mtl008 Chapter 529: Confinement to Fengqi Palace
Chapter 529: Confinement to Fengqi Palace
Lan Qingwu immediately bowed her head and said, "Yes! I accept your command and thank you!"
Lan Qingwu stood up and walked out of the hall. She had no expression on her face and looked extremely cold. She walked slowly and steadily, and passed by the Crown Prince and Crown Princess who bowed their heads in greeting without glancing sideways. The hem of her dress brushed the threshold gently, and Lan Qingwu walked out straight away.
At the entrance of the main hall, a few high-ranking concubines came sporadically, led by Concubine Jiang. When they saw Lan Qingwu coming out, they hurriedly bowed and saluted. Lan Qingwu did not stop or say a word, and walked past them one by one.
Ru Ping whispered, "Empress, please wait a moment and ride the phoenix chariot!"
Lan Qingwu and Emperor Shenwu came together on a dragon chariot. Emperor Shenwu was not there at the moment, and Lan Qingwu did not want to make things complicated, so he did not plan to ride the dragon chariot again, and the phoenix chariot did not follow.
Lan Qingwu said directly: "No need! Let's go for a walk! We don't know when we can get out!"
Ruping also felt the emperor's anger at the entrance of the hall, and she was silent as a cicada. Fortunately, Fengqi Palace was not far from Cining Palace, so she just treated it as a walk.
The prince seemed to be lost in thought. He glanced at the situation in the palace and turned around: "Let's go!"
The Crown Princess, whose body was still trembling, hurriedly followed the Crown Prince out of the Cining Palace.
The remaining concubines were stopped outside by Nanny Li and politely asked to leave. Concubine Jiang looked at the empress and the crown prince as they left, then turned and left without a word. The remaining concubines, none of them foolish, scattered like birds and beasts, and soon disappeared.
At this time, only the most noble mother and son were left in the hall.
Emperor Shenwu bent down and picked up the simple piece of rice paper. His movements were noble and graceful, and his bony fingers gently grasped the paper. He spoke calmly, "Mother, after you pass away, I will give you the most solemn funeral, burying you alongside my father! As for the rest, I have my own plans."
Empress Dowager Li knew she couldn't confront her son head-on, so she softened her tone, "Emperor, what you're doing is fraught with difficulty. Empress Duanhui hasn't done anything wrong, and she's given birth to your daughter. If you insist on doing this, the upright officials in the court won't let it go and will criticize you and the Empress. You've always valued legitimate and illegitimate children, and if you treat your wife this way, you'll lose the support of the people."
"Especially the Queen. I can see that she doesn't want your reputation to be damaged. If you force it, it will be very difficult for the Queen!"
Empress Dowager Li spoke a lot earnestly, but Emperor Shenwu only replied lightly, which once again made Empress Dowager Li furious and speechless!
Emperor Shenwu said, "In the final analysis, I do not want a woman who once wavered and wanted to harm me to be by my side!"
Empress Dowager Li was so angry that her chest heaved.
"Mother, I have kept my promise to her and have ensured her children a life of peace and honor. However, after a hundred years, I only wish for a woman who suits my heart to accompany me for thousands of years! What have I done wrong? I want our names to be forever linked together when our descendants offer sacrifices to me every year. What have I done wrong?"
Empress Dowager Li looked dejected, "Emperor..."
Perhaps Empress Dowager Li also felt that she had gone too far. After all, the ancients attached great importance to matters after death, let alone an emperor. Anyone she disliked was forbidden from entering the imperial mausoleum.
To be honest, Empress Dowager Li felt very uncomfortable having someone she disliked or even hated accompany her for a hundred years.
"But, Emperor... this is not good for you, you..."
Emperor Shenwu saw through Empress Dowager Li's bluff. "Mother, this matter will take many years to complete. By then, I will know my limits and will not allow the civil and military officials, or the people of the world, to discuss it. If you insist on refusing an explanation now, I cannot guarantee that Mingzhu will know the true cause of her mother's death when this matter becomes a hot topic. I am afraid that by then, the Li family will also be held accountable!"
To attempt to assassinate the then crown prince, now the emperor, was a heinous crime punishable by the death of all nine generations of his clan! The man who orchestrated this was Empress Duanhui's father, Empress Dowager Li's brother—the former Duke Cheng'en.
Princess Mingzhu would be hit hard, as the pain of losing her son had just passed.
Threat! This is a naked threat!
Empress Dowager Li failed to achieve her goal and could only watch Emperor Shenwu leave the Cining Palace.
Empress Dowager Li was really going to get sick from anger now.
But she didn't dare to really get sick. If she couldn't take this opportunity to change Emperor Shenwu's mind, then the matter would be truly settled. The Li family would then become the laughing stock of the entire imperial city. The Li family had already gradually declined since Emperor Shenwu ascended the throne, and Empress Dowager Li would never allow such a thing to happen again.
