Chapter 515 – Post-Wedding Extra Chapter: A Dance That Captivated the City and Spread Across the World – The Daughter-in-Law Meets Mother-in-Law (07)
While the Empress repeatedly and impatiently urged Jiang Liangwu to bring his wife to the palace, Bai Tang had also brushed up on all the proper court etiquette. Although the etiquette varied from dynasty to dynasty, the general principles were more or less the same.
Bai Tang was dressed in a pale goose-yellow robe, which made his skin look even fairer and more lustrous than jade. Sweet dimples rested on his cheeks, and his obedient, endearing appearance immediately won the Empress’s affection at first sight.
“This commoner pays his respects to Your Majesty, the Empress.” His soft, sweet voice was like a freshly brewed pear drink sweetened with rock sugar, soothingly sweet to the heart. The Empress hurriedly told him to rise.
“Get up. Come closer and let me have a look at you.”
Bai Tang glanced at Jiang Liangwu. The latter nodded at him, signaling that he should not be afraid. Taking courage, Bai Tang stepped forward and stopped five paces away from the Empress.
From a distance, she had already thought he looked quite good, but up close, he was even more outstanding. The Empress said again, “Good child, come a little closer.”
Bai Tang moved two more steps forward when, all of a sudden, a pair of well-cared-for jade-like hands scooped him up, and he found himself sprawled in the Empress’s arms.
“My poor child, how did you become so thin?” The Empress pinched Bai Tang’s nearly fleshless arm and, distressed by how skinny he was, ordered a nanny to summon the imperial physician.
“Em—Empress…” Bai Tang didn’t know whether to struggle or stay still. Being held in the Empress’s arms was rather awkward.
This body of Bai Tang’s had suffered greatly while he was at Wanhua Tower. He had not developed properly during his growing years, so although he was eighteen, he looked more like a fourteen- or fifteen-year-old. He was short and slender, which made the Empress, who possessed a deeply maternal heart, ache for him terribly.
If he became the Third Prince’s Consort like this, how could he command the servants? And with his shy personality, wouldn’t he be bullied to death at royal gatherings and the like?
“Good boy. I’ll have the imperial physician examine you and help nurse you back to health properly. Only then will you be able to stay with Kang’er for a long, long time.”
“Kang’er” was the Empress’s pet name for Jiang Liangwu. Bai Tang was momentarily dazed. He was so accustomed to calling him A-Wu that he had almost forgotten that A-Wu’s real name was Yu Wei Kang.
“Empress, you’re so kind. You’re just like a mother~” Bai Tang could no longer clearly remember his memories from before he was sold to Wanhua Tower. As a child, he had often imagined what it would feel like to have parents who loved and cherished him. So this was what it felt like to be held and loved by a mother—was this kind of happiness?
The care and affection of an elder nearly brought Bai Tang to tears. His voice became slightly choked with emotion. “Em—Empress, you’re so warm~”
Bai Tang’s behavior could be considered disrespectful. The nanny was just about to reprimand him for his lack of manners, but the Empress lifted her head and hugged him even more tightly. “Good child, you must have suffered a lot in the past, haven’t you?”
The young man’s soft, delicate voice reminded the Empress of her young son who had died prematurely. After contracting an epidemic, the child had passed away, unable to withstand the torment of the illness. Tears welled in the Empress’s eyes, as though she had returned to those days when she used to coax her little son into taking his medicine.
“Good boy, Mother is here. Once the imperial physician examines you, you’ll be all right…”
Everyone saw the Empress lose her composure and knew that she had been reminded of her seventh son, who had died young. They all stepped forward to comfort her and change the subject.
“Your Majesty, if you don’t let go of Young Master Bai soon, the Third Prince is going to come and snatch him back himself.”
The Empress wiped away her tears and took a closer look. Sure enough, just as the palace attendants had said, Kang’er was sitting on a chair, staring longingly at them. He might as well have had the words “Give me back my wife” written all over his face.
When had she ever seen her usually composed Kang’er behave like this? She couldn’t help teasing him with a smile. “Kang’er, I really like Tang Tang. Why don’t you let Tang Tang stay at Kunning Palace and keep me company for a few days? You can go take care of your business first.”
The more the Empress looked at Bai Tang, the more she liked him. She found him increasingly endearing and genuinely began to consider keeping him in the palace for a few days.
The young man’s soft, babyish voice had a slight breathy quality to it, making him sound rather coquettish. “Your Majesty, it wouldn’t be appropriate for me to stay in the inner palace.”
