The Empress’ Gift

　　The Lu family had just received the gift that the eighth prince had asked Xuan Tian Ming to deliver. Suddenly hearing that the Empress had rewarded them with something, they were dazed for a moment. The three stood in place while looking at each other. Nobody could understand what was going on. It was Ge shi that was the first to ask: “It feels like Her Highness the Empress has never treated our Lu family particularly well? Why would she suddenly send something?”

　　Lu Song furrowed his brows but did not speak. Lu Yan, however, expressed her own thoughts: “There isn’t anything strange about it. The Empress is the master of the inner palace. Father is the prime minister of the court, and our family does not have anyone in the palace. In the past, it was natural that we could not have any relationship with the Empress. It’s not like she would curry favor with the prime minister. But now, things are different. Daughter and His Highness the eighth prince’s marriage has been determined. It seems that His Majesty will personally sanction the marriage at the new year. As the master of the inner palace, it’s natural that the Empress must express herself.”

　　Lu Yan’s analysis was reasonable, and Ge shi expressed her approval upon hearing it by repeatedly nodding. Lu Song did not have much to say, and the housekeeper was already hurrying them from the side, as the person outside was still waiting, thus they quickly arranged for that person to be brought inside.

　　With the manor’s gates opened, a mighty group of palace maids and eunuchs entered. They all held something in their hands. There were bolts of silks and satins, and there were boxes of accessories. The sight of this caused Lu Yan’s eyes to stare straight ahead. Since being suppressed by the Yao family, the Lu family had already lost all of its businesses on the outside, thus they were given a sudden feeling as if they had made a step towards a resurgence.

　　It had to be said that the impact these nice things had could not affect Lu Song, but the head palace maid that brought these things caused Lu Song to feel overwhelmed by unexpected favor. Upon seeing who had come, even if he was the prime minister, he quickly took a few steps forward and received them, taking the initiative to greet: “Who knew that it would be Aunty Fang Yi who would personally come. Please excuse this old official for not going out to meet you. I hope that aunty will not blame us!” The so-called aunty was nothing more than an honorific title. It was not determined by age. Lu Song was definitely much older than Fang Yi, but the people in the palace all referred to Fang Yi as aunty, thus he also did the same.

　　The person that was leading the group in delivering the gifts was indeed Fang Yi. Seeing Lu Song, she acted kindly. While smiling, she said that Lord Lu was too polite and personally handed over a box, “Her Highness the Empress advised this servant to personally hand this to Lord Prime Minister Lu. This is something that was awarded a few days ago by the Emperor. It’s an extremely high-quality item that was brought into the palace. The palace only received a total of two boxes, and his Majesty awarded one box to Imperial Concubine Yun and one to Her Highness the Empress.”

　　Lu Song received it and opened it to take a look. Inside was a full box of edible bird nest, and there were 12 portions. The bird nests were moderate in size and were scarlet in color. They were indeed extremely high-quality goods. Hearing Fang Yi say that the palace only received two boxes, the Empress would definitely receive one as the dignified ruler of the inner palace, and the other portion was given to Imperial Concubine Yun. Imperial Concubine Yun’s place in the Emperor’s heart was something that everyone knew about. It could be seen just how precious this item was. It was truly impossible to imagine, and it was even more impossible to estimate its value in gold or silver.

　　“Her Highness the Empress has said that she has gotten up there in age. For her to use these things, it would be a waste, and it would be better to send it to the Lu manor and the future princess of the eighth prince.” Fang Yi said with a smile: “Lord Prime Minister, quickly accept it. Remember to have the kitchen prepare a bowl for the young miss each day. These things can’t be kept for a long period of time. It would be best for them to all be consumed.” While she spoke, she giggled and looked toward Lu Yan, reminding her: “I fear that Young Miss still hasn’t had a chance to properly meet His Highness the eighth prince yet, right? His Highness will be back by the time of the palace banquet on new year’s. Before this, Young Miss needs to take care of yourself, so that you can be very beautiful when meeting His Highness the eighth prince.”

