During the time while the waiter was serving the dishes, Meng Fu simply began talking to Li Yue about the various disputes among the court officials today during the morning assembly regarding the matter of kaoji [考绩 – performance evaluation of officials].
In the midst of the disputes, Wei Jun’an, Lord Wei, displayed extreme support for the kaoji policy, as if if the kaoji could not be implemented, then this court would collapse, and this country would fall into ruin. To the extent that the officials couldn’t help but suspect whether Wei Jun’an had been placed under a Gu curse [蛊 – a poisonous or bewitching parasite or spell in Chinese folklore]. Wasn’t it he who had resolutely opposed this matter in front of them before? Could it be his twin brother? But they hadn’t heard that Wei Jun’an had a brother!
These officials had already been very dissatisfied with Wei Jun’an’s sudden change of stance. Especially since His Majesty now showed him clear favoritism, the officials became even more indignant. They were all serving His Majesty as officials—so why should this two-faced, backstabbing villain Wei Jun’an receive special treatment from the emperor? Based on what?
Seeing Wei Jun’an now on court looking like he was bearing great righteousness for the country and the people, the other officials became even more enraged. Originally they were only going to exert thirty percent of their effort, but now they were using the strength as if suckling milk—dead-set on opposing Wei Jun’an. The two factions clashed like this for over an hour without a clear outcome.
Meng Fu sat on the dragon throne. Listening to these officials cursing without using a single dirty word, not only was she not angry, she even found it somewhat amusing. Perhaps they themselves hadn’t realized it, but the way they were now cursing carried faint traces of Li Yue’s style. These scholarly and refined men, the most particular about elegance and rules under heaven, in the end, had still been led astray by His Majesty.
Meng Fu saw that Elder Lord Wei looked like he was scolding himself hoarse, so she quickly ordered a chair to be moved for Wei Jun’an, and even had someone serve him tea and pastries.
It was served exclusively for Elder Lord Wei—none of the other officials received it.
The other officials, upon seeing this scene, were quite upset in their hearts. Among the court, there were plenty of officials older than Wei Jun’an, and many with worse health conditions. They were all speaking until their lips were parched and their mouths dry—so why weren’t they treated the same?
So annoying!
They too really wanted to receive His Majesty’s favoritism.
But even if His Majesty actually offered them tea right now, they wouldn’t be able to drink it with as much ease of mind as Wei Jun’an. After all, in the end, this matter of kaoji was proposed by the emperor himself. Their current opposition toward Wei Jun’an was, in essence, also opposition toward His Majesty.
So no wonder His Majesty wasn’t giving them a good face.
Just a moment ago full of energy, the officials suddenly felt somewhat deflated. In their hearts, they all harbored some degree of envy and jealousy toward the special treatment Wei Jun’an was receiving from His Majesty. If they could be favored like Wei Jun’an, perhaps even going against their conscience to temporarily support the kaoji wouldn’t be entirely impossible.
As for Wei Jun’an—although he was now seated, his voice hadn’t dropped at all. Seeing how highly His Majesty valued him, he instantly perked up, his voice booming like it was accompanied by several suona [唢呐 – a traditional Chinese wind instrument, loud and piercing in tone].
And the other officials from the Central Secretariat —upon seeing their superior so favored by the emperor—immediately had their morale boosted. They forced the Chancellery into retreat, step by step. The Chancellery soon lost spirit, and the Six Ministries weren’t faring much better. The matter of kaoji could be considered mostly settled at this point.
Li Yue was stunned as he listened, momentarily sharing the same doubt as the court officials—was this really Wei Jun’an? Had he been replaced?
But if such a good thing were possible, he wished the fools in the court could be replaced a few more times.
Meng Fu saw that Li Yue was propping his chin and staying silent, so she gently asked, “I had someone bring a chair to Lord Wei during court. That’s not inappropriate, is it?”
“No problem.”
What kind of matter was that? If Wei Jun’an could keep being so well-behaved, even bringing him a bed wouldn’t be out of the question.
Meng Fu added, “By the way, I discovered that the Ninth Prince is really good at arithmetic.”
