The Princess Wei Yang

8.Benevolent Mother; Filial Daughter

The previous Prime Minister, Li Chang Sheng, had passed away in his mid years. His wife, Mengshi [1], had been so distressed that she had left the main court and moved into a lesser courtyard to recuperate. She was afraid the main court would remind her of her late husband so she had decided to move to He Xiang Yuan, which was the furthest away from the main court. He Xiang Yuan was very isolated, thus she rarely questioned the estate’s internal affairs.

This paternal grandmother, Meng shi, was quite reticent and was a woman of few words. She rarely socialized with others. Nonetheless, she was fair and just in the way she handled matters. She has never wrongfully accused or mistreated anyone. For this reason, Li Wei Yang had always harbored good feelings towards her. Unfortunately, in the previous lifetime, Lao Furen’s health was bad and had passed away long before Li Wei Yang became the Empress.

In the chamber, Meng shi sat in the middle, adorned in a turquoise silk tunic with the five blessings pattern embroidered on it. On her head was a mink fur headgear with a jade piece stitched in the middle. At Li Wei Yang’s graceful movements, she gently nodded her head and simply said, “It’s good that you’re back.”

For some reason, upon hearing this sentence, Li Wei Yang’s eyes became red. Everyone saw it and suddenly felt a rush of emotions.

A woman in a honey coloured Xiangzhou silk dress with a round neck, accessorized with a gold phoenix brooch in her hair, chuckled and approached Li Wei Yang. She helped Wei Yang stand up and studied her from head-to-toe. Then she smiled and said, “Lao Furen, take a look. She is truly well-behaved!” She looked at Da Furen who was sitting on the other side. “Congratulations to you, sister-in-law. You have gotten another beautiful gem of a child.”

Da Furen, Jiang shi, chuckled lightly but there was no humor in her eyes. She carefully studied Li Wei Yang and said, “She really is a well-behaved child. Come over here and let me take a closer look.”

Li Wei Yang glanced up from the corner of her eyes but kept on her face a bright smile. Her countenance was respectful and obedient. She gently walked past the second daughter-in-law, Wen shi—the person who had helped her stood up earlier. She demurely walked towards Jiangshi and slightly bowed down. “Mother.”

Jiang shi looked at her with affection and care. “They say Ping Cheng’s fengshui is very good, to the point it can help nurture someone into an exceptional and talented person. When you were just born, you were as small as a kitten. Your body and health wasn’t good either but now, you look a lot healthier. This is a good resulting from a setback!”

Good fengshui? Nurture into an exceptional, talented person? Li Wei Yang coldly laughed inside. She was just short of being nurtured into death, but that person has the nerves to say it was a good resulting from a setback. This kind of thick skin was definitely not normal.

She gently smiled. “What mother said is right. It’s because over the past few years, Wei Yang has received your care and concern.”

When these words were spoken, in other people’s eyes, Li Wei Yang would seem like a person who knew her manners. If she were to complain to Lao Furen at this moment that she had been abused, Lao Furen would simply scold Da Furen with a few simple words. At the same time, Da Furen could push the blame and responsibility onto the carelessness of the maids and servants. In the end, it would not affect Da Furen. Instead Li Wei Yang would be left with the impression of being an ignorant person.

So when Li Wei Yang said those words, Jiang shi was impressed and broke into a grin. She reached out for Wei Yang’s hand and said, “It’s good that you understand my well-intentions. Now that you’re back, you should spend more time with your sisters. If you lack anything, just come and talk to me.”