The Favorite of the Sick and Weak Lady - Chapter 80

The man had a refined and scholarly appearance. He was humble and polite, bowing respectfully to her. “Greetings, Your Majesty.”

Xiao Yu suppressed the questions in her heart and looked at the Empress Dowager.

The Empress Dowager twirled the prayer beads in her hand and said, “This is the son of my elder brother. He came to visit me today. He is about the same age as you, so you young people should have things to talk about. Jun’er isn’t like his father who loves to fight; he’s more like my sister-in-law, who has loved literature since he was a child. But this is also good.”

This was…

Did she want her to arrange a position for him?

Xiao Yu was unsure of the Empress Dowager’s intentions and didn’t dwell on it. She waved her hand. “Since he is the Empress Dowager’s nephew, there’s no need for such formalities among family. Rise and speak.”

Li Jun thanked her and respectfully stood beside the Empress Dowager.

Xiao Yu glanced at him. Since she had entered, the Empress Dowager’s attitude had not been particularly warm. If she wanted to secure a path for her nephew, she wouldn’t have this attitude. And looking at the man, although he stood beside the Empress Dowager, she didn’t show any extra emotion, which indicated that the relationship between the aunt and nephew was not very close.

So what was this all about today?

Although Xiao Yu had many guesses in her heart, she showed nothing on her face.

She had just entered and hadn’t been sitting for long when the palace servants of the Palace of Longevity and Health filed in, placing the dining table and food. Because of the previous imperial edict, the breakfast at the Palace of Longevity and Health was no different from that of the Palace of Blessed Peace: six dishes and a bowl of lotus seed congee.

The Empress Dowager gestured to her. “Let’s eat first. We can talk about other things later.”

With that, she stood up with the help of a maid and walked to the dining table to sit down.

“Jun’er, you should join us,” the Empress Dowager said faintly.

Xiao Yu was startled, only then realizing that the “Jun’er” the Empress Dowager was referring to was her nephew, Li Jun.

How could a subject dare to share a table with the emperor? Li Jun glanced at his aunt, his face immediately turning pale as he knelt on the ground. “This nephew wouldn’t dare. Besides, I’ve already had breakfast before I came.”

“Oh?” The Empress Dowager smiled and enlightened him. “You’re right. There’s a distinction between the monarch and the subject. It seems I’ve become muddled in my old age. The Empire of Baisheng relies on you young people. The emperor also needs loyal subjects and good generals by her side. My Li family has been loyal to the country for generations. You must remember the ancestral teachings, do you understand?”

Li Jun, kneeling on the ground, replied, “This nephew understands.”

The Empress Dowager nodded. “Rise.”

Li Jun secretly glanced at Xiao Yu, then lowered his head. He had come to the palace today on his father’s orders to ask his aunt to recommend him to the emperor for a good position. Who would have thought that his aunt would call the emperor here and say such things in front of her?

Did she want him to be loyal to the emperor from now on?

Li Jun was full of doubts, but he didn’t dare to disobey and respectfully kowtowed again.

“This nephew will remember my aunt’s teachings.”

“That’s good. Since you won’t be eating here, you can go back.”

“Yes.” Li Jun secretly looked at Xiao Yu again, then lowered his head and exited the main hall.

Inside the hall, only the two of them remained. Xiao Yu now had the chance to carefully observe her. The well-preserved face carried a faint sense of distance, and even though she was sitting opposite her, she felt ethereal and unreal.

The Empress Dowager spoke softly, “The late emperor loved her people like her own children and spent her entire life on official documents and her subjects.”

Xiao Yu looked up at her, unsure of how to respond.

The Empress Dowager smiled, not minding, and continued, “She said that a ruler should be benevolent so that the people can live and work in peace, and the Baisheng Empire can last forever.”

The late emperor the Empress Dowager spoke of was a diligent and good emperor. The original plot didn’t mention this, so she couldn’t judge. But one thing she could be sure of was that the Empress Dowager and the late emperor were deeply in love.

This late emperor only had one empress and two concubines in her harem, which was a very clean harem compared to other emperors.

The Empress Dowager saw her staring and waved her hand. The prayer beads in her hand made a crisp sound. “Am I being too talkative?”

Xiao Yu quickly shook her head. “How could that be? I’m happy to hear the Empress Dowager talk about these things.”

The Empress Dowager nodded. “Although I haven’t left the palace in a while, I often hear the palace servants talk about the emperor. You’ve just ascended the throne, and your foundation isn’t stable yet, but you’ve already done very well. However, some things need to be taken slowly, especially the matter of consolidating power. This power, once in someone’s hands, is something they’re unwilling to give up. Don’t be impatient. The late emperor was always worried about the successor, and this was also a source of distress for her. Now it seems… she can rest in peace.”

Being spoken to about the thoughts on her mind, Xiao Yu smiled shyly. “It was all forced by circumstance.”

What was this situation? Why was the Empress Dowager talking to her about these things? After hearing her conversation with Li Jun just now, she had thought the Empress Dowager would say a few more words for Li Jun, but she was unpredictable and spoke only of everyday matters, with two out of every three sentences revolving around the late emperor.

She must miss the late emperor so much.

But on second thought, if it were Miss, she would probably go crazy missing her.

The best way would be to leave together with Miss.

Bah, bah, bah!

What was she thinking? This was so unlucky. She and Miss were going to live long lives together.

The Empress Dowager looked about the same age as her cheap mother.

And she was a childhood couple with the late emperor. It was very likely that the late emperor was only in her forties when she passed away.

Xiao Yu couldn’t help but feel a pang of sadness.

The breakfast was spent listening to the Empress Dowager reminisce about the past; there was nothing else.

