Chapter 78: Shameless part 1
The winds of early winter carried a bone-piercing chill.
Gusts swept over the body, cold enough to make one shiver involuntarily.
Sitting high in the seat of honor, Zhao Yiyi had a panoramic view of everyone below. Watching the retreating figure of the Marchioness of Hejian fleeing in disarray, the corners of her lips hooked up slightly. She turned her head and asked Yunzhu, “What happened?”
“Perhaps she was provoked by the people sitting near her,” Yunzhu replied.
The noblewomen sitting nearby all held grudges against the Marchioness of Hejian. Yunzhu wouldn’t believe it if they hadn’t done it on purpose. Otherwise, why bring those matters up at the banquet, and loud enough for everyone to hear?
Zhao Yiyi held a small Ru kiln cup in her hand, lowered her head to chuckle, and took a sip of the grape wine brewed last year.
Lady Wen, sitting to the side, asked, “Did something good happen to Your Highness? I wonder if you might share it so we can be happy too?”
Zhao Yiyi rubbed her fingertips against the cup and laughed softly. “Duan Duan is soft-hearted; she has always been pitifully obedient. She wouldn’t even make a sound when bullied. I used to worry about that. But thinking about it now, perhaps being obedient and sharp is better—it saves one from causing a catastrophic disaster without even realizing it.”
Her words were so pointed that everyone understood the Empress was making an insinuation. However, they couldn’t quite pinpoint who she was targeting, so they simply nodded in agreement. “Your Highness is absolutely right.”
Seeing the Empress in such high spirits, several titled ladies below thought to offer some flattery. But before they could speak, the voice of a palace attendant announcing an arrival traveled from afar to the hall.
The Empress Dowager’s procession had arrived.
Rows of palace maids entered holding peacock feather fans, clustering around a woman dressed in an ochre long jacket embroidered with persimmon calyx patterns in gold. With her hair combed into a high bun adorned with twelve flower hairpins, the woman slowly walked into the Hanbing Hall.
Zhao Yiyi led the crowd to stand and welcome her, speaking warmly, “The wind is strong today. I originally didn’t intend to disturb Mother, but I never expected Mother to come personally.”
Since the Emperor returned to the capital from Chang’an, the Empress Dowager had been living in seclusion. Especially after the fire in the Jiao Fang Palace, she rarely stepped out of the Wanchun Hall. Everyone was surprised; no one expected the Empress Dowager to actually show up.
The Empress Dowager turned her head to look at her, her voice indifferent. “Today is the big day Duan Duan recognizes her ancestors and returns to the clan. No matter what, I had to make the trip.”
After the Empress Dowager took the seat of honor and told everyone to rise, Zhao Yiyi sat beside her. The Empress Dowager waved her hand slightly towards the back, and her personal female attendants stepped forward holding several exquisite brocade boxes.
Zhao Yiyi’s expression paused briefly. Her gaze lingered on the brocade boxes for a moment before she looked up at the Empress Dowager again.
“Today, Duan Duan is being invested as the Eldest Princess. I don’t have much to give, so take these things as a congratulatory gift for her.” The Empress Dowager spoke softly, casually taking a brocade box inlaid with lapis lazuli from the side. She pressed the clasp. “This pair of gold-linked bracelets embedded with gems was part of the betrothal gifts the late Emperor sent when he married me. They are most suitable for a young girl to wear. Take a look, do you like them?”
The pair of linked bracelets were incredibly delicate, inlaid with various precious gems large and small, dazzling to the eye.
Looking at the faint smile on the Empress Dowager’s face, Zhao Yiyi took the hand of the young girl standing behind her and pulled her forward.
Zhao Duanduan pursed her lips, folded her hands, and bowed slightly. “Many thanks for the Empress Dowager’s reward.”
Her voice was soft and gentle, respectful enough, yet her tone—and the words themselves—revealed a deliberate sense of alienation.
The smile on the Empress Dowager’s face faded a little. She sighed, “You child, really… why are you being so distant?”
“Niangniang,” Nanny Song called out in a low voice. The Empress Dowager’s face stiffened. Knowing this couldn’t be rushed, she swallowed the rest of her words.
After expressing her thanks, Zhao Duanduan returned to stand behind Zhao Yiyi.
Because of Zhao Yiyi, the Empress Dowager ranked in the top three of the people Zhao Duanduan hated most. It should be noted that the other two were Lady Xu and Zuo Lianzhi.
Suddenly learning that her biological mother was the Empress Dowager was somewhat hard for her to accept.
Below, a group of young people seemed to have come to an agreement. They suddenly stepped forward, bowed, and smiled. “Your Highness, we would like to play Pitch-pot.”
The elders of their families hurriedly scolded them, “Look at the occasion! You’re all grown up, yet you’re just making mischief!”
Zhao Yiyi, however, smiled and waved her hand, instructing the maid Mancao, “Go prepare the Pitch-pot equipment for them.” As she spoke, she personally untied a jade pendant with a cloud and crane pattern from her waist and said to them, “This will be the prize for you.”
