Her words left everyone present looking displeased.
In her eyes, human life was so cheap. Across all of Great Liang, did she consider everyone but the Xiao imperial clan nothing more than common rabble?
As they were leaving, Yu Feng dragged the old woman’s corpse over and flung it onto Xiao Lan’s lap. “The lowly servants of the Princess’s residence are your responsibility, Your Highness. Please see to her burial.”
#
Once everyone had left, Xiao Lan let out several shrill, frantic screams. She was clearly on the verge of losing her mind with rage.
A maid nearby, though frightened, called for two eunuchs to carry the old woman’s body away and bury it.
Then she went to help Xiao Lan up. “Your Highness, are you all right?”
Xiao Lan watched her mouth move, but the voice reaching her ears was pitifully faint.
“Go to the palace. Prepare a carriage at once. I’m going to the palace.”
She scrambled to her feet and staggered toward the room. “Help me change. I’m going to see Mother Empress. I refuse to believe that a mere minister can act with such reckless impunity.”
Meanwhile, the Empress Dowager’s palace was in an uproar. Lord Gu stood in the hall, his expression grim.
“Calm yourself,” the Empress Dowager said. “Let me speak to the Emperor first, then we’ll decide what to do.”
“I have no time left,” Lord Gu replied. “The court officials are closing in on me at every turn. How can I afford to wait? If this drags on, I’ll have no choice but to die.”
The Empress Dowager furrowed her brow, her head aching.
She had never imagined that her nephew, who had been doomed to an early death, would leave behind such a terrible mess even after he was gone.
“I warned your brother long ago to keep you all in check, but you wouldn’t listen. Now that this disaster has come to pass, what can I possibly do?”
As a member of the inner palace, how could she presume to interfere in affairs of state?
“Empress Dowager, my son did what he did because he followed Princess Lan’s instructions! How can you blame the Gu family for everything?”
Lord Gu had already resented the Empress Dowager for letting Shen Xiabai off. Now she expected the Gu family to shoulder the blame for Xiao Lan as well—even to face the destruction of their entire clan. How could he possibly agree?
“Brother, I am a member of the Gu family too. How could I not care what happens to our family? But this matter is truly strange. Why has it suddenly come to light for no apparent reason? Have you offended someone at court?”
Lord Gu was utterly wronged.
Since his son’s death, he had been in a daze day after day. He attended court only out of obligation and barely knew what was discussed there. Whom could he possibly have offended?
Tears streaming down his face, Lord Gu said, “If Your Majesty cannot help me, then I can only reveal the whole truth of what happened.”
The Empress Dowager panicked. “You can’t!”
Lan had only just returned. If the truth came out now, the people’s condemnation would drown her, and the officials would never allow her to remain in the capital.
The Emperor cared about the dignity of the throne. He might even order her death.
Caught between her daughter and her brother, the Empress Dowager was frantic and painfully torn.
Lord Gu said, “Your Majesty only cares about your daughter. Do you not care about your birth family? Your nephew is already dead. If this continues, your entire maternal clan will be lost.”
The Empress Dowager clutched the armrests of her chair, her hands tightening with anxiety.
As a married daughter—and the Empress Dowager of the realm—how could she fail to protect her own family?
“Wait here. I’ll go see the Emperor at once.”
In a great hurry, the Empress Dowager went to the Imperial Study. The Emperor heard the eunuch’s report without the slightest surprise, then came down from the steps himself and walked forward to meet her.
“Your Majesty, you—”
“If you’ve come on the Gu family’s behalf, Mother, there’s no need to say another word.” The Emperor’s tone was mild, but his resolve was absolute.
“They are still my maternal family,” the Empress Dowager said. “Must you really wipe them out?”
“It is precisely because they are your maternal family that the Gu family has survived until now. Otherwise, I would have executed the entire clan long ago.”
The Empress Dowager staggered, staring at him in disbelief.
The Emperor said, “Mother should not interfere in affairs of state. Whether as a son, a father, or a husband, I am first and foremost the ruler of Great Liang. Personal feelings come second.”
The Empress Dowager swayed violently.
Emperors were all alike: they knew no loyalty or affection.
Just as the Emperor had said, for the sake of imperial power, he could even kill his own son. What was one maternal uncle to him?
The Empress Dowager clasped the Emperor’s hand. “Your Majesty, for my sake, can you not spare the Gu family just this once?”
The Gu family was already in decline, like grasshoppers doomed to die once autumn came. They had no heirs to carry on the line. Why insist on wiping them out now?
“Do you want me to face the Gu family’s ancestors after I die with this on my conscience?”
#
Lord Gu waited anxiously in the Empress Dowager’s palace, glancing toward the entrance again and again. A palace maid brought him tea and refreshments. “Please don’t worry, my lord. Her Majesty should be back soon.”
At last, there was a stir outside. Lord Gu shoved the maid aside and hurried to the palace doors.
The Empress Dowager returned, leaning on a maid for support, looking haggard and grief-stricken. The moment Lord Gu saw her, his heart sank.
“Your Majesty.”
Supported by the maid, the Empress Dowager sat down and gave a slight shake of her head. Lord Gu’s knees buckled, and he nearly sank to the floor.
“Brother, don’t panic. I’ll think of another way.”
Lord Gu had barely heard her.
The Empress Dowager was only a woman of the inner palace, with no real power. The only thing she could use was her bond with the Emperor as his mother. If even that had failed, then there was no room left to turn things around.
Shen Xiabai’s words echoed in Lord Gu’s ears:
“I have too many enemies. I’ll probably end up buried in the wilderness.”
“Brother, don’t be afraid,” the Empress Dowager said. “The Emperor won’t relent, but for my sake, he won’t take the lives of the Gu clan. You’re getting on in years. Why not ask to return to your ancestral home and spend your remaining years in peace?”
With no heir to carry on the line, there was little point in staying in the capital.
Lord Gu lifted his eyes suddenly and stared at the Empress Dowager.
Leave the capital and return to the family estate?
“Brother…”
“Your Majesty, please say no more. I’ve made up my mind.”
At the end of his life, how could he let his wife share the fate of being buried in the wilderness?
His son was gone. He would likely have no one left even to bury him, and would end up being devoured by wild beasts.
The Empress Dowager had already traded justice for his son for Xiao Lan’s freedom. How could he let the entire Gu family be sacrificed for Xiao Lan as well?
“Your Majesty, please rest. I’ll take my leave.” Lord Gu cupped his hands, then turned and strode out of the palace.
“Brother.” The Empress Dowager called after him uneasily.
Lord Gu did not look back.
At the palace gate, Lord Gu was just about to get into his carriage when the Princess’s carriage pulled up. Xiao Lan hurried out, eager to enter the palace, but the guards stopped her.
“Your Highness, His Majesty has issued an order. Without a summons, you may not enter the palace.”
“Get out of my way!” Xiao Lan was frantic. “I want to see Mother Empress!”
Lord Gu stood off to one side, watching coldly.
The imperial family were all mad. If Xiao Lan hadn’t egged his son on, he would never have done such a thing.
Xiao Lan noticed him too. “Uncle, you’re here as well.”
Lord Gu gave a slight nod, turned, and climbed into his carriage. He ordered the driver to leave.
Xiao Lan watched Lord Gu’s carriage depart, frowning deeply, but thought little of it and continued harassing the guards at the gate.
