tallest building

Chapter 284 Brings Bad News

On a bright spring day, Wen Mingqian encountered the palace maid Chunying in the alleyway in the northwest corner of the Empress's palace.

"Lady Wen, are you going to serve Her Majesty the Empress?" Chunying was holding a large bunch of early peach blossoms in her arms, which were very eye-catching.

Two palace maids followed closely behind her, one carrying a double-ringed jade bottle and the other carrying a sunflower-shaped, shadow-green square bottle.

"Did Miss Chunying go to pick flowers? The flowers and her face complement each other perfectly, a truly breathtaking sight!" Wen Mingqian said with a smile. "You are even more beautiful than these peach blossoms!"

Chunying blushed: "My lady, please don't tease me. I just picked some flowers because they were blooming so beautifully, intending to give them to Her Majesty the Empress to enjoy."

Thinking there wasn't a suitable vase, I simply went to the treasure pavilion and got these two vases. We'll see which one the Empress likes, keep it for now, and send the other back.”

As she spoke, her eyes suddenly lit up: "Lady Wen, why don't you help me make a decision!"

Wen Mingqian did not refuse. He looked at the two bottles and said, "I think this jade bottle would be better. It would make the peach blossoms look more vibrant."

“Then let it be! Her Majesty the Empress doesn’t like to worry about trivial matters,” Chunying said. “I’ll send the flowers in after I’m all ready. You two can then return this vase to its original place. Tell the person registering it to remember it, so they don’t try to get it from us again.”

Wen Mingqian and she went to the Empress's palace together, and Chunying went to arrange flowers.

Yu Lu was standing under the corridor when she saw Wen Mingqian nod to her, indicating that she should come over.

"Steward Yu," Wen Mingqian stepped forward and called out, "is there anything I can do for you right now?"

“Mingqian,” Yu Lu didn’t call her Lady Wen, but simply addressed her by her name, which sounded quite intimate, “I have a favor to ask of you.”

"Father-in-law, you flatter me. There's no need for any requests. I just want to help in any way I can," Wen Mingqian said with a smile.

“I’ve been thinking about what gifts to give, but big ones are inconvenient, and small ones might not be valuable enough. Only your things are fragrant, beautiful, and exquisite, so they are perfect.” Yu Lu smiled, her eyes curving into crescents.

"So that's what it is, but I wonder how much you need? I have some left over, and if it's not enough, I'll make some more." Wen Mingqian knew that Yu Lu was returning the favor.

Officials from other provinces were required to send gifts to the Empress every quarter, but whether their gifts would ultimately reach her and win her favor depended entirely on whether Yu Lu was willing to present them to her. Therefore, Yu Lu naturally received his share of the benefits.

As for Yu Lu, he was also willing to associate with these officials, as it would benefit him and cause him no harm, so why not?
Therefore, they will reciprocate appropriately.

“We don’t need many. What you make is priceless; even if they had all the money, they couldn’t buy it,” Yu Lu said. “Just a dozen or twenty bottles will be enough…”

He was about to continue speaking when a young eunuch hurriedly walked in from outside.

Upon reaching Yu Lu, he said, "Chief Steward Yu, the King of Zhao has sent a letter with some bad news."

"What's wrong?" Yu Lu asked him.

The little eunuch didn't say anything, but just looked at Wen Mingqian. Wen Mingqian wisely turned and left.

After the young eunuch had seen him walk away, he said to Lu, "The King of Zhao sent a letter saying that halfway there, the Second Prince suddenly fell ill with asthma... and died..."

"Huh?!" Yu Lu was quite surprised and frowned. "Oh dear! What happened? How could this happen?"

King Zhao's youngest son, Ying Song, was born weak and needed medication almost every day. Even worse, he suffered from asthma, which would flare up at the slightest sign of illness. Wen Mingqian had previously prescribed him a medicine pouch to alleviate the symptoms, but that only treated the symptoms, not the root cause.

As they traveled north, it naturally got colder and colder, with strong winds, dry air, and lots of sand and dust.

Such weather is actually very dangerous for people with asthma.

Although Princess Zhao and her entourage had brought medicine and doctors early on, their manpower was ultimately limited, and they were powerless to reverse the situation.

"Chief Eunuch Yu, I have the news for you," the young eunuch said. "Please tell Her Majesty the Empress at your leisure!"

Yu Lu blinked. He knew, of course, that if he told the Empress this terrible news, she would be anxious and saddened, but he couldn't keep it to himself.

Upon glancing up and seeing Wen Mingqian standing in the distance, she immediately called her over.

“Mingqian, come inside with me in a moment. We need to inform Her Majesty the Empress of the death.” Yu Lu said, rubbing his hands together.

"A bad news? What bad news?" Wen Mingqian asked in surprise.

"Alas! It's truly heartbreaking!" Yu Lu sighed. "It's the second young master of the Zhao Prince's mansion... who died of illness on the road!"

"Huh?! This...this is too sudden, the second young master is still so young."

“Who says otherwise?” Yu Lu shook his head. “You’ll come in with me later. When I speak to the Empress, you must try to persuade her to stay calm. The Empress has a quick temper; she’ll be furious when she hears this news!”

At this moment, Consort Hui was chatting with the Empress. When she saw Yu Lu and Wen Mingqian come in, she smiled and praised, "I was just telling Your Majesty that the other day you sent me the balm you made. It's so lovely. I've only been using it for two days and my skin already feels much more moisturized."

"Your Highness, you flatter me. If there's anything you don't like using it, please let me know, and I'll find a way to improve it," Wen Mingqian said.

"What brings you in here?" The Empress noticed that Yu Lu's expression was off.

As soon as Yu Luzheng heard these words, he immediately knelt down with a thud and burst into tears: "Your Majesty, please take care of yourself! I didn't want to tell you this news, but I had no choice."

Wen Mingqian immediately knelt down, head bowed, without uttering a word.

"What exactly happened? Tell me quickly! Don't keep me silent!" The Empress was indeed anxious upon hearing this.

"It's the Prince of Zhao... Someone just came in to report. He said the Prince sent a message saying that his second son... passed away on the way..."

"You mean Song'er?" The Empress's eyes widened upon hearing this. "He...he actually died young?"

"Your Majesty, please accept my deepest condolences and take good care of yourself. This is what has already happened, and there's nothing anyone can do about it," Yu Lu said, weeping.

"Your Majesty, please take a moment to calm down and don't grieve too much. It's true that everyone is saddened to hear this news, but as Chief Eunuch Yu said, what's done is done, and there's nothing we can do about it. Please accept our condolences and take care of your health," Consort Hui quickly stepped forward to comfort her.

Tears streamed down the Empress's face as she choked out, "This child was truly unfortunate. He was born with some health issues. I had hoped that with proper care, he would grow up to be healthier. Who would have thought that this arduous journey would take his life... Alas!"

“Not to mention Your Highness’s grief, even we servants are heartbroken to hear this. But there is one thing Your Highness must consider: even in your grief, you must think of the bigger picture. I think it’s best not to let the Grand Tutor know about this right now. Your Highness should give instructions to those in charge.” Wen Mingqian reminded her.