Ancient women awaken: loving yourself is the way to go

The Queen knew that it was absurd for the Crown Prince to take after the Emperor, but she never expected that even the counselors were involved.

Two at once!

After a moment of silence, she felt that she should still try to save him. "I remember that your father gave you a person who can give you advice. You should ask him more questions in the future."

"You are talking about Lord Zhou, right?" The prince smiled again when his mother nodded. "Don't worry, Lord Zhou has also been invited to be my advisor. The four of us get along very well."

The Queen was completely silent.

Destroy it!

Hopeless.

"Is your Majesty unhappy?" The prince was sensitive to his mother's emotions and consoled her softly:

"Don't worry, mother! I know what's going on. I know I'm not very smart, and I also know it would be easy for the three of them to deceive me.

But Mr. Shen saved you and also saved me. Mr. Yun has repeatedly expressed his love for his son. We have the handle on Lord Zhou's family, so our life will not be too bad.

Besides, my future life will depend entirely on your father's words, so it's good to be free from worries."

The Queen rubbed the Prince's head and asked the question that had been in her heart for many years: "Do you hate your mother for not interfering with the Emperor's education of you?"

The prince smiled and said, "Mother, Lord Zhou once muttered in private that I am too smart to live to this day, and I think it is true.

Besides, life is pretty good without having to think too much. I can do whatever I want and I have to put up with other people’s opinions.”

The queen raised her head and forced back the tears in her eyes.

Regarding the issue of the prince's education, she hesitated for a long time and ultimately chose not to interfere.

What her family needed was a puppet, and the emperor deliberately deposed the prince because he held a grudge against the Chen family.

She had never been in the emperor's heart to begin with, and if she lost the support of her natal family, the prince would have no chance of becoming emperor.

A prince who cannot obtain the throne is destined to have a miserable end.

The emperor did not use his talent when dealing with state affairs. All he needed to do was ask "What do you think, my dear?" and countless people would offer their opinions. The prince could then judge whose idea was better.

This was the reason why she agreed to give the Emperor sterilization drugs, and why she poisoned Prince Yun's food many times.

As long as the crown prince is the only heir to the throne, victory is assured.

It’s actually a good thing now. It’s good to be a little confused about the uncontrollable future.

The secret door was knocked at this time, and Mr. Shen's gentle voice came into the room: "Queen, Prince, can I come in?"

"Of course." The prince immediately stood up and walked quickly to the secret door. However, he suddenly found that he didn't know how to open the door. His hands hung in the air and his expression looked a little stiff.

He couldn't even find the door, so how could his mother get out?

Shen Xingxi gently pushed the door open and walked in.

She saw the prince's doubts and smiled at him reassuringly, "Don't worry, Your Highness, the Queen was temporarily placed here because it is relatively safe.

Do you remember that I changed my appearance before? When the rumors are over, I will arrange for the Queen to leave."

After listening to Shen Xingxi's explanation, the prince's face flushed and he said awkwardly: "Mr. Shen, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have doubted you just now."

"You are concerned about the Queen, I can understand that. I am even fortunate to follow a master who is both loyal and filial." Shen Xingxi smiled tolerantly.

The prince felt a little embarrassed by what he said and lowered his head and laughed secretly.

Shen Xingxi's voice became a little gentler. "Prince, can you give me some time to talk to the Queen alone? In order to ensure the Queen's safety, it will not be convenient for me to come here in the future. Wait for me to leave, and you can continue to chat with the Queen. I will send someone to pick you up tomorrow morning."

"Of course." The prince agreed without hesitation.

In front of the prince, Shen Xingxi put his hand on the vase beside him and said, "Prince, there is a mechanism here. Just turn left three times and right four times, and the door will open automatically."

The prince looked even more ashamed. Mr. Shen was such an upright person, it was impossible for him to have the idea of ​​locking up his mother. He was just overthinking.

"Then Mr. Shen and the Queen Mother can chat first. I'll be back in a while."

"Prince, please watch your way. I'll ask Xiaoli to bring you a cup of tea to cheer you up."

The prince thanked him and walked into the secret passage.

Shen Xingxi closed the door and bowed to the queen: "I am Shen Risheng, here to see the queen."

The queen waved her hand and said, "Mr. Shen, there's no need to be so polite. I'm no longer the queen. Just call me Madam Zhao from now on."

Shen Xingxi nodded, sat down opposite the Queen, picked up the tea set on the table, made a cup of tea, and placed the teacup in front of the Queen, "Please forgive me, Madam Zhao. We have limited conditions, so I will have to inconvenience you for a while."

The Queen looked at the tea in front of her and suddenly laughed softly, "Mr. Shen, you know, a few hours ago I also poured a cup of tea for the Emperor, but the Emperor told me that he would never dare to drink the tea I poured again."

She picked up the tea and took a sip. "But now I have to drink it even if I don't dare."

"Why don't you dare to drink, Madam Zhao? I have spent so much effort to rescue you, so I will not harm you now." Shen Xingxi also poured himself a glass, raised it and took a sip, looking relaxed and contented.

The Queen did not ignore the fact that Mr. Shen said "now" instead of "all the time", and sighed.

