Ruyi's Royal Love in the Palace (Legend of Ruyi / Hou Gong Ruyi Zhuan / 如懿传)

What a coincidence.

Qing You sneaked out to play and ran into Second Female Attendant Wei.

Second Female Attendant Wei then happened to save him.

Some coincidence that is.

However, why would Second Female Attendant Wei be there at that hour?

Your Majesty!

Since Seventh Princess was taken to be raised in Consort Ying's palace

my mistress has been thinking about her all day and night.

The Palace of Gathered Elegance is near the Imperial Garden.

My mistress was hoping that Consort Ying would take Seventh Princess

out to play in the Imperial Garden so she can take a look from afar.

Your Majesty.

That happens to be around naptime.

It's windy in late autumn.

However ignorant I am, I won't think of taking Seventh Princess

to somewhere windy, would I?

Is it already late autumn?

Is it very windy?

I don't think it is.

I can't even tell day from night.

I...

I just miss my own child.

Your Majesty, my mistress misses Seventh Princess too badly.

She has already lost her senses.

It's fairly normal for children to be raised by other concubines.

By the way, Consort Ying has already named Seventh Princess.

She's called Jing Yuan.

Jing Yuan...

Jing Yuan...

Your Majesty...

I know that I'm not a good mother.

I was born of a lowly status.

I'm not well educated.

However, my love for my daughter shouldn't be undermined

because of my shortcomings.

I...

I've let Jing Yuan down.

Consort Ying is born of the nobility.

She's also very good at taking care of children.

Thank you, Your Majesty.

Jing Yuan will be cared for and taught well by Consort Ying.

I don't dare to hope that I can bring Jing Yuan back.

But I hope that Your Majesty will take pity on me

and grant me another child of my own.

Your Majesty.

Second Female Attendant Wei fell into the water.

It's best for her to recuperate for some time.

You've promised to have dinner with me.

It's getting late.

Why don't we head back first?

I'm begging you to take pity on me.

Your Majesty...

Your Majesty! Please take pity on me!

Your Majesty!

Please take pity on me!

Your Majesty!

I beg you to take pity on me!

By His Majesty's verbal decree

release Wang Chan back to serve Second Female Attendant Wei!

Release him right away!

Yes! Quickly, get it done.

You've saved my Qing You.

I'll address you as Lady Wei out of respect.

I have to thank Your Highness for saving me.

If it weren't for you, I'd have died in the Office of Palace Justice.

If you really did harm my father's imperial offspring

I won't be able to save you.

Since you didn't, I won't allow Qing You's savior to be trapped

in the Office of Palace Justice.

My mother was indeed guilty of harming 13th Prince.

It was just that she couldn't stand seeing how the empress had me slapped

or made me kneel or punish me to body planking.

That was why she acted in a moment's folly

to avenge me by killing the empress's unborn child.

Now, my mother is already dead.

The empress...

She would only be pleased when I'm also dead.

I found it strange.

You have neither an influential family nor sons to back you up.

What makes you stand out so much

that the empress picks on you at every turn?

It's because when I was still a maid, I once served Empress Xiaoxian.

The empress dislikes me the most for that reason.

Now that my daughter, Seventh Princess is raised by Consort Ying

I have lost my footing in this harem all the more.

Even if I could make it through today

who knows when the empress will try to get rid of me again?

It won't be that easy for her.

I have neither sons nor His Majesty's affection.

What else can I do?

The empress is keeping me at bay.

I can't even get to see His Majesty.

I don't actually hope for His Majesty's affection anymore.

I just hope to have a child to raise by my side to rely on.

That would be for the best.

Here, have a seat.

Ru Yi, the prince of Khorchin Mongols and Prince Consort wrote to greet me.

They particularly mentioned that

Second Female Attendant Wei saved Qing You.

Your Majesty means that for the sake of the Khorchin Mongols

you won't punish Second Female Attendant Wei.

Wang Chan was tortured in the Office of Palace Justice.

Didn't he confess to nothing?

I allowed the Office of Palace Justice to torture Second Female Attendant Wei.