The inner palace was where the imperial consorts lived. Having an unrelated young man stay there would damage the consorts’ reputations and also give the Empress the reputation of being lax in governing her household and failing to manage her subordinates properly. That wouldn’t be good.
Besides, Bai Tang didn’t want to live in the imperial palace either. If he stayed there, he would have to be separated from A-Wu.
Everyone present knew that the Empress was only joking, but Bai Tang took her words seriously. Even knowing that she might dislike his objection, he still earnestly argued his case while strictly observing proper etiquette. He was truly adorable.
The Empress covered her mouth and laughed, then released Bai Tang and let him return to Jiang Liangwu’s side.
“All right, all right. I was only joking. Kang’er hasn’t even said anything, yet Tang Tang is already taking his side. With you being so devoted to him, how could I possibly object to this marriage?”
Jiang Liangwu wrapped an arm around Bai Tang, who was still in a dazed state, wondering how the conversation had suddenly jumped to the subject of his and A Wu’s marriage.
“Thank you, Mother, for giving us your blessing.” Jiang Liangwu smiled as he expressed his gratitude.
When the imperial physician arrived, he took Bai Tang’s pulse and prescribed several medicinal dishes to help restore his health.
“Food therapy is better than medicinal supplements. Young Master Bai is in good health; he’s just slightly deficient. There’s no need to worry. He only needs to recuperate gradually.”
The imperial physicians were experts at smoothing things over. Even when someone wasn’t actually ill, they would say the person was weak or had a minor ailment. That way, if the patient felt unwell, it could be blamed on their poor constitution; and if they recovered, the credit went to the imperial physician.
As soon as Bai Tang heard that medicinal herbs would be added to his food, his delicate face scrunched up. He whispered into Jiang Liangwu’s ear, “Can I not take medicine? Medicine is so bitter~”
Jiang Liangwu pinched his little nose. “It’s not medicine. They’re just medicinal herbs added to your food. The soups you normally drink have herbs in them too. They won’t be bitter, I promise.”
Bai Tang was only half-convinced, his little lips sticking out in a pronounced pout. It was called medicinal cuisine, after all—it had the word “medicine” right in the name. How could it possibly not be bitter?
The Empress kept them for a meal and let them leave before the palace gates were locked for the night. Her good mood lasted for several days. Whenever she missed Bai Tang, she would summon him to the palace for a chat. She especially enjoyed listening to his soft, babyish voice as he read to her. It soothed her, and even her headaches seemed to improve considerably.
Jiang Liangwu and Bai Tang’s marriage easily passed the Emperor’s approval. Just as the Empress had predicted, the Bai family had fallen into decline and could offer Jiang Liangwu no political support. The Emperor also had no need to worry about Jiang Liangwu forming his own faction or engaging in self-serving political alliances. With a wave of his hand, he ordered the Ministry of Rites to handle the wedding arrangements.
Outside the imperial palace, when the First Prince, Yu Wei Yi, heard that his Third Brother had recovered, was about to marry, and had once again caught their father’s attention, he was consumed by resentment.
He had gone to such lengths to bring him down, so how had he recovered? Wouldn’t it have been better if he had simply died and put an end to everything?
Yu Weiyi didn’t believe for a moment that Jiang Liangwu genuinely intended to marry someone from a fallen family, much less a man. He thought Jiang Liangwu was trying to deceive them into lowering their guard and making them believe he had no interest in the throne. The ploy was far too obvious.
After suffering a serious illness, it would not be easy for Jiang Liangwu to return to court and rebuild his influence. Taking a male consort would give him the perfect opportunity to lie low and bide his time while gradually winning back people’s support. It was quite the scheme.
Unfortunately for Jiang Liangwu, he had encountered Yu Weiyi. Yu Weiyi was not about to let his good Third Brother have things his way.
Yu Weiyi made his move. He arranged for a certain official’s daughter to “accidentally” encounter Jiang Liangwu while he was out shopping with Bai Tang. He then had people spread rumors about them—claims that the two were fighting over a man, that the woman had become jealous and gotten into a violent altercation, and all sorts of similar nonsense.
It was convincing enough to sound true. The rumors quickly sent Jiang Liangwu’s reputation plummeting.
If an imperial prince couldn’t even keep his head straight when it came to women, how could he ever become a good emperor in the future?!
