Da Li Temple - Chapter 46

Chapter 46
Communication

When the Empress Dowager arrived at the Cheng Huan Hall, the Empress checked the account books.
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Fu Gui briefly reported outside, and she marched straight in.
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Of course, the Empress knew that only the concubines usually went to see the Empress Dowager. If she were here in person, there would not be any other reason for her to come to the door other than to inquire about her mistakes.
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Therefore, once the Empress heard that the Empress Dowager had come, it was inevitable that she felt apprehensive. She quickly put down the books in her hand and personally welcomed her.
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The Empress Dowager walked in with her face as usual; she did not look like she was looking for trouble.
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The Empress personally poured her a cup of tea.
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The Empress Dowager sat on the couch and pretended nothing had happened. She lowered her head and sipped, asking, “What has the Empress been busy with lately?”
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“Replying to the Empress Dowager, I am recently organizing the summer accounts of the harem.” As she spoke, she presented the account book in her hand to the Empress Dowager.
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The Empress Dowager gently waved her hand and smiled, “With the Empress taking care of the harem, I am naturally relieved.” As she spoke, her eyes glanced around unintentionally, “What has Shu’er been busy with lately? I have not seen her for several days.”
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The Empress smiled and said, “She dislikes the heat, so she hides in the palace daily. This girl is too much. Even if it’s hot, she can’t forget her manners. How can she not pay her respects to the Empress Dowager?” As she spoke, she beckoned to Mama on the side, “Go and call Shu’er. Her royal grandmother has arrived in person. How can she not come out to pay her respects?”
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The Empress Dowager stopped her and said, “It’s fine. If she fears the heat, let her stay in the house. I’m not looking for her.” After speaking, the Empress Dowager put the hot teacup on one side and looked at the Empress, “I remember Shu’er’s body was not good when she was young. She was terrified of the cold. Her hands and feet are often cold, even on a hot summer day. After being sent to Jiangnan, she became afraid of heat instead.”

The Empress picks up the conversation, her expression indifferent, “Empress Dowager didn’t know that Shu’er’s body was well adjusted this time. Otherwise, how can she survive the journey from Jiangnan to Sheng City.”
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The Empress Dowager nodded and laughed lightly, “It’s true. When I sent Shu’er to your mother’s home in Jiangnan, she was only two years old. I don’t remember very well what she looks like. So many years have passed, and her bones and appearance have changed greatly.”
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“When a girl grows up, she will always change.” The Empress replied with a smile, her eyes unable to hide the joy and love of a mother.
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“En,” the Empress Dowager said nothing else, hooked her lips, and added: “The Empress has cared about the crown prince’s recent studies?”
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The Empress was stunned, not expecting the Empress Dowager to turn the tables and ask about the Crown Prince. She only said, “I have heard the Emperor mention it, saying that the Imperial Master has praised him greatly.”
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“That’s good,” the Empress Dowager sipped tea without much expression; her expression was even more blurred in the mist. A moment later, she looked towards the Empress, lowered her voice in a cautionary posture, and said, “The Crown Prince is the Crown Prince of the country and will rule this world one day.”
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The Empress was stunned for a long time at the words, nodded her head as if she understood, and answered lowly, “Yes.”
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The Empress Dowager silently sized her up and added, “Jingche doing something for the Emperor is doing something for the world and also doing something for the Crown Prince.”
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The Empress was stunned and startled and hurriedly knelt, “Empress Dowager’s words are flattering me and the Crown Prince. Heir is the country’s pillar; the crown prince should take him as an example ……”
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“Empress, what are you doing? What I meant that,” the Empress Dowager looked surprised. She stepped forward to help her up, “Although their cousins are eight years apart, they had lived in one place since childhood. Afterward, even if they became rulers or ministers, Jingche would support him as if he were serving for the Emperor.”

