On that day, Yu Jingchen issued a decree, stating that the accusation of Nan Zhiyun plotting to harm the imperial heir was a slander by Consort Yun. Furthermore, Nan Zhiyun had rendered meritorious service in saving the emperor, and was thus enfeoffed as Imperial Noble Consort and interred in the imperial mausoleum.
However...
Yu Jingchen looked at Nan Su kneeling below.
"This old minister is advanced in years and fears he is unable to assume the position of Protector General. His Majesty's benevolence is deeply appreciated. I hereby request His Majesty to reclaim the military tally. This old minister wishes to retire to his hometown." Nan Su held up the military tally, his face appearing decades older.
"In addition to this, this old minister has one more request, please His Majesty grant it," Nan Su continued.
"What is it?" Yu Jingchen asked.
"Although this old minister's daughter has become His Majesty's concubine, she has not received imperial favor for many years. Therefore, this old minister wishes to take her back to his hometown. Yun'er is this old minister's only daughter. In my remaining years, I hope to be surrounded by my descendants, and have Yun'er by my side."
The entire Hall of Supreme Harmony fell silent. After a long pause, Yu Jingchen spoke, "Granted..."
"This minister thanks His Majesty for his great kindness. May His Majesty live for ten thousand years!" Nan Su kowtowed, then stood up and, under everyone's gaze, walked step by step out of the Hall of Supreme Harmony. From then on, he was no longer the Grand Marshal of the Army, nor the Protector General. He was merely Nan Zhiyun's father...
Nan Su had spent half his life on the battlefield, and in the end, he would only accompany his only daughter.
Ci'an Palace
Yu Jingchen had been waiting here for a long time.
"Your Majesty... The Empress Dowager requests your presence," a wet nurse beside the Empress Dowager approached.
Yu Jingchen walked into the hall.
The Empress Dowager sat at the head of the table, her head propped in one hand. Her once well-maintained face now showed clear signs of age.
"Mother," Yu Jingchen bowed slightly.
"The Emperor is busy with state affairs every day, it is rare for you to visit. Am I neglecting you?" the Empress Dowager said coldly.
"Mother, you are too kind," Yu Jingchen replied impassively.
"I heard that Ah Su has resigned from his post," the Empress Dowager asked.
"Yes," Yu Jingchen replied.
"That is a good choice. Ah Su has worked hard for most of his life, and now he can finally relax. He can spend his time with Yun'er and enjoy the happiness of family," the Empress Dowager said with a distant tone.
"Emperor, do you know who Yun'er is?" the Empress Dowager suddenly asked.
Yu Jingchen frowned and looked at the Empress Dowager, only to hear her continue speaking to herself: "Yun'er says that Ah Su's daughter... her mother lost her life saving me back then. Ah Su was one of my father's subordinates, a man of good character and outstanding ability, who saved the lives of both myself and the late emperor many times. Yun'er is their only daughter. When her mother left, Yun'er was only three years old."
"That is why I often brought Yun'er into the palace to raise her. But I am ashamed of them both, for not taking good care of their daughter. How will I face them in the afterlife?" the Empress Dowager said calmly, yet it struck a chord.
"Your Majesty, Yun'er is just a foolish girl. She did not listen to advice and insisted on entering the palace. Look, is she regretting it now? Just a few days ago, I told her that once Ah Su returns, we will all be happy together," the Empress Dowager continued.
"Your Majesty, you should return. From now on, the people you dislike and the people you fear will be gone, and you can be a good emperor. Being heartless and loveless will lead many to flatter you, but few will be sincere. Standing tall, one knows the loneliness of the heights..." With these words, the Empress Dowager slowly closed her eyes. She had fallen asleep.
The Empress Dowager also had a dream. In her dream, she held a newborn Yu Jingchen, wrinkled and small. Every day, she taught Yu Jingchen to call out "Mother."
The day he finally learned to say "Mother," she was so happy that she kissed the little Yu Jingchen again and again. Later... Yu Jingchen grew up, and he would only stand before her obediently, calling her "Mother" in a cold voice. Later, Yu Jingchen ascended the throne, and he called her Empress Dowager...
Just then, her darling Yun'er took her arm: "Empress Dowager, you are like my mother. I will surely be filial to you in the future."
"Yun'er, now we can truly be a family and be happy..."
One day later, in the third year of Tiansheng, the Empress Dowager passed away. She was not buried in the imperial mausoleum, but returned to the Nan clan's ancestral home. It was said to be a place of clear waters and beautiful mountains, where the scent of birds and flowers filled the air. By the spring of the following year, it would be like a rebirth.
Yu Jingchen stood on the city wall. It was now the depths of winter.
"Your Majesty, news has just arrived. Old General Nan Su has passed away, at the tomb of the Imperial Noble Consort," Eunuch Xing reported.
Yu Jingchen did not reply. A heavy snow had begun to fall outside. Perhaps it was because the city wall was built too high, but Yu Jingchen truly felt... the loneliness of the heights.
Suddenly, Yu Jingchen saw a woman in a crimson palace dress below. He vaguely remembered that Nan Zhiyun was wearing a crimson palace dress when she first entered the palace.
"Your Majesty, that is Shun Zhaoyuan," Eunuch Xing replied.
"Enfeoff her as Consort Shu," Yu Jingchen said, leaving these words behind before departing.
In the forty-eighth year of Tiansheng, the nation mourned. The entire country was clad in white. The son of Consort Shu ascended the throne, but... Consort Shu was merely an Imperial Concubine, by Yu Jingchen's decree.