Feng Yu Heng was able to recognize her as someone from Imperial Concubine Yun’s side and quickly asked: “Does Imperial Concubine Mother need something?”
The palace maid performed a serious salute to Feng Yu Heng before saying: “Renovation of the new Winter Moon Palace has been completed, and Imperial Concubine has already moved in. She had this servant come and tell Imperial Daughter. If you have nothing to do tomorrow, just head into the palace. Imperial Concubine has missed you.”
“Oh? Winter Moon Palace has been fixed?” Feng Yu Heng also rejoiced and said to herself that once Imperial Concubine Yun moved into Winter Moon Palace, the Emperor would get depressed once more. Who knew when he would be able to see her again. This was also the reason that the completion of Winter Moon Palace’s renovations had been delayed for so long.
She nodded, “Go back and tell Imperial Concubine Mother that I will go tomorrow before noon.” Seeing the palace maid happily depart, she shouted into the air: “Ban Zou.”
Ban Zou appeared in a blur, and Feng Yu Heng gave the order: “Head to the Yao manor tomorrow morning and secretly bring grandfather over. Have him come with me to visit Imperial Concubine Yun.”
At dawn the next day, Ban Zou silently brought Yao Xian back to the imperial daughter’s manor. Feng Yu Heng brought Yao Xian into her space and brought him into the palace without anyone knowing. Nobody knew that this trip into the palace where it looked like Imperial Daughter Ji An was going in alone with her maidservant Huang Quan would have Yao Xian enter while hidden in a place that nobody could possibly know of. According to Feng Yu Heng’s whims, he could be brought anywhere. How could it be possible for the Yao family and Imperial Daughter Ji An to suddenly hate each other?
The newly renovated Winter Moon Palace was more luxurious than before. The Emperor actually gave Imperial Concubine Yun a gate made of pure gold. Feng Yu Heng was speechless and reached out to feel it. She then sighed, “It’s gold-plated. That scared me to death.”
Huang Quan did not understand, “What did young miss say?”
She knocked on the palace gate and told Huang Quan: “It’s gold-plated and not made entirely out of gold. Only a thin layer of gold was laid on the outside. It looks extremely splendid but is not too extravagant. It seems…” She lowered her voice, “His Majesty still isn’t enough of a fool to throw gold around like dirt.” Just after these words were said, the gate of Winter Moon Palace was opened from the inside. Feng Yu Heng turned around and smiled at the person inside, “Aunty Su Yu.”
The person that had opened the gate was none other than the head palace maid Su Yu. Seeing that Feng Yu Heng had come, she quickly and happily welcomed her inside. When Feng Yu Heng brought Huang Quan to the moon-viewing building, Su Yu took the initiative to leave. Even Huang Quan was left outside. She pushed the door open and entered; however, in the instant that the doors were pushed open, she used them to hide herself and successfully avoided being seen, as she let out Yao Xian.
Imperial Concubine Yun always had very few people taking care of her, especially when she was in the moon-viewing building. The majority of the time, she was either listening to gossip or eating fruits or little snacks. Thus there were not many servants at her side. At times, there were a couple, and there were times when there were none. Of course, the female guards hidden all over would not relax their guard. As for these guards, they were trusting people and were very at ease with Feng Yu Heng.
She and Yao Xian entered the moon-viewing building together. Sure enough, Imperial Concubine Yun was leaning sideways on a soft sofa while eating a pear. Not a single palace maid was left at her side. She did not even look over when she heard footsteps. She just leisurely said: “A-Heng, quickly come over. There’s no need to be too courteous. There’s nobody else here today. Let’s eat some good…” She stopped mid-sentence, as she heard the sound of two people moving. At first, Imperial Concubine Yun thought that it might be that Feng Yu Heng had brought a maidservant, but she felt that it was not too likely. Every time that Feng Yu Heng visited, she would leave her servants outside. Huang Quan and Wang Chuan were both trained in the Yu Palace and naturally understood the rules of the Winter Moon Palace, yet there was someone that had come with her. Who was it?
Filled with doubt, she raised her head. In the instant that she saw Yao Xian, the pear that she had not yet chewed got stuck in her throat, and she desperately began to cough.
Feng Yu Heng quickly went forward to slap her back and finally managed to help Imperial Concubine Yun cough out the pear. Imperial Concubine Yun’s face turned red from choking and finally managed to recover; however, she stared blankly at Yao Xian, who had stopped a few steps away. Her expression was filled with nostalgia and eager anticipation.
Feng Yu Heng’s desire for gossip surged forth in her heart. In regards to Imperial Concubine Yun’s relationship with Yao Xian, she had once discussed it with Xuan Tian Ming. At that time, Xuan Tian Ming’s thoughts were: Impossible! The reasoning was that the generation was completely wrong, and there was too large of an age gap. But she thought later on that such a large age gap between men and women in the ancient era was not impossible. It was likely that the original Yao Xian met Imperial Concubine Yun when he was younger, and feelings blossomed. But when she told Xuan Tian Ming about her thoughts, Xuan Tian Ming just tapped her head and told her that it would be best to stop thinking in that direction. Otherwise, his relationship with her would become one of relatives.
In truth, that was not necessarily the case. At this very moment, Feng Yu Heng watched the two and thought that the original Yao Xian and Imperial Concubine Yun merely had some feelings many years ago. Those feelings might not have born fruit. At best, they were just a man and a woman that were friends. No matter what, it could not be related to her relationship with Xuan Tian Ming. It was just that if it really was like that, her privately bringing Yao Xian to see Imperial Concubine Yun, if this was found out by the Emperor, would she be exterminated?
