CHAPTER 145: CHAPTER 143: HURTING TWO MEN AT ONCE (PART 2)

Mother without mercy, how do you expect me to be filial?

One sentence plunged the entire grand hall into deathly silence.

The Empress Dowager furrowed her brows, not believing she was at fault, "If I truly wanted to kill you, I would not have kept you until now."

"Yes, because I still have utility value. If you killed me, where would you find a woman who both suits the Prince Consort’s desires and can make him willingly hand over military power?"

The Empress Dowager was provoked by her words, "Fanghua, don’t forget, you are this Great Chu Dynasty’s Princess!"

"Does being a Princess mean I’m not your biological daughter, that a Princess deserves to be controlled at will by her birth mother?"

"Even if my initial intention was to stabilize your elder brother’s reign by preventing Lu Xingzhou from gaining too much power and threatening the Emperor, making me bestow marriage upon you two; still, the man I allowed you to marry is the one you desired."

The Empress Dowager clutched her rapidly heaving chest, her face taut, "By doing so, I both fulfilled your elder brother and you. From a mother’s standpoint, I believe I have shown utmost benevolence and righteousness, so you need not stand here aggressively, I owe you nothing."

Upon hearing this, the Eldest Princess turned and left.

The resolute back made Empress Dowager Renyi clench her teeth.

——

The Eldest Princess arrived outside the palace gates and saw a tall figure standing by the carriage.

The man had been waiting for a long time, his legs seemingly frozen stiff. When he saw her, he walked forward, his steps unsteady, his handsome face under the illuminated palace walls appearing even more resolute and distinct, faintly carrying the valorous air of a warrior.

"Ah Yin, are you alright?"

As he approached, Lu Xingzhou asked in a soft tone.

The Eldest Princess raised her eyes to look at him, the concern on the man’s brows and eyes was completely exposed, and in his dark pupils, her emotionless face was reflected.

The Prince Consort coming to wait for her was something she wasn’t surprised by at all.

In the ten years of marriage, he neither did anything wrong nor anything inappropriate.

Yet she couldn’t let go.

...

Back then, after getting entangled with Lu Xingzhou, Zhao Xunyin soon discovered she was pregnant.

She was overjoyed, hoping to use this to threaten the Empress Dowager to agree to her marriage with Lu Xingzhou.

Su Yi, however, took a step ahead and petitioned the Empress Dowager for marriage, wanting to marry Lu Xingzhou.

Before Zhao Xunyin had time to take any action, news of the impending grand wedding between those two was already abuzz.

She couldn’t believe that Lu Xingzhou would betray her so easily and turn to marry another woman. Unable to contact Lu Xingzhou due to being imprisoned by the Empress Dowager.

Only on the wedding day, the Empress Dowager arranged for people to escort her out of the palace to witness the occasion.

Seated at the window-side of the teahouse, Zhao Xunyin, veiled, witnessed the groom clad in wedding robes on a tall horse, preparing to welcome his bride, indeed the one who promised her exclusive matrimony, Lu Xingzhou.

Disheartened, Zhao Xunyin returned to the palace, where the Empress Dowager informed her that a villa was arranged in the suburb for her to nurture pregnancy.

Zhao Xunyin believed it, Lu Xingzhou’s "betrayal" left her utterly desolate. It was the child’s existence that gave her hope, reminding her not to be impulsive, to live on, so she went to the villa.

At the villa, she was nearly harmed by the Empress Dowager’s people, causing a miscarriage. She decisively packed up and fled southward, ending up in Ningzhou.

Afterwards, she encountered Wen Guangping.

When Wanwan turned three, the Empress Dowager who initially refused to approve her relationship with Lu Xingzhou sent Imperial Secret Guards to forcibly bring her back to the Capital, having Emperor Guangxi decree a marriage, allowing Princess Changping to marry the General Lu Xingzhou.

After three years of estrangement, meeting Lu Xingzhou again, she finally learned all the truths.

——After Su Yi’s marriage petition, the Empress Dowager privately threatened Lu Xingzhou that Zhao Xunyin carried his child, if he didn’t want two dead bodies, he had to obediently marry the woman from the Su Family.

Zhao Xunyin was imprisoned, and Lu Xingzhou couldn’t see her, fearing the Empress Dowager’s ruthless nature, he was forced to nod his head. On the wedding day, it indeed was him on horseback, but before reaching the Su Family’s gates, he tore off his wedding robe, abandoned the bride, and fled.

The Lu Family had no choice but to let their eldest son take his place.

Thus, Su Yi became Lu Xingzhou’s sister-in-law.

As for Lu Xingzhou, after leaving the Capital to evade the Empress Dowager’s pursuit, he fled to the border and joined the military.

At that time, the border was in turmoil, Lu Xingzhou having studied military tactics since childhood, excelled in commanding troops, achieving successive victories, upon returning to the Capital, Emperor Guangxi had no choice but to follow ministerial advice and confer upon him the title of General.

Holding power over two hundred thousand troops, his achievements threatened the emperor.

At this point, the Empress Dowager panicked.

For the sake of her son’s reign, she had no choice but to do something, thus a thought sprouted, she recalled Zhao Xunyin.