The Empress Dowager held the Empress’ hand, feeling the apparent coldness and trembling in her palm. She looked petrified and had no knowledge of Wei Shu or the affairs of the previous dynasty.
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The Empress Dowager did have a moment of doubt before; after all, Wei Shu had not been raised in the palace since childhood, and others could switch the person and plant in the palace to use as a spy. She will be the least suspected of the chess piece. After all, as the first princess, her mother is the Empress, and her brother is the Crown Prince, who will not be desperate to collusion with those people.
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The Empress Dowager was not afraid to check Wei Shu. She was scared of whether the Empress and the Crown Prince were involved. It was inevitable that the court would be a huge shock. She not only tested the attitude of the Empress but also gave a warning and cut off the Empress and the former dynasty’s relationship. After all, this world will become the Crown Prince’s sooner or later. It is better to have too much action than to lose it; she should be clear about the stakes, so there is no need to get involved with the former dynasty.
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The Empress Dowager finally felt a lot of relief in her heart. The two casually chatted about some trivial matters in the harem. When the evening meal time, the Empress Dowager got up to go back to her palace.
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The Empress respectfully sent her to the door of the Cheng Huan Hall, looking at the train carriage disappearing in the sunset under the afterglow.
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The Mama came to help her.
Pa!
A slap landed hard on her face.
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The Empress looked at her. The respect in her eyes was gone, replaced by coldness and viciousness.
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“Did not I tell you to keep an eye on her? How come all the moths have gone to the Empress Dowager?”
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Mama froze, panicked, and kneeled to beg for forgiveness.

The Empress laughed coldly and stepped over her.
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“Someone,” she took the hand towel handed to her by the palace maid, wiped the blood on her hands, and slowly spoke, “Drag her to the backyard and beat her to death.”

The Mama’s mournful cries had just risen when she was gagged and dragged away.
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“Your Highness,” an elderly woman approached and whispered in the Empress’s ear, “Listening to what the Empress Dowager meant, could it be that she already suspects Wei Shu?”
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The Empress did not respond for a long time, the beads and emeralds on her head reflecting the afterglow of the setting sun, intense and blinding. She looked sidelong at the woman and said, “What do you think, Nurse?”
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The Nurse silently closed her mouth.
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“The Empress Dowager is telling me,” the Empress said in a deep voice, “Not only does she suspect Wei Shu; she’s also telling me to behave myself and not to gamble with the Crown Prince’s future.”
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“Then what is the Empress going to do?” Nurse asked.
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“What to do?” The Empress lightly related, “They and I have long been on the same boat, sharing the same honor and loss; what qualifications do I have to back out?”
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“Then …… should we just let them drag us down?”
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After hearing this, the Empress was silent for a long time and said, “Don’t leave any clues in my Jiangnan mother’s house. It is not easy for the Empress Dowager to find her identity. She will only send people to watch Wei Shu; let her be in the Cheng Huan Hall and stay honest.” She added, “Since that case at the Song residence, I’ve always felt that something isn’t right. Gotta tell them that Song Zhengxing is a chess piece that needs to be shed if they can.”
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“And,” the Empress paused, her eyes ruthless, “after so many years, what he wants should be collected enough. Just take it for what it’s worth; don’t dig his grave.”

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The moonlight was hazy, penetrating through a crack in the window pane and falling in front of the bronze mirror in the chamber.
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Su Moyi took a candlestick at his side and swung it in front of the bronze mirror. The man in the mirror has an outstanding demeanor: sword eyebrows, starry eyes, a straight nose, and a jawline with fitting curvature. Handsome, yet not feminine; heroic, but also with some warmth. He looked at himself in the mirror carefully, up and down; his hand came to the belt on his waist and abdomen and gradually pulled it open. The white robe slid down half an inch, just enough to reveal his chest’s tight muscles, hidden from view. He wanted to manage for his long hair when a light footstep came to his ears.
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Su Moyi could only blow out the candle flame in a panic, rush to the bed, and take out the prepared book on the pillow.
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Lin Wanqing held up her hair that had finally been strung dry, and when she came out of the bathroom and raised her eyes, she saw Lord Su leaning on the bed, his eyes downcast and flipping through the book. The warm light of the candle reflected on his face, adding a few moments of softness to his initially overly cold and solemn demeanor. His fingers were long and slender; his bones were; his expression was focused, and his lapel was half-open.
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Cold and eye-catching.
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Lin Wanqing glanced at him and hurriedly averted her eyes.
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“My Lord,” she marched over to the lamp, “Are you going to sleep?”
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Su Moyi did not look at her and coldly murmured, “En,”
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Lin Wanqing blew the candle flame and stepped under the moonlight.

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