Volume 2 Kyoto Chapter 38 Slap

  The eldest princess is the only daughter of the former emperor, and after the current emperor ascended to the throne, she was immediately appointed as the Princess Yongtiao. From the time of the Cheng Wang Fu period until now in the palace, this princess has been extremely favored, but her temperament did not follow the path of arrogance and extravagance, instead sinking deeper into the sorrowful green waters, often becoming sentimental and melancholic at the slightest provocation, shedding tears over fallen flowers, and weeping at the eastern river. Of course, this is a personality trait that only reveals itself in front of those closest to her.

  She gazed at the empress with a hint of resentment and said, "The emperor is also like that. He could have promised me to any other family, but he had to promise me to the Fan family, knowing full well that the Fan family and Prime Minister...".

  "Get out first." The empress suddenly opened her eyes, lowered her voice but said two words with great majesty. The wet nurses had no expression on their faces and quietly retreated.

  “Slap!” A loud noise, a red palm print appeared on the face of Princess Chang. She looked at her mother with fear in her eyes. The Empress Dowager gritted her teeth and said coldly: "I've told you countless times not to mention that person in front of me! You have no shame, but our royal family still has dignity! If it weren't for you using your own life to protect him back then, I would have had him killed long ago!"

  "All these years, I've never let him see Morning even once, but I haven't set any obstacles for him either." The empress's kindness had long since disappeared, replaced by a cold frostiness. "Because I know that back then, he wanted to marry you, but you were afraid of hindering his career, so you didn't marry... Fine! You want to give him a career, I'll give him a career. Now that he's the head of all officials, you should also fulfill your original wish. However... I don't allow you and him to have any further involvement with each other. And regarding Morning's marriage, the Lin family will not have any say in the matter. Do you understand?"

  The princess wiped away her tears and forced a smile, her voice trembling: "I understand."

  The empress dowager turned around and looked at the queen, saying lightly: "The emperor is busy with government affairs. For things like this, you should take care of it more. The marriage of your own children, you should handle it more. However, since the emperor has already promised Chen'er to the Fan family, don't interfere too much."

  "Yes." The queen had already been shocked by what happened earlier and hastily nodded in agreement.

  "Empress, you shouldn't always be by my side serving me either. When you have some free time, go and accompany the Emperor more often, to help alleviate his worries." The Empress Dowager's tone had softened considerably. The encouraging meaning behind her words was very clear.

  The queen smiled wryly and nodded in agreement, but suddenly her brow furrowed as if she had thought of something.

  The empress dowager said softly, "What is it that you want to say?"

  The queen glanced at the eldest princess who was still wiping away tears and said in a low voice, "Earlier, Gonggong Hong sent someone to say that there is a case at the Kyoto Prefectural Government Office today."

  "What case is this? Even that old dog is interested."

  The queen smiled awkwardly: "Empress Dowager, this matter is actually of interest to people in the capital because it started at the yamen early in the morning and dragged on until just now when a result was reached... I heard that it was the only son of Guo Yuanshu, the Minister of Rites, Guo Baokun, who filed a complaint against someone from the Fan estate, saying that this person had beaten him up on the street last night and recited a poem. This poem... Empress Dowager also saw it earlier."

  "What?!" The Empress Dowager said in surprise: "Has Wanli's autumn melancholy often made him a guest who beats people?"

  As soon as this was said, the empress beside her couldn't help but cover her mouth and laugh, even the eldest princess burst into laughter. She said: "Mother's words are really humorous."

  The Empress Dowager laughed and said, "It's not me being interesting, it's that Fan Xian who is interesting. He has only been in the capital for a few days, how did he manage to beat up the son of the Minister? Quickly tell me, what was the scene like at the Ministry?" She suddenly thought of something and frowned, saying "The Metropolitan Procuratorate didn't dare use torture, did they? If it's ruined, how can we have the wedding in October?"

  The queen chuckled and said, "Empress Dowager, what are you talking about? Although Fan Xian is not of a decent birth, he is after all the flesh and blood of the Duke of Southern Jiang, and has talent in his belly, having already become a scholar, it's impossible for him to be beaten."

  "That's good," said the Empress Dowager: "Is that Guo Baokun one of those people who are always with the Crown Prince?"

  The queen's face suddenly became somewhat uneasy and she responded in a low voice. Indeed, the empress hummed.

  "Those little rascals only know how to persuade Cheng Qian to indulge in falconry, they're all a bunch of troublemakers. Needless to say, that Fan Xian is definitely going to get it good."

  The princess's expression didn't change, but her emotions were complex. She never expected that her mother wouldn't ask for a reason and would think that the private son of the Fan family was beaten well. But she had just been slapped and scolded, so it was inconvenient for her to speak at this time. Fortunately, the empress said with a hint of intention: "That Guo compiler also has some talent, being beaten like this in the street is not entirely justified."

