Chapter 385: Volume 1 Chapter 385 The Empress Dowager in Utter Disappointment

The Empress Dowager glanced at Su Ying, then slowly withdrew her gaze without speaking.

Su Ying watched the Empress Dowager's expression, feeling very uneasy; this aunt was unfamiliar to her, and she clenched the handkerchief in her grasp into a tight knot.

Madam Su entered quickly, bowed to the Empress Dowager and asked after her health, "Your Majesty, I, your humble wife, pay my respects, Empress Dowager, may you be well."

"Rise and sit to speak." The Empress Dowager had not seen her sister-in-law for a long time, and at this moment she seemed a little dazed upon seeing her.

After taking her seat, Madam Su made small talk with the Empress Dowager, first inquiring about her health, then conveying her husband's concern for the Empress Dowager.

The Empress Dowager's expression softened a bit as she looked at her sister-in-law and asked, "How has elder brother been lately?"

Madam Su sighed lightly, "Empress Dowager, you are well aware of the current situation at court; how could things be fine? My husband sighs daily at home, his brows forever furrowed."

Su Ying listened to her mother's words and cautiously observed the Empress Dowager's expression, but saw the Empress Dowager's face remain calm, showing no sign of emotion; Su Ying's unease deepened further.

Su Ying steadied herself and said decisively, "Aunt, the family is waiting for you to give a decision; please say something."

Madam Su turned her head to look at her daughter upon hearing this, and saw her give a subtle signal. Madam Su frowned slightly, yet followed her daughter's cue and said, "Empress Dowager, my lord now walks on thin ice at court, cautious in every step, yet he is still impeached. Please, Your Majesty, intervene on my husband's behalf."

The Empress Dowager listened to her elder sister-in-law's evasive words and to her niece pressuring her with the Su family; the already unwell pallor of her face grew even more ashen.

Suddenly, the Empress Dowager recalled the Empress's words; the more she tried not to think of them, the more they churned in her mind, becoming ever clearer.

She stared calmly at her sister-in-law, "What can an Empress Dowager decide about court affairs? Now the new ruler is in power; since other noble families have already made a decision, why can't the Su family?"

"What?" Madam Su was stunned, thinking she had misheard; when would the Empress Dowager ever take such a stance toward the Su family?

Su Ying's bad premonition came true, and her complexion turned instantly ashen.

The Empress Dowager looked at Madam Su, "His Majesty is implementing new policies; each noble family is to return excess land and slaves to the court. Others can do it, so why can't the Su family? Sister-in-law, elder brother still refuses to make the initial decision; has he ever thought of me, his sister? I am His Majesty's mother, the Empress Dowager of the nation; countless eyes are on me. Has elder brother ever considered how I must face His Majesty, how I must answer Him? Families with no ties to His Majesty are willing to support his new policies, yet His Majesty's maternal relatives constantly obstruct. You ask me what to do? I also ask you what I can do?"

"Empress Dowager, calm yourself!" Madam Su sprang to her feet; her mind raced. She knew the Empress Dowager was truly angry, but the Empress Dowager had never been like this before—how did she change so suddenly?

"Aunt, please don't be angry." Su Ying quickly rose and gently pleaded, "Aunt, it's not that Father refuses to consider your interests; you know the Su family's holdings are not as deeply rooted as other noble houses. If we were to surrender lands outside the register, the Su family's foundation would be completely emptied. Aunt, it's not that Father is unwilling, but truly unable to give them up. If we hand them over, how will our household survive?"

The Empress Dowager's last sliver of hope was extinguished by Su Ying's words; the niece she had cherished for so many years turned out to be so selfish at heart.

She had exhausted herself for the Su family, constantly planning for elder brother, even to the point of opposing her own son; and what was the result?

Rong Luoge's words echoed in her mind now; they were plainly calm, yet recalling them each word cut like a knife, each sentence scraped bone, the pain making even her breathing feel like her heart was being torn apart.

"Others can do it; why can't the Su family?" The Empress Dowager found her voice unusually calm—so calm that even she was surprised. She had expected herself to be furious, her voice trembling, but it was not.

It turned out that when disappointment reaches its peak, a person truly becomes calm.

"Empress Dowager?" Madam Su glanced at her daughter, utterly clueless about what had caused such a drastic shift in the Empress Dowager. "Empress Dowager, you are aware of the situation in the mansion; years ago a massive tract of land was transferred out, and the later entries in the register were all hidden from view. If we hand those over, the Su family's holdings would be almost entirely gone, with hundreds of members in the household—how will we manage food and daily needs? This is no small expense."

"How many masters does the household truly have, that it needs hundreds of slaves?" the Empress Dowager asked Madam Su, her mind unusually clear at that moment. "Disband most of the slaves, keeping only enough for use. All surplus lands beyond the ancestral registers should be handed to the court. Moreover, the Su family's black households should be immediately dissolved. Only by doing this can the Su family remain safe. If you persist in refusing, then any future trouble the Su family encounters need not be brought to me."

"Empress Dowager?" Madam Su was startled. "Is the Empress Dowager abandoning the Su family? How can that be acceptable?"

"Because of the Su family, I was willing to fall out with my son. Now His Majesty is indifferent toward me, his birth mother, so you think His Majesty will still forgive the Su family out of maternal affection?" the Empress Dowager sneered. "That is all I have to say; as for how to act, when you return, discuss it with elder brother—whether he listens is his own matter."

After speaking, the Empress Dowager rose, gave no further glance to Madam Su or Su Ying, and, leaning on a palace attendant's arm, entered the inner hall.

Madam Su's face turned ashen; she immediately turned to her daughter, "What on earth is happening?"

Su Ying shook her head, "I don't know either."

Su Ying walked to her mother's side; after all, they were in Fu Ning Palace, and some matters were not easy to speak openly. She whispered into her mother's ear, "The Empress came to see Aunt, and Aunt sent me away. I don't know what the Empress said, but Aunt turned into this."

Madam Su's brows knit tightly at the words; the Empress Dowager's mention of her mother‑son relationship with His Majesty made her extremely irritated. It seemed the Empress had persuaded the Empress Dowager through that point.

His Majesty and the Empress Dowager indeed have a cold relationship, so now the Empress Dowager blames everything on the Su family?

Madam Su suppressed her irritation, looked up at her daughter, "You've been in the palace so long, have you ever…?"

Su Ying's complexion turned dark.

Madam Su saw it and realized that, likely because of the Su family, His Majesty does not regard the daughter, so there is no favor at all.

Moreover, the Empress is formidable, monopolizing His Majesty; it is extremely hard to get a share of the spoils.

"The Empress Dowager didn't help you?" Madam Su's words carried a hint of resentment; originally the Empress Dowager insisted on letting Su Ying enter the palace, and she thought the Empress Dowager would be fully confident—so what was the result?