Chapter 15: His name?
Su Yuzhou still had some concerns in her heart. After all, Emperor Zhengying was her biological father, and scheming against him was an act of unfilial conduct. However, considering her current impoverished situation where she couldn’t even produce a few taels of silver, compared to Princess Qin and Princess Jin, Su Yuzhou looked at Lu Cheng’an and couldn’t bear it in her heart.
In every simulation, Lu Cheng’an had walked with her through the hard times. Now, there was an opportunity to improve their quality of life, and it only required them to act pitiful once. In the future, her father would definitely pay attention to her situation, which would be a lasting solution.
After so many simulations, regardless of the matter of ascending the throne, wasn’t the ultimate goal to live a good life?
Su Yuzhou gritted her teeth. She decided to take the risk. As a Princess, asking her own father for some silver shouldn’t be a problem, right? She just employed some minor tricks.
Inside the Hall of Diligent Government in the Forbidden City, Emperor Zhengying, Su Yiming, looked at many memorials that had been dealt with properly. Holding a seal in his hand, he sometimes contemplated and nodded, stamping the ones he deemed feasible and returning the improper ones for further review.
After finishing these memorials, he glanced at the stage outside the hall.
Resting one hand on the desk, he smiled and said, “With peace and prosperity, let there be music for Us.”
Beside Emperor Zhengying, a tall and burly man spoke in a thin voice, “Your Majesty is wise. This is an unparalleled era.”
Emperor Zhengying was very pleased with this, “Since I ascended the throne, I have eradicated the old villains and evil parties, abolished excessive taxes, pacified the border bandits, governed the country with clarity, and stabilized the state and the people.”
At this moment, Emperor Zhengying suddenly paused, “It’s just a pity…”
“Your Majesty, don’t worry, you are in good health, just waiting for an auspicious sign, and the royal heir will naturally be born.” The man continued to speak words of flattery.
Emperor Zhengying waved his hand. He was distressed. Seven years since ascending the throne, he had eight Princesses, but still no Prince had been born. What good is it to have such robust health? Without a Prince now, even if one is born later, it’s not certain that he can control the courtiers.
Just then, a Jinlin Guard rushed in hurriedly, kneeling on the ground, “Your Majesty, the Han Princess has walked back and forth outside the Forbidden City three times. After we inquired, the Han Princess hesitated to speak, but after considering it carefully, she requested an audience with Your Majesty.”
Emperor Zhengying was stunned.
The Han Princess is his eldest daughter. Apart from the ancestral rites ceremony, the Han Princess has always been low-key and rarely enters the palace. Therefore, Emperor Zhengying hasn’t seen this daughter for a long time, and he might have forgotten about her if she hadn’t suddenly mentioned her. However, she is still his eldest daughter, and Emperor Zhengying thinks that the Han Princess has a strong personality and usually doesn’t come to him. So, he is afraid that something has happened at her mansion.
“Take a few people to the Han Princess’s mansion and see what’s going on there,” he ordered.
“Understood.”
……
Imperial Palace.
“Your daughter pays respects to Mother Empress,” Su Jinruo entered the palace, first with a simple etiquette, and then walked in. “Mother Empress, please help your daughter think of a solution.”
Empress Wu was playing with the needlework on her hands. She was very surprised that Su Jinruo suddenly came to the palace to find her. Since Su Jinruo was titled as a Princess, she rarely came to the palace. However, after not seeing her for a long time, Empress Wu was also very concerned about her daughter.
“Jin’er, what’s wrong?” Empress Wu asked gracefully and elegantly.
“I have taken a liking to something,” Su Jinruo confessed honestly. “I want Mother Empress to help me.”
“Something you like? Does the Princess of Jin have something she likes but can’t get?” Empress Wu chuckled.
“But the thing I like is in the hands of the Han Princess,” Su Jinruo pretended to be ‘angry’ and said, “I asked her for it, but not only did she refuse to give it to me, she also humiliated me.”
Empress Wu took a deep breath and scolded, “Nonsense! How dare you go and snatch your sister’s things.”
“I won’t help you with this kind of thing,” Empress Wu said coldly.
“You’re already grown up, but still so overbearing and unreasonable. I’ll talk to His Majesty about marrying you off and let your in-laws discipline you properly.”
“No, Mother, please, let’s talk it over,” Su Jinruo immediately became ‘timid’.
If her mother talked about marriage with her, nine out of ten times she would marry into a prestigious family, and then she would be like a lamb to the slaughter. Moreover, the key point was that if she married the wrong person, she would never have the opportunity to ascend to the throne again.
At this moment, Su Jinruo’s eyes suddenly became cunning, and she came up with a plan. Her eyes suddenly turned red.
“I already have someone I like,” Su Jinruo raised her eyebrows lightly, pretending to be crying pitifully, showing her excellent acting skills, which made Empress Wu feel extremely distressed.
“But, someone was snatched away by the Han Princess,” Su Jinruo continued, “When the imperial examination results were announced, I saw a scholar from the south. He looked good, and I was thinking of recruiting him into my family, but unexpectedly, the Han Princess intervened…”
Empress Wu, who had been feeling distressed, suddenly became expressionless.
“Tell the truth,” Empress Wu saw through Su Jinruo’s acting skills with three words.
“That guy is talented,” Su Jinruo immediately retracted all her expressions because she felt that her mother was on the verge of exploding, “I want him to work for the Princess of Jin’s Mansion. I went to the Han Princess’s mansion to confront her, but he insisted on staying with the Han Princess, and I refuse to accept it.”
“So, I want Mother to help me persuade Father to bring him over.”
“You will reflect on this in the corner,” Empress Wu took a deep breath, “How could I have given birth to such a shameless daughter like you?”
“Stealing things and people, and it’s still a human. You went to someone else’s mansion to snatch someone. Do you have no shame?”
“You are the sister of the Princess of Jin and the Han Princess. You should take care of your own behavior.”
“This person may become a big problem for me in the future. If he works for my Jin Princess’s Mansion, my ascension to the Eastern Palace is only a matter of time. Mother, don’t ruin my big plans,” Su Jinruo suddenly became firm in her attitude, “Mother doesn’t want me to be fiefed in a few years, right?”
“What’s his name?” Empress Wu’s voice was still intense, as if it was in the same tone as before when she was lecturing Su Jinruo.
This made Su Jinruo think that her mother was still adhering to her bottom line and not backing down at all.
“Lu Cheng’an, his name is Lu Cheng’an. Mother, you must help me bring him to the Princess of Jin’s Mansion,” Su Jinruo was overjoyed.
As long as she could bring him over, even if Lu Cheng’an didn’t work for her properly, as long as he couldn’t follow the Han Princess and work for her, it would already be a great success.
