Chapter 15
Chapter 15
When I woke up, I was in Mother Empress’s palace.
Her eyes were full of worry as she ordered her attendants to bring water and porridge. Only after watching me eat did she finally look at ease.
From Mother Empress, I learned what had happened.
That day, Cao Mingyu had attacked me.
Her assault wasn’t born merely out of jealousy; she had deeper motives. She wanted to secure an alliance between the Cao family and the imperial family, but not between herself and Li Chun. Instead, she wanted me to marry her eldest brother.
She had spiked the wine with a drug, but when I didn’t accept the cup, she was forced to resort to desperate measures. She intended to stage an attack and force a situation where my virtue would be compromised-creating an accomplished fact-then beg for forgiveness while demanding a marriage to save face.
It was a crude plan, but had it succeeded, it would have been devastatingly effective.
However, she hadn’t expected me to be so favored that Father Emperor and Mother Empress had assigned secret guards to shadow me. They caught her red-handed.
I touched the lump on the back of my head; it really throbbed.
Did she truly hate me that much?
“How does Father Emperor intend to deal with Cao Mingyu?” I asked Mother Empress.
Mother Empress’s face was cold. She usually stayed out of political affairs, but she could sense the gravity of this situation.
“The Cao family is powerful. They have occupied the frontier for years, becoming a small court unto themselves.”
“With his children here, he wouldn’t dare act recklessly. The real difficulty is that we cannot make this matter public.”
I understood immediately.
This concerned my reputation and the dignity of the imperial family. Although my virtue was still intact, human nature is inherently prone to malice. People would inevitably speculate wildly. It was best to keep it quiet.
But if we didn’t speak out, the public wouldn’t know the truth. They would think Father Emperor was punishing a meritorious official for no reason-especially since Cao Shun had just distinguished himself, spilling blood and exerting great effort in the war against the Rong State.
Yet, if we did speak out, we couldn’t punish Cao Shun too severely without losing face. It would make it seem as though someone could bully an imperial princess and receive only a slap on the wrist.
I also felt the situation was thorny. I thought long and hard until a sudden spark of inspiration hit me.
“Mother Empress, I have been so humiliated that I truly have no face to continue living like this. However, I do not wish to grieve my parents. I wish to enter a convent as a lay practitioner to pray for the nation’s blessings. I ask for your blessing.”
Mother Empress’s breath hitched, but she quickly grasped my meaning.
Her eyes lit up, her gaze turning to one of pity. “There is no need for that. Your Father Emperor and I will surely see justice done for you.”
Cheng Su’s face inexplicably surfaced in my mind. I shook my head and said softly, “Mother Empress, I am doing this willingly.”
“I will practice as a lay nun. Cao Shun will know exactly why I am doing this. If he is wise, he should voluntarily confess his guilt, allowing Father Emperor to divide his military power.”
“Even if word of this gets out, I am choosing to enter the temple of my own accord. People will only feel sympathy and pity for me; they won’t say anything untoward.”
“If you are still worried, Mother Empress, please have Lord Liu from the Imperial Astronomical Bureau fabricate some auspicious omens to create some momentum for me.”
Mother Empress was amused by my suggestion. She reached out and patted my head affectionately.
“That might work, but it will be hard on you.”
“If you are doing this for Cheng Su… I believe he is a good boy. He will believe in you.”
My face flushed hot, yet I couldn’t find the words to argue.
Was it for Cheng Su?
I couldn’t even be sure myself.
As for whether he would believe me…
I didn’t know where the courage came from, but I realized I had never once doubted that he would trust me.
I went to Huayang Temple in Shangjing to practice as a lay nun. This indeed caused a sensation in the capital; a Di Princess entering the Taoist priesthood was unprecedented.
However, I didn’t care about the gossip. My focus was on Cao Shun’s reaction.
After receiving the imperial decree, Cao Shun did not return to the capital as ordered. Instead, he remained at the frontier, using the excuse that a general in the field is not bound by the sovereign’s commands.
Such blatant disregard for the imperial court was excessive.
Nevertheless, he was ultimately concerned for his children’s safety. He submitted a memorial admitting his faults and requested that Father Emperor relieve him of his post.
He thought Father Emperor wouldn’t dare.
Little did he know that Father Emperor was determined to move against him this time. He immediately followed the general’s request, demoting him and transferring his military power to Cheng Su, who had repeatedly distinguished himself in battle.
Cheng Su grew rapidly within the army. He was brave in combat, skilled in strategy, and perceptive of people’s hearts. He soon gathered a group of trusted subordinates.
With remarkable speed, he reorganized the army, reassining or dismissing Cao Shun’s cronies.
This made Cao Shun very wary, and he didn’t dare act rashly again.
However, rumors began to circulate among the common folk. Stories spread about Father Emperor suppressing meritorious officials and using their children as hostages. In the imperial court, some even spoke up for Cao Shun, suggesting that I should be married to his son.
They were admitting fault with one hand while using public opinion to pressure Father Emperor with the other.
Father Emperor was furious. He punished those ministers and gave Cao Shun a nominal promotion that actually stripped him of power, transferring him to a different army. To maintain appearances of imperial grace, he even bestowed the title of County Princess Yongping upon Cao Mingyu.
This time, Cao Shun finally backed down completely.