Chapter 169: The Palace is Deep as the Sea
Su Luo was really frightened and broke out in a cold sweat. Although Su Luo wanted to do a lot of things, "doing things" definitely did not only refer to that ambiguous and tacit thing, but the Queen Mother's words were obviously easy to be misunderstood. And the most important thing about this matter was that she didn't want to "do things" with Wanli at all, and it was estimated that Wanli would not want to "do things" with her either.
Su Luo wiped the sweat off his forehead and gave Concubine Zheng a flattering smile. Despite the pressure of Concubine Zheng's sharp gaze, the smile lasted for a minute or two. Then he straightened his thoughts and turned to the Queen Mother and said, "Do, do, do what?"
The Queen Mother was slightly surprised, "Hasn't Huairou told you yet?" Then she looked at Concubine Zheng, "The Emperor said that this idea was proposed by you, why didn't you tell Miss Su?"
Concubine Zheng seemed to be quite conscious, but her eyes when she looked at Su Luo lacked a bit of kindness. Su Luo swallowed and reminded her, "Is it about that thing? The one about my sister-in-law?"
Concubine Zheng's expression suddenly changed from winter to spring. She smiled softly with her hands covering her mouth, and her posture was very graceful. "But the emperor wants to recognize Miss Su as his sister? The emperor often praises Miss Su in front of me, so I made this suggestion. I didn't expect that the emperor also has this idea?"
The Queen Mother nodded and said, "Yes, Huairou came to the palace yesterday to discuss another matter with me. It happened that the Emperor came and mentioned this matter. This can be regarded as a double happiness. However, it is only right to enter the Imperial Book of Documents first. Once you have a legitimate identity, it will not be too late to consider other things."
Su Luo then realized that she had never been a "proper" person, that is, she had never been very serious. But what the Queen Mother said just now was "double happiness"...
"Another good news is..."
The Queen Mother frowned and said angrily, "Huairou, you really didn't tell you anything?"
Su Luo said quickly: "I came home too late yesterday, and they were all asleep. I went to the palace early this morning, and I haven't met them yet."
The Queen Mother nodded and suddenly smiled, "Then I can only give you this surprise."
For some reason, Su Luo felt a tingling sensation on her spine, as if a small insect was crawling on her back.
"Luo'er," the Queen Mother was not in a hurry to explain, but called Su Luo affectionately, "Now that you are included in the Jade Book, we are a family."
Su Luo smiled dryly and nodded. The Queen Mother asked again, "How old are you this year?"
"Hmm..." Twenty-one or twenty-two? I don't know if the Ming Dynasty counted the age in years or the age in lunar years. Su Luo always felt that her age made her feel guilty. A few hundred years later, this would be called "Youth is Invincible" in "My Style, My Show". If it were in the present, it might be a lack of virtue or mental health. Otherwise, why can't she get married at such an old age?
The Queen Mother took this silence as a difficult question to answer, and her eyes became even more loving and pitiful. She thought that not asking this embarrassing question further was the proper manners of a ruler, so she continued, "Yesterday your mother said that you had been unwilling to get married in order to take care of your mother and brother. I was deeply moved when I heard that."
"Ha, ha ha." Su Luo didn't know what else he could do except laughing, so he had to laugh.
"Don't worry. There are countless good men in my court. You will live in the palace from today. I will try my best to invite as many young talents as possible to the palace for banquets. If you like anyone, just let me know."
Su Luo's world collapsed after she understood what the Queen Mother said.
Blind date!
Has she fallen to the point where she needs to go on a blind date?
Her mother...has too little confidence in her!
"No……"
"I have made up my mind." The Queen Mother looked at Su Luo gently, but there was a firmness in her eyes that could not be ignored.
Su Luo suddenly understood.
Who is the Queen Mother? She is the mother of the country! The entangled palace fighting is far away from her. She cannot participate in the war in the court. The emperor is too old to take care of him. It is not her turn to worry about the education of the third generation. Every day, she eats and drinks delicious food. She is the most idle person in the world!
What a busybody fears most is being idle. Now she has come across such a good opportunity to meddle in other people's affairs. Even if Su Luo commits suicide on the spot, she probably can't escape this disaster.
“But my business…”
The Queen Mother's expression was stern. "You were forced to do business in the beginning. Now that you don't have to worry about your life, it's better not to do those businesses. As a member of the royal family, if you go out and do business, you will be laughed at."
With that said, what else could Su Luo say?
Insist on your own opinion? Drag him out!
Don't want to accept it? Get out!
Say I don't want to marry into your noble royal family? Kill me first and then drag me out!
