After the banquet ended, the Empress returned to the Luan Feng Hall.
A maid in palace attire saw that the Empress had returned to the palace and quickly came forward to reply," Replying to the Empress, Prime Minister Shang is waiting in the side hall. It has been half a day. Do you want to summon him immediately?"”
"Please come to the main hall, Prime Minister." The Empress rubbed her head.”
The maid immediately went to the side hall to pass on the message.
Shang Rui was led into the main hall by a maid.
"Old minister Shang Rui greets the Empress.”
"Father, there's no need to be polite. We're all family, so there's no need to be formal. Please sit."
Shang Rui smiled and stood up.”Shang Rui was thin and didn't wear official robes. He was wearing a long black robe, but he had an extraordinary aura. He casually sat on the right side of the Empress and took a sip of tea.
"Father, this tea is made from the newly opened peach blossoms this year. If father likes it, just take some back.”Shang Zhirong opened her mouth first when she saw her father didn't speak.
Shang Rui slowly put down his teacup and said,"The matter that the Empress wanted me to investigate has already been investigated."”
Hearing this, the Empress's expression changed slightly and she immediately ordered,""All of you can leave."
After everyone had left, the Empress said," Father, what have you found?”
"Zhirong, I didn't want to get involved in the matter you entrusted me with last time, but after thinking about it carefully, I feel that we have to get involved in this matter.”
"Father, why do you say that? It's just that Imperial Noble Consort Wenhua asked me to help her find her relatives. She only has a lost brother in this world, so I really don't know what's wrong with this.”Shang Zhirong was somewhat puzzled.
"Zhirong, you child, you always think so simply. Fortunately, you have Father and the Shang Residence to protect you. Otherwise, you wouldn't even know where you are now.”Shang Rui looked like he cared for her.
"Father, please tell me." Shang Zhirong said seriously.
Shang Rui continued," As far as I know, Wen Miaoran's parents died when she was young. She and her brother were sold into the Pan Residence as slaves. Later, she married into the Chen Residence as a dowry with Miss Pan, which is the residence of the current Dingyuan General, Chen Yuanchen. Later, she went on expeditions with Chen Yuanchen's army and got to know His Majesty during the war. To put it bluntly, Wen Miaoran was just a servant. To put it more clearly, she was just a military prostitute.”Shang Rui's face was filled with contempt as he continued," Her brother married into a merchant family and went to the south. The two of them lost contact from then on. I sent someone to investigate and found his brother in Nanhuai County.”
"Where is his brother now?" Shang Zhirong asked.
"Still in Nanhuai County."
"Why didn't Father bring him back?”
Shang Rui shook his head helplessly." My silly daughter, don't you know what Wen Miaoran is up to?"”
"If she wants to find her relatives, she must want her family to share the glory with her.”
Shang Rui sneered and continued,"I'm afraid it's not as simple as you think. Recently, I heard that His Majesty is not feeling well. Imperial Physician An reported that it's because the old illness from the past wars has acted up. Although His Majesty was in the prime of his life, it was hard to say what would happen to his health. His Majesty had only been on the throne for more than ten years, and he only had six princes and eight princesses. Other than Wen Miaoran, the mothers of all the princes had extremely low tastes. Regardless of whether it was the status of a prince or the Emperor's attitude, Wen Miaoran's son, Tianyao, was bound to be the Crown Prince.”
The Empress nodded in agreement.
Shang Rui continued," But this is not absolute. If you have His Majesty's blood and bones, Tian Yao can only be an official."”As she spoke, she pretended to glance at Shang Zhirong unintentionally.
When Shang Zhirong heard this, she helplessly lowered her head and said faintly,"Your daughter also wants to give birth to children for the royal family. Although His Majesty often comes to your daughter's place, it's all your daughter's fault for not being able to live up to expectations.”
"It's not that there's no way to resolve this matter. In my opinion, Wen Miaoran has her own plans. If Tianyao really ascends the throne, he will definitely appoint two Empress Dowager. You and Wen Miaoran will only be on equal footing. And she would be afraid of our Shang family's power, and her actions would also be restrained by our Shang family. To put it bluntly, she would only be an empress dowager in name. If you were Wen Miaoran, what would you do?”Shang Rui asked.
"If I were your daughter, I would definitely get rid of those forces.”Shang Zhirong replied.
Shang Rui shook his head." No, no. Even if His Majesty respects our Shang Family, he doesn't have the confidence to eradicate us. What right does a mere Wen Miaoran have?”
" Then father thought…" Shang Zhirong was at a loss for words and didn't know how to answer.
Shang Rui looked at his hesitant daughter and smiled."Wen Miaoran, that woman, is indeed not simple at such a young age. If you have half of her scheming abilities, I will be at ease. Think about it carefully. If you can't destroy something or beat it down, what will you do?”
