Seeing that she remained silent, Zhang Yu said in a hoarse voice, "You must remember what you said. You don't need to take what the Empress Dowager told you to heart. I said I wouldn't force you."
Remember what you said… At the foot of the cliff, in the thatched hut, Zhang Yu had said that he had saved her life, so this life belonged to him, and if she betrayed him, she would surely die. At that time, she had replied with a "yes" to him.
"This servant has not forgotten her promise to His Majesty," Ahao replied to Zhang Yu after careful consideration. She truly hadn't forgotten, but she didn't feel these things had anything to do with those others. Was it referring to the Empress Dowager's words...? Ahao analyzed, but did that have anything to do with whether she had betrayed him or not?
Zhang Yu stood with his hands behind his back in front of Song Shuhao for a while, then walked back to his desk and said, "When the Song family had that incident back then, didn't I stand up for you and seek justice? Why don't you remember my kindness?"
"No matter how the throne rotates, it will never be Feng Hui's. It's no use that you've gone along with the Empress Dowager's wishes. Who do you think I am, helping with such a good thing? And you still remember what you promised me?"
Even though she had figured out the intricacies of the situation beforehand and understood Zhang Yu's words without much difficulty, Ahao was still somewhat bewildered. According to this, shouldn't she disobey the Empress Dowager's wishes?
Chapter 42 Pity
When Song Shuhao was nine years old, the Song family suffered an undeserved disaster. The Duke of Wei's mansion, which caused the trouble, was itself notorious. Before the late emperor passed away, the Duke of Wei's mansion was able to maintain its grandeur to some extent because it had produced a favored concubine. Even though it committed evil deeds, it was never short of people to protect it.
The Duke of Wei's mansion caused trouble again, which served as a pretext to settle scores with the mansion for its past misdeeds. This served both to punish the bunch of good-for-nothings and to give the others in the court a warning. At the time, however, the so-called lustful attraction seemed a bit suspicious, but no further investigation was conducted.
Zhang Yu remembered his mother's words of pity for Song Shuhao when she took her in, and how she felt a connection with her, so she took her in and raised her. But the painstaking training and the fact that she wasn't treated like an ordinary palace maid revealed something else entirely.
The Empress was chosen by the late Emperor, and the Feng family carefully selected Feng Hui, while his mother had long harbored ulterior motives. Ultimately, she was his mother, and since nothing serious happened, he simply pretended it wasn't a problem. However, it was impossible for the Feng family to produce another Empress Dowager Feng.
After returning to the palace, he was constantly busy with court affairs and rarely got a good night's sleep. Upon learning of what happened to Song Shuhao today, he knew she had her own ideas. Zhang Yu pondered, thinking it necessary to thoroughly correct Song Shuhao's stubbornness.
Ah Hao stood at the foot of the steps, tilting his head slightly to observe Zhang Yu's expression. He sat behind the dragon desk with his eyes closed, reaching out to pinch his brow, seemingly trying to relieve the drowsiness that kept creeping in. Other than that, his emotions seemed faint and not very apparent.
After going over Zhang Yu's words in her mind again, Ahao spoke, but deliberately avoided the main point, saying, "I dare not forget His Majesty's kindness, and I will always remember the Empress Dowager's kindness. Without His Majesty and the Empress Dowager, I would not be where I am today."
Ahao's standard, almost meaningless, answer earned her a half-opened eye and a half-smile from Zhang Yu. Unfazed by embarrassment, he retorted, "Trying to brush me off?"
Zhang Yu thought that she had never faced such a dilemma in her past life. She had chosen a different path and followed it without hesitation. Whether the outcome was good or bad, she never regretted it. Now, however, she hesitated and lacked decisiveness at every turn. How much did she not want to stay in the palace?
Ahao paused, wanting to say she wouldn't dare, but knowing he didn't want to hear it. She lowered her brows, lost in thought for a moment, then, as if not understanding his meaning, asked, "What does Your Majesty wish for this servant to do?"
"After the New Year holidays, you will come to serve me."
Zhang Yu had unexpectedly offered her a high-paying opportunity, something A-Hao hadn't anticipated. Given the choice, she carefully considered Zhang Yu's words. Zhang Yu seemed to be waiting for her to figure it out, showing no sign of impatience. The hall was quiet; the hexagonal glazed lanterns shone brightly, calmly illuminating the faces of Song Shuhao and Zhang Yu.
Although she knew that seeking His Majesty's help wouldn't necessarily lead to rejection, she hadn't given it much thought because she hadn't expected His Majesty's attitude towards this matter to be so resolute. Indeed, he should be so determined... but she wasn't sure about His Majesty's feelings for the Empress Dowager. His birth mother was one layer, and their past good relationship was another.
Supporting Consort Shu's ascension to the throne undoubtedly involves the interests of her family. Now that she's been brought in, the Empress Dowager certainly won't ignore it. Therefore, Xue Liangyue's confidence in reaching a consensus with Consort Shu is naturally well-founded.
The Empress's position, a royal heir, and the Crown Prince's position—they probably all desire to obtain each one. If they were to compromise, they might forgo the Empress's position, but they must have an heir to have a chance of becoming the Crown Prince. This is a long-term plan, but people's hearts are always changing; only pawns controlled from the very beginning are truly useful.
Ahao did not give a clear response to Zhang Yu's words. Instead, she became "bold" and asked Zhang Yu, "Your Majesty, could you tell this servant... what exactly happened before and after the winter hunt?"
