In the blink of an eye, it is already the end of autumn. The leaves are spinning and falling from the trees, dancing like butterflies.
There was a rare bit of laughter in the pavilion in the garden.
"Lingling, come here and open your mouth." Fu Yuheng was in a good mood, holding a piece of cake and teasing the little girl in front of him.
“Ah…” Lingling was unusually well-behaved, with her little eyes rolling around and a flattering smile on her face.
But this little adult-like behavior made Shen Qingwan on the side laugh softly with her hands covering her lips, while Fu Lingling's mother, Zhao Yuanrong, could only look at the father and daughter helplessly, but she was also relieved in her heart.
"It's been a long time since we've been like this." Fu Yuheng picked up Fu Lingling, his eyes filled with undisguised doting, and then turned to look at the chrysanthemums in the garden.
These days, various things have been happening one after another and I am busy dealing with various official duties, but I rarely have this kind of free time.
"Yes, Your Majesty hasn't laughed so happily in a long time." Zhao Yuanrong also echoed, looking at Fu Lingling with tenderness in his eyes. Her daughter might really be her lucky star.
Fu Lingling was originally good-looking, lively and clever, so many people in the harem liked her. Even Fu Yuheng could not help laughing because of her actions.
Fu Lingling swallowed the snack in her mouth, with a look of confusion in her eyes, "I felt that my father was very happy every time he saw him." She tilted her little head slightly to the side, and then looked at Fu Yuheng as if seeking confirmation.
Seeing her like this, he laughed, "Yes, yes, Lingling is father's happy pill!" While speaking, he rubbed her gently with his head.
After hearing what he said, she continued to eat her snacks with a proud look on her face.
After a while, Fu Lingling looked tired. Zhao Yuanrong knew that she must be tired from playing. After all, she was just a child. "Your Majesty, Lingling looks tired. Besides, you have been holding her for such a long time. I am afraid she must be tired. I will take her downstairs to rest first."
Fu Yuheng glanced at the little girl in his arms whose eyelids had begun to droop, and patted her head lovingly before handing her over to Zhao Yuanrong, "Go."
After the two left, he turned to look at Shen Qingwan beside him, "My beloved, is there anything you want to say?" He looked at the crumpled handkerchief in her hand with a slightly teasing look, as if he had seen through her thoughts long ago.
Shen Qingwan was slightly stunned. She didn't expect that he could see through her thoughts. But then she felt relieved. They probably belonged to the same kind of people, so she could guess what the other was thinking.
"I do have something to say, but I don't know if I should say it." After a moment's hesitation, she frowned. After listening to Wu Ling's story, she had always felt a knot in her heart. Since she said that what happened at that time was unjust, she must have her reasons, but after all, it has been so long since the incident happened, and now the palace has finally calmed down a little. She doesn't know if it is appropriate to bring this up now.
It is rare that something can make her hesitate for such a long time, so Fu Yuheng became more interested, "If you have anything to say, just speak up, my dear. If you are worried that I will blame you, I promise you that no matter what you say today, I will forgive you." He had already made enough exceptions for her, so this one wouldn't be a big deal.
"This..." Even though he said so, she was still a little hesitant, but thinking of Wu Ling's bored look, she finally gritted her teeth and said, "I see that there seems to be some misunderstanding between His Majesty and Sister Shufei, but I don't want to see His Majesty and Sister Shufei distressed, so I want to ask the reason for this matter." After speaking, Shen Qingwan glanced at his expression, fearing that he would be unhappy.
Fu Yuheng was stunned. He thought it would be about General Shen, but he didn't expect that she wanted to ask about his entanglement with Wu Ling. But thinking of this, he sighed quietly.
"This matter happened a while ago." Wu Ling entered the palace about a year earlier than Shen Qingwan, and she has been in the palace for nearly a year, so that means that the matter happened two years ago. Fu Yuheng's mind drifted far away. He remembered that when he first met Wu Ling, she was a cold woman like Shen Qingwan, but she was much less courageous than her. He still remembered that when they first met, he shouted at her, and her tears fell straight down.
Seeing that he was reminiscing, Shen Qingwan didn't want to disturb him and just waited quietly. It was not until a long time later that he came back to his senses from his memories.
"This matter all started with the incident with Minister Wu." Fu Yuheng's expression was somewhat dazed. He was indeed a bit reckless in the past. At that time, Minister Wu's family was torn apart by him because he found out that he was corrupt and was charged with deceiving the emperor. Now, of the only two remaining legitimate children, one is still imprisoned in prison, and the other is Wu Ling, who was forced by him to enter the palace as a concubine. But when he convicted them, he did not conduct an in-depth investigation. Later, he thought about it and found that there were still doubts.
He only spoke lightly about these things. After all, two years had passed, and all the regrets before were now diluted a lot. However, he still felt a little guilty towards Wu Ling. After all, if she had not entered the palace, she would not have fallen into the water in the harem, and then she would not have developed a root cause of illness due to depression.
Shen Qingwan felt a little more distressed for him after listening to what he said. He was probably still young and energetic two years ago, and it was an impulse decision that he made, which was understandable.
"Then why didn't the emperor overturn the verdict?" Even if he had been convicted, it was possible to clear Wu Shangshu's name. But as soon as he said this, he saw a bitter smile on his face. He was stunned for a moment, realizing that there was something wrong with his words.
"Why wouldn't I want to? But I am the emperor..."
Just one sentence, this has made Shen Qingwan understand a lot, because he is the emperor, a decision may cause the whole court to defect, if he can't convince the people, how can he stabilize the throne? Moreover, the Wu family fell because of his decision, some died, some escaped, now that he released the descendants of the Wu family, how can we guarantee that they will not take revenge
Shen Qingwan was a little speechless. If she had thought too simply before, she thought that as long as the case was overturned and Shangshu Wu was cleared of all charges, everything would be solved. However, she forgot that as the emperor, every decision he made would cause a huge stir in the court.
"I'm sorry for what I said..." Shen Qingwan lowered her eyes, feeling somewhat disappointed. She had thought she could help Wu Ling resolve her worries, but she didn't expect that at this point, she could only watch from behind.