Shen Wei set down the storybook in her hand and instructed Cai Ping to immediately gather news.
The next day, Cai Ping reported the findings to Shen Wei. It turned out that the officials in Yunzhou had been ruthlessly exploiting the people, embezzling a large portion of the disaster relief grains and textiles allocated by the imperial court.
Moreover, excessive taxes had also been imposed.
Deprived of relief supplies and burdened by oppressive levies, the people rose in anger, revolting and setting fire to the prefecture's granaries.
"His Majesty has already dispatched envoys overnight to Yunzhou to pacify the people, distribute winter provisions, and severely punish the corrupt officials," Cai Ping said, her eyes darting around before lowering her voice. "Mistress, it's said that His Majesty has sent men to surround the Duke of Lu's residence and arrested five or six male members of the Lu family."
The Duke of Lu's estate was the most powerful aristocratic family entrenched in Yunzhou, controlling vast farmlands and key trade routes in the region.
Without the Duke of Lu's orders, how would the local officials dare to brazenly seize the people's winter provisions?
Shen Wei took a sip of hot tea. "Greed knows no bounds."
With the successive downfalls of the Tantai and Xie families, any aristocratic clan with a shred of sense would have realized that the Emperor was cracking down on the nobility and would choose to lay low or submit willingly.
Yet, the Duke of Lu refused to relinquish his interests, continuing to exploit the people.
He was digging his own grave—served him right.
...
Li Yuanjing dispatched two trusted generals from the Ministry of War, leading five thousand soldiers to Yunzhou to both pacify and suppress the unrest. Within ten days, the turmoil in Yunzhou's bitter winter had dissipated.
The implicated officials were shackled with heavy chains, locked in prison carts, and paraded before hundreds of thousands of people on their way to the capital, Yanjing, to stand trial.
Braving the snowstorm, the furious crowd hurled stones at the prisoners, killing at least ten corrupt officials on the spot.
The snow in Yunzhou continued to fall, showing no signs of stopping.
One day, as Shen Wei was reading a storybook in her warm chamber, Cai Ping rushed in, her shoes dusted with snow. "Mistress! The Noble Consort of Changxin Palace has taken a fall—she’s going into labor early!"
Shen Wei froze for a moment.
She leapt from the daybed. "Fetch my cloak. We’re going to Changxin Palace."
The snow had begun falling again.
When Shen Wei arrived at Changxin Palace, the thick scent of blood filled the air, and Lu Xuan's agonized screams echoed from inside.
The child in Lu Xuan’s womb was not yet full-term, and the labor was difficult—lasting the entire night without progress. Fortunately, a skilled midwife from the Imperial Medical Bureau was present. Under her care, the child was finally delivered safely by dawn.
A princess.
Shen Wei leaned over the swaddled infant. The baby was frail and small, her skin so thin and red that her pulsing organs seemed visible beneath.
The newborn did not even cry.
Wiping sweat from her brow, the midwife cautiously informed Shen Wei, "Your Grace, based on my years of experience, this child... may not survive long."
Shen Wei studied the woman—plain-faced, around thirty. "What is your name?"
The midwife bowed respectfully. "This humble servant is Gao Chunhua. I once worked as an herbalist at the Jimin Clinic in Yanjing. It was only by Your Grace’s grace that I was able to enter the palace as a court physician."
Shen Wei committed the name to memory. "Physician Gao, tend to the child carefully. Even one more day of life is precious."
Though Shen Wei and Lu Xuan were sworn rivals, the child was innocent.
Following the order, the physician devoted herself to caring for the infant.
Yet the baby was too weak. Within three days of birth, she succumbed to the winter’s chill.
The loss of her child left Lu Xuan even more fragile, bedridden and sustained only by medicinal brews.
She grew despondent, her health deteriorating beyond recovery.
Shen Wei visited once.
Lu Xuan had withered drastically, lying listlessly against the headboard, her once-radiant beauty replaced by sallow skin and sunken eyes.
"Why did the Noble Consort fall in the snow?" Shen Wei questioned the palace attendants.
