I Became The Stepmother of My Ex-husband

The young emperor tilted his head slightly and looked at Lin Wei Xi with open curiosity.

It wasn’t necessarily a good thing to receive the Emperor’s curiosity. Lin Wei Xi lowered her head further, revealing only her slender neck. Gu Hui Yan glanced at her and said, “that’s my wife.”

The Emperor looked at her curiously a few more times before saying, “You may forgo the formalities.”

Lin Wei Xi stood up along with everyone and the Emperor stepped forward to greet Empress Dowager Qian. The Emperor and Prince Yan were here, so the seating order naturally had to be rearranged. Lin Wei Xi took the opportunity to walk to Gu Hui Yan, silently disappearing under his imposing aura.

Gu Cheng Yao had also followed Gu Hui Yan and the Emperor to visit the Empress Dowager. He watched Lin Wei Xi eagerly walk in his direction and stop in front of him.

Gu Hui Yan wore a first rank Prince’s black python garment while Lin Wei Xi looked gorgeous and tender dressed all in red. He was tall and lean while she was curvy. Standing next to each other, they radiated harmony.

An inexplicable feeling he didn’t understand rose within Gu Cheng Yao. Seeing Lin Wei Xi automatically walk to Prince Yan, Gao Ran also headed towards Gu Cheng Yao, unwilling to lose. After she settled into her position next to him, she realized that he looked a little distracted. She couldn’t resist whispering, “Shizi?”

Gu Cheng Yao returned to his senses to find Gao Ran looking at him with concern. He smiled gently, easily concealed his emotions, and tried to pacify her with a gaze, “I’m fine. The Emperor and the Empress Dowager are here. I’ll tell you when we return home.”

Of course Gao Ran understood this logic. But when he said it like that, she felt a little unhappy for some reason. It seemed like she hadn’t expected him to behave like that. She wanted to let him know how Lin Wei Xi had acted using her status as mother-in-law, how she had deliberately cut off her sentences, and how she had abused her position in public by slandering her in front of Empress Dowager. But Gao Ran could only quietly respond and lower her head as she listened to the Emperor and Prince Yan talk.

The Emperor had ascended the throne when he was eight. Five years passed in a flash, and he would be turning thirteen after the New Year. Thirteen was neither too old nor too young, but it was a sensitive age in the imperial family.

The earth dragon in Cining Palace burned hot and incense floated in the palace, warm as spring. It was normally very cosy, but in the room full of people, only the Emperor and Gu Hui Yan spoke.

Everyone else was too scared to breathe too loudly, and they bowed their heads and waited. Even Empress Dowager Qian stopped her endless drivel, sitting to the side with a smile. She nodded and responded from time to time, but couldn’t really insert herself into the conversation. Lin Wei Xi simply sat next to Gu Hui Yan like a statue. While she had a bright smile on her face, her mind was wandering.

It was now the eleventh month, fifth year of Yuanjia and the Emperor was twelve years old. If she were still the Shizi Fei in her previous life, she would certainly feel that the imperial court was prosperous and the country was at peace. But she’d read that heavenly book and she knew things wouldn’t always be so peaceful.

This chapter upload first at NovelUsb.Com

Ever since he came to power, Grand Secretary Zhang made drastic reforms, managing all governmental affairs down to the smallest detail. He also served as the Emperor’s teacher and was responsible for teaching the Emperor basic ethics and morality. A court minister had reached such a position; he could be said to be the brightest spark out of all scholars since the dawn of time. However, Lin Wei Xi learned from the heavenly book that while Zhang Xiao Lian had reached the pinnacle as an official while he was alive, after his death, none of his successors, who were supposed to help guide the young Emperor in running the nation, met a good ending. Even their bones couldn’t be salvaged. Afterwards, there was even a crusade against Zhang Xiao Lian. Every single policy by him was vetoed. All the officials who opposed him were praised as martyrs, even if that minister was actually just a cynical idiot.

With just a few isolated phrases from the heavenly book, Lin Wei Xi could already catch a glimpse of the wide scale danger at that time. She’d never been involved in governmental affairs and didn’t know what kind of person the renowned Grand Secretary Zhang was. But it was true that the national tax more than doubled when he was in power. It was true that he was strict with the imperial court. It was true that the Zhang family accepted bribes without restraint. It was also true that Zhang Xiao Lian seized the opportunity to eliminate those who opposed him and planted his trusted aides in their positions. But it wasn’t up to Lin Wei Xi to judge such a legendary person. She actually only cared about the Prince Yan Residence.

