Princess Lu was startled: “So quickly?”
Among the princesses, she had conceived the fastest after marriage, but that was six months later. The prince had been quite proud of it, but who would have thought Princess Yan would be even quicker?
“We only have one son now, we must hurry. We can’t let Seventh Brother surpass us as a latecomer.”
Among the princes, the eldest Prince Qin had the most offspring with three daughters and one son. The Crown Prince and Prince Jin both had two daughters and one son, while Prince Qi only had one daughter.
Except for Prince Qi, the three older princes had children of both genders, but they had been married for many years with numerous concubines, yet only had one son each, which was considered meager.
As for Prince Qi, not having a son was already his greatest regret.
Regardless, for the royal family, the more descendants, the better.
“It’s broad daylight, Your Highness, don’t be naughty…” Princess Lu struggled a bit but then gave in to Prince Lu.
The prince was right, since Princess Yan had such good news so quickly, they should indeed hurry up.
As the princes returned to their residences, it stirred up various thoughts, with some feeling sour and others worried.
The Crown Prince lived in the Eastern Palace and wasn’t as well-informed as his brothers who had their residences. He was gleefully waiting for news of Yujin’s misfortune when Emperor Jingming summoned him.
As soon as he stepped into the Imperial Study, the Crown Prince felt uneasy.
For many years, it seemed that no matter how he performed, he couldn’t satisfy his father. Now, whenever the Crown Prince saw Emperor Jingming, he felt like a mouse seeing a cat, always having the urge to flee.
“You’re here?” Emperor Jingming asked in a deep voice.
The Crown Prince lowered his head and hesitantly asked: “May I know why Father Emperor has summoned me?”
“It’s about Seventh Brother.”
The Crown Prince looked up in confusion, meeting Emperor Jingming’s eyes.
The emperor’s gaze was profound, making it impossible to discern his mood.
The Crown Prince tried to gauge Emperor Jingming’s thoughts while saying: “Father Emperor, please don’t be angry with Seventh Brother. He’s young and impetuous—”
Emperor Jingming slammed the table heavily, cutting off the Crown Prince’s words.
“Father Emperor?”
“Why should I be angry with Seventh Brother?”
The Crown Prince grew more confused. Under pressure, he blurted out: “Seventh Brother indulged his wife’s improper behavior—”
“Seventh Brother’s wife is pregnant,” Emperor Jingming interrupted bluntly.
The Crown Prince was stunned, his face suddenly changing color.
Seventh Brother’s wife is pregnant? Then he had instigated the censors for nothing…
After his disappointment, the Crown Prince was perplexed: Even if Seventh Brother’s wife’s pregnancy helped her avoid punishment, why had Father Emperor summoned him?
Could it be… that Father Emperor had discovered his instigation of the censors?
Emperor Jingming had called the Crown Prince over intending to give him a routine lecture, but he noticed something unusual in the Crown Prince’s expression.
This boy always had this guilty look when he had done something wrong…
Emperor Jingming frowned at the Crown Prince, his face serious: “Do you know what you did wrong?”
The Crown Prince unconsciously lowered his head.
A guilty conscience!
Emperor Jingming, drawing from experience, concluded inwardly. He tapped the white jade paperweight on the table: “Not speaking? Do you want me to point it out for you?”
The Crown Prince immediately became honest and said dejectedly: “I shouldn’t have instigated the censors to impeach Seventh Brother—”
Emperor Jingming was startled.
What? There was such a thing?
“Outrageous! I called you here to ask what Seventh Brother did to offend you, making you, as an elder brother, do such a thing. Where is your brotherly affection?” Emperor Jingming seamlessly transitioned from surprise to questioning, not revealing any flaws, but inwardly he was furious.
He was still alive and well, yet his sons were already scheming against each other. After his passing, wouldn’t they end up in fratricide?
The Crown Prince knelt to beg for forgiveness: “I was momentarily confused. Please forgive me, Father Emperor.”
