Your Majesty is Poisonous – Chapter 106

[Note: Chapter 105 in JJWXC is locked and can’t be accessed anymore.]

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The Empress Dowager Refuses

After paying her respects to Emperor Ming Cheng, Ping’er quickly scurried back to the side of the palanquin in hurried, tiny steps. She softly instructed the palace maids carrying it, “Hurry, stop the palanquin.” It’d be disastrous if the Emperor heard what was happening inside.

            

Lost in the heat of their passion, Wan Bi and Yao Xi didn’t even notice that the palanquin had stopped. Yao Xi’s clothes had been discarded all over the floor; she lay half-naked beneath Wan Bi, who kissed her way from her neck all the way down to her slightly hollowed lower belly. Suddenly, Wan Bi rose to a half-kneeling position inside the palanquin, her right hand slowly tracing downward from Yao Xi’s lower belly.

Yao Xi sucked in a sharp breath, her brow furrowing as her body gave a sudden shudder.

“What’s wrong? Is it uncomfortable?” Startled, Wan Bi quickly withdrew her hand. Since this was their first time, she wanted to perform as well as she possibly could, so every subtle reaction from Yao Xi pulled tightly at her nerves.

            

Yao Xi shook her head shyly. “No, it’s not that. It’s just… Your Highness’s hands are a little cold…” Perhaps because it was early morning, the Empress Dowager’s fingertips were icy. The moment they touched her lower belly, she couldn’t help but shiver.

Wan Bi pulled her hand back, blew a warm breath into her palm, and rubbed her hands together vigorously before pressing one against her cheek to test the temperature. Feeling that it was still a bit cold, she tucked her hand against her own neck to warm it up for a while. Once she was sure it was warm, she reached out toward Yao Xi again and asked gently, “Still cold?”

Yao Xi shook her head again.

            

Mimicking the way Yao Xi had served her the last time, Wan Bi leaned down to capture Yao Xi’s lips, her hand slowly sliding down toward that intimate place…

Outside, Ping’er could hear the Empress Dowager and Eunuch Yao speaking, though thankfully she couldn’t make out the details of their conversation. She hesitated to interrupt several times. But when the sounds from inside finally quieted down, she gathered her courage and called out from outside the palanquin, “Your Highness. The Emperor is here.”

Wan Bi was right in the thick of it, just about to reach the main event. Hearing that the Emperor had arrived at this precise moment instantly filled her with rage. If the Emperor hadn’t come knocking last time just to confer a title on Jieyu Lan, Yao Xi wouldn’t have been forcefully kidnapped from the palace by Longyi. She snapped at Ping’er in frustration, “Tell him this bereaved one refuses to see him! Send him away!”

            

The Empress Dowager might not care about the Emperor, but Yao Xi didn’t dare show such disregard. She carefully reached out to gather her clothes, holding them against her chest as she sat up. “Your Highness, we’re not in a hurry for this right now.” In truth, Yao Xi had been teased by the Empress Dowager to the point of extreme discomfort, but she could only endure it.

“Why aren’t we?” Wan Bi snatched the clothes from Yao Xi’s grasp, tossed them aside, and pinned her down beneath her once more.

Emperor Ming Cheng had been sitting in the main hall. Seeing that the Empress Dowager’s palanquin had stopped on the open ground outside the apricot forest and that she showed no sign of stepping out, he set off toward it.

            

Seeing the Emperor heading their way, Ping’er anxiously tapped the side of the palanquin. “Your Highness, the Emperor is coming to welcome you!”

Wan Bi was furious. What could possibly be so urgent that the Emperor had to speak to her this very instant?

Fearing the Emperor might cluelessly barge straight into the palanquin, Wan Bi had no choice but to quickly arrange her robes. Yao Xi tried to get dressed as well, but Wan Bi stopped her. “Stay right here and be good. Once this bereaved one sends the Emperor away, we’ll pick up where we left off.” With that, she pulled Yao Xi close for another passionate kiss.

            

Wan Bi stepped down from the palanquin just before Emperor Ming Cheng reached it.

“Why did you take so long to step down, Mother Empress? Are you feeling unwell?” Emperor Ming Cheng came over to support her, reaching out to touch her forehead. “You must be sick!” he said anxiously. “Your face is flushed and your forehead is burning hot. Someone, quickly summon Imperial Physician Fu!”

Wan Bi, her irritation far from subsided, glared at Emperor Ming Cheng. Refusing to walk toward the main hall, she simply asked coldly, “If Your Majesty has something to say, just say it here.”

