Chapter 78:

Layue finished speaking and then looked at Emperor Jing with eager eyes, her face filled with sincerity.

The emperor was momentarily stunned by her words and then chuckled.

“You want to reside in the Buddhist hall at Huici Palace?”

She nodded earnestly, “Yes. Lately, I have constantly encountered so many troubles, which must be because I haven’t been sincere enough.”

At this moment, the way Emperor Jing looked at Layue could only be described as direct and penetrating scrutiny.

Layue did not avoid his gaze, instead displaying a look of remorse, as if she regretted not thinking of this sooner.

After a long while, Emperor Jing chuckled again. By now, it was almost noon, and sunlight streamed directly through the window. Since it was spring, the sunlight was not glaring but rather warm and pleasant.

Coincidentally, Emperor Jing was surrounded by this glow, making him appear even more like an immortal descended from heaven.

He gently reached out and caressed her cheek, and Layue did not resist, gazing at him instead with a somewhat enamored expression.

When his hand slid down to her neck, it paused briefly. This pause was not abrupt, and Layue did not display any extra expression, maintaining her previous demeanor.

“Hmph! If that’s the case, fine. I’ll discuss this with mother. Are you physically strong enough to endure this?”

Layue placed her hand over his, speaking slowly and clearly, “It’s okay. I deserve this. If I had remembered sooner to fulfill my vow, perhaps none of these troubles would have occurred.”

At this, Emperor Jing turned his hand over and grasped hers.

He mimicked her slow tone, speaking deliberately, “Take good care of yourself. If I find out you haven’t taken care of yourself properly after you return, I will punish you severely.”

Pouting slightly, Layue rubbed her face against the back of his hand.

“I will definitely take good care of myself. Once I fulfill my vow, everything will surely go smoothly from then on.”

“How long will you stay there before you’re willing to come out?” Emperor Jing asked with a smile.

She tilted her head in thought, “When you return, I’ll come out. Besides, I get lonely when you’re not around. It’s been so long since I’ve seen you. Staying in Tingyu Pavilion, I’m afraid I’ll constantly recall our moments together. It’s better for me to stay honestly in the Buddhist hall.”

“You’re so frail. How can I possibly feel at ease leaving you?”

“Indeed,” she seemed to ponder for a moment before speaking, “I’m not very confident about myself either. I’ve already thought about it. I’ll have Guo’er stay at Tingyu Pavilion to manage things, and the other senior palace maids will accompany me to the Buddhist hall. With their care, I’m sure I can recover and gain some weight. Perhaps when you return, you’ll find that I’ve gotten a little rounder.”

“Fine, whatever you say. I’ll speak to mother about it. Incidentally, mother also spends time daily in worship. If you have any questions, you can ask her.”

Layue obediently nodded in agreement.

After giving Layue further detailed instructions, Emperor Jing prepared to leave, as he still needed to inform the empress dowager about this matter.

Upon exiting Tingyu Pavilion, he saw that the warm sunlight had already been obscured by dark clouds. It seemed like it would rain soon.

What a rainy season it was.

Looking up at the sky, he heard a distant rumble of thunder.

A faint, genuine smile surfaced on Emperor Jing’s face—not the usual polite smile, but one that came from his heart.

“That little fox is indeed clever.”

Lai Xi followed respectfully behind him without saying a word.

“Send Lai Fu to meet me.”

The little girl was indeed no simple lamb. He had just thought through the key points, and she must have already considered them thoroughly herself, otherwise she wouldn’t have taken such precautions.

It was rare to have such an interesting occurrence within the palace. Although it was a pity she couldn’t accompany him on the inspection tour, thinking about how clever she was—not as naive as she appeared—he felt his blood begin to boil.

He had misjudged her. She was indeed a special little fox.

Emperor Jing requested the Buddhist hall at Huici Palace for Shen Layue. The empress dowager was momentarily stunned and puzzled, but seeing her son’s smile, she seemed to understand something.

Observing her son’s somewhat excited expression, though well-hidden, a mother could always sense a little.

“Don’t worry. If you don’t want anything bad to happen to her, neither will I.”

That was a promise.

Emperor Jing rolled up his sleeves and poured a cup of tea for the empress dowager in a very proper manner.

Raising his eyebrows, he spoke, “Isn’t staying secluded in the Buddhist hall the best precaution?”

“She thought of this way to avoid misfortune in such a short time; she’s not a foolish girl.” Both of them knew that the child Chen Yulan carried would not survive. Perhaps initially, Emperor Jing had held some hope for this child, but after witnessing the pitiful schemes of Chen Yulan, he had abandoned that hope.

Seeing her insist on going out repeatedly, ignoring his attempts to protect her indirectly, Emperor Jing sneered coldly.

