CH 40

Gao Ran’s chest tightened. For a moment, she couldn’t tell whether Empress Dowager Qian was mocking her or ridiculing Lin Wei Xi using metaphors and exaggeration.

It was true that it had been wrong of her to secretly consent to the marriage proposal, but Prince Yan and the Second Qian Young Master had had a crush on the same woman at the same time. For men, it was romantic to wage war for a beauty, but for a woman, it wasn’t a good reputation to have.

Gao Ran’s heart jumped out of her throat the moment she heard her name, but she slowly relaxed when she processed the situation. She glanced at Lin Wei Xi and lowered her head, pretending to be terrified, “Empress Dowager, please forgive me. At that time, this humble one heard that Madam Qian wanted to propose marriage for the Second Qian Young Master. Of course, Young Master Qian is a good man, which is why this humble one didn’t think too much before accepting it, and meant to speak to the elders after returning. Unfortunately this humble one was too greedy. I only thought of how good a family the Qian family was and wanted to accept it as a good sister. But because of my impatience, I made a mistake.”

Gao Ran’s words hinted that she had listened to Madam Qian’s proposal first but Prince Yan had decided Lin Wei Xi’s matter after. As for why Prince Yan did this and what happened then, they’d have to ask the protagonist herself.

Gao Ran wanted to incite Empress Dowager to treat Lin Wei Xi as a femme fatale. It would be even better if she accused Lin Wei Xi of being a seductress. Lin Wei Xi’s smile faded when she heard the Second Qian son’s name. Empress Dowager Qian was the Empress Dowager. It was fine if she didn’t mind her words, but Gao Ran actually dared to play tricks in front of her?

Gao Ran was still so stupid. It seemed like the hot water yesterday hadn’t been hot enough. Lin Wei Xi was now the Prince Yan Consort. The power a mother-in-law had over her daughter-in-law was far more than what she’d wielded during the tea ceremony.

After Gao Ran finished speaking, she continuously stared at Lin Wei Xi. Unfortunately, she was going to be disappointed. Lin Wei Xi didn’t show any embarrassment or unnatural expression. She merely smiled calmly and said, “why do I not know about this issue regarding the Second Qian Young Master?”

Lin Wei Xi’s question caused everyone to go silent. Empress Dowager Qian couldn’t speak. No matter how old she was, she couldn’t tell the Prince Yan Consort “Gao Ran had secretly agreed to marry you to someone, but Prince Yan stepped in so the matter was dropped”.

In early spring, the five poisons◇ became active and the epidemic spread from the capital to the palace. The second prince unfortunately contracted an illness and within a month, died because no medical treatment could cure him.

Empress Qian almost burned incense in Kunning Palace. The Buddha was really watching over her. The long drawn struggle over the crown prince forcefully reached a conclusion. Bu Guifei went mad from the pain of losing her son and became increasingly unbridled in eliminating her opposition. For a time, the wicked eunuchs ran amok to the point where even Emperor Muzong couldn’t control them. He had no choice but to write a secret edict to summon Prince Yan into the capital to suppress the rebellion, punish the traitors and hold the reins of the Qing Dynasty. Whether or not Bu Guifei actually hung herself in the end, only Emperor Muzong and Prince Yan knew.

In the end, the second prince died of illness and Bu Guifei was executed. The eldest prince was the only remaining prince. Even if he was an idiot, the ministers had to assist him in becoming a wise monarch. Emperor Muzong received such a huge blow from this incident that he passed on soon after. Before his death, he appointed the eldest prince as crown prince and Gu Hui Yan, Zhang Xiao Lian, and Eunuch Feng as the regent ministers. Together, they’d assist the young emperor as he grew up until he was old enough to govern the country himself.

It was currently the fifth year of Yuanjia. The young Emperor had ascended the throne five years ago and was already twelve years old.

Empress Dowager Qian really didn’t care about the state of the imperial court. The harem wasn’t allowed to interfere with politics and she wasn’t interested. She already held the highest position and the most respected status in the land. No matter how the dynasty changed, would it involve the Empress Dowager? All the more reason for her to grow old with a peace of mind in the harem. If she wasn’t observing a vegetarian diet and praying to the Buddha, she’d summon her sister-in-law for a chat. The issue between the Second Qian Young Master and Lin Wei Xi was something that came from Madam Qian.

At that time, news of Prince Yan marrying a Consort had already spread. Of course, the Qian family didn’t dare fight with Prince Yan over a woman. Plus, he’d specifically passed on the news. When that happened, the Second Qian Young Master became too scared to leave the house. After a period of time, when the news died down, Madam Qian became a little uncomfortable. The Prince Yan Shizi Fei had clearly already given her word, but it was intercepted by Prince Yan no more than a few days later. Was the Prince Yan Residence going to step on the Qian family’s face like this?

The more Madam Qian thought about it, the more unresigned she became, so she entered the palace and raised the issue. Empress Dowager Qian only knew that Prince Yan was going to marry a new Consort. Only after hearing her sister-in-law’s version did she realize that the new Prince Yan Consort, Lin Shi, and her second nephew were connected in this manner. Of course, Empress Dowager Qian wouldn’t have any complaints about Prince Yan. The Emperor succeeded the throne back then thanks to his assistance. When he first ascended the throne, they were invaded by foreign forces, and it was Prince Yan who led the army to suppress the rebellion. Without Prince Yan’s military strength that acted as a deterrent, Empress Dowager Qian and the Emperor were nothing more than an orphan and widow. What could they do to suppress the court officials and generals of the previous dynasty? Empress Dowager Qian actually depended on Prince Yan a lot. How could she criticize him for marrying a Consort?