The Queen Mother had always been more tolerant of the Empress. This was not something the Third Prince had experienced himself, but something he had heard his mother mutter to herself when she occasionally held him in her arms to admire the moon and flowers. Although he did not understand it at the time, he understood it after seeing it more often. If it had not been for the Queen Mother's protection, the Empress who had lost her heart would not have been able to be so domineering in the palace.
Therefore, even though the Queen Mother was indifferent to the First and Second Princes, when giving gifts during festivals, he and the Fourth Prince together often did not get as much as the Second Prince, and the Second Prince and the others together only got as much as the First Prince. Therefore, he always believed that the Queen Mother did not like him.
But at this moment, this unprecedented pat on the head seemed to disrupt all his previous guesses. The bewildered Third Prince was stunned, forgetting etiquette for the first time in his life. In the end, it was the Fourth Prince's shouting that brought him back to his senses.
"Grandmother, my third brother has always been very steady and has always been a role model for his grandson! He will definitely not disappoint you and my father!"
The Queen Mother glanced at the Fourth Prince, whose expression was obviously more excited than the Third Prince, and couldn't help but think of the First Prince and the Second Prince, who had been fighting like black-eyed chickens since they were young.
She had tried her best to maintain the hierarchy in the palace, but in the end, the emperor deposed her and imprisoned her son. Even though she took full responsibility for deposing the queen, the emperor still personally issued an announcement to severely punish the first and second princes. At this moment, she saw the third prince immediately move in front of the fourth prince and bow as if he wanted to defend him, so she waved her hand.
"How can I not be happy that you two brothers are so harmonious? There is no need to explain anything. You two are both good kids. Go back now and remember to study hard and make progress." At this point, she instructed Yuquan beside her, "After we return to Qingning Palace, go to my desk and give Sanlang the jade lion paperweight from the previous emperor. Give Sanlang the She inkstone as well."
Although the gift had not yet been received, the Queen Mother's words were as good as gold, so the Third Prince was stunned but hurried to thank her. As for the Fourth Prince, he was even more excited, and after thanking her, he shouted: "My grandson will definitely use that She inkstone to grind ink and write in the future. When the Royal Grandmother's birthday comes, I will definitely write 10,000 longevity characters as a gift!"
"Yuquan, please remember this for me. If he misses a word, I will settle the score with Silang, the boaster."
The Queen Mother instructed Yuquan with a half-smile, and when she heard the person respond immediately, she glanced at the dumbfounded Fourth Prince, but continued to move forward. Although she was over sixty years old, she still maintained her graceful figure as she did in her youth. When she walked into the Qianqing Palace, the palace servants who followed her quietly looked up at her back, and couldn't help but feel a little envious.
The emperor was filial, had many children and grandchildren, and once held power over the world, commanding civil and military officials. The empress dowager was truly the person most desired by women in the world.
But the empress dowager was not as complacent as others thought. After she entered the Qianqing Palace with a smile on her face, she took the initiative and ordered everyone to leave. When Yuquan and Liu Feng dismissed the palace servants without saying a word and then both left, she saw the emperor sitting down on the throne in a rebellious manner, so she frowned and walked straight forward until she stopped in front of them.