After the meal, the Empress Dowager still had to attend to her Buddhist devotions, so Xiao Yu stood up. The Empress Dowager didn’t say much, as if she had already said everything.

A benevolent ruler…

Xiao Yu couldn’t help but think about this phrase. Could she really do it well?

The Empress Dowager escorted her to the entrance of the hall and reached out to smooth her clothes, saying, “When the emperor has nothing to do, you can come to the Palace of Longevity and Health more often and keep me company.”

Xiao Yu nodded blankly, looking at her. She really couldn’t figure out the Empress Dowager’s intentions. She suddenly called her to the Palace of Longevity and Health, and after meeting Li Jun, she thought she wanted her to take care of her nephew, but she only mentioned it briefly, and what she said were all everyday matters.

And although she seemed distant, she somehow didn’t make her feel uncomfortable at all; on the contrary, she felt very close.

Yes! That was the word.

She really couldn’t figure out why she had this feeling about her.

Xiao Yu raised her sleeve. “I’ll remember, Empress Dowager. You don’t need to see me off anymore.”

The Empress Dowager smiled and watched her leave.

Just as Xiao Yu was leaving the Palace of Longevity and Health, she saw a panicked palace servant who hurriedly bowed to her.

“Your Majesty, this is bad, this is bad!”

“How dare you!” Fu Shun sternly said. “How dare you interrupt His Majesty…”

The palace servant was so scared that he plopped down on his knees.

Xiao Yu raised her hand to interrupt him. “What’s wrong?”

The palace servant, kneeling on the ground, stammered, “Your Majesty, please forgive me. It was Her Imperial Majesty who sent this servant to ask Your Majesty to go to the Imperial Study.”

“Hmm?” Xiao Yu frowned. Wasn’t Miss having breakfast at the Palace of Blessed Peace? Why was she at the Imperial Study now? The little eunuch was so panicked. Xiao Yu’s heart tightened. Had something happened to Miss?

She couldn’t care about anything else and quickly asked, “What exactly happened? Is the Empress alright?”

Without waiting for the palace servant’s reply, Xiao Yu sped up her pace, jogging towards the Imperial Study.

Fortunately, the Palace of Longevity and Health wasn’t too far from the Imperial Study. In a short while, Xiao Yu arrived at the Imperial Study, where it was full of ministers.

Xiao Yu adjusted her breathing and walked closer.

“Greetings, Your Majesty,” the ministers knelt and bowed in unison.

“Rise.”

The palace servant opened the door in front. Xiao Yu walked into the hall and sat down at the imperial desk.

“What matters do you all wish to report?”

As soon as she finished speaking, the Minister of Justice walked to the front of the crowd and cupped his hands. “Reporting to Your Majesty, there was a murder case in an inn in the capital today.”

A murder case?

Xiao Yu frowned. If there was a murder case, they should go investigate it. Why did so many people come to her together?

From her observation, half of the important ministers of the court were here. Was it another major case?

Xiao Yu felt a vague sense of unease. Could a murder case alarm so many people? The ones who came were all important ministers of the court. How could she not be suspicious?

However, she didn’t have much time to think. She heard the Minister of Justice continue, “The deceased were the same few people, including Zhang Da, who had a conflict with Your Majesty a few days ago.”

Zhang Da and the others?

More than one person died?

Xiao Yu was surprised. “How many people died? Have you found the killer?”

“This…” The Minister of Justice hesitated. “Ten people died. The killer didn’t leave any clues.”

What?

Xiao Yu’s heart jumped. Was the efficiency of ancient law enforcement this bad?

Dead people, no clues…

This reminded her of the death of the male lead, Xiao Chengze, who also died without leaving any clues. Ten people were murdered at the same time. This couldn’t be a simple murder case.

Could they all have been killed by the same person?

“Have you investigated their backgrounds, social relations, and if they offended anyone since they came to the capital?” Xiao Yu asked.

“This minister has already had people investigate. These people were all candidates who came to take the exams. They didn’t have any conflicts with anyone and had no enemies. The only conflict they had was…”

The Minister of Justice paused, slightly raised his head, glanced at Xiao Yu, and deliberated. “…was with Your Majesty.”

?!

These people were suspecting her?

Xiao Yu’s heart was shocked. She pulled at the corner of her mouth. Were these people really brainless or really brainless? As a loner, who would she send to kill people?

At this moment, the censorial official stepped forward and reported, “Reporting to Your Majesty, there are rumors among the people that the deaths of these ten people are related to Your Majesty. In the past, Xiao Chengze was killed silently because he offended Your Majesty. Now, these candidates also offended Your Majesty and were killed silently. If this is not stopped, it may damage Your Majesty’s reputation.”

Heh~

This was truly speechless.

Xiao Yu gritted her teeth. She was the emperor now, so why did she always feel like she was being led by the nose? Which emperor was as humiliated as she was? Even common people dared to criticize her.

And couldn’t these dog officials use their brains? How could she be the killer!

Xiao Yu’s eyes were filled with helplessness. She scanned the ministers one by one.

The hall fell into a dead silence.

After a moment of silence, everyone’s eyes gathered on Prime Minister Song.

Song Yunzhou paused, then slowly stepped forward, his expression filled with grief. “The common people are confused. How could Your Majesty be the killer? The main task now is to find the killer as soon as possible and restore Your Majesty’s innocence. The imperial examination is approaching. To prevent those scholars from acting against Your Majesty, this old minister respectfully requests that the imperial examination be postponed until this case is resolved.”

“This old minister agrees.”

“This minister also agrees.”

These people… wanted to stop her from selecting talent?

This thought flashed through her mind. Xiao Yu calmly looked around. The people present were all influential figures in the court. Could the killer be among them?

If the killer was really among them, who could it be?

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