Thankfully, she had no interest in this future stallion, and currently, whether it was herself, Consort De, or the Emperor, they were all young. Consort De was slightly older at eighteen while she and the Emperor were both fifteen. At such an age, naturally, one wouldn’t think of much, so whether he came or not, it did not really matter to her.
Empress Dowager was the first to come see her, and as soon as she saw her, she began to wipe away tears. In fact, the Empress Dowager didn’t look old, just over forty with good self-maintenance and a very beautiful appearance. Even at forty, she had a special charm and everything about her revealed sophisticated grace.
As soon as she saw her, she embraced her, and the palace maids by her side said that the Empress Dowager hadn’t been able to eat or drink over these three days; her eyes were swollen from crying.
However, Yuan Yuan wondered why the Empress Dowager was so good to her. After all, there is no such thing as unconditional goodness or badness in this world, right? And isn’t it even more true that mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law are natural enemies?
It hadn’t been easy for the Empress Dowager; in her life, she had only given birth to the Emperor, and that too at an older age, so she valued him enormously. Perhaps she cared because of her love for her son?
But that didn’t seem right. Clearly, the Emperor detested her to an extreme degree.
Regarding the so-called life-saving grace, back when the Empress Dowager was still the Empress and pregnant with the Emperor, she was betrayed and slipped at a banquet. Had it not been for the Imperial Physician’s wife, who came to her aid, this pregnancy of the Empress would have likely been endangered. Moreover, the Empress felt guilty because the incident also caused her to give birth prematurely, having Yuan Yuan in the Imperial Palace.
It could be said that Yuan Yuan was born in Yikun Palace, so the Empress Dowager had a kind of affection for her that was like that for a daughter, yet not. Newest update provided by novel-fire.net
She had heard this explanation all her life, so it was nothing out of the ordinary. But when the Empress Dowager repeatedly emphasized the great debt of gratitude her mother owed her, Yuan Yuan found it somewhat pretentious. It seemed as though she was afraid others might question why she treated such a fat girl so well and felt the need to constantly explain.
"Poor child of mine, where have you been these past three days? Do you know that the Emperor turned the entire Imperial Palace upside down looking for you?"
Yuan Yuan scoffed in her heart. The search was conducted to confirm whether she was dead or not, so that another Empress, suitable for him, could be established, right?
Yuan Yuan gazed at the Empress Dowager with a ’dull’ look and shook her head.
"I don’t know. When I woke up, they just told me I had been missing for three days, but I clearly just slept here. I didn’t go anywhere, did I?"
While wiping her tears, the Empress Dowager took her hand and comforted her.
"It’s good that you are back, that’s what matters. Didn’t your father just come to check on you? He said that you’ve just been without food for three days and are weakened, so you need plenty of rest."
Yuan Yuan blinked. So, the stern Imperial Physician was her father?
My God, she had only been focused on pretending to be weak and hadn’t given him a proper look. But didn’t this also indirectly confirm that she truly was weak?
"You seem a bit thinner; Yuanyuan, do you really not know what has happened these days?"
Yuan Yuan shook her head, "The palace maids said that Yikun Palace was robbed, and I disappeared along with it. Empress Dowager, you punished the palace maids and eunuchs, and guards of Yikun Palace,"
"Hmph, if it weren’t for accumulating virtue for you, not one of them would have survived. They were just sent to Xinzhiku. You don’t worry about these matters, just focus on recovering your health. By the way, did Nanny Xu and the others come earlier?"