After the hour of noon, Yang Wan walked out of the gate of the banana garden alone.
The people from the Shangyi Bureau were preparing to welcome someone, but they didn't see Concubine Ning and were all a little surprised.
Jiang Min said: "Everyone keep quiet."
After saying that, he went to Yang Wan and asked, "Why did you come out alone?"
Yang Wan turned her head and said to the palace servant at the door: "Close the door."
Jiang Min followed Yang Wan's gaze and watched the crack in the door close.
A burst of plum fragrance came out and rushed towards everyone's faces, so cold that it made people feel cold all over.
"Your Majesty, do you refuse to leave the garden?"
"Um."
"Why?"
Yang Wan didn't answer her immediately.
Jiang Min said: "I don't have to ask, but we have to answer to the Queen Mother."
Yang Wan turned around and coughed a few times, pressing her chest to calm down for a while, then said to Jiang Min, "I will go to the Queen Mother in person."
Jiang Min looked at her and said, "This matter is not that simple. What are you going to do?"
Yang Wan twisted the belt around her waist unconsciously and said softly, "Shang Yi, there is one thing I may not be sure of. Would you like to help me think about it?"
Jiang Min looked at Yang Wan's finger.
“Are You Anxious?”
"yes."
"If you have concerns, don't do it."
Yang Wan smiled and said, "You know, I'm not a cautious person."
"Too."
Jiang Min also laughed, "Then tell me."
Yang Wan walked a few steps towards the palace, and when she reached the bottom of the palace wall, she said, "I want to take the queen out of the palace. After all, the queen is the imperial concubine, and I am afraid that if I take this step, I will be in trouble with the queen mother."
Jiang Min was silent for a while after listening to this, and suddenly said: "Then don't leave, give me the chess piece."
"Shang Yi..."
Jiang Min raised her hand to signal her not to speak, and continued in a calm voice: "You are very smart to consider the consequences. The Ming Dynasty has been established for more than 60 years. Although no imperial concubine has ever walked out of the imperial city alive, in fact, not every concubine died in the city. The Queen Mother does not want Concubine Ning to be conferred a title, but she dare not execute her for the sake of His Majesty. For the Queen Mother, it is best to imprison Concubine Ning for life. However, His Majesty will eventually grow up. As long as Concubine Ning is willing to be conferred a title, the Queen Mother will not be able to stop His Majesty in the end."
Yang Wan nodded, "I think the same as you, so I want to give it a try."
Jiang Min shook her head and said, "You want to take Concubine Ning away from the palace, which is actually a good thing. Your identity is not right."
Yang Wan responded: "Yes, I know."
"That's why I asked you to give me the chess piece. The Queen Mother thinks that you have ill intentions in bringing this up, so I'm bringing this up to share her worries. What you should do is think carefully about how to convince His Majesty to never see his mother again."
"yes."
Jiang Wan opened her mouth and couldn't help but sigh.
"It's just that... Your Majesty is really pitiful."
Yang Wan said: "You never say such things."
After hearing this, Jiang Min just shook his head and did not answer.
Yang Wan chased after him, "You have never done anything beyond your status before."
Jiang Min smiled, "I..."
There was a hint of sigh in her voice: "Yang Wan, I am a cold person because I don't want to make mistakes in front of others and implicate me. But I am not a truly cold-hearted person."
As she spoke, she turned sideways and looked at Yang Wan. "I used to remind you not to get involved in the struggle in the inner court, but you didn't listen to me and ended up entering Chengqian Palace. So later on, I kept blocking Yun Qing from getting too close to you. I thought that if she stayed away from you, she would also be away from right and wrong. It wasn't until Chen Hua told me that if it weren't for you, Yun Qing would be lying underground like Li Yu. That's when I realized that it was you who saved Yun Qing in the end. Yang Wan, I've lived in the palace for several years, and I still don't think I was wrong, but... Today, I can no longer blame you, and I even want to try to walk the path you walked."
"Thank you very much."
After Yang Wan finished speaking, she held Jiang Min's arm, looked down at the bluestone on the road, and walked slowly toward the street with her.
The fragrance of plum blossoms gradually became fainter on the palace road; the wind blew their clothes and ruffled their hair.
Yang Wan said into the wind, "I remember you told me before that when you entered the palace, you were protected by the Silijian, so later you also hoped to provide shelter for the women in the palace. Shangyi, in my opinion, the protection of the Silijian is an illusion, and what the Shangyi Bureau provides for everyone is a stable place to stay. And I..."
She said with a self-deprecating smile, "I am an outlier in the inner court and cannot bring peace to most people. Therefore, I must go."
Jiang Min stopped and said, "You don't have to say that. If you can leave safely, I will also pray for you. But, how are you going to make a living after you get out? Can the Yang Mansion still accommodate you?"
Yang Wan shook her head and said, "I won't leave the Yang Mansion. I will live with Yun Qing and rely on the Kung Fu you taught us to make a living."
"What did I teach you?"
"Reading and writing."
Jiang Min sighed, "This means nothing to a woman."
"That's not the case. What you teach women is the most precious thing in the world."
Yang Wan showed a bright smile, "After learning to read and write, we don't need to listen to others telling us what principles to follow, we can choose for ourselves. Even if it is a bit tiring, we will never belittle ourselves in the world. You are such a person, and you also hope that we can become women like you."
She said they would never look down on themselves in the world.
These words inexplicably touched Jiang Min's heart.
