A Foodie Transmigrated into the Palace-Chapter 703: Struck by Five Thunders
Yu Lan fell silent.
Actually, she understood in her heart.
If there was a sincere desire to take her back, why wait until now?
The only possibility was that the Emperor never intended to bring Her Majesty back!
After the Lantern Festival, the weather remained bitterly cold.
Just as the supplies brought by the Empress were about to run out, suddenly, some people carrying items climbed up the mountain.
A few unfamiliar elderly women came, kneeling the moment they entered.
The Empress, thinking they were people from the palace, let down her guard.
Seeing the many items they brought—charcoal, cotton blankets, food, and drink—the Empress became even more convinced that they were sent by the Emperor.
Therefore, she instructed Yu Lan to treat them well.
In the room, the Empress sat at the head.
The elderly women sat on small stools below.
The Empress was about to ask about the situation in the palace when they spoke first.
"Empress, we servants are here under the orders of Grand Tutor Shih!"
"It is also because our Noble Consort is kind-hearted; she still thought of you here and sent us servants to deliver some items!"
Their meaning was clear: everyone else had forgotten the Empress; only their Noble Consort still remembered her!
Upon hearing this, the Empress was stunned.
Her mind went blank in an instant, as if struck by lightning!
She wasn’t sure if it was the cold or something else, but her body gradually started shaking!
"What did you say?"
The elderly woman was not afraid and indeed repeated it.
She kept addressing her as ’Empress,’ but her words lacked any trace of respect.
The teacup in the Empress’s hand wasn’t held steady and suddenly fell.
With a POP, it smashed upon the ground, shattering everywhere.
"You are... people from the Shih Family?!"
"The Fan Family’s sworn enemy, the natal family of Noble Concubine Shih?!"
Astonishment filled her eyes.
She never expected that after all this waiting, this would be the outcome.
At this moment, another Sister began to speak without any restraint.
"Empress, I advise you to come to terms with it!"
"Although General Fan has been beheaded, and the others have scattered or died, life must go on, mustn’t it?"
"You are still the Empress, and young... You have a long life ahead of you..."
Having just been metaphorically struck by five thunders, she now felt as if struck by a heavenly bolt!
"What are you saying? My father is dead? Then what about my elder brother?!"
The Empress, frantic, rushed to the elderly woman, seizing her collar and demanding answers.
Far from panicking, the elderly woman had a look of smugness in her eyes and answered flippantly,
"He’s dead!"
The Empress stiffened, her face turning deathly pale in an instant.
Suddenly, she clutched her chest and spat out blood.
Then, her eyes rolled back as she fainted.
"Empress!"
Yu Lan screamed and ran over!
The elderly women also made a show of going over to help, but they were pushed away by Yu Lan.
"What are you doing?! Do you want to kill the Empress?!"
One of the elderly women, with a disdainful arch of her brows, responded,
"What do you mean by that, Lady Yu Lan? Aren’t we just being kind?!"
"All these events happened so long ago; the entire world knows, except for the Empress, who has been kept in the dark!"
"Since news doesn’t travel between the world below and this mountain, there are still many things the Empress doesn’t know. For example..."
"Shut your mouth!"
Yu Lan couldn’t tolerate it anymore.
She struggled to help the Empress onto the bed.
Yu Lan said fiercely, "Please leave at once. If anything happens to the Empress, the Emperor himself won’t spare you!"
However, as soon as she finished speaking, the elderly women started laughing.
"HA HA HA... The Emperor? Lady Yu Lan, you probably don’t know yet, do you?"
"Now, the one in charge of The Six Palaces is the Noble Consort!"
"What..."
Yu Lan’s heart instantly sank to the depths.
It’s always what one fears most that comes to pass. Although I had predicted this long ago... when it was truly confirmed, it was still difficult for me to accept.
Seeing Yu Lan so stricken, the elderly women pushed their advantage, blurting out everything that had happened both inside and outside the palace.
The Empress, who had just regained consciousness from fainting, heard the news.
With a PFFT, she vomited two more mouthfuls of fresh blood.
And then passed out completely.
"Empress!"
Before losing consciousness, the Empress thought mournfully,
Shih Wanxin, I have lost!
"Empress! Empress!" Yu Lan was crying her heart out!
After the elderly women had said all they came to say, they furtively left the mountain that very night.
The Empress remained unconscious for several days.
Yu Lan stayed by her side day and night, tirelessly feeding her broth and medicine.
Finally, on the fifth day, the Empress awoke at last.
She barely opened her eyes and saw, through her haze, Yu Lan’s bloodshot eyes and cracked lips.
"Yu Lan..."
Yu Lan was holding a bowl of medicine at the time, and upon seeing her awake, her voice trembled with excitement.
"Empress, you’re finally awake! Empress!"
She could no longer hold back and burst into tears.
The Empress couldn’t hold back either and started crying along with her; the two of them, master and servant, embraced and wept bitterly for a long time before finally calming down.
With a hoarse voice, the Empress drank some water and, leaning on Yu Lan, sat up.
Yu Lan quickly came forward to attend to her.
"Empress, are you hungry? Would you like something to eat?"
The Empress gave a mournful smile.
"Hungry? I suppose even if I starved to death here, nobody would know!"
Whom could she blame?!
If anyone was to blame, it was herself for trusting the Empress Dowager too readily!
Thinking of this, the Empress had a sudden realization.
"That incident! It must be that incident!"
The assassination attempt on the Emperor was the Empress Dowager’s idea, but this was an act of high treason, a capital crime!
If it were confirmed, the consequence would be the destruction of her entire family, with everyone dead or scattered.
At the time, the Empress Dowager had solemnly sworn that the Emperor would never find out.
Yet, in the blink of an eye, their Fan Family was implicated—beheaded and slaughtered!
To say the Empress Dowager wasn’t behind it—who would believe that!
The Empress was consumed by such regret it felt as if her insides were twisting, and she embraced Yu Lan, weeping bitterly once more.
Her heart bled with remorse!
"It’s all because I was so foolish! I’m the one who implicated Father and Elder Brother! It’s all my fault!"
"I deserve to die! I deserve to die!"
While crying, the Empress got out of bed, wishing she could just smash her head against something and die on the spot.
"I was so stupid! It was all me!"
"AAARGH!"
She was like a wounded lioness, her eyes bloodshot, her spirit on the brink of collapse!
Barefoot, she ran from the bed, desperate to find a pillar to dash her head against and end her life.
But in the end, lacking the courage, she was pulled back by Yu Lan.
The master and servant knelt on the cold floor and wept aloud!
Yu Lan, her eyes bloodshot, said through gritted teeth, "Empress, if you were to die, wouldn’t that be exactly what others want?"
"They are hoping for us to die, but we must insist on living well!"
"As long as we’re alive, there’s always a chance!"
The Empress knelt, looked up to the sky, and screamed in agony for a long time.
She had lost all her strength and slumped to the floor, her gaze vacant, completely catatonic.
After an unknown amount of time, as if she had finally thought things through, she picked herself up from the ground.
"Yes!"
"You’re right, Yu Lan! They do want my life!"
"Unfortunately for them, they’ve miscalculated. I won’t die that easily!"
"As long as I live, I remain the Empress, and no one dares to kill me outright, not even the Emperor!"
As she finished speaking, her eyes held an almost paranoid certainty, and... a venomous glint!
With that thought, the Empress, holding Yu Lan’s hand, returned to the bed and rewrapped herself in the quilts.