What do you want to know?
"The mastermind?"
Zhang Yu looked at Song Shuhao with a leisurely air, not seeming to be dissatisfied with her boldness, but his smiling face and squinting eyes were as creepy as ever. Ahao couldn't help but shrink her neck, feeling a little scared.
Having finally managed to ask, backing down now would likely mean even less chance of finding out later. After a moment of hesitation, Ah Hao steeled herself and nodded repeatedly, continuing, "Is...can I ask? This servant wants to know."
What is your relationship with Prosecutor Zhao?
“Is it Prince Zhao? That doesn’t make sense…” Ah Hao subconsciously frowned and tilted her head. “This servant has not had much contact with Prince Zhao and we have no relationship.”
"Then who is right?"
The two exchanged questions and answers, each sentence seemingly disjointed, yet somehow they found common ground. Ah Hao thought that since the topic of Prince Zhao had been brought up, it was most likely related to him. Even if it wasn't him, there was bound to be some connection. His Majesty the Emperor had no reason to lie to her; after all, she only knew what he knew, and revenge required the means to achieve it.
“This servant did have several encounters with Prince Zhao. Once, before the winter hunt, I left the palace and returned home, and he inexplicably appeared at my house. Prince Zhao was convinced that I had saved him many years ago. Although I firmly denied it, he seemed not to believe me and insisted that he had not made a mistake. Judging from this point alone, there should be no reason for him to do so.”
"You're not denying it to avoid suspicion?"
Ah Hao thought to herself, "Is he really going to believe that?" But she smiled and said, "Your Majesty really knows everything."
She stopped laughing and patiently explained to Zhang Yu, "It's not to avoid suspicion, but because I really didn't save Prince Zhao. The first time I saw Prince Zhao was in the third year after I entered the palace. At that time, Prince Zhao was also accompanying Prince Anping to the palace to pay his respects to the Empress Dowager. We didn't even exchange a single word then."
If she truly had a debt of gratitude to Inspector Zhao, and knew he was willing to repay it, why wouldn't she accept it? In the past, she so desperately wanted to escape the intrigues of the harem, yet she didn't take advantage of such a good person and instead went out of her way to suffer.
If that were truly the case, she would definitely plan to have Zhao Jian take her out of the palace and then leave Lin'an with her mother after discovering the other party's identity. However, A-Hao kept these words buried deep in her heart, never daring to let Zhang Yu know.
“If you weren’t at Jingyun Nunnery at that time, there would never have been a mistake on you.” Zhang Yu wasn’t unwilling to believe Song Shuhao, but what she said didn’t make sense, so he said this.
It's not impossible that there could be a mistake, even if the possibility is extremely small. But even if there is a mistake, certain conditions are still necessary. For example, Song Shuhao was indeed in that place at that time. However, if it wasn't Song Shuhao, there must have been someone else who saved Prosecutor Zhao but deliberately concealed it; that person might have recognized his identity immediately…
Zhang Yu noticed a hint of hesitation on Song Shuhao's face, as if she was debating whether to explain. In the end, she continued to explain, "This servant does not know exactly when the young master Zhao was referring to. However, before my parents' accident, my mother did take me to stay at Jingyun Nunnery for a few days. At that time, one of the nuns at Jingyun Nunnery was an acquaintance of my mother, and my mother would occasionally visit her."
Before her parents' accident, she had a carefree and happy life, and looking back, she always felt that every day was incredibly joyful. But those days are now far behind her.
The only thing is that when she thinks about it again, she harbors fantasies and hopes things will be the same as before. When she had it, she took it for granted, but only when she suddenly lost it did she realize what a luxury it was. What she longed for, no one could give her, and even striving for it was difficult.
It had been quite a while, and Zhang Yu's memory of that year was hazy. Zhao Jian had escaped, and those people had lost track of him. He seemed to have been to that place once, but nothing stood out in his mind.
Judging from Song Shuhao's words, she might have been at Jingyun Nunnery with Xu Shi at the time. If that's the case... Zhang Yu pondered to himself, and the things that seemed strange back then suddenly became clear. But if the truth about the Song family's incident was really like this, Zhang Yu looked at Song Shuhao, whose face still seemed bewildered, and felt an uncontrollable pity rising in his heart.
There's no need for her to know, Zhang Yu thought. There's no need to expose the pain and cruelty hidden behind what she cares about most. Even knowing nothing now is better than the harsh truth. In fact, not knowing doesn't matter.
“I’m afraid that Prince Anping also believes that you are truly Zhao Jian’s savior, and that Zhao Jian’s obsession with the fact that you saved his life has become his weakness and leverage.” After going around in circles, Zhang Yu answered Song Shuhao’s initial question.
Ah-hao couldn't help but smile bitterly. How had she gotten herself into such trouble? When she told the truth, no one would believe her, and she almost lost her life because of a lie.
"Come here." Ahao was in a daze when Zhang Yu's voice rang out again. She snapped out of her reverie and walked up the steps to Zhang Yu. Zhang Yu instructed her, "Bend down." Ahao did as he was told, and then he patted her head.
"Don't be afraid," Zhang Yu said slowly as he withdrew his hand.
With such a coaxing tone and gesture, A-Hao felt like she was being treated like a puppy, thankfully it wasn't just a chin being scratched. A-Hao's face flushed, and she replied sullenly, "Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty, but this servant is not afraid."