Ink Burns

Chapter 267 rhetorical question
When Shan Yue awoke, it was nearly dusk. He opened his eyes groggily, and a gentle warmth, like that of old wood under the moonlight, seeped into his nostrils.

The scent of sandalwood is extremely pure.

For a moment, Shan Yue was stunned, then shivered and instantly came to her senses.

Today, she is still in the Bisha Pavilion of the Qinghui Hall in the Forbidden City.

The sky was still dark, and the palace had not yet been lit by the main lamps. Only a pair of large rosewood bases stood in the dimly lit corridor, their drum-shaped bases emitting a wide, diffused light from the oil lamps. Next to the lamps was a long table made of sandalwood with mortise and tenon joints and lotus scrolls, on which was placed a statue of Guanyin. In front of the Guanyin statue were fresh fruits, incense, candles, and an ever-burning lamp.

She was placed on a daybed with a green gauze curtain. The beaded curtain swayed, and two figures were back to back on the bed. One of them was of medium height, with his shirt just falling to his instep. He had a headscarf wrapped around his head and was busily walking back and forth.

One is water light, and the other is gardenia.

Shan Yue's gaze shifted from the figure behind the beaded curtain to the lampstand.

Beyond that were three tightly closed windows with soft gauze frames, and on the other side was a wide-open, ventilated corridor.

The finely woven silk gauze is highly breathable yet provides excellent light blocking, making it a favorite material for window lattice partitions among high-ranking officials and nobles.

The wind circled around the corridor, causing the clivia branches and leaves in front of the soft gauze window to sway in beautiful arcs.

Shan Yue's gaze drifted over the swaying orchid leaves in front of the left and middle windows, and finally swept over the motionless clivia in front of the right window, naturally and silently.

"Cough—" Shan Yue remained dazed, unconsciously letting out a muffled groan.

Shui Guang turned around with delight, lifted the beaded curtain, and hurried over: "Awake?"

Shan Yue propped herself up and leaned back, a posture of avoidance and defensiveness, her voice hoarse from not speaking for a long time: "You...you are?"

Shui Guang froze slightly, then immediately realized what was happening and bowed her head respectfully, replying, "Madam Xue, I am a ninth-rank clerk in the Imperial Medical Academy. My surname is He, and I am currently studying medicine under Chief Physician Lin. Your Highnesses have specially kept me here to give you acupuncture."

Shan Yue raised her hand and saw three silver needles on the back of it. Then, as if remembering something, she ignored the needles and reached straight for her abdomen. After a moment of stunned silence, she let out a muffled groan of pain: "My child—"

"My child! My child!"

The noblewoman, curled up in the daybed, cried out in a suppressed and mournful voice. She raised her hands and waved them wildly, as if seeking some kind of comfort, but she could not grasp any foothold. Her whole body was so weak and powerless that she almost fell over.

Shui Guang was right beside him. He took a step forward and grasped Shan Yue's wrist through her sleeve.

“Madam—” Shui Guang was slightly at a loss. Just as she was about to say something, the beaded curtain beside her jingled, followed by a calm and aged female voice.

"Madam Xue—"

Shui Guang hurriedly took two steps back, lowered her head like a quail, and disappeared into the darkness.

The green gauze curtain shimmered with a dim yellow light. A slow, compassionate figure emerged from behind the beaded curtain. In the lamplight, the figure's complexion was yellowish, like a gilded Buddha statue. As people age, their eyelashes become flat and shorter due to drooping eyelids. The short eyelashes drooped, and their shadows resembled those of a Bodhisattva in a Buddhist shrine, with their head bowed and hands clasped in prayer.

Shan Yue cried silently, "Your Majesty, my child..."

The Bodhisattva in the shrine finally raised its head. Empress Dowager Fang sat silently but kindly on the edge of the Luohan bed, took Shan Yue's hand, and spoke sincerely and calmly: "You can always have more children. You and Xue Qishu are still young. As long as you don't harm your health, you can have as many children as you want."

