"Your Highness, it is ready."
...
Wei Pingxi picked up a chess piece and put it down again: "You said that my aunt and the princess are coming to the Grand Tutor's mansion tomorrow?"
Jade replied, "A palace maid from Ganning Palace came to deliver the message herself."
"What's wrong? Is there something amiss?"
"There's nothing wrong with it."
Miss Wei glanced at the chessboard in front of her: "Bring it on, I don't believe she'll dare to cause trouble in front of the Yan family."
Madam Wei lowered her brows and placed her chess piece: "She can do her thing, you can do yours, there's no conflict."
“Mother is right.”
Suddenly intrigued, she threw down the chess piece in her hand and said, "Mother, tell me more about Auntie."
"Back then, my mother and aunt were as close as family. Wasn't my mother still in Gan Ning Palace with my aunt to prepare for pregnancy? How come I was a step behind my aunt and Ji Qingyao came out an hour before me?"
"Otherwise, she should be the one calling me cousin."
Yan Qing stared at the chaotic chessboard, calmly fiddling with her prayer beads: "Who told you these things?"
"Grandma, Grandma said that Mother and Aunt had a very good relationship back then!"
They have a very good relationship.
What happened that caused the relationship to deteriorate from good to bad?
What could possibly make the affectionate Empress distance herself from her younger sister, even to the point of ordering the Wei family, who originally lived in the capital, to move back to Lingnan in a fit of anger?
Yu Zhi concealed the doubt in her eyes.
Mrs. Wei looked at her daughter with a helpless expression: "Are you that curious?"
"Of course I'm curious about things related to my mother."
"Okay, then I'll tell you, so you won't bother your grandmother again."
She gave her daughter a reproachful look, and Wei Pingxi snuggled close to her, saying, "Mother, I promise I'll listen carefully."
Chapter 49 Jumping into the Lake
Madam Wei doted on her daughter to the point of spoiling her. She never hid anything her daughter wanted to know. As she went through the past events in her mind, her eyes shone with tenderness.
"The Yan family only has two daughters, my elder sister and me. We were born and loved by everyone. I was the youngest, and not only did my parents love me, but my elder sister also cherished me like a precious treasure."
"We spent over a decade of happy times together, until we grew up."
"Don't be fooled by the Empress's gentle and kind demeanor now. When she was young, she didn't give His Majesty much of a pleasant look. If she doesn't smile, she always has a cold and aloof air about her, like a plum blossom standing tall in the wind and snow."
"But she's very good to me. She always thinks of me when she has something delicious or fun, and I've gotten used to her being good to me."
"You know, habit is a terrible force. When she suddenly told me one day that she was in love with His Majesty, I couldn't accept it. I always felt that I would lose the protection of this elder sister for the rest of my life."
"The fact that my elder sister and His Majesty have become engaged is a very important event for the Yan family."
"Father did not want my elder sister to be with His Majesty. At that time, the court was still controlled by Empress Dowager Yan, and the young emperor was at her mercy."
"But my sister's heart was as firm as a rock. She said that if His Majesty lived, she would live; if His Majesty died, she would die. She considered herself Ji Ying's person and loved her passionately and purely."
"I am puzzled and curious. I am curious about what kind of person could make my sister so crazy."
“I saw the Fourth Prince once when I was a child. My childhood memories are faint and easily forgotten. So I secretly followed my older sister out and met Ji Ying when she was a teenager.”
She exclaimed, "Guess what they're doing?"
Wei Pingxi asked in confusion, "Could it be a secret rendezvous?"
"That's right, they went to Mingshan for a secret date."
"When spring was in full bloom, His Majesty, dressed in women's clothing, danced for my elder sister. My elder sister, on the other hand, wore a long robe. I had never seen such a handsome young man, nor had I ever seen my elder sister so joyful."
"Ji Ying ascended the throne at the age of eleven, topped the list of beauties at the age of thirteen, and won the heart of her elder sister at the age of sixteen. Two years later, His Majesty granted her the position of empress and welcomed her elder sister into the palace. From then on, the Yan family became His Majesty's strong support."
"His Majesty's achievements today, and the Great Yan Dynasty's achievements today, are attributable to one-third of the credit to my elder sister and the Yan family."
"However, after the marriage, His Majesty and my elder sister had difficulty conceiving. My elder sister married before me. It wasn't until I gave birth to your three older brothers and then had you that the Empress announced the good news of her pregnancy."
“My pregnancy was unstable, and your maternal grandmother was worried that something might happen to me. She suggested that I go to the palace to keep my elder sister company. With the imperial physicians there, we could be prepared for any unexpected events.”
"My sister was very happy to see me. You could say she was happy during the months she was pregnant. She radiated a strange joy and her face was beaming with the smile of someone who was about to become a mother."
"She only became gentle today after she had a child."
