Mingzhu found it very tricky. She had promised Fu Cong to fulfill the Great Empress Dowager’s wishes, but at this moment, she found that she really had no way or position to persuade Yuwen Chu. Everyone had their reasons, and Yuwen Chu was human, not a god. He had already done enough, and it was unfair to ask for more.
She gave Yuwen Chu a hug. “Then, Your Highness, let’s not worry about this matter and let it go with the flow.”
After discovering Yuwen Chu’s attitude, the ministers who had previously tried to please him by pushing this issue stopped. Yuwen Guang ultimately failed to win the argument against the old ministers, and he felt unfairly accused, like he was being wronged. Unable to bear it, he sought out Mingzhu to vent. Mingzhu listened to his grievances, but didn’t see him truly feeling wronged. She understood that besides herself and Fu Cong, neither Yuwen Chu nor Yuwen Guang were willing to build another mausoleum in Luzhou.
Yuwen Chu thought it was too troublesome, and he didn’t want to let the Great Empress Dowager have her way. Yuwen Guang seemed more like he was fighting for face, for the Great Empress Dowager, for Emperor Zhengqian, for Yuwen Bai, and for himself. The Great Empress Dowager had given birth to three emperors from this line. If she didn’t enter the late emperor’s mausoleum, then who would? So even though he had asked Mu Gugu to confirm the Great Empress Dowager’s last wishes, it didn’t matter. Dead people’s thoughts didn’t matter; only the living did.
That’s it. Mingzhu smiled and said, “Perhaps the Great Empress Dowager was confused by her illness at the time and didn’t know what she was saying, but my father and Mu Gugu took it seriously.”
Yuwen Guang paused, stopping his venting. This was the ultimate purpose of his visit to Mingzhu. Firstly, to test Yuwen Chu’s true intentions, and secondly, to see Fu’s attitude. Since Mingzhu agreed to bury the Great Empress Dowager with Emperor Wen in the mausoleum, then so be it. He suddenly let go of his worries and decided to start implementing his next plan.
After more than two years of lying in state, the Great Empress Dowager was finally buried with Emperor Wen in Zhenyuan Leiling. On the day of burial, members of the imperial family, court officials, and noblewomen above the fifth rank bid farewell and offered sacrifices. They spent the night at Zhenyuan Palace. That night, Mingzhu met Mu Gugu in her room. Mu Gugu’s hair was white, but she was even more serene. The first thing she did when she saw Mingzhu was to bow respectfully. “This is the old slave’s thanks to the Wangfei.” Then she got up and knelt down. “This is on behalf of the Great Empress Dowager thanking the Wangfei.”
Mingzhu helped Mu Gugu up. “There’s no need for much talk between us. I’m not only doing this for her, but also to put my father’s mind at ease.”
Meanwhile, Yuwen Chu stood alone in the grand hall, gazing at the spirit tablet of the late emperor in the darkness. He had many things he wanted to say to his father, who had always ignored him, but those words remained buried in his heart, unable to be spoken aloud.
Mei Yusi entered silently, respectfully standing about six feet away from him and calling out, “Your Highness.”
Yuwen Chu replied calmly, “What news?”
Mei Yushe took a few steps forward and whispered, “It has been confirmed. There was only formal attire found in Rong Ming’s tomb in Lufeng. Nothing else was discovered.” His words halted there; the real Rong Ming had been moved here quietly a month before the Empress Dowager’s burial, secretly laid to rest in an unknown corner with no tombstone or marker. But he would forever rest alongside the one person he chose to sacrifice his life for. Only one person dared to do such a thing, apart from the Regent Wangfei, there was no one else he suspected.
Mei Yusi’s eyes were slightly moist, and he was very worried that Yuwen Chu, who was standing solemnly with his back to him, would say, “This is outrageous! Dig three feet into the ground and find it for this prince!”
