Putting all the high hopes of the family on her shoulders and claiming one of the positions in the Four Consorts step by step, after giving birth to a Prince, she would naturally transfer these high hopes to her own son. She probably hoped that he would become a prodigy and stand out among the Princes to be favoured by the Emperor.
Presumably, Song Jinglan had been indoctrinated with the idea of fighting for the throne since he was very young.
Lin Feilu remembered that a long time ago, she was sitting with him on the porch while they were eating popsicles when he casually mentioned his family.
At that time, he said with a smile that when he was chosen as the hostage to be sent to the Great Lin Empire, except for his uncle Rong Heng(2), who was worried about his safety, the rest of the Rong family, including his mother, were only worried about their family losing imperial favour.
(T/N: Rong Heng and Imperial Uncle Rong Yan are two different people. Although I don’t know why only one of them has a title, I think both are brothers of the current Empress Dowager)
Leaving home at the tender age of seven and only returning as an adult, anyone could easily see how much affection he had for the Empress Dowager.
Now, Song Jinglan was firmly seated on the throne as yearned for by the Empress Dowager. Besides, she practically got everything that she ever wanted. However, no one knew if she regretted any of her decisions as she sat in solidarity and loneliness, not having anyone to accompany her.
When Lin Feilu walked to the Chonghua Palace, the early morning sun had just emerged from the clouds.
The scenery here was not as gorgeous and exquisite as the main palace but had its own sense of elegance. The little eunuch led the three of them into the Chonghua Palace. After passing through the eaves, he said to the two servants behind Lin Feilu, “The Empress Dowager only summoned Princess Yong An, so the two of you should wait here.”
The duo looked worried, but Lin Feilu cast a reassuring glance at them before following the eunuch into the palace.
As soon as he entered, Lin Feilu could smell the faint fragrance of orchids in the air. When she walked around the jade divider, she saw a beautiful woman sitting on the couch, focusing on embroidery. Although she was now close to senior age, with proper maintenance and a good foundation, Lin Feilu could still see the beauty of youth in her appearance.
In fact, Lin Feilu knew where Little Pretty Boy got his looks from the moment she saw the Empress Dowager.
The genes of beauty running in the Rong family were really strong.
She bowed politely, “Little Lu pays homage to the Empress Dowager.”
Her soft and sweet voice revealed a natural obedience to her personality. The Empress Dowager stopped the movements of her hands as she commanded softly, “Rise.”
Lin Feilu got up from her bowing stance and raised her head slightly to look at her.
The elder’s gaze was met with an extremely clear and beautiful face. Adorned by bright eyes and pearl-white teeth, the tiny figure emanated an aura of pure beauty. Two shallow dimples formed on her cheeks when the girl slightly pursed her lips and smiled. It was a completely different look from the charming, sly fox she had in her imagination.
The Empress Dowager even compared the girl to herself. Though, with further analysis, curiosity and a hint of nervousness were reflected in those clear eyes.
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