CHAPTER 408: CHAPTER 376: SECOND UPDATE

Su Qing ignored Duke Su’s expression, took a few steps forward, and his light tone drifted back, "Elder Brother, if there’s nothing else, I’ll take my leave first."

Duke Su stood in place, staring at Su Qing’s back, and thinking about the events that had unfolded in the Su Family in recent years, he increasingly felt that they shouldn’t have ostracized him in the first place.

Saying goodbye to someone is easy, but now trying to invite him back is nearly impossible.

...

This time, Su Qing was summoned back personally by Emperor Guangxi and went directly to the palace to meet with him.

The Empress Dowager had passed away, and the palace was in mourning. Recently, Emperor Guangxi was uninterested in state affairs; every day, he either went to the memorial hall or stayed in Qianqing Palace, becoming noticeably more silent than before.

When Su Qing saw him, he offered a few words of consolation.

Even though he was troubled by the sudden passing of his biological mother, the Emperor’s emotions did not show on his face, and he asked Su Qing about his experiences during these past few years.

Su Qing spoke candidly.

Upon hearing this, Emperor Guangxi was very pleased. Considering that the court was in need of capable people, he intended to cultivate Su Qing as the next War God and directly promoted him to Left Army Commander with the official rank of First Rank.

Under usual circumstances, returning from an outside appointment would mean a promotion, and Su Qing was prepared for that, but he never expected that Emperor Guangxi would grant him so much power directly.

"With border wars and our army having rested for many years, they may inevitably struggle. I have to prepare on two fronts; Su Aiqing, do you understand my earnest intentions?"

The Emperor’s voice was solemn and grave.

Su Qing nodded, "I understand, Your Majesty."

Once Xu Guangfu is defeated, he will have to immediately lead reinforcements into battle.

He was given such a high position not because of past achievements, but in hopes that he could achieve them.

The burden on his shoulders grew heavier unseen; thinking of his wife and two-year-old daughter at home, Su Qing earnestly said, "I shall not disappoint Your Majesty’s high expectations."

After mourning the Empress Dowager at the memorial hall, Su Qing went to the Capital Commandery.

Upon learning of his promotion, many colleagues extended their congratulations.

Had it been a normal time, this group of people would have surely had him treat them to drinks, but now, during the national mourning period, drinking and merriment were prohibited. Furthermore, most tea houses and taverns in the Capital were closed for business; even if they wanted to drink, they couldn’t find a place.

After briefly understanding the situation at the new office, he went home.

He hadn’t had lunch, and by the time he got home, Lin Xiaoyue was taking a nap with their daughter.

Jin Zhi came to ask, "Mr. Qi, shall I prepare some food?"

Su Qing nodded and added, "Avoid meat and fish, prepare some vegetarian dishes."

Lin Xiaoyue is a light sleeper; she heard voices outside and, worried it might disturb her daughter, got up quietly.

Seeing the man return, she inquired about his earlier visit to the palace to report for duty.

Su Qing replied, "It went smoothly, didn’t encounter any trouble."

Lin Xiaoyue looked at him, "I heard that those returning from an outside appointment typically receive a promotion; did Mr. Qi get promoted?"

Just after asking, she felt it might not be appropriate. Given the palace was mourning, the Emperor was presumably too busy to pay attention to such matters.

The man’s answer, however, surprised her, "Promoted across ranks, from Standard Third Rank directly to First Rank, appointed as Left Army Commander."

Lin Xiaoyue was stunned.

Since her own husband was a military officer, she had an understanding of these kinds of positions and knew that only those who had achieved military merits or were descendants of meritorious officials could assume the role of "commander."

Clearly, Su Qing was neither.

"Why is the Emperor favoring you so much?" Lin Xiaoyue voiced her doubt.

Su Qing replied with a question, "Isn’t it good to be favored by the Emperor?"

Lin Xiaoyue curled her lips, "Mr. Qi is now the highest-ranked person in the Su family; the Big House over there will surely make a move. If they cannot win you over, they may try everything to ruin you."

"We will cross each bridge as we come to it," Su Qing said, "we are not easily manipulated."

He continued, "After the national mourning, I will request an Imperial Decree title for you. With a rank in place, the Big House folks will have to think twice before coming after you."

The Imperial Decree title for a legitimate wife comes with her husband’s official rank.

Su Qing was now a First-Grade Left Army Commander, so Lin Xiaoyue could request to be titled a First-rank Imperial Decree Lady.

She suddenly felt like she was dreaming, "I can hardly believe it; in my lifetime, I could become a First-rank Imperial Decree Lady."

Su Qing said, "... Just how little do you think of your husband?"

Lin Xiaoyue coughed and said that was not what she meant.

Su Qing didn’t wish to argue with her, so when Jin Zhi brought the food in, he moved to the table and began eating.

