After daybreak, the news that Concubine Ning was imprisoned in the Jiaoyuan Garden overnight spread throughout the six palaces.
Concubine Jiang Xian entered the Yangxin Palace at noon, but was scolded and sent out in less than a cup of tea. Later, the Empress sent someone to ask Emperor Zhen if he wanted to temporarily bring Yi Lang to the Central Palace for placement. When the news reached Chengqian Palace, all the palace people were terrified.
There is no record in official history about who raised Yi Lang after Concubine Ning, but there are several unofficial histories.
Because it is unknown when Concubine Ning was abandoned by the Emperor, it is also unknown how many years Yi Lang was raised by others. One said that after Yi Lang left the palace to study, the Emperor had been raising him personally, while another said that since the 13th year of Zhenning, Yi Lang was raised by the Empress.
There is almost no relevant historical data to support these two statements, and they have little research value.
But for Yang Wan, this matter concerns the life and death of Concubine Ning Yang Lun.
After Yi Lang heard that the Queen wanted to take him in as the Empress, he said nothing but sat on the couch, refusing to take medicine and sleep.
He Yu couldn't coax him, so he came out and said to Yang Wan: "If the Queen takes the prince away, then our Queen will probably die."
As soon as he finished speaking, the eunuch at the door suddenly came running over and reported: "Yang Zhangji, His Majesty has summoned you to the Yangxin Palace for questioning."
Yang Wan leaned against the screen and responded coldly: "I know."
He Yu frowned and said, "Is it a bad omen or a good omen to ask you to go to the Yangxin Palace at this time?"
Yang Wan untied her arms and stood up straight, "No matter whether it's good or bad, it has to be good in the end. I'm going to change my clothes."
As she spoke, she walked out. After a few steps, she suddenly remembered something and turned back to ask, "Did the Yangxin Palace also summon the imperial physician today?"
"Like..."
He Yu recalled: "The Imperial Pharmacy was in turmoil this morning. First it was His Majesty, then it was us. Later we heard that Concubine Xian had a seizure..."
"Okay. Heyu, go find a bamboo stick."
"Bamboo sticks... What bamboo sticks?"
"Bring it here. I don't know if it will work, let's try it first."
**
Yang Wan was brought into the Yangxin Palace at the hour of You.
The night rain has just stopped.
Yang Wan knelt in front of the imperial desk in the secondary study, the smoke from the incense burner quietly passing in front of her eyes. The imperial physician stood beside Yang Wan and advised softly: "Your Majesty, this bowl of medicine is already an hour late."
The emperor waved his hand and said, "Leave it there. Go to Chengqian Palace to see the eldest prince and come back to report to me."
"yes."
The imperial physician handed the medicine bowl to the eunuch, bowed, and stepped back from Yang Wan.
The emperor then raised his head and looked at Yang Wan, "How is the eldest prince's diet today?"
Yang Wan replied: "I had a bowl of porridge at noon."
"How's it going?"
"It was a little slow to swallow, but it went in all the way."
"good."
The emperor raised his hand and said, "Get up."
Yang Wan expressed her gratitude and stood up as she was told.
The smell of medicine in the room was a bit pungent, and the emperor himself did not find it very appealing. He called out, "Hu Xiang, come in and take the medicine out. I don't want to drink it now."
"Wait a moment."
The emperor glanced at Yang Wan.
"What are you going to say?"
Yang Wan knelt down and said, "Your Majesty won't drink the medicine, and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince won't dare drink it either."
The emperor was startled and his ears began to turn red.
"Is that true?"
"Yes... His Highness once taught me that if I only pity my sister and don't think about His Majesty's pain, I am disloyal."
As she spoke, she extended her hand toward Emperor Zhenning.
Emperor Zhenning lowered his head and glanced, "It's Yi Lang's fault."
"yes."
"What do you think?"
Yang Wan took her hand back and bowed her head: "I am a fool, I will learn from the reprimand..."
As she spoke, she raised her hand and wiped away her tears.
The emperor sighed and said, "Concubine Ning taught this child very well."
As he spoke, he pointed at the medicine in Hu Xiang's hand and said to Yang Wan: "Bring the medicine to me."
"yes."
