Could it be the Cool-Cool Talisman sent by his little granddaughter?
No, that couldn’t be right—didn’t his little granddaughter say it was a paper talisman that generated a cool breeze?
Emperor Mingde considered many possibilities, ultimately attributing it to perhaps feeling better in spirit, which naturally led to coughing up less blood.
“Wang Zhong! Fetch two bolts of Heavenly Silk and that night-glowing pearl from the Yuequan Kingdom’s tribute from my private treasury, and send them to the Eastern Palace for Tangtang!”
Heavenly Silk was soft, light, and sweat-absorbent, perfect for his lively and active little granddaughter to wear.
As for the night-glowing pearl, it was just a glowing sphere, perfect to give to his little granddaughter to keep her entertained.
Wang Zhong was thoroughly stunned. It seemed His Majesty truly doted on the little Commandery Princess, willing to bestow even precious Heavenly Silk and a rare night-glowing pearl upon her!
One should know that only five bolts of Heavenly Silk were obtained each year; aside from Her Majesty the Empress and the Crown Princess, the remaining two bolts were all granted to the little Commandery Princess!
To be this favored after meeting His Majesty just once, what would the future hold?
Wang Zhong silently raised Tangtang’s importance in his mind yet another notch.
Fengyi Palace
“Chunxu, have them remove some of the ice! Qiuying, go check the imperial kitchen again—why aren’t the pastries ready yet?”
Empress Lin Wangshu’s delicate eyebrows knit slightly as she endured her discomfort, directing the palace servants of Fengyi Palace around in circles.
She had quite a few grandsons, but not a single soft, adorable granddaughter.
Having wished upon the stars and moon, she had finally gotten a little granddaughter!
Today was the first time meeting her, and nothing could be allowed to go wrong.
“Your Majesty, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has brought the little Commandery Princess to pay her respects…” Shizhu, the chief eunuch of Fengyi Palace, entered to report.
The Empress nervously tidied her collar before instructing, “Hurry, let them in!”
“Your son pays respects to Royal Mother!”
“Tangtang pays respects to Imperial Grandmother~”
Tangtang imitated her father’s posture, bending her little legs and kneeling solidly on the floor.
It pained the Empress’s heart to see this, and she hurriedly gestured to her, “Good darling, hurry over to Imperial Grandmother and let me have a look at you!”
Tangtang stood up and threw herself into the Empress’s arms like a fledgling bird. “Imperial Grandmother, Tangtang brought you a gift! Quick, see if you like it!”
Seeing the mountain ginseng in Gu Yanzhao’s hand, the smile on the Empress’s face deepened even more.
She held Tangtang in her arms and kissed her tender, rosy little cheek. “Good darling, Imperial Grandmother is already so happy just by you coming!”
Tangtang tilted her head and blinked her big eyes, her voice soft and sweet, “Then Tangtang will come visit you often from now on~ Imperial Grandmother, Tangtang is a high-ranking official now! As long as I work hard at catching bad guys, I’ll earn lots of copper coins and buy you many big ginsengs like this in the future!”
That’s right! Imperial Grandfather made her a high-ranking official. Once she received her copper coins in the future, she would buy gifts for Imperial Grandfather, pretty clothes for Father and Mother, and grand nourishing medicines for her brothers!
“Look at that, everyone, see how well my darling knows how to cherish people!” The Empress smiled so broadly she couldn’t close her mouth. “Then Imperial Grandmother will be waiting for our darling to collect her copper coins…”
Chunxu and Qiuying, the two senior maidservants, also looked at the pink dumpling with smiles.
Their mistress was frail and constantly suffered from severe head wind ailments; she had even exempted the other imperial concubines from their morning greetings. This grand Fengyi Palace was usually cold, quiet, and filled with the bitter scent of medicine.
Ever since Her Majesty learned that His Royal Highness had brought the little Commandery Princess back to the Eastern Palace, she had been eagerly anticipating meeting her.
If the little Commandery Princess could visit often, perhaps Fengyi Palace could become a bit livelier.
“You’re Tangtang’s Imperial Grandmother, so of course Tangtang has to cherish you~” Tangtang hugged the Empress’s arm, acting spoiled.
It was really strange—there didn’t seem to be an evil array at Imperial Grandfather’s place either, so why were the tops of both Imperial Grandfather’s and Imperial Grandmother’s heads pitch-black?
Imperial Grandfather’s head still had a bit of shimmering gold light, but Imperial Grandmother’s head was just like Mother’s—pure, solid black!
Tangtang’s little face gradually darkened, and she pulled out an Evil-Dispelling Talisman and stuffed it into the Empress’s hand.
