As for Leng Yuánxiāng and Qin Míngzhū, they met like sworn enemies, their eyes burning with hatred. Neither could stand the sight of the other, and their days in the cold palace were spent in constant arguments.
"Leng Yuánxiāng, I'll be out soon. From now on, you can stay here in the cold palace all by yourself!" Qin Míngzhū, upon receiving the news that she would definitively leave the cold palace, rushed to Leng Yuánxiāng to gloat.
"What? How can you, a murderer, get out? I refuse to accept this! I want to demand an explanation from Situ Chuānqióng!" Leng Yuánxiāng was furious upon hearing this.
"Murderer? Who knows if you had a child with some other man and framed me when you found out there was a problem with the birth!" Qin Míngzhū was not one to be outdone. "You even dare to utter the Emperor's name directly? Truly, you've forgotten your place after a brief period of favor!"
"Qin Míngzhū, you vile woman, clean up your mouth!" Seeing that the wicked woman who caused her to miscarry dared to slander her so, Leng Yuánxiāng shouted in anger, "Guards! Guards! I want to see Situ Chuānqióng!"
"You're the vile one! Back then, I thought the Empress was my only obstacle, but I never expected you, this quiet woman, to be the most formidable!" Qin Míngzhū couldn't help but gloat, thinking of Leng Yuánxiāng's current plight. "But you brought this upon yourself. The Emperor treated you so well, even using the Empress as a shield for you, and yet you dared to cheat on him?"
"What happens between him and me is none of your business!" Leng Yuánxiāng felt a pang of guilt on this point, but she still shouted as she walked towards the exit, "Let me out, I want to see the Emperor!"
The guards at the cold palace gate extended their halberds, crossing them to block her. With a blank expression, one said, "Your Highness, please return. No one from the cold palace may leave without the Emperor's command!"
Leng Yuánxiāng dropped her pretense of being a modern woman who believed in equality and began to scold them. "You dogs, how dare you disobey me! When I see the Emperor, I'll have your heads chopped off!"
"Your Highness, please return. This is the Emperor's order, and we are merely following it. Your Highness, please do not make things difficult for us." With the Emperor's verbal decree, the guards were unafraid of Leng Yuánxiāng's threats.
"I say, Leng Yuánxiāng, save your breath! You've disgraced the Emperor so much, how dare you show your face to him again!" Qin Míngzhū said mockingly from the side. "I think it's the Emperor's greatest mercy that he hasn't taken your life yet! If I were you, I would have already hanged myself with a white silk ribbon!"
"Qin Míngzhū, shut up!" Leng Yuánxiāng's voice was bordering on hysteria.
"Tch! You think I enjoy talking to you?" Qin Míngzhū picked up her packed belongings. "I've long wanted to leave this wretched place. You can just grow old and die alone in the cold palace!"
With that, Qin Míngzhū burst into laughter and strode out of the cold palace gates, leaving in a flourish.
The two guards, who had already received their orders, did not try to stop her at all.
Seeing this, Leng Yuánxiāng was so enraged she felt like spitting blood. She stared hatefully at Qin Míngzhū's retreating back, grinding her teeth in frustration, but could do nothing. She could only return to her room in anger.
A while later, Wáng Yòu emerged from a corner.
"Eunuch Wáng!" the two guards said respectfully in unison as they bowed.
"You have done well!" Wáng Yòu first affirmed the guards and then said meaningfully, "In a few more days, our valiant Empress will return. She fought on the battlefield for our Great Dìng Dynasty. We cannot let any blind ants tarnish her eyes!"
"We understand!" The two guards exchanged glances, their minds quickly grasping the meaning behind Wáng Yòu's words. "We will certainly keep a close eye on the cold palace!"
"Good!" Wáng Yòu nodded and left to prepare for the celebratory arrangements. Those brats, if he didn't keep an eye on them, they'd surely mess things up!
Three days later, Chǔ Yǔlán (Xiāo Wénqiáng) and Zhāng Jiàn returned with their troops.
As soon as they entered the city gates, the common people spontaneously lined the streets to welcome them.
"General Chǔ is back! Thank you, General Chǔ!"
"General Zhāng, you are so mighty!"
"General Chǔ is also our Great Dìng Dynasty's Empress!"
"Is General Zhāng still unmarried? I wonder which young lady has the fortune this time?"
"Her Highness the Empress has a benevolent heart, capable of both pacifying the inner court and fighting on the battlefield. Truly, a blessing to our Great Dìng Dynasty!"
...
The common people praised them while whispering to each other. In this atmosphere, Chǔ Yǔlán (Xiāo Wénqiáng) and Zhāng Jiàn arrived at the palace gates.
The two dismounted in tacit understanding and then entered the grand hall where discussions were held, still clad in their armor.
"Your subject, Zhāng Jiàn, pays his respects to Your Majesty!"
"Your subject, Chǔ Yǔlán, pays her respects to Your Majesty!"
Two strong, clear voices rang out simultaneously as they bowed to Situ Chuānqióng, who was seated on the high throne in the hall.
"Both esteemed ministers are dismissed." Situ Chuānqióng was in a very good mood, smiling as he said, "You have performed great deeds this time. Do you have any wishes? Speak them, and I shall grant them for you!"
Zhāng Jiàn looked at Chǔ Yǔlán. After an exchange of glances, he spoke first. "Your subject has no particular wish, only that I admire the fourth daughter of Minister Liú. I humbly request Your Majesty to bestow a marriage upon us!"
Minister Liú was among the officials. Upon hearing this, his face beamed with joy. This Zhāng Jiàn had always been on good terms with his fourth daughter, but before, his status as the top scholar in military arts was not high enough for him to be willing to marry his daughter to him. Now that he had returned triumphantly and been appointed as the Grand General who Guards the Nation, with the Emperor's bestowal of marriage, it would naturally be even better.
"Such a small wish, I grant it!" Situ Chuānqióng also saw Minister Liú's expression and was naturally willing to play matchmaker.
"Then what about my Lán'ér? Do you have any wishes or desires for rewards? Quickly tell me!" Situ Chuānqióng asked again.
"To be able to share Your Majesty's burdens and fight for the Great Dìng Dynasty is my concubine's fortune. I dare not ask for any rewards!" Chǔ Yǔlán now referred to herself as "this concubine," clearly speaking in the capacity of Empress.
"Alas! General Zhāng received a reward, how can Lán'ér not? If this gets out, people will think I treat you unfairly!" Situ Chuānqióng continued to press, even making a rare joke.
"Since Your Majesty insists, then this concubine will boldly state one wish?" Chǔ Yǔlán raised her eyes to look at Situ Chuānqióng.
"Speak freely!" The man on the high throne waved his hand.
"This concubine humbly requests Your Majesty to overturn the case for my father and my Chǔ clan!" Chǔ Yǔlán knelt down on both knees in full view of everyone. "This concubine knows their character; they would absolutely not betray Your Majesty. There must be another hidden truth to this matter. I implore Your Majesty to investigate thoroughly!"
The court fell into silence.
In fact, some of the ministers below had their suspicions. The trial for the Chǔ family's treason had indeed been too hasty. Relying solely on the so-called confessions of Chǔ Qiān's sons in prison to impose a sentence of execution for the entire family was truly unexpected.
It wasn't that they hadn't considered if this was the Emperor "killing the donkey after it had served its purpose," but seeing how he had always treated the Empress so well, they were even more perplexed.