Chapter 67

In the East Palace,

Princess Hui’an felt very regretful.

She had just been engaged to the second son of General Pei’s family and was recently confined in the palace by the Crown Princess to embroider her dowry. Normally, she didn’t care for these things, never picked up scissors, and didn’t know how to sew, but now, to prepare for the marriage, she had to stitch a few things on her clothes.

Because she was stuck at home embroidering, she missed the flower-viewing party with Aunt En and didn’t see Shen Ruojin’s misfortune right away. Princess Hui’an felt a bit annoyed.

However, after hearing the whole story from Princess Heqing’s cousin, Hui’an felt ashamed. After all, Shen Ruojin was her former study partner, and they had some connection. When Shen Ruojin was discussed in the capital, someone would definitely mention her name, making her dislike Shen Ruojin even more.

After hearing the whole story, Princess Hui’an always felt that something was off, but she couldn’t pinpoint it. It wasn’t until she sent her cousin away and returned to her palace that she finally understood what was wrong.

According to her cousin, Shen Ruojin pretended to be sick and then entered the palace. In other words, before Shen Ruojin arrived at the Eastern Palace, her family knew she was not really the daughter of the Shen family.

Even though they knew she was not the daughter of a marquis, the Shen family still sent a fake one in to participate in the selection of the Eastern Palace companion but did not allow her to actually show up. What was their intention?

Hui’an County became angrier as she thought about it. She stopped embroidering her dowry and turned to the Crown Princess to ask for an explanation.

Seeing her daughter getting upset again, the Crown Princess felt helpless. She pulled Princess Hui’an to sit down and said, “You are grown up now and about to get married. You can’t be so willful anymore. When you enter the Pei family in the future, you must treat yourself as someone else’s daughter-in-law and do what you should do. Not to mention that your father has not become the new emperor yet; even if he succeeds to the throne in the future, you can’t rush around like this in your husband’s house. Look at your aunts. Which one of them is not gentle and respectful at home, taking care of their husbands and children?”

Princess Hui’an curled her lips, somewhat disdainful of her mother’s teachings, but still listened patiently.

After the Crown Princess finished speaking, Princess Hui’an said, “I wonder if mother has heard about what happened at the flower viewing banquet with Aunt En?”

The Crown Princess knew her daughter would say this. She sighed and said, “What good can it do to hear it?”

“Mother, didn’t you find anything wrong?” Princess Hui’an asked anxiously. “From the situation, it’s clear that the Shen family knew Shen Ruojin was not their daughter first, and then sent her to the palace to participate in the election. In this way, they are committing the crime of deceiving the emperor!”

“What crime of deceiving the emperor?” The Crown Princess scolded. “When is this? How dare you call your father ’emperor’? Do you want to die?”

Princess Hui’an shrank her head. “Even if it’s not deceiving the emperor, it’s still a crime of deceiving the royal family.”

“Your father will have to make the decision on this matter after all,” the Crown Princess said. “Now is a time of trouble. Your father doesn’t have many people to use. We should first find out the attitudes of the Guan and Shen families. If they are still willing to continue to support your father, we can put this matter on hold.”

“But Guan Muyun’s aunt is the Princess of Rui after all. Wouldn’t it be better to kill one to warn the rest? Besides, if my father has lost the dignity of the crown prince, what’s the point of being the crown prince?”

It will become increasingly difficult to convince people in the future.

“How can a girl like you understand these things?” the Crown Princess said. “They are not things you should care about. I will tell your father. You can go back and prepare for your marriage first.”

Not long after Princess Hui’an left, the prince came in.

The prince asked the princess in surprise, “What did Hui’an come to talk to you about again? Is she dissatisfied with her husband again? Just now, she went out with a face full of anger and almost bumped into me.”

The Crown Princess told the conversation between Princess Hui’an and the Crown Prince and said to him helplessly, “She is such a grown-up girl, but she is still acting like a child. We must deal with Shen Ruojin and the Shen family, or we will not be able to swallow this anger.”

