a general’s mansion. Are you settling in well?”
“It is customary for Liuzheng’s entire family to be grateful for His Majesty’s kindness.”
The Empress Dowager then inquired about various trivial matters, including Wei Ranfeng.
Liuzheng answered each question meticulously, with humility and politeness.
She has a dignified appearance, and her eyelashes droop slightly when she speaks, giving people the feeling that she is listening attentively and answering questions, without making people feel perfunctory.
The Empress Dowager’s favor towards her increased even more.
She took off the jade pendant hanging from her lapel, stepped down from the throne, and personally hung it on Liuzheng.
“Yesterday you gave me a relic, and you also saved Ranfeng once at the border. This ‘Peaceful Life’ amulet is something I acquired when I was young, and I have always worn it with me. Today I will give it to you. If you want to enter the palace in the future, wear this amulet, and no one will stop you.”
“I dare not accept such a generous gift…”
“It’s nothing much, just a small token of my appreciation. Please accept it.”
Liuzheng then stopped refusing.
The Empress Dowager returned to her throne and noticed that the tea table next to Liuzheng was still empty. She frowned slightly and asked, “Why hasn’t tea been served yet?”
Immediately, a palace maid served Liuzheng a cup of tea.
This means that Liuzheng’s meaning has been fully acknowledged.
Just then, a completely black cat ran into the hall and rubbed against Liuzheng’s skirt.
The palace maid serving the tea was startled, and the teacup in her hand immediately tipped over.
Liuzheng neither dodged nor avoided the tea, which still soaked her skirt.
“This servant deserves to die!” The palace maid immediately knelt down and kowtowed.
The Empress Dowager cursed a few times, then hugged the cat to her chest.
That’s the Empress Dowager’s cat.
She couldn’t bear to punish the cat, so she scolded the palace maid for being useless and instead told Granny Chang to quickly fetch the imperial physician.
Liuzheng curtsied and said, “Your Majesty, please don’t be in a hurry. I’m not burned. However, I have to attend a banquet at Princess Huishu’s residence later, so I would like to ask Your Majesty to grant me a new set of clothes…”
“It’s good that there were no burns.” The Empress Dowager breathed a slight sigh of relief and instructed Granny Chang to take Liuzheng to change her clothes.
After the person left, she gently patted the black cat’s bottom.
“He’s usually so aloof with everyone, what’s gotten into him today?”
She had a good impression of Liuzheng, and if the black cat really hurt Liuzheng, she would feel guilty.
Fortunately, nothing happened.
A faint smile appeared in Liuzheng’s eyes.
When she became a ghost, she saw the black cat that the Empress Dowager kept.
It loves fish and also loves the smell of catnip.
As Liuzheng walked along, she carried a small piece of fish in her palm. She sprinkled the fish on the ground little by little to attract the black cat.
The hem of her skirt was also covered in catnip.
Therefore, the black cat searched all the way here, and when it saw her, it started rubbing against her like crazy.
Everything went smoothly, just as Liuzheng had planned.
Liuzheng quickly changed her clothes and returned.
It was a light-colored satin jacket with a bellflower design, not as luxurious as the clothes prepared by the First Madam, but more suitable for Liuzheng.
“Does it still fit? This is something I wore when I was young, and it looks very suitable for you.”
It turned out to be something the Empress Dowager wore when she was young.
Then this garment is better than any other fabric, no matter how expensive.
“It fits perfectly, thank you, Your Majesty.”
“You silly child, you don’t need to be so polite with me.” Then she asked, “Are you going to the Hui Shu residence?”
“yes.”
“That’s perfect. You can deliver my birthday gift on my behalf, which will save me the trouble of sending someone else.”
The Empress Dowager instructed Granny Chang to bring Princess Huishu’s birthday gifts.
It was a jade ruyi, packaged in a beautiful brocade box.
Liuzheng carefully held the zither and bid farewell to the Empress Dowager.
When he left, Granny Chang personally saw him off.
Granny Chang personally went to pick them up and escorted them to the palace gate. Such a grand occasion naturally reached the ears of Empress Cihui.
A hint of displeasure flashed in her eyes.
“The Empress Dowager knew that I disliked General Zhaoyong because of Tinglan.”
She instructed the head palace maid: “Go and find out what kind of bewitching potion General Zhaoyong gave the Empress Dowager.”
Although everyone in the Empress’s palace was her own person, it was rare for her to speak so directly and harshly, which showed that she was quite angry.
“Yes!” the head palace maid replied hastily.
Meanwhile, Liuzheng successfully left the palace.
She gained a lot from this trip.
The carriage went directly to the residence of Princess Huishu.
The eldest princess’s residence was not in Wuyi Lane, but in Sanyuanfang Street.
Although not as bustling and lively as Wuyi Lane, it is scenic and has the residences of many prominent families.
The Song family arrived three quarters of an hour ago.
Together with the top scholar’s wife, she presented gifts to Princess Huishu.
Princess Huishu, dressed in a dark green dress, sat under the lakeside pavilion, a golden hairpin on her head shining brightly in the sunlight.
As they walked, they sensed that people were pointing and whispering about them.
When they looked over, no one seemed to be acting strangely.
Song was puzzled, but her mind calmed down when she saw the eldest princess.
The eldest princess had a good relationship with the maternal family of the top scholar’s wife, so the two had a close personal relationship.
Upon her arrival, the eldest princess personally greeted her.
“Come on in! Why bring a gift?”
“It’s just a small gift, I hope the princess won’t find it offensive,” the scholar’s wife said, introducing Song Shi to the princess: “This is my teacher’s wife.”
The princess’s gaze then fell on Song’s face.
They seemed pleasantly surprised.
“Is this the birth mother of the valiant female general?”
Song hurriedly bowed and said, “This humble woman, Song, greets the Princess. May the Princess enjoy boundless blessings and peace.”
The eldest princess helped her up.
“Don’t be shy, please have a seat.”
Song smiled faintly, but was secretly delighted.
This was her first time meeting the Princess; she had never been qualified before.
She just didn’t think this was a benefit that Liuzheng had brought her, and she never even considered it.
The eldest princess said, “I’ve wanted to meet General Zhaoyong for a long time, but I’ve been busy arranging the banquet and haven’t had time to invite her for tea. Has she come today?”
The top scholar’s wife had told the eldest princess in advance that Liuzheng would be coming, so the eldest princess did not send gifts when Liuzheng moved to her new home, but waited to give them to her in person.
The gifts have also been prepared; it is a housewarming couplet personally written by the eldest princess.
Although the gift was simple, it was a significant gift because it came from the eldest princess.
Madam Song stood up and replied, “My daughter was delayed by some business, but she should arrive soon. Please forgive her, Princess…”
She did not mention that Liuzheng had been summoned to the palace by the Empress Dowager.
The eldest princess waved her hand.
“General Zhaoyong is busy with military affairs, I understand.”
But the smile faded.
Several more people came to offer their congratulations, but the Princess left Song behind and went to entertain the other guests.
Song Shi did not feel embarrassed; instead, a faint smile appeared on her lips.