Chapter 314 No One in the Palace is Simple
Qiu Yelan was slightly surprised about the scene that Empress Dowager Ye spoke first and talked in such a way. She thought about it and then answered, “I did suffer a lot, but I don’t know why you think so?”
At first, she wanted to make sure that the Jiang Family would deal with Empress Dowager Ye leniently. But now when she saw the old woman, she gave up. Everyone could see that even if the Jiang Family didn’t do it, Empress Dowager Ye would not live long.
Maybe she could live so long after she became the so-called Empress Dowager who lived in seclusion from a supreme step-Empress, just by the belief of waiting for an opportunity. After she made an action, her belief was gone and then she became weak.
“Because this method was learned by chance from a poor man.” Empress Dowager Ye stared at Qiu Yelan. Her eyes were filled with mixed emotions, both sad and resentful, but more dispirited. “In his early years, Liang Xiaogeng had to steal to support himself because his family was poor. He once stole several eggs from a farmer but was caught. The child was very hungry. After being caught, he didn’t forget to put the raw eggs into his mouth, which annoyed his master. In a rage, the master poured some a.r.s.enic which was used to poison the mice into his mouth and then threw him in the wild to die. Unexpectedly, he was safe and sound!”
It seemed that she was a little tired after saying this. She closed her eyes and continued, “Later, he really couldn’t get along and had to be a servant in the palace… When I just entered the palace, I was very depressed. I often went to the place where he was in charge of sweeping. Therefore, I got familiar with him. He wanted to relieve me, so he said this story. In his opinion, it was his fate. But I was curious… I took two maids who should have been killed by the staff to try in private. Sure enough… ”
Speaking of this, Empress Dowager Ye stopped talking. Qiu Yelan pondered for a while and said, “I know this method. My mother knew it when she was afraid that I would be harmed by others and asked about the method of dispelling poison.” She thought no wonder that Empress Dowager Ye was so down and could command Liang Xiaogeng, the emperor’s close servant. It turned out that the two had been friends for a long time. How long had it been since Empress Dowager Ye entered the palace? Forty years? Fifty years?
According to the tone of Empress Dowager Ye, they were not directly superior and subordinate at the beginning. Otherwise, neither Empress Dowager Gu nor Empress Jiang would let Liang Xiaogeng serve the emperor personally. It was Liang Xiaogeng who became an intimate friend of Empress Dowager Ye since her girlhood because of cleaning the place. Even if this kind of relationship of spiritual communication was not a Platonic love, they could be confidants.
Otherwise, how could ordinary friendship make the other work hard after one’s more than 30 years of depression?
“Although I have been here for many years, Duanrou often came to visit. I could still hear about things outside… You had a good mother.” Empress Dowager Ye breathed, then opened her eyes, and looked at her sorrowfully. “It’s a pity that I am useless compared with your mother. In those days, I couldn’t protect my sister’s children. I watched the prince’s family die and there was only Qiyang left… Now I want to revenge for Duanrou, but I did harm to her.”
Qiu Yelan pursed her mouth and she couldn’t help asking, “Your Royal Highness, I do not understand why you did this? Even if you had succeeded and the emperor had been dead, would County Princess Duanrou and her families have lived well no matter whether Empress Dowager Gu or Her Majesty took the power?”
The most important thing was that, “My husband got Her Majesty’s promise on Duanrou’s marriage. If Your Highness of Princess Yongfu and Young Prince Ou could have children by the time Xiao Su finished his filial piety, the promise would be ignored. Therefore, there was still a possibility for dealing with this matter.”
“It’s just your idea or maybe your wish. Who knows it will be like this in the future?” Empress Dowager Ye gave her a cold smile for her confusion and said, “Maybe Princess Yongfu can’t forget Xiao Su all the time… At that time, the Empress might think Duanrou was in her way. The most important thing is that Duanrou has followed my advice for so many years and she has been following Princess Yongfu and flattering her in everything. I don’t want anything else, just hoping that they can give the child a loyal husband in the consideration of her clever and sensible nature and Princess Qiyang’s complacency. But what did they do?”
Empress Dowager Ye closed her eyes. When she opened them again, her eyes were as sharp as a knife!