Royal gossip wasn’t something ordinary people got to hear every day, so the uninformed commoners eagerly enjoyed the spectacle. Their impression of the rumored Third Prince deteriorated considerably, although many were even more interested in watching the drama unfold.
When the Empress found out, she was furious and repeatedly slammed her hand against the table. She sent people to investigate, but before they could uncover who had started the rumors, Jiang Liangwu himself stepped forward and publicly declared that he would marry Bai Tang and Bai Tang alone in this lifetime. He would never take a concubine or a secondary consort.
The common people were stunned.
Some called him foolish. Why marry a man who couldn’t bear children and then refuse to take a concubine? Wouldn’t that mean his bloodline would end with him?
The unmarried young women from respectable families, however, were filled with envy. They praised the Third Prince for being devoted and said that they wished their future husbands could be just as faithful and single-minded.
The matter caused such a huge commotion that even the Emperor was alerted. He summoned Jiang Liangwu to the palace that very night. No one knew what the two of them discussed, as they were the only ones present. In any case, the Emperor did not express any opposition to Jiang Liangwu’s decision to marry only one person.
Since even the Emperor had tacitly approved of it, anyone else with objections had no choice but to swallow them. The ministers who had been planning to marry their daughters to the Third Prince now kept completely silent. Hadn’t they seen that even His Majesty had said nothing? They would wait and see, watching the situation and acting only once they had a better sense of which way the wind was blowing.
Yu Weiyi was overjoyed.
Jiang Liangwu was digging his own grave. He was forcing himself into a dead end. The court officials would absolutely never accept an emperor without descendants. In other words, Jiang Liangwu had effectively eliminated himself from consideration as a potential heir to the throne.
Yu Weiyi struck while the iron was hot. He presented the new type of gunpowder charge he had obtained to the Emperor, greatly pleasing His Majesty. The Emperor repeatedly praised Yu Weiyi as the son who was best at relieving his burdens, unknowingly increasing Yu Weiyi’s advantage in the struggle for the throne.
The missing Sang Tiantian was now enjoying the good life. She was staying as a guest at the First Prince’s residence, and Yu Weiyi had even promised to protect her and settle the matter with Wanhua Tower on her behalf. In exchange, she would assist the First Prince in his bid for the throne.
The person who had first burst into the guest room at the inn back then had been Yu Weiyi. He had been pursued by assassins and, with nowhere else to run, had leaped into the room where Sang Tiantian was staying. Her ear-piercing scream startled and distracted the assassins, giving him an opportunity to counterattack and kill them. However, he collapsed from exhaustion afterward. By the time he woke up, it was already broad daylight. Sang Tiantian had moved him onto the bed and treated his wounds.
Sang Tiantian had changed Yu Weiyi’s clothes, and the token identifying his status had fallen into her hands. She used the favor she had done him to pressure him into repaying her. With no other choice, Yu Weiyi could only bring Sang Tiantian back to his residence.
There, he unexpectedly discovered just how broad Sang Tiantian’s range of knowledge was—although she only understood the basics of most things. Yu Weiyi couldn’t help sneering at her superficial knowledge. However, Sang Tiantian managed to develop a new type of gunpowder charge whose power was incomparable to even the weapons currently used on the frontier.
And so, Sang Tiantian became an honored guest at Yu Weiyi’s residence. Whether his regard for her was genuine or merely an act, however, was something only Yu Weiyi himself knew.
It wasn’t until Sang Tiantian had gained enough influence at the First Prince’s residence to order the servants around at will that she finally realized that her real opportunity had never been at Wanhua Tower. She wasn’t following a “beloved by everyone” route at all. Instead, she was on the path of becoming the heroine who would eventually rise to become Empress.
Even the First Prince had fallen for her, and she possessed countless modern skills. Dealing with a few ancient people was practically a piece of cake for her.
Sang Tiantian was still useful to Yu Weiyi, so he didn’t mind using so-called love to keep her tied to him. Taking advantage of the Emperor’s excellent mood, he seized the opportunity to petition His Majesty to grant Sang Tiantian the title of a secondary consort.
Yu Weiyi arranged for Sang Tiantian to become the daughter of a fifth-rank official’s concubine.
If her status were too high, officials of sufficiently high rank would not agree to the match. If it were too low, she would provide no benefit to his future prospects. This status was neither too high nor too low. As a concubine-born daughter, she wouldn’t attract too much attention, nor would marrying her lower his status too much.
After all, the ministers were hardly willing to let their daughters share a husband with a woman from a fallen family or a peasant background.
This status was just right.