In the Palace of Peace and Tranquility, the Empress Dowager slowly opened her eyes. Her vision was blurry, and only after a long time did it gradually become clear.
Phoenix bed, brocade quilt, and red curtains.
The imperial physicians and eunuchs were outside, and Zhao Hongzhuang was sitting beside the bed.
Zhao Hongzhuang was like a sleepy bug, her chin occasionally nodding and then quickly lifting up. She was clearly asleep, but instinctively forced herself to sit properly.
The Empress Dowager raised her head slightly and looked at the sky outside the window. It was almost dawn.
The Empress Dowager looked at Zhao Hongzhuang's beautiful side profile, and a complicated expression appeared in her eyes.
She did not expect that there would be a mole in the imperial family.
In her original plan, she wanted to slowly cultivate Prince Jing Zhao Yuan and let him become a true monarch. At the same time, she wanted him to learn to respect Fang Yun and guard against Fang Yun.
Originally, everything was going smoothly. Not long ago, Zhao Yuan had already begun to guard against Fang Yun.
After all, although Fang Yun was the imperial tutor, he might not even teach Zhao Yuan once a month. In a few years, the Empress Dowager could make Zhao Yuan alienate Fang Yun.
It was not until yesterday that the Empress Dowager realized that something was wrong. She instantly realized that someone was secretly influencing Zhao Yuan. After asking, she found out that it was her sister-in-law, Zhao Yuan's aunt, Zhao Hongzhuang.
Many years of effort had gone to waste, and the Empress Dowager was so angry that she vomited blood and fainted because of her old illness.
Looking at Zhao Hongzhuang, the Empress Dowager's eyes flashed with hatred, but then that hatred turned into helplessness.
When the previous emperor passed away, if not for Zhao Hongzhuang's efforts and the help of her connections in the imperial family, the Empress Dowager would have been deposed by Prince Kang and the others.
However, in terms of educating Zhao Yuan, Zhao Hongzhuang was the enemy of the entire imperial family.
It was not wrong for Zhao Yuan to admire Fang Yun, but Zhao Yuan was the future monarch and had to master the art of being a monarch. He could never lower his head in front of Fang Yun, and could never stand with Fang Yun.
The Emperor was different from the people.
If Zhao Yuan had admired Fang Yun since he was a child, then when he grew up, he would go to extremes. He would either obey Fang Yun in everything, or stand against Fang Yun because of his rebellious nature. It would be a disaster instead of a blessing.
The Empress Dowager sighed.
Zhao Hongzhuang opened her eyes abruptly and breathed rapidly. Then, she looked at the Empress Dowager with the same complicated look on her face.
"Empress Dowager, you're awake."
Zhao Hongzhuang's eyes flashed with a brief moment of panic before returning to normal.
The Empress Dowager nodded slightly, then said in a slightly dignified voice, "Hongzhuang stays. All of you may leave."
Everyone else left, leaving only two people in the room.
After a long silence, maybe even more than a quarter of an hour, the Empress Dowager closed her eyes and asked slowly, "Why did you teach Yuan 'er that?"
Zhao Hongzhuang was silent for dozens of breaths before she said, "I'm just telling the truth. It's up to Yuan 'er to judge for himself. As his aunt, I won't harm him. "
"You didn't want to hurt him, but you still hurt him. Before I fell into a coma, I actually … had a bad idea. "
In the end, the Empress Dowager did not say anything about abolishing Yuan 'er.
Zhao Hongzhuang said, "I know what you're thinking. But, you may have taught Yuan 'er to be a wise ruler in your heart, but it's very likely that you'll hurt him."
"As long as he knows how to protect himself and bide his time, he'll be fine."
"Things in the world are not always as you expect."
"So, even if Yuan 'er is hurt, it's not Fang Yun's fault?" The Empress Dowager opened her eyes and stared at Zhao Hongzhuang. Her eyes shone brightly in the night.
"We … can't do anything to Fang Yun." Zhao Hongzhuang lowered her head slightly.
The Empress Dowager sneered, "Do you think I don't know what you're doing? For the sake of the Women's Society, you can even abandon the royal family and Jingguo, let alone us! In your eyes, Fang Yun is the hope for the revival of the Women's Society, and Fang Yun is the only support for you, Zhao Hongzhuang! "
Zhao Hongzhuang's body trembled. She took a deep breath, looked up at the Empress Dowager, and said, "You don't know what I'm going to do!"
The Empress Dowager looked at Zhao Hongzhuang's fearless eyes and thought of herself in the past. Her heart softened, and she sighed, "How can I not know? Don't you want the women in the world to be like men, to be able to read and write, to be able to master talent, to obtain a literary position, and to become a saint?"
Zhao Hongzhuang gently turned her head and looked out of the window. She could vaguely see that the sky had turned light blue.
"What you're going to do is too difficult. It's even more difficult than Jingguo producing a Half-saint in five years!" The Empress Dowager said.
"If it's not difficult, everyone will do it. It's precisely because it's too difficult that there will always be people who want to start. "
"But you're probably just starting, and you won't get anything in the end."
Zhao Hongzhuang gently raised her head and said firmly, "I'll only be a foot tall when I die, but I'll be ten inches away from the sky!"
The Empress Dowager's eyes flashed with shock. She didn't expect Zhao Hongzhuang to have reached such a high level. She didn't even care about life and death, because even if she died, she would become a stepping stone for the future women. The future women would step on her, and they would be one step closer to achieving their dreams.
The Empress Dowager was silent for a long time, and a hint of madness flashed in her eyes. She questioned sternly, "You don't have this kind of awareness. Who taught you this? Was it Fang Yun? "
Zhao Hongzhuang didn't look at the Empress Dowager. She said, "He taught me a lot, but I'm the one who decided to go down this path."
"So, in order to repay Fang Yun and to get help in the future, you're going to destroy Yuan Er, the future leader of Jingguo?" The Empress Dowager questioned again.
"There's already a leader of Jingguo." Zhao Hongzhuang turned to look at the Empress Dowager with a hint of surprise in her eyes. She was surprised by the Empress Dowager's ignorance, and there was also something inexplicable in her eyes.
The Empress Dowager clearly felt that Zhao Hongzhuang was trying to hide the contempt in her tone and eyes.
"He's just a capable minister and a famous scholar. Only the royal family can have a leader of prosperity!" The Empress Dowager couldn't help but raise her voice to refute.
"And then be killed?" Zhao Hongzhuang's voice was full of hatred and pain.
"You …" The Empress Dowager also showed a look of pain. She closed her eyes, and the corners of her eyes gradually became wet.
Zhao Hongzhuang gritted her teeth and said slowly, "Destroy Gyeongo, kill Emperor Qing of Mount Liu, and avenge my brother. I can't do it, you can't do it, Yuan Er can't do it, and the generations of the Zhao family can't do it."
After a while, Zhao Hongzhuang continued to speak.
"But Fang Yun can do it!"
The Empress Dowager seemed to be defending herself. "I just want the Zhao family to live for generations to come. I don't want to disappoint the late emperor."
"Other than Fang Yun, is there anyone else in the world who can protect the Zhao family for generations to come? Wasn't it the best self-preservation strategy to let Yuan 'er be a well-behaved ruler instead of fighting for the title of Lord of Resurgence who was destined to fail? What you're doing is actually accelerating the destruction of the Zhao family! "Zhao Hongzhuang retorted.
"You … you don't have to say anymore!"
Tears flowed down from the corners of her eyes and wet the pillow.
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.