            

How could the matter of the Empress attempting to assassinate the Empress Dowager be discussed in front of the servants? Emperor Ming Cheng guided Wan Bi toward the main hall, lowering his voice as they walked. “This is a matter of grave importance. It’s not appropriate to speak here.”

After they had walked a short distance, Emperor Ming Cheng noticed that the palanquin bearers were still standing there idly, making no move to carry the palanquin away. He turned around and ordered, “Why is the palanquin still sitting here? Carry it away, quickly!” His tone held a touch of displeasure. The Empress Dowager had been so distracted over Yao Xi’s disappearance these past few days that her attendants had actually grown lax, assuming their mistress was in no state to discipline them.

Wan Bi glared at Emperor Ming Cheng. “This bereaved one’s palanquin stops wherever she pleases. What’s it to you!”

            

“Mother Empress, you seem rather irritable today!” Emperor Ming Cheng had rarely seen Wan Bi this angry. In the past, even when she mocked him, she did so with a smile, showing at most a touch of impatience.

Nonsense! Your mother was right in the middle of quenching her fire when she was interrupted by an unfilial son like you—how could my temper not be explosive? Wan Bi huffed, brushing past Emperor Ming Cheng and striding toward the main hall.

Before entering the main hall, Wan Bi instructed the palace maids guarding the doors, “You girls, go to Lanye Pool and prepare the bath!”

            

With a loud bang, Wan Bi slammed the doors shut. She didn’t even bother to sit, remaining standing as she spoke to the Emperor. “There’s no one else here now. Speak quickly, Your Majesty, and then be on your way.” Her little wench was still lying half-dressed in the palanquin, waiting to be enjoyed!

Emperor Ming Cheng felt that the Empress Dowager was exceptionally irritable today. Wan Bi was not one to lose her composure easily; she was a wench who wouldn’t bat an eye even if the sky collapsed. What was wrong with her today? Had she swallowed gunpowder?

He had once heard an imperial physician mention that during a woman’s monthly cycle¹, her emotions could fluctuate wildly, making her exceptionally irritable.

            

Could the Empress Dowager be having hers these past few days…? Yes, that had to be it.

He never noticed this sort of thing with his imperial concubines, who always did everything in their power to please him. If they had any frustration, they took it out on their servants, never daring to direct it at him. But the Empress Dowager was different. She truly treated him like her own son, venting her anger and unleashing her irritation whenever she pleased, with absolutely no regard for the fact that he was the reigning emperor.

“Please, sit, Mother Empress.” Fearing her body might be weak and that standing too long would do her no good, Emperor Ming Cheng helped her into a chair. Once she was settled, he spoke. “The mastermind behind the attempt on your life has been uncovered. The assassins sneaked into the palace inside the Empress’s palanquin.”

            

Wan Bi wasn’t surprised by this revelation in the slightest. Or rather, as long as the culprit wasn’t the Emperor, Yao Xi, or Yuanqian, she wouldn’t be shocked regardless of who was uncovered. It seemed as though everyone under heaven had a reason to want her dead.

“Did she confess?” Wan Bi’s expression grew serious. Intimacy with Yao Xi was a daily affair anyway, and now that the burning desire from earlier had been scared away by the Emperor’s interruption, she no longer felt quite as eager to resume.

“Yes. Her personal maid, Chun Yang, tried to take the blame. We issued a decree to execute Chun Yang, and it was only in her desperation that Zhu shi confessed,” Emperor Ming Cheng said, his brow furrowing. Zhu shi seemed to have counted on the fact that he wouldn’t have the heart to be ruthless after so many years of marriage, which was why she dared to step forward to save Chun Yang’s life.

            

“A loyal servant and a righteous mistress indeed.” Wan Bi collected her thoughts, then asked, “Is this matter truly left entirely to this bereaved one’s discretion?”

“Yes,” the Emperor nodded. “We’ve already had Zhu shi hand over the authority to manage the inner palace to Jieyu Lan.”

“Jieyu Lan? With the Empress fallen, even going by rank, shouldn’t it be the Virtuous Consort?” Wan Bi had no desire to see Jieyu Lan wield too much power in the inner palace. Sending Yao Xi out of the palace had undoubtedly been Jieyu Lan’s idea. If the Jieyu’s power continued to grow, she might even find a way to take Yao Xi away from her again.

            

In this matter, she was at a disadvantage. Because of Yao Xi, she couldn’t easily call Jieyu Lan to account, yet Jieyu Lan might not show her any such courtesy.

“We intend to crown her Empress, so it’s best for her to start learning how to manage the inner palace early.” When the Emperor spoke, the look of happiness that usually filled his face whenever he mentioned Jieyu Lan was entirely absent.