So now is the time to fully verify the saying "Silence is golden". Let's turn it into gold first. I hope the Queen Mother can get over her addiction sooner and forget about this not-so-serious business girl.
"Then today I will..."
"You can stay here today." The Queen Mother looked at Su Luo with a smile, "You are familiar with Concubine Zheng, so you can live in her palace."
Su Luo stole a glance at Concubine Zheng, who was also looking at her. Su Luo understood without any hint, and said quickly: "I have always heard of the Queen Mother's reputation for virtue and righteousness, and I respect her very much. Today is a great opportunity. I dare to request to stay in the Queen Mother's Palace for the next few days to serve Her Majesty, as all women in the country hope." After saying this, she cast an apologetic glance at Concubine Zheng, "I hope Her Majesty will understand my feelings."
Su Luo's biggest advantage is that she is not pretty, so her words seem particularly sincere. Of course, not being pretty is not the same as being ugly, and she is definitely not ugly. There is a saying that there are no ugly women in the world, only lazy women.
The Empress Dowager was very pleased with this honest flattery, and Su Luo also successfully achieved her goal of never living with Concubine Zheng. Just because she didn't want to "do things" didn't mean that others didn't want to "do things" either. In fact, Concubine Zheng wished that Wanli would go to her every day to "do things". If Su Luo stood there, it would distract Wanli and affect the efficiency of "doing things", and Su Luo couldn't bear the responsibility.
As the saying goes, once you enter the palace, it is like entering a deep sea. It seems that it is impossible to leave the palace today, so someone has to take a message back. Su Luo sent Concubine Zheng out of the Queen Mother's Palace. Concubine Zheng promised Su Luo that she would send someone to the Princess's Mansion to inform them as soon as possible. Su Luo wanted to ask her to inform Qin Huai and Li Rusong at the same time, but after thinking about it, she decided not to. They should know soon, so there is no need to do anything unnecessary.
Concubine Zheng leaned over again and asked mysteriously, "Are you interested in Lord Li, the general of Xuanfu? I saw him leave the last fashion show too."
Su Luo didn't know how to answer again. The last time he was thinking about this, he just... what happened? I think he went to sleep? Anyway, he didn't figure it out, and he still doesn't understand it now. Anyway, this matter is quite troublesome, and there are more than one or two people involved.
"Don't worry ." Concubine Zheng, like the empress dowager, felt that she was so clear that she could see through anyone's mind. "Your status was not worthy of him before, but it's different now. When you are included in the Jade Book, you will be the emperor's sister and a princess. If Li Rusong wants to be a consort, we don't necessarily want him!"
“Ha, haha…”
"I don't know who the Queen Mother will invite to the banquet, but I do have a distant cousin who is both handsome and has outstanding character. He is currently serving as a doctor in the Ministry of Personnel. Although his position is a little low, his future is limitless. If there is anything wrong with him, it is that he is too loyal. His cousin's wife passed away three years ago, and he never remarried."
“Ha, haha…”
"How about you stop smiling so much?" Concubine Zheng struck while the iron was hot, "If you think it's okay, I'll let him into the palace tomorrow so you can meet him first."
"No……"
"There's nothing to be embarrassed about."
Su Luo wanted to say that I wasn't embarrassed at all! "Then... does he have any offspring?"
Concubine Zheng laughed, "Why do you still care about this?" After thinking for a while, she said, "My cousin has only one five-year-old daughter, who will not fight for anything in the future. Besides, my cousin is an honest man. If you really marry him, you will definitely be the head of the family as soon as you enter the house!"
I'm going to be a mother as soon as I get married! Su Luo screamed in the deepest part of her heart, but she didn't show it at all. She just said with a little embarrassment: "I still have to listen to my parents' opinions on marriage. Even if I agree, I'm afraid my mother won't want me to be a stepmother after I get married."
Concubine Zheng was embarrassed for a moment, then laughed it off, "That's true, it's okay, I have a lot of relatives!"
Su Luo really wanted to call her grandma, because she thought that being a queen dowager was not enough or something?
"Also," Concubine Zheng leaned over again and whispered, "I asked you to stay with the Queen Mother so that you can have more time to get closer to the Madam. Let's get through the matter of Liu Chengxuan bit by bit. It would be best if the Queen Mother could come forward to settle it."
So it wasn't for "getting things done"? Su Luo didn't believe it.
That night, Su Luo stayed at the Cining Palace. Empress Dowager Li was a devout Buddhist. She would go to the Sutra Hall to read sutras twice a day, morning and evening. Her pious appearance made Su Luo unable to understand why Empress Dowager Li also loved matchmaking for others. Buddhism and matchmaking were not on the same level at all!
