The Emperor, seeing that Feng Jiangduo had no particular business, merely the granddaughter of the Prince of Dingnan making her first visit to the capital, felt it was his duty as ruler to receive her, express his regards, and show his importance.
Inside the Ninghui Hall, the Emperor asked Feng Jiangduo a few perfunctory questions.
"How is the health of the Prince of Dingnan?"
"Are you accustomed to living in Duanjing?"
"What books do you like to read? What do you play?"
Feng Jiangduo answered respectfully, neither outstandingly nor incorrectly.
The Emperor nodded, seemingly quite pleased. After a moment's thought, he listed a string of jewelry, clothes, and medicinal herbs as gifts for Feng Jiangduo.
An eunuch immediately made a note of it.
Feng Jiangduo knelt and kowtowed to express her gratitude. The Emperor then asked her to visit the Empress Dowager at Cishou Palace.
Wang Qingyao then led Feng Jiangduo to the Empress Dowager's Cishou Palace.
The Empress Dowager's questions were similar to the Emperor's. After asking, she also bestowed a pile of gifts. However, the Empress Dowager specifically gave lucky money, and Wang Qingyao received a share as well.
"Hurry up and have a little prince, and I'll give him lucky money too," the Empress Dowager teased Wang Qingyao.
Wang Qingyao was not embarrassed at all and nodded with a smile, "I'm working on it."
Everyone in the palace couldn't help but laugh.
The Empress Dowager's face was creased with laughter. As she grew older, she had few other hobbies besides matchmaking and urging childbirth, eagerly awaiting the arrival of new life. It had been a long time since a child was born in the palace. Although the Emperor was still vigorous, the Empress Dowager no longer held out hope for him and placed all her hopes on the younger generation.
For example, the Prince of Ding'an, and the recently married Prince Rong...
The marriages of the Prince of Qi and the Prince of Wu had been unsuccessful, and the Emperor and Empress Dowager were already looking for new candidates.
"If you see any suitable candidates, tell me and bring them to me," the Empress Dowager instructed Wang Qingyao.
Wang Qingyao continued to nod with a smile, but in her heart, she thought she wouldn't be a matchmaker. The Prince of Qi and the Prince of Wu were both difficult characters, and she didn't want to get involved in such troubles.
While Wang Qingyao and the Empress Dowager discussed these matters, Feng Jiangduo sat quietly listening, neither arrogant nor impatient, with a serene expression. The Empress Dowager nodded inwardly, yet felt a touch of regret.
"Oh, right," the Empress Dowager said, not wanting to neglect Feng Jiangduo, turning to her, "I have an eunuch by my side whose ancestral home is also in Nanzhou. He heard you were coming and was very excited. He hasn't returned to his hometown in many years and misses it dearly."
As the Empress Dowager spoke, she ordered for the eunuch to be summoned.
This eunuch was named Changshou. He had a pale face, no beard, and was nearing sixty years of age.
Despite his advanced age, his movements were agile. After paying his respects to his superiors, he bowed to Feng Jiangduo: "This old servant, Changshou, greets the young county princess. May I ask what Nanzhou is like now? Can the county princess tell this old servant about it?"
"It's very good," Feng Jiangduo replied.
Changshou was taken aback, never expecting Feng Jiangduo to be so concise.
Wang Qingyao quickly added, "The Prince of Dingnan has governed Nanzhou for many years, and Nanzhou has changed greatly under his jurisdiction. Every household's houses are... the crops in the fields... shops line the streets, it's so lively, like a second Duanjing... Everyone praises the Prince of Dingnan for allowing them to live a prosperous life..."
Cough, cough, this was a bit of an exaggeration.
However, old eunuch Changshou listened with tears streaming down his face.
"I haven't been back to Nanzhou in forty-two years. I left Nanzhou when I was only fifteen years old..."
Even Wang Qingyao felt a pang of sadness upon hearing this.
Leaving home young and returning old, unable to go home, the accent changed, the hair turned white, and likely wouldn't be able to return to his hometown before death.
Wang Qingyao had never seen this eunuch Changshou during her previous visits to the palace. However, judging by his attire and the way other palace servants treated him, his status was likely not low. Perhaps due to his age and some past merits, the Empress Dowager, in her compassion, allowed him to stay in the palace to live out his years.
Feng Jiangduo was also deeply moved and softly asked, "Where in Nanzhou was Your Excellency's family from?"
"Ningning County."
"Who were your family members? If there are any young descendants, I can ask my family to look after them."
Eunuch Changshou's face filled with sorrow: "My parents died long ago, otherwise I wouldn't have left my hometown at such a young age. There is no one left in my family, and I entered the palace. My lineage ends with me..."
Oh, this topic was rather awkward. The topic of eunuchs having no descendants was sensitive.
Neither Wang Qingyao nor Feng Jiangduo knew how to respond and exchanged glances.
It was the Empress Dowager who broke the silence, saying, "Don't be too sad, it's all a matter of fate. Although you cannot return to Nanzhou, haven't you taken Shunfeng as a good disciple? I see that he is very filial to you, and he is now serving by the Emperor's side, often praised by the Emperor."
Only then did Eunuch Changshou show a hint of relief, saying, "It is all thanks to the Empress Dowager and the Emperor's favor..."
Wang Qingyao did have an impression of the young eunuch Shunfeng, who served by the Emperor's side. She remembered him clearly because his name was the same as a modern delivery service.
So he was this Eunuch Changshou's disciple.
Feng Jiangduo said, "Where are your parents' graves? I will have someone help to repair them..."
Eunuch Changshou was overjoyed and, with a "plop," knelt down and kowtowed to Feng Jiangduo.
Feng Jiangduo's eyelids twitched, and she quickly helped him up, fearing he might break his old bones.
Changshou wrote down the location of the graves. Upon returning, Feng Jiangduo wrote a letter to the Prince of Dingnan's mansion, specifically mentioning this matter.