Chapter 31: Heartbroken part 1
Beneath the golden dais of the hall, He Xunling raised her head in disbelief. The Emperor, usually as gentle and refined as jade, had actually uttered such merciless words.
She tried to justify herself, but faced with the Emperor’s fury, she was too terrified to even open her mouth.
And it seemed the Emperor had summoned her solely to reprimand her with that one sentence. After speaking, he coldly lowered his head and resumed reviewing memorials, saying nothing more.
“If Miss He has no other business, you may withdraw.” Noticing the lack of movement below for a long time, Gu Zhen grew slightly irritable. Amidst his busy schedule, he spared a glance downward, his expression stern and cold.
He Xunling saw it clearly—those eyes were terrifyingly cold, as freezing as the deepest winter, causing her to shudder in the mid-spring weather.
Gu Zhen grew increasingly impatient.
He was a man with a strong sense of territoriality and greatly disliked people intruding rashly. Even when they were first married, he hadn’t liked Zhao Yiyi constantly coming to Chongren Hall to find him, and had tactfully dissuaded her a few times.
As for He Xunling, he had initially treated her with a bit of courtesy for the Empress Dowager’s sake. Unexpectedly, this only encouraged her to push her luck, becoming increasingly oblivious to her own status.
He had endured it several times, but now, coinciding with his own troubled state of mind—and since she wasn’t the Empress, unworthy of him wasting energy on tactful persuasion—he hadn’t spared her any face, questioning her directly.
A dull ache suddenly throbbed in his forehead. Gu Zhen raised a hand to rub it lightly, his gaze growing darker.
He couldn’t help but recall how, in the past, the Empress would also make food every few days and have someone deliver it to Zichen Palace.
Since their unhappy parting that day, she hadn’t sent anything again.
Making such a fuss this time, just to be in a pique with him… it was truly getting out of hand.
He Xunling left Zichen Palace with red eyes. Her maid was frightened and repeatedly asked her what had happened, but she only shook her head and said, “It’s nothing, let’s go back quickly.”
Thinking of His Majesty’s expression and tone just now, she couldn’t even figure out how she had offended him to make him suddenly so angry.
She had come to Zichen Palace to deliver food on the Empress Dowager’s orders. Whose eyes did this offend?
In this vast Ziwei Palace, everyone was happy to see her enter the palace. Ideally, the only exception should be… the Empress.
Could it be that the Empress had said something to His Majesty, causing his sudden outburst? Thinking of this, He Xunling’s face suddenly darkened, and the hand hidden in her sleeve clenched into a fist.
She had no favor herself, so she suppressed others, unable to bear seeing anyone else do well. Occupying the position of Empress for nothing, yet still insatiable.
The incident involved too much and absolutely could not be known by others. Before returning to Wanchun Palace, He Xunling had already adjusted her emotions, leaving only a trace of disappointment on her face.
“Why so unhappy?” The Empress Dowager glanced at her, pausing in her motion of picking up a candied fruit with a silver fork.
He Xunling curtsied and sat dependently beside the Empress Dowager, only lowering her head to say, “Eldest Aunt, Xunling is just… worried that my humble appearance won’t catch His Majesty’s eye.”
So it was about this.
A look of understanding flashed across the Empress Dowager’s eyes. With the Empress’s face as a comparison, anyone would lose confidence in their own appearance. The He family members were all good-looking, and He Xunling could be considered a beauty, but placed next to the Empress, it was like the glow of a firefly trying to outshine the morning sun.
Truly overestimating oneself.
Thinking back, before that Zhao woman was selected as Crown Princess, that wretched girl Runan had told the late Emperor that the Zhao daughter was beautiful. The late Emperor liked good-looking children and grandchildren, so not only was his own harem full of beauties, but he also tried to find good-looking consorts for his children.
One reason the Zhao woman caught the late Emperor’s eye was because she was truly beautiful. When she first arrived in Luoyang, her appearance had already attracted everyone’s attention.
Later, as she grew older, she blossomed even more, becoming unreasonably beautiful.
However, seeing He Xunling’s desolate expression, the Empress Dowager rarely felt a twinge of sympathy and comforted her against her own convictions, “Where is your appearance lacking? Don’t overthink it. Besides… the Emperor isn’t someone who values these things.”
Seemingly comforted by her words, He Xunling blinked softly and whispered, “I will listen to Eldest Aunt.”
These words warmed the Empress Dowager’s heart, and she instantly broke into a smile, fine lines crinkling at the corners of her eyes.
Because her mood improved, the Empress Dowager’s attitude towards He Xunling also became much gentler: “You’ve been in the palace for some time now. It just so happens that Linchuan is going horse riding in the northern suburbs in a few days. You’ve been cooped up for so long, why don’t you go along and have some fun.”
News in the palace always traveled exceptionally fast, like a gust of wind, passing from one palace to another in an instant.
In just two or three days, the matter of He Xunling leaving Zichen Palace with red eyes had reached Jiaofang Palace.
After hearing about this, Yunzhu planned to mention it to the Empress. Unexpectedly, she had just started speaking when Zhao Yiyi’s hand, practicing calligraphy, paused. Her right hand hovered in mid-air, thick black ink gathering at the brush tip until it finally dripped down unsteadily.
The paper was instantly stained with a blot of ink.
The moment she thought of him, those slowly withdrawing threads of affection would suddenly become sharp as blades, scraping across her heart, cutting deeper and larger wounds.
It hurt, hurt so much she didn’t dare to move.
After a long time, she turned back and said flatly, “In the future, do not mention these matters again.”
Her calm and indifferent tone secretly startled the maids serving in the study. She appeared very calm and composed, but only she knew that when she said those words, the tip of her heart was trembling.
Only by forcibly suppressing the tremor in her voice did she avoid detection.
Yunzhu lowered her head, unsure how to persuade the Empress to calm her anger, and could only whisper in response, “This slave understands.”
Zhao Yiyi asked composedly, “The rewards for the Imperial Academy have all been sent out, haven’t they?”
“They have all been sent,” the female official in charge of this matter replied, adding gently, “The Chancellor over there mentioned, please let Her Highness rest assured. The young master’s matter was permitted by the late Emperor and is very secure. Once the young master turns fourteen, he can enroll.”
What everyone didn’t know was that not only did Zhao Chen have high aspirations, but Zhao Yiyi also placed high hopes on her younger brother.
She had always known that her father’s abilities were limited, her uncle’s official career was mediocre, and as for her elder brother, he could only be said to make no mistakes.
When her grandfather was alive, he had placed great hopes on A-Chen, hoping that one day he could rank among the ministers and restore the Zhao family to its former glory.
Therefore, her grandfather had specifically instructed her father not to send A-Chen to be selected for the imperial guards, but to let him take the path of the imperial examination. Reminded by her grandfather, her father also had this idea for Zhao Shunian and privately took him to find famous teachers.
Unfortunately, they refused to accept him.
For this, Zhao Weimin had once thrown a huge tantrum in private. Zhao Yiyi happened to have something to look for him at that time and heard his furious voice.
Hearing it for the first time, after a brief moment of resentment, she actually didn’t feel surprised.
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