bookrandom Chapter 311 Aunt Feng's Discovery
Chapter 311 Aunt Feng's Discovery
Looking at Ling Jiawei, whose face was flushed red, Lan Zhi thought of the grievances he had suffered in the capital over the years and immediately smiled faintly.
"Brother, you've been feigning madness in the capital for five years, has anyone ever cared about you? You've been starving and freezing, begging on the streets, has anyone ever asked you anything? Now, although Ling Lanhua is in the Cold Palace, she has no worries about food or clothing, yet your parents risked everything to plead for her, vowing to ask, have you ever experienced such treatment?"
Mentioning this matter, both Boss Ling and Madam Cui lowered their heads, seemingly ashamed. Although Ling Jiawei was deeply saddened, he feigned indifference and shook his head, saying:
"Your Majesty, I know these things better than anyone else. You see best how I've gotten through these years. However, I don't want to bring up these old stories again. Besides, not many people have cared about me since I was a child. I've gotten used to it."
His tone was tinged with loneliness, dissatisfaction, and blame towards his parents.
Madam Cui knew that she had been angry with Ling Jiawei for the past five years since she last saw him. Because she was angry that he was so devoted to Lan Zhi, she never thought of inquiring about his situation. However, she never expected that he had been living such a life in the capital for the past five years. Thinking about it, she felt guilty towards Ling Jiawei...
"Jiawei..."
She tried to say something, but Ling Jiawei raised his hand to stop her.
"There's no point in saying more in front of Her Majesty. Let's talk about it when we get home!"
Cui had no choice but to shut her mouth and lower her head in silence.
Lan Zhi glanced at everyone and then nodded, saying:
"His Majesty has been quite busy lately. I will find time to discuss this with him. You may all return now!"
Cui and Ling Laoda immediately kowtowed repeatedly.
"Thank you for your grace, Your Majesty. We will go outside the palace to await Your Majesty's good news."
Lan Zhi raised her hand, and Ling Jiawei led the two of them out.
Only after their figures disappeared did Ah Qi mutter to himself:
"What were they thinking when they bullied you? Now that they need something from you, they're trying to curry favor."
"They are parents too. For their daughter, let alone begging me, even if it cost them half their lives, they would do it without hesitation!"
"So you really intend to tell the Emperor about this?"
"Yes, she's not the only woman locked up in the Cold Palace. There are others too. Some of them have never even seen the Emperor or served him in bed. They only have the title. Yet, these women are all being banished to the Cold Palace because of the late Emperor's death. This rule should be changed."
At this point, she looked up and asked:
Has the Emperor finished his court session?
"I'm off now, but I'm currently in the Imperial Study discussing matters with several officials. During this period, His Majesty is preparing to reorganize the court and rectify the officialdom throughout the country, so he should be very busy."
"Okay, let's go see Zhuangzhuang."
The Emperor has been busy lately, and she shouldn't bother him. Let's talk about this when the Emperor is done with his work!
Ten days later
Aunt Feng brought Zhuangzhuang to pay her respects to Lan Zhi, but Lan Zhi was not in her room. The palace maid said that Her Majesty had gone to take a bath, which suited Aunt Feng perfectly, as she had timed her arrival perfectly.
She asked a palace maid to play with Zhuangzhuang, while she went to a side room in Fengyi Palace, thinking of finding an opportunity to see if there was a birthmark on her shoulder.
Seeing her approach, Ah Qi curiously stepped forward and asked,
"Aunt Feng, is there something you need?"
Aunt Feng nodded, then shook her head.
"Is everything alright? Is Her Majesty still taking a bath?"
Ah Qi nodded.
"Ah."
"Then why didn't you go in and serve them?"
"Xiangxiu can serve inside; I'll just guard the door here."
Aunt Feng fidgeted with her fingers, gave a slightly nervous "oh," and then continued:
"Oh, right, I've noticed that Her Majesty seems rather tired lately. I'll go in and give her a shoulder massage to help her relax!"
After hesitating for a moment, Ah Qi smiled and shook his head.
"No need. Her Majesty just said that she doesn't want to be disturbed while she's taking a bath. Didn't you see that I've sent all the servants away from this courtyard?"
“I won’t bother her. After all, I’m an elder. I just feel sorry for her. How about this, I’ll secretly switch Xiangxiu out. She won’t notice.”
Ah Qi looked at her with suspicion in his eyes.
"Aunt Feng, you're acting a bit strange today. Doesn't the Crown Prince need your company?"
Aunt Feng gave an awkward smile.
"The Crown Prince is playing around. I was just bored and thought the Empress must be tired these past few days, so I came to give her a massage."
After hesitating for a moment, Ah Qi nodded and said:
"Alright then, but Her Majesty might be asleep right now, so please be quiet and don't wake her up."
Seeing that Ah Qi had given his permission, Aunt Feng was a little excited and quickly nodded.
"Don't worry, Miss Qi, I won't wake her up."
After Ah Qi nodded, he went to the door, quietly pushed it open, and waved to Xiang Xiu inside. At this moment, Aunt Feng went in hesitantly and took Xiang Xiu out.
Lan Zhi sat in the bathtub, her eyes half-closed, enjoying the warm water and the fragrance of rose petals, feeling drowsy.
Ever since she became empress, she has really felt that managing so many people is exhausting. Fortunately, she is the only mistress of the harem, so she doesn't have to live that kind of scheming and intrigue. Otherwise, she would have been scared into running away.
After Aunt Feng came in, she carefully observed her back, but since her whole body was submerged in the bathtub, she couldn't see anything even after looking for a long time.
"Xiangxiu, my neck hurts a little, can you massage it for me?"
Upon hearing this, Aunt Feng, who was standing there in a daze, quickly walked over. Lan Zhi sat up straight, and Aunt Feng put her hand on Lan Zhi's shoulder and began to massage her.
At the same time, she carefully observed her right shoulder and suddenly, she really did notice a butterfly-shaped birthmark that was faintly visible there.
She immediately covered her mouth with one hand, and large tears streamed down her cheeks.
It turns out she really was her daughter.
She had been with her for five years, but never thought to verify it. Now she really regrets it.
Her sobs reached Lan Zhi's ears. She frowned, opened her eyes, and asked,
"Xiangxiu, what's wrong?"
No reply.
She asked again,
"Are you mute? Why aren't you saying anything? Be careful, or I'll punish you!"
But still no one responded to her.
She then turned her head to look, and when she saw Aunt Feng, she immediately showed a surprised expression.
"Aunt Feng, what are you doing here? Where's Xiangxiu?"
Aunt Feng's eyes were already reddening. She bit her lip hard and shook her head vigorously, not knowing what to do.
"Aunt Feng, what's wrong? Why are you crying?"
She pointed to the birthmark on her shoulder.
"You...you said you didn't have any birthmarks? Why did you lie to me?"
Lan Zhi looked blank when she asked her question. Had she asked about birthmarks before?
Oh right, I might have asked that, but it was a long, long time ago.
But after she transmigrated, no one told her that she had a birthmark. How would she know if she had a birthmark on her back?
"Aunt Feng, what's wrong? I didn't lie to you, I didn't know I had a birthmark!"
"How could you not know? She's on your right shoulder, child. I've been searching for you for over twenty years!"