Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 405 The Empress Dowager's Wrath

Cining Palace.

Empress Dowager Meng was resting on the soft couch, but she woke up earlier than usual today.

Hearing the sound, the lady-in-waiting hurriedly stepped forward to serve.

The head attendant, fearing that the Empress Dowager was unwell, hurriedly stepped forward to ask, "Your Majesty, are you not asleep, or are you having another dream?"

Empress Dowager Meng sighed and reached out her hand. The lady-in-waiting quickly handed her a Buddhist rosary.

Empress Dowager Meng twirled the prayer beads one by one. These prayer beads were left to her by the Dowager Consort. The two women entered the palace one after the other to serve the late emperor, and the sisters always supported each other.

In this palace full of intrigue and scheming, such a friendship is rare. Especially when Empress Dowager Meng was pregnant with the current emperor, the Dowager Consort, in order to protect the safety of the mother and child, simply moved into her palace to accompany her, sleeping in the outer room of her bedchamber at night until she gave birth.

Consort Gao was never one to compete or fight for anything. Although she never had any children of her own, she didn't care. She simply said that if it wasn't meant to be, it couldn't be forced.

Fortunately, the Emperor was grateful for the Dowager Consort's help in raising them and was always very filial to them, so the Dowager Consort was able to enjoy some family happiness as a result.

"She fell asleep, but later dreamed of the Empress Dowager," Empress Dowager Meng said. "She was still the same as before, standing in the room tending to the flowers and plants."

“I talked to her, but she just wouldn’t turn around and look at me.”

"I woke up because I was in a hurry."

“Others can talk to their deceased relatives and friends when they dream of them, but she not only doesn’t speak, she won’t even let them see her.”

The head of the household smiled and said, "The Empress Dowager passed away peacefully, perhaps without any unresolved issues."

The Empress Dowager had her lady-in-waiting help her to her feet: "How could she not have any lingering resentment after living in such a place for decades? It's just that she's come to terms with it. If she really didn't have any resentment, she wouldn't have kept using this string of prayer beads."

The master knew that the Buddhist prayer beads in the Empress Dowager's hand were once the possessions of the Consort Dowager, and were also given to her by the Consort Dowager's niece, Shen Si Niangzi.

It was made of the finest sandalwood, which was personally carved and polished by Lady Shen, and sent to the palace as a birthday gift for the Dowager Consort.

Shen Si Niangzi was the daughter of Consort Gao's elder sister. She was intelligent from a young age and had a friendly personality, much like Consort Gao. Consort Gao treated this niece like her own flesh and blood, and would call her to her side to talk whenever she had the chance.

The Empress Dowager had planned to have the Emperor bring her into the harem in a few years, so that if the Consort wanted to see her niece, she could simply send someone to the inner palace to summon her. However, the Consort refused, simply because she couldn't bear to see Shen Si Niangzi confined within the high walls for the rest of her life.

Such a caring and cherished child has suddenly disappeared.

The Shen family and the Imperial Guards searched everywhere in Bianjing but to no avail. The Dowager Consort fell seriously ill because of this. Although she gradually recovered, she kept thinking about this matter until her death.

The Empress Dowager's birthday was only two days apart from the Empress Dowager's, so whenever the palace prepared for the Empress Dowager's birthday celebration, the Empress Dowager would miss the Empress Dowager especially.

"I use these beads to chant sutras in the hope of accumulating more blessings for Lady Shen, in case she finds it one day?"

The head servant hurriedly replied, "You're right." The Empress Dowager would bring up these words every year, and they were already used to it.

But everyone knows that this is impossible. If the person were still alive after more than ten years, they would have been found long ago.

Furthermore, the Shen family had never stopped searching. Whenever they encountered a county magistrate or assistant magistrate who had been transferred to another county, the Shen family would prepare a generous gift, asking for nothing in return, as long as they could keep an eye on news about Shen Si Niangzi. Every year they would get some clues, but unfortunately, all the investigations had nothing to do with Shen Si Niangzi.

In recent years, even such news has gradually disappeared.

The Empress Dowager continued to twirl her prayer beads: "I'm going for a walk outside."

