On the day that the Xue family's property was confiscated, Yu Shu accompanied the Left Commander of the Yulin Royal Guards, Yin Yuanrong, to the Prime Minister's Mansion.
To the side of the main gate, Yu Shu sat on horseback, wearing a curtain hat to block out the sun. She watched as the soldiers carried out one large sealed box after another from the mansion, loaded them onto the mule cart, and sent them to the Ministry of Revenue for inventory. The servants and maids were all tied up, their hands tied to a rope. They wept as they lined up and walked out of the main gate. Last was the master of the family.
Yu Shu had never seen Xue Rui's adoptive mother, so she stared in the direction of the main gate for fear of missing her. Then she saw a seemingly blind middle-aged woman being supported out by two maids with disheveled hair. She was pushed by the soldiers towards the prison cart. She hurriedly dismounted and walked forward. Before they could enter the prison cart, she stopped them. She waved her hand at the soldiers and said, "All of you, go to the side. I'll say a few words before I send them away."
The soldiers knew who she was. They looked at each other in dismay, and then they all walked away.
"Auntie Xue?" Yu Shu called out in a low voice. She carefully examined Madam Xue's sickly face and could vaguely see similarities between her eyebrows and Xue Jinxun's. In truth, the Xue family was not good at producing handsome men and beautiful women. Xue Jinxun's appearance was ordinary, and he had not inherited the beauty of his parents. However, Xue Rui, a dragon and phoenix among men, had inherited the good looks of Yun Hua.
Madam Xue could not see who was in front of her. She took half a step back in panic and grabbed her maid's arm tightly.
"Auntie, don't be afraid. I am Brother Xue's friend." Yu Shu did not reveal her family name. This was because in the eyes of the Xue family, she was a shameless villain who had caused their entire family to wander from place to place.
She shot a glance at the Yulin Royal Guards standing nearby and held Madam Xue's arm. Lowering her head, she whispered, "There is no need for Madam to worry about your trip to Mount Emei. I will send people to escort you along the way. When you arrive at the Clean Water Nunnery, the old nun there will naturally treat you and your daughter well. For the time being, you can rest easy. After one or two years, when the storm has passed, I will think of a way to get you out."
Xue Jinxun was previously hidden by her. She had just personally sent him to the Ministry of Justice yesterday. She had arranged for everyone to not make things difficult for them along the way. As for the Clean Water Nunnery on Mount Emei, she had also found a way to get them there. She would never let them suffer there.
After Madam Xue heard this, her expression became perplexed. She hesitantly groped for Yu Shu's hand and grabbed it. In a small voice, she asked, "Miss, who are you?"
The Xue family had fallen into such a situation today. Their relatives and friends had already hidden away for fear that they would be affected. How could there be anyone to help them in their time of need? If this girl was not deceiving her and was willing to lend a helping hand at a time like this, then she was assuredly one of Cheng Bier's close friends. She had heard him mention her.
Madam Xue first thought of a person, but she also felt that it was impossible, so she tried to guess. "You are … Miss Lotus Room?"
She did not receive an answer. That pair of warm hands tightly gripped her hand and then loosened. She only heard that soft and gentle voice turn cold and hard as it ordered the soldiers responsible for escorting them, "Take them to the prison carriage and send them to the Ministry of Justice."
The soldier smiled apologetically. "Milord, be at ease."
Madam Xue blankly stretched her hand forward, but it was empty. "Miss, miss?"
Yu Shu retreated to the side and calmly watched as Madam Xue boarded the prison carriage. Only then did she stealthily lead her horse away. Not far away, the well-dressed Yin Yuanrong was leaning against an old tree outside the gate of the Xue Estate with his arms crossed. Seeing this scene, he raised his eyebrows in interest and muttered to himself.
"The mouth of a green bamboo snake, the sting of a wasp's tail. Neither is poisonous, but the most poisonous is the heart of a woman. If Xue Chengbi knew that the woman he loved, for the sake of glory and wealth, personally sent his entire family to prison, how would he feel? "
*
*
*
In the blazing seventh month, Emperor Zhao Qing was buried in Longquan's Zhao Mausoleum. As the fourteenth emperor since the founding of the Great An Dynasty, he had ruled leniently and benevolently during his fifteen years on the throne. The officials of the court dared to criticize him directly. Although he had no great achievements or extravagant desires, he could only be considered mediocre.
