The young eunuch received the order and went to the Imperial Study. Inside Cixi Palace, Granny Ying looked at the Empress Dowager with unease. Seeing the Empress Dowager's inscrutable expression, she wondered what the Empress Dowager meant and why she had ordered the Emperor to be summoned.
The Empress Dowager ignored Ying Mama and slowly made her plans in her mind.
Zhongli came to Cixi Palace to complain about the Empress. He wanted her to deal with the Empress. She wasn't stupid. Right now, Feng'er favored the Empress, and the Empress was pregnant with the Ye family's bloodline. If he were to harm her, and Feng'er found out, she would be in trouble.
However, she could let Feng'er know Zhongli's intentions. In that case, the Empress would surely find out, and let her fight with Zhongli. No matter who wins, it would be a good thing for her.
The eunuch from Cixi Palace went to the Imperial Study to invite Ye Lingfeng. Ye Lingfeng, not knowing what was going on, assumed that his mother was unwell, so he led the young eunuch over.
Upon entering Cixi Palace, he was surprised to find that the Empress Dowager showed no signs of discomfort.
"Your subject greets Your Majesty. May I ask why Your Majesty has summoned me here?"
"Feng'er, I have summoned you here for no other reason than that Prime Minister Zhong and several officials from the court came to Cixi Palace to request an audience with me, saying that the Empress, a mere concubine, is interfering in politics. Feng'er, this matter must be taken very seriously."
After the Empress Dowager finished speaking, she stopped talking and looked down at Ye Lingfeng.
Upon hearing the Empress Dowager's words, Ye Lingfeng's face immediately darkened, and he gritted his teeth and cursed inwardly.
You, Zhongli, not only did you defy the Empress in the Imperial Study, but now you've even gone to Cixi Palace to cause trouble. It seems you want to die even faster. I will not let you off the hook.
Ye Lingfeng spoke calmly as he thought about it.
"Your Majesty, what is meant by interfering in politics? It means meddling in my affairs of state. The Empress has never interfered in my affairs of state. She only offers some minor suggestions. Your Majesty should know that the Empress is very intelligent. Often, a small idea can turn the whole matter around. Therefore, I am very grateful for her wisdom and intelligence. How can you say that she is interfering in politics? Zhongli previously contradicted the Empress, which was already inappropriate. Now she even dares to come to Cixi Palace to complain. That damned bastard!"
Ye Lingfeng couldn't help but lose his temper. The Empress Dowager didn't say anything after hearing Ye Lingfeng's words. She knew this would happen. The Zhong family's death was imminent. Even with Zhong Li's status as a veteran of three dynasties, it was unlikely that he could stop his demise. So what if he was a veteran of three dynasties? It just meant that he had even more stains on his record. Although he had wiped his clean now, the fox would eventually show his tail. Once he did, it would be the Zhong family's death.
Thinking about how the Zhong family had bullied and oppressed the west family in the past, the Empress Dowager felt very pleased. Although the Emperor's protection of Ji Hailing made her unhappy, she was still very happy to be able to deal with the Zhong family.
The Empress Dowager was pleased, but of course she couldn't let the Emperor see it, so she looked at Ye Lingfeng with a calm expression.
"Feng'er, don't be angry anymore. I know the Empress won't interfere in politics. But you should be careful about the impact. After all, Zhongli is a veteran of three reigns. If he makes things difficult for the Empress, her image in the hearts of the people of Beilu will be greatly damaged."
The Empress Dowager looked like she was thinking of the Empress. Ye Lingfeng was initially furious, but then calmed down, nodded slowly, and then bid farewell to the Empress Dowager before leaving Cining Palace to return to the Imperial Study to handle state affairs. For the rest of the time, the Emperor's face never relaxed; it remained cold and gloomy.
Inside Cixi Palace, the Empress Dowager was in a very good mood. She seemed to be overjoyed to see Feng'er deal with that old scoundrel Zhongli.
"Granny Ying, help me into my bedchamber to rest."
"Yes, Your Majesty the Empress Dowager," said Granny Ying, looking puzzled. The Empress Dowager had been quite unhappy before, so why was she suddenly happy now? But with her limited intelligence, she probably couldn't figure it out.
That evening, when Ye Lingfeng returned to Liuyue Palace, his expression was still somewhat unpleasant.
Hai Ling found it very strange. He had been very happy when she was with Ye before, so why was he angry now? Although he tried his best to hide it, who was she? She was the woman he loved dearly. She could tell whether he was happy or angry from his every move and expression. For example, his expression right now showed that he was very unhappy. Although he smiled at her, there was a hint of coldness in his eyes.
