Noble Lady Yuan angrily rushed to Jingtsu Temple with Yue Xiu; however, the Jingtsu Temple's gates were tightly shut. She had been told that the Empress was not feeling well, and the imperial physician was inside keeping an eye on her. At this time, no one could be seen. The palace servant even said, "I don't know why, but after Her Highness made a trip to Heavenly Hall, her complexion didn't look too good. It seems that she got into an argument with His Majesty and collapsed not long after she returned."
Noble Lady Yuan could not enter the palace and could only return to her own courtyard. Seeing that she was still angry, Yue Xiu could only console her: "I fear that this matter was His Majesty's one-sided decision. If it was said that Her Highness the Empress had gotten into an argument with His Majesty in Heavenly Hall, it should have been over this matter. Master, don't be too angry. This servant thinks that Her Highness the Empress should have mentioned it, but His Majesty did not respond. In the end, this matter still depends on His Majesty's thoughts. This servant feels that the Empress is not of much use. "
Yue Xiu's analysis was reasonable, and Noble Lady Yuan also understood. As for the reason that she had gone to find the Empress, it was because there was nothing that she could do. In this imperial palace, aside from the Empress, there was nobody else that could help her. But now that the Empress had been defeated, it was fine if the Emperor did not respond; however, he had restored Noble Lady Li to the position of imperial concubine, and he had used Zhu Kongshan's name to do good deeds. What sort of situation was this? Could it be that the Sheng Palace had spent money to do good deeds, but the credit had been given to the Sixth Prince and Consort Li? She was extremely puzzled; however, she did not dare demand justice from Emperor Tianwu. Everyone knew that there was no justice with Emperor Tianwu. Everything depended on whether or not he wanted it, whether or not he was willing and whether or not he was happy. When it came to this matter, she could only come up with one conclusion: Emperor Tianwu's feelings for Consort Li surpassed his feelings for her.
"Send someone to pass along a message to the Eighth Prince. Have him come into the palace tomorrow. I want to see him." Noble Lady Yuan forcefully suppressed her anger and gave the order. The crippled eunuch Rong Zhen quickly went to carry it out. As for herself, she paced back and forth in the inner hall, unwilling to remain idle for a moment.
The next day, the Eighth Prince, Xuantian Mo, came to Cun Shan Palace immediately after the morning assembly. As for what happened to Consort Li, he had received the news last night. At that time, he knew that his mother would not be able to take the blow and wanted to come in and persuade her. Unfortunately, it was already late and the palace gates were locked, so he could not enter.
Meeting Noble Lady Yuan today, although there had been a night of respite, and her emotions were no longer as impulsive as they had been the day before, it was still possible to see the anger and resentment on her face.
"Mother." He was still used to this form of address. "Now that things have come to this, it's useless for you to be angry. Why don't you think of a way to turn a bad thing into a good thing?"
"Don't call me Imperial Mother!" Noble Lady Yuan angrily said: "I am just a lowly noble lady. I do not have the right to have my own son call me imperial concubine mother! As for that aunty of yours, she's enjoying the limelight now. The old prince can openly call her Imperial Mother. Just thinking about it really makes me hate her! "She was puzzled and asked Xuantian Mo:" Say, what exactly is the reason for this? Clearly, the one that paid to do good deeds was you. Even if His Majesty wanted to reward her, it would not go to her. Why is it that there is no movement from my side, yet she has already been restored to the position of imperial concubine and has even moved to Zhang Ning Palace? Do you know what sort of place Zhang Ning Palace is? That's the palace closest to the central palace. Thinking back, His Majesty wanted to give it to Consort Yun! "
"What of it?" Xuantian Mo was not in a rush, as he pulled Noble Lady Yuan back to her seat. Only then did he say: "Whether you are a noble lady or an imperial concubine, you are still my mother. Right now, there are no outsiders. Me calling you Imperial Concubine Mother is something that should be done. Also, there will come a day when I will need to call you Imperial Mother."
Noble Lady Yuan's heart was moved, but she was troubled once more: "Will there come such a day? Look at the current situation. His Majesty has made it clear that he wants to suppress your side. You must be extremely careful when you do things. Don't let that sneaky Ninth Prince not scheme against you and end up being schemed against by that old fox, Father Emperor. That would be a loss that would not be worth it. "
"Imperial Concubine Mother, don't worry." He continued to console her, "The person that enjoyed the limelight first is not much. How long she can maintain that limelight is the most important thing. Now that this matter has already happened, we absolutely must remain calm, especially Imperial Concubine Mother. You are in the inner palace, and you are Consort Li's sister. You must not allow Father Emperor to feel that you are jealous and want to fight for your younger sister's favor. Son will say the same thing. Since things have already come to this, it would be better for us to think about how to turn this bad thing into a good thing. "
"Can it still be changed? I am a noble lady, and she is an imperial concubine. There are quite a few positions between us. "Noble Lady Yuan was a little powerless.
Xuantian Mo, however, told her: "The most important thing is that you absolutely must not take the initiative to cause a fuss. If you truly cannot accept this, just think a little more about the reputation that son has worked so hard to earn. Regardless of how things are in the palace, at the very least, the people in the capital are thinking well of son. Son also does not have any intentions of giving up on working hard outside because of this matter. As the saying goes, whoever wins the hearts of the people wins the world. There will be many hardships along the way. I can't let my efforts end up in vain because of this small matter. "
Noble Lady Yuan let out a long sigh and nodded, saying: "With you saying it like this, I feel much more at ease. I just feel that you and that child, Kongshan, have been wronged. You've put in so much effort, yet it was for the benefit of someone else. You need to properly speak with her when you get back. Have her calm down. She absolutely must not be discouraged. Do you understand?"
