The Battle of the Noble Ladies (Book 2)

Chapter 10 - Revenge

His light words rang like a thunderclap in the ears of the Empress Dowager Rongxian, leaving her pale-faced and stumbling backward, her nerves momentarily numb. The sharp, excruciating pain in her heart felt bone-deep. With all her strength, she managed to cry out a single word: "No!"

Yu Pei had already collapsed on the ground, her face a mask of panic, wanting to help the Empress Dowager but finding her body frozen and unable to move.

"This is impossible!" The Empress Dowager Rongxian staggered forward a few steps, grabbing the hand of Emperor Jianzhang, forgetting everything as she cried and laughed while screaming at him: "This isn't true... Although you detest me, you have always been good to Shijia... You wouldn't do this to her, would you?"

Emperor Jianzhang raised his narrow sword-like eyebrows, looking at the Empress Dowager with a complex expression. Once upon a time, he had treated this woman as his own mother, being extremely filial and respectful to her. Yet, she had ruthlessly sought to seize his throne, even at the cost of her own son's life; his younger brother, Prince Zhuang, had perished because of it...

His gaze shifted slightly, his throat moved a few times, and his voice came out hoarsely: "So, Mother, you have seen that I would never act against you, which is why you have grown bolder, am I right? You must have felt regret for not succeeding back then?"

The Empress Dowager Rongxian felt her body stiffen under his gaze, covering her face with her sleeve and weeping sorrowfully: "But Shijia truly doesn't know anything..."

"How do I know whether she really knows or not?!" Emperor Jianzhang's voice suddenly rose sharply: "Which of your words can I trust?! She wants the lives of my sons and grandsons! If I continue to indulge her, are you prepared to wait until she deals with me too, to bury me with her brother in the underworld?!"

He had once loved the Empress Dowager Rongxian and Princess Shijia as much as he now hated them. He believed he had been more than generous to the Empress Dowager and Princess Shijia, yet they refused to relent, repeatedly pushing against his limits.

The Empress Dowager cried as she reached out for his hand: "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, I beg you... spare Shijia..." As she spoke more urgently, she saw Emperor Jianzhang shake off her hand and turn to leave, prompting her to kneel directly on the ground.

"I have only Shijia left... Your Majesty, I beg you to spare her..." She covered her face with both hands, finally breaking down in tears.

Emperor Jianzhang looked on coldly, feeling a strange lack of emotion in his heart: "If everything in this world could be resolved with a kneel, how wonderful that would be." He watched as the Empress Dowager Rongxian suddenly raised her head, a bitter smile hanging at the corners of his mouth. "It's too late, Mother. She wants to kill my sons and grandsons, and she refuses to hand over the antidote until her dying breath... I have no choice but to let her accompany Prince Tai."

The Empress Dowager Rongxian couldn't comprehend the meaning of his last sentence. Seeing Emperor Jianzhang about to leave, she instinctively stood up to chase after him. However, her skirt was too long, and in her haste, she accidentally stepped on it, leaning forward abruptly and tumbling down the steps, rolling down and colliding with the small table she had just overturned. She rolled her eyes back and lost consciousness.

Emperor Jianzhang coldly observed the palace maids, led by Yu Pei, rushing to surround the Empress Dowager. After a long pause, he finally instructed Eunuch Feng in a deep voice: "Summon the Imperial Physician."

The news of Princess Shijia practicing witchcraft quickly spread throughout the court, causing an uproar. The censors submitted petitions demanding the Emperor impose severe punishment—since the founding of the dynasty, witchcraft and hexing had been strictly forbidden. However, Princess Shijia had used witchcraft to curse her own mother, which was a heinous act against morality.

Yet, Emperor Jianzhang hesitated to make a decision. When the Empress met with the court ladies on the first day of the month, she sighed, reminding everyone that Princess Shijia was the Dowager's biological daughter and the Emperor's own sister... The Emperor's mercy made it hard for him to take harsh measures.

Just then, the Empress Dowager, the Crown Prince, and the Heir Apparent fell ill one after another. The Imperial Astronomical Bureau predicted that a malevolent star clashed with the Purple Star, and the rumors surrounding Princess Shijia's witchcraft grew louder.

In such circumstances, the petitions demanding severe punishment for Princess Shijia piled up before Emperor Jianzhang. Under this bombardment of public opinion, he finally made a painful decision to sentence Princess Shijia to death.

An illegitimate grandson from the Zhang family, who assisted Princess Shijia in her witchcraft, was also implicated for being involved with her and was the one who introduced her to the shaman. He was sentenced to be executed in public.

The next day, Lord Zhang submitted a petition requesting retirement, claiming that his household management was lax, allowing such disloyal and unfilial people to emerge. He stated that he was incapable of maintaining his family's honor and dared not continue to occupy a position in the cabinet, merely living off the title.

Emperor Jianzhang retained him several times, but Lord Zhang insisted on resigning and returning home. Reluctantly, Emperor Jianzhang granted his request.

On October 24th, Master Zhang, the Celestial Master of Longhu Mountain, came to the capital to pray for the Empress Dowager and others. Although the Empress Dowager showed some improvement in her condition, her spirits declined day by day, remaining in a daze and confused.

The Crown Prince and his son also gradually improved. After Master Zhang's prayers, several noble children showed some signs of recovery, further solidifying the charges against Princess Shijia for practicing witchcraft.

On October 27th, the emperor rewarded Princess Shijia with a cup of poisoned wine, and her estate was confiscated.

This battle resulted in a complete victory for the Crown Prince's side.

Lord Chen let out a huge sigh of relief, looking at Old Lady Chen with a smirk: "Now do you understand why I didn't let you meet the Zhang family before?"

Old Lady Chen secretly wiped her sweat, feeling a lingering fear of survival: "Do you really trust His Highness the Heir Apparent this much? If any misstep occurs, we could... we could be finished."

"That's a woman's perspective," Lord Chen glanced at her. "Throughout history, wealth and power have always come through peril. If you want to protect yourself while also seeking glory and wealth, how can such a good thing exist? The Zhang family has always disagreed with my political views; last time, they even tried to use the incident in Tongzhou to trample me down. If I have the opportunity to bring them down and gain favor with the Crown Prince, why wouldn't I act?"

Old Lady Chen had no words to say, lowering her head for a while before sighing: "But His Highness the Heir Apparent is so young, yet he has such deep schemes and extraordinary means... He can ruthlessly use himself as bait; this kind of courage may not even be found in the Crown Prince. A dragon among men... how could he willingly let others control him? One day, aren't you afraid that the birds will be exhausted and the good bows hidden?"

Lord Chen's somewhat murky gaze instantly sharpened as he looked at Madam Chen, revealing a sinister smile: "So you need to teach Mingyu well. If Mingyu becomes Crown Princess, and if she can learn even a fraction of the skills of the Lu family's women, she will naturally be able to keep the Grandson of the Emperor firmly in her grasp. Look at how the Lu family is doing now? In the future, we might not be able to become another Lu family!"