The Empress thought for a moment and said seriously,""Maybe we need to find something to hold him back.”
Shang Rui's eyes flashed with a glimmer of light as he looked at Shang Zhirong and praised,""This is more like my daughter. That's right, I think Wen Miaoran is scheming like this.”
"But Father, can we pin down the Shang Family just by finding his big brother?”
"Her big brother is just a small trick she played to divert attention. She's asking you to help her find her big brother now. As far as I know, Wen Miaoran has been writing letters to General Chen's wife, Pan Qianwan. Although the letters are only women's private words, her purpose in wooing Chen Yuanchen is already very obvious. Chen Yuanchen was a man of true feelings. After he was conferred the title of Duke Ding, he did not stay in the Holy Capital to enjoy himself. Instead, he invited himself to the desert to guard the border. He was also a true person.”Shang Rui said with admiration," The only one in the imperial court who can compete with my Shang family is the Chen family. If Chen Yuanchen was willing to return to the court, Wen Miaoran would naturally be happy. If Chen Yuanchen insisted on guarding the border, Wen Miaoran could only find her elder brother and beg the Emperor to give him an official position so that she could slowly cultivate her own power.”Shang Rui stroked his beard thoughtfully.
"In my father's opinion, we should just hide her big brother. Can we make it up to them so that they can't see each other?”
"Yes, that's what I'm going to do." Shang Rui nodded." As far as I know, Wen Miaoran already knows the whereabouts of her brother. She asked you to help her investigate just to find out if we were aware of this matter. Unfortunately, she overestimated herself. She even gambled with the life of her only family member. This time, she helped us out by sending her brother to us as a hostage. Tomorrow, tell her that her brother is no longer alive. Let her know that we are not unaware of her plan and use this to make her restrain herself." Let her know that her brother is in our hands. If she dares to scheme again, don't blame us. Even if she really didn't care about her brother's life, we didn't lose anything. Instead, we reminded Wen Miaoran and broke her arm.”
The Empress nodded her head obediently." I understand. However, Imperial Noble Consort Wenhua is usually the closest to me and treats me very well. If it weren't for her plotting against our Shang family, it would be good for Tianyao to be the Emperor. That child, Tianyao…"
"Don't say anymore." Shang Rui interrupted the Empress." Tianyao, that child, is indeed smart and quick-witted. He's made for an emperor, but it's a pity that he's not your son, unless…"
"Unless what?"
"Unless Wen Miaoran dies."
"No." The Empress said decisively," Although Imperial Noble Consort Wenhua is quite scheming, she has never really hurt anyone. She is only scheming for her own child, just like how a father has always schemed for his daughter. This is something a mother will definitely do. Her crime is not worthy of death. How can I snatch someone else's child?"”
"Zhirong, after being in this palace for more than ten years, you are still so soft-hearted. In the depths of the palace, you are either harming people or being harmed. You are not only representing yourself, your surname is Shang, and you represent the Shang Family. Wen Miaoran wasn't a kind person. She was so cruel that she could even gamble with the life of her only relative. Do you want to see her join forces with the Chen family to eliminate us one by one after she becomes the Empress Dowager?”Shang Rui said with a heavier tone.
"But we didn't do anything to hurt her. As long as we bring her brother here, won't everything be solved?”
"If only it was that simple. If it were you, would you keep a snake that would bite you by your side?”Shang Rui said impatiently.
The Empress thought about it and sighed." I understand. Let's put this matter aside for now. Perhaps I will soon be pregnant with a dragon descendant. Recently, the imperial physician has changed a new medicine for me. It might be useful."”
Shang Rui nodded." I won't force you, but if it really comes to a moment of life and death, you must put the family's interests first. It's all my fault for letting you read too many books since you were young, filling your mind with etiquette and morality.”There was a hint of helplessness in his tone.
The Empress lowered her head and remained silent.
"You know what happened to Brother Wen Miaoran." Shang Rui said. I'll control him for now. However, it was also laughable that he did not know that his sister was already a noble imperial consort and was farming in the suburbs of Nanhuai County alone with her ten-year-old daughter.”
"There's actually such a thing? The world is really unpredictable." Shang Zhirong looked surprised." However, I hope you won't make things difficult for them. After all, they are just outsiders." In short, she would listen to her father in the future.”
Shang Rui nodded with satisfaction." That's good. Father sees that it's getting late. It's almost time for the palace to be closed. I'll return to the residence first." Zhirong, you have to take good care of yourself. Remember, although you are the master of the harem, you must be wary of others.”
"I know. Daddy, be careful on the road. I won't be seeing you off." Shang Zhirong said respectfully.
Shang Rui waved his hand, indicating for Shang Zhirong to stay, and walked out of Feng Luan Palace Hall.
After Shang Rui left, Zhi Rong could not calm down for a long time. She felt that a storm was approaching her.
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