Chapter 1430 - 1337: The Old Garden

They say that once you enter the gates of the palace, it’s as deep as the sea, but in Zhao Hanzhang’s Imperial Palace, this is not the case.

Not only does she run outside every so often, but take Fu Tinghan for example, because he is currently primarily responsible for the Observing Things Department, he not only visits the department frequently, but sometimes stays there for days, a stay of more than ten days is common.

The Imperial Palace is not his confinement, and naturally not for Mrs. Wang either.

As Empress Dowager, she is not confined within the Imperial Palace; she can leave the palace at will, and can even choose to live at Zhao Mansion.

Zhao Hanzhang assigned her trusted aides and palace maids, so whether inside or outside the palace, she can bring them along.

Nowadays, the people of Luoyang City are accustomed to occasionally seeing the Emperor’s family on the streets.

The court officials greatly admire Zeng Yue, for in two years, not a single assassination has occurred, although Commander Zeng has become increasingly silent, drawing both admiration and sympathy from the officials.

The plum viewing banquet hosted by the Empress Dowager was organized by Wang Hufeng, not only sending invitations to the spouses of officials above grade four in the Capital City, but also to the gentry staying in the capital and the noble families from several nearby counties, choosing a day when everyone was off to hold the event.

Upon hearing this, Chen Si Niang suggested that she select some outstanding students from several universities under the Imperial College to attend, firstly to help manage some matters at the banquet, secondly to train them, as a reward for their excellent performance.

Wang Hufeng knew this move was aimed at students from humble backgrounds or noble families without officials above grade four.

She pondered briefly and agreed.

Thus, the upcoming plum viewing banquet was held on a grand and solemn scale, and the Empress Dowager attended early.

The plum garden was enclosed, with the Imperial Guard cutting off the roads, allowing only those with invitations to enter, yet it could not dampen the enthusiasm of the vendors to earn money.

They lined up their stalls along the lines set by the Imperial Guard on the roadside, eagerly watching the passing carriages, occasionally gathering to comment on the carriages, drivers, and others.

Of course, their target customers were not the esteemed guests inside the carriages, but the accompanying drivers, maidservants, footmen, and guards.

Everyone needs to eat; aren’t the servants people too?

A single esteemed guest would bring many servants, and in the eyes of the vendors, these servants had considerable purchasing power; with large crowds, demand naturally rises.

Wang Hufeng did not obstruct the vendors from setting up stalls on both sides of the road; it was the outskirts, with wide roads and plenty of open space along the sides.

Life for the common people was difficult, especially after winter arrived, as the cold kept people from strolling and dining, causing commerce to wither as soon as winter set in.

Various banquets, on the contrary, stimulated consumption, though the Emperor advocated thrift; she personally disliked revelry and hosting banquets.

She generally leaves such matters to the Empress Dowager and Princess Hongnong, through whom she releases the line, allowing the wealthy in the Capital City to chase trends and spend money, yet occasionally tugging the line to prevent the kite from escaping her control, avoiding extravagance and excessive waste.

These principles were not understood by the Empress Dowager, and even Princess Hongnong only partially grasped them, but Wang Hufeng, who was once groomed to be the mother of the nation, understood them best.

The inner quarters are crucial, juxtaposed with the front hall; a blurred line separates the two, with the male occupying the front hall and the female the inner quarters, dividing the sphere.

And the inner quarters of the realm are led by the harem, with the Empress leading the women of the realm, who are vaguely led.

So the Empress is called the mother of the nation.

Yet the new dynasty’s Emperor is a woman, and there are women among the court officials, so the line between the front hall and the inner quarters has gradually disappeared, and couples no longer remain fixed, with one holding the front and the other the rear, but must advance together, progressing and retreating as one; thus, the leading harem must change as well.

This change involves not only the Empress Dowager pushed to the fore, but also involves Emperor Zhao Hanzhang and Imperial Consort Fu Tinghan, or else the realm won’t find peace.

Besides them, there is the Hongnong Princess Mansion; although she resides outside the palace, she is Fu Tinghan’s mother and an Imperial Relative.

Wang Hufeng stands amidst the four directions, guiding them to do the right things at the right time, balancing their mutual relationships.

The goals are set by Zhao Hanzhang, as a minister, she only follows Zhao Hanzhang alone.

As Zhao Hanzhang sighs over the winter’s economic decay and the hardships faced by the people, she organizes palace banquets;

As Zhao Hanzhang sighs over the cold and worrying that children might suffer frostbite, she makes charity donations to Yushan Hall in the name of the Imperial Family, providing fabric, charcoal, and coal.

In the previous dynasty, she did not become Empress, learning a lot with nowhere to practice it; unexpectedly Zhao Hanzhang became Emperor, allowing her to use her skills as the abolished Crown Princess Consort.

Wang Hufeng, dressed in official attire, stood before the plum garden, and upon seeing a carriage stop before her, smiled and approached, bowing, and said, "Langya Princess."

Yu Mengmu hurriedly shifted her feet to step aside, curtsying, "No such standing, Chief Manager Wang."

Yu Mengmu was in poor health, and according to the historical timeline, she passed away two years ago; but after moving back to the capital with her husband, although she endured a serious illness, she recovered.

The noble families and clans of this era, distanced themselves from the former Imperial Family, despised Wang Dun who rebelled midway and Wang Dao who changed his allegiance, but respected Wang Hufeng, admired Wang Hufeng.

Even Ji Yuan and Zhao Ming, when facing her, had to step aside to salute before completing the full salute.

Zhao Hanzhang observed this but never stopped it, instead advising Wang Hufeng to accept it.

She was not afraid of Wang Hufeng growing too powerful because if she ever abused her power to do inappropriate things, her prestige would naturally disappear, and Zhao Hanzhang had the ability to strip away her privileges.

For now, people respect her and cherish her because they are moved by her loyalty and sense of justice. To respect good virtues is to learn good virtues, isn’t this the utmost moral fashion?

So far, Wang Hufeng hasn’t let her down nor the people.

Wang Hufeng received three princesses and ladies, then personally led them deeper into the plum garden.

The three of them saw the collapsed and broken walls; due to winter, the vines and leaves atop were withered, only dried vines were entwined, revealing the dark blue bricks below, causing them to pause.

A lady aunt, Mrs. Wang, said, "I remember this area used to be surrounded by walls, now most of them are collapsed, why not repair them?"

Wang Hufeng said, "This destruction was caused when Wang Mi and Liu Cong invaded Luoyang; the entire plum garden was plundered and then set on fire."

This was Liu Cong’s fault.

Back then, Liu Cong led troops into Luoyang, indulging them to loot and set fires everywhere.

Wang Mi, who did not value human lives, also indulged his troops in looting but was unwilling to destroy buildings; he even advised Liu Cong, believing Luoyang was an ancient capital, so well built that it wasn’t easy to achieve, suggesting they keep it to use later.

Liu Cong did not heed the advice, uncertain at the time whether he could hold Luoyang, he naturally did not want to leave good things for posterity, hence after plundering a few gardens in the suburbs, he burned them.

Furious, Wang Mi cursed.

Ironically, Wang Mi later set fire to Luoyang City during his escape to buy more time.