She lived for more than four decades, never relying on any man, and unwilling to have sex with any powerful eunuch. She carefully managed the Shangyi Bureau, taught the female officials official documents and poetry, and made them stand up straight and not abuse themselves for money. She always felt that although she was not rich, she was not inferior to the concubines in the palace. She had never thought about what her inner confidence was before, but now in front of Yang Wan, she suddenly figured it out.
After learning to read and write, choose a path for yourself.
Although life is like a journey, as a traveler, it is a pleasure.
"yes."
Jiang Min responded solemnly and nodded to Yang Wan with a smile.
After that, he asked in a clear voice: "The old pass is covered with withered grass, parting is sad, where does it come from?"
"Lu Lun of the Tang Dynasty, a poem titled "Farewell to Li Duan"."
"What's the last sentence?"
"The road leads out of the cold clouds, and people return home in the evening snow."
Jiang Min nodded approvingly, "Very smart."
"You are willing to teach me."
Jiang Min shook her head. "We have known each other for several years. I have nothing to give you, only poems and writings. I hope you can come back when the snow falls, and have a smooth journey with a peaceful snowy journey."
**
In the first month of the first year of the Jinghe reign, the new emperor returned to the palace after the funeral procession. The Ministry of Rites proposed to change the reign title. Yi Lang chose the last of the three reign titles, Changwan, Jingyi and Jinghe. At the same time, he postponed the coronation ceremony, lived in a side hall of the Yangxin Palace, continued to wear plain clothes, and mourned for the late emperor.
In the first early spring after the change of the era name, the snow disaster that had lasted throughout the winter in the north finally gradually subsided.
In the Yangxin Palace, Yang Wan was squatting in front of the mirror to change Yi Lang's clothes. Yi Lang accidentally touched Yang Wan's leg. Although the charcoal fire in the palace was very warm, Yang Wan's leg was very cold.
"aunt."
"Um?"
"Go and rest."
Yang Wan raised her head and said, "Please help Your Majesty dress again."
Yi Lang did not agree to his request. He reached out and helped her up from the ground. "My mother refused to see me, and you also stopped talking to me."
After he said that, he took her hand and walked behind the hood.
"Your Majesty is only half dressed..."
"I'm not cold at all."
As he spoke, he led Yang Wan into the back room. The palace servants who were serving her stood behind the screen, not daring to move any further, and stood hesitantly at the door.
"Everyone, step back."
"yes."
The footsteps behind the screen faded away. Yi Lang let go of Yang Wan's hand, walked to the desk and sat down. His leather belt, which had not been fastened, fell to the ground and was dragged along the way.
Yang Wan was about to squat down to pick it up, but she heard Yi Lang say, "You are not allowed to pick it up. I will send someone to serve you later."
Yang Wan stood up and said to him helplessly: "Your Majesty is becoming more and more harsh on me."
"Why do you say it's harsh?"
"I… "
"Aunt, I gave you medicine but you didn't want it, and I gave you a palace but you didn't live in it, and you still say I'm harsh on you."
"I… "
"Why did you leave the palace?"
He suddenly interrupted Yang Wan, his voice suddenly lost control and he could clearly hear tears in his voice.
Yang Wan bent her knees and was about to kneel down.
"Don't kneel to me."
Yang Wan was stunned, "I thought His Majesty was going to reprimand me."
Yi Lang's eyes were red, and although he tried his best to control his voice, he still couldn't help choking up.
"Would you please not leave?"
As he spoke, he extended his hand to Yang Wan.
Yang Wan hurriedly went up to him and hugged him, "I originally wanted to tell His Majesty later."
Yi Lang lowered his head: "Your palace registration list has been cancelled. I saw it..."
He said, and put his arm around Yang Wan's waist, "My mother doesn't want to see you, and you want to leave too. Why are you leaving me alone?"
Yang Wan hugged Yi Lang's head and whispered, "Because your majesty has grown up, he no longer needs the protection of your aunt and the queen. Your aunt has been very worried in the past few years, and her health is not so good anymore, so she wants to go outside the palace and recuperate quietly."
Yi Lang sobbed, "What about mother?"
Yang Wan bowed her head and said, "Your Majesty, if you meet the Empress, how will you place her?"
Yi Lang was stunned for a moment, then let go of Yang Wan. After a while, he said, "I will not let her be conferred a title."
"Um."
"I... I will take care of her until the cabinet returns power to me. I will definitely restore my mother's honorable position."
Yang Wan looked out the window from the side.
"A concubine without a title of honor can only live in Shou'an Palace. The previous emperor imprisoned her for three years. Do you want to keep imprisoning her?"
"I will not imprison my mother, I..."
He couldn't continue speaking, buried his head on the desk, and said nothing.
Yang Wan knelt down and looked up at Yi Lang, "I'm sorry, Your Majesty."
Yi Lang still didn't say anything.
Yang Wan simply bent her knees and sat down beside him, watching the trouser material on his knees being wetted by her tears drop by drop.
The silent crying and the extreme endurance broke Yang Wan's heart.
After a long time, he finally raised his head, wiped away his tears, lowered his head and said to Yang Wan: "If you leave, I will no longer protect you."
"good."
"So does my mother."
He paused and said, "Tell her that I don't care about her, and I will never recognize her again in this life."
Yang Wan nodded and sighed, "Okay..."
Yi Lang pursed his lips, covered his eyes which were full of tears, and asked, "I want to be a good emperor."
Yang Wan nodded with tears in her eyes.
"Yes. Your Majesty will definitely be a good emperor."