Chapter 189: Chapter 188: Slapping the Green Tea Empress Dowager (Part 5)
Anning was not afraid that the Empress Dowager and Prince Kang would collude upon realizing she was intentionally stirring things up.
How should one put it? Anning’s actions were entirely based on the personalities of these three individuals.
Emperor Jianwu and Prince Kang did not get along.
Emperor Jianwu was resentful that Prince Kang harbored inappropriate thoughts about the Empress Dowager, and whatever Prince Kang said, the Emperor wouldn’t take it to heart, sometimes even deliberately acting against him.
Meanwhile, Prince Kang wholeheartedly wanted to cultivate Emperor Jianwu into a wise monarch. He held Emperor Jianwu to very high standards, demanding everything that a wise monarch should embody.
With such two individuals, how could they possibly sit down and talk amicably?
Then there was the Empress Dowager.
The Empress Dowager was indeed trying to charm Prince Kang, but she would never ask if Prince Kang had visited the Princess.
She wasn’t thick-skinned to that extent.
Moreover, she had always been maintaining an image of utter integrity, so how could she possibly inquire into the private matters of someone else’s bedroom?
Additionally, Prince Kang had indeed been quite busy these days, genuinely having no time to visit the palace, so the Empress Dowager’s misunderstanding was somewhat inevitable.
Anning had thought it through before acting this way.
Anning rode the carriage back to Prince Mansion.
As soon as she entered, she immediately called for a doctor and then also prescribed some medicine.
In fact, these medicines were all for nourishing the body; even healthy people could take them to boost their Qi, but the medicinal smell was quite strong.
A heavy scent of medicine began to waft through Princess Anning’s quarters in the mansion.
Even though Prince Kang knew that the Princess was unwell and had summoned a doctor, he did not visit the inner courtyard.
For him, the title of Princess was merely a nominal role.
As long as there was someone acting as Princess Kang and someone managing the inner house of Prince Kang Mansion, he didn’t care who it was.
However, both the Heir of Prince Kang and the Commandery Princess came to visit Anning after hearing about her illness.
He Zhenyu, the Heir of Prince Kang, rushed over immediately upon returning and learning that Anning was ill, not even changing his clothes.
Commandery Princess Helan Zhi arrived at Anning’s room even before He Zhenyu.
When she got there, Anning was taking her medicine.
Helan Zhi approached with concern: "Mother, how are you feeling? Are you uncomfortable anywhere else?"
Anning smiled and waved her hand: "It’s nothing serious, just a bit tired recently. A few days of rest should be sufficient."
Helan Zhi had just sat down when He Zhenyu arrived.
He first greeted Anning then asked with a concerned face where she felt unwell and what medicine was prescribed.
Anning, smiling, told him and asked someone to fetch a handkerchief to wipe his sweat: "Look at all this sweat, you didn’t even think to go home and change before coming here. What if you catch a cold?"
He Zhenyu, with a smile seeking favor, replied: "I know mother has clothes for me here, besides, with mother here, what do I have to fear?"
Anning told him to go to another room to change clothes, then spoke to Helan Zhi.
After a while when He Zhenyu came out after changing, he heard Anning discussing with Helan Zhi about going to the hot spring manor for a few days.
He also felt somewhat tempted.
"Mother, I would like to stay there for a few days as well. It’s not that I seek enjoyment, but I’m just worried about mother and sister being there alone."
Anning, smiling, tapped He Zhenyu’s forehead: "Alright, I know you care about us. You can come along."
The three of them jokingly finalized the trip to the hot spring manor. Helan Zhi also discussed with Anning which servants to bring along and what else to carry.
Anning amiably said: "Everything is available there, I’ve asked people to prepare everything. We just need to bring the servants we are accustomed to."
Helan Zhi thought for a moment and asked: "What about father? Is he going too?"
Anning’s expression changed in an instant: "Your father... he’s busy, how could he agree to go with us."
Helan Zhi was still somewhat incredulous: "But we’re all going; leaving father alone doesn’t seem right. Father must feel very lonely. I’ll go ask father later; I believe, even though he might not be able to stay with us for long, he would at least escort us there."
Seeing that Helan Zhi was about to leave, Anning quickly pulled her back.
Anning glanced at the servants who were waiting on them and said to Xiangming: "You all go out first, the Princely Heir, the Commandery Princess, and I have something to discuss."
Xiangming complied and quickly led the servants out of the room.
Once it quieted down inside, Anning pulled Helan Zhi close and said in a low voice: "Don’t ask your father anymore; it will only annoy him."
"How could that be?"
