Chapter 335
**Chapter 333: The Arrival of Spring**
Qian Momo's expression was impassive as she informed Lu Xuan, "Your Highness, the Shufei, your sister is ambitious and foolishly seeks to climb the ranks. The Empress Dowager has merely expelled her from the palace; that is already a mercy."
Lu Xuan's face turned pale.
She supported Xiao Qi's arm and walked into the side hall where Lu Yun resided. Lu Yun was in tears, her eyes red and swollen, while several elderly palace maids were packing her belongings.
Lu Xuan hurried inside and grasped Lu Yun's hand. "Little sister, what on earth happened?"
Lu Yun lowered her head, afraid to reveal her ambitions, and instead offered an excuse. "Sister, I see you suffering in the palace, constantly suppressed by Consort Chen. I feel for you, so I thought if I could chance upon the Emperor in the Imperial Garden, I might earn a place as a consort to be by your side."
Lu Xuan scolded, "What nonsense!"
Lu Yun hung her head, wiping away her tears.
Lu Xuan felt a sharp pain in her chest, her head spinning. She held Lu Yun's hand tightly. "I have no future left in the palace; why would you throw yourself into the fire?"
The future of the Lu family was bleak, destined to be consumed by the Emperor. How could Lu Yun entertain such fanciful thoughts?
Lu Xuan's eyes brimmed with sorrow. "Today, you have offended the Empress Dowager. Take this opportunity to leave the palace and find a good family to marry into."
Lu Yun cried, feeling wronged.
The palace maids worked quickly, and soon Lu Yun's belongings were packed. Lu Xuan, too ill to travel far, could only see Lu Yun off at the gates of Changxin Palace.
As the moment of separation approached, Lu Xuan felt a deep reluctance. With red-rimmed eyes, she told Lu Yun, "Little sister, today’s farewell may be the last time we see each other."
Lu Yun's nose tinged with bitterness, a wave of heartfelt sorrow washing over her. "Sister..."
Lu Xuan wiped away Lu Yun's tears, her voice choked. "Little sister, I can no longer protect you. You must take care of yourself."
The winter wind rose again, tousling the sisters' hair. With a heart full of reluctance and sorrow, Lu Yun turned back three times as she left Changxin Palace, stepping out of the towering Imperial City.
A dusty carriage waited at the palace gates, and Lu Yun, tears in her eyes, climbed aboard.
As the carriage rolled away, the majestic Imperial City grew more distant. Clutching her bundle, Lu Yun curled up in the small carriage, overwhelmed by the day’s shocks, and slowly drifted into a dream.
In this dream, she saw a grim future.
[In the dream, Lu Yun tragically died on her way to marriage. The scene shifted to the deep palace, where Lu Xuan, now the Empress, learned of Lu Yun's death. She seemed to go mad, rushing into Chang'an Palace to confront the Emperor. "My sister was innocent! Why did you kill her? I am already dying; do you intend to wipe out the Lu family completely? Will you not rest until the Yan family is utterly destroyed?"]
The cold, stern-faced man set down his memorial, raising his gaze slightly, his profile sharp as a blade.
The Emperor leaned back against the dragon throne, an aura of menace surrounding him. "I intend to destroy the Lu family."
Lu Xuan let out a maniacal laugh. Suddenly, she drew a dagger from her sleeve and lunged at Li Yuanjing, shouting, "I will kill you! I will avenge my sister!"
Unsurprisingly, she was stopped by the guards.
The eunuchs dragged the deranged Lu Xuan out of Chang'an Palace and locked her in Kun Ning Palace.
Before long, the Empress was sentenced to death for her attempted assassination of the Emperor. The Lu family was discovered to be colluding with Southern Chu, and their entire household was executed.]
The winter wind blew open the carriage curtain, waking Lu Yun from her nightmare. She opened her eyes in panic, her heart racing, cold sweat breaking out in the chill of winter.
The scenes foretold in her dream were vivid in her mind.
Trembling with fear, Lu Yun curled up in the small carriage, enveloped in boundless despair.
"Sister..." Lu Yun murmured, tears streaming down her face.
Suddenly, she realized she had made a grave mistake, misjudging her sister and harboring ambitions that should not have existed.
In a flurry, she thought, if the visions in her dream were true, how could she save the Lu family and her sister's life?
The carriage suddenly came to a halt.
Outside, the driver called out to Lu Yun, "Second Miss, there’s a woman in a veil blocking our way."
...
Yongning Palace.
Shen Wei was reviewing the winter budget sent by the Ministry of Internal Affairs. After flipping through a couple of pages, Cai Ping entered the warm chamber, bringing news about the Imperial Garden.
"Expelled from the palace?" Shen Wei raised an eyebrow. "Mother is quite merciful."
Cai Ping nodded. "The Shufei cares deeply for her sister. Lu Yun's expulsion from the palace has, in a way, saved her life."
With Lu Yun out of the palace, she would inevitably become a pawn in the Duke of Lu's schemes to win hearts, stirring little commotion.
Shen Wei closed the ledger and gazed out the window. The snow had stopped, the chill dissipating; winter was nearing its end.
...
Time flew by, and after the New Year, the weather gradually warmed. The snow covering the outskirts of Yan Jing melted, old trees sprouted tender green buds, and wildflowers in the mountains bloomed in a riot of colors.
Spring had arrived.
Shen Wei ordered the palace servants to transplant forsythia in the courtyard, clusters of pale yellow flowers blooming profusely, stretching their petals in the warm sunlight. In the two small vegetable patches of Yongning Palace, Li Yuanjing had sown some seeds, which quickly sprouted.
Every morning, Li Yuanjing would stroll through the vegetable garden a couple of times, satisfied before heading to court.
In Yongning Palace, Cai Lian and Rong Momo gathered to report this month's arrangements to Shen Wei. "Your Highness, the Southern Chu envoy will arrive in Yan Jing in five days. The Emperor will host a banquet at Qinghua Hall to welcome them. In half a month, the Emperor will hold the plowing ceremony in Yan Jing, and you will need to act in the Empress's stead to prepare for the silkworm ceremony."
The plowing and silkworm ceremonies were essential royal rituals held every spring to pray for blessings and favorable weather.
Shen Wei flexed her wrists. "Make sure everything is well-prepared; no mistakes allowed. Reassess the allowances for everyone in the palace; punish those who deserve it and reward those who have earned it."
Rong Momo gladly accepted the orders, and they all went about their tasks.
Shen Wei stretched, doing a couple of rounds of Ba Duan Jin in the courtyard before preparing to visit Cining Palace to accompany the Empress Dowager and check on the children.
Not long after spring began, the spring breeze was still chilly. As it blew through the clusters of forsythia, it brushed against Shen Wei's face, causing her to sneeze uncontrollably.
"How strange; could someone be thinking of me?" Shen Wei rubbed her nose, dismissing the thought as she stepped out of Yongning Palace to attend to palace affairs.
...
In Yunzhou, at the Duke of Lu's residence in a side courtyard.
The roses in the yard bloomed abundantly, butterflies danced about, and a plump white fox chased after them, making cheerful yelping sounds.
Inside the flower hall, the servants had already been dismissed.
Lu Yun knelt on the mat, trembling, cold sweat trickling down her back, unable to meet the gaze of the man seated in the main position.
Even in ordinary brocade robes, Li Yuanli's imposing presence was hard to ignore.
His long, bony fingers slowly caressed the celadon teacup, as if he had heard some absurd tale. He spoke softly, "I will ask you once more: did you truly dream of the future?"
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