NOVEL NEXT Lv Li smiled and said, “There is a message from home. It says that the wedding was set in August since it will not be so hot then.”
I was so surprised when I heard that news. It was almost July. If the date was set in August, then there wasn’t much time to prepare everything.
Lv saw through me. She looked outside at the temple to make sure there was no one around, then she approached me and whispered, “There is no other choice. Her belly is starting to show…”
I was struck dumb and looked at her in silence.
Lv wanted to make sure that I had understood. She put her hand on her abdomen and made a gesture. Then she said in a low voice, “It’s getting big…”
I gradually closed my mouth and nodded. When I looked up, I realized she was waiting for my response, so I sighed, “Well, what a fertile woman she is.”
Hearing those words, Lv put on a curious face and her gaze wandered off to my belly.
I lowered down my head and looked at my watermelon-like belly. Somehow, I was reminded of the earlier rain, and at such, I twitched the corner of my lips and said, “Women in our family are all very fertile!”
When I was saying that, Qi Sheng came in from the outside. Seeing that I was very close to Lv, he asked casually, “Are you having a girls’ talk?”
Unlike before, since the hearty conversation that night, Qi Sheng had become a frequent visitor to my palace. He would drop by and talk about some gossips every several days. Unfortunately, we didn’t really have any common topics, so our conversations usually ended in awkward silence.
I thought it’s awkward when we had nothing to say, so I had planned to recommend some beauties who were temporarily living in my palace to him. I told them to serve some tea, water or deserts from time to time, hoping Qi Sheng would be interested in someone.
But an Emperor would never so easily get tricked. He never told you outright who he liked, and instead, he only made some comments on the food they brought, “Pengpeng, you have a good taste of tea.”
Or, “Pengpeng, this osmanthus cake is so delicious.”
Or, “Pengpeng, this crystal cake is so delicate.”
At that time, I knew very well what he meant, and secretly made a signal to Lv Li, asking her to prep the beauties who had just served the tea or osmanthus cake, and send them to Qi Sheng’s palace in the evening.
Qi Sheng said nothing, nor did he specify which one he prefer. Was it the osmanthus cake or the crystal cake? However, he had a good appetite, because no one had come back after they were sent there.
But, it’s getting more difficult to satisfy Qi Sheng. In the end, I was running out of food to recommend to him, and he had stopped complimenting the food. One day, I had had enough of his silence and asked, “Emperor, would you like some steamed pork ribs? Would you like to try it out?”
“Steamed pork ribs?” Qi Wei slightly opened his mouth in astonishment.
Nodding my head, I was so frightened that he might get scared of the “Steamed pork ribs”, so I hurriedly explained, “The shape or the color might look ugly, but it tastes very good. Maybe you would like it.”
Qi Sheng thought about it, then he waved his hand, “No. No. I have switched to vegetarian diet recently, so I don’t touch meat.”
Later, when he came to my place, he didn’t eat or drink anything. And so I never got a chance to present him the rest of my beauties.
Lv Li quickly kneeled in front of Qi Sheng and then went down to get him some tea.
Qi Sheng walked to my side and sat down casually on the nearby chairs. He had no intention of letting go the previous conversation and continued, “What were you two talking about? I heard the word ‘fertile’, do you mean the land of the Zhang family?”
I didn’t know how to answer this question, and just so happened that Lv Li was back with the tea. She answered for me with a beam of smile on her face, “Her Majesty said that some patches of land over at the Cui mountain are quite good and they belong to the Zhang clan. She thought those lands would make perfect wedding gifts.”
Qi Sheng nodded in favor of that idea and turned around to me, “There are some royal lands there too. Maybe we can send He Bingze a stretch of land as well.”
I couldn’t believe my ears. The royal lands were much larger than that of the Zhang clan. It would appear that Qi Sheng was quite generous with He Bingze. Even though he managed to piss Qi Sheng off over the marriage, he didn’t quite lose the favor of Qi Sheng.
Qi Sheng swept a glance at me and asked, “Missing your sister?”
I knew that I didn’t know her that well, and that if I said I missed her, Qi Sheng wouldn’t believe it. However, Lv Li was standing beside me and so I had to pretend to be sentimental and said, “When I left home, she was still a little girl. Now, in a blink of eye, she is now marrying. I am just being a bit melancholy over how fast time has passed.”
Qi Sheng replied, “After the ceremony, both of them will come to the palace to pay their respect. You could catch up with her when that day comes.”
