Empress Dowager Xiaoxuan

Chapter 50

"How about we call someone?" Xiaoxuan pressed.

Looking at Xiao Xuan's bewildered face, Xiao Hulian asked curiously, "Yan Yan, are you and Han Derang really innocent?"

Xiao Xuan nodded and said, "I summoned him to the palace, not for my sake, but for the children. The children like to play with him. How could I possibly be in the mood to rekindle our past relationship now?"

"I see!" Xiao Hulian's face showed a hint of annoyance as he said, "Since you are innocent, where did this damned rumor come from?"

"Sister, what rumors?" Xiaoxuan asked.

Xiao Hulian sighed and said, "I don't know which wicked person spread the rumor that you sent someone to poison Han Derang's wife in order to monopolize him, and that he poisoned her to death."

"What?" Xiao Xuan could hardly believe her ears. "I sent someone to harm her? What's going on? She's dead? I've never heard Han Derang mention her. Who made up this lie? Why would I harm her? If I really wanted Han Derang, I would have made him divorce his wife. I am the Empress Dowager, would he dare disobey me? Why would I resort to such a low tactic to murder her and give others ammunition against me?"

"Forget it, that's just nonsense, don't take it to heart." Xiao Hulian looked at Xiao Xuan and advised, "But speaking of which, now that Han Derang's wife is dead, he has no more ties. He still has feelings for you and thinks about you all the time, so you should consider him too. You still have many years to live, finding a suitable person to stay by your side and talk to you often will make you feel better. The officials have already embellished your story to the extreme, why do you care what they think? Now you are in charge of the Liao Dynasty, you can do whatever you want. We are Khitans, not Han Chinese, we don't have so many rules to follow. Back then, when Shuge's husband died, didn't you still choose a new husband for her? When a person dies, they are just ashes, a handful of dust, what meaning or value do they have? Now you are in charge of the world, it's not up to others to nag or criticize you."

"Sister, don't say these things. I've been so careful and hard-working these past few days, but I still ended up being fooled by others." Xiaoxuan finished speaking and tears started falling again.

Seeing her tears falling in a steady stream, Xiao Hulian sighed and replied, "Alright, alright, I won't say anything. Come on, take me to see the children."

Nodding, Xiao Xuan and Xiao Hulian walked towards the courtyard where the children lived. Xiao Hulian, who hadn't seen the children for many days, was overjoyed to see them and played with them for the entire afternoon. After dinner, Xiao Xuan saw Xiao Hulian off and then ordered someone to summon Han Derang to see her.

Han Derang entered the study and saw Xiao Xuan sitting at the desk with a cold expression, glaring at him. He quickly knelt down and said, "Your subject Han Derang greets the Empress Dowager."

Looking at Han Derang kneeling on the ground, Xiao Xuan coldly asked, "I ask you, what happened to your wife?"

Han Derang was taken aback upon hearing this, and after a moment of silence, he replied, "She passed away."

"Died of illness? What illness?"

"A chronic illness."

"Han Derang, stop trying to fool me. I'm asking you, what illness does she have?" Xiao Xuan said angrily.

Empress of the Khitan - Chapter Ninety-Three: An Unexpected Incident (Part 1)

Updated: 2008-09-23 16:33:48 Word Count: 1412

Han Derang responded with silence.

"Bang!" Xiao Xuan slammed her hand on the table and said, "Fine, you won't talk, huh? Did you even listen to what I said? Since you're unwilling to talk, fine, you'll kneel here and won't get up until I tell you to."

After speaking, Xiao Xuan turned and left, walking straight out of the palace gate. She arranged for a carriage to take her to Han Derang's residence. Upon arriving at the Han residence, she was led around by a servant. The residence was deserted, with only a few servants going about their business.

