LF Chapter 74

Chapter 74: A Family Reunion

The winter sun was like a lazy, spoiled girl, losing its usual brilliant golden light and instead learning the gentle waves of the bright moon in the clear night, its weak radiance piercing through the clouds, lacking a bit of its power.

Yan Wanzhi, who had been privately abducted and had become a princess of the Liang Kingdom, returning to the capital was no easy matter. Jiang Yinghua had the nerve to keep her hidden away, but Ying Feng didn’t dare to conceal the truth. Your Majesty had received the news last night, but considering their reunion had not been easy and they had endured a long journey, she did not rush to interfere. She had thought that Jiang Yinghua would have explained everything to her this morning.

But these two were something else, making people wait for so long without even a shadow. Jiang Yinghua returned to the palace and directly shirked her responsibilities, avoiding today’s court session, probably because she was too happy and forgot her position as the Central Secretariat. A high-ranking official absent from court without reporting it left the hall full of officials staring at each other.

Jiang Yinghua, who had been beaming with joy, was quite startled to see Your Majesty standing silently in the room alone. Even more surprised than she was Yan Wanzhi in the bedroom. Although the hall was spacious, it was not soundproof after all.

She hadn’t heard it in many years, but the cold voice with its peculiar tone entered her ears, causing Yan Wanzhi to jump up from her seat immediately. Hearing the sound of the chair legs bumping, Jiang Yinghua quickly turned around to find her, took Yan Wanzhi’s hand, and half-shielded her behind her, softly comforting, “Don’t be afraid.”

Your Majesty entered leisurely with her hands behind her back, and seeing this scene, she couldn’t help but laugh. She hadn’t seen Jiang Yinghua’s ability to protect her own before. But what was most eye-catching now was the two of them with their unkempt hair and the messy bed. It was obvious what these two had been up to.

The moment she saw the ink-colored, gold-threaded skirt, Yan Wanzhi subconsciously broke free from Jiang Yinghua’s hand and bowed down towards Your Majesty, her body bent very low, as obedient as could be. Jiang Yinghua watched her movements flowing smoothly and secretly called her a coward, her expression slightly awkward.

Your Majesty, who had originally wanted to make things difficult, seemed to understand why Jiang Yinghua dared to bring her back privately, seeing her reaction. Being well-behaved always made a good impression on Your Majesty, and she watched coldly, secretly quite satisfied.

Jiang Yinghua, who had just disparaged Yan Wanzhi, stood rooted to the spot, vaguely feeling an unfriendly gaze coming her way. She carefully lifted her eyelids to take a peek and saw Your Majesty giving her a cold glare, sternly saying, “You kneel down too.”

Hearing this, Jiang Yinghua pursed her lips and obediently knelt down. Yan Wanzhi thought to herself, “I thought you were so tough, but it was all a lie. You’re no different from before.”

“Since the Princess has returned to her clan in the Liang Kingdom, why has she come to the Chu court again?” Your Majesty sat down on a chair not far away, her tone very distant.

“Wanzhi was brought by me…”

“Impudent, I am asking the Princess of Heyang. Shut your mouth.” Before Yan Wanzhi could answer, Jiang Yinghua wanted to explain for her. Your Majesty only wanted to know her attitude and would not allow Jiang Yinghua to interrupt.

Lying on the ground, Yan Wanzhi’s palms were slightly sweaty, and her slender voice came out faintly: “Your Majesty, please forgive me. There is no Princess of Heyang here. I encountered an accident during my assignment years ago and failed to return. It was my dereliction of duty. I grew up in Chu, and my father and brothers are all Chu officials. I have no divided loyalties and will not serve two masters in this life. I hope Your Majesty will understand.”

“Words are easily spoken. Is the master in your heart the one who sent you to recognize your relatives, or the one beside you, hmm?” Your Majesty’s dark eyes fell on Yan Wanzhi. “Raise your head and look at me when you speak.”

Hearing this, Jiang Yinghua couldn’t help but frown. Such a question was a bit embarrassing. She glanced at Yan Wanzhi, watching her slowly straighten her back, her eyelashes fluttering non-stop, and knew that she was very nervous. “Your Majesty, Wanzhi has her reasons.” Jiang Yinghua couldn’t help but want to say a few words in her defense.

Your Majesty swept her with a fierce glare, “If you don’t listen, get out. If you interrupt again, don’t blame me for slapping you.”

Jiang Yinghua clenched her skirt, lowered her eyes, and said nothing more. Yan Wanzhi cautiously raised her head and glanced at Your Majesty, firmly saying:

“I, like the millions of Your Majesty’s subjects, am willing to devote my life to loving and being loyal to the monarch of Great Chu. Prince Zhao and I are both favored by Heaven and can serve the court and the country with one heart. As for the Prince of Jialing, who coerced me, I pretended to cooperate with him in order to infiltrate the enemy camp and secretly investigate his conspiracy. I hate him to the bone and have no intention of serving him.”

