maidservant

Chapter 74: The Empress's Funeral
"Your Majesty?! Since I have such trust from Your Majesty, I will do my best to put the Second Prince first in everything I do and will never let anyone wrong me!"

The queen frowned and said hurriedly: "No, no, sister. Don't fight for him. I just want him to grow up safely-"

"Song medicine."

Yunshan hurriedly knelt and moved forward, "Your Majesty, I am here."

"Okay, I know you are loyal to the Imperial Concubine. Now I am entrusting the child to Liuhua Palace. I hope you will take good care of him and make sure he is healthy."

Yunshan knelt on the couch and swore solemnly, "I swear that I will take care of the Second Prince with all my heart. If I show any disobedience, I will never rest in peace in my grave!"

"Okay," the queen took a deep breath.

"But, sister, will His Majesty agree?" Lin Yu wiped away her tears and asked in a low voice.

"I have sent for your Majesty, and will ask for divine grace."

"The emperor is here--" a sharp voice came along with the sound of footsteps.

The emperor hurried into the hall, and Lin Yu and Yun Shan quickly stepped aside to pay their respects.

"Queen, I'm here." The emperor sat down in front of the couch.

"Forgive me for being rude," the queen said sadly, looking at her husband. "Please let me leave first. I have a few words to say to Your Majesty."

Yunshan helped Lin Yu retreat out of the hall. Lin Yu leaned softly on Yunshan's shoulder and cried. At this time, the courtyard was already full of concubines from the six palaces kneeling.

The dim candlelight flickered, casting distorted shadows of the emperor and empress on the cold wall.

The queen slowly raised her head, her eyes filled with endless attachment and sorrow, staring at the emperor. Her eyes seemed to have thousands of words to say, but she didn't know where to start.

After a long while, she said in a voice so weak that it seemed to fade away at any moment: "Your Majesty, I am afraid that I can no longer accompany you."

The emperor's eyes were red, and his throat seemed to be choked by something. After a long while, he spoke with difficulty: "Queen, please don't say that. I have ordered the Imperial Hospital to treat you with all their strength. You will definitely get better."

The Queen shook her head slightly, a bitter yet gentle smile playing on her lips: "Your Majesty, please don't lie to me. I have no regrets in being able to accompany Your Majesty all these years, but..."

The emperor gently helped the queen up and carefully held her in his arms.

"There is something that weighs on my heart like a huge rock, and I feel extremely guilty."

"Back when the situation in the Eastern Palace was turbulent, I was unable to persuade my grandfather on Your Majesty's behalf and to secure a better situation for Your Majesty as soon as possible."

"This matter has been like a thorn, deeply embedded in my heart for years. If I don't speak up today, I'm afraid... I'm afraid I won't have another chance. Your Majesty, do you blame me?"

The emperor listened quietly, his eyes showing no blame, but instead full of understanding and pity.

He said gently, "This matter has passed. I am naturally aware of the Huangfu family's motto. We have always been loyal to the current emperor and never support the crown prince. You are caught in the middle, torn between the two. It is really not easy."

Since we were talking about this, we started to talk about everything that was in our hearts.

"Your Majesty, I have the audacity to tell you that for so many years, I have never dared to treat you as an ordinary husband. In my heart, the etiquette between the monarch and his subjects is more important than the righteousness between husband and wife."

"I understand that our marriage is a political one. In this palace, many things are beyond our control. Forcing the affection between ordinary couples is probably a luxury."

"Since you married me, from the Eastern Palace to the current harem, you have handled everything in an orderly and proper manner. You are a role model for women all over the world and are worthy of the title of Mother of the Nation. I thank you from the bottom of my heart."

"But, Your Majesty, I regret it."

"When I saw the tender affection between Your Majesty and Concubine Lin, I suddenly understood that husband and wife should be devoted to each other and truly love each other." "I, too, have spent countless quiet nights alone dreaming that Your Majesty and I could have more... more of the ordinary warmth between husband and wife, rather than just the friendship of walking side by side."

"But, I know it's too late to make amends. I was wrong from the beginning."

"Husband - let me call you husband." The queen trembled slightly, snuggling in the emperor's warm arms, two lines of clear tears quietly sliding down. The crystal tears sparkled with endless sadness under the reflection of the dim candlelight.

"Now, everything is over, but I am worried about our children."

"These days, I have thought about it over and over again. The only way for me to feel at ease is to entrust him to Concubine Lin for upbringing," the Queen said, trying her best.

"Sister Lin Yu is kind-hearted and benevolent. She will definitely not mistreat our child."

When the emperor heard this, his expression was complicated, but he remained silent.

Seeing this, the queen's heart tightened, and she pleaded with all her might, "My husband, I have nothing else to ask for. I only hope that he can live a peaceful and smooth life and grow up healthy."

"If our child could stay away from the disputes over the throne, not be entangled by the complex forces in the court, and just be a free and easy prince, that would be my greatest wish in this life."

The emperor pondered for a long time, watching his wife's breath gradually weaken in his arms, and finally nodded, "I promise you."

The queen's consciousness was like a wisp of gossamer, floating between reality and illusion. In a trance, the past years filled her heart like light smoke.

Looking back to her youth, she was outstandingly talented among the noble ladies in the capital. Her every smile, word and action were role models for everyone, and she was a well-deserved role model for women from aristocratic families.

That day, Li Song and others made an appointment to go out for a trip. She was really tired of being trapped in the carriage, so she quietly changed into riding clothes, looking forward to traveling freely like a bird.

But before he even stepped out of the house, he was discovered by his parents. The majesty and anger in the elders' eyes were like cold frost and snow.

That day, the ten-year-old girl knelt in her boudoir for five hours.

From then on, she behaved with restraint, like a shadow puppet bound by silk strings, not daring to overstep the line.

When she was about to get married, her family taught her all about her duties as a Crown Princess, how to be a model mother to the country and preserve the family's reputation, and even how to put the family's interests first at critical moments. But no one ever told her how to be a wife in the relationship between husband and wife.

"Okay, I want to ride a horse once."

The emperor held her tightly in his arms, signaled the eunuch to bring the second prince's peach wood carved pony, and carefully placed it in the queen's hands.

The 49 rings of the bell echoed inside and outside the palace, sounding like a cry of complaint.

　The Phoenix Hairpin

　　A beautiful girl from Beijing, from a famous family, she has been favored and honored by three dynasties.

　　She is graceful and talented.

　　The craftsmanship is exquisite, and the charm is like Qing Dynasty porcelain.

　　The rules are strict, the innocence is hidden, and it is difficult to escape when trapped in the palace.

　　The queen is respected and has a great reputation.

　　My heart is filled with sorrow, and my freedom is gone. Mourning, mourning, mourning.

　　(End of this chapter)