Chapter 1294 - Capítulo 1294: 1289: Restful Sleep
Capítulo 1294: Chapter 1289: Restful Sleep
Bai Jintong watched Danzhi’s slender figure, pondered her age, and then looked back… considering sending Danzhi back after the year, asking her mother to find a good family for her to marry into. It wouldn’t be good to have Danzhi follow her for life, causing her to miss a good opportunity.
She had just taken a sip of hot tea when she noticed some movement outside the window. She casually placed the teacup on the small table, turned her head towards the window, and opened a gap in the window frame with her hand, seeing a hidden guard standing outside: “Third Master, we’ve been watching the Regent Prince’s residence, and someone reported that the Empress Dowager Yan secretly entered the Regent Prince’s mansion after leaving the palace.”
“Alright, I understand.” Bai Jintong’s expression remained cold. “Go!”
In truth, Bai Jintong could guess why the Empress Dowager Yan couldn’t sit still and had to visit the Regent Prince’s mansion late at night…
Isn’t it because the “Regent Prince Party” secretly gathered, and there were rumors spreading saying… court officials supporting the Regent Prince were preparing to jointly submit a petition, requesting the Empress Dowager and the Regent Prince to establish a new emperor.
And now, if they really pull Murong Li from the throne, the Crown Prince of Yan Kingdom wouldn’t be suitable, and the Second Prince of Yan Kingdom is merely a warrior. It’s likely that only Regent Prince Murong Yan could stabilize the throne.
The Yan Court… truly is in chaos!
However, in Bai Jintong’s view, the chaos is good!
But Bai Jintong indeed felt pity for Murong Li, even though Murong Li proposed the two countries unite based on national policy as a temporary solution, only to gain a chance for Yan Kingdom. Just thinking about it… such magnanimity also made Bai Jintong admire him greatly.
Frankly, Bai Jintong was willing to facilitate this.
Bai Jintong understood her Eldest Young Lady, if they could unify the world in such a manner, her Eldest Young Lady would be a million times willing.
Because of their military family background, although the Bai family was exceptionally skilled in warfare, they actually despised meaningless sacrifices of soldiers and didn’t wish to burden the people with wars, nor did they want to see the pitiful scene of ten rooms left with none.
Bai Jintong thought carefully, now it depends on the attitude of this Ninth Prince. If this Regent Prince ultimately disagrees with Murong Li’s proposal, perhaps Murong Li would be pulled down from the throne.
It’s a pity that Bai Jintong’s foundational roots in Yan Kingdom were still shallow and lacked the energy to influence this matter significantly.
But, if it indeed comes to that point, Bai Jintong would be willing to find a way to preserve Murong Li’s life as Emperor Yan.
Historically speaking, if Murong Li were really deposed, the new emperor who ascends the throne in Yan Kingdom would surely eliminate Murong Li, the deposed emperor.
·
The Regent Prince’s mansion.
The Empress Dowager Yan, dressed in common garb, wearing a black cloak with a hood, was welcomed into the mansion through the side gate of the Regent Prince’s mansion by Yue Shi. Once in the main hall, the maid attending the Empress Dowager quickly helped her remove the black cloak and accompanied her to wait in the main hall.
Seeing the servants of the Regent Prince’s mansion serving hot tea and snacks, the Empress Dowager Yan realized she might have to wait for a while. She turned to Yue Shi and asked, “Has the Ninth Prince gone to rest?”
Yue Shi nodded respectfully, “The master has been traveling for days, and after returning, many state affairs were sent to him, with numerous court officials chasing after him regarding the Emperor’s talk of uniting Yan Kingdom and Zhou by deciding victory with national policy. The master had a hard time dismissing them, falling asleep on the desk without finishing the affairs.”
Hearing this, the Empress Dowager’s palm tightened.
This matter, the Empress Dowager had also heard, hearing that Xiao Rongyan told the court officials not to worry, as he would never let the Emperor make such a ridiculous gamble with a country. This, in turn, made the Empress Dowager even more worried.
She worried that Xiao Rongyan might, to protect the Murong family’s dynastic rule, really pull Ah Li down from the throne.
Soon, the Empress Dowager heard extremely subtle sounds from outside, turning her head to look out through the open partition.
She saw the hexagonal sheepskin lamp hanging under the porch swaying in the wind, the yellowish light interweaving with the fine rain in the misty fog, casting hazy circles, and Xiao Rongyan stepping onto the main hall stairs.
Yue Shi, being quite observant, hurriedly went to greet him: “Master!”
The fine rain dampened Xiao Rongyan’s ink-black hair and jade crown. The frost-colored narrow-sleeved robe with cloud patterns, he stood at the door, patting the moisture off his shoulder, speaking with a rich tone to Yue Shi: “Stay outside and make sure no one enters.”
“Yes! Rest assured, Master!”
Watching as he lifted the hem of his long robe, stepping over the threshold, the white jade buckle at his waist emitted a slight sound. The personal maid who had been with the Empress Dowager quickly bowed her head to Xiao Rongyan, then respectfully exited the main hall, joining Yue Shi at the door.
“Sister-in-law, why did you come through the rain?” Xiao Rongyan entered, bowing to the Empress Dowager.
“Ah Yan, no need for such formalities!” This time, the Empress Dowager didn’t remain seated, hurriedly rising to offer a supportive hand to Xiao Rongyan, “I heard from Yue Shi that you’ve already retired for the night. Sister-in-law suddenly coming might disturb your rest.”
In his own prince’s mansion, Xiao Rongyan didn’t wear a mask, his well-defined features were cast more profound by the wavering orange-yellow light, his eyes appearing even darker: “Ah Li has caused such a big mess this time, still not knowing how to conclude it, how can I sleep well.”
Seeing that the Empress Dowager was about to speak, Xiao Rongyan made a gesture of invitation to his sister-in-law: “Sister-in-law, let’s sit and talk.”
The Empress Dowager nodded and sat down on the chair, listening as Xiao Rongyan continued: “Now Ah Li is determined to gamble an entire country like Yan Kingdom, sister-in-law should persuade Ah Li well! I have already sent people to chase Wang Hanbing, hoping to catch up with him; perhaps there is still room to remedy this. If unable to catch up with Wang Hanbing, allowing him to smoothly reach the Zhou royal court and with Ah Li’s private seal and documents he gave…”
The Empress Dowager’s heart suddenly tightened: “Then… Ah Yan, what will you do?”
Murong Yan’s thin lips pressed tightly but didn’t speak, his fingers tapping on the table, his eyes darkening.
The Empress Dowager once again thought of her brother’s words, her heart sinking, opting not to continue discussing this matter with Xiao Rongyan, but instead bringing up the two children Bai Qingyan had with him: “Sister-in-law heard that the Emperor of Zhou had twins, I haven’t yet congratulated you, Ah Yan! Now our Ah Yan is also going to be a father.”
Upon hearing about the children, Xiao Rongyan’s fingers tapping on the table tensed, his eyes deepened further, and he lowered his long lashes to hide the disappointment in his eyes. After a moment, he spoke with a hoarse voice: “Sister-in-law, those two children… are the Emperor of Zhou’s children. We have already agreed, they have nothing to do with me.”
The Empress Dowager, clear as a mirror in her heart, guessed the fall-out between Xiao Rongyan and Bai Qingyan might be due to Bai Qingyu being captured and Zhou’s troops assembled at Yan Kingdom’s border, yet she still urged: “No matter what, those two children are Ah Yan’s flesh and blood, how can Ah Yan speak like this?”