She growled low, just like a wounded mother beast, “They still take Duanrou for granted. Yongfu is a treasure that even can’t bear the blow of a little wind. Duanrou also belongs to the royal clan. If it weren’t for the c.u.n.t of Gu who schemed against her grandfather with despicable means, and even if I didn’t talk about the past, how could they take Duanrou’s marriage as an excuse to prevent Yongfu’s possible grievances?”
“But if Empress Dowager Gu is powerful, I don’t think she will treat Duanrou well.” Qiu Yelan frowned slightly, “Will she?” Empress Dowager Gu got her position because she killed the crown prince and his families of the former dynasty. And Prince Qiyang survived because of his brain problems. Although County Princess Duanrou was a girl, Empress Dowager Gu wouldn’t let her go because she had been close to the Jiang Family over the years.
“Of course, I know that it’s not a good thing for Duanrou that either the b*tch Gu or the cold Jiang Tianluan is in power.” Empress Dowager Ye sneered and said, “Why do you think my purpose was just to help one of them? It seems that it was just a coincidence that you saw through the way I poisoned the emperor before.”
Qiu Yelan was surprised and she thought her words for seconds. Her facial expression subtly changed and said, “Which prince did Your Royal Highness connect? Or any royal relatives?”
Since the purpose of Empress Dowager Ye was not to defeat Empress Dowager Gu or Empress Jiang, it could only be to beat both sides at the same time. In fact, it was exactly the case. If the emperor were killed before both sides were ready for the final showdown, it would be a tragic victory for either party that was forced to start the war in advance.
In this case, it was a good time for those ambitious and courageous royal families to rise. After all, there was a group in the court that even the two empresses dared not to threaten too much. That was the neutral party.
The neutral party had no grudge against the County Princess Duanrou or her family. Neither did the royal relatives. Even if the grandfather of the County Princess Duanrou died and no one knew the truth, the County Princess was just a woman who couldn’t inherit after so many years. As long as the new emperor was normal, he wouldn’t embarra.s.s the family.
Qiu Yelan gave a bitter smile and thought, “Sure enough, no one in the palace is simple. I thought Empress Dowager Ye did this out of anger. Now it turns out that she has prepared for the future of the young generation.”
To be honest, Qiu Yelan agreed with Empress Dowager Ye’s idea very much. The Empress’ party could take County Princess Duanrou’s marriage for nothing at the first time, and they might kill her next time. County Princess Duanrou must replace the backer with a reliable one.
If Qiu Yelan were Empress Dowager Ye, she would try to kill the two empresses secretly in exchange for the new emperor’s promise that he would protect Duanrou and her family.
However, Empress Dowager Ye had bad luck. Firstly, the Emperor didn’t die. Secondly, her method of poisoning was found.
“I have no idea. I am the daughter-in-law of the Jiang Family.” Qiu Yelan felt very painful. In terms of personal feelings, she agreed with Empress Dowager Ye’s approach. But in the overall situation, she had to take the Jiang Family’s side. After all, if Empress Dowager Ye’s plan succeeded, the Jiang Family would never come to a good end.
Qiu Yelan had complex feelings at that moment. Suddenly, she heard Empress Dowager Ye’s laughter and her words, “Do you think I will tell you?”
“You said that you will tell the truth after seeing me.” As soon as Qiu Yelan heard from Empress Dowager Ye, she knew that she didn’t intend to fulfill her promise. Empress Dowager Ye did the same. She said casually, “I didn’t take those words seriously. I just want to know who beat me in the end. I always thought that even if this plan didn’t succeed, I would be OK.”
A little sadness appeared in her eyes and she said, “It’s a pity that Liang Xiaogeng…”
“Are you deliberately leaving the seed of confusion in the heart of the Jiang Family?” Qiu Yelan pondered for a minute and said, “The Jiang Family is not sure who in the royal family did this, so they can only suspect all the royal princes.”
As for how the Jiang Family dealt with things, they would rather kill the wrong person than let anyone go. However, Empress Jiang had no son, so she couldn’t be a queen. It was impossible to take power without supporting Chu people to ascend the throne. So she must keep some people alive no matter how many she killed. The problem was that although there were many royal family members, they couldn’t kill them as they wanted just by Empress Dowager Ye’s hint. If so, how could they make people believe?
