Chapter 144: The Bell of Mourning

Chapter 144: The Grand Bell of Mourning

Princess Chaoyang was absolutely right.

Chen Yuhu saw them off and then ate her earliest breakfast to date.

Halfway through her meal, a servant announced, "Madam, the Princess Consort is here."

Chen Yuhu: "...Well, it seems the old mother has to take the heat."

Chen Yuhu appeared before the Princess Consort with a bright smile. The Princess Consort didn't even bother with pleasantries, immediately asking, "Where is A Fu?"

Chen Yuhu's eyes were clear. "They left."

The Princess Consort shot to her feet. "When did they leave?"

"They rode off at full speed. By now, they should be very far away."

"You didn't stop them?"

Chen Yuhu looked at the Princess Consort with an innocent expression. "Princess Chaoyang said you and the Prince had agreed."

The Princess Consort looked utterly defeated. "I told her to come back and discuss it with you first, to get her mother-in-law's consent."

Her gaze gradually sharpened, focusing on Chen Yuhu. "You agreed so easily?"

Chen Yuhu seemed to flinch, but in reality, she wasn't scared in the slightest. What could the Princess Consort do, eat her? "Princess Chaoyang said you agreed!"

The Princess Consort could tell at a glance that Chen Yuhu was not only unsupportive but likely an accomplice. She immediately stopped wasting her breath.

She turned to leave.

Chen Yuhu glanced at the sun outside, certain in her heart that the two had bolted as fast as they could—there was no catching up now.

As the Princess Consort was leaving, Chen Yuhu went to see her off.

Clearly, the Princess Consort was in a frantic hurry to go back and apprehend them, so she didn't need a send-off.

Just as the Princess Consort was about to step out of the estate gate, she turned back and told Chen Yuhu, "Go back inside. No need to see me off."

Suddenly, the bell tolled.

Once, twice... a full twenty-seven times—the grand bell of mourning. The Empress Dowager had passed away.

Chen Yuhu and the Princess Consort exchanged a glance. Now, there was truly no need for farewells.

The Princess Consort hurried back, and Chen Yuhu was certain she wouldn't be able to chase after Lin Qingtong and Princess Chaoyang anymore.

But now she worried the two children hadn't gone far enough and would have to return on their own.

After all, the Empress Dowager's passing was a major event.

Chen Yuhu turned back into the estate and closed the gate.

The Princess Consort also immediately returned to the Prince's estate.

By the time the palace sent someone, Chen Yuhu had already removed her hairpins and changed into plain mourning clothes.

Court ladies entered the palace to mourn. Those who couldn't cry brought their families' specially prepared handkerchiefs, each with its own distinct scent:

ginger, chili, Sichuan pepper...

Chen Yuhu couldn't make it too obvious. As the Lady of Xin, she led the court ladies and would be positioned very close to the front.

Being so near the nobility, it was fortunate she had a tendency to cry easily.

And she also had to bring Princess Chaoyang.

As usual, the court ladies entered the palace according to protocol. The First Rank Imperial Lady was elderly, so Chen Yuhu was practically the head of the court ladies.

She cried bitterly.

Having knelt for so long, she was exhausted! So many rituals! She was miserable! This was so hard!

They had to enter the palace every day for a full seven days.

Chen Yuhu wanted to die.

And only Chen Yuhu brought a young child, whose identity, by comparison, had to remain hidden.

So although Chen Yuhu brought Princess Chaoyang, she rarely let her appear before the court ladies.

The little girl didn't yet know that on that day, she had lost both her father and her mother.

Having knelt all day, as they were about to leave the palace, Chen Yuhu was called aside.

A young eunuch said, "Lady of Xin, this is something Lord Cheng left behind. He asked me to give it to you."

It was a large, elaborately decorated box.

Chen Yuhu motioned for an attendant behind her to take it, then left without a word.

After Chen Yuhu left, Madam Cheng stopped the young eunuch and asked whether Cheng Shi had left anything for her.

Clearly, he had not.

Madam Cheng stared at Chen Yuhu's back with venomous eyes.

Chen Yuhu saw it when she turned around.

