Emperor's Capital Rhapsody 12: Virtuous and Resplendent Grand Empress Dowager
Xianzhao Empress Dowager
Xianzhao Empress Dowager is the current mistress of the Li Wangfu, but she is not the birth mother of Li Wang Mo Jingli. Mo Jingli and the current emperor were both born to the empress dowager. Xianzhao Empress Dowager is actually the empress dowager's cousin, and although they entered the palace around the same time, they did not engage in open or secret struggles like other imperial consorts. Instead, they supported each other throughout their lives. Xianzhao Empress Dowager originally had a daughter, Princess Lin'an, who married General Zhen Guo several years ago and followed him to his post on the border. Xianzhao Empress Dowager was then taken in by Li Wang and provided for within the palace. In fact, it was also because the empress dowager did not want her youngest son to live alone outside the palace that she asked Xianzhao Empress Dowager to take care of him.
Ye Li changed into a new set of clothes and followed the housekeeper's wife to Ye Old Madam's Rong Le Hall, where everyone was in harmony. Ye Old Madam sat with Xian Zhao Taifei, while Wang Shi naturally brought Ye Ying to sit on one side, accompanied by several noblewomen who looked like imperial consorts. What surprised Ye Li the most was that Mo Jing Lei was also sitting below Taifei, and it wasn't until she was stunned for a moment that Ye Li vaguely remembered that this world's precautions against men and women were not as strict as those in ancient times that she had heard about in her previous life, nor did they have rules that unmarried men and women could not see each other. Of course, young ladies still needed to be accompanied by maids when meeting their fiancés. If it weren't for this, Ye Ying would not have had the opportunity to get together with Mo Jing Lei.
"I offer greetings to Her Highness the Princess and to His Majesty King Ly. I have paid respects to our ancestors. Junior here has paid respects to all the ladies."
The noble lady sat at the top with a dignified and elegant demeanor, her phoenix eyes slightly raised, although her youth had passed, but her well-maintained face did not show any wrinkles. This virtuous and brilliant imperial consort was not considered to be of the most exceptional beauty, yet she excelled in her refined and noble bearing, making one unable to help but linger.
"Old lady, is this Third Miss?" The imperial concubine looked at Ye Li and asked Ye Old Lady with a sidelong glance.
"Ah, Imperial Concubine Hui," Old Lady Ye smiled and said, "This is precisely my third daughter."
The empress nodded and smiled, saying: "She's a lovely child, it's just a pity... that our family doesn't have the good fortune." The empress pulled Ye Li closer to praise her, and casually removed an icy jade bangle from her wrist and put it on Ye Li's hand. This immediately made Ye Ying's eyes darken. Ye Li didn't dare accept this bangle of the empress', and hurriedly declined, saying: "Thank you for your praise, Your Majesty, but such a precious thing is more suited to you wearing it. I don't dare accept your generous gift." The empress pressed down on her hand that was trying to remove the bangle, pretending to be angry and saying: "You little girl, are you implying that this bangle of mine isn't good enough? This bangle was given to me by the previous emperor himself. I'm old now, it's better for young people like you to wear it, it makes me happy too." Since she said it was a gift from the previous emperor, if Ye Li declined again wouldn't that be equivalent to looking down on something the previous emperor gave? Only then did Ye Li give up, and with a slight bow and smile said: "Thank you for your gift, Your Majesty. I will definitely treasure this gift of yours carefully."
The queen seemed to be very satisfied with Ye Li's performance, nodded slightly with a smile before releasing Ye Li, who then walked neatly to stand behind Wang Shi and stood shoulder to shoulder with Ye Ying.
The few ladies who came with the queen were surprised to see Ye Li in their hearts. The reputation of Miss Ye San was almost as famous as that of Ye Ying, known as the number one beauty in the capital, but one was talented and virtuous, while the other was untalented, unvirtuous, and unattractive, making it hard for people to believe they were from the same family. However, this Miss Ye San was also a strange person who rarely participated in gatherings of young ladies in the capital, only saying that since the death of the Ye family's madam, the third miss had not been well. Today, seeing Miss Ye San's elegant and refined appearance, her elegant speech and demeanor, vaguely reminded people of the elegance of Mrs. Ye from the Xu family in the past. How could such a woman be rumored to be so disreputable, not only losing the good marriage with King Li but also being matched with King Ding, ruining her life?
