Yet, under the gaze of so many people, she still managed to move her already weak and trembling legs, trying her best to calm herself, maintain what little grace she had left, and walked into the Empress Dowager’s warm chamber.
The warm chamber was laid with a yellow woolen carpet adorned with red flowers.
A set of zitan wood screens carved with the motif of “Three Rams Bringing Prosperity” divided the chamber into inner and outer areas.
The outer section was connected to the floor-to-ceiling windows, where Emperor Jingxi and the Imperial Son Lu Yunjian were both enjoying the snow.
Within the screens, the Empress Dowager and Prince Duan’s Consort were teasing a little child, with the Empress and Consort Zhuang accompanying them.
Nannies, Wet Nurses, and Nursemaids attended on the floor.
A wu couldn’t help but feel curious at the scene.
The Empress Dowager saw A wu approaching and smiled, saying, “The Emperor said you should recite some scriptures, not spend all day playing around.”
A wu replied, “Yes, Your Majesty.”
But she still explained, “This concubine hasn’t been playing around.”
The Empress Dowager then instructed A wu to sit.
A wu carefully took a seat on a nearby red lacquered embroidered stool.
Once seated, she surreptitiously glanced around, and it was clear the Empress was also sizing her up, her gaze subtle and rather strange.
In truth, since that previous confrontation, she and the Empress had kept to their own lanes, but who would have thought they’d cross paths here?
The key point was that just outside the screens were Lu Yunjian and the Imperial Son.
So, in this room, aside from herself, the Empress also knew that she had been entangled with all three men outside.
A wu felt a bit ashamed, but also thought it wasn’t such a big deal.
The Empress herself wasn’t so clean either!
Fortunately, at this moment, the Empress suddenly stood up, saying she had some palace affairs to attend to, and took her leave.
Once the Empress left, A wu relaxed a little.
Consort Zhuang instructed a nearby Nursemaid to bring over a food box for A wu, who smiled gratefully at Consort Zhuang.
Consort Zhuang was still simply dressed, never fussing over appearances, always quietly doing her duties, serving at the Empress Dowager’s side.
A wu had met her twice before and knew she was a good person.
The Empress Dowager casually asked A wu about her family and then smiled saying, “This child is Prince Duan’s grandson, only half a year old. He was brought in today, and I truly adore him.”
A wu didn’t understand why the Empress Dowager brought this up, but smiled and replied, “He is indeed a fine child.”
The Empress Dowager said, “Look how auspicious this child is! You can tell at a glance he’s blessed. With the New Year coming, come and touch him—children bring good fortune.”
A wu was surprised at first, but then vaguely understood.
The Empress Dowager must believe that “a newlywed who touches another family’s child will soon conceive herself.”
So that was her intention.
Obediently, A wu went over and touched the child’s little hand.
The baby, not yet a year old, could already crawl.
He wore a little red jacket, round and chubby, festive and soft.
When he saw A wu, he blinked his bright eyes and babbled, reaching out his tiny hand to grab A wu’s finger.
The Empress Dowager laughed, “This child likes you!”
He truly was adorable, but A wu didn’t really like children much.
She herself had only stopped being the baby of her own family two or three years ago—why should she like someone else’s child?
So she only touched him because the Empress Dowager asked her to.
At that moment, a Nursemaid opened the screens.
In truth, the warm chamber wasn’t very large.
Without the screens, the inner and outer rooms became one, and in an instant, A wu was sharing the room with those three men.
A wu suddenly felt it hard to breathe.
She could even sense Lu Yunjian’s gaze glancing over, with a subtle, indecipherable meaning.
A wu instinctively twitched, pulling her finger free from the baby’s grasp.
The baby was so small and soft that, being tugged, he toppled over with all four limbs in the air.
His little mouth puckered, and he was about to cry pitifully.
The Wet Nurse hurried to pick him up, and Consort Zhuang helped comfort him.
The little baby lay in Consort Zhuang’s arms, sobbing and sniffling, casting a resentful little glance at A wu.
Was he tattling on her!?
A wu was wronged, at a loss for what to do, and quickly explained, “I didn’t push him, he just couldn’t stand steady on his own, he—”
She cut herself off.
She felt utterly foolish.
There was no point arguing with a baby.
If he nearly fell, it was her fault anyway.
At times like this, she could only hate that he was a baby and she was an adult—there was no reasoning to be had.
Emperor Jingxi watched from afar, his tea-brown eyes brimming with doting amusement, and ordered, “Who told you to bully that little one? Come here.”
Hearing this, A wu felt instantly rescued and hurried to go over to Emperor Jingxi.
She quickly walked over, but suddenly realized that Lu Yunjian and the Imperial Son were both there as well.
She paid her respects to Emperor Jingxi, and the Imperial Son and Lu Yunjian also stood up and saluted.
Normally, the Imperial Son had no need to show such deference to a mere sixth-rank Imperial Noble Lady, but this was a display of respect to Emperor Jingxi.
