Chapter 40

There were many guards outside Cian Palace.

Emperor Zhaoming entered Cian Palace three times a day, each time with different feelings. From a distance, he heard the Empress Dowager’s angry and anxious voice, like a trapped beast in despair: “Is there any news from outside the palace? What about the Chu family? I want to see the emperor! Do you hear me? I want to see the emperor immediately, right now!”

The last sentence was shouted hoarsely. It was both a command and a helpless plea, conveying a sense of powerless despair. Inside the hall, eunuchs and palace maids knelt on the ground, their faces pale with fear.

Emperor Zhaoming walked past the kneeling palace attendants in the courtyard and entered Cian Palace. He saw the Empress Dowager, dressed in her phoenix robe, pacing anxiously, her emotions nearly out of control, lacking her usual dignified demeanor.

“Mother,” Emperor Zhaoming called softly, his voice filled with guilt and self-blame. “It is my incompetence that has caused you such worry.”

The Empress Dowager’s steps halted, and she slowly turned to look at him, her anxious and angry expression freezing, then replaced by a mocking sneer. “The emperor finally dares to come? I thought the emperor was going to imprison his own mother.”

Emperor Zhaoming remained silent.

“You are indeed incompetent,” the Empress Dowager said coldly. “You acted rashly without full assurance, leading to this uncontrollable situation. If Yan Donghuang truly harms the Chu family, you will be to blame.”

Emperor Zhaoming’s expression darkened. “Mother.”

“Don’t call me that,” the Empress Dowager’s voice was cold and hard. “You now have two choices: either let me leave the palace to talk to Yan Donghuang face to face or prepare to collect my body.”

Emperor Zhaoming’s face changed, and he quickly bowed his head in submission. “Mother, please calm down. I am trying to find a solution. The palace gates are locked for the night. Even if you want to leave, you will have to wait until tomorrow morning. Please understand.”

The Empress Dowager angrily retorted, “The palace gates are locked? Do you know how much can happen in one night? Yan Donghuang’s life is hanging by a thread; she has gone mad! And now, during this critical moment of palace upheaval, you dare to lock the palace gates? What are you thinking? Are you afraid Yan Donghuang will storm the palace and threaten your life?”

“Mother,” Emperor Zhaoming clenched his hands, his face troubled. “I am your son, not your enemy. I am doing this not just for myself but for the stability of the Yong Kingdom’s throne—”

“Don’t make it sound so noble,” the Empress Dowager frowned, not wanting to hear his explanations. “Is there any news from outside?”

Emperor Zhaoming shook his head. “I have people constantly monitoring the situation. Just now, the Imperial Guards reported that Yan Donghuang had not harmed the Chu family further but had ordered them to be imprisoned in the dungeon of the Grand Princess’s mansion. They should be safe for now. Please be at ease, Mother.”

The Empress Dowager walked to the phoenix couch and sat down, raising her hand to support her forehead. “Make arrangements, Your Majesty. I will leave the palace when the palace gates open tomorrow morning.”

Emperor Zhaoming’s movements stiffened, and then he sat down beside her.

Li Dean cautiously approached, serving tea to the Empress Dowager and the emperor, then retreated to stand aside.

“Everyone, leave,” Emperor Zhaoming ordered.

Li Dean responded and dismissed all the palace attendants.

“Your Majesty,” the Empress Dowager’s voice was wooden, devoid of emotion. “Have you already decided to sacrifice the Chu family?”

“I did not intend to.”

“But you have done so,” the Empress Dowager closed her eyes lightly. “If the Chu family is gone, I will be gone too. You decide what to do.”

“Mother, you are making things difficult for me,” Emperor Zhaoming’s face turned slightly green. “I have always been wary of the troops under Yan Donghuang’s command. That is why I was eager to eliminate her. Why would I set such a deadly trap if I could control her actions and decisions?”

“Making things difficult for you?” The Empress Dowager turned to look at him, her eyes cold as ice. “You are the ruler of a nation. If you can’t handle this, why are you the emperor? Your uncle acted on your orders. When things went wrong, you pushed him out to take the blame. Sheng Jing’an and Shen Yun poisoned Yan Donghuang on your orders. To appease Yan Donghuang, you blamed everything on them. Did you plan to sacrifice them from the beginning to protect yourself?”

Emperor Zhaoming said nothing, his attitude confirming her words.

“One is a high-ranking minister, a royal relative, and the other is from a noble family. Aren’t you afraid of disheartening the entire court?”

In the long run, who would still be loyal and willing to serve such a heartless emperor?

“Mother, you know how to criticize me now?” Emperor Zhaoming couldn’t help but retort. “When you agreed to let a concubine from the Shen family step forward, you didn’t object. Now that something has gone wrong, it’s all my fault. You are right; I lack responsibility, but I inherited that from you, not Father!”

“How dare you,” the Empress Dowager was so angry that her vision darkened. She pointed at him, “You… you… you dare to accuse me? I have been planning for you wholeheartedly, and this is how you repay me. I…”
She suddenly stood up and rushed towards a pillar. “I might as well die and join the late emperor!”

“Mother!” Emperor Zhaoming’s face changed dramatically. He rushed forward and held her tightly. “Mother, please calm down.”

The Empress Dowager broke down and cried, “Let me die. I will go to the underworld and apologize to the late emperor.”

“It’s my fault, my fault!” Emperor Zhaoming roared, “I was wrong, okay?”

Hearing him admit his mistake, the Empress Dowager’s intense emotions gradually calmed down. She straightened her robe and hair and returned to sit on the phoenix couch. When she was Consort De, she often used the tactics of crying and making a scene, especially in front of her son.

However, doing this too often inevitably displeased the late emperor, so she pitifully placed all her emotions on her son. She always thought that they, as mother and son, were one. Her high status meant her son would gain power. When her son ascended the throne, she would enjoy glory and wealth, and the Chu family would remain prominent. But now she realized there was no eternal “mother and son as one.”

No matter who it is, once they become emperor, they are first and foremost an emperor. Whether they care about the country and its people or their own throne and power, they always prioritize their identity as the Son of Heaven. Anyone who threatens their throne is their enemy.

Yan Donghuang was his sister, and she threatened his throne, so he harbored murderous intent. The Chu and Sheng families were his tools and pawns. After being used, if they still had other uses, they would be kept. When they had to be discarded, he would do so without hesitation.

If one day in the future, she, as his mother, threatened his throne, would he also eliminate her without hesitation?

This thought made the Empress Dowager feel a chill all over her body.

“When the palace gates open, I will leave the palace,” she said calmly but unyieldingly. “If the emperor does not let me leave the palace, I will die in front of you, making you a laughingstock to the entire world.”