The eyes of the young girls below lit up. The noble ladies stopped forbidding it and instead encouraged the sons and daughters of their families to participate. If they were lucky enough to win the Empress’s prize, it would be something to boast about.
Seeing the young girl still huddled beside her, refusing to leave, Zhao Yiyi couldn’t help but smile helplessly. “You should change your clothes and go play with them too.”
After resting for a month or two, her scars had faded significantly. Today, Zhao Duanduan was dressed in the formal attire of a Princess, wearing full makeup. With a layer of powder, the skin that had been slightly red was no longer visible; she looked just like the pretty young girl she used to be.
Everything else was fine; the only thing that made her uncomfortable was the area near the outer corner of her left eye, where she had truly been burned by the fire.
It had healed, but it left a scar the size of a fingernail.
Today, she had specially painted Xie Hong makeup to cover it.
“Sister,” Zhao Duanduan pouted, “Last time I asked you for that jade pendant, you wouldn’t give it to me.”
Zhao Yiyi held the cup in her hand, her eyes smiling. “Wouldn’t it be better if you won it back yourself today?”
Zhao Duanduan had played Pitch-pot with her since childhood. Her skills were impeccable, and her chances of winning were high.
The Empress Dowager had come today specifically for Zhao Duanduan. Because the girl refused to engage with her, she was already feeling agitated. As soon as Zhao Duanduan left, the Empress Dowager stood up and departed as well.
She called Lady Wen to accompany her.
The two exchanged a few words on the way, but neither could muster much interest, looking rather gloomy.
Upon returning to the Wanchun Hall, they saw He Mingshou waiting in the side hall. The Empress Dowager couldn’t help but recount today’s events, complaining angrily, “That child… I really don’t know what the Zhao family taught her. She ignores me when I speak to her.”
“Niangniang, watch your words!” He Mingshou’s expression turned solemn as he sat upright looking at her.
The Empress Dowager said, “What’s wrong? I didn’t do anything. Am I not allowed to even speak?”
He Mingshou said in a deep voice, “The Eldest Princess already has a rift with you, Niangniang, while her affection for the Zhao family is deep. If these words were to spread, wouldn’t the misunderstanding deepen? Although you gave birth to the Princess, you did not raise her. The Zhao family raised her without birthing her; to the Princess, this is a heavy debt of gratitude she must repay. How can you demand otherwise?”
He hinted obscurely, “Besides, not long ago, you had a disagreement with the Princess over the incident of falling into the water.”
The Empress Dowager was never an eloquent person. After being rebuked by his few sentences, she was left speechless.
Then, remembering that old matter, she sighed slightly. “The Emperor’s heart is truly too cruel. I begged him to spare Linchuan’s life—after all, he watched her grow up—but he refused…” Her eyes turned red as she spoke. She pulled out a handkerchief and gently dabbed the corners of her eyes. “And last time with Second Brother, I specifically wrote to Chang’an begging him to be slightly lenient, yet he left no room for mercy.”
Having her sore spot provoked, He Mingshou sneered. “His Majesty is cruel? Then what was she, trying to harm the Princess when she was still an infant? When she entered the palace back then, I warned you, Niangniang, not to treat her too well—she was a white-eyed wolf who could never be tamed. Just now, Niangniang mentioned He Minghong. According to your logic, I am also cruel and ruthless.”
The Empress Dowager felt a lump in her chest. “When did I say anything about you…”
“The evidence of He Minghong’s crimes was investigated by me and handed over to His Majesty with my own hands.”
The Empress Dowager was startled, her breathing becoming unstable. “Brother! How could you… how could you…” She gasped, her voice trembling, “How could you start fighting within our own nest first?”
This time, even Lady Wen beside her changed her expression, looking at him with a pale face.
He Mingshou’s expression remained normal as he said warmly, “He wanted to eat my juehu—seize my inheritance and drive my family to extinction. There is no reason why I shouldn’t strike first.”
“What?” The Empress Dowager was stunned.
Raised in the deep boudoir and later living in the imperial family, how could she have heard such a term? Fortunately, it wasn’t profound language; with a little thought, she understood it thoroughly.
And because she understood, she was too shocked to recover.
He Mingshou glanced at her, his voice faint. “Does Niangniang still not understand? I have no son. He Minghong decided that I would have to adopt his son to inherit my lineage.”
The Empress Dowager stammered, “Brother, your title… someone has to inherit it.”
He Mingshou smiled. “Niangniang, but He Minghong’s plan was that once his son took charge in the future, he would drive Fang’er out.”
The Empress Dowager froze, a look of disbelief on her face. “Brother, is he truly that treacherous?”
“These words were spoken by his youngest son personally.” Recalling the past, He Mingshou’s brows filled with a murderous aura. “The two of them, one waiting to eat my inheritance, the other waiting to eat yours, Niangniang. Tell me, is it His Majesty and I who are cruel, or is it them?”
He had always known the second brother wasn’t a good sort, but he didn’t expect him to be ruthless to this extent.
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