Emperor Jingming closed his eyes, angrily saying: “You have disappointed me greatly!”
He was angry both at the Crown Prince for scheming against his brother and for confessing without being forced.
The Crown Prince’s body trembled, his face extremely unsightly.
Father Emperor indeed despised him, probably wanting to depose him long ago…
That’s right, if Father Emperor hadn’t had such thoughts, why would he send people to monitor his every move?
In the Crown Prince’s mind, Emperor Jingming must have sent people to watch him, which led to the discovery of his scheme against Seventh Brother. He never considered that it was because of his stupidity, tricked into confessing by Emperor Jingming.
“Go back and reflect thoroughly!”
The Crown Prince quickly glanced at Emperor Jingming, then got up and ran.
Staring at the Crown Prince’s fleeing figure, Emperor Jingming roared: “Wait!”
The Crown Prince suddenly stopped, turning back stiffly.
“Even Seventh Brother knows to protect his wife. Learn from him in the future. If I hear again that you’re not getting along with the Crown Princess, you can just stay in the Eastern Palace and not come out!”
This was what Emperor Jingming had originally intended to lecture the Crown Prince about. He never expected the Crown Prince would give him such a big “surprise.”
The Crown Prince hurriedly agreed and fled back to the Eastern Palace in disarray.
Entering his private chambers, the Crown Prince threw himself on the bed, gasping for breath.
Why won’t that old man pass away? This life is simply unbearable!
The news of Princess Yan’s pregnancy quickly spread throughout the palace. Many people went to Yuquan Palace to congratulate Worthy Consort.
Worthy Consort maintained a smile as she saw off the visitors one by one, but her face immediately darkened.
These people knew that her relationship with Seventh Son was distant, yet they still came. They weren’t here to congratulate, but purely to mock her.
Worthy Consort, suppressing her anger, summoned Princess Qi to the palace and gave her a severe scolding.
Princess Qi endured silently, feeling indescribably stifled and frustrated. As she was leaving the palace, she encountered Princess Shu.
“Sixth Sister-in-law is also in the palace.” Seeing Princess Shu, Princess Qi felt like she had met a companion.
Without asking, she knew Princess Shu must have been reprimanded by Consort Zhuang.
Come to think of it, Princess Shu was also unfortunate, having married almost at the same time as Princess Yan.
Princess Shu nodded slightly, her expression calm: “I came to pay respects to Mother Consort.”
Princess Qi felt this was a rare opportunity to improve their relationship and advised in a low voice: “Sixth Sister-in-law, don’t take it to heart. You’ve just married, there’s no rush…”
Princess Shu looked at Princess Qi in surprise, then said indifferently: “Thank you for your comfort, Fourth Sister-in-law, but I’m truly not in a hurry.”
A woman’s worth was measured by her ability to bear children, thinking about it, it was quite dull.
Princess Shu thought of Consort Zhuang’s subtle reminder, then of Prince Shu’s hesitation, and felt utterly disinterested.
“I’ll go first. Take care, Fourth Sister-in-law.”
Princess Qi stared as Princess Shu bent to enter her carriage, her face alternating between shades of green and white.
Before her, the previous princesses, including the Crown Princess, were all normal people. Why had things changed starting from Princess Lu?
Princess Lu was willful and sharp-tongued, Princess Shu pretentiously aloof, Princess Yan had a strange temperament, and Princess Xiang—
Princess Qi shook her head.
Princess Xiang, who ultimately didn’t marry Prince Xiang, was too terrifying to even think about…
In Prince Yan’s residence, the old chamberlain nearly cried at the sight of the cart full of rewards.
“Your Highness, in the future, for such matters, could you please inform this old servant beforehand…”
Yujin glanced at the chamberlain and said coolly: “Should we beat drums and gongs to announce the Princess’s pregnancy? Chamberlain, there’s no need for you to worry unnecessarily. I am a steady person and know how to handle things appropriately.”
Suppressing the urge to argue, the chamberlain forced a smile: “Your Highness is right.”