She was once the Shizi Fei, but she was now the Prince Yan Consort. She was bound to live and die, to bear honour and disgrace together with Prince Yan. The previous Emperor had appointed three regent ministers so that they’d control each other. Prince Yan was a member of the imperial family who held military power that deterred outside forces; Eunuch Feng was a palace eunuch who took care the Emperor and controlled the cabinet; Emperor Muzong’s intentions to promote Zhang Xiao Lian before his death must’ve been because he had seen Zhang Xiao Lian’s outstanding ability to govern and wanted to use him to guard against Prince Yan. Prince Yan himself was part of the Gu family. His nephew was young and Empress Dowager Qian wasn’t very smart. If something happened, the person sitting on the throne would change.

Unexpectedly, the situation went in the opposite direction. Prince Yan remained upright and honest. On the contrary, Zhang Xiao Lian, who used to be the most trusted, monopolized the court. This dynasty had no prime minister, so all the memorials had to be approved by the Emperor himself. In fact, apart from the founding Emperor, no other Emperor had the physical strength to endure this level of work. Hence, a cabinet was set up to review and make suggestions for each memorial. Afraid that the cabinet would monopolize the imperial court, the Emperor later established a department of supervisors. The suggestions offered by the cabinet, or the preliminary proposal, could only go into effect after approval by the department of supervisors. The person in charge of the department of supervisors today was Eunuch Feng.

Eunuch Feng had watched the Emperor grow up and was affectionately addressed as “Chief Feng” by the Emperor. He was no different than his father figure. No one knew how Eunuch Feng got along so well with Grand Secretary Zhang. The two who were supposed to be in conflict with each other were actually very harmonious. All the memorials that Grand Secretary Zhang handed over were approved without a glance. Hence, it wasn’t surprising that Grand Secretary Zhang could monopolize the government without anyone knowing.

The two of the three pillars were in cahoots, and Prince Yan was the most important as the final pillar. After Prince Yan returned to the capital, he remained on fairly good terms with Grand Secretary Zhang. At least, they seemed to respect each other on the surface and acted like gentlemen. Lin Wei Xi once thought that Gu Hui Yan and Grand Secretary Zhang were pretty good friends. But when Gu Hui Yan returned from the banquet on their wedding night, there was a faint worry in his brows. Perhaps the true relationship between these three regent ministers wasn’t peaceful as everyone thought.

If even Prince Yan found it tricky, Lin Wei Xi didn’t think that she herself would have any good ideas. She was just a little worried. If what was written in the heavenly book was true, what would happen to the Prince Yan Residence, which had a good relationship with Grand Secretary Zhang, when he embezzled from the national treasury without restraint in the future? What would happen once the next Grand Secretary, Shen Shi Xing, came into power? An even more malicious speculation was what kind of role did the Emperor play in this matter?

The young emperor, who was only twelve years old, was currently sitting and talking to Prince Yan. He had elegant features and looked kind and harmless. But Lin Wei Xi felt a chill from the depth of her heart.

In that moment, she finally realized that although the heavenly book was profound, it was only written from a biased perspective. That book was written from Gao Ran’s perspective that romanticized her personal everyday life. How could it summarize the unpredictable nature of the imperial court and the ruthlessness of power struggles between political parties.

Perhaps she didn’t need to take the contents of the book so seriously.

Gu Hui Yan had accompanied the Emperor to the harem to pay their respects to the Empress Dowager. It was actually to satisfy the Emperor’s curiosity with Lin Wei Xi. He was, after all, the Emperor. Gu Hui Yan couldn’t say no. After seeing the person in question, Gu Hui Yan saw that it was time to leave and immediately stood up, bringing Lin Wei Xi with him as he left.

Seeing him take his leave, the Emperor stood up rather reluctantly and said, “Uncle Yan, you rarely enter the palace. Why don’t you stay for a while more? I still want Uncle to show me how to ride a horse.”

“I came here today to accompany my wife to thank the Empress Dowager. It’s getting late. We shouldn’t linger in the harem for too long. If the Emperor wants to practice riding and shooting, why don’t I visit the palace again tomorrow and practice with you until you’re satisfied.”

The Emperor helplessly sighed at this, “Uncle Yan is right. It’s just that, tomorrow Zhen^◇ has to go to Wenhua Pavilion for lectures. There’s no time for the drill grounds.”

◇

Gu Hui Yan paused momentarily and smiled again, “Grand Secretary Zhang is dedicated to Your Majesty and strictly abides by his duty as a teacher. This is a blessing for the country.”