But she had nothing to confess.

If they kept torturing her, she would have be beaten into confessing.

Ru Yi, I know of that hatred in your heart.

I've asked Second Female Attendant Wei.

She swore that she never took part in anything her mother did.

Second Female Attendant Wei has served me for so many years.

She really doesn't seem like a vicious woman

who would sacrifice her own mother.

Moreover, when Jing Si died prematurely, she didn't have a son.

She didn't need to kill a prince to vie for favor.

Your Majesty believes in her.

It isn't that I believe in her but there's no evidence now.

It's the Prince of Khorchin Mongols' grandson that she rescued.

He's the result of the marital bond between Manchu and Mongolia.

If it weren't for her, Qing You might not have survived.

Moreover, Jing Se and Prince Consort don't get along.

Without Qing You

I'm afraid they will come to a mutual divorce.

How then can we continue with this marital bond?

During my reign, I can't afford to lose the stability of the Khorchin Mongols.

Your Majesty is going to ask me to put general interests first.

You keep asking me to put general interests above all else

and I have been putting up with it all this time.

It's just that Yong Jing...

He passed away before he even saw either of us.

As for Jing Si, I raised her so carefully to that age.

It's also possible that Wei Yan Wan got her killed.

She died so pitifully.

How am I not just as upset about Yong Jing and Jing Si's deaths?

But I am not just their father. I am also the emperor.

You aren't just their mother. You're the mother of a nation!

How could I not understand that?

Answer me.

Deep down, you don't believe that

Wei Yan Wan would do anything like that, do you?

Since Second Female Attendant Wei was a palace maid

she has served by my side.

It can be said that I've nurtured her.

Do you think that I could have nurtured a vicious woman?

She would kill my children and even sacrifice her own mother

just to take the blame for her.

Is this possible, Ru Yi?

I understand.

I find Lady Wei pitiful.

Her mother was indeed at fault.

However, Lady Wei as pregnant and knew nothing of her actions.

Half a year's punishment is long enough to bear on behalf of her mother.

Then there's Imperial Mother.

She's so persistent that she disregarded your feelings.

Your Imperial Mother is not someone you can criticize.

Don't go overboard.

I'm just too righteous to overlook this matter.

Isn't it just because Wang Chan carried a dog that

resembled Richie from the crematorium?

There are often stray dogs like those at the crematorium.

I used to see them when I was a child.

It doesn't count.

Since you're putting in a good word for Second Female Attendant Wei

you should know she's involved in Yong Jing's death.

Why would someone who wanted my 13th brother dead save Qing You?

Father, Lady Wei has never met Qing You before.

Nor did she know that he is my child.

She is so kind because of your mentoring.

Lady Wei's mother was a vulgar and greedy person.

I believe that they aren't the same sort of people.

By the way, Prince Consort is very concerned about Qing You.

If it weren't for the sake of Qing You

and Mother's last reminder to me on her deathbed

I had long wanted to quit being the daughter-in-law of the Khorchin Mongols.

Empress Xiaoxian always put the general interests above all else.

However reluctant she was then

she still married you off faraway to Mongolia.

Mother could put general interests above all else.

What about Imperial Mother?

Qing You is the only child I have with Prince Consort.

He's also the legal grandson of the Khorchin Mongols.

He will inherit the prince's title.

It isn't just my child that Lady Wei rescued.

But the hope of the Khorchin Mongols and their future.

You're dismissed.

I'll fetch Imperial Concubine Wan right away.

Your Majesty is so faithful.

It has indeed been some time since you visited Imperial Concubine Wan.

Hold on!

Change it to Second Female Attendant Wei.

Yes.

Your Majesty.

Your Highness.

Imperial Physician Jiang reported back that

Second Female Attendant Wei is four months pregnant.

She's pregnant?

Yes.

She only revealed it after the pregnancy is stable.

She's so cautious for fear that someone is as vicious as she is

and will want to hurt the child she finally conceived.

I heard that when Second Female Attendant Wei gave birth to Seventh Princess