Emperor Zhenning took the medicine, raised his head and drank it all, then put down the bowl and waved away the eunuch who presented the preserved fruit, and said to Yang Wan: "When your sister was in good health, she told me that you were good to Yi Lang and Yi Lang was willing to be close to you. Now that I suddenly sent Concubine Ning away, I am afraid Yi Lang will feel uneasy. You don't have to go back to the Shangyi Bureau, stay in Chengqian Palace and serve the eldest prince."
"Yes, I thank your majesty for your grace."
Emperor Zhenning lowered his head and said, "But you must remember that you are not a concubine. You can only serve him and be controlled by him like today. You cannot educate him."
"I understand."
Emperor Zhenning nodded, "Go back and tell Yi Lang that his father has taken the medicine and let him sleep."
"yes."
Yang Wan stood up and walked out of the Yangxin Palace, raised her hand and wiped away the tears that she had forced out in front of Emperor Zhenning.
She walked down the platform with her hands raised, and He Yu and others came up to her and said, "What does your majesty say?"
Yang Wan shook her head. "You guys go back later and take good care of His Highness. Tell him not to worry, His Majesty didn't ask him to move to another palace. Ask him to take his medicine and go to bed early."
He Yu looked at Yang Wan's hand and said, "I'll apply some medicine to you when we get back."
Yang Wanyi said: "Just rub it with some mint. No one can tell anyone about this. If you want to tell anyone, you can only say that it was His Highness who ordered the beating. Do you understand?"
**
On the second day, Emperor Zhenning rejected the Empress's request and personally wrote an imperial edict to comfort Yi Lang.
The person who came to the Yangxin Palace to deliver the imperial edict was Deng Ying. At that time, Yi Lang had not yet woken up. Yang Wan was sitting alone on the stone steps behind the wall, supporting her forehead with her hand in a daze.
"Yang Wan."
"exist."
From yesterday till now, she has been in a state of tension. When she hears someone calling her name, she subconsciously stands up.
"Slow down."
Deng Ying reached out and held her.
Yang Wan breathed a sigh of relief when she recognized Deng Ying's voice.
"Oh, it's you..."
"Yeah, why are you sitting here?"
Yang Wan pressed her temples. "Everyone in Chengqian Palace was uneasy yesterday, so I didn't ask Heyu and the others to stay overnight. I stayed inside for a while, but then I felt anxious and came out again. Why did you come to Chengqian Palace?"
"I'm here to pass on your message."
Yang Wan struggled to stand up again, "What's the order?"
Deng Ying squatted down and said, "Don't panic, this is the handwritten letter from His Majesty to comfort the little prince."
"oh… "
Yang Wan exhaled and tidied her messy hair, "Then I'll go bring Yi Lang over and let him receive it."
“That’s not necessary.”
Deng Ying handed the imperial edict to a group of eunuchs who had come forward, and signaled them to retreat behind the wall first.
"Your Majesty has given a verbal order that Your Highness does not need to perform the salute. Since Your Highness has not stood up, I will wait here."
Yang Wan looked at Deng Ying who was squatting in front of him and asked, "Would you like to sit with me for a while?"
Deng Ying said, "Let me stand."
"I want to find someone to lean on for a while."
"What if the little prince sees us?"
"Let him scold me."
Deng Ying looked at her and did not refuse.
It stood up and walked to Yang Wan and sat down.
Yang Wan tilted her head and gently rested her face on Deng Ying's shoulder.
Deng Ying let her lean on him, looked up at the tiles on the roof of the front hall, and said softly: "There will be many people watching here in the future, you have to be more careful."
Yang Wan followed Deng Ying's gaze.
"Do you know that His Majesty refuted the Queen?"
"Yes. I heard that His Majesty summoned you yesterday. What did you say?"
Yang Wan shook her head, "I didn't say anything."
After she finished speaking, she did not say anything else for a while, leaning on Deng Ying's shoulder and regulating her breathing quietly.
The wind brought with it rain and blew on my face, it was cool and very comfortable.
"What did you do yesterday?"
"There are people buried on the grave mound to the west. I went to take a look."
Yang Wan was silent for a while, then asked, "Has Zheng Bingbi been buried?"