“So, Scholar Yan’s courage is for the sake of the monarch and the country. But I don’t understand. Prince Zhao went to the Northwest and disappeared without a trace, and you have also returned to the court. Has the grand plan succeeded? What important clues about defeating the villains did Scholar Yan bring that allowed you to sleep until noon?”

Hearing Yan Wanzhi’s response, Your Majesty keenly seized the key point of the Prince of Jialing. As Jiang Yinghua had guessed, this mastermind had extended his hand to another country, and the situation was critical.

Yan Wanzhi stammered, unable to say anything, and bowed her head, saying, “I am incompetent.”

Your Majesty’s face darkened, “So you were exposed and escaped back?”

“No, it’s not that. It’s… it was Prince Zhao who drugged me and tied me back. According to the plan, it still needs time.” Yan Wanzhi whispered, directly selling out Jiang Yinghua.

Jiang Yinghua’s trip to the west was tightly sealed. She was in a hurry to get back and didn’t bother to send news to the capital. The Secret Service now listened to her orders, and Your Majesty was indeed in the dark due to exhaustion. But hearing Yan Wanzhi say this, Your Majesty slammed the table in anger. Yan Wanzhi was in the Western Liang, and it would be strange if Jiang Yinghua hadn’t crossed the border alone to tie her back.

The ambiguous look directly turned to Jiang Yinghua, who was now hanging her head in guilty conscience, pretending to be very well-behaved. A dark shadow approached, covering Jiang Yinghua’s sight, and the immense pressure swept over her. Jiang Yinghua timidly shrank her neck and said in a trembling voice:

“Your Majesty, please don’t be angry. I will explain everything to you truthfully. It was a matter of urgency, and I didn’t act rashly. Don’t listen to her one-sided story.”

Your Majesty grabbed her by the collar and lifted her off the ground, bringing her close to her ear. Although it was a whisper, it was full of suppressed annoyance: “You wretch, if there’s a mishap, do you want Mother to drag her old and sick body to send off her white-haired child, and then go to the Western Liang to redeem you?”

Jiang Yinghua was shocked and quickly bowed to the ground, “I would never dare. Your Majesty, please calm down.”

A slight anger brought a wave of dizziness, and Jiang Jingche sat back weakly, recovering for a long time. She had only come to test Yan Wanzhi’s position and was relieved after getting a rough idea. “Yan Wanzhi’s identity cannot be revealed for the time being. This afternoon, you two will enter the Chengming Hall. The matter of the Prince of Jialing’s rebellion must be discussed in detail. Now, go to the Ancestral Temple. The Empress Dowager is waiting there.”

As soon as she finished speaking, the two looked at each other, stunned for a moment. Jiang Yinghua boldly asked, “Is Your Majesty sure that it is the Empress Mother who asked us to go to the Ancestral Temple?”

Your Majesty gave her a glare, got up, and left. Jiang Yinghua blinked her eyes and pondered for a long time, poking Yan Wanzhi’s shoulder. “Coward, get up and change clothes, hurry up.” Yan Wanzhi rubbed her sore and numb thighs and glared at Jiang Yinghua. “I thought Prince Zhao was so tough, but you’re just the same, two cowards who are cut from the same cloth.”

“You still have the mind to make fun of me. What is the Empress Mother up to? Do you know?” Jiang Yinghua felt that Yan Wanzhi was carefree. Over the years, Jiang Yinghua had been avoiding the Empress Dowager, and the Empress Dowager had never taken the initiative to look for her. Their mother-daughter relationship had long fallen to freezing point. Today, she suddenly asked Yan Wanzhi to accompany her to a hall that only the Jiang family’s direct relatives could enter. Jiang Yinghua felt uneasy.

“If you don’t know, how would I know? Just bite the bullet and go. Can we defy the imperial decree?” Yan Wanzhi muttered to herself, thinking that to save her life, she would have to rely on her eloquent tongue.

A quarter of an hour later, the two of them finally arrived late at the gate of the Ancestral Temple, hand in hand. Because the person they were going to see was the Empress Dowager, Yan Wanzhi refused the bright and flamboyant golden hairpins and only inserted two kingfisher feather hairpins into her bun, looking beautiful and dignified, and refreshingly. Jiang Yinghua wore a purple-gold lotus crown, still in the style of a dashing and romantic young prince. From afar, they really looked like a perfect couple.

The old nanny outside the hall saw them and said in a low voice, “Ninth girl, the Empress Dowager has been waiting for a long time, go in.”