But all he heard was, “Perhaps the tomb was too lavish, so it was robbed. It’s impossible to retrieve his remains now, but fortunately, there are still his clothes and hat. He was a loyal man. Let someone reinforce the tomb and prevent thieves from destroying it again.”
Mei Yusi breathed a sigh of relief and decided that when he returned, he would have someone rebuild a wall with glutinous rice juice and pour molten iron to permanently bury this secret underground.
After seeing off Mu Gugu, Mingzhu laid on the bed to calm down. She had been feeling tired lately, and realizing that her menstrual cycle had been delayed, she had a vague idea in her heart. Suddenly, Yuwen Chu walked in, and she smiled, “Your Highness, why are you here?”
Yuwen Chu looked at her with a gentle smile. “I couldn’t sleep, so I came to see you.” He placed his hand on Mingzhu’s abdomen and whispered, “Shall we have a few more children?”
Mingzhu looked at him with affection in her eyes. “Perhaps we already have.”
Yuwen Chu was momentarily surprised, then burst into laughter. Mingzhu quickly covered his mouth. “We haven’t consulted the royal physician yet. Endure it.”
Mingzhu hugged him tightly, pressing her head against his chest, listening to his heartbeat and breath. She whispered, “I did something against Your Highness’s wishes.”
“I know,” Yuwen Chu whispered softly. “Just as you don’t persuade me, I don’t blame you either. It’s just a dead person, let it go.”
Mingzhu’s emotions surged, and she couldn’t help but shed tears. “You, and I…”
“There’s no need to say anything,” Yuwen Chu chuckled softly. “Just like that seal, it’s just an object. Even if the emperor holds it tightly, it’s just seeking peace of mind. What I seek is someone to live and die together with me, to care for each other. Now that I have it all, it’s enough.”
After the burial of the Great Empress Dowager, Yuwen Guang secluded himself in the Chongzheng Hall, listening to the scriptures all day long, and even Empress Dowager Xu couldn’t see him easily. Finally, on the day of the Buddha’s birthday in the fifth month of the fifth year of Jianxing, he decided to become a monk and practice Buddhism.
Despite the repeated persuasion of the regent and the courtiers, Empress Dowager Xu forced him with the threat of death, so Yuwen Guang finally agreed to enter Huanglong Temple to practice Buddhism, taking the Dharma name Weichen. He had enlightenment at the age of eighteen, secluded himself in meditation, and emerged twelve years later. He happened to encounter a delegation of monks from Tianzhu who came to debate Buddhism in Great Xia. Master Weichen debated with dozens of high monks from Tianzhu alone, winning the hearts and minds of the Tianzhu monks.
On the sixteenth day of the fifth month of the fifth year of Jianxing, the new emperor ascended the throne in the Chongzheng Hall. He honored his birth mother, Imperial Consort Min, as the Empress Dowager, officially appointed Fu Mingzhu as the Empress, and appointed Zhou Nushi and Ping Nushi as concubines. Empress Dowager Xu was honored with the rituals of the Empress Dowager and was respectfully placed in the Ruyi Palace.
The emperor and empress lived together in the Chongzheng Hall, loving and respecting each other, like an ordinary married couple. The courtiers repeatedly advised the new emperor to expand the harem and have more children, but the emperor just laughed and ignored them, letting the empress scold them instead, occasionally saying, “I’m afraid of the lion’s roar of Hedong.”
The following year, the reign title was changed to Yuanji. In the Chongzheng Hall, the empress gave birth to two imperial sons, named Xing, and both mother and son were safe and sound. The emperor was overjoyed, and he issued a general amnesty, exempting taxes for three years, and allowing the people to recuperate. In the tenth year of Yuanji, the weather was favorable, and the country was prosperous. The emperor’s fourth son was born in the Chongzheng Hall. Just as the Xiongnu invaded, General Shen Ruilin led his troops to defeat the Xiongnu at Ganlan in the north of the desert. The Xiongnu fled thousands of miles and dared not invade again. The emperor stationed troops on the border, opened a market in Ganlan City, and welcomed envoys from various countries.