"Not yet. His uncle prepared a coffin for him, so I was able to bring him in today."
Yang Wan pursed her lips and said, "I watched him die yesterday. He looked at me before he died. When I think back to that look now, I can't fall asleep."
Deng Ying turned her head and looked at Yang Wan.
The skin on her face was a little wet, not sure if it was because of tears or the rain.
Deng Ying raised her head and used her sleeve to gently wipe her. She did not dodge, but her shoulders trembled unconsciously.
Deng Ying lowered her sleeves and asked softly, "Are you crying?"
Yang Wan shook her head. "How can I have the right to cry?"
She took a breath and said, "Deng Ying."
"Um?"
"When your majesty was trying me, I thought I could change something. I could help you, my sister, and Zheng Bingbi. But in the end, I didn't help anyone. I felt like a self-righteous fool..."
"How do you know you didn't help them?"
Yang Wan sighed.
"Zheng Bingbi is dead, and my sister is imprisoned. What have I done to help them?"
Deng Ying shook her head. "If it weren't for you, Zheng Bingbi would have been executed by slow slicing by the Northern Pacification Division, Empress Ning would have been secretly executed, and the little prince would have lost the emperor's favor forever and been handed over to other concubines to raise. It seems that the ending is the same, but the degree of tragedy and the trauma in people's hearts are actually different."
He looked down at Wan's hand and said, "It's just like when we were in the torture chamber in Nanhaizi, if you hadn't made a pinky promise to me that you would come find me and asked me to wait for you, my life might have been a lot harder."
Yang Wan sniffed, "Do you really think I've changed?"
"Um."
Deng Ying nodded. "The Ming Dynasty has been around for nearly a hundred years. In this century, there have been many talented people and countless celebrities. However, no one has ever been able to eliminate the political ills and save the people by himself. They are just like Yang Zixi, who is willing to face difficulties and strive to cure the deep-seated ills. As for people like me..."
He looked at Yang Wan and smiled gently, "I told you before that I don't want those who serve the country to die tragically, but the truth is, Wanwan, I haven't done as well as you. You know where the root of the court is entangled, and you can untie it without drastic measures. If you still blame yourself, how can I deal with it?"
He exhaled softly after he finished speaking, "When Lord Yang comes back, His Majesty will probably reward him. If you want to leave the palace, ask him to ask for permission and take you home."
"I have no home."
She suddenly responded, and after realizing what was happening, she hurried on: "I promised my sister that I would take good care of Yi Lang. I will definitely protect him and you."
Deng Ying raised her hand to support Yang Wan's chin, allowing her to lean back more and relax.
"You don't have to guard me, let me guard you, little prince."
After hearing this, Yang Wan pinched her fingers behind Deng Ying's back.
"Deng Ying, I am just a palace servant who takes care of the prince's food and daily life. But if you take care of him, in the eyes of others, you will be like He Yixian and will be involved in the party struggle of the next dynasty."
"Yes, I understand."
"Deng Ying!"
Yang Wan interrupted him and stood up. "Even if you are involved in the party struggle for Yi Lang, Yi Lang will not treat you well. Zhang Cong and Huang Ran have been teaching him to avoid the troubles of eunuchs since he was very young, and to strictly discipline the eunuchs in the inner court. He is not the current emperor, and he will not leave you any room when he grows up!"
Deng Ying raised her head and looked at Yang Wan, "I know."
Yang Wan's eyes softened, "Then why..."
"The Imperial Household Department will not be willing to watch the young prince ascend the throne, and your majesty is too closely connected to He Yixian. It is hard to say whether he will influence the emperor's will. If I retreat at this time, the young prince, Yang Zixi and others will suffer even greater persecution."
Yang Wan trembled and said, "I understand what you said, but..."
“Are you worried that others won’t understand?”
"no."
Yang Wan was a little anxious. "They actually understand, but they think they are superior to you and will not bow down to acknowledge you."
"No need, Wanwan."
He smiled gently at Yang Wan, "I have always agreed that if politics is to be clear, slaves should be strictly disciplined and not allowed to interfere in politics. It's just that politics is not clear now, so I can't care about these. I want to do it first, and after it's done, I will hand over this body of skin. Don't you dislike seeing me wearing this official uniform?"