Upon hearing this, the two ladies-in-waiting hurried off to their tasks. The one in charge of the ceremony handed the hand warmer to the Empress Dowager, and was about to speak when she was interrupted by the messenger who entered the room to deliver the message.

This is the female scribe who accompanied the master of ceremonies to Yunqi Temple. At this moment, the female scribe's face is full of anxiety.

"What's wrong?" the head official asked. "What happened at Yunqi Temple?" Could a lady-in-waiting serving the Empress Dowager possibly suffer any injustice outside? The lady-in-waiting shook her head and hurriedly bowed to the Empress Dowager: "Your Majesty...we...may know the whereabouts of Lady Shen..."

The Empress Dowager was stunned for a moment before turning around to look at the lady-in-waiting: "What did you say?"

The Empress Dowager's voice trembled slightly from excitement.

The female historian said, "We went to Yunqi Temple and heard news about Shen Si Niangzi from a nun, but we can't be sure yet."

"After hearing this, the master of ceremonies told me to go back to Cining Palace to report the news and ask the Empress Dowager to send someone over," the lady-in-waiting continued. "The master of ceremonies and the others were to stay there and not allow anyone present to leave until they received the Empress Dowager's verbal order."

The master of ceremonies also risked his life to decisively close the doors of the Sutra Repository, locking everyone inside.

The Empress Dowager carefully considered the lady-in-waiting's words, and after a moment asked, "Is Shen Si Niang alive or dead?"

The lady-in-waiting looked hesitant.

The Empress Dowager's heart sank; she already knew the truth. She pressed for an answer: "Where is he?"

The female historian said, "It's not certain yet, it might... it might be around Yunqi Temple."

Even the head of the workshop looked surprised.

Judging from this, Lady Shen is dead, and her body is actually at Yunqi Temple. At first glance, this seems impossible, but upon reflection, it is precisely because of this that the Shen family and the imperial court overlooked Yunqi Temple during their search.

The Empress Dowager took a deep breath: "Prepare the carriage for Yunqi Temple. I want to go there to offer incense." After waiting for so many years, she couldn't trust anyone else to handle the matter; she had to go and see for herself.

The Empress Dowager said again, "Not a single monk from Yunqi Temple is allowed to leave."

"I never interfere in the affairs of the previous dynasty, but if I go to a temple, will those officials stop me?"

The master of ceremonies said, "Her Majesty the Empress Dowager has often left the palace to offer incense. Since there is a precedent, there is nothing wrong with it."

The female historian who had just returned from Yunqi Temple was about to go down and deliver a message, but she immediately thought of something else: "A nun from Yunqi Temple was taken to the Ministry of Justice prison today."

So much trouble has happened at Yunqi Temple. The Empress Dowager frowned in thought: "Send someone to inquire and find out what crime has been committed?"

Besides.

“Send a message to the Shen family, asking the women in the family to also go to Yunqi Temple.”

The Empress Dowager took another deep breath. If they found him so close by, he was probably gone, because only in this way would there be no news at all.

Over a decade had passed, and the body had long since turned to bones; even seeing the remains would make it difficult to identify her. The fact that the master of ceremonies could send a message back and lock up those present could only mean one thing: the person who murdered Shen Si Niang was likely among them. The fact that the body was buried around Yunqi Temple strongly suggests that the murderer was a nun.

So what kind of place is Yunqi Temple?
If there really is a problem with Yunqi Temple, and the Empress Dowager is holding onto her prayer beads tightly, then don't blame her for destroying that ancient temple.

Concerned for the Empress Dowager's safety, the head servant whispered, "Actually, this servant can handle this matter as well."

The Empress Dowager said coldly, "Can you mobilize manpower?"

He shook his head immediately upon setting up his palm.

The Empress Dowager said, "I can't either, but the Emperor will dispatch the Imperial Guards to protect me. Doesn't that mean I have manpower?" So if anything goes wrong or if any problems arise, she can take everyone down with her.

The master said in a low voice, "There are still many things I don't know..."

The Empress Dowager coldly replied, "What else do you need to know to make my master of ceremonies risk staying? I want to see what the truth is and how many people are involved."

"No matter who is involved, they won't get away with it."