Xuantian Mo smiled and said: "That girl is much calmer than imperial concubine mother. Last night, this news reached the Sheng Palace, and son did not deliberately hide it. I had the servants send a letter to her side. But the servants reported that she just listened and nodded. She then continued with what she was doing. It seems that she said that she would be going this morning to give compensation to the people whose conditions had been affected by the fake medicine. "
Noble Lady Yuan knew that the so-called fake medicine was the matter of the Persian doctor that her Eighth Brother had created, thus she nodded: "She really is a thoughtful child. Then as you see it, what should be done about this matter? Should we just act as though nothing happened? "
"That's definitely no good." Xuantian Mo shook his head, "You're all members of the imperial harem, and you're sisters. How could the elder sister completely ignore the younger sister's promotion? Imperial concubine mother, you must know that reputation is not just son's reputation in the capital. There's also your reputation in the palace. It's fine with the Empress, but at the very least, you need to have the others praise you. Like this, son will have an easier time speaking with the officials. "
He was naturally referring to the officials that belonged to his faction. Noble Lady Yuan understood this, "Don't worry. I have already won over those people. Not only do I see them around more often, but I also remember to give them some of the nice things that you bring in."
"Just those people aren't enough." Xuantian Mo gave her an idea, "Father Emperor is old and values kinship more. This kinship is not just limited to the imperial family. There's also the kinship between you sisters. You and Consort Li are sisters. If you don't express yourself at a time like this, it will cause Father Emperor to feel that you are heartless. Following that, he will have a prejudice against son. "At the end, he brought it up himself and stabbed at Noble Lady Yuan's heart. Even if she felt unreconciled, she could not help but think of her son!
Noble Lady Yuan nodded unwillingly, "Forget it, then tell me. How should this be done?"
"Go and congratulate her!" Xuantian Mo gave her an idea, "You are the elder sister. You need to show the bearing of an elder sister. Of course, you need to show the proper respect. After all, she is currently an imperial concubine, and you are a noble lady. Regardless of what you think, you must show it on the surface. Also, she is son's aunt. In truth, this is not a bad thing. Imperial concubine mother, do you still remember that the Feng family's fourth young miss went to Jing Si Palace? Do you still remember what son told you about her plans? "
Noble Lady Yuan's mind was moved, "You mean to say that His Highness the sixth prince has 30 thousand troops?"
"That's right." Xuantian Mo nodded, "Originally, a mere 30 thousand troops would not be enough to enter son's eyes, but you also know about the accident in the South. A full 300 thousand troops were taken in by old ninth and that girl. It can be said that son's lifeline has been cut off. That's why, even if it's only 30 thousand, it's something that I must obtain. Moreover, his 30 thousand troops have already been secretly moved outside of the capital and handed over to old seventh; however, the military tally and authority are still with Sixth Brother. If imperial concubine mother and aunty reestablish their relationship, say, would she help her own nephew or help an outsider? "
Noble Lady Yuan said: "Of course, her own nephew would be more reliable." Thus, she completely understood Xuantian Mo's meaning. The bit of resentment that had been in her heart disappeared, and in its place was a deep calculation. "I understand. Don't worry and go do your own things. Leave everything in the inner palace to me."
Xuantian Mo nodded and let out a sigh of relief internally. He really was worried that Noble Lady Yuan would become dissatisfied and cause a fuss. That would cause an even worse effect and result in an even more irreversible outcome. "After son returns, son will tell Kongshan to have her come into the palace to congratulate Zhang Ning Palace when she has the time. After all, she is using her name to obtain this position. When that aunty sees Kongshan, it's impossible for her to not express herself in the slightest. Kongshan is also a bit better at speaking. Have her go and mediate. Our relationship can also improve. Imperial concubine mother should also quickly go to Zhang Ning Palace to congratulate! Remember to bring a generous gift. Right, son will also remember to send in a new set of white jade tea set that you broke yesterday. Imperial concubine mother, you can be at ease. "
Xuantian Mo comforted Noble Lady Yuan for a long time before finally managing to stabilize Noble Lady Yuan's emotions. Only then did he quickly leave the palace and return to the manor.
At this time in the Sheng Palace, Zhu Kongshan still had not left. She was currently going over the list of names that had been harmed by the fake medicine. This list was something that she had gathered over the past few days with great difficulty. She had also prepared enough money and was just waiting for the list to be completed before sending it out in the next two days.
When Xuantian Mo returned, he saw Zhu Kongshan personally working on an abacus. She had a very capable appearance, and he felt more and more satisfied with this cousin of his.
Seeing him return, Zhu Kongshan did not get up. The two were no longer as distant as they had been when they first met. They had already become familiar with each other. Zhu Kongshan said to him: "Cousin, my treasury took out 3,000 taels of silver and was preparing to use it to compensate the victims. I don't know if that's enough. Let me do some calculations. It shouldn't be too far off."
Xuantian Mo nodded: "I already said that you can take whatever you want from the treasury. There's no need to report it to me. If you want to do something, just do it. I will always support you from behind. "
Zhu Kongshan smiled and said: "I still need to say something. After all, it's not a small sum of money. Right, I heard last night that while we were doing good deeds in the capital, the imperial palace promoted second aunt to the position of imperial concubine. Is this true? "
"It's true." Xuantian Mo sat down across from her and asked: "What do you think of this matter?"
Zhu Kongshan said: "It's not a bad thing. It's all aunts. Promoting her is better than promoting someone else. We should be congratulating second aunt and be happy."
"But don't forget that second aunt also has a son." Xuantian Mo stared at Zhu Kongshan, "She is the mother of a prince. I don't believe that she doesn't have any thoughts of helping her son ascend the throne." Xuantian Mo did not say this in front of Noble Lady Yuan; however, he began to discuss it with Zhu Kongshan …
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