The Empress was baffled, staring blankly at the yellow paper talisman in her palm.
How strange!
Whether it was psychological or due to something else, she actually felt her head didn’t hurt as badly as before.
“Imperial Grandmother, I drew this talisman myself. You must keep it on you at all times!” Tangtang instructed in her milky voice.
She hadn’t prepared a little porcelain bottle today, so she couldn’t pluck the black mist from Imperial Grandmother’s head. She could only use the Evil-Dispelling Talisman as a temporary fix for now.
The previous little porcelain bottle was left behind by Master, and she didn’t know how many porcelain bottles the copper coins she earned could buy.
“This talisman… this talisman is drawn really well…” The Empress forced herself to praise it, though she couldn’t recognize a single stroke of the crooked, squiggly drawing.
Gu Yanzhao, on the other hand, swept a glance over it, his eyelids twitching slightly as he silently added sending Tangtang to school to his schedule.
Tangtang showed off her tiny baby teeth and grinned so wide her mouth couldn’t close—Imperial Grandmother praised her drawn talisman as pretty!
“Imperial Grandmother, next time Tangtang comes to see you, I’ll bring lots more yellow talismans!” Tangtang pointed joyfully at the doors and windows. “Stick them all over!”
She shook her head merrily; that way, no matter where Imperial Grandmother walked, she would be able to see the paper talismans she drew.
Empress: …
That really won’t be necessary…
These ghost-like scribbles… pui! One piece of such precious paper talisman is quite enough!
“My darling, seeing how thin you are breaks Imperial Grandmother’s heart! Here are some delicious cakes!” The Empress hurriedly stuffed a piece of cool mint cake into Tangtang’s mouth.
If she let her darling keep talking, the next time she came, she might very well paste paper talismans across the entire imperial palace!
Tangtang’s eyes suddenly went round, as if she had discovered a treasure.
This cake was sweet, soft, and even blew a cool breeze—could it be that it was made with a Cool-Cool Talisman too?
She tentatively took another small bite, but didn’t taste the expected paper talisman. She couldn’t help tilting her head and looking at Empress: “Imperial Grandmother, how can the cake blow a cool breeze?”
She only knew how to draw talismans; she didn’t know how to make such delicious and cool cakes.
“This is made with mint and glutinous rice flour. If Tangtang likes it, Imperial Grandmother will have them make more for you to take back! But you can’t eat too much of this, okay?” The Empress rubbed Tangtang’s head with a bright smile.
Tangtang nodded half-comprehendingly, then picked up a piece of cake and placed it in the Empress’s hand. “Tangtang likes it, Imperial Grandmother should eat too!”
The Empress looked at her with doting eyes. Just as she was about to speak, she felt a sudden itch in her throat, followed by a violent burst of coughing as she covered her mouth.
Tangtang looked terrified, hurriedly patting the Empress’s back in a panic. “Imperial Grandmother, are you okay?”
She was fine just a moment ago, why did Imperial Grandmother suddenly start coughing uncontrollably…
The Empress wanted to comfort her little granddaughter, but before she could open her mouth, a surge of metallic sweetness rushed up her throat.
Her face turned bright red as she desperately suppressed the urge to vomit blood, shooting a look at the equally panicked Chunxu, gesturing for her to take Tangtang away.
“Little Commandery Princess, allow this servant to take you to the Imperial Zoo for a walk! Not only are there snow rabbits sent as tribute from Xuesang, but there is even a rare black panther!”
Tangtang clutched the Empress’s sleeve tightly, shaking her head in refusal with eyes full of worry. “Imperial Grandmother isn’t feeling well, Tangtang has to stay and guard her!”
She was afraid that if she left, she would never see Imperial Grandmother again.
“Tangtang, be good. Go play outside with Chunxu for a bit. Your Imperial Grandmother is fine!” Gu Yanzhao’s expression was grave, yet he still patiently comforted her.
Only after he gave multiple assurances did Tangtang finally follow Chunxu out, turning back with every three steps she took.
The Empress watched her little granddaughter’s figure disappear beyond the doorway before opening her mouth—*wah*—and spitting out two large mouthfuls of black blood.
A scattering of blood droplets splashed onto the Evil-Dispelling Talisman, causing the yellow talisman to catch fire and burn away without any flame.
“Your Majesty!”
“Royal Mother!”
“Quick, put out the fire!”
“Hurry and summon the Imperial Physicians!”
Bursts of panicked cries broke out simultaneously, and in an instant, Fengyi Palace fell into complete chaos.