Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 779 I can’t help it

Wang Yan reined in his horse, and Abbess Jingyuan also looked in his direction. Their eyes met, and they both saw the same person in each other's line of sight.

That person wasn't here, yet they were deeply concerned.

The next moment, Abbess Jingyuan slightly raised her hand, called over the novice nun beside her and gave her a few instructions. The novice nun immediately walked towards Wang Yan.

“Benefactor Wang.”

Wang Yan dismounted and returned the Buddhist salute.

The novice handed the item in her hand to Wang Yan: "This is a peace amulet that Benefactor Xie obtained for you."

Wang Yan took the jade pendant into his hand. The warm, smooth mutton-fat jade pendant was plain and undecorated except for the auspicious cloud pattern carved on the top.

"All is well"—this was the message Ayan had Jingyuan Abbess convey to him.
He wanted to calm his mind and prevent her from becoming anxious, but only if she was truly alright; he simply couldn't be without worry.

"Thank you, Master."

Wang Yan tucked the jade pendant into his robes and rode away.

Master Jingyuan shook her head as she watched Wang Yan leave. She had said long ago... it was pointless. With Lady Xie standing there silently, even if something major happened, Wang Yan wouldn't be worried. On the contrary, with Lady Xie in prison, even with the Empress Dowager's personal guarantee, Wang Yan couldn't feel at ease.

It hasn't been easy for these two to get to this point. After weathering all the storms, they will surely live a harmonious and loving life together until old age...

However, deep down, Master Jingyuan still felt a little regretful.

As for what exactly she regrets, only she knows.

Before they knew it, they had arrived at Cining Palace. The head of the palace was already waiting at the entrance and welcomed them into the main hall. The head of the palace said, "I thought you would come to the palace later."

Jingyuan's arrival so quickly is not a good thing. When Cining Palace is peaceful, she rarely shows her face. Sometimes they miss Jingyuan. They have been together for so many years, like sisters, but... they really don't want to see her.

Normally, she would be startled if the Empress Dowager suddenly mentioned Jingyuan, let alone if Jingyuan came to her door herself.

"Where is the Empress?" Jingyuan asked.

"They're waiting for you in the inner palace!" The head maid wanted to ask something, but ultimately couldn't bring herself to speak. There were so many people in the Cining Palace, all of them smarter than her, so she would just follow behind as usual.

Jingyuan strode into the room, carrying a chill with her, but she did not disturb the Empress Dowager who was pruning the flowers.

The Empress Dowager, with a serene expression, smiled and spoke to the master of ceremonies beside her.

"The camellias are blooming exceptionally well this year."

The emcee smiled and said, "Her Majesty loves this camellia. It's a pity that it was accidentally frozen a few years ago. Despite careful cultivation in the greenhouse, it didn't thrive. It was only thanks to Her Majesty the Empress Dowager personally tending to it indoors that it has flourished this year, and the flowers seem to be blooming even better than before."

The Empress Dowager nodded: "The old branches have all been pruned, and only new branches have grown, so the flowers that grow from them will be even more beautiful."

“But we have to keep the right new branches. What if we only keep branches that don’t bloom? Then it’s all for nothing.” Jingyuan’s voice came.

The Empress Dowager's smiling face immediately darkened, and she gave Jingyuan a reproachful look: "You're so good with words."

Jingyuan skipped the Buddhist rituals altogether, quickly walked to the Empress Dowager's side, and suddenly called out, "Your Majesty." His tone was just like the master of ceremonies' earlier, soft and gentle.

However, the emcee's tone sounded like he was just trying to coax people, while Jingyuan's tone inexplicably gave people goosebumps. The Empress Dowager had a feeling that there was a pit of fire in front of her, and Jingyuan was trying to trick her into jumping into it.

"Alright," the Empress Dowager immediately lost her mood for admiring the flowers, "Let's go inside and talk!"

The master of ceremonies dismissed everyone before entering the inner hall with the head of the ceremony.

The Empress Dowager sat on the couch, picked up her tea but didn't drink it. She simply said, "What? Can't you sit still already?" The Empress Dowager didn't need to say anything; she knew what Abbess Jingyuan wanted to say.

Jingyuan said, "Madam has been traveling all the way back from Fujian, and she hasn't even recovered her strength and energy before she was thrown into prison... I'm worried that her body is too weak, and she probably won't last long in that kind of place."

Jingyuan hasn't made any requests to the Empress Dowager for a long time, which shows Xie Yuyan's position in Jingyuan's heart.

The Empress Dowager asked, "Did Xie Yuyan send someone to inform you of this?"

"No," Jingyuan lowered her voice, "I went to ask her." There were movements in the palace, so she naturally had to send someone to warn Xie Yuyan to be careful.

“She didn’t let me get involved, she just told me verbally that ‘the time isn’t right.’”

The Empress Dowager nodded upon hearing this. Xie Yuyan was indeed a man of composure. The time was not yet ripe, as the people behind him had not yet revealed their true colors, nor had they laid out all their pieces.

Such a large-scale conflict cannot be left unresolved; are we to leave an unfinished game for our children and grandchildren?
She didn't even know if she would have filial sons and grandsons to burn paper money and offer incense for her after her death. She hoped that one of them would be a wise, brave, and upright hero.

It seems that Madam Xie had the same thoughts as her.

This made her like the child even more from the bottom of her heart, and she couldn't bear to see the child suffer. However, whether she could help him or not depended on whether the child still had any chess pieces left.

"In that case, let's listen to her!" the Empress Dowager said calmly.

Jingyuan was secretly delighted. The Empress Dowager seemed not to interfere, but those who were often by her side could sense the subtle changes in her attitude. When the Empress Dowager softened her heart, the expression she showed was exactly the opposite.

Someone who has experienced many things might not like this feeling, always being swayed by unnecessary emotions.

Just as Jingyuan was about to say something more, she saw the master of ceremonies quickly step forward: "Your Majesty the Empress Dowager, the Empress... has gone to the Funing Palace."

The Empress Dowager calmly sipped her tea: "It seems she didn't listen to a word the Emperor said to her the other day."

Rumors about the Wang family father and son circulated in the palace, which enraged the Emperor. He punished the Empress's palace servants, but the Empress did not stop there.

"His wife of several decades," the Empress Dowager said, "originally, the Emperor had feelings for her."

The emcee said, "Would you like to go and take a look?"

The Empress Dowager smiled slightly: "She may not listen to me."

……

Inside the Funing Palace, the Empress's suppressed sobs could be heard.

Huang, the eunuch, and Jiang, the eunuch, stood helplessly to the side. Suddenly, the Empress came over and insisted on seeing the Emperor. Huang stepped forward to stop her, but the Empress pushed him away. The rest of them could only avoid her, since no one dared to lay a hand on the Empress.

The Empress threw herself at the Emperor's bedside, looking extremely flustered.

"Your Majesty, even if you send me away, I cannot go back."

“I have been unable to eat or sleep properly these days because I haven’t seen Your Majesty. From now on, I will stay here to take care of you.”

The Emperor leaned against the soft couch, his face exceptionally pale, his lips devoid of any color. He clenched the memorial in his hand, his face full of anger, wanting to rebuke the Empress, but instead he coughed violently.

Upon seeing this, the Empress hurriedly got up to pat the Emperor on the back, but the Emperor pushed her away.

The Emperor seemed to have used tremendous strength, but the Empress felt that the hand was limp, like that of a child. Her heart sank immediately; it seemed that the Emperor was truly going to collapse this time.

(End of this chapter)