Yan Wanzhi pulled out her hand from Jiang Yinghua’s grasp, intending to stay outside the hall, but the old nanny smiled, “Miss Mo is also invited to enter.”

Hearing this, Jiang Yinghua vaguely understood the Empress Dowager’s intention. She stretched out her restless little claws from her wide sleeves and pulled Yan Wanzhi back, leading her into the hall. Facing the walls full of ancestral tablets and portraits, Jiang Yinghua looked solemn, and Yan Wanzhi lowered her eyes, feeling that she had entered a forbidden area that she shouldn’t have.

The Empress Dowager stood in front of a painting with the most vibrant colors. Seeing them enter, she beckoned to them, “Come here.”

Jiang Yinghua raised her eyes and saw that the Empress Dowager was looking at the late emperor’s portrait. She pulled Yan Wanzhi and knelt down silently, waiting for the Empress Dowager to speak.

“I had a word with Your Majesty beforehand. If you two are of one mind, come here to meet; if you each have your own plans, she will not let you come. Does Miss Mo know how important Hua’er was in the late emperor’s heart? Do you know why I ordered you to come here?” The Empress Dowager turned her back to them, her voice revealing the vicissitudes of old age, her gaze fixed on the portrait, never leaving.

“I understand. Thank you, Empress Dowager, for your kindness.” Yan Wanzhi kowtowed heavily on the ground, her voice sincere. The Empress Dowager chuckled and turned her head to smile, “Should you call yourself ‘chen’?”

Yan Wanzhi’s cheeks were burning, her mind unable to process it for a moment, unsure how to respond. Jiang Yinghua spoke to ease the situation: “Why bother teasing her, Empress Mother? I have always referred to myself as such, she shouldn’t be an exception, there is nothing wrong with it.”

The Empress Dowager restrained her smile, knowing that Jiang Yinghua was still angry. With these words, it was even more impossible for Yan Wanzhi to cleverly change her words. She had wanted to take this opportunity to ease the mother-daughter relationship, but Jiang Yinghua didn’t appreciate it at all.

“Forget it, I only have two daughters, both of whom are unconventional. I had prepared a lot of dowry, but it’s useless now. This is a pair of mandarin duck jade pendants, given to me and the late emperor by the Grand Empress Dowager, I will reward you two with them.” The Empress Dowager took out a brocade box from her wide sleeves and handed it to Jiang Yinghua.

Jiang Yinghua reached out to take it, opened the brocade box, and glanced at it. She had seen her father wear this item before. She put away the brocade box and handed it to Yan Wanzhi. Jiang Yinghua bowed, “Thank you, Mother, for your blessing.”

She was finally willing to come down the steps. A trace of relief flashed in the Empress Dowager’s eyes, and she said softly, “Let’s have dinner together on New Year’s Eve this year. Give me some face, and Miss Mo, come too.” Over the years, Jiang Yinghua had been avoiding people to the point of not attending morning greetings and not attending palace banquets, burying herself in her books all day long. The number of times she had seen the Empress Dowager in private was almost zero. Living in the same palace, they were like strangers. Today, she made this request, and Jiang Yinghua’s heart softened for a moment, and she agreed.

In order to confuse the Prince of Jialing, Your Majesty did not change her mind after taking back Jiang Yinghua’s power to oversee the country. The courtiers only thought that Your Majesty’s illness had recovered, and she really went to court every day to handle political affairs, acting with Jiang Yinghua. Yan Wanzhi and Ying Feng were both smart and clever, and the four of them discussed countermeasures together, waiting for the Prince of Jialing to show his flaws. This person was really able to hold his breath, and even with the disappearance of the princess of the Western Liang, he could still silently endure it.

A month passed in a flash, and New Year’s Eve arrived. This year’s New Year’s Eve had swirling snow, and the little palace maids changed into new clothes, playing snowballs in the back garden with a vibrant and youthful spirit. Jiang Yinghua wore a thick fox fur coat, pulled Yan Wanzhi, and stood on a high pavilion in the palace, looking out into the distance, admiringly saying, “Young people are carefree, watching them makes people feel happy.”

“That’s right, I am also very happy to see Hua’er.” Yan Wanzhi’s mouth was so glib that she had been racking her brains to make people happy for the past month, overdoing it.

The sky darkened, and the lights came on. Jiang Yinghua sighed, “Let’s go, let’s go to the Empress Dowager’s place. Filling our stomachs is the most important thing.”

When the two entered against the rustling snow, the Empress Dowager’s palace was very lively. Your Majesty and Ying Feng had arrived early, and because there were children inside, the three generations, young and old, were very happy. This year, Your Majesty’s health was not good on New Year’s Eve, and she was afraid that people would see something was wrong, so she abandoned the palace banquet. She had wanted to hold a family banquet, but the Empress Dowager directly asked everyone to come to her palace, abandoning the cumbersome etiquette, and just eating a simple meal around a round table.

