I m the Farmgirl You Can t Mess With - Chapter 1317: Side Story: Concubine Zhao (1)
Chapter 1317: Side Story: Concubine Zhao (1)
When Concubine Zhao received the Emperor’s decree, she felt as if she had been placed in an ice cave. With her fists clenched, she stared intently at the eunuch who came to announce the decree. She asked, “What do you think His Majesty wants me to do?”
The eunuch lowered his head and said respectfully, “The Emperor Emeritus wants Your Highness to stay in the palace to pray for Her Majesty.”
Concubine Zhao fell onto the chair and shook her head. “Impossible, impossible. All of the other concubines leave the palace to stay with their sons, but why can’t I? My son was personally conferred the title of Prince by His Majesty. What right do you have to insist I stay in the palace?”
The eunuch reminded her helplessly, “Your Highness, now that the new emperor has ascended the throne, His Majesty is already the Emperor Emeritus. Please do not mis-address them.”
He continued, “The Emperor Emeritus has already brought the Empress Dowager to the temporary imperial residence. This decree was indeed issued by the Emperor Emeritus before he left. Your Highness, you should pack your things and move to the temple hall.”
“No.” Concubine Zhao couldn’t help but sweep everything off the table. She shouted, “I want to see the Second Prince, I want to see His Highness Prince Qin. Where is he when I, his mother consort, is about to be locked up? This unfilial son, can’t he plead for leniency for me? I’m his biological mother! His Majesty dotes on him so much. If he asks, His Majesty will definitely agree. Also, he’s on good terms with His Highness the Crown Prince…”
Seeing that Concubine Zhao was already speaking incoherently, the eunuch really wanted to gag her mouth and drag her to the temple hall. However, everyone knew that the new emperor trusted Prince Qin. What if Prince Qin took his anger out on him?
Therefore, the eunuch only persuaded her earnestly and asked the palace maids to help Concubine Zhao pack her things.
Qi Wensu, who had just come from the new emperor’s place, stood outside the hall for a long time. When he heard his mother consort cursing him inside, miraculously, he didn’t feel any pain at all. He didn’t even feel embarrassed or angry.
He sighed slightly at the realization that he wasn’t fated to share a close relationship with his biological mother.
Qi Wensu pushed the door open and entered.
The hall instantly fell silent. When Concubine Zhao saw him, she hurriedly ran over and pulled him back. “My son, you’re finally here. These dog slaves want to send me to the temple hall. Hurry up and punish them. Also, go and plead with your royal father. Based on how much he favors you, he will definitely agree to your request. Mother Consort doesn’t want to go to the temple hall.”
Her eyes were filled with gentleness and desire, as if she was not the one who had scolded him for being unfilial in the hall just now.
Qi Wensu patted her hand and said to the palace servants, “All of you can leave first.”
The palace maids and emissary looked at each other and bowed before leaving.
Qi Wensu helped her sit down on the couch and looked at her for a long time before asking, “Mother Consort, the mothers of my royal brothers dote on them very much. I’ve always thought that all mothers should treat their children like that. But why am I the only one who’s treated differently by his mother? I’ve always wanted to ask you, am I a son or a tool in your heart? Or something else?”
Concubine Zhao froze as she wiped her tears. Then, her expression changed. After slapping Qi Wensu across the face, she shouted hysterically, “You’re my son. I suffered ten months’ pregnancy to give birth to you. What do you think I treat you as? I raised you painstakingly, but now that you’ve gained power, you despise me! Qi Wensu, you unfilial son!”
Qi Wensu did not hide. He only looked at her with reddened eyes and muttered softly, “I was raised by Royal Father and guided by Fourth Uncle and Fourth Aunt as I grew up. I’ve been by Fourth Uncle and Fourth Aunt’s side since I was sensible. They were the ones who taught me the principles of life and the responsibilities of a prince. Other than constantly telling me to be wary of Royal Mother and Big Brother, Mother Consort, and driving a wedge between Fourth Uncle and Fourth Aunt, what else have you done?”
Qi Wensu lifted his robe and knelt at her feet. As he looked up at her, he said resolutely, “Mother Consort, I’m grateful to you for giving birth to me after ten months of pregnancy. If you want me to live, I’ll support you until you die of old age. If you don’t want to see me again, how about I return half of my flesh and blood to you?”
Concubine Zhao clutched her chest and looked at him in shock. After a while, she uttered with a trembling finger pointed at him, “You, you’re so ruthless!”
Tears fell from Qi Wensu’s eyes. He kowtowed to her three times and said in a choked voice, “Isn’t what Mother Consort is doing now? Consigning your son to eternal damnation?”
At that moment, Concubine Zhao knew that she had lost this son forever.
However, she only had this one son. This was her only child. Regret wrapped around her heart like a vine.
Recalling her life during the past 20 years, she realized how stupid she had been in the past.
At the end of the day, she was just unlucky to have met such an Emperor. If it was some other Emperor, with her beauty and the degree of favor she received at the beginning, how would she have stopped at being a concubine?
The Emperor and Empress were not in good health. After giving birth to their eldest son, they did not have a second child for a long time. It was Concubine Zhao who became pregnant with the Second Prince. It was the birth of the Second Prince that brought about the subsequent birth of other princes.
In the past, the Emperor liked Concubine Zhao’s son so much that he would come to her palace every day to take a look at him. He even ignored the rules of “carrying a grandson but not a son” and carried him in his arms to coax him. Even when the child peed on him, he didn’t get mad. It could be seen how much the Emperor liked her son.
In poor health from a young age, the Crown Prince lived mainly on medicines since he was a child. How could he compare to my strong and healthy son?
Originally, everything was going well. At this rate, as long as she pushed for it, her child would soon replace the Crown Prince. When that happened, it didn’t matter if she came from a humble family.
So what if the Empress was from an aristocratic family?
That wouldn’t stop her from surpassing the Empress. With her help, her family could also become an aristocratic family one day.
Concubine Zhao was extremely regretful. Back then, she should’ve resisted the urge to drive a wedge between her son and the Crown Prince. Not only did she lose the consort position that she had painstakingly obtained because of this, but she also pushed her son further and further away.
Concubine Zhao felt that all of this was a plot by the Empress and the Crown Prince. Otherwise, why would the Emperor coincidentally overhear her accusing the Crown Prince of harboring evil intentions? That led to her being grounded, and the Crown Prince later even ‘kidnapped’ her son to Guangzhou.
In the end, the Crown Prince even came back on his own, but left her son in Guangzhou. Still, her foolish son thought that the Crown Prince was doing that for his own good.
As she looked at her heartbroken son, Concubine Zhao laughed loudly. She asked, “I merely sowed discord between you and the Crown Prince, and you’re treating me like an enemy. What about him? Do you know how dangerous it was for him to take you out of the palace? You could’ve died outside. If that wasn’t enough, he even left you alone in Guangzhou. My son, how can there be such a stupid person like you in this world? To think you still think of him as a good person even after he left you in Guangzhou!”
Qi Wensu said nostalgically, “But those days in Guangzhou were my happiest.”
He said, “Over there, Fourth Uncle and Fourth Aunt treated me like their own son. If I made a mistake, they’d beat me up like they did Tiger Head and the others. If I did a good deed, they’d praise me like they did Tiger Head. In addition to teaching me the principles of life and guiding me in my studies, Fourth Uncle also taught me how to ride a horse and shoot an arrow step by step. Plus, Fourth Aunt made clothes for us and brought us out to play fun games. There, no one looked at me strangely. Mother Consort, I do know how to be a son. But do you know how to be a mother?”
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