The harem is too complicated; the empress, a lazy bum, wins by doing nothing.

Chapter 435 (The End)

The six people looked at each other.

You look at me, I look at you.

After a while, finally someone let out a soft "woof".

Shen Qingwan clicked her tongue and shook her head. "With such a soft voice, it's obviously not an obedient dog."

Then, she turned to the first person who barked like a dog and asked, "You, what's your name?"

"Your Majesty, this servant is Su Tianhe!"

Shen Qingwan paused in her fiddling with the nail guards.

noon.

The imperial kitchen delivered a table full of lunch, with a plate of crabs placed in the center of the table.

Shen Qingwan stared at the plate of crabs for a moment, then raised her hand and overturned the table.

"Who told you to cook crabs for me? I hate eating crabs the most!"

Upon hearing this, Su Tianhe walked up to the person who delivered the food and said sternly, "You don't even know the Empress's preferences, what kind of job are you! Give him ten strokes of the cane and send him to the Department of Punishments."

gradually……

Kunning Palace became a place that the women of the inner palace avoided.

"Has the Empress gone mad? Yesterday she slapped a concubine's face raw, just because that concubine said behind her back that the Emperor had never favored her?"

"Isn't the head of the Imperial Kitchen a relative of Consort Xian? She's just as ruthless. Do you want to get beaten up too? How dare you speak ill of her behind her back."

"Even the Emperor doesn't care anymore, and the Empress goes to the Empress Dowager's palace to curry favor every few days. Who dares to offend her!"

"I've long heard that Her Majesty the Empress is arrogant and domineering, and doesn't respect anyone else. Now it seems that's really true!"

"What do you mean by not taking others seriously? She didn't even take the Emperor seriously."

"I heard that before our Empress married the Emperor, she was engaged to Prince Rui."

"What? According to you, wouldn't that mean the elder brother is taking his younger brother's wife?"

"What do you mean by 'brother taking his brother's wife'? That sounds so awful. He's the Emperor; all the women in the world belong to him..."

Time flies.

In the blink of an eye, Jiang Wenlan turned eighteen.

He stood quietly by the lake in the Imperial Garden, his mind drifting back to the first time he saw Shen Qingwan.

"Su Tianhe, do you think the Empress Dowager is doing well in Rongcheng now?"

Su Tianhe took out a letter from his hand and handed it to Jiang Wenlan. “Your Majesty, I just received the Empress’s reply to you and haven’t had a chance to deliver it to you yet.”

“She took Zhen’er to Rongcheng, such a far place, and it is difficult for me to even see her. I don’t know why, but back then, my mother refused to stay in the capital.”

"Your Majesty, there are so many officials in the capital, many of whom have seen the Empress's true face. Perhaps it would be a good choice for her to leave the capital."

Jiang Wenlan couldn't help but sigh, folded the letter back into its original shape, and stuffed it back into the envelope.

He knew, of course, that leaving the capital was the best option for Shen Qingwan.

The late emperor's empress also had a close relationship with Prince Rui.

He now claims that the Queen died in that fire.

If people discover that she is still alive, there will likely be endless trouble in the future.

Now, being able to live in anonymity and find a place you love to live your whole life is perhaps the best possible outcome!

But this would make it too difficult for him to see her in the future! "However, as long as she is doing well, I am at ease."

Just as Jiang Wenlan tucked the letter into his sleeve, he heard the eunuch's voice announcing something behind him.

"The Empress Dowager has arrived..."

He turned around in the direction of the voice, "Your subject greets Your Majesty, may Your Majesty be blessed with ten thousand years of happiness and peace."

"Your Majesty need not be so polite." Empress Dowager Shu's eyes were gentle and full of kindness. "It's still chilly today, and you're dressed so lightly. Why are you standing alone by the lake? Why didn't you bring more people with you?"

"It's alright," Jiang Wenlan said calmly. "I've just been reading too many memorials in the Hall of Mental Cultivation and I feel depressed, so I wanted to come to the Imperial Garden to clear my head."

Relax?
In that case, it might be okay to fool others, but how could you possibly fool her?
Empress Dowager Shu glanced at the lake.

Since Shen Qingwan left the palace.

Whenever Jiang Wenlan missed her, he would bring Su Tianhe to the Imperial Garden by himself and stand there for several hours.

He misses Shen Qingwan!

How could she not know?

Jiang Wenlan had such a pitiful childhood; she lived alone in the care of eunuchs and nannies for seven years.

Shen Qingwan was the only one who ever showed him care.

Empress Dowager Shu couldn't help but sigh.

"After my sister left back then, I really don't know when I will be able to see her again. If it weren't for my sister, how could I be where I am today?"

“Your Majesty, in this harem, you were the one with the highest rank back then. It was only reasonable and justifiable for the Emperor to promote you to Empress Dowager, and no one could find fault with it,” Su Tianhe said, bending over.

"My Consort Shu was given to me by my sister, and my Third Prince was also raised by my sister. Most of my wealth and glory in this life is a gift from my sister."

After Empress Dowager Shu finished speaking, she couldn't help but sigh again.

"I wonder how my sister is doing out there, and if she's lacking anything. No, I'll have someone send her some more later."

"Mother, the Empress Dowager just sent a letter saying that everything is fine in Rongcheng. She bought a house at the foot of the mountain in Rongcheng at the beginning of the year. The Empress Dowager said in the letter that there is an osmanthus tree outside the house, and the fragrance is wonderful every year when the osmanthus blooms."

Jiang Wenlan paused.

"Your Majesty, I think that when the osmanthus flowers are in full bloom this year, I should go to the south of the Yangtze River to see that osmanthus tree and to see the people of Rongcheng to see if they are really as good as Your Majesty says."

"When does the Emperor plan to depart?" Empress Dowager Shu asked.

"Let's wait until after the election." Jiang Wenlan stared into the distance, his expression unreadable. "I wonder if Seventh Imperial Uncle will go with me then."

“Prince Rui loves traveling and sightseeing, and he will definitely go with the Emperor.”

Consort Shu walked up to Jiang Wenlan and brushed a withered leaf off his shoulder.

"Prince Rui shielded my sister from that arrow and nearly lost his life, although I do not know what exactly happened between him and my sister."

Prince Ke Rui has been helping the emperor manage state affairs for many years.

If it weren't for him, there would be no peaceful and prosperous Yuan Dynasty. I'm afraid my daughter and I would have died in the chaos when the emperor was only eight years old.

He's done so much for us, and he's remained unmarried all these years. It's time he thought about himself too.

This time, whether Prince Rui likes it or not, he will be taken along on this trip to the south of the Yangtze River.

How could he possibly forget his sister, who was more important to him than his own life?

Jiang Wenlan nodded.

"The Empress Dowager stayed with the Seventh Prince until he was out of danger before leaving. If it weren't for me, the Seventh Prince would have gone to Rongcheng to find the Empress Dowager long ago. Prince Rui has helped me so much; this time, it's my turn to help him..."

(End of book)