Feng Yu Heng looked at Imperial Concubine Yun then looked at Yao Xian and felt that the atmosphere was a bit awkward, thus she quietly said to Imperial Concubine Yun: “Imperial Concubine Mother, I secretly brought Grandfather in here. Don’t make it public!”
Imperial Concubine Yun had not lost so much control that she would forget about everything. Hearing Feng Yu Heng’s words, she very quickly adjusted her mood, even standing up to bring over a chair from not too far away. She then said to Yao Xian: “Please sit.”
Yao Xian nodded and sat in the chair. Imperial Concubine Yun also returned to her spot and sat down. She no longer had that lazy appearance as before. Instead, she sat very properly, as if she was a young child. The corners of her eyes carried a joy that could not be hidden. Feng Yu Heng sat at her side and would occasionally look over at her. In her mind, she endlessly analyzed why she would look so happy, but this joy did not seem to be of someone that had found their lover. Instead, it seemed like…
“Father, Pian Pian is finally able to see you.” Feng Yu Heng’s mind had not yet finished its thought when she heard Imperial Concubine Yun unexpectedly say this sort of thing. For the sake of observing Imperial Concubine Yun’s expressions, she sat right on the edge. The word father caused her to drop to the ground with a “thunk” sound in shock. That fall was quite honest, as even Yao Xian winced.
Imperial Concubine Yun quickly went to support Feng Yu Heng; however, she saw her daughter-in-law sit on the ground while looking at her with an expression of horror. Even her hands were trembling.
“Imperial Concubine Mother.” Feng Yu Heng had a bitter expression, “What did you just call my grandfather?” What should she say? That’s right, even if Yao Xian was Imperial Concubine Yun’s father, in Imperial Concubine Yun’s eyes, her being with Xuan Tian Ming was just family getting even closer. Imperial Concubine Yun and Yao shi were sisters, thus she and Xuan Tian Ming were cousins. This sort of pairing in the ancient era was indeed quite excellent! But heavens! She was born in the modern world, raised in the modern world and received an education in the modern world. She very clearly understood that even if they were cousins, that was a marriage that was prohibited by marriage laws. Also, this was not just from the legal perspective. Even medicine strongly advocated against such a marriage between close relatives. If they got married, in the next generation or the generation after that, the probability of a genetic defect would increase astronomically. How would she explain this matter to her children and grandchildren?
Feng Yu Heng’s mind filled with these wild thoughts. At the same time, she also saw Yao Xian and saw that Yao Xian had the same shocked expression as herself. It was clear that he had also thought of this point. But in the end, Yao Xian had the original owner’s memories. He quickly went through his memories then shook his head and said to Imperial Concubine Yun: “Imperial Concubine has recognized the wrong person.”
“Right, right, right, it must be a case of mistaken identity. Imperial Concubine Mother, think carefully. Perhaps your father looks very similar to my grandfather.”
Imperial Concubine Yun, however, smiled and helped Feng Yu Heng stand up and sit back down. She finally spoke up: “There’s no need to think about it. Lord Yao does not look like this One’s father in the slightest.”
“Then where did father come from?” Feng Yu Heng was truly on the verge of a mental meltdown. Imperial Concubine Yun, can you be a little more systematic in the way you speak? Speaking in short bursts like this, where one statement does not line up with the following statement, who can understand what is happening?
Imperial Concubine Yun suddenly became carefree and began smiling. During this smile, she looked like a young daughter. The face that had been preserved very well immediately looked ten years younger. “Follow your heart and act on your feelings.” She looked at Feng Yu Heng with that happy expression once more; however, after smiling for a while, her expression gradually became dignified. In the end, she solemnly said: “Thank you. Thank you for allowing this visit and allowing me to see him.”
Feng Yu Heng felt that going around in circles in this conversation was truly tiring, thus she did not ask anything else. She simply sat back in the chair and watched the two before her. She did not make a sound and waited for them to speak on their own. She would just be an observer.
Fortunately, Imperial Concubine Yun did not disappoint her, nor did she cause her any worry. She very quickly revealed a bit more information. Imperial Concubine Yun said: “Seeing your grandfather was a desire that I have had for a long time. I’ve looked for him for a long time and waited for him for a long time. A few decades ago, before I had met Ming’er’s father, my only desire was to meet my father. Although… he was not really my real father.” Imperial Concubine Yun spoke and turned her gaze on Yao Xian. That sort of young daughter look began to appear once more. “I should not call you father because I never called you that before. I would always call you uncle. Mother said that uncle is the best person in the world. If it was not for uncle, neither mother nor daughter would be alive.”
As she spoke, she stood up and aimlessly walked around inside the moon-viewing building. One lap after another, she was filled with nostalgia, as her unrestrained voice rose once more. Feng Yu Heng learned even more information.
“Mother said that I was delivered by you personally. But I did not have any memories when I was born. My memories of you begin from when I was three years old and ended when I was six. I once believed that we were a family. It was only after you left and after I heard the other young children speak of how their families spent their nights together that I understood that you were not my father. It was as mother had said. You were our benefactor. As for me, I thought about it for so many years until there came a day when I entered the palace. You personally treated my skin. I only dared to greet you but could not acknowledge you because…”