Helan Zhi chuckled lightly: "Father wouldn’t be annoyed by me. Father has been so kind to mother; he didn’t take any concubines for her sake. This mansion is just my brother and me; father loves us so much he barely has time for anything else."
Helan Zhi’s thoughts were quite logical.
After all, over the years, Prince Kang was pristine in his conduct and always restrained when it came to women. Though he wasn’t very close to Helan Zhi and He Zhenyu, he had never mistreated them. Additionally, the opinions from others around and the teachings from Helan Zhi’s birth mother had instilled a sense of filial piety toward Prince Kang in both her and her brother.
Helan Zhi’s birth mother never knew that Prince Kang harbored feelings for the Empress Dowager, always planning for Prince Kang’s best interests. She never wanted Prince Kang to grow distant from his children, always telling them that their father loved them dearly, but was just too busy to spend more time with them.
Over time, this became the belief for both Helan Zhi and He Zhenyu.
What Anning aimed to do was to shatter these notions and reveal the truth to them.
Helan Zhi, being a few years older than Emperor Jianwu, was now a young girl of about twelve or thirteen, while He Zhenyu was about the same age as Emperor Jianwu. In ancient times, children at this age were already quite aware of their surroundings; what Anning planned to do was to make them aware of the truth, to caution them.
As Helan Zhi spoke those words with a smile, Anning looked down and started to cry.
Helan Zhi was startled: "Mother, what’s the matter... did I say something wrong?"
Anning raised her head, her complexion particularly distressed.
She pulled Helan Zhi and He Zhenyu close and said, "This... my heart is too troubled, and there’s no one I can talk to. I can only speak with you two. Lanzhi, your mother has been deeply deceived by your father."
He Zhenyu’s face turned pale immediately as he stood up abruptly: "Mother, does father have a concubine, or did he father children outside?"
That was all he could think of.
Anning cried and shook her head, her expression one of bitter helplessness: "No, it’s not that. I just realized your father has been deceiving me all along. He has never had us in his heart; he has always been thinking of the Empress Dowager."
This was a shocking revelation.
Anning’s words were earth-shattering for the children, their faces turning ashen instantly.
"No, how could that be?"
Helan Zhi was the first to disbelieve.
While wiping her tears, Anning explained: "I didn’t believe it initially either, but, Lanzhi, do you know how long I’ve investigated? Many years. Before the Empress Dowager entered the palace, she and your father were already in love. But due to the Empress Dowager’s background, she could not marry into Prince Kang Mansion. I don’t know what she was thinking when she decided to enter the palace. Afterwards, your father began to place people inside the palace to ensure that the Empress Dowager would have a comfortable life. I took a long time to discover all this."
Anning embraced Helan Zhi and then turned to He Zhenyu: "Think about it, the late Emperor had more sons than just His Majesty. His Majesty was very ordinary, less scholarly than the Eldest Prince, less martial than the Third Prince; why then did your father support him to become Emperor?"
Initially, Helan Zhi didn’t believe there was anything between Prince Kang and the Empress Dowager, but Anning’s words made her reconsider carefully all the details over the years, and how His Majesty ascended the throne, compelling her disbelief.
Anning saw both children’s expressions grow solemn and continued: "After His Majesty ascended the throne, your father frequented the palace under the guise of tutoring His Majesty, but in reality, he was there to see the Empress Dowager. Their intimate exchanges were obvious, many court ministers knew it, and so did His Majesty. His Majesty harbors deep resentment towards your father, enough to flay him and devour his flesh."
With a thud, He Zhenyu, shocked by these revelations, couldn’t sit still and fell to the ground.
Anning quickly helped him up: "Did you hurt yourself anywhere?"
He Zhenyu shook his head, his face urgent as he asked: "Does mother’s illness have anything to do with this?"
Anning nodded: "After confirming this, my heart was truly troubled. Initially, I thought although my relationship with your father wasn’t very intimate, we treated each other with mutual respect and had you two, my life was quite complete. But... all of that was false. Your father’s mind has always been on the Empress Dowager, the reason he stayed away from other women was to remain faithful to her."
Anning’s voice was especially low as she said: "Ever since you two were born, your father has never spent a night in my room. It’s not that he avoids the company of women, but rather, he avoids the company of anyone but her."
Anning’s words completely shattered the children’s last hopes.
They began to seriously ponder the relationship between Prince Kang and the Empress Dowager, as well as Emperor Jianwu’s animosity toward Prince Kang, leading them to feel increasingly alarmed.
Both children had been raised exclusively by Anning from a young age, and their emotional bond with her was extraordinary, unlike that with Prince Kang.
They began to feel aggrieved for Anning, and at the same time, their hearts ached immensely.