The Prime Minister's Darling
Chapter 556 - 556 273 Spoiling Jiaojiao (One more update)_3

Chapter 556: 273 Spoiling Jiaojiao (One more update)_3 Chapter 556: 273 Spoiling Jiaojiao (One more update)_3 The Empress Dowager Zhuang cleared her throat and took the candy with a look of disgust, making sure Gu Jiao didn’t see her drool.

The flavour was just as she remembered, pleasantly sour and sweet, with a faint hint of plum aroma.

Unlike the sweetmeats in the palace, they were a little less sweet but unexpectedly tasty.

After finishing the three drops, the Empress Dowager Zhuang was still not satisfied.

Gu Jiao blinked and asked, “Does it taste familiar?”

Empress Dowager Zhuang responded seriously, “How can I tell from just three candies?”

“True.” Gu Jiao hesitated for a moment, then pulled out a small paper bag from her pouch containing three more candies.

The Empress Dowager was silent as she watched the candies, then stared at Gu Jiao’s pouch.

The pouch was stitched by the Empress Dowager herself, a gift for Gu Jiao’s coming-of-age ceremony when she turned fifteen. It was embroidered with two quails and a few quail eggs. She wanted to embroider mandarin ducks originally, but unfortunately, the finished piece did not turn out as desired and looked like quails instead.

How could she have handed over such a silly thing?

The Empress Dowager was quite disgusted.

Indeed, people do foolish things when they lose their minds. This was a dark chapter in Empress Dowager Zhuang’s life.

She finished off the other three candies as well.

When Gu Jiao still called her an old lady, she only allowed the Empress Dowager to eat three candies every day and five during the New Year. If she wanted to eat more, she had to figure out ways to hide them.

However, she couldn’t really hide that many as Zen Mind loved to check her things and would immediately go tattle if anything was found!

After eating six candies and still not satisfied, the Empress Dowager coldly huffed, “Familiar or not? I couldn’t even taste anything from these. Bring me a few more to taste!”

Gu Jiao shot her a suspicious glance, “Grand-aunt, you’re not deliberately trying to mooch off a few more candies, are you?”

The Empress Dowager choked, “How…how can that be possible!”

In the end, the Empress Dowager Zhuang did not get the seventh candy. Not only that, before leaving, Gu Jiao instructed Steward Qin not to let the Empress Dowager eat any sweets, including a few kinds of fruit high in sugar. She needed to control her diet.

Steward Qin accepted the order with a smile.

The Empress Dowager’s face turned completely black!

Meanwhile, when Zhuang Yuexi, crying, returned to Zhuang’s house, the Grand Tutor Zhuang asked her what happened. Was anything wrong with the Empress Doward? Why was she crying so heavily?

When the Empress Dowager was sent to the resort for treatment years ago, Zhuang Yuexi hadn’t even shed a single tear, although she was a little bit upset.

Zhuang Yuexi whined, “The Empress D… Empress Dowager drove me out of the palace…”

Grand Tutor Zhuang was baffled, “Why?”

Zhuang Yuexi recounted how she was caught climbing onto the Phoenix Bed and how Gu Jiao slapped her and she accidentally damaged the Phoenix Seal. “It was her fault… she hit me… I accidentally bumped into it! But the Empress Dowager blamed me for everything…”

Grand Tutor Zhuang frowned with confusion, “I thought the Empress Dowager was fond of you. How did this happen?”

How could Zhuang Yuexi tell him that the Empress Dowager was not actually fond of her, but of that maid?

It was strange though, the Empress Dowager didn’t act this way during the day. Yet at night, she was like a different person altogether. Something must have happened in between!

She shared her suspicions with her grandfather.

Grand Tutor Zhuang fell into a silence for a long time then said, “I understand. Go back to your room. I will visit the Empress Doward tomorrow.”

“Yes,” replied Zhuang Yuexi, with a wronged expression and teary eyes, before retreating to her room.

The day after, once the morning court was over, Grand Tutor Zhuang followed Empress Dowager’s sedan chair, “Your Majesty!”

Empress Dowager Zhuang raised her hand.

Understanding her signal, a kneeling palace maid softly said, “Stop.”

The sedan chair stopped near the Jinluan Hall.

Grand Tutor Zhuang bowed and said, “May I have a word with Her Majesty?”