She couldn't have cared less.

What was there to resent?

Resent her for being given the title of Lady of Xin? Resent her for taking away a princess with a title and fief that should have belonged to the Cheng family?

Probably they felt she had stolen benefits that rightfully belonged to the Cheng family.

Chen Yuhu lowered her eyes. The Cheng family was about to face disaster.

She was to be betrothed to a girl from the Cui family, but she had promised Cheng Shi nothing.

And Cheng Shi was already dead.

With death, everything was gone; never gamble on others' promises or consciences.

Chen Yuhu got into the carriage and closed her eyes.

The box was handed to Nanny Jiang, and Chen Yuhu was not curious about what was inside.

She knew exactly what was inside.

It was merely a father's memento for his daughter.

After observing the grand seven-day mourning rites, Chen Yuhu had grown noticeably thinner.

On the final day, Chen Yuhu was stopped by Madam Cheng at the palace gate.

Other court ladies who had not yet left couldn't help but cast curious glances.

Chen Yuhu showed no courtesy in the slightest.

"Does Madam Cheng have business with me?"

"If there's something, you could send me an invitation, though I may not necessarily accept."

Madam Cheng walked around Chen Yuhu twice, looking at her as if she were a monkey.

Chen Yuhu was completely unfazed—it was just being looked at.

Madam Cheng suddenly shrugged and laughed, her movements exaggerated.

"Everyone says Mrs. Lin is good at raising children, but I’ve heard Princess Chaoyang is quite a handful."

"If Mrs. Lin is too busy, you could have her sent to the Cheng residence. As the grandmother, I would very much like to see my own granddaughter."

So it was about this—she wanted custody of the princess.

Though Chen Yuhu was the one being scrutinized with a critical eye, she seemed to be the one looking down upon her, examining the other.

"What did you call me?"

"Do I need to remind you? Madam Cheng, you should address me as Lady of Xin!"

"If Madam Cheng doesn't understand etiquette, I can teach you."

"But Madam Cheng calls herself the princess's grandmother? Do you have proof? Does the princess bear the Cheng surname?"

Chen Yuhu looked down on Madam Cheng with contempt, as if viewing trash.

She still didn't understand the weight of the title Lady of Xin, nor did she grasp the emperor's tacit approval or the Empress Dowager's intention in entrusting the princess to her care.

The surrounding court ladies were taken aback, silently marveling at Lady of Xin's sharp tongue.

The princess did not bear the Cheng surname—in fact, she had no surname at all. Her title was Chaoyang, and her pet name was Zhao Zhao.

So how could Madam Cheng have the audacity to claim she was the princess's grandmother?

Had the princess been raised by the Cheng family?

No, she had not.

The emperor did not even acknowledge Cheng Shi's status as the biological father, and intentionally obscured the identity of the princess's birth mother.

In the future, when people spoke of Princess Chaoyang, they would only mention her foster mother, Lady of Xin.

Now this fool had stepped forward on her own, and right after the empress dowager's funeral.

Death settles all matters.

The emperor was, after all, the empress dowager's own son.

By protecting the empress dowager's reputation, the emperor was also protecting his own.

Chen Yuhu didn't mind making the charge even weightier.

She declared loudly in public, "Moreover, by the empress dowager's imperial edict, I have the honor of raising the princess. If Madam Cheng has any objections to the empress dowager's decree—though Her Majesty has already passed away—"

"the palace still houses His Majesty the Emperor and Her Highness the Empress. You are welcome to enter the palace and state your case."

If you have the courage, that is.

Chen Yuhu added silently in her heart.

Madam Cheng stared at Chen Yuhu, speechless. Chen Yuhu brushed past Madam Cheng without deliberately concealing her voice.

She said, "Devoid of human decency."

To put it bluntly: an animal.

Madam Cheng's expression was a mix of various emotions.

Chen Yuhu couldn't help but wonder how a mother like this could have raised a child like Cheng Shi.

If Cheng's mother had been more capable, Cheng Shi's talents would never have been offered to the empress dowager.

One could only imagine how much hidden suffering Cheng Shi must have endured in the Cheng family, with a mother like that.