Chapter 176: Empress Dowager Li Reveals Her True Feelings

Five days passed in a flash since the new marriage.

Following the awakening of Zhang Juzheng, the officialdom of the entire Beijing city fell silent once again. For five consecutive days, the number of officials who came to visit and requested an audience with the Senior Grand Secretary to express their loyalty was countless.

There were old subordinates of the Zhang Family, and there were fence-sitters who swayed with the wind.

Even when the Senior Grand Secretary was not awake, the Zhang Family still enjoyed immense favor; now that the Senior Grand Secretary had awakened, which of those officials with ulterior motives would dare to act presumptuously?

At this moment, they were eager to set aside their pride and play the part of a groveling coward before the guards at the gate.

They only prayed to be able to enter and see the Senior Grand Secretary to demonstrate their "filial piety."

Zhang Yunxiu used the excuse that his father's health had just recovered and he was not fit to receive guests, blocking them all away.

These past few days, he was a newlywed, and the young couple was as inseparable as glue and lacquer, wishing to carry the other wherever they went, just like a kangaroo.

Added to this was the fact that his father had recently awakened, putting Zhang Yunxiu in a great mood, and he had such a beautiful woman by his side. After several days of indulgence, even with Zhang Yunxiu's iron-willed body, he was gradually starting to find it hard to bear.

This morning, Zhang Yunxiu had just led Xu Ruoxi to the parlor to sit down.

Suddenly, Zhang Fu walked in from outside the gate with a fawning smile, saying that the Empress Dowager had an imperial decree to summon Xu Ruoxi into the palace.

Xu Ruoxi was startled and looked timidly at her husband, asking, "Husband, what business could the Empress Dowager have with me?"

"I don't know, Zhang Fu, you tell her." Zhang Yunxiu intended to tease her and pointed at Zhang Fu to ask.

Zhang Fu received the order and answered with a beaming smile, "This servant heard from the Eunuch who delivered the decree in the palace that the Empress Dowager was overjoyed to hear that the Master had awakened, and that same day she prayed to the Bodhisattva and burned incense to fulfill her vows. Inviting the Young Mistress into the palace today is most likely because the Master has awakened."

Xu Ruoxi suddenly realized.

Soon, however, she felt a bit embarrassed.

Life, old age, sickness, and death are all determined by fate; her father-in-law's illness had nothing to do with her. It was just... just that he was meant to get better, and she happened to have married in, just a coincidence.

Now, everyone in the Zhang Family attributed this credit to her.

She only felt as if she were walking on thin ice.

Seeing his wife's trepidation, Zhang Yunxiu smiled and rubbed her head: "Go ahead, the Empress Dowager is a very good person, approachable, dignified, and generous. Just treat her as an elder."

"Oh." Xu Ruoxi nodded in agreement, then asked, "Then, Husband, are you going? Why don't you go into the palace with me?"

She was unfamiliar with the capital, not to mention the deep, forbidden chambers of the palace.

If her husband also went, she would feel much more at ease.

"What, you can't bear to be away from me after only such a short while?" Zhang Yunxiu teased with a smile, then shook his head, "The Empress Dowager only named you for an audience, not me; how would I dare enter the palace without a summons?"

Having said that, he ordered someone to take Xu Ruoxi to change her clothes and send her into the palace.

Inside Cining Palace.

Li Taihou stood leaning over a table, on which was placed a piece of top-grade four-foot rice paper reserved for the imperial family.

She picked up a snow-white mouse-whisker brush and wrote lightly upon it.

"Returning to the Yan market in the second month, fluttering with righteousness, trailing long robes."

"The Ganquan Rhapsody remains unsold at the Golden Gate; in the Profound Chamber, who is there to ask about the void?"

"The Supreme One ignites the eastern wall lamp at night; the Heavenly Pool occasionally transforms into the Northern Darkness fish."

"Heaven and earth float with spring colors year after year; jade pendants of ministers and generals serve in the forbidden chambers."

After finishing, Li Taihou also wrote an inscription after the poem: "Respectfully transcribed from the poems of Master Taiyue."

Subsequently, he also took his own great seal and stamped it on.

This was Zhang Juzheng in the twenty-sixth year of the Jiajing reign; at that time, he was only twenty-three years old. Upon entering the capital and seeing the dukes and nobles in their fine clothes and spirited horses, he was not discouraged, but rather confident in his own vast learning.

Thus, he took up his brush and wrote this poem.

Secretly making a vow to reach the pinnacle of officialdom!

That year, he placed ninth in the Second Rank and was selected as a Bachelor of the Hanlin Academy.

Now, as Li Taihou read it, he only felt the youthful spirit surging.

