Tang Dynasty, my wife Wu Zetian

Chapter 263: Imperial Concubine Yang
As summer approaches, dawns rise earlier and earlier.

A ray of dawn rose from the east, and when the red sun half appeared above the ground, a drumbeat sounded outside the Daji Hall.

"Bang bang bang!"

This is the first drum, the sound that reminds the eunuchs and palace servants to get up.

Xiao Shunzi quickly got up from the bed, put on his clothes, and was about to leave the room when he suddenly saw a bright red dress on the table.

He slapped his forehead, chuckled, and said, "I almost forgot. Today I have to help His Highness wear this festive dress."

He picked up his red robe, washed up casually, and quickly went to the second bedroom in the main hall.

The timing was just right. As soon as he entered the dormitory, the second drumbeat sounded.

This is the sound reminding the princes to go to school.

Li Yong was still sleeping soundly on the bed in the room. He would only get up very early on days when he didn't have to go to school.

Xiao Shunzi pushed Li Yong and said, "Your Highness, it's time to get up and go to school." It was impossible to wake up the third prince just by shouting.

After pushing for a long time, Li Yong slowly opened his eyes, got out of bed reluctantly, stretched out his hands, and let Xiao Shunzi help him put on his clothes.

After a while, the clothes were put on.

Li Yong looked down at the bright red round robe on his body and said unhappily, "Why are you making me wear this? It's so embarrassing!"

Xiao Shunzi hurriedly said, "Your Highness, today is a happy day, you must wear a red robe!"

Li Yong's eyes lit up and he asked, "What happy occasion? Could it be another victory on the front line?"

Xiao Shunzi laughed and said, "It's not because we won the battle, it's because Her Majesty the Queen is dreaming again!"

Li Yong was startled and said, "You're talking nonsense, aren't you? Mother already has three children!"

Xiao Shunzi said with a smile, "When the imperial physician examined Her Majesty the Queen yesterday, the diagnosis was confirmed. Your Majesty also went to see her. How could it be false?"

Li Yong was stunned and speechless.

The queen already has three children, but she is allowed to get pregnant again while other concubines are not. This is too unfair!
"Hmph, why are you so happy?" He began to vent his anger on the young eunuch.

Xiao Shunzi was not afraid of him and said with a smile: "You don't know that whenever Her Majesty the Queen dreams of the sun, she will give rewards to all the palace maids and eunuchs in the harem."

Li Yong shouted, "Why haven't I taken it?"

Xiao Shunzi said, "It's only for the servants, not for you. Besides, don't you get a monthly allowance?"

Li Yong scratched his head and said, "That's really unreasonable. Mother treats you better than us."

Xiao Shunzi soothed him, "Your Highness, don't be angry. This is your monthly allowance for last month. I collected it for you yesterday."

He took out a purse and handed it over.

Li Yong took it, opened it, took a look, and frowned: "Isn't it a little too little? It seems there is not even one string of money?"

Xiao Shunzi smiled and said, "I have already taken all the money you owed me last month, so the money in it is all yours. You don't need to give me any more money."

Li Yong likes to play the general game the most. He regards himself as the general and the eunuchs and palace servants as his soldiers.

Xiao Shunzi, as Li Yong's personal eunuch, was his scout, specializing in helping him gather various pieces of information.

Although Xiao Shunzi was young, he was very smart. He asked Li Yong for military pay on the pretext that a general would not suffer from hungry soldiers. Every time he got some information, he would ask for extra rewards.

Li Yong was not angry, he felt that this was more real and was very happy. He happily gave him money every time.

As a result, the rewards were too much and the money was not enough, so he had to owe it.

Xiao Shunzi wrote down every penny, and as soon as Li Yong received his monthly salary, he would deduct it from it without any hesitation.

Li Yong is a generous person and doesn't bother with him.

Seeing Xiao Shunzi taking away a lot of money without permission, he did not get angry. He just asked, "Xiao Shunzi, do you like money so much?"