The prince frowned and said, “The situation in the court is not very good now. It is not comparable to when I first entered the East Palace. Duke Ling used to have some authority in the army. Guan Muyun has always been very popular with His Majesty in the Ministry of Works, and his eldest son works in the Metropolitan Censorate… He will inevitably be used, so we can’t act rashly. Let’s just pretend to be confused for now.”

These things were small matters to him. The biggest thing he had to face now was that he just learned that his father had given the eldest brother a task.

The Crown Prince knew best how favored the King of Chu was in the past. As long as the eldest son stood there, his father would not tolerate anyone else.

It’s enough to give me nightmares just thinking about it.

The prince would never allow such a thing to happen again, so he must find a way to suppress the other party.

His father’s temper has been a little strange lately. He has always gone along with his father in everything, but he is always indifferent and even a little unpredictable from time to time, which makes it even more difficult for him, the crown prince, to be successful.

In this way, the emperor will not be able to do anything, and he will have to gain the support of more court officials, especially those like Duke Ling, who have a profound influence in the court. So if you can be a good person now, you should be a good person.

Don’t make enemies easily.

Moreover, Luo Taosheng is now aligned with the King of Chu. How could he stand up for the King of Chu’s people and hurt his own people’s feelings?

Thinking of this, the prince came up with an idea: “Let’s just let this matter go and don’t mention it again.”

_ 

The King of Chu also heard the news of the Emperor’s return, and his sister He’en also took witnesses to Xuan Zheng Hall to report early in the morning. He thought that his father had almost digested the matter, and it was time to go over and add fuel to the fire.

The emperor had just expressed his feelings to Princess He’en in the morning. After seeing the King of Chu, he couldn’t help but continue to sigh, “I thought Tao Sheng had lost her adoptive parents and it was hard enough to live in her aunt’s house. Now that her adoptive parents are back, she can have a better life. Who would have thought that her biological parents are such a piece of shit? No wonder I never heard her mention the Shen family on weekdays.”

“That’s exactly what happened!” The King of Chu slapped his thigh. “After hearing this, I finally understood what it meant to be furious. I was really furious from the bottom of my heart. Lord Luo has suffered so much injustice, but she has never uttered a word. It makes me feel distressed just thinking about it.”

The emperor thought the Prince of Chu was a good kid, and he felt comfortable talking to him. “Yes, I was also wondering, how could there be such a person in this world? He is so stupid.”

What we have just mentioned was just a brief introduction. Now it’s time to get to the point.

The King of Chu put down the teacup in his hand, straightened his body, and said to the emperor: “The Wenyuan Marquis’s Mansion is not strict in managing his subordinates, and they are confused in dealing with the world. It is really too unrefined. The Guan family is not good at judging people. Even though the women in the family are lawless at home, they are lawless outside. I don’t know what’s wrong with these noble families in the court now? They have completely lost the bravery and fearlessness of their ancestors, and they are dedicated to the public. It is not an exaggeration to say that they are a bunch of fools.”

Before the King of Chu finished speaking, the Crown Prince arrived at the Xuanzheng Hall.

The emperor had something to ask him, and as soon as he saw him, he asked him if he had ever heard of the incident involving the Shen family.

The emperor had not heard of any movement in the Eastern Palace and suspected that the prince did not know that the Eastern Palace companion was not a girl from the Marquis’s Mansion who was selected, so he asked this question.

The prince did not expect the emperor to personally ask about this matter. He replied, “At first, I was drawn to the girl’s looks and character. Her family’s background doesn’t matter. Besides, she is no longer Hui’an’s companion. She has married into the Duke Lingguo’s household and is no longer connected to the Eastern Palace, so let it go.”

“But there was some deception in the palace back then. If everyone acts so boldly, what happens to the royal family’s dignity? Even if you find this reasoning inappropriate, you could come up with another excuse to address it.”

At the very least, people should understand that royal dignity must be respected.