The Crown Prince returned to the capital from the Zhao Mausoleum. Three days later, he was proclaimed emperor and the reign was changed to Chongzhen. The coronation ceremony was scheduled to take place two months later.
Emperor Chongzhen dismissed the harem left behind by the previous emperor. All the concubines who had children were sent out of the palace to live out the rest of their lives. Those who had no children were sent to Longquan to guard the mausoleum. In the end, they could only die alone.
The previous Empress, Lady Rui, was promoted to Empress Dowager and moved from Xiwu Palace to Cining Palace. Emperor Chongzhen's birth mother, Lady Xue, was given the title of Western Empress Dowager and moved from Zhongcui Palace to the quiet and secluded Ziwei Palace, just west of the Imperial Ancestral Temple. It was said that Empress Dowager Xue injured her body when giving birth to the nineteenth princess and needed to recuperate, so she chose such a remote corner to live in.
One day, Yu Shu suddenly received a decree from the palace in the Celestial Commissioner's Office. Empress Dowager Xue summoned her to the palace.
.....
This was the first time Yu Shu entered the harem after Emperor Chongzhen ascended the throne. Walking on the deserted palace path, her mood was already as calm as water. The eunuchs leading the way turned their heads to peek at her from time to time. When they accidentally met her cold eyes, they were so scared that they shrunk their heads and walked forward, not daring to look back, as if she was a man-eating monster.
Yu Shu knew that she did not have a good reputation outside. Many people criticized her behind her back, saying that she was unscrupulous, that she relied on exposing the Xue family to gain recognition from the Great Tidian, and that she climbed up by stepping on other people's heads. They also used the fact that she and Xue Rui were sworn siblings to accuse her of being heartless. She knew very well who was secretly encouraging these rumors, but she did not care. Now that her reputation was bad or bad, it did not matter to her. With real power in her hands, she had long passed the stage where she needed a reputation to stand. No matter how many people spit on her, she would not drown.
After a long walk, she arrived at the gates of the School of the Emperor Star. The person who welcomed her was the former palace maid of Empress Dowager Xue, Song Lan.
"Official Yu, please come in." Song Lan's head was lowered. Her expression could not be seen, but Yu Shu could feel her coldness. Skipping the step of searching her body and sitting on incense, Yu Shu was quickly brought to Empress Dowager Xue.
The School of the Emperor Star was spacious, but it was not as luxurious as Zhongcui Palace. In the empty room, Empress Dowager Xue, with light makeup, leaned on the long couch. She still looked lazy and noble, but now had the bleakness of a beauty past her prime.
"Your subject greets Empress Dowager. May Your Majesty live a long life." Yu Shu had one hand on her abdomen and the other behind her back. She bowed reservedly, but did not make a formal greeting. She was a third-rank official in the court. Other than the emperor, she did not need to kowtow to the concubines in the harem, even if it was the empress dowager.
"Rise."
Empress Dowager Xue looked expressionlessly at her as she bowed and raised her head, revealing a snow-white face. In the next moment, her gaze was captured by the crimson flame between her brows. She was slightly dazed. She actually thought of that year at the Hibiscus Banquet at Dingbo Hall and her short-lived appearance.
There was no lack of breathtaking women in this world. There were those who moved people because of their beautiful appearance. There were also those who moved people because of their unique temperament. The former often found it difficult to fight against time, but the latter did not fear the passing of time.
"May I ask why Empress Dowager has summoned me to the palace?"
Empress Dowager Xue gathered her thoughts and said with a cold expression, "I just want to see with my own eyes the shameless person who framed my Xue family."
"I am afraid." Yu Shu apologized without changing her expression. She met her frosty gaze and looked at her haggard face. She said in a low voice, "Overthinking is the most harmful to the body. I hope that Empress Dowager will take care of your health for the sake of His Majesty and the little princess."
She could read Empress Dowager Xue's mood. Seeing her son become the emperor, he burned the bridge after crossing the river and got rid of her maternal family. She, as the empress dowager, was useless. She had worked so hard to get to this stage, but she was not even as powerful as a favored concubine when the previous emperor was alive. She could not hate the son who had become the emperor, so she could only pin her anger and unwillingness on an outsider like her.