In a word, Empress Dowager Ye openly stated her intention to poison the emperor, which directly aroused mutual suspicion between the Jiang Family and the royal family. The Jiang Family suspected that people in the royal family was plotting to kill them with the help of Empress Dowager Ye and to become the next emperor. The royal members suspected that the Jiang Family planned to do harm to them and that they just found an excuse to kill the Chu Family.
Now even if Empress Dowager Ye told which prince she intended to support, no one would believe it.
Because no one knew if Empress Dowager Ye intentionally pulled in an irrelevant person in order to protect her real ally or not.
Empress Dowager Ye looked at her with a smile and said, “Why do you think I have allies? It may also be that I know every move of mine is under surveillance. It’s hard for me to send messages to Liang Xiaogeng. I don’t want to and don’t have the ability to make an alliance with any prince or clan. I just want to poison the emperor and stir up a fierce conflict between you and the Gu b*tch. I’m glad that either of you will fall down. The truth is here. Do you believe it?”
Qiu Yelan didn’t say a word.
No matter whether she believed it or not, the Empress’s party wouldn’t.
The reason was very simple. Empress Dowager Ye was the step queen of the former emperor. As Empress Jiang said, when Empress Dowager Gu won the palace fight, she almost wiped out the former crown prince and all relatives of the Ye family. Empress Dowager Ye, the mother of the former crown prince and her aunt, had survived till at this time. And she put Liang Xiaogeng beside the emperor. It was a joke that she said she couldn’t collude with the prince.
Maybe members of the royal clan were involved.
“The emperor is not dead. At present, the situation is still that the two empresses contend for power.” Qiu Yelan frowned. “It’s not a good thing to be suspicious of the whole royal family at this time. Although the female leader has been in power and the royal family has declined over the years, no matter how weak the royal was, the Empress Dowager’s party and the Empress’ party dared not to ignore the emperor. The neutral party was steady because they said they were only loyal to the emperor.”
Of course, Qiu Yelan was very confident that the Empress’s party would kill the Empress Dowager’s party, but she also knew that “Once the Empress Dowager’s party failed and the Empress’s party was in charge, they would turn their suspicions into actions.”
Thinking about the domineering arrogance of the Jiang Family as they were still “Half Regime Jiang”, Qiu Yelan could imagine what kind of life the royal family would live when the “Half Regime Jiang” became the “Jiang Dynasty”.
It would be easy for the Jiang Family to turn suspicions into actions.
They had been used to bullying for a long time.
After losing the restriction of the Empress Dowager’s party, many of them might act more recklessly and cared for n.o.body.
No matter Marquess Qin or Empress Jiang, both seniors of the Empress’s party had been lenient to their people.
The key point was that it was no problem to treat one or two royal family members badly. If they treated too many of them badly, even if the Jiang Family didn’t rebel, they would be regarded as rebels.
No matter what Empress Dowager Ye planned when she poisoned the emperor, at least for now, her goal of making the Jiang Family feel bad was to be achieved.
“Alas! My husband…”Qiu Yelan forced a smile. She thought, “His family is in a mess, but it is no big deal. This won’t affect her overall plans. She has done a lot of evil outside, so this is the end of her life. Is it easy to bully County Princess Duanrou? Is it easy to bully the couple of Prince Qiyang? Is it easy to bully Empress Dowager Ye? If you push a rabbit hard, it will bite, not to mention the person who used to be a queen.”
She looked at the smiling Empress Dowager Ye and thought that it was unnecessary to stay more because she had known her purpose to meet. She was curious and unwilling to be a loser.
As for her plots and the so-called purpose, Qiu Yelan believed that Empress Dowager Ye was very willing to let the Empress’s party think of it and could find no way out. No matter whether she came or not, she would say.
If she stayed, she would be fooled. She thought she had better leave it to Empress Jiang.
Qiu Yelan stood up and said, “I will take your words to Her Majesty. Duanrou is a good child. I always like her very much. If I can, I will try my best to save her. But I’m just a granddaughter-in-law of the Jiang Family. That’s all I can do. If you don’t have anything else, may I leave now?”
“Don’t use Duanrou to threaten me. Can I trust your Jiang Family?” Empress Dowager Ye replied indifferently.
Qiu Yelan didn’t say more, “Then I will leave.”
She walked to the door without hesitation. Empress Dowager Ye suddenly said, “Stop!”