As the saying goes, once you enter the palace gates, it’s as deep as the sea. But in Zhao Hanzhang’s palace, this wasn’t the case.
Never mind that she would go out from time to time—just consider Fu Tinghan. Because he was now primarily responsible for the Bureau of Natural Philosophy, not only did he go to the Bureau every few days, sometimes he would stay there. Staying for over ten days was common.
The palace was not his constraint, and naturally it wasn’t Lady Wang’s either.
As Empress Dowager, she wasn’t confined to the palace. She could leave whenever she wished, and could even stay at the Zhao residence if she wanted.
Zhao Hanzhang had assigned her personal guards and palace attendants. Whether in the palace or outside, she only needed to bring them along.
The citizens of Luoyang had grown accustomed to occasionally seeing the Emperor’s family on the streets.
All the officials greatly admired Zeng Yue. Over two years, not a single assassination had occurred. However, Commander Zeng looked increasingly taciturn. The officials both respected and sympathized with him.
The Empress Dowager’s plum viewing banquet was organized by Wang Huifeng. She not only sent invitations to the families of officials ranked fourth grade and above in the capital, but also to aristocratic families residing in the capital and wealthy clans from nearby counties. Finally, she selected a day when everyone had rest to hold the event.
After learning of this, Chen Siniang suggested she select some outstanding students from the universities under the Imperial Academy to attend—first, to help manage some aspects of the banquet, and second, as training for them, treating it as a reward for their excellent academic performance.
Wang Huifeng knew this was aimed at students from poor families or noble clan children whose families didn’t have officials of fourth grade or above.
After brief consideration, she agreed.
So the plum viewing banquet ten days later was held on a grand and solemn scale. The Empress Dowager also went early.
The plum garden was cordoned off. The Imperial Guards blocked the roads, and only those holding invitations could enter. But this still couldn’t stop merchants’ enthusiasm for making money.
They set up stalls all along the roadside next to the lines drawn by the Imperial Guards, staring intently at passing carriages, occasionally gathering to comment on each family’s carriages, drivers, and such.
Of course, their target customers weren’t the noble passengers inside the carriages, but the accompanying drivers, maids, servants, guards, and so on.
Everyone needs to eat, and servants are people too, aren’t they?
One noble guest would bring many servants. In the merchants’ eyes, these servants had considerable purchasing power. When foot traffic increased, wouldn’t demand rise?
Wang Huifeng didn’t stop merchants from setting up stalls on both sides of the road. This was the suburbs—the roads were spacious, and there was plenty of open space on both sides.
Common people’s lives were hard, especially after winter began. Because of the cold, few people came out to shop or eat. Therefore, commerce withered once winter arrived.
Various banquets actually promoted consumption. However, the Emperor advocated frugality. She herself didn’t enjoy feasts and disliked hosting banquets.
She generally entrusted such matters to the Empress Dowager and Princess Hongnong. Through them, she let out the line, allowing wealthy people in the capital to chase trends and spend money. But she would occasionally tug on the line in her hand to prevent the released kite from escaping her control, eliminating extravagance and excessive waste.
The Empress Dowager didn’t understand these principles. Even Princess Hongnong only half-understood. But the former Crown Princess Wang Huifeng, who had been raised as the nation’s mother, understood such matters better than anyone.
The inner quarters were important. They stood opposite the front hall, with a blurred line separating them. Men mastered the front hall, women mastered the inner quarters—dividing the realm in two.
And the inner quarters of the realm were led by the rear palace. Women of the realm looked to the Empress as their head. They had always been vaguely led.
This was why the Empress was called the nation’s mother.
But the new dynasty’s Emperor was a woman. There were also women among court officials. The line between front hall and inner quarters had slowly disappeared. Husbands and wives were no longer fixed with one guarding the front and one protecting the rear. They needed to advance shoulder to shoulder, sharing both progress and retreat. As the leader of the inner quarters, the rear palace also needed to change accordingly.
This change wasn’t just about the Empress Dowager being pushed to the front. Zhao Hanzhang as Emperor and Fu Tinghan as Imperial Husband also needed to participate. Otherwise, the realm would be unstable.
Besides them, there was also Princess Hongnong’s residence. Though she lived outside the palace, she was Fu Tinghan’s mother and an imperial relative.
Wang Huifeng stood in the center of these four parties, guiding them to do appropriate things at appropriate times, balancing their relationships with each other.
Goals were set by Zhao Hanzhang. As a subject, she also only obeyed Zhao Hanzhang alone.
When Zhao Hanzhang lamented that winter brought economic decline and people’s livelihoods were difficult, she organized palace banquets.
When Zhao Hanzhang sighed that snowy, cold days would freeze children, she made charitable donations of cloth, charcoal, and coal to orphanages in the imperial family’s name…
During the previous dynasty, she hadn’t become Empress. She’d learned a wealth of skills with nowhere to apply them. Who would have thought that when Zhao Hanzhang became Emperor, she, this废Crown Princess of the former dynasty, would finally put all her skills to use?
Wang Huifeng, wearing official robes, stood at the entrance of the plum garden. Seeing a carriage stop before her, her face broke into a smile as she stepped forward and bowed, “Princess Consort of Langya.”
Lady Yu Meng quickly moved her feet to step aside and curtsied, “I dare not accept such courtesy, Director Wang.”
Lady Yu Meng’s health wasn’t good. According to historical progression, she should have died of illness two years ago. But after moving back to the capital with her husband, though she fell gravely ill, she managed to pull through.
The aristocratic families of this era would distance themselves from the former dynasty’s imperial family and would despise Wang Dun who rebelled midway and Wang Dao who changed allegiance midstream. But they would respect and admire Wang Huifeng.
Even Ji Yuan and Zhao Ming, when facing her, would yield half a step in their bows before returning full courtesy.
Zhao Hanzhang saw this but never interfered. Instead, she encouraged Wang Huifeng to accept it.
She wasn’t afraid of Wang Huifeng becoming too powerful. If one day she used her authority to do inappropriate things, the prestige she carried would naturally disappear, and Zhao Hanzhang had the ability to strip away her privileges.
But now, the world respected and cherished her because they were moved by her loyalty and sense of justice. Respecting good character would lead to learning good character. Wasn’t this excellent moral conduct?
So far, Wang Huifeng hadn’t disappointed her or the world.
Wang Huifeng received three princess consorts and madams, then personally led them deeper into the plum garden.
The three saw collapsed and broken walls. Because it was winter, the vines on them had shed their leaves and withered, leaving only dead vines coiled around them, exposing the greenish-black bricks and stones beneath. They couldn’t help but pause.
One of Wang Huifeng’s cousin-in-law aunts, Madam Wang, said, “I remember this whole area used to be enclosed by walls. Now so much has collapsed. Why hasn’t it been repaired?”
Wang Huifeng said, “These were destroyed when Wang Mi and Liu Cong killed their way into Luoyang back then. After the entire plum garden was plundered, it was burned down.”
This was Liu Cong’s fault.
After he led troops into Luoyang that year, he let soldiers plunder and set fires everywhere.
Wang Mi didn’t value human life either and also allowed soldiers to plunder. But he didn’t want to destroy buildings. He even advised Liu Cong, believing Luoyang was an ancient capital that had been built with great difficulty. Better to preserve it—they could use it if they occupied it in the future.
Liu Cong didn’t listen. At that time, he wasn’t certain whether he could hold Luoyang, so naturally he didn’t want to leave good things for later people. Thus, after plundering several gardens in the suburbs, he set them on fire.
Wang Mi cursed him furiously.
Ironically, when Wang Mi later fled for his life, he also set fire to Luoyang city to buy more time.
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