However, Empress Dowager Li had many concerns and was restricted in handling this matter, so she could only vent her anger first and did not dare to really break off relations with Emperor Shenwu.
The Crown Princess followed the Crown Prince back to Dongde Palace with trepidation and caution. She was still terrified, almost facing the Emperor's wrath. She was still trembling in her heart. She looked at the Crown Prince sitting upright in his chair, seeing him look thoughtful, and couldn't help but ask, "Your Highness, what has made our father so angry? What should we do now?"
The Crown Prince paused for a moment and said, "Father's order has been announced to all six palaces. Mother is temporarily confined to Fengqi Palace. You can go and see her tomorrow!"
The Crown Princess exclaimed in surprise, "My Queen Mother has already put me under house arrest. How dare I go in..."
Seeing the Crown Prince's slightly cold expression, the Crown Princess belatedly said, "I understand."
The prince's expression improved. "Go ahead. Even though my mother is under house arrest, it doesn't mean she can't be visited."
The Crown Princess nodded and said, "Then Your Highness, do you know why Father is so angry?"
The Crown Prince and the Crown Princess were at the entrance of the hall. The Crown Princess only vaguely heard Emperor Shenwu's rage, but did not hear anything specific.
The prince was different. He had sharp ears and eyes. He heard every word of the argument between the three people and naturally knew what was going on.
However, the Crown Prince said nothing to the Crown Princess. He stood up and said, "Go back to your own palace! I'm going out for a while."
The Crown Princess was surprised and asked, "Your Highness, are you going to Fengqi Palace now?"
Your Majesty has just sealed the Fengqi Palace. Is that okay?
The prince didn't want to say more, waved his hand and left.
After Lan Qingwu returned to Fengqi Palace, he took the initiative to ask the palace servants to seal the gate of Fengqi Palace. A moment later, the Xuanyu Guards sent by Emperor Shenwu also surrounded the palace where the empress was.
When the Crown Prince arrived, the gate of Fengqi Palace was being guarded by two Black Feather Guards. Upon seeing the Crown Prince, they immediately knelt and saluted, "Long live His Royal Highness the Crown Prince!"
"Your Highness, His Majesty has issued an order to seal off Fengqi Palace. What are you doing..."
The Crown Prince gently smoothed his sleeves and said, "My father's order is to confine my mother, the Queen Mother. Did he say that I am not allowed to enter?"
The two Xuanyu Guards exchanged a look of hesitation. Yun En, who was standing behind the Crown Prince, hurried forward and whispered, "Two elder brothers, you must carefully consider His Majesty's decree. Besides, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is worried and wants to see the Empress. These are for you two to drink."
The implication of these words made the two Xuanyu Guards tremble all over, and they immediately caught the small purse under Yun En's wide sleeves.
The prince had already pushed open the door and walked in.
However, the entrance to Lan Qingwu's main hall was not quiet. Empress Dowager Li took advantage of the time difference and sent eunuchs to Fengqi Palace to read the imperial edict before the Xuanyu Guards surrounded Fengqi Palace.
Meanwhile, the arrogant eunuch Yuanxiao was bragging to Ruping, who was blocking the main hall entrance: "Where is the Empress? Why don't you come out and listen to the Empress Dowager's command? The Empress Dowager has ordered the Empress to express gratitude for the Emperor's grace and pray for His Majesty, the late Empress, and the Dasheng Dynasty. From today on, for the next 9981 days, you must kneel before the Buddha, copying and reciting scriptures every day, without slacking off!"
"Every morning, I come to Fengqi Palace to take away the scriptures copied by the Empress. This is Miss Songwen. From today on, Miss Songwen will stay by the Empress's side and serve her!"
Ru Ping only heard with a face full of anger, while Song Wen, who knew all the forces in the harem well, was trembling with his head down. This green eunuch Yuanxiao, a new official, was so busy that he won the favor of the Empress Dowager with his sweet words, and he actually took up this dangerous mission!
The most important thing is that he was unlucky and had himself implicated. Everyone in the six palaces knew that the emperor and the empress had a deep love for each other. Today, His Majesty was angry and confined the empress to her house, but who can say what will happen tomorrow!
When His Majesty comes back to vent his anger on behalf of the wronged Empress, it will be these servants who are unlucky! At worst, there is still His Royal Highness the Crown Prince! How can His Royal Highness the Crown Prince watch his mother suffer injustice?
Song Wen glanced at Eunuch Yuanxiao, who was confused about the situation and still gloating, and cursed several times in his heart. He was such a clueless and contemptuous person. He thought that the Empress Dowager was the most powerful person in the harem, and he didn't even open his eyes to see who was in charge of the palace now and who would be in charge in the future!