Chapter 214: I Can Wait for You, Cheng Zhao

Zhou Yuanshen brought the matter up with Cheng Zhao again.

Cheng Zhao knew there were many difficulties involved.

But Zhou Yuanshen was not a man who acted without a plan. Since he had mentioned it twice, he clearly already had one—and that plan had now taken another step forward.

Cheng Zhao rested against his chest. “What have you been doing lately? Aside from dealing with that new consort.”

“Consort Wu,” Zhou Yuanshen said. His hand gently stroked the dark hair cascading down her back. “Cheng Zhao, never overlook anyone. Even if that person is temporarily one of our chess pieces.”

Even an insignificant ant could brew a great disaster.

And a favored consort possessed tremendous power. She was certainly no mere ant.

“Tell me about her,” Cheng Zhao said. “The next time I enter the palace to pay my respects to the empress, I may run into her.”

Zhou Yuanshen nodded.

He began explaining slowly.

To gauge the emperor’s preferences, he had first needed to win over the eunuchs the emperor trusted most. They often understood the emperor better than the court officials did.

There was always a reason behind which consorts received the emperor’s favor. It showed what sort of women he preferred.

After finding three or five women of the same type, one could draw a conclusion. Their appearance, personality, and even family background could all be imitated.

Zhou Yuanshen had asked his maternal uncle, Fan Xiao, for help. After spending more than half a year, they had found a woman who fit the type.

“When did you start preparing?” Cheng Zhao asked in surprise.

“A few days before Grandmother forced me to take a concubine,” Zhou Yuanshen replied.

Cheng Zhao fell silent.

To accomplish great things, one had to endure and bide one’s time. A powerful family was like a miniature imperial court: it required a slow, steady simmer, not the gratification of settling every grievance at once.

Sometimes there was no clear verdict between victory and defeat, nor any definite boundary between them. Everything blended into gray. Even when one won, one might still be left feeling stifled and aggrieved.

Just like Zhou Yuanshen. Though he now possessed the ability to resist the matriarch and manipulate the emperor, he still could not erase the grievances he had suffered before.

The only option was to let go oneself.

“So you’re actually wary of Consort Wu as well,” Cheng Zhao said.

“From the moment she entered the palace, we could no longer treat her as a chess piece. At this stage, we’re merely using each other. We need to keep her under control, but we also have to offer her benefits,” Zhou Yuanshen said.

“You helped her win the emperor’s favor.”

“One of the emperor’s trusted confidants will speak on her behalf. That is the connection I gave her. I also gave her money. In the palace, the warmth and coldness of human relations are especially obvious. Without money or influence, no one can go far.”

He continued, “I also treated her with respect. I will never let anyone know about our relationship.”

“I understand. If I see her in the palace from now on, she’ll be the newly favored consort. I’ll treat her with the proper respect,” Cheng Zhao said.

Zhou Yuanshen kissed the center of her brow. “If you dislike it, you don’t have to enter the palace. Don’t force yourself to suffer.”

There were some burdens he could bear alone.

Cheng Zhao smiled. “It’s all right. I’ll have to learn eventually. I learn quickly.”

From Consort Wu, the couple’s conversation returned to the matter of the council chamber in Chengming Hall.

The council chamber had been placed in Chengming Hall. This had been the Zhou family’s practice for more than a decade, deliberately emphasizing Chengming Hall’s importance.

To gain something, one had to sacrifice something else. For example, having to report there every day meant Cheng Zhao had less freedom.

“Don’t rush. Take your time and find a way to renovate Chenhui Court. I’ll continue handling official matters here for another year or two. Once my authority is completely established, we can move the council chamber elsewhere,” Cheng Zhao said.

She needed time.

Every fruit needed time to ripen. There was no point in rushing it.

“All right. We’ll take it slowly,” Zhou Yuanshen said.

He pulled her closer. “Cheng Zhao, it’s rare to see someone so composed at your age.”

“I intend to become the matriarch of a noble household. I can’t afford to make a single mistake.”

One wrong step, and she would tumble downward.

Zhou Yuanshen kissed her. “The question I asked you last time—did you eventually ask your mother and eldest sister about it?”

Cheng Zhao hesitated for a moment before answering, “I told Eldest Sister. She told me to figure it out for myself.”

“What do you think?”

“I haven’t figured it out yet,” Cheng Zhao said.

She wanted to let things take their natural course.

There was no need to say it aloud.

