Quick Transmigration: Underdog Turns out to be Untouchable

Chapter 934: Chapter 845: Unwilling to Be a Slave

Walking to a massive ancient tree in the Imperial Garden, the Emperor couldn’t resist raising his hand to pound the tree trunk and turned to Song Lin, saying, ”Go investigate how the Empress tended to the Empress Dowager during her illness at Furong Palace.”

Song Lin bowed deeply in agreement, ”Yes, your servant will look into it right away.”

Song Lin’s efficiency was swift, from the Emperor’s command to Song Lin thoroughly investigating everything, it took less than two hours. There were many witnesses to how the Empress Dowager had the Empress tend to her illness, making it easy to investigate.

When Song Lin returned to report to the Emperor, the Emperor was in the Imperial Study Room reviewing memorials. Due to the Empress’s critical illness, the Emperor hadn’t focused on dealing with memorials for two days. As a diligent ruler, the backlog of memorials had accumulated quite a bit after two days of neglect. Now that the Empress was out of danger, he naturally had to deal with state affairs.

Seeing Song Lin enter, the Emperor rubbed his forehead, put down the memorial in hand, picked up the teacup next to him, took a sip, and asked, ”Have you clarified everything?”

Song Lin bowed and said, ”In reply to the Emperor, all has been clarified. Your servant questioned many servants at Furong Palace to ensure everything is true. It’s said that when the Empress was tending to the Empress Dowager, she spent most of the day standing.

When the Empress, being physically weak, wanted to rest, the nanny beside the Empress Dowager reminded the Empress that tending to the elderly must be diligent and not always sitting, as it is disrespectful. Therefore, the Empress didn’t dare sit and rest often.

Moreover, the Empress was also responsible for personally feeding the Empress Dowager meals and medicine. She had to fetch water herself, helping the Empress Dowager wash daily, massaging her sore arms and stiff body due to prolonged lying.

Massaging is inherently exhausting, and even specially trained medical women in the palace couldn’t do it alone for long periods due to physical limitations. Yet, the Empress Dowager required the Empress to massage alone for extended periods several times a day.

The Empress Dowager went to bed early, but claimed she could only sleep listening to the Empress’s zither playing, forcing the Empress to play for long durations, only able to leave Furong Palace for Fengchen Palace once the Empress Dowager fell asleep.

The Empress is much weaker than ordinary people, and after such a day, she still had to wash after returning to her palace, lying in bed in pain unable to sleep for several hours. When she finally dozed off, she would wake with swollen legs, yet still had to return to tend to the illness.

The Empress was unwell but dared not show it or summon the Imperial Physician. Only after the Empress Dowager recovered did the Empress collapse upon returning to her palace.”

After hearing Song Lin’s report, the Emperor’s face flushed with rage, unable to calm down for a while. After some time, he abruptly swept the memorials off the desk and kicked over the incense burner, angrily pacing back and forth in the Imperial Study Room.

”She did it on purpose! Deliberately tormenting the Empress, trying to kill my Empress, thus troubling me as revenge because I killed her most loyal dog!”

Song Lin understood the Emperor was referring to the Empress Dowager. The hatred between the Emperor and the Empress Dowager had existed since the Emperor was the Crown Prince.

The current Emperor’s mother was the daughter of a small official but extremely beautiful. Upon entering the palace, she overshadowed many Beauties in the harem. Within three years, she was promoted from Junior Eighth Rank Attendant to First-rank Noble Consort.

The late Emperor particularly favored the Emperor’s mother. After she bore him, he decided to enshrine her as Imperial Concubine and the infant Emperor as Crown Prince.

But the late Emperor’s decision met unanimous opposition from the ministers, so he couldn’t establish the Emperor as Crown Prince nor enshrine his mother as Imperial Concubine, since the title of Imperial Concubine is coequal with the secondary Empress position and cannot be conferred unless the Empress dies or is deposed.

However, the Emperor excelled, growing up intelligent and talented. Although the Empress Dowager’s son was also outstanding, the Emperor far surpassed him.

When the late Emperor again wanted to establish the Emperor as Crown Prince, ministerial opposition was not fierce because the Emperor was indeed competent enough. This time the Empress Dowager and the Ding Family were defeated, and the Emperor became Crown Prince.

But in the year of being made Crown Prince, the Emperor’s mother suddenly weakened, and the Imperial Physician couldn’t diagnose the cause. She lay bedridden for less than ten days before passing away, reluctantly leaving her son.

Back then, the Emperor suspected the Empress Dowager but lacked evidence. He did many things to oppose her but never succeeded until almost losing the Crown Prince position due to her scheming.

If not for the late Emperor’s protection and Xiao Chun, who took the blame, the Emperor’s crime and his retention as Crown Prince shifted from personal fault to servant negligence.

After that incident, the Emperor matured, ceasing open confrontations with the Empress Dowager. Originally, he planned to retaliate once becoming Emperor.

Unfortunately, the Empress Dowager wasn’t foolish, using the cold palace concubine pardon event to elevate her reputation, then secluding herself in Furong Palace, leaving the Emperor unable to catch her faults. The Emperor, liking to maintain appearances, had no choice but to reluctantly support the Empress Dowager.

For years, the Emperor outwardly expressed forgiveness and exceptional filial piety to the Empress Dowager while inwardly harboring resentment. Now, this rage erupted after learning his Empress was nearly driven to death by her.

Song Lin, still bowing, listened to the Emperor angrily recounting all the excessive deeds the Empress Dowager had done, subtly signaling the surrounding eunuchs to quickly guard the door to prevent anyone overhearing the Emperor’s words.

After several rounds pacing in the Imperial Study Room, the Emperor calmed slightly, though still fuming. Song Lin approached with a teacup, looking at the enraged Emperor, accompanying him with a smile.

”Emperor, speaking of the Empress’s recent ordeal, the Empress Dowager was indeed excessively harsh. Even among commoners, when servants can be used, they wouldn’t treat a frail daughter-in-law so. And when servants aren’t available, they wouldn’t solely torment a daughter-in-law.”

Song Lin’s words carried a hint that the Emperor immediately picked up on, his tense face relaxing slightly. He exhaled lightly, glanced at Song Lin, who immediately understood, bowed and stepped back two paces before exiting the Imperial Study Room.

Soon, news of the Empress tending to the Empress Dowager, becoming critically ill from overwork spread rapidly. The Empress was known to be frail, but the Emperor’s deep affection for her was widely known, so when the news spread of her being overworked to exhaustion while tending to the Empress Dowager, it sparked a great scandal.

Meanwhile, Nangong Shuangshuang prompted Lady Jing to instruct her father, Gao Yan, to encourage his well-connected superior to investigate these rumors’ authenticity. Upon confirming that the Empress was indeed overworked due to tending to the Empress Dowager, Gao Yan’s superior immediately collaborated with several Imperial Censors to jointly petition against the Empress Dowager for maternal cruelty.