One servant answered truthfully, "When the Noble Consort learned of the turmoil in Yunzhou, she was overcome with fear and rushed to beg His Majesty for mercy on behalf of the Lu family. She slipped on the snow in her haste."
Shen Wei understood.
The Yunzhou rebellion had enraged Li Yuanjing, who seized the opportunity to purge the region’s officials from top to bottom, replacing them with newly appointed scholars from the imperial examinations. As for the Duke of Lu’s estate, they faced even harsher reprimands—many male relatives from collateral branches were imprisoned one after another.
Lu Xuan, likely realizing her family’s impending ruin, had been so distraught that she fell, leading to the premature birth and death of her child.
...
The winter this year was exceptionally bitter, and Changxin Palace remained shrouded in frost and snow.
Lu Xuan lay weakly against her bed, watching the snowfall outside as silent tears rolled down her cheeks.
The room was warmed by plum-blossom charcoal, as cozy as spring. Shen Wei had not withheld winter provisions from any palace—Changxin Palace was no exception.
"Mistress, please drink your medicine," the maid Qi pleaded, holding a bowl with a pained expression.
Lu Xuan asked dully, "Has His Majesty come?"
Qi lowered her head. "His Majesty is occupied with state affairs. Once he has time, he will surely visit."
Lu Xuan closed her eyes. After days of weeping, her eyelids ached too much to open.
When she went into early labor, the Emperor had not come. When her child died, he had not come. Now, as she lay dying, he would likely not spare her a glance.
The Yunzhou incident had given the Emperor the perfect pretext to dismantle both the region and the Lu family.
Her heart ached with a dull, relentless pain.
Lu Xuan was filled with sorrow and resentment. "My father was a fool. The Tantai and Xie families were warnings enough—yet he refused to repent."
She hated that she was not born a man.
Had she been, she could have taken the reins of the Lu family, shielding them from disaster—never committing such reckless exploitation.
But she was only a woman. Her talents were confined to the arts, meant only to please men. Her beauty and body were her sole currency for the Emperor’s favor.
Her entire life depended on the mercy of men—how pitiful.
"Qi... being a woman is so cruel," Lu Xuan sighed, despair settling over her.
Qi’s eyes reddened. "Mistress, please drink the medicine. The physician said your body is severely weakened. Without proper care, you... may not live long."
Suddenly, a soft voice piped up. Li Chengjue, Lu Xuan’s two-year-old son, toddled into the room. "Mama, drink medicine!"
Tears fell silently from Lu Xuan’s eyes once more.
She touched her son’s cheek. "Yes, Mama will drink it."
She knew she could not save the Lu family. All she had left was this little boy.
...
...
With the Yunzhou rebellion quelled, the officials there had either been executed or demoted. Realizing the gravity of the situation, the Duke of Lu, on his advisors’ urging, rushed to the capital to kneel before Li Yuanjing and beg for forgiveness.
Mistakes demanded consequences.
Gritting his teeth, the Duke of Lu surrendered vast farmlands and several strategic ports to the imperial court, along with double the back taxes for three years.
This self-mutilation bought temporary imperial leniency.
The Duke of Lu emerged from the palace drenched in sweat, nearly collapsing. As his carriage carried him back to Yunzhou, he seethed, nearly grinding his teeth to dust. After careful calculation, he realized he had handed over six hundred thousand taels of silver to the treasury—all to preserve the Lu family.
Duke of Lu's eyes were bloodshot with rage as he thought of Li Yuanjing's haughty demeanor. He muttered bitterly, "That brat, barely fledged, dares to raise his sword against his own kin."
His resentment toward Li Yuanjing ran deep.
Yet, Li Yuanjing held firm control over both military power and the treasury, his position unshakable. The Duke of Lu found it nearly impossible to drag him down from the throne.
Inside the carriage, Lu Yun observed her father's seething anger and recognized her opportunity.
Softly, she spoke, "Father, with Elder Sister having just lost her child and her health frail, I wish to enter the palace to care for her."
