Jiapingguan Chronicle

Chapter 2610 Atonement for Crimes 73.0
Upon hearing this, everyone fell silent.

In fact, they never thought that the Empress Dowager was a purely evil person. She did do many bad things, but that doesn’t mean she didn’t do any good things.

While her forming cliques and engaging in factionalism in the imperial court did violate the laws of the Great Xia Dynasty, it wasn't entirely without merit.

I don’t know if it was because of the many things she encountered in her youth, but many of the resolutions promoted by the Empress Dowager were actually beneficial to the development of the Great Xia Dynasty. Most of these resolutions concerned children, women and the elderly.

She gathered her subordinates and traveled throughout the entire Great Xia Dynasty, collecting a great deal of information and cases. She repeatedly wrote to the late emperor, presenting facts and evidence to prove that the interests of these vulnerable groups must be protected.

Because many things lack legal support, there exists a gray area that is difficult to define, explain, and operate in. This gray area can bring catastrophic disaster to many families.

Master Falian must have known her temperament, so he did not start his highly profitable business of the Forget-Worry Powder while the Empress Dowager was still alive. The Empress Dowager probably did not know that the person she trusted and believed in most in her life would do the business that she hated and despised the most after she left this world.

Thinking of this, Shen Cha looked at Boss Luan and gently tapped the table to draw his attention to her.

"General, what are your orders?"

"Your business of the Forget-Me-Not Powder only started after the Empress Dowager passed away, right?"

"Yes, General." Boss Luan nodded. "The Empress Dowager has a very low opinion of this kind of business. She said that a gentleman loves money but earns it in a proper way. Some businesses can be done, and some cannot. When she was alive, cheating and deceiving innocent people and forcing them into prostitution could lead to the extermination of an entire family if it was found out. But as you know, that's how people are. The more they are forbidden to do something, the more they do it. The higher the risk, the more money they can make. As for what will happen if they are caught, that's another story."

Do you know Tzu Chi Hall?

“I know,” Boss Luan nodded. “Ciji Hall has actually been established for quite a long time. It wasn’t established after the Empress Dowager married into the royal family; it was a charitable organization she established when she was still in Jiangnan. Everyone knows that places like Wuzhou and Suzhou, although they look very prosperous, are only superficial. There are still many poor people there, and selling children is commonplace. But Master Falian said that the Empress Dowager disliked this so-called commonplace situation very much, but at that time, she was of low status and could only do what she could. For example, when she encountered difficulties…” During disasters, when porridge was needed, she would lead the shopkeepers and workers of those shops to set up porridge stalls. If they encountered families so destitute they were considering selling their children, she would buy them and place them in her Tzu Chi Hall. She would ask teachers to educate them, teaching them to read, write, and manners, so they would have a skill. Whether they continued their studies or pursued other paths later in life was entirely up to them. Girls were treated the same way; in her Tzu Chi Hall, there was no distinction between boys and girls. Although many people didn't understand why she did such thankless work, she persisted.

"In the beginning, it was indeed a thankless task, but when these children grow up, I'm afraid..."

“Yes.” Boss Luan nodded. “But at the beginning, she probably never thought she would be brought into the Eastern Palace, nor did she expect to spend her life in the deep palace. It was only later, when she became the Empress Dowager, that the role of those children she had adopted truly became apparent. Many people became her spies in various parts of the Great Xia. They may not be officials, and they may not have a place in the court, but the information they conveyed was true, not the false information that those officials made to deceive their superiors.”

“Yes!” Xue Ruitian sighed. “Actually, we never thought the Empress Dowager was a truly bad person. She actually did a lot for the Great Xia, but…” He looked at Shen Haolin, then at Shen Cha, sighed softly, and said, “The worst thing she ever did in her life was to meet Master Falian. Not just him, but all of you.”

“I have a question,” Shen Cha gently tapped the table and asked, “Has Master Falian had any particular reaction to the fact that the Empress Dowager’s aunt is a remnant of the previous dynasty?” “A particular reaction?” Hearing Shen Cha’s words, Boss Luan was taken aback. “A particular reaction is…”

"When her aunt or those remnants of the previous dynasty are mentioned, does her attitude, expression, tone of voice change at all?"

“Change.” Boss Luan thought for a moment. “A bit excited, a bit disgusted and disdainful, that’s the feeling, but what exactly is it?” He shook his head slightly. “I can’t really say.”

"is it?"

"Hmm!" Boss Luan thought carefully for a moment and said, "Oh, right, when he mentioned those who kidnapped the Empress Dowager, his strongest reaction was hatred. He called them idiots, morons, and good-for-nothings. They said they could eat anything but could do nothing right, and they were always using their ancestors' names to swindle and cheat people. If those people from the previous dynasty were like that, they deserved to be finished; they brought it all on themselves." He sighed softly and said, "I don't quite understand why he said that, but it seems my father understood. After he finished saying those angry words, he comforted him and told him not to be angry."

Shen Haolin, Shen Cha, Xue Ruitian, and Jin Miaomiao exchanged glances. It seemed that Boss Luan was unaware of Master Falian's true identity, but his father was.

"Didn't you ask your father about it?"

“My lord, if I were to inquire, wouldn’t that expose that I’m the one who’s been eavesdropping? If my father and Master Falian find out, I’ll at best get a beating, and who knows what might happen next. Wouldn’t that just be asking for trouble?” Boss Luan shook his head slightly. “I don’t do things that only cause trouble for myself.”

"and after?"

"And then?" Boss Luan looked at Xue Ruitian. "What do you mean by 'and then,' Lord Marquis?"

"Didn't the Empress Dowager fall seriously ill and be saved by Master Falian? What happened after she woke up?"

“Master Falian said that even if she recovered from her illness, she was still not in good health and was depressed all day long. He couldn’t bear to see her like that, so he discussed it with the Empress Dowager’s father and mother and took the Empress Dowager and her younger brother out for a few days. He said it was to check out shops in other places and see if there was a chance to buy them, but in fact it was just to help her relax.”

"How long have you been gone?"

“About half a month!” Boss Luan raised an eyebrow. “Master Falian said that after this trip, the two of them have become quite close.”