If she couldn’t even see that clearly, then it was better that the child was never born. Even if born, Chen Yulan would be unable to protect the child. Not that he was cruel, but because he had been raised with such a mindset since childhood.

“As for Chen Yulan, since someone insists on targeting her, we don’t need to pity her too much. I must find out who is behind all this. I’ve placed people in every palace, yet they still managed to evade detection.”

Looking at Emperor Jing’s face, the empress dowager felt a pang of sorrow, “After all, it’s your child, and you already have so few heirs…”

Even if Chen Yulan can’t protect this child, can’t you protect it? Can’t I?

The empress dowager originally wanted to continue but swallowed the rest of her words.

Emperor Jing seemed to understand the empress dowager’s thoughts and maintained a calm expression, “We can’t protect him for his entire life. Within the palace, there will always be places we can’t cover. Chen Yulan not only can’t protect this child but also keeps causing obstacles. If that’s the case, then it’s better that this child is not born. Mother.”

Looking at the empress dowager, Emperor Jing paused for a moment, “Yu’er is being raised by you, so it’s impossible to have another child raised the same way. The current high-ranking consorts aren’t necessarily unable to bear children. No matter who the child is given to, it won’t be appropriate.”

The empress dowager thought carefully and sighed; Emperor Jing was right.

These concubines might have their own children, so how could they treat an adopted child sincerely?

The emperor was still in his prime, not old and dying. Everyone knew that even without children now, it didn’t matter—there would be plenty of time in the future. No one would willingly raise another’s child, especially when the child’s mother was so unreliable.

“Let things take their natural course,” the empress dowager said no more.

“Tonight I’ll stay in Tingyu Pavilion, and tomorrow before departure, I’ll have her move there. As for the affairs of the palace, I’ll leave them to mother’s care.”

Shaking her head, the empress dowager replied, “I’m happy to be able to do anything for you.”

Seeing the happiness on the empress dowager’s face, Emperor Jing’s thoughts drifted.

In the past, everyone claimed the empress dowager was partial, treating him and his sixth brother differently. However, they didn’t know the empress dowager had her own difficulties. Back then, the palace was complex, and the empress dowager lacked family support, enduring untold hardships and suffering.

Moreover, Emperor Jing was born in critical condition and suffered numerous plots and attempts on his life as he grew up.

Later came Yan Lie, who was already two years old, unlike the infant Emperor Jing. To ensure Yan Lie’s safety, the empress dowager pushed him into the spotlight, and the emperor also paid attention to him because of this.

Perhaps because of this, Yan Lie was truly safe, while he was plunged into endless troubles.

The number of plots against him was too many to count.

Everyone said the empress dowager loved him the most, but he inadvertently discovered his mother’s intentions. Yan Lie was younger and couldn’t withstand more attacks, so the mother had to sacrifice him.

Although she did her best to protect him, he couldn’t resolve the knot in his heart.

Until both grew into young men, the assassination attempt on Yan Lie left everyone unaware of how deeply it affected him. Yan Lie refused to forgive them, feeling the mother was biased, but how could he himself feel any better? He knew his mother had made him a target to divert misfortune from his younger brother. Yet his brother tried to kill him. No one knew his despair.

From that moment on, he hardened his heart and became indifferent. He didn’t know what the emperor had said to his mother, but since then, the empress dowager had wholeheartedly supported him to ascend the throne.

His sixth brother and he became like strangers.

Perhaps Yan Lie felt wronged, but he didn’t realize that he himself felt even more wronged.

And even more… unforgiving.

The empress dowager’s inability to forgive her sixth son over the years might also have stemmed from that indescribable heartbreak.

The relationship between the two of them, mother and son, was not as good as it seemed.

If it weren’t for the emperor’s words of guidance before his death, they probably wouldn’t have been so harmonious today.

Everyone said the emperor was the coldest-hearted, but they didn’t know he was also the one who saw things most clearly.

Looking at his mother’s happy expression over being able to do something for him, Emperor Jing lowered his head slightly, perhaps his father was right.

They were both the empress dowager’s sons. Back then, it was only because Yan Lie was younger and he himself was more capable of self-protection that the mother had acted that way. Yet, she ended up hurting both sons.

It was precisely because of Yan Lie’s assassination attempt that the empress dowager realized that what she thought was the best action had actually caused distress and sorrow for her sons.

Many of the later conflicts were merely further fueling the brothers’ discord.

Royal affairs were inherently complicated and hard to explain clearly.

At the time of Yan Lie’s assassination attempt, the empress dowager had already given up on him. Now, she had only one son left.

Even if the empress dowager wanted to mend her relationship with Yan Lie now, she would receive no response.

Looking at his mother’s happy face just because she could do something for him, Emperor Jing smiled slightly and placed his hand over hers, “Mother, you should also take care of your health.”

The empress dowager smiled and nodded.