“Is that so?” This Li Yue really didn’t know. Every time he saw the Ninth Prince, that little prince was either squatting on the ground playing with mud, or hiding behind the Empress Dowager. Upon seeing him, he would run away like a mouse seeing a cat. Li Yue had really never noticed he could do arithmetic. In his eyes, the Ninth Prince was just a little dullard—already this old yet still not able to speak. It was such a headache.
Meng Fu gave a light “mm” and began recounting to Li Yue what she had seen yesterday in the side hall of Cining Palace.
In Meng Fu’s words, the little prince was not dull at all—he was actually very clever. He understood everything, only he hadn’t yet learned how to express what he thought in his heart. If someone could guide him properly, he might change a great deal. This was the first time Li Yue had heard someone praise the little prince so sincerely. He was very happy, the corners of his eyes and brows all carried joy. He said to Meng Fu, “My little brother is quite obedient, he just doesn’t get close to people.”
“The Ninth Prince is a little bit…” Meng Fu paused. She was trying to find a suitable word to describe the current state of the little prince, but felt that none of the words she could think of were quite accurate.
“…a little bit disinclined to interact with others, like he kind of looks down on people.” As she spoke, Meng Fu cautiously observed Li Yue’s facial expression across from her.
“Really?” Li Yue hadn’t noticed at all. To him, the Ninth Prince always seemed to have the same expression.
“It could also be that I misread the feeling,” Meng Fu said, and then shared with Li Yue, “But yesterday, he actually gave me a little rabbit made of cloth.”
On top of Li Yue’s head, a little questioning person slowly climbed up.
There was actually such a thing?!
But—why?! Based on what?!
Li Yue felt this was very unreasonable. These past few years, he had made the little prince a wooden sword, gifted him little ceramic figurines, and even raised a kitten for him in the imperial garden. Yet don’t even mention receiving a rabbit in return—this little prince hadn’t given him anything at all!
So all these years of affection and love had ultimately been misplaced!
Li Yue, for a moment, was quite unwilling to accept this result.
Meng Fu noticed that Li Yue’s expression was very complicated and asked, “Your Majesty, what’s wrong?”
“Pretty good,” Li Yue forced out a smile and affirmed, “Very good.”
Meng Fu felt that this emperor’s current expression did not quite look like “very good.” Li Yue usually showed everything on his face—rarely did he hide anything. Oftentimes, guessing what this emperor was thinking was much easier than guessing the minds of those people in the marquis’ residence. In her heart, Meng Fu understood—this emperor was probably jealous. But such a thing couldn’t be said directly to his face.
Meng Fu poured herself a cup of tea, took a small sip, then raised her head to look at Li Yue and asked: “Your Majesty, allow me to boldly ask—what is your relationship like with the Empress Dowager?”
Actually, based on Meng Fu’s usual way of handling things, she shouldn’t have directly asked Li Yue this question.
Li Yue stroked his chin. He truly hadn’t expected Meng Fu to suddenly ask him this. Before he could speak, Meng Fu added: “If you don’t want to say, it’s alright.”
Li Yue gave an “ah” sound and leaned back slightly. He said to Meng Fu: “I feel it’s pretty good.”
Meng Fu stared at Li Yue for a while and realized that this emperor didn’t seem to be lying. He really did believe that.
If their relationship was truly “pretty good,” then when she visited the Empress Dowager in Cining Palace last night, the Empress Dowager wouldn’t have been so emotional, as though she was afraid this visit might be the last, unloading everything she had stored up over the years onto her all at once.
“What is it? Did the Empress Dowager say something to you?” Li Yue asked her.
For a moment, Meng Fu wasn’t sure if she should keep speaking.
“Say whatever you want to say.” Li Yue said.
“The Empress Dowager seems to worry about you being alone with the little prince,” Meng Fu said—and immediately felt a bit of regret. Though she and this emperor had now exchanged bodies, they had only known each other for a few days. For her to say this was still overly presumptuous.