　　Lu Yan heard these words, and her face turned bright red, but she was also emotional. Upon thinking that she would be able to see the eighth prince in a few more days, her heart began to race uncontrollably. Lu Song also repeatedly gave thanks and invited Fang Yi into the hall to drink some tea; however, Fang Yi waved her hand and refused: “No, this servant must go back and report to Her Highness. My Lord should focus on the young miss. Having the bird nest prepared is truly most important.” After saying this, she said to Lu Yan: “This servant will congratulate Young Miss ahead of time.”

　　Lu Yan gratefully returned a salute with rosy cheeks. This was quite a beautiful sight.

　　Ge shi had already arranged for servants to receive the items that the palace maids and eunuchs were holding. She then received a cloth bundle from her maidservant and insisted on handing it to Fang Yi, thus Fang Yi accepted it. After feeling it a bit, she laughed internally. Ever since the Lu family had their financial supplies cut off by the Yao family, the manor was living frugally. It was possible that this pouch of silver was the salary that Lu Song had just received a short time ago, right?

　　Her guess was correct. That pouch of silver was indeed one month of Lu Song’s salary, and it had just been provided the previous day. The Lu family had only kept 10 taels for themselves, and they had not had time to distribute the rest, yet they now had to give it to Fang Yi. After Fang Yi left, Ge shi was quite distressed; however, she still gritted her teeth and said: “Even if our manor will be living poorly, we cannot afford to lose face.”

　　Lu Song nodded and said in approval: “That’s right. Fang Yi is Her Highness the Empress’ personal head palace maid, and so many things were given. Normally speaking, that bit of silver is not even presentable, but there’s nothing that can be done. Our manor is only able to present that much. When the day comes that we can stage a comeback, we need to remember Her Highness the Empress’ kind intentions. We need to prepare some money for the courts to pave the road for Yan’er.”

　　Ge shi echoed this sentiment: “That’s right. The eighth prince’s birth mother has already been demoted to noble lady. Based on her personality, who knows what sort of trouble she might cause. Who even knows if she will even be around when His Highness the eighth prince appears. But the Empress of the central palace is different. She has dignity, understands basic principles and does not have a child of her own. In the future, regardless of which prince assumes the throne, she will become the Empress Dowager. This sort of person needs to be fawned on properly.” As she spoke, she grabbed Lu Yan’s hand and said: “When the Emperor has sanctioned the marriage at the new year’s banquet, head into the palace a bit more. You need to frequently go and pay respects to the Empress and take care of her. Of course, Noble Lady Yuan’s side cannot be neglected. Don’t listen to what your mother and father have said, as His Highness the eighth prince regards his birth mother as quite important. For the sake of His Highness the eighth prince, we absolutely must not create a divide with Noble Lady Yuan, understand?”

　　Lu Yan nodded, “Father, Mother, don’t worry. Daughter has remembered it. No matter what, Noble Lady Yuan will not be neglected. Even if her status has dropped, she is still His Highness the eighth prince’s birth mother. This is something that will never change.”

　　Lu Song and his wife heard their daughter speak reasonably and felt at ease. Lu Song handed the bird nests to Ge shi, and Ge shi immediately had the servants prepare a bowl for Lu Yan to drink. The mother and daughter chatted and laughed on their way back to their courtyard. The remaining Lu Song continued to stand in the yard and gradually began to frown.

　　He could not accurately pinpoint the reason, but he continued to feel a little uneasy. It was as though none of this was real, and this left him a little unable to grasp the reality of the situation. He feared that it would all disappear like an illusion if the slightest mistake occurred.

