It was late autumn, and the lotus flowers in the lotus pond had long since withered, and the lotus leaves were also in ruins.
Lin Lin stood tall in the pond, and where the moonlight could not reach, there were patches of darkness.
Like a ghostly hand stretching out from the abyss, Queen Han couldn't help but think of the three-year-old Twelve Prince who drowned in this lotus pond during the Rebellion of the Puppet Emperor last year...
After the twelfth prince drowned, Concubine Hui went crazy.
At that time, the wet nurse who brought the twelfth prince to play also committed suicide out of fear of crime. In fact, the wet nurse did not put the rope on herself, but Queen Han had someone put it on.
Because she bribed the wet nurse, a wet nurse who has control over her must die!
"It's okay for me, let's go back to the palace first!" Queen Han said solemnly, sitting firmly again, holding the armrests on both sides of the phoenix chariot tightly with her hands, her joints pale and distinct.
The two young eunuchs also felt as if they had received an amnesty. They quickly stood up and lifted the phoenix chariot again, and carefully left the lotus pond.
It wasn't until the lotus pond was far behind her and the sound of water could no longer be heard that Queen Han finally came back to her senses.
Only then did he realize that his forehead and palms were already covered in cold sweat.
The phoenix chariot entered Fengzao Palace, and Aunt Rong, who was waiting in the palace, immediately came over with a group of maids to greet her.
Queen Xiao Han had no time to pay attention to them and went straight into the palace.
Aunt Rong was surprised. She pulled a palace maid who had been serving her before and asked her. When she learned that the empress was frightened over the lotus pond, a gleam flashed in her eyes and she understood in her heart.
…
Aromatherapy can calm the mind and soothe a frightened soul.
After taking a bath, Queen Han returned to the palace wrapped in a bathrobe and sat down next to the phoenix bed. From the golden cage of the four-legged phoenix phoenix beside the bed, faint fragrance came out in wisps.
Queen Han sat beside the bed, with a trace of paleness still on her face.
After taking off her heavy makeup and taking off her attire, she looked just like a young woman in her early twenties, youthful and beautiful.
The queen's outfit makes her look ten years older.
"Mother, come and have a sip of the soothing soup."
Aunt Rong came to Feng's bedside, holding a bowl of soup in her hand.
Queen Xiao Han raised her head, looked at Aunt Rong and said, "Auntie, I passed by the lotus pond on my way back and seemed to see the figure of the Twelve Princes..."
Aunt Rong's expression changed, and she quickly lowered her voice and said, "My dear, that's because you are dazzled..."
"No, I'm not dazzled, I really saw it." Queen Han said anxiously,
"That kid, he was hiding under a fallen lotus leaf, making faces at me..."
Queen Xiao Han said that she was frightened again, holding her shoulders tightly with both hands, and her body couldn't help but tremble slightly.
Seeing this, Aunt Rong quickly put the soup in her hand on the table aside, leaned over and gently hugged little Queen Han.
Just like when she was a child, her nurse held her gently in her arms.
"Huan'er is not afraid, the wet nurse is here, don't be afraid..."
Aunt Rong couldn't help but softly called out Queen Han's nickname.
Queen Han's body gradually calmed down and her mood recovered a little. Aunt Rong just let her go and picked up the soup again and handed it to Queen Han.
"Your Majesty must have been busy selecting concubines for His Highness the Crown Prince these days, which is why she had hallucinations. Come on, drink this bowl of soothing soup and have a good sleep and you'll be fine." Aunt Rong said softly.
Queen Han nodded, took the soup and barely took a few mouthfuls before holding the bowl in her hands in a daze.
"If I hadn't been forced by the situation, I would never have killed a three-year-old child," Little Queen Han murmured.
"I'm not that bad. I'm really not a bad woman. I used to be the kindest young lady in the eyes of all the maids and servants in Taishi Han's mansion."
"Although my biological mother is just an aunt in the Grand Master's Mansion, no matter how others slander me and look down on my origin, I still have good thoughts towards everything."
"I really never thought that after entering the palace, I would become like this, not even sparing a three-year-old child?"
"Mommy, will I get retribution? I'm really scared..."
Upon hearing this, Aunt Rong quickly said: "My dear lady, I don't blame you for this."
"Last year there was great chaos in Helanzhou, and the Holy Emperor personally led the conquest. The harem was also in chaos without the emperor, and all kinds of dog-fighting things happened." Aunt Rong said.
She leaned closer and said in a low voice: "Have you forgotten that concubine Hui bribed the eunuch in the imperial kitchen and tried to put arsenic in your food?"
"The maid your Majesty brought into the palace from the Grand Master's Mansion accidentally ate the food and became her scapegoat!"
When she mentioned this matter, Queen Han's body stopped shaking, her pupils shrank, and her hands clenched into fists.
"I can tolerate others bullying me and humiliating me. After all, when I was in the Grand Master's Mansion, I was just a dog in front of my aunt, so I'm not afraid of being humiliated!" Queen Han gritted her teeth.
"What I hate is that Hui Concubine didn't even give me a way to survive. She was obviously so favored by the Holy Emperor and even gave birth to twelve princes."
"Why can't she allow me to survive? She insists on poisoning me? Why, mama?"
Seeing the protruding veins on Queen Han's forehead, Aunt Rong was angry and distressed.
She caressed Little Queen Han's forehead lovingly and said: "This is the way the world is. Whether it is the former Grand Master's Mansion or the current palace, it is a place where the strong survive and the weak eat the strong."
"Especially the women in this harem, each and every one of them is murderous without blinking an eye."
"Whether she is Hui Concubine, Zhuang Concubine, or the former Queen of Han, your half-sister is the same!"
"Everyone just thinks that they can climb up, step on others, or climb up on other people's corpses."
"Empress, please stop caring about what happened in the past. You should look to the future."
"Looking back?" Queen Han looked confused.
"To be honest, mama, I have been sitting in the position of queen for more than half a year, but I am still confused. I don't understand why the emperor chose me to be the queen?"
Aunt Rong was stunned for a moment, then smiled helplessly.
"My silly empress, I really admire you. The emperor chose you as his queen for two main reasons."
"One is because although the Han family was involved in the chaos of the Puppet Emperor's Rebellion, the Han family has deep roots. I was honored as Grand Master, and he was also one of the elders of the cabinet at that time."
"When the Han family was at its most glorious, there were disciples all over the court. Even the current Holy Emperor was once his student in the past."
"Although after the rebellion of the false emperor, the strength of the Han family has been greatly damaged and is no longer what it used to be, a skinny camel is bigger than a horse. The influence of the Han family in the court must still be considered by the Holy Emperor."