Wan Bi had originally been hesitating over whether to depose Empress Zhu, but hearing the Emperor’s words settled her mind: Empress Zhu’s crown must not be stripped! She certainly didn’t want a powerful, influential sister-in-law who disliked her standing between her and Yao Xi.

            

Wan Bi was the type of person who could only feel at ease if she held the reins of control firmly in her own hands. She knew about Longyi and Jieyu Lan’s relationship. Jieyu Lan was a ruthless woman; there was no telling if she might one day harbor murderous intent toward her. With the Emperor so utterly bewitched by that girl, if Jieyu Lan were to ascend to the throne, Wan Bi’s troubles would be endless.

“The position of Empress is secondary for now.” Wan Bi was also worried about another matter. “As for that child Feng Xin, strip him of his royal rank and send him to your fifth uncle, Prince Xiu, to be raised. Since the First Prince died young, Feng Xin is both the legitimate and the eldest son, so by right he should be named the heir. But Your Majesty is well aware of his aptitude—he is dull-witted, stubborn, and utterly useless. On top of that, there are rumors among the commoners that he is not of your own flesh and blood. If you name him the heir, not only will the empire be destabilized, but the public will never accept it.”

“Very well.” Emperor Ming Cheng had considered the matter of Feng Xin before, but since he was still in his prime, he had not been in any rush to deal with it.

            

“I hear that Your Majesty has not even visited Concubine Kang these past few days. Do you truly intend to devote yourself solely to Jieyu Lan from now on?” Wan Bi wanted to offer some advice to her foolish son. He must not hang himself from a single tree! After all, that particular tree had already been claimed by Longyi.

Besides, since Emperor Ming Cheng ignored his other concubines and Jieyu Lan ignored him, this unfortunate child kept running over to her place. It hadn’t been a big deal when Yao Xi was gone these past couple of days, but now that Yao Xi was back, having visitors was highly inconvenient.

“Yes,” the Emperor murmured in response. In truth, he had argued with Jieyu Lan last night. She had reiterated that she was not the young girl he had met in his youth, and he had replied that whether she was or was not didn’t matter. But Jieyu Lan’s subsequent words had left him speechless. She had asked him: if the one he loved now was not the person in his memories but the woman standing before him, then what exactly did he love about her?

            

Emperor Ming Cheng couldn’t answer.

Even before he brought Jieyu Lan into the palace, he had decided that she was the one he would love deeply for the rest of his life. Thus, he had indulged in one-sided devotion, never trying to truly understand her. His mental image of Jieyu Lan had always remained the way she was when they first met in their youth—a little girl, not even ten years old, hoisting a stone far heavier than herself to hurl at the princes who bullied him, then panting as she comforted him with a beaming smile…

Thinking about it carefully, Jieyu Lan didn’t seem to smile as much as she had in her childhood, and her personality was no longer as frank and fiery as when they first met, but had instead become rather mild and quiet. His kindness toward her, and his self-deluded love, seemed more like a promise he had made to himself.

            

“My child,” Wan Bi squeezed his hand with genuine sympathy and said earnestly, “This bereaved one does not object to your pursuing true love, but choose someone else!” You can’t win against your sister anyway.

“What does the Mother Empress know of matters of the heart?” Emperor Ming Cheng shook his head helplessly. This wench Wan Bi loved to act mature, but in truth, she knew nothing at all.

Wan Bi pulled her hand back, cleared her throat, and lifted her chin proudly. “This bereaved one may not understand. But Yao Xi risked his life twice to save this bereaved one. Has anyone ever done the same for Your Majesty?”

            

“Yes, there has!” Emperor Ming Cheng retorted, refusing to be outdone.

Wan Bi was actually quite surprised. “Who?”

“Tang Huaili…” Emperor Ming Cheng’s voice immediately trailed off. There was also Jieyu Lan during their childhood—or whoever that person had been—who had also saved him twice, risking her life to do so.

            

“How are Tang Huaili and Yao Xi even comparable?” Wan Bi said, displeased.

“They’re both eunuchs. What’s the difference?” the Emperor said, distracted.

“Yao Xi loves this bereaved one. Does Tang Huaili love Your Majesty as well?” Wan Bi arched an eyebrow, asking with a smirk.

            

“We’re returning. Mother Empress, you may handle the Empress’s matter as you see fit. There’s no need to worry about our side.” Feeling disheartened, Emperor Ming Cheng stood up and walked out. It’s true. No one loves me. I have nothing.