"We went into labor on the same day but at different times. Her labor was difficult, and she fainted at the end. I gave birth to you an hour later than her."
"It's a pity that the daughter she gave birth to at the cost of half her life was taken away by the Empress Dowager to raise not long after birth."
"Empress Dowager Yan was nominally His Majesty's legal mother, and she ruled from behind the curtain on the orders of the late Emperor, intimidating all officials. Her power was absolute."
"Heaven is the Son of Heaven, and the Son of Heaven's honor and disgrace are all within her grasp. Just imagine how domineering and glorious that is!"
When Empress Dowager Yan was mentioned, Lady Wei's tone was unfriendly: "Princess Jiaorong has been raised by the Empress Dowager since childhood. Normally, it is difficult for my elder sister to even see her daughter."
"After giving birth to her daughter, my elder sister was depressed and her mood was unpredictable. I held you in the Gan Ning Palace in front of her. You were still a baby, in swaddling clothes, with a pair of bright black eyes."
"She was moved by the scene and thought of her own daughter. She scolded me in a cold voice, blaming me for bringing you out on a windy day."
“I displeased her, and His Majesty, considering her feelings, sent the Wei family back to Lingnan.”
...
Still thinking about it?
Yuzhi brought her a cup of tea.
Wei Pingxi took the teacup: "Mother is gone?"
"I'm leaving now. I told you to put your mind at ease. Tomorrow, when the Empress and the Princess come, she will protect you and stop the Princess from being willful and unreasonable."
"That's what you're saying," she laughed, "it makes it sound like I'm afraid of Ji Qingyao."
"You're not afraid at all."
"You found out too?"
Yu Zhi kissed her: "Anyway, I know you won't be afraid."
Wei Pingxi pointed to his face and said, "Give me another kiss?"
"No more kissing."
She lifted her skirt and was about to run away when someone swiftly pulled her back: "Kissing someone and then running away, that's not nice of you."
"Then what do you want?"
The fourth young lady lowered her head and gently bit her lip: "Does it hurt when I bite you?"
"It doesn't hurt..." Yu Zhi turned her face away, avoiding her intimacy.
"Stay with me for a while, I'm feeling a bit confused."
"What's causing this chaos? Is it because you heard old stories?"
"I feel like... something's not right." She was conflicted. "But if I really wanted to say what it was, I couldn't quite put my finger on it."
Does it feel strange?
"A little."
"I find it strange too."
Yu Zhi hugged her neck: "If Your Majesty and Mother really had such a good relationship, even if she was depressed after childbirth, she shouldn't have scolded you just because she carried you out on a windy day. She shouldn't have even made the Wei family move back to Lingnan."
She carefully considered her words and said slowly, "This seems like making a mountain out of a molehill and is inhumane."
Based on what she had seen and known since arriving in the capital, the Empress should not be such a petty and vindictive person.
Wei Pingxi couldn't stand anyone saying anything bad about Madam Wei, and his face showed displeasure: "Are you saying that Mother is lying?"
"I wouldn't dare."
Yu Zhi kissed her tender white earlobe and said nothing more.
The fourth young lady is far smarter than her.
A smart person is someone who is unwilling to understand things, not someone who cannot understand them.
The soft, wet kiss on her earlobe was so irresistible that Wei Pingxi hugged her tightly and sighed deeply.
...
The following day, the imperial carriage arrived at the Grand Tutor's residence.
"Pingxi has met his aunt and cousin."
The Empress gently helped her up. Ji Qingyao snorted at her unpopular cousin and turned to fawn over Old Madam Yan.
Wei Pingxi dusted off his sleeves, not wanting to argue with her, and said with a smile, "Aunt, please have some tea."
When the Empress returned home to visit her family, the whole family gathered around to receive her. With so many people, Yu Zhi had no room to organize anything.
Watching as Princess Jiaorong gave gifts to everyone except Xixi, she had a sudden realization that "just as expected," and found the princess's personality really funny.
To be frank, it lacks the grandeur of an emperor.
The target is too obvious.
I don't know if they're genuinely stupid or just pretending.
If she were truly stupid, it would sound rather fantastical. After all, she was a princess who grew up pampered and spoiled by royalty. If she had learned even a fraction of the Empress's intelligence, she shouldn't have done such a thing.
If it's an act, then the depth of their cunning is far too profound, enough to send chills down one's spine.
Yu Zhi was bored and her thoughts drifted away. Not long after, the old lady instructed Yan Ruyu and Yan Ruqing to take the princess out to play.
"Xi Xi is going too, it'll be more lively with lots of people."
She intended for the two cousins to reconcile, and her intentions were good. Wei Pingxi smiled and said, "I'll listen to my grandmother."
Ji Qingyao rolled her eyes, earning a reproachful glare from the Empress.