"Night, what happened?"
Ye Lingfeng didn't want Hai Ling to know and upset her, so he shook his head.
"It's nothing, I'm just a little tired."
Ye Lingfeng tried to change the subject, but Hai Ling wouldn't fall for his trick. She reached out and turned his face to face, threatening him: "Tell me, what exactly are you hiding? Tell me the truth, don't hide anything from me."
As soon as she said that, Ye Lingfeng knew he couldn't hide it from her. However, to prevent her from getting angry, he added, "You mustn't get angry after hearing this."
"Okay, I'm not angry."
Hailin raised both hands to assure everyone that she wouldn't be angry.
Ye Lingfeng then told Hailing about Zhongli's complaint to Cixi Palace that afternoon, and added angrily, "That old bastard Zhongli, I will deal with him as soon as possible."
Hai Ling raised her eyebrows slightly and her eyes flickered a few times after hearing Ye Lingfeng's words.
Zhong Li's actions were indeed infuriating, but that's not important. What's important is why the Empress Dowager told Ye about this. If she had kept quiet, Ye wouldn't be so angry. Did the Empress Dowager not think of this? With her shrewdness, that's impossible. It seems like she did it on purpose. Could it be that she has ulterior motives and wants to use Ye to get rid of the Zhong family? Although the Zhong family should be eliminated, the Empress Dowager's actions make Hai Ling very uncomfortable.
Because in her mind, as a mother, the first thing to consider is her own child. How could she completely disregard her son's feelings just to get rid of someone?
She knew perfectly well that Ye would be very angry if she told him about this, yet she still didn't care. It's really disappointing.
I had apologized to her for Ye's sake before, but now I really feel that she doesn't deserve it.
Perhaps her decision to raise Ye was also driven by selfishness. If it were her, she could never have let her son suffer like that, just to achieve his current success. Even if he didn't return to Beilu, Ye could still live a carefree and unrestrained life elsewhere. Therefore, the Empress Dowager's heart was selfish and self-serving.
After Ye Lingfeng finished speaking, he didn't see Hai Ling get angry or upset. He looked up at Hai Ling beside him in surprise and found her looking thoughtful. He couldn't help but reach out and hug her small body.
"What's wrong, Ling'er? Didn't we agree that you weren't allowed to get angry?"
Hailin shook her head, and when she looked up, her face was full of smiles.
She didn't want to tell Ye these things. Perhaps Ye knew in his heart, but he didn't want to expose it, otherwise his heart would be hurt, and she didn't want to make him unhappy.
Hai Ling reached out and put her arms around Ye Lingfeng's neck: "I'm not angry. I was just thinking about how to deal with that old bastard Zhong Li. He actually dared to complain. What do you think? Should I send someone from Wuyinglou to the Zhong family?"
"That old bastard Zhongli has probably hidden the good stuff away. I've sent people to investigate him, and he's distanced himself from all his associates. Do you think he would leave good stuff in the Zhong family for you to steal?"
“He doesn’t keep the good stuff in the Zhong family’s possessions, but even a starved camel is bigger than a horse. The items displayed in the Zhong family’s possessions are probably all valuable. Stealing some and selling them can help alleviate the immediate crisis in Beilu. What’s wrong with that?”
"Whatever you want, as long as you're happy."
Ye Lingfeng held Hai Ling tightly, drawing warmth from her body. Only when he was with her could he feel his blood was warm, his heart was warm, and he felt happy.
Although his mother had raised him from a young age and sent him up the mountain to practice martial arts, he was always lonely. His mother did not pamper him like most mothers would. When the two of them were together, she would mostly teach him to practice martial arts seriously and learn various skills so that he could make his mother proud one day. Sometimes he really longed to snuggle into his mother's arms, but as soon as he got close to her, his mother would say, "Feng'er, you must not develop feelings of attachment to your mother. Otherwise, you will become lazy and not think about diligent preparation in the future."
He lived like this for many years, so he became very cold and aloof, and didn't like to get close to women. But ever since he saw Ling'er, he was attracted to her. Slowly, she entered his heart, and he felt alive. He wanted to protect her and make her happy. It seemed that seeing her happy made his heart happy too.
This feeling runs deep in his blood. Perhaps he hadn't realized it before, but after experiencing many hardships, he came to a profound understanding of it, and he would never let go of her for the rest of his life.
"Ling'er".