Lin Wei Xi didn’t miss the fact that the Emperor addressed himself with “I” in front of Prince Yan, nor did she miss Prince Yan merely calling Grand Secretary Zhang’s strict discipline “a blessing to the country”, devoid of any personal opinion. Grand Secretary Zhang shouldered the responsibility of being the Emperor’s teacher. He also wholeheartedly wanted to groom a virtuous and wise monarch for the Qi Dynasty. Hence, the Emperor’s discipline was very complicated and strict. From the books he read to the words he practised, to even what he did during court sessions, everything was strict and regimental. From an adult’s perspective, Grand Secretary Zhang was doing this for the sake of the Emperor. But from the perspective of a twelve year old child, this was most likely a pain in the neck.

The Emperor reluctantly sent Prince Yan out. He glanced at Lin Wei Xi again and said, “Uncle Wang just got married. Zhen is a junior and wasn’t able to congratulate you on the day of. It’s truly unfortunate. Zhen doesn’t have much of a greeting gift. It’s only a pair of jade Bi for Aunt Yan. Zhen hopes that Aunt and Uncle Yan live a long and happy life together in harmony.”

Lin Wei Xi was caught off guard when she was addressed. She had never spoken to the emperor before, so she almost stumbled, “Your Majesty, this official’s wife lacks the ability… “

The Emperor smiled kindly at Lin Wei Xi. The young man had fair skin which made his smile look elegant and neat, “Aunt Yan, you don’t need to do this. Zhen has always respected Uncle Yan. This is Zhen’s congratulatory wedding gift to the both of you. Auntie should just accept it.”

Lin Wei Xi looked at Gu Hui Yan. He nodded slightly, so she said, “Thank you, Your Majesty. Long live Your Majesty.”

Lin Wei Xi and Gu Hui Yan made small talk with the Emperor while Gao Ran and Gu Cheng Yao had to stand at a respectful distance and watch from the back. Gao Ran couldn’t say a word. She watched the two of them stand side by side from behind, and thought to herself for some reason, that Gu Cheng Yao was only a Shizi and when people brought him up, they’d always refer to him as Prince Yan’s son. Gao Ran used to be extremely proud of her identity. But now it was hard for her to understand her own feelings.

It was because he was Prince Yan’s son that Gao Ran could only stand at the back and watch Lin Wei Xi accept greetings, make small talk, and joke with various influential figures. It wasn’t due to how clever Lin Wei Xi was or how stupid Gao Ran was. Lin Wei Xi could only do this because she was the Prince Yan Consort, Prince Yan’s new wife.

Gao Ran stood an arm’s length away and watched her thank the Emperor with a smile before having her servants put away the jade artefact he gave to her. Gao Ran and Gu Cheng Yao were obviously standing not far away, but they seemed to be separated by an insurmountable valley.

That valley was power, status, and seniority, and also Prince Yan’s outstanding military service. The Emperor had no choice but to rely on his massive military power. For the first time, Gao Ran clearly realized that the honour she had as Shizi Fei was not because of Gu Cheng Yao, but because of Prince Yan.

After leaving the palace, Lin Wei Xi and Gao Ran both got onto the carriage and remained silent the entire way. Lin Wei Xi was deep in thought about the heavenly book while Gao Ran stared at the decorative motif on the sleeve of her dress, slightly distracted.

Because of this incident, Gao Ran was preoccupied with her thoughts until dinner. That evening, everyone in the Residence would be eating together. From start to end, she stood behind Lin Wei Xi and served her. When the maid swapped out the tea, Gao Ran rolled up her sleeves and poured it for Lin Wei Xi.

Lin Wei Xi watched her former sister serve her tea and water. She silently basked in it for a while, and when Gao Ran held out the tea to her, she said, “I’m not thirsty. I don’t want to drink tea. Put it away first. “

Gao Ran’s hand tightened around the teacup. Ning Fu and the other maids looked indignant. Of course Lin Wei Xi saw it. Her smile didn’t change and she said carelessly, “Shizi Fei’s hand just healed. You couldn’t even serve tea properly when your hand was still okay. Now that your hand is injured, I’m afraid it won’t have any strength. Put it down. It’s just been boiled. Unlike Shizi Fei, I can’t stand getting scalded.”

Lin Wei Xi was truly being incessantly picky. Gu Cheng Yao had just entered the room when he heard this. His eyebrows twitched and he unconsciously looked at Gu Hui Yan, who was in front of him.