Xiao Shunzi was startled, lowered his head, and whispered, "Your Highness, you grew up in the palace, so you naturally don't understand the importance of money. Living among the common people, if you don't have money, you will starve."

Li Yong muttered, "But aren't you living in the palace now? What do you need money for?"

Xiao Shunzi whispered, "My father died early, and I still have my mother and sister at home. I have to send money to them, otherwise they will starve to death."

Li Yong was surprised and handed the entire purse to Xiao Shunzi.

"Then take these too and send them to your mother and sister. Don't let them starve to death."

Xiao Shunzi smiled slightly and said, "I know Your Highness has a good heart, but the money I sent back is enough. Your Highness can keep this money and give it to Madam Yang when you see her in the future."

Madam Yang is Li Yong's biological mother.

Li Yong was stunned and said, "Why should I give it to my mother? She is in the mountain and pond courtyard and doesn't need any money!"

Xiao Shunzi said softly, "Your Highness, although Madam Yang has no worries about food and clothing, she still needs people to serve her. In fact, in this palace, if you want to live well, you need money."

Li Yong scratched his head and said, "Then I'll take it to my mother later." He put on his clothes and went to the main hall.

Li Lian and Li Xiao got up earlier than him and were already having lunch.

The three of them had breakfast together and headed towards Chongwenguan.

The sun rose and set, and the day's school ended quickly. The three of them left Chongwenguan together.

Li Xiao and Li Lian threw their school bags to their attendants, called a few students, and prepared to play Cuju.

When Li Yong was asked to go together, he refused.

"Sanlang, aren't you going?" Li Xiao asked in surprise. Usually, Li Yong was the most enthusiastic about Cuju.

Li Yong waved his hand and said, "I have something to do, you guys go by yourselves."

When the two wanted to ask more questions, he had already run away with Xiao Shunzi.

After leaving Chongwenguan, Li Yong first returned to Taiji Palace, and then headed north along Longshou Canal towards Shanchiyuan.

He was impatient, and when he heard Xiao Shunzi mention that his mother needed money that morning, he wanted to give it to her as soon as possible. Although Li Yong's mother, Yang, was assigned to a remote mountain pond courtyard, no one gave her any trouble because of Liu Chong'er.

Liu Chong'e, like Yang, was also demoted to Shanchiyuan.

With the help of her son Li Zhong, she made a comeback and became one of the nine concubines, and moved into Chengxiang Palace.

Although Liu Chong'e did not take revenge on those who bullied her, the female official Yuzhu beside her was a ruthless character and gave a lot of money to Qin Shaojian, who was in charge of Shanchiyuan.

Qin Shaojian took money from others and did things for them. Those who bullied Liu Chong'er were severely punished by him.

With this precedent, no one can guarantee that Yang will not become the next Liu Chong'e, so naturally no one will make things difficult for her.

Every time Li Yong entered the mountain and pond courtyard, there would be a eunuch to lead the way for him, and this time was no exception.

He followed a eunuch to a rockery in the southeast direction.

Looking up, I saw a beautiful woman standing under a willow tree, staring at the rockery in a daze.

This beautiful woman was none other than Li Yong's biological mother, Yang. She was petite and naturally beautiful. Even without makeup, she was still charming.

Yang was so lost in thought as she stared at the splashes of water on the rockery that she didn't even notice her son had arrived.

It wasn't until Li Yong came closer that Yang came back to her senses. After seeing her son, she sighed softly and said, "Yong'er, you're here."

Li Yong whispered, "Mother, why do you always seem unhappy every time you see me?"

Yang didn't answer. She just glanced at the red round robe on Li Yong and asked, "I heard that Her Majesty the Queen had another dream. Is that true?"

Li Yong said: "It's true."

Yang said sadly, "If that's the case, His Majesty will surely favor her even more."

Li Yong was stunned, not knowing how to comfort her. He reached out and held her hand, saying, "Mother, I brought you some money."

