The Black Chamber Dream: Daiyu's Revenge

That very incident cost her her only son. And tragically, it wasn't smallpox; he was murdered by a villain.

The Queen found it incredibly difficult to forgive herself. Every time she closed her eyes, she saw her son's smiling face, and she couldn't help but wonder if he had been blaming his mother back then.

But seeing that the Crown Prince came every morning and evening, the Empress knew that he had a lot of things to do outside. The fact that he was still doing this made her feel that raising him was worthwhile.

Not to mention the Crown Princess. Now that I am ill, the Crown Princess is in charge of all the palace affairs, but I still insist on coming every day to serve her medicine and bring the children to cheer her up. She also often summons the imperial physician to personally inquire whether my condition has improved and whether I need to change my medicine.

To be honest, even if I were the daughter-in-law, I probably wouldn't have done as well as the Crown Princess.

Therefore, the empress felt that she should not go down a dead end.

With the Empress's active cooperation, the imperial physicians breathed a sigh of relief: the Empress's illness this time was more of a psychological one, and only when Her Majesty the Empress herself came to terms with it could the medicine play a better role.

But by the time the Empress had fully recovered, almost a month had passed.

During the time when the Empress was seriously ill, Prince Rui, Xiao Tingkai, had already entered the palace. Before entering the palace, or more precisely, after learning of his mother's accident, Xiao Tingkai quickly summoned the retainers of his residence to discuss the matter.

To be honest, Xiao Tingkai was really shocked: firstly, what his mother did happened more than twenty years ago, and secondly, he really had no idea about it at all.

Now that the evidence against his mother is overwhelming, he is powerless to reverse the situation, but he must figure out how to deal with it.

Preserving my own family is the primary objective.

Chapter 264 Prince Rui pleads for the imprisonment of the Imperial Concubine

After Xiao Tingkai convened his retainers to discuss the matter, he specifically asked Song Huilan and Wang Xiyun, hoping they could analyze the Empress's thoughts from a woman's perspective: since the Empress Consort had killed the Empress's son, he not only had to deal with the Emperor but also had to prevent the Empress from intervening.

Song Huilan was stunned by the news about the Imperial Concubine. She had never realized that the Imperial Concubine was such a ruthless person who had killed her father’s favorite concubine and son. Not everyone had such ability.

Song Huilan was at a loss for words: "I'm afraid that this time, our household will be hated by the Empress again. To be honest, if I were the Empress, I definitely wouldn't be able to forgive the murderer."

Wang Xiyun disagreed: "Although I have rarely been to the palace, I have met Her Majesty the Empress a few times and heard my wife praise her. Her Majesty the Empress has always been clear about separating public and private matters. This time, I think we should not consider Her Majesty the Empress, but rather focus on Father Emperor."

"Since Your Highness is completely unaware of this matter, even if it is the Emperor's anger, it should be alright. In my opinion, Your Highness should apologize first."

Song Huilan glared: "Apologize? Apologize for what? The Prince was unaware of this, what crime have you committed?"

Xiao Tingkai rolled his eyes at Song Huilan, but instead told Wang Xiyun to continue.

"Your Highness, there's no need to worry. What I mean is, although the Prince is innocent, he is the son of the Imperial Concubine, and His Majesty would certainly appreciate his filial piety. Therefore, the Prince should first apologize, and even express his willingness to take the blame on behalf of his mother..."

Before Wang Xiyun could finish speaking, Song Huilan interrupted her: "How can this be? If the Prince apologizes on behalf of his mother, what if the Emperor, in a fit of anger, strips the Prince of his title of Prince of the County? What then?"

"Your Highness, please wait until I finish speaking. I believe that Father will not strip the Prince of his title because of the Consort's crime, since the Prince was unaware of this matter. Moreover, as long as the Prince demonstrates that, firstly, the Consort is guilty and the Prince will defend her, and secondly, that the Prince is extremely filial and willing to take responsibility on the Consort's behalf, Father will surely be satisfied with the Prince. Everyone hopes that their children will be filial and kind, and Father is no exception."

Wang Xiyun's words coincided with the suggestions of the retainers earlier.

Xiao Tingkai was very satisfied and nodded: "Alright, I will go to the palace now. You all stay in the manor and act according to the situation. Lan'er, remember not to rush. Discuss everything with each other."

Song Huilan was still worried, but seeing that Xiao Tingkai had made up his mind, she took the initiative to say, "Then I will send someone back to talk to my mother. If needed, please ask my grandfather and father for help."