He seemed to see a free and unrestrained talent leaping out from the paper. Amidst his joy, the manager Wan He came to report: "Empress Dowager, the Zhang Family's young mistress has arrived."

"Ah, she arrived so quickly." Li Taihou was slightly surprised, then put away the rice paper and pointed at Wan He, instructing: "Lead this young mistress to the Flower Hall; I am going to change my clothes."

Soon, Li Taihou changed into a Six-fold Pleated Skirt made of Western cloth, thin as cicada wings and white as snow, and walked into the Flower Hall.

With bright eyes and white teeth, and a graceful temperament, she made one not dare to harbor the slightest bit of profanity.

Seeing her, Xu Ruoxi hurriedly stood up and bowed to Li Taihou, saying: "Your humble servant Xu Ruoxi pays respects to the Empress Dowager; may the Empress Dowager live for a thousand years, ten thousand years."

Li Taihou covered her lips and smiled, swaying with lotus steps as she stepped forward to personally help Xu Ruoxi up and seat her on the embroidered couch.

The two sat side by side.

Li Taihou stretched out her palm, touched Xu Ruoxi's fair chin, and then sized up her fluttering almond eyes before smiling and sighing: "Truly a jade complexion and flower-like face, a beauty that could topple a city, and the scent of ink all over your body."

"The Empress Dowager praises me too much; I fear I am unworthy of such words," Xu Ruoxi answered nervously.

"Don't be nervous; you, just treat this place as your own home." Seeing Xu Ruoxi's nervousness, Li Taihou held her hands and comforted her, "You are the granddaughter of Grand Tutor Xu; it is only right that I treat you as a junior."

Xu Ruoxi nodded, her tense body relaxing slightly.

"By rights, you young couple are newlyweds, and I shouldn't disturb you. But I am bored alone in this deep palace, and I heard that you, Young Mistress, are a master of the guzheng, so I wanted to have you listen to some music with me."

As Li Taihou spoke, she clapped her hands and called out: "Someone, come here."

Immediately, seven or eight young and beautiful palace maids walked out slowly, holding stringed instruments and guzheng.

The group first curtsied, then each sat down, their jade fingers plucking lightly as they began to sing in low, soft voices. For a time, the hall was filled with endless music, and the melodious singing spread throughout the hall.

"Thinking of deep affection, unable to cast aside his thick feelings."

"Waking up in the early morning, feeling dull and melancholy; the peach-red gauze canopy hangs with golden hooks."

"Lonely and alone, without company."

"Too lazy to face the mirror, fearing to comb my hair."

"Who can keep the love, who can keep the love?"

"..."

The voice was melodious yet sorrowful; Xu Ruoxi felt a sting in her nose and looked to the side involuntarily. She saw that Li Taihou's eyes were red, and several crystalline, hot tears rolled down his fair cheeks.

The song ended.

Li Taihou wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes and said in as calm a tone as possible, "Ruoxi, you are a person with good fortune; the most important thing for a woman in this life is a man's heart."

"I see that the boy from the Zhang Family is not a fickle person; you two must live your lives well."

Xu Ruoxi did not know why the Empress Dowager would say these things, but since she had already spoken, Xu Ruoxi could only nod in agreement: "Rest assured, Empress Dowager, this concubine will naturally serve her parents-in-law well and be a devoted wife and mother."

"Mm." Li Taihou nodded with a smile and pulled Xu Ruoxi over to the window.

Outside the window, the breeze was gentle, the day was beautiful, and the bright sun was shining high.

The golden sunlight spilled down in abundance from the dome, falling onto the flower garden in the courtyard and refracting an unusual brilliance. A gust of wind blew, bringing with it a refreshing floral fragrance.

Li Taihou turned his head and reached out a jade hand to stroke Xu Ruoxi's cheek.

Then, he took a jade hairpin from his head and inserted it into Xu Ruoxi's hair: "Truly beautiful; being young is good after all."

"Empress Dowager."

Xu Ruoxi called out nervously. Li Taihou shook his head with a smile and waved his hand, saying, "That's enough. Just come into the palace to keep me company when you have nothing to do, so I won't be lonely in here all by myself."

"As long as the Empress Dowager summons me, Ruoxi can arrive at any time," Xu Ruoxi replied hurriedly.

"Hehehe, if I were to summon you in the middle of the night and your husband couldn't find you, wouldn't he be worried sick?" Li Taihou paused for a few seconds, then burst into laughter, rocking back and forth.

The palace maids who had not yet left were also stunned.

It had been a long time since they had seen Li Taihou laugh so unrestrainedly.

(End of this chapter)