If the prince didn't want her to live, she wouldn't have chosen the life of a prisoner.

After a moment of silence, she clearly knew that when she was under someone's control, she had to speak out: "I wonder if Mr. Shen can explain to me why my father didn't find out that his guards had been replaced? What is the relationship between Princess Yun and you? Is Nanny Yan involved in this matter?"

"Mrs. Zhao is smart." Shen Xingxi hid the sharpness in her eyes and still smiled, "So, Mrs. Zhao wants to avenge the Chen family?"

The queen smiled bitterly, "How can I seek revenge when I can't even protect myself?"

"Mrs. Zhao can avenge my father. I am responsible for my own actions. If anything happens, just come to me." Shen Xingxi's expression suddenly became serious, and his voice was full of anger:

"But the Chen family deserves to be destroyed! In the early years, they missed questions for students. If the poor students don't hand over the evidence to Minister Chen, they will have no chance of success.

After ten years of studying hard and being well-read, don't you think it's ridiculous to let them use their hands that hold pens to harm innocent people?

Minister Chen abducted women, bought and sold official positions, persecuted loyal officials, embezzled disaster relief funds... He relied on the fact that no one dared to offend him, and he broke almost every law. Do you think that his current fate is too good for him?"

"When will the cycle of revenge end?" The queen closed her eyes. It was indeed her father's fault.

"Just tell me what Mr. Shen wants me to do. I only have one request, to save the prince's life if necessary."

"The prince's life can only be assured if Madam Zhao takes care of it herself." Shen Xingxi smiled slightly.

"To be honest, Madam Zhao, I saved you because Nanny Yan said that you took the initiative to seek benefits for women all over the world and opened up the women's household registration system." Shen Xingxi stood up and bowed to the queen:

“Everyone is very grateful to you, so even if we know that if we rescue you, you might avenge the Chen family, we will accept it.”

The queen was stunned. She really didn't expect this to be the reason. Instead, she felt even more guilty: "This is what I should do. I am a queen who has failed in my duties. I have only been trying to win favor and manage the harem all day, and have neglected my duties as the mother of a country."

She sighed softly: "It's a pity that I realized it too late, and now I don't have the ability anymore."

"Who said Madam Zhao has no ability?" Shen Xingxi poured another cup of tea for the queen. "You are proficient in poetry, literature, etiquette and music. If the imperial examination is open to women, you will definitely stand out. I will have someone send the books to you. After the Chen family incident is over, I will also provide you with a disguise mask and set you free."

"So you saved my maid in order to restrain me? What do you want the hidden forces of the Chen family to do for you?" The queen did not believe that such a good thing would happen.

Shen Xingxi: "I have only one request. If it is not the Crown Prince who ascends the throne in the future, please lend me the remaining hidden power of your Chen family."

"Whose camp are you on?" The queen couldn't help but ask.

Borrowing the power of the Chen family in the future does not prevent her from helping the prince in secret. If the prince is defeated, this part of the power will only fight against the new emperor.

This seems like he truly recognizes the prince as his master, but if he really recognizes the prince as his master, he should not deal with the Chen family.

"Madam Zhao, you must know that Nanny Yan is my sworn sister. I will do my best to help her with whatever she wants to do. We don't have a faction, we only seek welfare for women." Shen Xingxi said sincerely, "So the maids who saved the queen just couldn't bear to see women die tragically. If you really want to use them to control the queen, saving one or two will be enough. There is no need to take such a big risk."

"Then I really have no reason to refuse." The Queen picked up the teacup and drank it all, and also showed her sincerity: "Since you want women to take the imperial examination, I know the specific situation of the ladies in the capital, wait for me to write it down and give it to you.

I would also like to recommend someone, the general's eldest daughter, Madam Zhai. She is not only good at wielding swords, I have seen her speak eloquently before. She agreed to the contact between the Crown Prince's Consort and Princess Yun, so she must have been secretly observing you. "

Shen Xingxi thanked him and showed her first genuine smile: "Madam Zhao, Nanny Yan plans to use the imperial concubine's last promise to open a girls' school in the capital. Do you have any ideas?"

The queen smiled gently, "You've asked the right person. The Imperial Concubine has been fighting with me for more than ten years. Maybe I know her better than she does. Listen to me, the Imperial Concubine likes the cakes from Yashifang the most..."

Shen Xingxi wrote down the Queen's words one by one, and as it was getting late, he prepared to leave.

The Queen couldn't help but ask, "Mr. Shen, I know this is a bit rash, but I feel uneasy if I don't ask. From what the Crown Prince said, you, Mr. Yun, and Mr. Zhou are all..."

She paused, without saying the specific relationship, and looked into Shen Xingxi's eyes: "Do you have any grudge against the prince for this matter? If so, can I forgive the prince for his crime?"

Shen Xingxi had to admit that it was not easy to meet a normal person.

But she had been suppressing her feelings for too long, so she wanted to tease the queen: "Madam Zhao, do you know that the crown prince gave me a jade carving? There are five people on it. The crown prince, Mr. Yun and I are in a circle in the middle, Lord Zhou is behind the crown prince, and Nanny Yan is behind me. This is not about four people, but five people."