She tilted her head slightly and recalled what she heard that night after the palace banquet when she picked up the little prince and brought him to Cining Palace. The wet nurse had spoken at length, and the Empress Dowager had remained silent throughout. In her heart, Meng Fu believed this silence signified tacit approval of the wet nurse’s words. So Meng Fu felt fairly confident in her own guess.
However, what Meng Fu couldn’t figure out was: among royal families, half-brothers vying for the throne and being at odds was normal. Even full brothers could turn against one another if the fight was intense enough. But Li Yue had already ascended the throne, and the little prince was so young, still unable to speak. Meng Fu felt that the Empress Dowager’s worries were quite unreasonable.
Hearing what Meng Fu said, Li Yue didn’t get angry—instead, he asked with some confusion: “Really?”
Seeing Li Yue’s completely clueless and innocent gaze, Meng Fu in that instant also began to doubt her own guess. If something really had happened between the Empress Dowager and Li Yue, there’s no way he wouldn’t have noticed anything for so long. Meng Fu lowered her head and said: “Then I must have been mistaken. Please don’t take it to heart.”
“Don’t be like that. Say more, say more,” Li Yue urged her to continue, showing no effort to conceal the curiosity in his eyes—as if what he was digging into wasn’t even his own private matters.
Meng Fu could tell that this emperor was sincerely asking her this question, so she told him everything that happened that day, just as it occurred. However, Li Yue was truly thick-skinned—after hearing her, he still didn’t think anything was out of the ordinary. So Meng Fu had to analyze the expressions, tones, and actions of everyone present that day in detail for him.
This was a skill Meng Fu had been adept at since childhood, but it was the first time she had spoken it out loud. Li Yue listened with great interest, occasionally casting her admiring looks. When Meng Fu finished, he still felt it wasn’t enough and asked: “And then?”
Meng Fu thought to herself: this emperor was just listening to her tell a story. She was a bit parched from talking, so she shook her head, drank some water, and said to Li Yue: “How about Your Majesty tell me about the past instead? Maybe I’ve overthought it.”
“Sure.”
Li Yue, in front of Meng Fu, seemed surprisingly easygoing. After that, he would recall a portion, and Meng Fu would help him analyze a portion.
Time had passed for quite a while, and nothing earth-shattering had happened between him and the Empress Dowager, so his memory was actually no longer that accurate or detailed. He could only roughly describe the scene at the time.
Meng Fu also analyzed very cautiously, merely helping Li Yue point out that there might indeed be a small problem between him and the Empress Dowager. Only then did Li Yue, in hindsight, realize—oh, so those words back then had that kind of meaning.
“In that case, I really am not as close to the Empress Dowager as before,” Li Yue nodded. “I used to think it was because I had gotten older.”
“Why would it be like that?” Meng Fu asked him.
“Yeah, why would it be?” Li Yue was puzzled too. “Was it because I went to Beijiang [北疆 – the Northern Frontier] for a few years and didn’t return? Or because I ascended the throne?”
“I think it might have something to do with the Ninth Prince,” Meng Fu said, then added, “Just a guess, not necessarily correct.”
“Xiao Jiu?” [小九 – “Little Nine,” affectionate reference to the Ninth Prince] Li Yue rubbed his temples and thought for a moment. Suddenly his eyes lit up as if he remembered something, and then he dropped a thunderbolt on Meng Fu. He said:
“Then maybe it’s because back in earlier years, there were always rumors in the palace saying that Xiao Jiu wasn’t the Late Emperor’s child.”
Meng Fu: “……”
Meng Fu almost choked on her breath. Was this something she was supposed to be hearing? This emperor really didn’t treat her like an outsider at all.
Meng Fu was usually someone who could remain unshaken even if Mount Tai collapsed before her, but now—suddenly hearing such a thing—she couldn’t help showing a trace of shock on her face. Now, the Empress Dowager’s worries could finally be understood.
Meng Fu opened her mouth slightly, wanting to ask whether the Ninth Prince was of royal blood, and to ask Li Yue’s view on this matter—but this kind of thing was a royal secret, and it truly wasn’t appropriate for her to question too much.