20demayo Chapter 501
Chapter 501
In a hazy trance, Consort Liang saw the eldest princess from her childhood, tugging at her clothes: "Mother Consort, Ming Yu will build a grand mansion one day and take you out of the palace, hire dozens of maids to take care of you, and ensure you live in luxury for the rest of your life."
Tears blurred her vision as Consort Liang caressed Jiang Bining's face: "Ming Yu, my Ming Yu, Mother Consort... Mother Consort is leaving. You must take good care of... take good care of Little Aning. Tell her, her grandmother... grandmother really... really can't bear to part with her, but grandmother... won't see her get married."
Jiang Bining was almost reduced to a sobbing heap, gripping Consort Liang's hand tightly: "Grandmother, please don't leave, Aning... Aning can't bear to part with you, wuwuwu..."
The eldest princess stood at the door, her courage faltering, unable to approach.
Seven-year-old Jiang Huaizhen looked up at his weeping mother, pouted, and began crying as well.
He didn't know why he was crying; he was just overwhelmed by the emotion of sadness and couldn't hold back his tears.
Jiang Xinyue stepped behind the screen, giving Jiang Bining space to say her final goodbyes to Consort Liang.
As soon as she stepped out, she saw the eldest princess with tears flowing beneath closed eyes.@@@@
She sighed, taking Shuang Jiang's hand and walking over: "Go in quickly! This is a moment of return to clarity before passing."
If she didn't go now, she might not see Consort Liang one last time.
For the past decade, Consort Liang had yearned for the emperor's demise, hoping to leave the palace and spend her twilight years in peace.
Little did she expect that she would pass away before the emperor.
The eldest princess opened her eyes, wiped away her tears, nodded at Jiang Xinyue, and silently led Jiang Huaizhen inside.
Jiang Xinyue looked up at the sky: "Why does the sun today feel particularly harsh?"
A line of tears streamed down her face, and a sense of unaccountable heartache surged within her.
Shuang Jiang glanced at the overcast sky, finding no sun at all. It was merely an excuse for her mistress to conceal her tears.
Shuang Jiang's nose tingled with emotion: "Your Majesty, where shall we go?"
"To Chengqian Palace to see the Emperor."
She had crossed over to the Great Yan Dynasty seventeen years ago, having grown from a fifteen-year-old girl into a thirty-something woman. She had grown attached to every blade of grass, every tree, and every view here, let alone a living, breathing person.
She had once said that in this palace, she trusted no one but herself.
And Jiang Xinyue, at the peak of her life, was no longer the playful and coquettish girl who needed to act childish for attention.
"Your Majesty never had true feelings for them. How could you remember your first meetings with them? To you, they were merely tools to fill the void of your childhood."
The Dowager Empress's niece, Lady Wu, was a substitute for the maternal love the Emperor lacked. Concubine Li represented his yearning for freedom and passion. Consort Liang and Consort De were just the mothers of his princes and princesses, tools for continuing his lineage.
Empress Zhu was a manager handling mundane affairs for him. Jiang Xinyue, possessing all desirable traits, met the Emperor's every expectation for a partner, thus becoming his true love.
Of course, Jiang Xinyue never denied that she had risen to her position due to the Emperor's favor.
In other words, the Emperor allowed Jiang Xinyue to stand toe-to-toe with him, granting her the qualification to challenge him.
He allowed her to rise to an equal footing with him.
This Emperor... he was too lonely.
The Emperor suddenly chuckled: "Only you dare speak the truth to me."
Jiang Xinyue sighed, stepping forward to hold the Emperor's hand: "But none of this is Your Majesty's fault. A person's heart is only so big; it can hold the world or it can hold affection, but not both. The Emperor... just needs to be a good Emperor."
Good husbands are plentiful in the world. But a good Emperor is one-of-a-kind.
Jiang Xinyue had always been steadfast in her goals. She sought power and wealth, not love.
Now that the Emperor's side was practically only hers, even if his love for her was just a third of his heart, he had given her his entire being.
She could choose not to love the Emperor, but she must let him know that no matter how the tides change, she would stand by his side, never abandoning him.
"Is Xinyue really thinking this way?"
"Yes!"
Jiang Xinyue nodded vigorously, her gaze firm enough to join a political party: "Your Majesty has given the few loves of passion to me. If I don't cherish them and always blame the Emperor for loving his people more than me, then I would be too ungrateful."
Being an Emperor, being a good Emperor, he was not wrong.
It was Concubine Li and the others who overestimated themselves, believing that love should supersede all.
But in the Emperor's heart, the people of his kingdom were always first, which drove them to madness.
Jiang Xinyue simply agreed with the Emperor placing the kingdom first. She never competed with his ideals for affection, but instead helped him love his people and his kingdom. Thus, she easily won the Emperor's love.