Chapter 561

Chapter 561 – Is She Prettier than Me?

The weather was getting colder, and the empress dowager’s legs were sore. As such the imperial physician suggested that she visit the Chengde Mountain Villa to soak in the hot springs for a few days.

The truth was, the empress dowager actually liked the place and had been staying here for a few days now. However, when she learnt Yaoyao had returned, she wanted to head to the palace immediately.  Unexpectedly, the soreness in her legs relapsed, and the imperial physician advised her against returning for the time being saying it would be better if she continued to soak in the hot springs and wrap her feet in the brocade-lined clothing every day.

While enjoying the hot springs here, the empress dowager had been wondering when the little girl would come over to accompany her.  In the end, before she could meet the little girl she so doted upon, she received a word from her son.

“Are you looking for death, you bastard!” The empress dowager was seething in fury. Eunuch Fu who was to return with an answer was driven away without one! She rained curses on her son, “Look at how he is handling things, wants to bestow a marriage upon Yaoyao with someone else. And should that really happen, how is he going to undo it*?

(*can he get Yaoyao back again?)”

Aunt Cheng who had been listening from the side couldn’t help but smile and say, “Your Highness, His Majesty is not without good intentions.”

“He even bestowed himself the reputation of a wife jinxer*. Have you seen an emperor like this?” she said in exasperation. “Had I known earlier that his affection for Yaoyao run this deep, I wouldn’t have made her a princess. But he really dotes on her, so much so that he can’t bear to find an excuse to abolish her princess title, and instead chose to use a whole bunch of excuses.”

[*apparently he will bring misfortune and even death to anyone who marries him]

“Lately people have been saying the princess is the emperor’s lucky star, I don’t think it would be appropriate to abolish her title,” was all Aunt Cheng could say.

The empress dowager griped for a little longer before saying, “Anyway, as long as Aijia* can’t see it, Aijia will not be bothered with it. Let him fret over it. If Aijia doesn’t let him do this, Aijia doesn’t know when this bastard son will let Aijia hold a grandson or what other mess he will kick up**.”

[* 哀家 āi jiā= I, me; self-referring by a widowed empress etc.

**here implicate kind of suffering]

In a short span, a dignified emperor had brazenly left the capital not once but twice! Had she not been familiar with the little girl’s character, she would have presumed she(LYY) had used some kind of demonic spell and turned him as such. However, even after all this time, she wasn’t certain about what the little girl thought about her son. She was afraid she(LYY) wasn’t even moved let alone willing to accept him as her husband, after all, Lu Yaoyao wasn’t someone who could be easily tempted by splendor and glory*.

(*of being an empress)

“The princess will come to pay you a visit in the next two days,” Aunt Cheng said with a smile. She knew that the empress dowager really loved Lu Yaoyao, otherwise, which mother would tolerate the things the emperor did for her(LYY)?

The empress dowager broke into a smile. “When that child is here, I’ll have to chide her for making the journey all the way here without caring for her safety*.”

[*she means LYY’s whole escapade]

Aunt Cheng covered her mouth and smiled, but her thoughts drifted to another stunning beauty currently residing in Chengde Mountain Villa.

When the empress dowager came here to recuperate, she brought Ye Yaoyao along, perhaps because there were not many concubines in the emperor’s inner palace and also not many who could please her*. Back when the emperor brought Ye Yaoyao to the place, everybody assumed she was the next Lu Wushuang. Even if shortlived, the girl would enjoy his undivided attention and doting, of this they were all certain. But who knew, not long after, the emperor would send her out of the palace?

[*empress dowager]

The empress dowager was fond of Ye Yaoyao. Like everyone else, she too thought the girl would become a concubine and as such brought her around to teach her the ways lest she is influenced by others and ends up corrupted.

However, there was one person who thought unlike the rest of the world, Aunt Cheng. She felt that the emperor was unlikely to make Ye Yaoyao his concubine. There was no doubt the girl was absolutely beautiful, but when compared with the princess, her aura paled.

♚

At this time, the girl in Aunt Chen’s thoughts was listening to the talks about Princess Yaoyao.