　　The new year was approaching ever closer. Three days before the new year, Xu shi secretly went to the imperial daughter’s manor and gave Feng Yu Heng a number of things. They were some smaller items in the vein of jewelry and some pastries that she had personally made. She told Feng Yu Heng: “We thought at first about making you a new set of clothes, but making clothes would be a bit too conspicuous. After all, the Yao manor does not have any girls around your age, and if I had someone make the clothes, I fear that it would be seen through.” While she spoke, she averted her gaze and wiped away some tears. When she turned back around, she continued: “The jewelry were things that I had secretly prepared. The pastries were also made in my own little kitchen. Don’t worry. Nobody knows about them.”

　　While Xu shi spoke, she sighed. Feng Yu Heng’s heart also hurt from seeing this, but there was nothing that could be done. She could only tell Xu shi: “Just endure a little longer. This is all just temporary, and there will come a day when things will get better.”

　　Xu shi, however, did not have high hopes. She even worriedly said: “Will it get better? A few days ago, I heard your grandfather say that Qian Rou went to the South. A-Heng, I’ll say something and hope you will not blame me. Qian Rou, hah, I pitied her in the past, but now there is hate in my heart. I just can’t understand. As someone that is a mother, how can her heart be so vicious? Even if there is a divide with you, doesn’t she still have Zi Rui? Her acknowledging that girl called Fu Ya was already a huge farce to the people in the capital. She goes and calls another person her daughter and allows other people to poke at your backbone. How can Zi Rui possibly feel good?”

　　With Zi Rui being mentioned, Feng Yu Heng also felt helpless. It was about to be the new year, and she had already sent people to Xiao Zhou to pick him up. This time, Xuan Tian Ming had mobilized quite a few of his own people, thus she did not send anyone from her side. Counting the days, he would be returning to the capital within the next two days. But the current situation in the capital, she still had not figured out how she would explain it to that child. After all, that child was still young. After all, he was Yao shi’s flesh and blood. In regards to blood relations, they would be far more important for him. Would Zi Rui be able to endure this situation?

　　Xu shi could also see her helplessness and could only comfort her: “Don’t think about it too much. Either way, it’s already become like this. Zi Rui is an understanding child. Aunty feels that he will not have too much of a hard time understanding. After all, he also knew about Qian Rou’s previous situation. Aunty is just worried about you. In four months, you will become of marriageable age. Your marriage to His Highness the ninth prince will also need to be handled soon. But now, you don’t have any relatives to rely on. How would the marriage be conducted? Aunty thought about it, and this play will continue until the end of the year. A-Heng, don’t waste your time worrying about other people. Your grandfather and your three uncles have all spoken. Our Yao family is not afraid of being implicated. We cannot allow you to be thrown out on your own. After the new year, we will find a reason at the start of the first month for the two families to reconcile. This way, the family can conduct the wedding for you.”

　　When Xu shi mentioned this, Feng Yu Heng felt that the timing of things was a bit tight. In the past, she felt that she was still far from becoming of marriageable age, but it was now the 12th month. When it reached the fourth month of the lunar calendar, would her birthday not have come? Speaking of this matter, she really had not put in much thought. Conducting a wedding was not something that she could do alone, and she did not want this wedding to be done carelessly. Thinking like this, she really did need the Yao family’s help.

　　But… “Aunty, allow me to think about it!” In the end, she was still worried that this would cause trouble for the Yao family, especially when the eighth prince would be returning to the capital for the new year. She still did not know how much of a disturbance would be caused. Ever since the year that Yao shi had been given that drug, she had been especially careful about her relationships, fearing that another person would be harmed because of her. Now, whether or not she would perform a play to reconcile with the Yao family was a matter that she really needed to carefully consider.

　　She stealthily sent Xu shi back and agreed that she would definitely give the Yao family an answer before the 15th of the first month. Only then was Xu shi willing to leave.

　　Feng Yu Heng’s heart was also a mess, and she simply went to the medicine storage room, not allowing anyone outside to disturb her. She then dove into her space and thought of taking a hot shower; however, she froze in the instant that she entered.

　　Her space… how did it become like this?