Ming Dynasty: Empress Ma and I swapped clothes!

Chapter 70 Zhu Shuang: Empress Dowager, not Mother!

The last day of the ten-day period.

Zhu Shuang and Zhu Gang had just finished delivering the meal they had prepared to their mother and walked out of Kunning Palace when the smiles they had just managed to force on their faces vanished.

Zhu Shuang walked ahead sullenly, and Zhu Gang behind him also felt extremely awkward.

Although I couldn't quite put my finger on what was strange, the feeling I had in Kunning Palace just now was really odd.

"The Empress Dowager is still the same Empress Dowager, but it seems like she's not the same Empress Dowager anymore... but she is clearly the Empress Dowager."

Zhu Gang muttered to himself, unable to quite explain the sense of unease he felt.

"Second Brother, why are you walking so fast?"

Zhu Gang hurriedly chased after him.

Zhu Shuang walked over to the swing and sat down, swaying his body unconsciously. Only after hearing Zhu Gang's words did he finally speak his mind.

He glanced in the direction of Kunning Palace, his voice low: "The Empress Dowager is the Empress Dowager, but she is no longer our mother. Once we're in this palace, Mother will become the Empress Dowager again, and she'll revert to her former self."

"In his eyes, just like his father, there was only his elder brother, the Crown Prince, whom he treated as his own child. The rest of us were just princes of the Ming Dynasty, not the children of our father and mother."

"But it wasn't like this when we were outside the palace."

Children are the most sensitive and perceptive. They may not say things, but that doesn't mean they don't know them.

"It seems that's really the case..."

Zhu Gang panicked and desperately asked for help, "Second Brother, what should we do now?"

"I don't know either."

Zhu Shuang sighed, "Leaving the palace is out of the question. In ten days, I will be granted the title of prince. After that, I'm afraid my father will arrange for me to go to various fiefdoms."

"Why is it that the eldest brother can stay in the capital and be with Father and Mother all the time, while we can only go to those remote places? What a mess, Taiyuan, and those desolate places."

"All the good stuff was left to the Crown Prince, and what's left is just a mess and a huge problem for us."

"That's not the case either?"

Zhu Gang lowered his head and said softly, "Didn't Father and Mother also arrange for many artisans and soldiers to go with us, and a lot of money? Compared to the days in the village before, Second Brother, we are actually doing very well."

"Can he compare to my elder brother, the Crown Prince?"

Zhu Shuang looked unconvinced.

"Second brother, why do you insist on comparing yourself to the Crown Prince?"

Zhu Gang lowered his head even further.

"I just can't accept it."

Zhu Shuang raised his voice, "Why is it that just because he's the boss, all the good things in the house belong to him?"

"But the Crown Prince is really amazing."

Zhu Gang's voice grew softer and softer, tears welling up in his small eyes. He felt particularly wronged. "Isn't it the same in the village? The smarter and more capable a child is, the more their parents love them."

"Second brother, we just can't compare to our eldest brother, the Crown Prince..."

Gradually, Zhu Shuang jumped down from the swing, walked to Zhu Gang, patted him on the shoulder, and said firmly, "Little San'er, we have to prove ourselves. The Crown Prince is very strong, but we are not bad either."

Zhu Gang raised his head in confusion, looked at his second brother in front of him, and suddenly felt that his second brother seemed to be even more capable than his eldest brother, the Crown Prince.

From childhood to adulthood, the eldest prince had to take care of many younger brothers, not only himself who was the third oldest, but also the seventh, eighth, ninth, tenth, and eleventh younger brothers.

But his second brother always protected him, and he never missed out on any good things.

"Uh-huh."

Zhu Gang nodded his little head heavily, and a similar thought couldn't help but arise in his heart.

……

At Kunning Palace, Zhu Di came to perform his daily greetings and salutations.

The mother and son exchanged pleasantries and chatted for a while.

But after Zhu Di left, the atmosphere in Kunning Palace seemed to become somewhat tense.

Ma Xiuying sat alone beside the phoenix couch, with various palace affairs files laid out in front of her.

In the past, she would have personally handled these matters to balance the conflicts and influences between the various palaces.

But for some reason, at this moment...

She suddenly lost her senses, recalling the way Xiao Si had left: although he was smiling, there seemed to be a sense of distance and unfamiliarity in that smile.

It seemed that she had begun to harbor some resentment towards her, her mother.

"Tell me, why is that? Am I a terrible mother?"

Ma Xiuying asked softly.

"Your Majesty, that's not how it is."

Su Qing'er hurriedly spoke up for her, but after opening her mouth, she didn't know how to continue.

After all, she wasn't a particularly eloquent person.

"Miaoran, you've always been the most perceptive of people's hearts. What should you know?"

Ma Xiuying looked at Sun Miaoran.

Sun Miaoran sighed softly, pondered for a moment, and after a thousand thoughts, slowly spoke: "Perhaps the current Empress is the head of the harem and the current empress, but she is not a true 'mother'."

Upon hearing this, Ma Xiuying felt a strange stirring in her heart, followed by a jolt.

Instead of flying into a rage or trying to hide her feelings after being hit where it hurt, she began to reflect and ponder: "Tell me about that young man Wen's behavior in the palace. As his mother, I should learn more from him."

This was the first time Ma Xiuying truly took Ma Wenxiang's actions to heart.

In the past, although I had heard of it, I never took it seriously enough.

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Sun Miaoran immediately replied, "For example, in the various affairs of the harem, that person usually only chooses the most important ones to handle personally, such as the silkworm-raising ceremony that the Empress previously instructed; as for the affairs of the other palaces, except for important occasions, most of them are handled by the concubines themselves."

If any of the concubines had a dispute, he would not directly reprimand them, but would instead summon them to Kunning Palace to settle the matter on the spot.

Sometimes the situation is muddled, and both sides are punished equally; other times, however, clever ideas are constantly employed, and a few words can resolve palace disputes.

During this time, he would also occasionally summon the Fourth Prince, Prince Anqing, Prince Ningguo, and the Crown Prince, and have them watch closely from the side.

Sometimes, when the mood struck him, he would even drag a few princes to the Imperial Kitchen or the Imperial Textile Bureau to chat with them about mundane matters, such as the prices in the East and West Markets that day…”

"This kind of behavior is even less befitting of an empress."

Su Qing'er couldn't help but complain.

Ma Xiuying smiled gently: "Indeed, you don't seem like an empress, but rather like the mistress of an ordinary household. However, in the past, we servants thought that Your Highness was doing this out of concern for the people's livelihood, so we didn't think much of it."

"After all, in the palace, Her Majesty is someone who is capable of doing such things."

Sun Miaoran praised him in a roundabout way without making a sound.

But Ma Xiuying's brows remained furrowed; she was not comforted by the words of comfort, but instead gradually came to understand something.

After a long while.

She sighed softly and concluded, "So, I am a concubine, an empress, not a mother."

"Is that so?"