Xiao Xuan strolled into Han Derang's bedroom and saw a thick stack of papers on the desk. She picked them up and looked at them, only to find that every single sheet was covered with the characters "Yan Yan." Her hands trembling, she put the papers down and continued to look around the room. She noticed a very exquisite box in one corner and went over to it. After hesitating for a moment, she opened the box. Inside were several wrapped cloth bundles. Xiao Xuan opened one of the bundles, which was filled with intricately carved horses, tigers, cows, and other animals. The character "Yu" was faintly written on one corner. Could these be for Long Yu? Recalling how he would often carve things when playing with the children, and then give them to them, she thought these things must be for them. With this question in mind, Xiao Xuan opened the other bundles. There were beautifully embroidered little girls' clothes, as well as some fine writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones. At the bottom of the box was a piece of paper. Xiao Xuan opened it. Although she didn't know Khitan script, having spent so much time with the children, she could recognize how to write their names and birthdates. The paper had the children's names and birth dates written on it, and the contents of the box were definitely birthday gifts that Han Derang had prepared for the children.

With a sigh, Xiaoxuan put the things back in their place, tidied them up, closed the box, and then instructed, "Take me to Madam Han's room."

The servant accompanying them hurriedly replied, "Master has had Madam's room repainted and has already given it to us maids to live in."

What? He actually gave his wife's room to a servant? Xiao Xuan was shocked. She couldn't help but recall his words when she met him outside the palace walls: "The marriage was arranged by my father. Although that woman and I were husband and wife in name, we never consummated our marriage." Did he really have absolutely no feelings for his wife?

Slowly walking to the desk and sitting down, Xiao Xuan looked at the paper filled with Yan Yan's writing and asked the maid of the Han family, "How exactly did your mistress die? You must tell me the truth. If you deliberately hide anything, I will never forgive you."

“This,” the maid said hesitantly, “Master instructed us not to tell him.”

Xiao Xuan looked at the maid and knew that unless she was frightened, the maid would not tell the truth. So she said, "Do you know where your master is now? And guess why I am here?"

The maid, already terrified by the Empress Dowager's sudden arrival, trembled even more upon hearing Xiao Xuan's veiled words. She stammered, "Your Majesty, please ask whatever you wish. I will tell you the truth if I know anything. How did your mistress die? Speak!"

"Your Majesty, the lady died from taking medicine."

"What medicine did you take?" Xiaoxuan pressed.

"Your Majesty, it is poison."

Why did she take poison?

"This time, even the Empress Dowager doesn't know. My husband and wife have always lived separately, though not harmoniously, they managed to get along peacefully. A while ago, the Empress Dowager arranged for my husband to stay overnight in the palace, and my wife didn't want him to go, so they had a fight. In a fit of anger, my husband left the mansion and stayed in an inn outside, never to return. My wife sent people several times to invite him back, but he refused to come back no matter what. A few days ago, my wife dressed up extravagantly and went to invite my husband back herself, but he avoided seeing her. Not long after my wife returned, she passed away."

"She passed away not long after she returned, so how did you know she took poison?" Xiao Xuan asked curiously.

"Your Majesty, the lady wrote on the wall of her bedroom..."

"What does it say? Tell me!"

"It says that the medicine was bestowed by the Empress Dowager."

Empress of the Khitan - Empress Dowager of the Khitan Chapter Ninety-Three: An Unexpected Incident (Part Two)

Updated: 2008-09-23 16:34:13 Word Count: 1449

Xiao Xuan jumped up from her seat. When did I give her the medicine? Why did she write it like that?

Biting her lip, Xiaoxuan asked, "What did your master say?"

"The master said that the lady committed suicide by poisoning herself, and it had nothing to do with the Empress Dowager. He also said that since the lady married into the family, she had been helping the old master organize medicinal herbs, so she naturally knew which herbs were poisonous and which were not. The Empress Dowager is above all others, so if she really wanted her dead, she wouldn't need to secretly give her medicine. Even if she really wanted to punish the lady, no one in the Liao Dynasty would dare to say anything. I'm afraid the lady must have had some unknown thoughts that led her to do such a thing."

After hearing the maid's words, Xiao Xuan sighed heavily and said, "Let's go back to the palace."