When Xiao Tingkai arrived before the Emperor, he did not make excuses for the Consort, nor did he plead with the Emperor. He simply said earnestly, "Father, Mother is getting old. She has made a mistake, and as her son, I have no other choice but to ask you to allow me to take the punishment in her place."

Seeing his son's filial piety, the emperor sighed and gestured for Xiao Tingkai to stand up: "I will make a decision on this matter once your mother recovers. Your greatest act of filial piety is to go out and do your job well."

Hearing the Emperor's tone, Xiao Tingkai knew that he had passed the test this time—his father would not implicate the entire Prince Rui's mansion because of his mother's mistake.

But Xiao Tingkai did not get up immediately. Instead, he kowtowed repeatedly and said, "Father, I can't bear to do it. Can I go and see Mother?"

His request was also rejected, which was to be expected. After kowtowing and apologizing on behalf of his mother, Xiao Tingkai thanked the emperor before taking his leave.

Watching his son's retreating figure, the emperor fell into deep thought.

After a while, the emperor asked Hu Delu, "How is the empress doing now?"

"Your Majesty, Her Majesty the Empress is much better. The Crown Princess is taking care of her every day, and the young princess and the Crown Prince are also keeping her happy. According to Physician He, Her Majesty will fully recover after a few more days of recuperation." Having witnessed such a major event, Hu Delu has been even more careful in his care lately. With the Empress seriously ill and the Emperor in a very bad mood, Hu Delu has sent his young apprentice, Sixi, to guard the Phoenix Palace and report any developments immediately.

"The Crown Prince and Crown Princess are truly filial. It's no wonder the Empress raised the Third Prince for so long." The Emperor remarked with emotion, then rose and headed towards the Phoenix Palace.

As they reached the door, Hu Delu was about to announce the emperor's arrival when the emperor quickly waved his hand.

A child's clear voice came from inside the door, and the emperor immediately recognized it as Yueyue's voice.

When Lu Ji was six years old, he accompanied his father to a banquet. During the meal, he saw that the oranges were delicious and secretly hid two in his pocket, intending to take them home for his mother to taste. As he was leaving, the oranges rolled off his clothes...

So, she was telling the story of leaving oranges to one's parents. The emperor's heart softened, and he didn't go in, but stopped there, listening to his granddaughter tell the story.

"My granddaughter thinks that Lu Ji can take the oranges back to his mother, but he should tell the host family openly and not hide them away. However, his intentions are good, and he is very filial to his mother."

The emperor nodded approvingly, clapping as he stepped inside.

The Empress leaned against the headboard, struggling to get up. The Emperor rushed forward and gently pressed down on her shoulder: "Empress, there's no need for such formality. You're not fully recovered yet. Just sit down."

Yueyue had already knelt down to pay her respects. The Emperor turned around, picked up Yueyue, and sat down beside the Empress's bed, examining her complexion: "I see that the Empress is much better."

The Empress smiled and said, "I'm sorry to have worried Your Majesty. I was being willful."

"Humans get sick from eating grains, how can you be so willful?" The Emperor knew that the Empress was saddened, but the Crown Princess had a solution. Yueyue's cleverness was more effective than any other medicine.

"Yueyue, Grandpa and Grandma have something to say." The Emperor adored this granddaughter, always feeling that she was a little lucky star.

Now that Yueyue is old enough to understand, she got down from the emperor's arms after hearing this, and respectfully took her leave. Then the wet nurse came in and took Yueyue back to Delin Palace.

"After much deliberation, I have decided to strip the Imperial Concubine of her title and confine her to the Eastern Garden for life." The Emperor had made his decision, but decided to consult with the Empress first.

Lifelong confinement? This outcome was within the Empress's expectations—there were precedents in this dynasty where concubines who committed offenses were banished to the Cold Palace and imprisoned for life.

"I instructed the Crown Prince to investigate thoroughly. The Second Prince's family was completely unaware of the crimes committed by Lady Wu, so I do not intend to hold a grudge. What do you think, Empress?"

The emperor meant that he would not publicly announce Wu's crimes, but would find another reason to imprison her.

"Your Majesty is wise. This matter is only within the palace walls, and outsiders do not know about it. There is still room to cover it up. Your Majesty's handling of this matter is most appropriate." The Empress has now come to terms with it. Wu's future days will be nothing more than counting the days in that tiny place, which is extremely miserable. It can be considered that she deserves her punishment.