Ye Yaoyao wanted to give the empress dowager a basket of flowers and personally came down to pick a few. However, when she passed through the garden, she saw Eunuch Fu, who she recognized as the emperor’s most trusted retainer, talking to a couple of maids.

“His Majesty has returned with the princess. You may not have seen Her Highness. She is certainly the most beautiful woman in the world… What’s more she is also the emperor’s lucky star. This time the emperor returned with a great victory without sacrificing one soldier and one soldier. All the credit goes to the princess.” Eunuch Fu was all smiles as he rained praises on Ye Zhen unceremoniously.

Although he did things according to his master’s wishes, he had never seen a woman more beautiful than the princess, and… to be honest, Princess Yaoyao really seemed to be the emperor’s lucky star.

In a way, he had watched the emperor grow up. He knew too well that the emperor’s eyes still had the residual poison. But since having Princess Yaoyao’s medicinal meals, his* eyes had never been sore. And he had lost count of the number of times the princess rescued the little prince… Not to mention the part she had played in helping the emperor subdue Zhao Jia Island. After all this, who would dare to say Princess Yaoyao was not the emperor’s lucky star?

[* the emperor]

“What do you think the princess’ future consort would be like?” an aunt asked in a low voice.

Eunuch Fu glared at her as he said, “Why are you so curious for, whoever wants to marry the princess will require the emperor’s and empress dowager’s consent.”

Ye Yaoyao stood not far away listening to it all. She bit her lip lightly and walked away from the other side. “Chun Xue,” she said after a few moments, “do you know Princess Yaoyao?”

“Yes, this servant has seen the princess when I was in the palace*,” Chun Xue said in a low voice.

[*At a time when LYY was visiting the palace, this girl spotted her when she was working there]

“She… Is she beautiful?”

Is she more beautiful than me? There is hardly anyone who is amazed by my beauty, could there be someone who is more beautiful than me?

Chun Xue glanced at Ye Yaoyao apparently sensing the hidden meaning in her words. She said hesitantly, “The princess’ beauty is different from yours, Miss, you will know when you see her later.”

“Do the emperor and the empress dowager like her very much?” Ye Yaoyao asked again. Eunuch Fu’s words just then seemed to suggest that the emperor was very fond of the princess. “Since she is a princess, why is she an imperial physician*?”

[*literally why did we hear that she is a doctor?]

“The princess is actually the Marquis of Anyang’s younger sister. The empress dowager likes her very much. She has even saved the little prince several times, so she was named a princess…,” Chun Xue said.

Ye Yaoyao nodded lightly and became more and more curious about Lu Yaoyao. However, the person she wanted to see the most at this time was the emperor. For some reason, since she came to Chengde Mountain Villa, she had thought of him every day. And every time she thought of him, her heart would be filled with joy, and she want to take a few more peeks at him. The only thing she didn’t know was when he would visit this place.

“Miss, when you meet the princess, you must befriend her. It will be good for you when you enter the palace in the future,” Chun Xue said with a smile.

“Yeah.” Ye Yaoyao blushed and nodded.

Everybody said that she was going to enter the palace in the future and that she would be more favored than the erstwhile Gui Fei Lu. However, to her, none of these mattered, as long as she could see the emperor every day she would be satisfied.

As she looked at Ye Yaoyao’s beautiful face, Chun Xue said with a smile, “Miss will definitely have great fortune upon entering the palace. The emperor is so kind to you, perhaps he will even crown you the empress.”

Although Ye Yaoyao had spent a few years in captivity*, she had been following the empress dowager these days and had learned some rules. Thus, she hurriedly covered Chun Xue’s mouth. “Don’t talk nonsense like this, what should I do if others hear it? Like—”

[*Apparently Lu Linghzi has imprisoned her but he told the emperor his father, Lu Shifeng, had done it… but nonetheless, the girl had spent her days imprisoned in a house when MRZ found her]

“Apart from Princess Yaoyao, there is no woman more beautiful than you, how could the emperor not like it.” Chun Xue laughed aloud.

“Quit it now, let’s go to the empress dowager’s place quickly.” Ye Yaoyao’s cheeks were crimson, and she hurried away with her head down.

Yes, except for Princess Yaoyao…

It was only later that Ye Yaoyao would learn what Lu Yaoyao’s existence represented to her.

♚♚♚