Kneel to your mother! Gu Lingwan looked at the eunuch who was basking in reflected glory and warned him, “Watch your tongue. I am a Princess Consort formally married to a prince of this land, the son-in-law of the Empress Dowager, and the descendant of a loyal family who sacrificed everything for the nation. I am the person the late Emperor personally designated for this marriage. How dare a mere eunuch bully me here?”
Having said that, he turned to the Empress Dowager with a more respectful tone: “Empress Dowager, is what Lingwan said correct?” He paused, then added, “If there is anything improper, Lingwan is willing to accept punishment.”
A Princess Consort of the realm, her daughter-in-law, a descendant of martyrs, and now he is using the late Emperor to pressure me! When did this child become so sharp-tongued and calculating? The Empress Dowager stared at Gu Lingwan, scrutinizing him for a long moment. “Eunuch Wang is reckless. Kneel down.”
Beside him, Eunuch Wang fell to his knees with a thud. He grumbled internally, astonished that he had been scolded by that spineless wretch.
After dismissing the eunuch, the Empress Dowager said to Gu Lingwan, “Princess Consort, you should kneel as well.”
Gu Lingwan maintained a respectful posture but did not kneel. “Empress Dowager, I dare to ask why you wish to punish me with kneeling.”
The Empress Dowager replied, “I have been waiting here for a long time. The journey from the Honghua Hall does not take this long. Therefore, you deliberately delayed to show disrespect.”
Before Gu Lingwan could speak, Matron Gui interjected, “Empress Dowager, the Princess Consort walked very slowly the entire way. I urged him several times, but he remained the same.”
Gu Lingwan waited calmly for Matron Gui to finish before saying to the Empress Dowager, “Empress Dowager, you are the mistress of the inner palace and the mother of the nation. Even if you asked me to die, I would have no complaints, let alone kneeling. But there are some things I must explain to you so you do not listen to the slander of villains and misunderstand me.”
He glanced at Matron Gui. “I walked slowly because I went into the water today to save someone, causing my legs to ache and my old leg ailment to flare up. I explained this to Matron Gui already, yet she reported to you that I was being disrespectful and stalling.”
Gu Lingwan rubbed his leg. “Right now, let alone kneeling, even walking is difficult. You can imagine what I would look like after kneeling for you. Everyone attending the Emperor’s birthday banquet knows I saved the Eleventh Prince today. If you punish me simply because I walked slowly, it will surely draw criticism from the rest of the Xiao royal family and damage your reputation.”
Having finished, Gu Lingwan lifted the hem of his ice-blue robe as if to kneel, but the Empress Dowager stopped him. “No need, Princess Consort.” She then sternly reprimanded Matron Gui: “Do you admit your fault?”
Gu Lingwan lowered his robe and stood with his back straight. This old hag is starting to shift the blame.
Matron Gui quickly knelt. “I admit my fault.” She immediately explained, “I am old and my memory is poor. I forgot that the Princess Consort told me about his leg ailment.”
Hearing this, Gu Lingwan said with feigned concern, “If Matron Gui’s memory is failing due to age, perhaps you should retire from the palace early and enjoy your twilight years at home.”
Matron Gui panicked. “I still wish to serve the Empress Dowager. My memory is only occasionally poor.”
Gu Lingwan smiled. “Is your memory only occasionally poor, or is it only poor when it comes to targeting me?”
Just as Matron Gui was frantically trying to find an excuse, the Empress Dowager ordered sternly, “Enough excuses. Matron Gui is incompetent. Someone, slap her mouth thirty times as punishment.”
Gu Lingwan stayed silent and stood quietly to the side. He was no longer the original host—a soft persimmon for anyone to squeeze.
Suddenly, the tightly shut palace doors were flung open without warning! The heavy panels emitted a dull, loud creak, like a long-slumbering beast waking with a roar. An invisible pressure filled the room.
Gu Lingwan turned to look.
It was Xiao Yingxun. The man’s brows were knitted tight, his dark, ink-like eyes radiating an icy chill. He looked intimidating. Gu Lingwan felt his heart tighten and quietly shifted to the side, trying to keep his distance from this imposing man.
An old hag and a vicious Xiao the Second—I am hopelessly outmatched! Gu Lingwan thought anxiously.
Xiao Yingxun stopped beside Gu Lingwan, glanced at him, then swept his gaze over the kneeling Eunuch Wang and the Matron Gui who was being slapped. It seems I was overly worried.
He withdrew his thoughts and saluted the Empress Dowager: “Mother, are you feeling any better?”
The Empress Dowager sighed. “The same as always.”
The Empress Dowager had not summoned Gu Lingwan to punish him; she had another agenda. She stopped wasting time and said, “When the late Emperor arranged this marriage, I thought the child in the Zhenbei Prince’s wife’s womb was a girl.”
“Lingwan is aware of this,” Gu Lingwan replied, listening while keeping an eye on Matron Gui. She is just the lackey; I must not let her off the hook.
Xiao Yingxun looked at him, feeling a surge of suspicion: How exactly did he maneuver the Empress Dowager into punishing her own trusted servants?
The Empress Dowager followed Xiao Yingxun’s gaze toward Gu Lingwan and frowned. Yingxun is actually looking at the Heir! In the past, Yingxun detested the very sight of him, fearing that even a glance would sully his eyes. The Empress Dowager looked back at Xiao Yingxun, catching his expression. She pressed her temples—she must have been mistaken.
She continued, “The two of you have been married for over a year, yet there is no heir.”
Gu Lingwan curled his lips mischievously: What? Are you expecting your son to produce a big, chubby grandson for you?
Xiao Yingxun heard his inner voice: Such filthy thoughts.
The Empress Dowager continued, “A man cannot bear children.” She then fixed her gaze on Xiao Yingxun. “Yingxun bears the royal bloodline and must branch out for the sake of the royal family. That is why I summoned the Heir today—to inform you that your marriage ends here.”
Xiao Yingxun frowned slightly. “Mother, today is the Emperor’s birthday. It is truly inappropriate to bring this up.”
The Empress Dowager replied, “You can give the divorce papers to the Heir now and announce it another day.” She turned to Gu Lingwan: “The royal family will not mistreat you. If you divorce, I will give you ten thousand taels of gold as compensation.”
Upon hearing this, Gu Lingwan’s already beautiful eyes shone like bright stars. He quickly realized he had lost his composure, took a deep breath, and suppressed his excitement. He forced himself to return to his usual gentle, obedient demeanor and said softly, “Lingwan obeys the Empress Dowager’s arrangement.”
Wahahaha! A whole ten thousand taels of gold! This is enough for Dongming and me to live comfortably for the rest of our lives! I never expected this stingy, cruel old hag to actually do a good deed for once. Hehehe, it seems it’s my lucky day!