I knew all too well about what he meant by “catching up”. But since there was no hiding from him and that I was going to do it anyway, I might as well admit to it. So I replied, “Yeah, it will be a rare opportunity. We will have a talk.”
Qi Sheng smiled and after spending a few moments here, he simply got up and left.
After he was gone, Lv Li started cleaning up the table. She looked doubtful and said, “Your Majesty, I suddenly think that the Emperor has perhaps changed. But although his temper is not as bad as before and he constantly wears smile on his face, I feel more horrified by his presence.”
I nodded in agreement and replied, “Well, you know what they say. Always be on the lookout for the dogs that don’t bark.”
Lv Li was obviously surprised by my answer.
The marriage between the two clans took place on late August. Because it was arranged by Qi Sheng, so the marriage was nothing less than a grand spectacle. Rumor had it that the dowry was so massive that the men transporting them were lining up from the door of the He residence all the way to the door of the Zhang residence. Such spectacle amazed all the citizens in the city, and they said that the He clan was not marrying a girl, but a verifiable gold mine.
Nonetheless, Madame He, the mother-in-law of the bride, was still very much displeased with the whole arrangement and constantly pulled a long face. The bride, however, was a bit shy. No matter how her mother-in-law treated her, she would always wear a beam of smile on her face and acted obediently.
Everyone could see who was being unreasonable.
In the palace of the Grand Empress Dowager, I cast a glance at the bride and her mother-in-law, and then turned around and whispered to Lv Li, “She is quite something. Knowing when to be obedient and when to be domineering. That’s true strategists!”
Lv Li felt surprised and asked with a low voice, “Even better than the one in Youlan Hall?”
I thought for a while before delivering my answer, “They are different. Jiang shi can no longer pose any threat to me.”
Lv Li wanted to query more, but the Grand Empress Dowager turned over and smiled, “You are now showing. You might get tired after all this time sitting here. You should go back and take a rest. Take your sister with you. You two must have a lot to say to each other. I will send someone to fetch you when your mother leaves.”
I was a bit surprised, and with the help of Lv Li, I got up from the floor and obediently replied, “Will do.”
The bride thanked the Grand Empress Dowager, but her eyes constantly wandered off to see the expression on her mother-in-law’s face. Upon sensing that, Madame He’s face grew ever grimmer. The nearby Empress Dowager broke the awkward silence with a hearty smile, “Mother, you clearly want to spend some time with your cousin. Don’t try to put this on those two girls. Very well, I should head back to my place, lest I outstay my welcome.”
But, as she finished those lines, she remained in her seat, not budging one bit.
The Grand Empress Dowager pointed her finger at the Empress Dowager and smiled, “Well, clever words don’t quite suit you. Aren’t you afraid that the Empress might laugh at you?
The Queen laughed with her hand covering her mouth, and everyone in the hall pretended laughing with joy.
The fight between a mother-in-law and his son’s wife had lasted for more than thousands of years in China. I didn’t think I was capable of solving it, nor did I want to get involved, so I took my leave in a hurry. The bride seemed to have figured out something, so she didn’t even sweep a look at her mother-in-law, but took one of my arms with Lv Li and went outside quickly.
Once we were back to the Xing Sheng Palace, Lv Li made an excuse and left us alone. The bride looked around and as she didn’t find anyone else, she kneeled on the ground and solemnly bowed me twice and said, “I really appreciate your help.”
I didn’t ask her to get up quickly, instead I just said, “Let bygones be bygones. Forget about the past. I have some things to tell you. If a husband represents a woman’s dignity in front of her family, then a woman’s family is her backup in her husband’s family. The reason why the Emperor granted you a marriage is not because you are married to He Bingze, but because you are the daughter of our Zhang family! You are a smart person, and I am going to leave it at that.”
The bride was apparently struck dumb. Later, she bowed her head and lowered her head down deeply and said, “I see. Thank you for your kind instructions.”
I raised my hand up to tell her to get up, and then we had a casual conversation. We sent her back before the Grand Empress Dowager sent some to ask.
Lv Li was an efficient girl, so she came back in a short time. Then she came close to me with a mysterious face and whispered to me, “When I sent the bride over, Mrs. He’s face looked so aggrieved. And her eyes were red. It was as clear as day that she was reprimanded by the Grand Empress Dowager…”
See! That was a gleeful face all right!
Lv Li. If you only had one son who was hung by a rope between two big ships, you would have killed yourself. Think about it, if the two ships could always go together in parallel, that’s fine. But what if they had a quarrel? If that happened, he would easily fall into the water. If you were his mother, wouldn’t you cry?