Sitting in the carriage returning to the palace, Xiao Xuan pondered silently. So, his heart truly belonged only to Xiao Chuo; that's why he had considered everything so carefully for her. Xiao Chuo, before I appeared here, what kind of feelings existed between you and him?

Back in the palace, she slowly walked towards the study. When she reached the door, she heard voices coming from inside. Xiao Xuan was startled and then hid outside the door to listen carefully to the conversation inside.

"Lord Han, I'll go and beg my mother to stop making you kneel."

"Longxu, you are not allowed to go. You are not allowed to bother the Empress Dowager again. She has been working very hard lately, so don't keep bothering her and making her upset. I'm asking you, have you read all the books I sent you?"

"I've seen it."

"Yes, you should read books carefully, not just skim through them, otherwise you won't learn anything."

"Yes. Longxu has remembered. Lord Han, I can't sleep anyway. The other day you taught Longqing the formation diagram, and Longxu wants to learn it too. Could you teach me?"

"Okay, of course. It's rare for you to be so interested. Here, I'll draw it on the ground for you."

She tiptoed out of the study, not wanting to disturb Han Derang and Longxu inside, and returned to her bedchamber. She then ordered someone to wake Han Derang. Sitting on the bed, Xiaoxuan frowned in pain, unsure how to handle her relationship with Han Derang.

Seeing that she no longer pressed him about his wife, and knowing that she had visited his residence and likely seen what he had written on his desk, Han Derang felt both happy and distressed. He was happy that she would know that he truly loved her, but distressed that after this incident, she was trying even harder to avoid him. Although they were both in the palace, so close, seeing each other had become increasingly difficult.

That night, he continued to quietly guard outside her palace, listening to her soft sobs. When he heard a thud from inside her room, he couldn't help but worry about her safety. What could be causing such a sudden noise in the dead of night? Could it be an assassin? The thought had barely formed in his mind when Han Derang swiftly pushed open Xiao Xuan's bedroom door and rushed inside. The scene that met his eyes left him stunned and frozen in place.

The woman he loved most was holding an awl and repeatedly stabbing herself in the left arm. Seeing the red spots of blood on her fair and smooth left arm, Han Derang was completely stunned.

"Get out!" Xiao Xuan roared angrily, not expecting him to appear at this moment.

The man before her didn't leave; instead, he walked towards her step by step, staring at her bleeding arm. With a slight flick of her sleeve, she lowered it to conceal the glaring bloodstains, and roared again at Han Derang, who had already reached her: "Get out!"

He grabbed her left arm and saw that she had already frowned slightly and groaned "Ah!" Han Derang suddenly realized what was happening, and hurriedly grabbed her wrist and used his other hand to lift up her sleeve.

Besides the bloody puncture wounds from the recent punctures, the arm before me was covered with countless small, scabbed scars, a sight that sent chills down one's spine.

"What are you doing?" Han Derang couldn't help but ask angrily. How could she do this? How could she treat him like this? With tears still in her eyes, Xiao Xuan was enraged when she saw that Han Derang was not obeying her orders. She grabbed an awl and stabbed Han Derang. Han Derang did not expect her to do this. Although he was stunned for a moment, he did not dodge at all. The awl actually pierced his shoulder, all the way to the shaft.

The Khitan Empress - The Khitan Dowager Chapter Ninety-Four: Wrathful Killing (Part 1)

Updated: 2008-09-23 16:34:34 Word Count: 1394

His brow furrowed only briefly before his expression returned to normal. Han Derang pulled the awl from his shoulder, looked at Xiao Xuan, and said, "I'm taking this. Get some rest. I'll go get some medicine and bring it to you." Turning to walk towards the door, Han Derang suddenly stopped and said, "Don't do anything foolish like this again. The dead can't be brought back to life. No matter who you're thinking of, they'll never stand before you again."

He heard her soft sobs behind him, and unable to resist taking another step, Han Derang turned around weakly to look at Xiao Xuan and said, "Can you give me another chance? I've been waiting for so long."