Dejected, Emperor Ming Cheng led his retinue to the gates of Longyi Palace. There, he saw several palace maids gritting their teeth as they tried to lift several heavy chests off a carriage. Knowing that Longyi Palace was understaffed, he turned to the eunuchs following him and instructed, “Go and lend them a hand.”

Working together, the maids and eunuchs barely managed to unload the chests from the carriage.

            

“Help the Eldest Princess carry the chests inside,” Emperor Ming Cheng commanded, standing to the side to wait.

Suddenly, a crisp voice rang out from behind him. “No need, no need! I can do it myself.” Sun Yan had just carried in a chest of gifts for her cousin Longyi. Turning back, she had seen some kind soul directing people to help unload her cargo. But as she drew closer and noticed the man was wearing robes embroidered with pythons², her face fell instantly. Hah, the Emperor?

With a cold expression, she stepped forward and paid her respects to Emperor Ming Cheng. “This commoner, Sun Yan, greets Your Majesty.”

            

“Rise. Which palace’s relative are you?” the Emperor asked indifferently, purely out of routine. Since this woman had appeared here, she was likely a relative of either Longyi or Wan Bi.

“Princess Longyi is this commoner’s cousin.” Sun Yan stood up and walked over to the carriage, effortlessly hoisting a massive chest. She looked at Emperor Ming Cheng and said, “If Your Majesty doesn’t mind, this commoner will carry these inside first?”

Emperor Ming Cheng watched in wide-eyed astonishment as this young woman picked up a chest that normally required several men to lift, then carried it inside. Memories of the past came rushing back—a strikingly familiar scene of a tiny figure hoisting a heavy object completely disproportionate to her stature… Longyi’s cousin? Longyi’s reading companion? He stood frozen in place for a long time.

            

Had I truly mistaken the person? If so, how am I supposed to face Jieyu Lan?

When Sun Yan returned and saw that the Emperor was still standing there, her steps slowed.

Emperor Ming Cheng had been waiting for Sun Yan. Seeing her approach, he stepped forward, looking down at her as he asked tentatively, “When you were seven or eight years old, did you ever come into the palace to play? Did you ever help someone?”

            

Sun Yan looked up at the Emperor. She felt his face was faintly familiar, so she nodded hesitantly. She had indeed begged her cousin Longyi to sneak her into the palace to play for a few days behind her mother’s back, and she seemed to recall helping a scrawny prince who was being bullied. “You couldn’t be that prince who was chased all over the palace back then, could you?” That scene had been so brutal that it was deeply etched into her childhood memories. She had never seen anyone beaten so miserably in her entire life.

“That was me,” Emperor Ming Cheng said, a prickle of tears rising to his nose as his eyes welled up.

“…” Sun Yan was taken aback. He’s still such a crybaby! She pulled out a handkerchief and handed it to him. “I didn’t expect you to be the one who became the Emperor.” What a pity. He was such an honest, kind child back then, but now he’s completely ruined.

            

Emperor Ming Cheng wanted to ask Sun Yan if she was married. Seeing that her hair was still styled in a maiden’s topknot³, he lowered his head and smiled foolishly. It seemed she was not.

“Your Majesty must be busy with state affairs. This commoner won’t disturb you any longer.” Seeing the Emperor crying one moment and laughing the next, Sun Yan felt thoroughly creeped out and made an excuse to leave. She headed back out toward the palace gate to carry in the last two chests. This was a job only she could do; the servants struggled too much with them.

Seeing her in such a hurry to leave, Emperor Ming Cheng reached out in a panic and grabbed her hand. He pulled too hard, dragging Sun Yan straight into his arms. Because of their height difference, his lips pressed right against her forehead…

            

Outraged at being inexplicably accosted, Sun Yan furiously grabbed Emperor Ming Cheng’s wrist, yanked him toward her, and tripped him, slamming him heavily onto the ground. She warned him sharply, “Talk if you want to talk, but keep your hands to yourself!” Indeed, not a single emperor is any good. Sun Yan wasn’t afraid of the Emperor in the slightest; she certainly wasn’t going to stand by foolishly and let herself be harassed.

Seeing the Emperor get thrashed, the eunuchs in the distance rushed over, shouting, “Protect the Emperor!”

Clutching his aching back, Emperor Ming Cheng struggled to his feet and raised a hand to stop the approaching eunuchs. “Stand down, all of you!”

            

Sun Yan shot him a disdainful glare, thinking to herself, Miserable pervert! She marched out of the gate to pick up the last chest. When she passed by Emperor Ming Cheng on her way back, she said coldly, “Excuse me! Step aside!”

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