This kind of atmosphere had not been around for many years. In the past, the late emperor was an informal person, often celebrating festivals like this, putting the young Jiang Yinghua on his lap, and the family laughed happily.

When her little niece entered the palace, Your Majesty announced to the world that she would be placed under Prince Yong’s name. Outsiders only thought that the young daughter of Prince Yong, who had disappeared, had been found. Re-entering the clan genealogy showed Your Majesty’s generosity. The child was named Yichen, with a profound meaning of entrusting the country to her.

Seeing Jiang Yinghua and Yan Wanzhi arriving late, the Empress Dowager said softly, “We were just waiting for you two. Now that everyone is here, let’s take our seats.”

A round table with six small stools, a table full of delicacies, and of course, dumplings for the occasion. The Empress Dowager sat in the main seat, with Your Majesty and Jiang Yinghua accompanying her on the left and right. Perhaps because Jiang Yinghua was the youngest, the child felt close to her and clamored to sit next to Jiang Yinghua, while Yan Wanzhi and Ying Feng sat together.

The old nanny opened a jar of wine. The familiar taste lingered in the air, and Jiang Yinghua was momentarily in a trance, wondering, “Nanny, what kind of wine is this?”

“Ninth girl, you can’t even smell the wine you brewed yourself? This wine has been in the palace for ten years, and it can be considered aged plum wine. There’s only this jar left, and the Empress Dowager treasures it.” The old nanny smiled with wrinkles all over her eyes, carefully pouring it for several masters.

Jiang Yinghua looked at the wine in her glass, feeling a mixture of emotions, and said softly, “Next year, when the plums bear fruit, I will make some more for you and Elder Sister.”

“Okay, then I and the Emperor will wait to taste your cooking. Today everyone is here, let’s raise our glasses and celebrate together.”

The Empress Dowager raised her glass in invitation, and everyone accompanied her for a round. The glasses clinked together, making a crisp sound. The child couldn’t reach, so Yan Wanzhi simply put her on the stool, barely looking like a little adult.

A family meal did not need to be constrained by too many rules. The Empress Dowager was happy, so she picked up various dumplings for Jiang Yinghua. She didn’t remember other things clearly, but she couldn’t forget that she loved to eat dumplings. As for Your Majesty, she had been strict with herself since she was a child, keeping the rule of no more than three bites of food, and even the Empress Dowager couldn’t figure out her preferences.

Laughter and joy continued, and an hour later, the table was already a mess. The Empress Dowager took the lead in giving her granddaughter a big red envelope, and Your Majesty immediately took out a red envelope as well, both for the little one. When it came to Jiang Yinghua, the little one blinked her big black grape-like eyes and shook her sleeve, “Little Aunt?”

Jiang Yinghua playfully picked her up and put her on her lap, playfully scolding, “Chen’er, you stole Aunt’s red envelope. Before you came, the red envelopes were all mine. Now that you’re here, I can’t get a penny. Aunt is wronged, I won’t give it.”

Everyone laughed. She was almost thirty years old, and she was still fooling around with a child. The child was alert, staring at Jiang Yinghua with her watery eyes, reaching out to pinch her sleeve, giggling, “Aunt is lying, I touched it, it’s bulging.”

Jiang Yinghua brushed away her little claws and joked, “Look, you’re the only little one in the house. You tell Aunt, who is the most handsome among these adults? If you say it right, I’ll give you a red envelope.”

The child was confused and scratched her head, “Aunt can’t bully me for being small. There’s only Uncle-in-law who isn’t a woman in the house, why don’t you ask Uncle-in-law?”

Jiang Yinghua was speechless.

She almost missed Ying Feng’s identity as a woman. She was careless.

Seeing the resentful expressions from everyone in the room, she stuck out her tongue and said, “Aunt is drunk, here, take the red envelope, may you be healthy and strong.”

The child didn’t suspect anything and jumped down happily. Your Majesty lowered her eyes and smiled lightly, getting up and handing Jiang Yinghua an object, “Your red envelope, keep it. According to the rules, should you kowtow to me?”

Jiang Yinghua reached out to take it with a puzzled look, and when she touched the object in the red envelope, she looked at Your Majesty with a deep expression, and immediately frowned. But after a moment, she smiled and said, “Hua’er was teasing the child, it doesn’t count. Please take it back, I am so old that there is no reason to ask for a red envelope.”

“There is no reason to take back what is given away, keep it.” Your Majesty replied softly, not taking the object.

The banquet ended, and Yan Wanzhi asked in confusion, “What did Your Majesty give you? I saw that your face changed.”

Jiang Yinghua paused, responding almost inaudibly, “A pair of Military Seals.”