Yu Shu had no intention of clearing her name, but Empress Dowager Xue would not let her go. She said sarcastically, "Chengbi is really pitiful. I have long seen his deep affection for you. It is a pity that he was blind and mistook a snake for a beauty. He could not see your heart of a wolf and lungs of a dog."
After the Xue family's incident, she had no chance to see Xue Lingnan, let alone understand the truth. So she stubbornly believed that the Xue family was slandered and that Xue Rui did not rely on the King of Dongjing at all. In her eyes, Xue Rui was still the flesh and blood of her brother Xue Zao. He was her beloved nephew, Chengbi.
Yu Shu would rather let her misunderstand and let her make sarcastic remarks. In the end, she asked someone to drive her out. She came and went at her beck and call, completely treating her as a tool to vent her anger.
Yu Shu had suffered once, but she was not kind enough to suffer a second time. To prevent Empress Dowager Xue from calling her into the palace and scolding her for no reason, she mentioned one thing to her before she left.
"Empress Dowager lives in a secluded place and probably has not heard the news outside. Three days ago, His Majesty was assassinated when he visited incognito. The assassin confessed that it was Prince Xiang who ordered it. Prince Xiang was arrested the day before yesterday. Unfortunately, I was one of the interrogators appointed by His Majesty."
There was no need to say the rest. Empress Dowager Xue's short change in attitude had already told Yu Shu that she understood the hidden warning in her words. From now on, she would not treat her as a soft persimmon who could only swallow her anger.
"Empress Dowager, rest in peace. I will take my leave."
When Yu Shu came, she was relaxed. When she left, she was even more carefree. Xue Lingnan and Prince Xiang were caught by the law one after another. She had Empress Dowager Xue's weakness in her hand. In the entire Anling City, there was no one who could threaten her life. She did not have to live in fear anymore.
This feeling of being unscrupulous was really good.
Yu Shu walked out of the palace with light footsteps and left the Imperial Palace to return to the Celestial Commissioner Bureau. It was in the middle of the afternoon. She waved her fan as she entered the courtyard of the Kun Ling Bureau. She saw a person walking out of the building in front of her. He greeted her with a stiff smile and walked up to her.
"Official Yu."
It was the adjutant of the Astronomy Bureau, Cui Xiuyi. Yu Shu stopped and the lowly official behind her who was holding an umbrella to shelter her from the sun also stopped. She raised her chin and looked at him,
"Official Cui, why did you come to my place? Did you save enough money to repay your debts? " She once gambled at the Cui Family's Big Exchange Shop and won tens of thousands of taels in one game. Cui Xiuyi's daughter, Cui Xin, wanted to renege on the debt, so she went to her father to ask for money. She took the opportunity to blackmail Cui Xiuyi into doing a few things for her.
Cui Xiuyi said with an awkward expression, "This official will definitely return that money. I came to find Official Yu today because I have another request."
Yu Shu glanced at him and guessed what he wanted. The corners of her mouth curled up and she said with a smile, "If it's for the position of my female imperial official, don't mention it. I already have a candidate in mind and will recommend her to take the position in a few days."
"Ah," Cui Xiuyi was greatly disappointed and was stunned for a moment. He wanted to thicken his skin and beg again, but Yu Shu walked around him and didn't give him a chance to plead.
He was too embarrassed to chase after her again and could only walk away unhappily.
When Yu Shu entered the building, Wen Shao'an came forward to take the fan in her hand and brought her a cup of cold plum tea. He looked outside and said to her, "Official Cui left?"
"Oh," Yu Shu drank the cold tea and sighed comfortably. She turned back to look at Wen Shao'an and sighed, "If you were a woman, the position of female imperial official would not be given to someone else."
Wen Shao'an smiled, "Official Yu does not need to comfort me. I am already very satisfied with what I have today." He then asked her, "What did you say to Official Cui?"
Yu Shu held her chin and lazily said, "What else can I say? He must want me to recommend his precious daughter. I don't have time for him."
Cui Xin was indeed a talent, but she was bad because she had a grudge with Yu Shu. In the past, she often helped Royal Princess Xi Wen to deal with her. Although things had changed with the passage of time and Yu Shu did not care about those people now, she could let bygones be bygones. However, she would not repay evil with good and be stupid enough to raise a tiger.
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