——

Within the palace, such a significant event took place, yet Song Wei’s rank was insufficient to mourn at the memorial hall.

Wen Wan didn’t have an Imperial Decree, so she couldn’t enter the palace.

Thus, for the Song family, national mourning meant little more than abstaining from lavish feasts.

Song Wei attended Hanlin Academy as usual; recently, he didn’t have to enter the palace, nor could he see Emperor Guangxi, but he heard from colleagues that the deposed Eldest Princess and her family of three had returned to mourn the Empress Dowager.

Song Wei took note and told Wen Wan at home in the evening, "Your parents might have come to the Capital."

Wen Wan was finishing the clothes she was making for Little Yan Li; she faltered slightly, almost pricking her finger with the needle. Fortunately, Song Wei reminded her in time.

Feeling his gaze focused on her, Wen Wan seemed a bit embarrassed holding the embroidery needle.

After a while, she softly said, "No matter what happened before, the deceased are significant; with the biological mother gone, it’s only right for her to mourn."

The previous bond of "godmother" no longer existed, and the use of "her" created a sense of distance.

Song Wei did not persuade Wen Wan to reunite with her biological mother. Her ability to accept the situation without chaos after learning the truth was already the utmost acceptance. At twenty or so, even if more mature than her peers, one needs time to process such matters.

"If Wanwan doesn’t want to see her, then you don’t have to. There will be opportunities in the future," Song Wei said.

"My clothes are almost done; I must hand them to the little fellow personally," Wen Wan said as she bit off the thread, put the embroidery needle back into the needle pouch, and lifted the newly finished clothing to examine it. After confirming there was nothing unsatisfactory, she neatly folded it and then turned to the man, "Husband, find an opportunity to arrange a meeting with them. Since inviting them over is inappropriate during the national mourning period, let’s have tea."

"Alright."

——

The Empress Dowager’s coffin rested in the palace for seven days before beginning its journey to the Imperial Mausoleum.

During this time, except for going to the Lu family home at night to rest, Fanghua spent her time guarding the memorial hall.

After all, it was a national mourning, and the deceased were significant. As the biological daughter of the Empress Dowager, it was absolutely proper for her to return to the capital to mourn. Even if the court officials wanted to make an issue of her commoner status, they couldn’t find any grounds.

After watching over the memorial for so many days, Fanghua had lost a lot of weight and didn’t look well.

As they were bearing the guilt, the couple could not linger in the Capital for long, and they had to prepare to return to Ningzhou once the coffin was interred.

These days, Fanghua had been emotionally exhausted due to the death of her biological mother, and Emperor Guangxi noticed it all.

Before leaving, he specially had Mr. Cui invite the family of three to Qianqing Palace to sit.

All along, Emperor Guangxi harbored no fondness for Lu Xingzhou, and now with Old Marquis Lu bearing the suspicion of causing the Empress Dowager’s death, Emperor Guangxi was even less inclined to tolerate Lu Xingzhou.

However, aside from his biases, for the sake of his brother-in-law, he did not skip the formalities or the needed respect.

Today’s invitation of the couple was mainly to see them off; given the special period, tea replaced wine, and only vegetarian food was served on the table.

During the occasion, Emperor Guangxi brought up last year’s Earthquake in Ningzhou.

Lu Xingzhou slowly recounted the situation in detail.

In the Capital, Emperor Guangxi’s received information suggested it was not too serious.

Five words summed up a rare natural disaster.

Now hearing Lu Xingzhou’s description, he couldn’t help but feel alarmed.

Subsequently, Emperor Guangxi turned his gaze to Fanghua, "I also heard that the court’s disaster relief supplies were stuck halfway, and it was Fanghua who spent a fortune buying grain from the neighboring Prefecture to get through those days."

Fanghua never thought of this, "When the people are in trouble, my husband and I could not just sit and watch, but the situation was critical then, and we lacked manpower, so we couldn’t help in other ways; we could only spend more money."

Emperor Guangxi said, "Those funds, wealthy merchants elsewhere can afford too, but not everyone has your kind heart."

Fanghua hadn’t thought that far, "I did this, all to accumulate blessings for Yanqing, hoping he can continue to persevere over the next twenty-seven years and eventually come home safely to reunite with his family."

Emperor Guangxi’s voice rang out, "I initially planned to use your couple’s relief efforts to offset your wrongs. I sent you a letter last year, why did you decline on the letter?"

Fanghua shook her head, "This matter, brother, please don’t worry about it anymore. Since my husband and I resolved to request exile ourselves, we never considered coming back. Ningzhou is very nice, and I am greatly satisfied with my current life."

Unable to persuade them otherwise, Emperor Guangxi decided to dismiss the idea altogether.