After all, living is worse than dying, even more terrifying than death.

"It is the Empress who truly understands my intentions." The Emperor comforted the Empress for a while before rising.

Chapter 264 The Wu Family Exiles a Concubine Who is Pregnant

While the affair involving Consort Wu caused a huge uproar within the palace, the outside remained calm. It wasn't until the imperial decree declaring her deposed that the court officials learned of the news.

However, the imperial decree was clear: the Imperial Concubine had committed a moral transgression. Although it was only four words, since the Imperial Concubine's rank was directly revoked and she was demoted to a commoner, it was obvious that the Imperial Concubine had made a grave mistake.

As far as the court officials were concerned, since the Consort was neither the Empress nor the Crown Prince's biological mother, her removal from the throne was no big deal and they didn't pay much attention to it.

Of course, the Consort's family would pay close attention. Consort Wu's brother, Prince Rui's uncle, rushed to Prince Rui's residence after receiving the news.

Xiao Tingkai had deliberately kept it a secret from his uncle. In the end, his uncle was no good at being an official and had relied entirely on his maternal grandfather back then. Now that his maternal grandfather had resigned and returned to his hometown, there was really not much his uncle could do to help Xiao Tingkai.

On the contrary, the uncle had to rely on being the imperial concubine's older brother and himself being the prince's nephew to gain a foothold in the capital, a place full of nobles.

Therefore, if his uncle found out about his mother's affair, he would probably have to ask him to plead with the Emperor. That's why Xiao Tingkai kept the news from his uncle.

When his uncle arrived, Xiao Tingkai put on a sad expression and spoke to his uncle first: "Uncle, I went to the palace four times a few days ago to plead with Father about Mother's matter. I didn't expect that not only could I not plead for Mother, but I also angered Father. He said that I was not allowed to plead for her again, otherwise, I would not even be able to keep my title of Prince."

Wu Jun, Xiao Tingkai's uncle, was stunned. Now that his sister had been crippled, it would be too much of a loss to get involved with Prince Rui as well.

Wu Jun could only sigh, looking regretful. He drank his tea in silence for a while, then cautiously asked Prince Rui, "Then, what exactly did the Imperial Concubine do wrong? Does His Majesty really have no leniency at all?"

Xiao Tingkai also sighed heavily, looking at his uncle with a sincere expression: "Uncle, it's not that I don't want to tell you about this, but I really don't know either. I heard from my spies in the palace that something happened, but they are all clueless and don't know the specifics of what happened. They only know that my mother went to the Empress's Phoenix Palace, and my father was there too. Not long after, the Crown Prince and Crown Princess also arrived. They have no idea what was said inside. Later, my mother was locked in the Buddhist hall."

"I went into the palace and investigated quite a bit, but to no avail. I had no choice but to shamelessly beg my father every day. But all he said was that he wouldn't let me inquire or plead for me. He even said that if I pleaded, he would punish me."

Seeing Xiao Tingkai like this, Wu Jun felt compelled to offer some words of comfort and advice: "Your Highness is so pure and filial, the Imperial Concubine surely knows that. Now that things have come to this, I'm afraid there's no way to change it. Your Highness should not go to His Majesty's presence again, lest you truly incur the Emperor's wrath. The entire Rui County Prince's Mansion is counting on Your Highness."

Xiao Tingkai wanted to laugh inwardly. His uncle was practically saying that their whole family was counting on the Prince. However, on the surface, Xiao Tingkai wore a pained expression, saying things like he wished he could suffer in his mother's place. The two of them were being insincere, each with their own ulterior motives.

After finally seeing his uncle off, Xiao Tingkai began to carefully consider the power behind him and the Crown Prince: Jia Lian and Wang Ziteng in Ping'an Prefecture naturally supported him, as both of them had some military influence. However, as for the Crown Prince, his eldest uncle was the Minister of War, and his second uncle was in Shaanxi and Gansu, where he was now the Governor-General. In terms of military influence, the Crown Prince completely outmatched him.

As for the scholars, they had underestimated the Crown Princess in the past: her deceased father actually had quite a few classmates and friends, not to mention her biased aunt and uncle, who were all on the Crown Prince's side.

On my side, only Song Huilan's grandfather still has some influence. Ah, if only my maternal grandfather were still in court.

This time, the evil deeds her mother committed back then have been exposed, which has definitely offended the Empress. The current Minister of Personnel is the Empress's own brother, and there are still some members of the Li family serving as officials in the court, not to mention the Li family's relatives and friends by marriage.

