allonlinenovel Chapter 396 A sudden turn of events
Chapter 396 A sudden turn of events
Lan Qingwu paused slightly, but not for Empress Dowager Li. He saw Emperor Shenwu slowly walk in from the door. His face was slightly gloomy, and a coldness surrounded him. "Mingzhu, say what you just said again!"
Princess Mingzhu's originally sullen face turned pale in an instant: "Father..."
Emperor Shenwu asked coldly, "What do you mean by someone of unknown origin? Just because your mother is someone else, does that mean you can disrespect the current legitimate empress? Who taught you etiquette and morality? You have plenty of things, so it seems I don't need to bother with them!"
Princess Mingzhu wanted to explain: "Father, I just miss my mother...I..."
Emperor Shenwu angrily shouted, "Shut up! You keep calling her your mother. It's true that she gave birth to you, but does that mean you shouldn't take her kindness to heart? You keep calling her empress, but you're not as polite as your concubine's sister. Who gave you the guts to disrespect the empress? Apologize to her!"
Princess Mingzhu looked at Emperor Shenwu stubbornly: "Father..."
Her eyes were red, her hands were stroking her abdomen, and she bit her lips unwillingly.
Lan Qingwu could easily discern the resentment and indignation in his eyes. She shook her head slightly and advised, "Your Majesty, forget it, let's go!"
Princess Mingzhu watched as Emperor Shenwu and Lan Qingwu clasped their fingers before she spoke: "Mother, I made a mistake today. Please forgive me!"
The Shenwu Emperor frowned slightly. He was about to speak again when Lan Qingwu said, "No need! Forget about such a perfunctory, false apology! What's the point of forcing her to do this?"
Lan Qingwu turned and walked away, leaving Emperor Shenwu staring coldly at Princess Mingzhu. "I don't care who instigated you, you'll have to take care of yourself from now on! Leave your things and people behind and return to your princess's residence! From now on, do not enter the palace without my permission!"
Emperor Shenwu also turned and left. Concubine Liang and others observed his expression and stood up to take their leave.
Empress Dowager Li was left with a pale face, clutching her chest as she said weakly, "Mingzhu, what are you doing? What good will it do to anger your father at this time?"
Princess Mingzhu's eyes flushed as she said, "Mother, please go and plead with our father! Mingzhu doesn't want to anger our father, but because of the Empress..."
Empress Dowager Li interrupted Princess Mingzhu, "No matter what, you were wrong today. You should apologize to your mother another day. The Empress is always good-tempered, so don't be willful. Once the Empress's anger subsides, the Emperor will naturally be fine. Don't meddle in other people's business at this time."
At this time! When? Princess Mingzhu thought to herself, it's all for your beloved eldest son, Prince An. Empress Dowager Li has been petitioning Emperor Shenwu for Prince An to serve in the imperial court and then find a noble lady to arrange a marriage for him, so her granddaughter's affairs have been put last.
Empress Dowager Li looked at Princess Mingzhu, who was weeping and bowing her head, and continued, "No matter what, you still have to consider the Grand Prince Consort. The imperial court and the harem are closely related. What good will your making such a fuss do to the Grand Prince Consort? You're only happy to see him being scolded by your father every day!"
This sentence touched Princess Mingzhu's soft spot. She paused slightly and finally stopped talking.
Empress Dowager Li also had doubts in her heart. She didn't understand why she had been full of hostility towards Lan Qingwu since Princess Mingzhu surrendered. However, at this moment, she was only concerned about Prince An, so she let go of her doubts for a moment and no longer pursued the matter.
Meanwhile, in Yuyang Palace, Concubine Yang's condition suddenly took a turn for the worse. She fell ill more frequently every day, but even the imperial physician could not find the cause.
After Princess Mingzhu returned to the princess's mansion, she found that she could no longer enter the palace easily. Emperor Shenwu had done what he said and weakened her power for the sake of the queen. The hatred in her heart increased again.
The eldest son-in-law's work at the court was not going well. He returned to the house with a very bad face. When Princess Mingzhu asked him about it, he said a few words casually: "I always feel that someone is against me at every turn in this work..."
Princess Mingzhu already harbored hatred in her heart, and the prince consort's unexpected words simply added fuel to the fire. Her face turned pale and she stood up: "I'm going to find my father!"
The eldest son-in-law was still a little confused and didn't understand why Princess Mingzhu reacted so strongly. When he came to his senses, Princess Mingzhu had already led a group of people out of the mansion.
The prince consort felt something was wrong, so he called the maid who stayed in the house and found out what had happened in the Cining Palace two days ago. The prince consort immediately felt that something was wrong and hurriedly chased after him.
Emperor Shenwu was having a rare moment of leisure at this time. After waking up from his nap while hugging Lan Qingwu, he saw that Lan Qingwu was sleeping soundly, so he did not disturb her and tiptoed to the outer hall.
Emperor Shenwu suddenly felt inspired and asked Li Xiang to prepare everything he needed for painting.
Emperor Shenwu concentrated and picked up the brush. In just a moment, petals of delicate peach blossoms appeared on the paper.
When Lan Qingwu woke up, she did not find anyone beside her. She rubbed her eyes lightly, looked around blankly for a while, and then went to find Emperor Shenwu barefoot, wearing only a thin gauze.
Lan Qingwu was still not fully awake. He only vaguely saw the figure of the Divine Martial Emperor. He rubbed his eyes and walked over. He skillfully lay on the Divine Martial Emperor's lap and said, "Brother Heng, what are you doing? Isn't it a day off today?"
Emperor Shenwu looked at Lan Qingwu's tightly closed eyes and said helplessly, "If you're still sleepy, why don't you sleep in there for a while longer?"
Lan Qingwu adjusted himself to a comfortable position on Emperor Shenwu's lap and said vaguely, "Brother Heng is not here..."
Emperor Shenwu comforted Lan Qingwu with one hand, and with the other hand he worked tirelessly to slowly draw the trunk and branches of the entire peach tree, leaf by leaf, branch by branch, flower by flower, and petal by petal.
Lan Qingwu opened her eyes at some point, and there was no trace of haziness in her eyes anymore. She looked at the brush in Emperor Shenwu's hand seriously and attentively.
The afternoon sun is bright and warm like spring, while the Qianzheng Hall is quiet, beautiful and lingering.
Unfortunately, the noise that soon broke out destroyed the warm atmosphere of the afternoon.
When Princess Mingzhu broke into the Qianzheng Palace, Lan Qingwu was lying on the lap of Emperor Shenwu. For a moment, she even forgot how to use body language.
The palace maids following behind Princess Mingzhu looked embarrassed, but they did not dare to really stop the pregnant and angry princess.
The Emperor's face was as dark as ink. Lan Qingwu reacted and quickly turned sideways. Her bare hands trembled slightly as she gently smoothed the gauze around her body.
The next moment, the Emperor's outer robe completely covered Lan Qingwu. He noticed the red circles under Lan Qingwu's eyes and was extremely angry. He stood up suddenly and said, "Look at what you look like! You dare to trespass into my Qianzheng Palace without being summoned! Who gave you the courage?"
Princess Mingzhu was stunned the moment she barged in. She had never seen her father so gentle and tender.
The emperor knelt comfortably before the long table, painting with deep affection and concentration. The empress lay coquettishly on his lap. The two of them were so close and tender, their love so deep that Princess Mingzhu was stunned. She had never known that her father usually interacted with the empress in this way in private.
What about his mother? Where does she stand?