Lu Mingyu’s speechless look amused Li Jing.

Li Jing chuckled and kissed Lu Mingyu’s cheek, then laughed softly, “If my Royal Father was really angry, he would have used the whip to punish me. Tonight, there was a lot of thunder but a little rain, and he just scolded me with a few words. It shows that my method was right.”

“How things will end will depend on tomorrow.”

Indeed.

With Emperor Yongjia taking action, Empress Dowager Zhao had to stop being unreasonable.

Lu Mingyu calmed herself down and whispered, “If there’s anything, remember to send someone to send me a letter.”

Li Jingzhi nodded in agreement. The young couple chatted for a while and then fell asleep in each other’s arms.

On the second day, Li Jing went to the palace to attend court early in the morning.

There was no movement at all.

In the Golden Palace, Emperor Yongjia, wearing a dragon robe, sat on the dragon throne with a solemn expression. He never looked at him from beginning to end. After the court was dismissed, there was no intention to keep him alone.

No one from Shouning Palace sent anyone to look for him.

Li Jing thought about it and went to the Jiofang Hall. As soon as he saw Empress Qiao, he knew that Empress Qiao was still kept in the dark about what happened yesterday.

Logically speaking, Empress Qiao, who was in charge of the harem, should have known something about what was going on. Given how much Empress Qiao loved her son, she would have been furious if she knew what Empress Dowager Zhao had done.

But at this time, Empress Qiao was smiling and did not mention Empress Dowager Zhao at all.

In the palace, the only person who could completely suppress the matter and not let any news of it reach the Jiofang Hall was Emperor Yongjia.

“Ah Jing, is Lu Shi in good health?” As usual, Empress Qiao asked about her pregnant daughter-in-law’s health.

Li Jing calmed down and smiled, “Xiaoyu eats three meals a day and is full every time. Add in snacks and midnight snacks, and she has a good appetite.”

For a pregnant woman, eating well, sleeping well, and being in a good mood are better than anything else.

Empress Qiao relaxed her brows and said with a smile, “That’s good. I can worry less now.”

Li Jing asked calmly, “Is Royal Mother okay in the palace?”

Empress Qiao said with a smile: “Everything in the palace is the same as before. By the way, Meng Shi comes to the palace to pay respects every day. With the support of her daughter-in-law, Su Fei is much more confident in her words.”

Li Jing curled the corner of his mouth, and a hint of sarcasm flashed in his eyes.

Li Hao’s methods were indeed very clever. In just a few days, he had coaxed Meng Yunluo into being completely devoted to him.

Empress Qiao looked at the matter from her mother-in-law’s perspective and felt differently. She couldn’t help but sigh and said, “Su was born into a humble family. She has nothing good except her face. However, she is lucky. Li Hao is also very filial to her.”

As a mother, who wouldn’t like to see her son being filial?

After getting married, the mother still came first. This was a first-class good son.

Li Jing heard something and said with a thick face: “Royal Mother, you are praising my third brother like this. Could it be that you think your son is not filial enough?”

Empress Qiao glanced at Li Jing with a smile and said, “Tell me, when there was a dispute between me and the Lu family, who did you side with?”

Li Jing quickly took over the conversation: “You support your wife with your mouth, but your mother with your heart.”

Empress Qiao: “…”

After all, he was still siding with his wife.

Empress Qiao was both angry and amused, and spat at her son: “I really like your hypocrisy!”

Li Jing smiled and said, “Of course. I am your only son, so it doesn’t matter who I like.”

The mother and son chatted for a while, then ordered the imperial kitchen to serve the meal.

…

In Shouning Palace, a mother and son, the most noble pair in the Wei Dynasty, were also sitting opposite each other.

Empress Dowager Zhao tightened her face and the corners of her mouth drooped.

Emperor Yongjia was in no hurry to speak, and just sat opposite Empress Dowager Zhao, ignoring her ugly expression.

After a long time, Empress Dowager Zhao finally couldn’t hold it anymore and snorted coldly: “Your Majesty is busy with government affairs, so you should go back to Wenhua Palace to review memorials! I am an old woman over fifty years old, half buried in the earth, it doesn’t matter whether my life is smooth or not.”

Emperor Yongjia sighed and said, “Why did my mother say such angry words?”

Empress Dowager Zhao felt that she was full of grievances, but when Emperor Yongjia sighed, all her grievances came to her mind: “These are not angry words, they are all true.”

“Now that you are the Emperor, you think I am stupid. You are not happy that I honor your cousin. Not only did you demote her, but you also punished her by confining her to her palace. I am used to her being around and talking to me. I have been feeling depressed for more than half a month. Do you know that?”

“Also, what’s wrong with me giving my grandson two palace maids? Isn’t it okay for me to care about my grandson? Not only did Jing not appreciate it, he also sent the palace maids to Wenhua Palace.”

“As his own father, you didn’t scold him, and you even gave the two palace maids to unmarried generals in the army. Aren’t you deliberately trying to piss me off?”

Empress Dowager Zhao became more and more angry as she spoke, her eyes reddened, and her voice gradually choked up: “I, the Empress Dowager, now have to endure the anger of my grandson’s wife. That Lu Mingyu has never taken me seriously since she came in and served tea. I gave two palace maids to Ah Jing, and I did mean to teach her a lesson. Did I do something wrong?”

It was never easy to reason with Empress Dowager Zhao.

Emperor Yongjia patiently said to Empress Dowager Zhao, “Your Majesty, you don’t like Lady Lu, so you should see less of her in the future. Lady Lu is pregnant now, and no matter whether it’s a boy or a girl, the child will be the legitimate bloodline of the royal family.”

“What if Lu Shi gets angry and has a miscarriage, or has a miscarriage like Liang Shi did? Wouldn’t the Empress Dowager feel bad?”

Offspring were the most important.

At other times, Emperor Yongjia would at most make a few words to defend himself but would never go this far.

Empress Dowager Zhao was so guilty that she refused to admit that this was her intention: “How could it be such a coincidence!”

Emperor Yongjia glanced at Empress Dowager Zhao and said calmly, “Don’t be afraid of ten thousand, just be prepared for one. Even if my Mother doesn’t care about her grandchildren and granddaughters-in-law, she should think about me. I am almost forty years old, and I will lead the army to war next year. Before I go, I want to see my grandson born to feel at ease.”

Empress Dowager Zhao remained silent.

This means she knows she was in the wrong.

Emperor Yongjia cheered up and tried to coax Empress Dowager Zhao, but it had little effect, and Empress Dowager Zhao still looked unhappy.

Emperor Yongjia sighed inwardly and had to give in. “It is indeed too much to confine Qin Jieyu to house arrest for half a year. After three months, I will lift her house arrest order.”

Empress Dowager Zhao’s eyes lit up, and she immediately said, “Three months is too long, or one month…” Seeing that Emperor Yongjia’s face was gloomy again, Empress Dowager Zhao quickly changed her words: “Two months is just right.”

Emperor Yongjia resisted the urge to rub his forehead and nodded: “I will obey my mother and confine her to house arrest for two months.”

Empress Dowager Zhao’s anger was mostly gone. After thinking for a moment, she said, “The rank of jiéyú is too low. Let’s make her a Xiánfēi!”

Emperor Yongjia: “…”

(End of this chapter)