If you calculate it this way, you've offended a lot of people.

Thinking of all this, Xiao Tingkai couldn't help but let out a long sigh. At this moment, Wang Xiyun personally brought over a bowl of barley and mung bean soup, smiling and saying, "Your Highness must be feeling hot right now. I asked the kitchen to add some dried tangerine peel to this barley and mung bean soup, which is excellent for clearing heat and reducing internal fire. Your Highness, please rest."

This time, Wang Xiyun's guess of her father's thoughts was very accurate, which made Xiao Tingkai particularly satisfied. Therefore, even though he was in a bad mood, he was willing to give Wang Xiyun some face.

Taking the blue-and-white porcelain cup with the auspicious pattern, Xiao Tingkai asked Wang Xiyun to sit down and chat with him. He first took a few sips of the sweet soup: "It must have been chilled for quite a while, because it tastes really refreshing now."

Wang Xiyun nodded: "I was afraid it would be too cold for you, so I chilled it in advance and left it for a while before I brought it over."

Xiao Tingkai loved Wang Xiyun's gentle and considerate nature. After drinking the soup and wiping his mouth, he took Wang Xiyun's hand and said, "This kind of thing can be left to the servants."

Wang Xiyun smiled sweetly, her face beaming with joy: "If Your Highness likes it, then I am happy. I have good news to tell Your Highness today."

Xiao Tingkai has been extremely troubled lately because of his mother's situation, and he couldn't think of any good news for the time being.

Wang Xiyun whispered, "Your Highness, I am pregnant."

Xiao Tingkai was stunned for a moment, then overjoyed: "Really? Which imperial physician took your pulse?"

“It’s Physician He.” Wang Xiyun’s cheeks were slightly flushed. “However, the pregnancy is not stable yet. I thought that I should report to the palace after the pregnancy is stable. But I came to tell Your Highness first that I will not be able to serve you at night these days.”

"Good, good, this is good news. You've thought it through very well. Once the pregnancy is stable, I will personally go to report the good news to Father Emperor." Xiao Tingkai was overjoyed because he only had one daughter in his household. Now, even the fifth prince and the fourth prince had sons, but he didn't.

Even more so, because the Prince Rui's mansion had been silent for so long, Xiao Tingkai himself was starting to lose confidence.

Xiao Tingkai's joy was short-lived. The Censorate discovered that his uncle had embezzled funds, and the evidence was irrefutable. Wu Jun's entire family was exiled to Lingnan. Fortunately, Consort Wu's father had passed away the previous year; otherwise, the journey to Lingnan would have been too strenuous for his elderly and frail body. Consort Wu's other two brothers were also demoted to commoners, and all of the Wu family's property was confiscated.

In this way, the Wu family's power in the imperial court was completely eradicated. Xiao Tingkai's only hope now lies in Wang Xiyun's pregnancy.

By early August, when the news of the concubine of Prince Rui's mansion being pregnant will be released, everyone who needs to know will know.

Upon hearing the news, Daiyu summoned Physician He and gave him instructions.

Ever since the Empress fell seriously ill, she has almost completely handed over all palace affairs to Daiyu. Even after the Empress recovered, she had no intention of taking back the palace affairs.

After inquiring about the Empress's health from the imperial physician, Daiyu took the initiative to bring up the matter of returning palace affairs to her former position.

Chapter 266 Proper Arrangements for the Mother-in-Law and Daughter-in-Law Talk

Hearing Daiyu mention the matter of returning palace affairs, the Empress was even more pleased: ever since her serious illness, she had deeply appreciated the filial piety of the Third Prince and his wife.

Whether someone is filial or not is not determined by words, but by actions. Since she fell ill, the third prince would come to Fengyi Palace every day before going to court, but he would not come in to disturb her. Instead, he would ask Granny Hu to inquire about her condition. After finishing his work each day, he would also come over.

Not to mention the Crown Princess, who was even more considerate and thoughtful. She often discussed her condition with the imperial physician. When she learned from the physician that her illness was caused by heart disease, the Crown Princess even brought Yueyue and Cong'er to cheer her up.

Besides managing palace affairs, the Crown Princess would spend half a day in Fengyi Palace almost every day. Whenever she came, she would personally serve her medicine or instruct the palace maids to cook various kinds of porridge for her. She would also have the small kitchen in Delin Palace make a variety of snacks and candied fruits to whet her appetite.