Empress Dowager Zhuang brushed her wide sleeve: “You may speak, there are no outsiders here.”

“Understood.” Grand Tutor Zhuang took a glance at the expressionless Palace maid carrying the sedan chair and Manager Qin, took a step forward, leaned towards the floating phoenix emblem above and stated, “Yuexi made a mistake in the palace, I have already taught her a lesson after she returned, please quell your anger, Your Majesty.”

“Speak plainly.” Empress Dowager Zhuang lightly stated.

The Empress Dowager did not have a penchant for beating around the bush unless necessary, but evidently, there was no such need to do so with her own brother.

Grand Tutor Zhuang sighed, and said: “I have questioned Yuexi about yesterday’s incident, she indeed made a mistake by entering Your Majesty’s sleeping palace without permission. However, she is your legitimate grand-niece. Isn’t the public punishment in front of so many servants and a common woman too much of a loss of face for her?”

Empress Dowager Zhuang remarked, “She is not a common woman, she is the heiress of the Marquis Residence of Ding’an, and the wife of the reigning top scholar.”

Grand Tutor Zhuang: Is this the main point?

Empress Dowager Zhuang continued, “Moreover, she had the audacity to falsely relay my imperial decrees, and you still expect me to leave room for her to save face?”

Grand Tutor Zhuang was unaware of the false imperial decree. If this were true, it would be a matter of grave importance.

This crime was akin to falsely transmitting the Emperor’s edict, an unforgivable sin.

Empress Dowager Zhuang: She dared to tell Jiaojiao that I don’t want Jiaojiao anymore. How dare she?

The Grand Tutor originally came to complain. In the end, he found himself countered, embarrassed beyond words. He was naturally frustrated that Zhuang Yuexi did not make herself clear, but he was also curious about the outcome of the young girl.

Grand Tutor Zhuang looked towards the phoenix emblem where the Empress Dowager was and asked, “May I ask how Your Majesty punished the girl?”

He didn’t care about the wife of the top scholar or the heiress of the Marquis Residence. What was unacceptable was that she climbed onto the Phoenix Bed and smashed the Phoenix Seal. Such a deed deserved death!

“Does Your Majesty need to explain her actions to you?” Empress Dowager Zhuang gave him a cold glance.

Grand Tutor Zhuang immediately fell silent. He fidgeted with his fingers and said, “Then…I shall take my leave.”

“Wait a minute.” Empress Dowager Zhuang called out to him, “Your arrival is timely, it reminded Your Majesty of something. Your Majestry had recently given your granddaughter quite a few items, return them all back to me!”

The Grand Tutor almost lost his footing, he hadn’t misheard, had he?

The Empress Dowager wanted the items she gifted to be returned?

You are the Empress Dowager, can you, should you do such a thing?

The Empress Dowager Zhuang of the past would never stoop to such levels, but she was now embattled and experienced in the hardships of life!

Her beloved Jiaojiao had to sell mountain goods at the marketplace to support the family. What did status matter then? Could they eat it?!

Why should she give the wealth she earned through hard work to undeserving people?

She would take them back. What’s wrong with that?!

The Grand Tutor almost choked on his own rage. Why did he seek an audience with her in the first place? If he didn’t, she may not have remembered.

When Grand Tutor Zhuang returned to the residence, Zhuang Yuexi cheerfully waited for her grandfather to seek justice for her, only to find him stammering and stuttering instead.

“Grandfather, what happened? What did the Empress Dowager say?” she asked.

Grand Tutor Zhuang cleared his throat and said, “The Empress Dowager wants the items she gifted you to be returned.”

Zhuang Yuexi’s face turned white, “What?”

Grand Tutor Zhuang also thought it was absurd. He carefully said, “Didn’t you say you didn’t like them?”

When did she say she didn’t like them? She simply stated the gifts were not to her taste. Regardless of whether she liked them or not, the Empress Dowager asking for them back was a totally different matter!

Thinking of something, Zhuang Yuexi exclaimed with surprise. “What about the Princess Residence in the southern part of the city? Surely the Empress Dowager doesn’t want to reclaim it too, does she?”

Manager Qin who was on his way to retrieve the gifts, overheard the comment. He turned to the little eunuch accompanying him and said, “Go and ask the Empress Dowager if we should reclaim the new estate too.”

Zhuang Yuexi: “…!!”

Why on earth did she have to make that unnecessary remark?!!