The intimate bond between two people was like a rope. If the rope existed, it could naturally be seen. If it could not be seen, then it did not exist.

Cheng Zhao thought that once she and Zhou Yuanshen developed a deep bond, he would know. She would not need to ask him directly.

She had been trying her best, too.

He treated her well, and Cheng Zhao returned his kindness. Especially in the bedroom, she had become far less coy and reserved.

“I can wait,” Zhou Yuanshen said. “Cheng Zhao, I’m not lacking in patience.”

Cheng Zhao moved closer to him. Taking advantage of the opportunity, he tightened his arms around her and held her firmly against his chest.

The couple lay pressed closely together and gradually fell asleep.

The next morning, Zhou Yuanshen rose early to attend court. After he left, before the hour of the Rabbit had even arrived, Nanny Li came to wake Cheng Zhao.

Nanny Li was even more anxious than Cheng Zhao, afraid that she would oversleep and be seen by the household stewards.

Cheng Zhao woke up.

She practiced her swordplay, washed, ate breakfast, and practiced calligraphy for a while. Only then did the stewards begin arriving one after another.

Without the need to travel back and forth, she seemed to have gained much more time. Even a quarter of an hour could be spared for practicing calligraphy.

Cheng Zhao was very pleased.

Nothing of note happened that day.

In late September, Cheng Zhao heard that an illegally concealed iron mine in the western suburbs had been exposed, implicating a number of officials.

Several meritorious aristocratic families were involved as well.

Among them was the Marquis of Changling’s residence, the family of Madam Song, the eldest aunt’s maiden home.

Everyone in the Zhou household discussed the matter incessantly.

Cheng Zhao, Zhou Yuanshen, and Zhou Yuanqi had all gone to Jiangyun Court for dinner. The subject came up there.

“Has the Song family gone mad? They actually dared to tamper with government iron? That’s a crime punishable by the extermination of nine familial relations,” the second madam said.

“More than a dozen officials have been implicated,” the second master said.

“Could this bring trouble down on us?” the second madam asked.

“That’s unlikely. Eldest Sister-in-law has been married into the Zhou family for more than twenty years. As for her maternal family...”

“Could the censors take the opportunity to impeach us? After all, they’re her in-laws. Technically, that makes them part of the nine familial relations,” the second madam said.

The second master replied, “We’ll have to see how the situation develops.”

The matter quickly grew serious, and the authorities began arresting people.

Everyone cried out that they were innocent.

Among the relatives of the officials involved, those who could sever their ties with them hurried to do so.

The aristocratic families on good terms with the Zhou family also sent people to advise them to have Madam Song sever ties with the Marquis of Changling’s residence. They urged the Zhou family not to let themselves be dragged into the affair.

The old madam was heartbroken. “The Marquis of Changling’s residence was simply too foolish. They were driven to desperation by poverty. If they were short of money, they could have come to me. How could I have refused to help them? Instead, they had to do something like this.”

One of the visiting ladies said, “It’s too late for regrets now, Old Madam. You should have Eldest Madam sever ties with them at once.”

Tears welled in the old madam’s eyes. “How could I bear to do that?”

She was deeply torn.

Not only did her close friends from outside come to persuade her, but members of the Zhou clan did as well. Even the household stewards knelt before the old madam, begging her to save the lives of the entire Zhou clan and to steel her heart.

Huan Qingtang went to persuade her too.

Cheng Zhao and the second madam did not go.

The main reason was that the second madam refused.

“...I can’t say such hypocritical things. I’d end up rolling my eyes,” the second madam said. “Even putting on an act requires some restraint.”

She looked at Cheng Zhao again. “Should we go?”

“Mother, there are already plenty of people persuading her. We won’t be missed. If you can’t bring yourself to do it, then don’t,” Cheng Zhao said.

Cheng Zhao was strict with herself, but she never used that standard to force the people around her. She respected everyone.

Especially her mother-in-law.

With her daughter-in-law’s support, the second madam indeed did not go.

Cheng Zhao stayed away as well.

She even told the stewards, “I know Grandmother is in a difficult position. She’s the one suffering most right now. How could I make things worse for her?”

The old madam could not bring herself to make a decision.

Nanny Sun had no choice but to go in her place.

She went to Madam Song and told her to sever ties with her family.

Madam Song was fiercely resolute. She would rather die than submit, and that very night, she hanged herself.

They could not save her.