Empress Dowager Fang's hands, with calluses on the pad of her right thumb and the third joint of her index finger, did not resemble those of the pampered and privileged first noblewoman of the Great Wei, but rather those of an old woman who often worked in the fields.

Shan Yue recalled that trees, flowers, and grasses were planted both inside and outside Qinghui Palace.

She must have planted them all herself.

With tears blurring her vision, Shan Yue raised her eyes, opened her mouth, and saw that Empress Dowager Fang's expression was full of sorrow and her words of comfort were very sincere. Instantly, she burst into tears.

"Since it happened in the palace, I will ask the Emperor to grant Xue Qishu a few days off tomorrow so he can stay home and spend time with you." As she spoke, Empress Dowager Fang took out a plain silk handkerchief from her sleeve to wipe away Shan Yue's tears.

Empress Dowager Fang moved very gently, her expression focused, and the silk had a peculiar camphor wood scent—just like the scent of all mothers in the world.

A shrill scream suddenly came from outside.

Shan Yue shuddered involuntarily.

Empress Dowager Fang glanced outside and casually placed the silk handkerchief on the wooden table: "It's Lady Liu."

With tears in her eyes, Shan Yue turned her head back to look at him, her eyes trembling.

"The Liu family has fallen, and her future is uncertain, so she's decided to target you, her elder sister—she put musk and a little cinnabar in the sachet she gave you, and you wear it every day. Not only will you lose your baby, but your health will only become weaker and weaker. Once you can no longer have children, and Xue Qishu has no legitimate son, she will have the advantage of proximity and take your place, which will be the best outcome for her." Empress Dowager Fang's voice was gentle.

Shan Yue's face turned deathly pale instantly.

"I'm afraid your parents know as well." Empress Dowager Fang was unpretentious and didn't refer to herself as "I, the Empress Dowager," her voice filled with pity: "I heard from them that you were never raised by your parents?"

Shan Yue's voice trembled: "Yes, yes. I was raised by my aunt in the old street since I was a child."

“That explains it.” Empress Dowager Fang gently placed her hand on the back of Shan Yue’s hand: “Parents always say they treat everyone equally, but who doesn’t have their own preferences? When you go back, you need to be clear about what to do and say. There needs to be a plan.”

Shan Yue trembled all over, seemingly stunned by the news. She hung her head and cried, tears falling one after another onto the quilt, forming wisps of dark steam.

Empress Dowager Fang comforted Shan Yue for a long time, her words sincere, as if she were pouring her heart into it, chewing it up and feeding it to him to nourish his vital energy.

After a long time, the Forbidden City was lit up, and the palace was brightly lit inside and out.

Empress Dowager Fang slowly rose to her feet: "This portrait was not something I insisted on painting. Now that this has happened, if I continue painting it, it will be tainted with bloodshed. You should rest in Qinghui Palace for two or three days before leaving the palace. The acupuncture skills of the Imperial Medical Academy are much better than those of the Six Departments' female physicians. Moreover, since He Limu is still young, I took the liberty of not calling a female physician, but instead leaving a young boy here to give you acupuncture. Although this is against the rules, it is a necessary measure. I hope Madam Xue will not blame me for taking the liberty of making this decision."

Shan Yue hurriedly replied, "Your Majesty the Empress Dowager has shown great kindness; how could I possibly repay kindness with enmity!"

Empress Dowager Fang nodded, frowned slightly, and turned to ask Shui Guang, "Is Yanhetang's musk famous in the capital?"

Shui Guang hurriedly lowered his head and said, "Reporting to the Empress Dowager, I am quite well-known among the physicians in the capital."

Empress Dowager Fang then nodded: "That's strange. Since everyone has their own expertise, how did Miss Liu and your father and mother manage to find the most useful musk in the capital city so accurately after only three days in the city?"