  It seems that the Empress Dowager sensed that her thoughts were not quite the same as those of the Queen, and she did not react much. She asked lightly: "What is the result of the trial?"

  "Fan Xian had Wang Shi Zi come out as a witness, so the Kyoto Prefectural Government couldn't do anything and could only temporarily detain him for further trial."

  "Hong Cheng is vouching for him? It seems this little Fan Xian still has some connections."

  The empress secretly rejoiced, knowing that although the empress dowager seemed to have nothing on her mind, she actually disliked the overly close relationship between the officials and the imperial family. However, she also knew that things had to be done with tact, so she couldn't say too much. She changed the subject: "I heard that on the night when Guo was beaten, Fan's son and the crown prince were lingering by the Flowing Crystal River... so this matter should have nothing to do with him."

  The queen mother suddenly stood up and said, "I'm a bit tired." The palace maids and eunuchs outside hurried over to support her, and a large group of people walked towards the back palace.

  As the imperial carriage of the Empress Dowager slowly entered the palace walls, the Empress and the eldest princess finally stood up, exchanging a glance. The Empress's lips curled into a wry smile: "It seems that although the Empress Dowager is very displeased with Fan family's son's licentiousness, her stance has not softened. I'm afraid that half a year later, Chen'er will really have to get married."

  The Empress Dowager sighed and said, "I'm just worried about Fan Xian's character, but..." She looked at the Queen, her weak and fragile expression like a willow by the riverbank, and whispered, "The Fan family has a good relationship with the Jing Wang Fu, Your Majesty should be careful."

  The empress's heart skipped a beat as she realized the other person was reminding her that if that young man with the surname Fan really married their daughter, and His Majesty really handed over the management of the inner warehouse to the Fan family, then the two men from the Fan family would be in control of the financial transactions of the Qing country. And if the Fan family really turned against the Second Prince because of their relationship with the Jing Wang Fu, she feared for her son... She furrowed her brow, thinking that although her son was not capable, he was after all His Majesty's only legitimate child, and wondered if there was some deeper meaning behind His Majesty's actions.

  "Don't think too much." The Empress Dowager comforted, "You also know that in the past two years, I've rarely managed the internal affairs of the Imperial Treasury. The Supervisory Board has always had someone keeping an eye on things. After all, the Fan family's status is not enough; even if that Fan Xian really marries Chen'er, he won't be able to truly take control of the Imperial Treasury."

  The queen frowned and said: "I'm just very suspicious now, what kind of bewitching soup did that old man Fan Jian give to the emperor, actually moving Your Majesty."

  The Empress Dowager smiled and said: "Your Majesty should also have not summoned Liu for a long time?"

  The queen's face turned cold, and she said: "That woman married Fan Jian as a concubine, seemingly foolish, but actually cunning in her heart. Four years ago you came up with the idea to kill the illegitimate son of Langzhou, but it was Liu who took the lead, she must have been resentful towards us, and now thinking of luring her out to be a shield is probably not easy."

  "What's it to you?" The eldest princess smiled, her skin still looking very good in her thirties. "Would she dare to say something out of line? Besides, I've known Liu since we were young, and I know she's someone who likes to nitpick."

  The queen suddenly frowned and said, "It's strange to say, why did Your Majesty decide four years ago to hand over the inner warehouse to the Fan family for management? If it weren't for the urgent situation at that time, there would be no need to take risks." The gentle and weak Princess Chang said, "The Emperor brother didn't like my relationship with you being too good, so he decided early on to let me withdraw from the inner warehouse... otherwise, he wouldn't have had the Dean send someone to guard me from the beginning."

  She continued to sigh: "These officials, regardless of their intelligence, can be controlled by some means, but that Director Chen is loyal only to Your Majesty and has managed the institute's affairs so tightly that we cannot find a way to plant our people inside."

  The empress listened to this, slightly furrowing her brow: "As a subject, being loyal to Your Majesty is a matter of course. We secretly planted people in the palace because we were worried that you would be deceived by treacherous officials. Chancellor Chen's loyalty is as clear as day and night, there's no need to say more." The Grand Princess knew she had misspoken, and softly said: "Yes, but over the years, the Imperial Censorate has been investigating that assassination case in Danzhou, it seems like a strict order from Your Majesty."

  "This is the truth. At that time, Your Majesty was drunk and saw your daughter, he was very pleased, and on the spot, he took her as his adopted daughter and introduced her to the Fan family. Only a few people in the palace knew about this matter." The Empress recalled the scene from four years ago and said coldly: "As a result, within a month, there were assassins in Danzhou. Although this matter was not exposed, the Imperial Censorate was clear about it. How could Your Majesty not know? He wouldn't care about the life or death of that illegitimate child, but he would be concerned that someone dared to leak his words in the palace."