"Get out!"

I could hear her soft sobs.

Disappointed, Han De turned away and walked out of the room dejectedly, clutching the wound on his shoulder as he left the inner courtyard.

Watching him leave, Xiaoxuan collapsed onto the bed and wept. She missed her child, she missed her Zheng Ge. She feared he was hungry, cold, or that something bad might happen to him. Whenever she thought of Zheng Ge, she would take out an awl and stab herself hard, partly to punish her own cruelty, and partly to force herself to stop thinking about Zheng Ge through the sharp pain.

She had to endure it; she couldn't let anyone see her sorrow. She still had to maintain the image of the ever-radiant Empress Dowager in the eyes of her ministers during the day.

A few days later, Yelü Ameili and Yelü Xiezhen, who had been ordered to lead an expedition against Goryeo, returned victorious. To commend their achievements, a grand court assembly was held in the palace.

At the court assembly, the ministers wore joyful expressions, creating a harmonious atmosphere. Seeing their satisfied faces, Xiao Xuan felt somewhat relieved. Suddenly, Yelü Hugu stood up, laughing loudly as he raised his cup to the ministers, saying, "Empress Dowager, esteemed officials, it is a rare occasion for our Great Liao to grow stronger day by day. Why not raise a cup together to celebrate?"

What he said wasn't wrong, and everyone felt comfortable hearing it, so they all raised their cups and drank them down. Then Hu Gu continued, "Our Great Liao is now militarily strong and well-equipped; we'll inevitably march on the Song Dynasty. What do you all think?" Hearing this, everyone looked at Xiao Xuan, and seeing that she remained silent, they all chuckled in response. Hu Gu, seeing this, was displeased and said, "Why isn't anyone saying anything? Are you all as cowardly and afraid of trouble as that old man Han Kuangsi?"

Upon hearing this, Han Derang felt a surge of anger. He knew that Hugu and his father, Han Kuangsi, had always been at odds. Hugu had consistently advocated for military action against the Song Dynasty, while his father had always opposed it. Their differing opinions had often led to heated arguments in court, creating a deep-seated grudge. If Hugu had spoken these words behind his back, Han Derang could have tolerated it, but Hugu had insulted his late father in front of all the officials. How could he stand it? He immediately stood up and replied, "My father is deceased. Why does Lord Hugu have the audacity to speak so rudely of my father?"

Yelü Hugu sneered and said, "What right do you, a Han Chinese, have to speak to me? When did the Khitans change their rules so that Khitans and Han Chinese could sit on equal footing? Hmph, your father is incompetent, and you're no better." Yelü Hugu had drunk a lot and was slightly drunk. He didn't see Xiao Xuan's cold glare at him and continued to curse Han Derang, "Who doesn't know how you, Han Derang, climbed up! Which Khitan here hasn't made a name for yourself in battle? You Han Chinese are only able to rise to such heights and sit on equal footing with us because the Empress Dowager gives you face. If it were the late Emperor, you wouldn't have a place to speak. The Empress Dowager is also suffering. We all understand her distress. She has to handle state affairs and take care of the princes and princesses." Exhausted, yet with so many Khitan warriors in our Great Liao, why did he have to choose you, Yelü Hugu? I simply cannot understand why Han Derang grew increasingly enraged as he spoke, especially after hearing him mention Empress Xiao's private affairs in front of the court officials, spouting nonsense. Enraged, he snatched a military staff from a nearby guard and hurled it at Yelü Hugu. Yelü Hugu, never expecting such a daring act and already somewhat drunk, was struck squarely on the head and collapsed to the ground, motionless. His guards rushed to help him up, only to discover that the elderly Yelü Hugu had not withstood the blow and had been killed by Han Derang. The guards, pale-faced, looked at Xiao Xuan and said, "Reporting to the Empress Dowager, Lord Yelü Hugu has passed away."

Empress of the Khitan - Empress Dowager of the Khitan Chapter Ninety-Four: Wrathful Killing (Part Two)