Yang frowned and asked, "What do you want to do with the money?"

Li Yong said, "I heard that if you want to live well in the harem, you need money, so I brought some for you."

Seeing a look of concern on his young face, Yang's eyes turned red. She squatted down, hugged him tightly in her arms, and sobbed softly.

"Mom, what's wrong with you? Who bullied you? I'll help you beat him up!" Li Yong shouted.

When Yang heard this, she cried even more sadly.

After a long while, she helped her son to stand up and said softly, "Mother is fine, you can go back."

Li Yong saw that her eyes were red and she didn't look fine at all, so he said anxiously, "Mother, what happened to you? Tell me!"

Yang turned around, her shoulders trembling slightly for a moment, and said, "Yong'er, go ahead. Mother is just recalling some past events."

After saying that, he quickly left.

Li Yong stared blankly at her disappearing figure and asked Xiao Shunzi beside him, "Is my mother really okay? Why doesn't she want my money?"

Xiao Shunzi hesitated and said, "Mrs. Yang may just be thinking of something sad. You should come visit her another day."

Li Yong nodded and walked dejectedly towards the outer door of Shanchi Courtyard.

After leaving Shanchiyuan, Li Yong was still listless. He lowered his head and kicked the stones on the ground, his nose twitching, and he looked very lonely.

Xiao Shunzi gritted his teeth and said, "Your Highness, Madam Yang is actually..."

Li Yong tilted his head and asked, "What's going on?"

Xiao Shunzi said in a trembling voice: "She was actually banished to the cold palace."

Li Yong was shocked and said, "How, how could it be? But, but mother said before that she was doing well in Shanchiyuan!"

Xiao Shunzi whispered, "She lied to you. Think about it, how could she possibly live well in such a remote place without even seeing a saint?"

Li Yong said anxiously, "Then I'll go and ask my father to release my mother!"

Run towards Ganlu Palace.

Xiao Shunzi hurriedly hugged him and said, "Your Highness, you can't go. This will only harm Madam Yang!"

Li Yong glared and asked, "Why?"

Xiao Shunzi said, "Madam Yang was demoted to Shanchiyuan because she was implicated when Commoner Wang was deposed. According to the rules, you are not allowed to visit her. If you ask the Saint for mercy, it will be exposed that you visited her. If the Queen finds out, she will demote her to the Yeting Palace!"

Li Yong's face turned pale. "Will father also banish my mother to the Ye Ting Palace?"

Xiao Shunzi whispered, "The Empress is in charge of all matters concerning the harem, and the Saint has always respected her. Furthermore, the Empress is pregnant now, so the Saint will most likely agree to this matter."

Li Yong grabbed his shoulders and cried, "How can I save my mother?"

Xiao Shunzi gritted his teeth and said, "You have no one in the harem you can rely on, so you can only rely on the power of the previous dynasty."

Li Yong wiped his tears: "Previous dynasty?"

Xiao Shunzi lowered his voice and said, "You can talk to Mr. Wang about this. Maybe he can help you."

Li Yong was stunned and said, "Wang Bo? He's younger than me, how can he help me?"

Xiao Shunzi said, "Although Young Master Wang is very young, he is backed by the Taiyuan Wang family. Perhaps he can find a way to help you."

Li Yong said, "Why would the Wang family of Taiyuan help me for no reason?"

Xiao Shunzi leaned close to his ear and whispered, "Your Highness, Madam Yang used to be a maidservant of Commoner Wang. Commoner Wang is from the Wang family of Taiyuan. They will help you."

Li Yong's eyes showed astonishment. After a long while, he clenched his fists tightly and said through gritted teeth:
"Is this also the reason why Wang Bo became my friend?"

Xiao Shunzi whispered, "That might be the reason."

Li Yong looked up at the sky for a long time, and his eyes gradually became firm.

"Okay, I'll go find Wang Bo!"

(End of this chapter)