A wu felt a little awkward, trying hard to keep a calm expression.
Even so, when she looked up, her gaze met the Imperial Son’s.
In that brief instant, the Imperial Son hurriedly looked away, and A wu’s heart skipped a beat.
She quickly turned her gaze elsewhere, only to meet Lu Yunjian’s eyes as he happened to look up, his gaze cold and deep.
His jawline was sharp and flawless, his face strikingly handsome, but his eyes were complicated, even faintly aggrieved.
A wu’s heart fluttered slightly.
But it was only for a moment.
What followed was nothing but mockery and aversion.
If hearts in this world could be black or white, then Lu Yunjian’s heart had long been soaked in ink.
Why bother acting the part of a discarded husband now?
Just then, Emperor Jingxi spoke:
“Imperial Noble Consort Ning, I recall that in the Taiping Sutra Sacred Sovereign’s Secret Edict, it is written that there are five rules of imperial governance: Upper Sovereign’s Rule, Middle Sovereign’s Rule, Lower Sovereign’s Rule, Chaotic Sovereign’s Rule, and Ruinous Sovereign’s Rule. What is the Upper Sovereign’s Rule?”
A wu: “….”
A familiar suffocating feeling swept over her again.
She racked her brain, finally recalling that night by the bed, when Emperor Jingxi had held the scripture and taught her, mentioning something like this.
He’d said he would test her, but she hadn’t taken it seriously.
She never expected he’d test her like this!
A wu frowned, thinking hard.
The copper brazier in the warm chamber was burning fiercely, making the room as warm as spring, but Lu Yunjian’s heart was suddenly filled with endless sorrow.
He remembered the A wu of the past.
When he first was with A wu, she was pure and innocent, her eyes full of admiration for him.
He had loved her so much then, but afterwards, how had things come to this?
What had he done?
It seemed everything changed when she insisted on following that childhood sweetheart, and he refused to allow it.
Looking back now, if he had agreed back then, would things have been different?
He had been too stubborn, too young, too proud to tolerate her looking at another man.
Thinking of this, Lu Yunjian suddenly felt lost.
He didn’t even know what he’d done.
He hated her so much that darkness grew in his heart, abandoning her, making her suffer, and in the end, she drifted away, leaving him standing cold and alone.
Compared to Lu Yunjian’s pain, the Imperial Son felt even more desolate.
He stared stiffly out the window, watching the snow drift down, as if it were falling into his own heart.
Out of the corner of his eye, he could catch a glimpse of her skin, white as fresh snow, and the faint, gentle fragrance she brought, stirring his imagination.
Memories of past intimacy surged up—once so close, now separated by a chasm.
She was now confined to the harem by the Emperor as a consort belonging solely to the sovereign and palace rules were strict, not even allowing an extra glance.
While the Imperial Son’s thoughts ran wild, A wu was suffering.
She pondered for a long time, racking her brain, and finally managed to say awkwardly, “The Upper Sovereign’s Rule means the ruler governs by virtue, and obtains…”
She cautiously looked at Emperor Jingxi, only to see him watching her, neither approving nor disapproving.
That gaze was quite intimidating.
A wu shivered inwardly, then finally remembered and hurriedly declared, “He obtains the Heavenly Mandate, and his rule is as if guided by the divine.”
Emperor Jingxi nodded slightly.
A wu breathed a sigh of relief.
But then Emperor Jingxi continued, “And what is the Dao?”
A wu looked at him with innocent eyes, not understanding.
Emperor Jingxi: “Hmm?”
A wu wanted to cry, but forced herself to hold it in, and carefully said, “This concubine does not understand, but remembers that the Dao seems to be the way all things in heaven and earth operate.”
Emperor Jingxi nodded, then asked the Imperial Son, “Imperial Son, what do you think of the Imperial Noble Consort’s grasp of the scriptures?”
The Imperial Son froze, then replied, “Your son, upon hearing the Imperial Noble Consort’s teachings, has found sudden enlightenment.”
Emperor Jingxi said, “They say one should instruct one’s wife by the pillow—every night I have the Imperial Noble Consort Ning recite Daoist scriptures, accumulating daily, and she has improved greatly. I myself have benefited much, feeling clearer in mind and healthier in body. It seems the Astronomer Royal’s words in the past were not untrue.”
A wu was stunned, only now remembering that her original title upon entering the palace was Scripture Recitation Companion.
He’d really taken that literally…
The Imperial Son was dazed, replying woodenly, “Father’s blessings are boundless. With Imperial Noble Consort Ning reading scriptures by your side, Heaven protects our Great Hui, and your health is our nation’s fortune.”
As the two of them exchanged words, A wu took the opportunity to excuse herself and leave.
Only when she finally got out did she breathe easy.
Thinking back on everything that had just happened before the Imperial Son, A wu only felt that the old man was too much!