Ye Li stood respectfully behind Wang Shi, completely unaware that since she entered the room, Mo Jing Lei had been staring at her with a gloomy face. She was listening to the crowd flattering the empress dowager on one side, while staring at the crystal jade bangle on her wrist, thinking rapidly. If it were said that the empress dowager liked her or felt guilty about Li Wang's cancelled engagement and gave her the late emperor's heirloom as soon as they met, no one would believe it, including herself and others present. Moreover, the empress dowager had just casually mentioned Li Wang earlier, when Ye Ying and Mo Jing Lei were both present, obviously intending to embarrass her. So what did the empress dowager mean by this behavior?
"We old ladies chatting here must be quite boring for you young people. Why don't Third Miss and Fourth Miss take Li'er out for a stroll?" Empress Xianzhao suddenly changed the subject, saying with a warm smile.
Upon hearing this, the faces of Wang and Ye Ying suddenly stiffened, and Old Lady Ye was also taken aback. However, she quickly regained her composure and smiled: "The imperial consort is right. It's just that I wasn't thoughtful enough to let King Li stay here with us and waste time. Ying'er, Li'er..."
Here is the translation:
Ye Li's heart skipped a beat, and she took a step forward, smiling at Old Lady Ye: "Grandmother, Fourth Sister and King Lei's affection for each other is only natural, and it's inevitable that they would miss each other. I wouldn't dare to be a bright red lantern and annoy people for no reason." After finishing her sentence, she stuck out her tongue and made a silly face at Old Lady Ye, displaying a spoiled little girl's coquettish demeanor that left the normally stoic old lady and Wang Shi somewhat taken aback. Ye Ying's face turned bright red as she was caught off guard, glared at Ye Li, and then shyly stole a glance at Mo Jing Lei, her beautiful smile tinged with a lovely blush. Mo Jing Lei's expression turned even more unpleasant after hearing Ye Li's words, and he coldly snorted before standing up and saying to Ye Li: "It's good that you have some self-awareness!" Ye Li raised an eyebrow, still smiling sweetly: "Your Highness, what are you talking about? I'm a very considerate person. How could I possibly disturb Fourth Sister and her husband's time together? I'd rather stay behind to accompany Grandmother, the Empress Dowager, and all the ladies. I admire the Empress Dowager's elegance and hope she won't despise me."
The queen gazed deeply at Ye Li and smiled: "In that case, let Lier stay."
Mo Jing Lei let out a hum and took Ye Ying away. Ye Ying naturally followed Mo Jing Lei with joy, while the Empress Dowager looked at the smiling and serene girl in front of her, furrowing her brow imperceptibly before quickly relaxing it again to continue talking to Old Lady Ye.
Ye Li stood behind Wang Furen, listening to the noblewomen of the capital city gossiping while reciting a few chapters of "The Art of War" by Sun Tzu from memory. This habit was formed in her past life. Ye Li's ancestors were military families, and her great-grandfather was a poor man who participated in the war against Japan, which made him a rough person. However, this rough person hated it when others called him a rough person, so from Ye Li's father's generation onwards, they were all raised as Confucian generals. The old master's greatest hobby was to make his younger family members recite books, and they were all ancient classics. The younger family members couldn't bear the torture, and basically, one by one, they didn't return home during holidays. However, after more than a decade of torture, it did bring benefits to the younger generation.
The ladies present were all prominent figures in the capital, and although they chatted with a suitable expression, they did not neglect Ye Li behind Wang Shi. The more they looked at her, the more they felt that this Miss Ye San was different from what they had heard. No matter what they said, there was no curiosity or surprise on her face, even when talking about the marriage between King Lei and Miss Ye Si, she didn't show any resentment or grievance. Whether it was true or false, being able to make people see through their hearts so early on was a remarkable skill. Such composure in the face of honor and humiliation was rare, not just among women, but also among men.
"It's rare to see Third Miss in the capital, I wonder if she'll attend this year's Hundred Flowers Banquet?" A woman suddenly asked while Ye Li was quietly reading a book.
Without waiting for Ye Li to respond, Old Lady Ye smiled and said: "These two years, Li'er's body has improved a lot, so naturally she will participate this year." The old lady naturally understood the intention behind Wang Shi not allowing Ye Li to participate in the past. However, now that the marriage of the two girls had been settled, it would be unreasonable not to let Ye Li participate, both emotionally and out of courtesy. Although she valued Ye Ying a bit more, clever Old Lady Ye also didn't plan on letting this soon-to-be Princess Consort of Ding Wang's granddaughter become disheartened with the Ye family.
