The moment the Crown Prince said these words, the scene fell silent.
What did he mean by “don’t remember”?
Prince Lu, known for his impatience, was the first to speak up, “Second Brother, are you joking? How could you not remember how you bumped your head?”
Heh, could it be that Father Emperor beat him?
Inadvertently, Prince Lu had glimpsed the truth.
Prince Lu’s words undoubtedly echoed everyone’s thoughts, and they all looked at the Crown Prince, waiting for his response.
The Crown Prince showed a troubled expression, “The imperial physicians said there might be some blood clots in my head, temporarily affecting my memory…”
Everyone’s hearts skipped a beat: Affected his memory—does this mean the Crown Prince has amnesia?
“Second Brother has amnesia?” Prince Lu blurted out frankly.
The Crown Prince opened his mouth but said nothing.
Seeing the Crown Prince’s tacit acknowledgment, Prince Lu suddenly felt a bit regretful.
Amnesia was no fun; his second brother wouldn’t remember being beaten by him. It was like wearing brocade in the dark—a wasted effort…
A stern voice came from behind: “Fifth, what are you saying to your Second Brother?”
It was the Mid-Autumn family banquet, and only a few princes and their wives from outside the palace were invited, so it was relatively casual. Emperor Jingming hadn’t used court attendants to announce his arrival and had walked arm-in-arm with the Empress, just in time to hear Prince Lu loudly discussing the Crown Prince’s memory loss.
Regarding the Crown Prince’s amnesia, Emperor Jingming had no intention of keeping it a complete secret, but he certainly didn’t plan to announce it to the world either. Hearing Prince Lu discuss it so carelessly naturally displeased him.
Ever since Prince Lu had been demoted to a commandery prince, he had become somewhat afraid of Emperor Jingming. He stammered, “Son was just chatting with Second Brother.”
Emperor Jingming surveyed his sons, then took his seat with the Empress. After everyone had paid their respects, he said calmly, “Today is the Mid-Autumn family banquet. It’s rare to have you all gathered here—”
At this point, Emperor Jingming paused, thinking of Prince Jin who was guarding the imperial tombs.
A wave of bitterness washed over him.
Of his eight grown sons, the Seventh Prince had been taken out of the palace as a child. It was the other seven who had been by his side.
Now, though the moon remained the same, the Third Prince would never again appreciate the palace moon.
Emperor Jingming felt a pang of sadness, but sadness was just sadness. Thinking of Prince Jin’s ambition and the mistakes he had made, it was impossible to pardon him and recall him to the capital.
Once certain things happen, one can only reminisce with regret and bitterness.
Emperor Jingming’s gaze slowly swept across each of his sons’ faces, thinking to himself: I only hope they behave themselves and don’t follow in the Third Prince’s footsteps.
Emperor Jingming’s complex and unusual gaze made everyone feel a chill.
The saying “Serving the emperor is like serving a tiger” might be meant for officials, but didn’t it apply to them as well?
In the imperial family, father-son relationships couldn’t be as casual as in ordinary families.
The atmosphere became somewhat tense.
The Empress gently nudged Emperor Jingming.
Emperor Jingming snapped back to reality, a smile returning to his lips, “It’s rare to have you all gathered here. There’s something I want to tell you.”
“Please speak, Father Emperor,” everyone said in unison.
Emperor Jingming glanced at the Crown Prince and said, “The Crown Prince bumped his head a few days ago and can’t remember much of the past. You are all the Crown Prince’s brothers, so you should be more understanding in the future. Don’t make fun of him just because he can’t remember past events for now…”
Thinking of the Crown Prince’s behavior over the past two days, Emperor Jingming felt very conflicted.
His son had lost his memory due to his actions. Logically, he should feel regret, guilt, and worry… but he felt none of these emotions.
Observing the Crown Prince’s behavior over the past two days, he only felt relieved.
The Crown Prince had become much more sensible than before. If nothing else, at least he wasn’t going to the gardens to chat with young palace maids anymore.
He also spoke less, appearing more composed.
Emperor Jingming didn’t expect this son to be exceptionally talented; he would be satisfied if he could just reach an average level.
He was almost thirty years old; it was time for him to be steady.
Lost in thought, Emperor Jingming looked at his sons.
The princes all agreed repeatedly.
The atmosphere of this Mid-Autumn palace banquet remained lukewarm throughout, boringly so from start to finish. Even when the princes tried to find an opportunity to drink with the Crown Prince and probe him, Emperor Jingming blocked their attempts, citing the Crown Prince’s head injury.
Finally enduring until the end of the banquet, Emperor Jingming secretly sighed in relief: Thankfully, this family gathering didn’t result in any unexpected incidents.
The princes, on the other hand, couldn’t wait to leave the palace.
As soon as Prince Lu returned to his residence, he let out a heavy sigh.
Prince Lu’s wife was in a good mood today and unusually took the initiative to pour him a cup of tea. She glanced at him and asked, “What is my Prince sighing about?”
Prince Lu took the teacup and set it down on the table, shaking his head, “How did the Crown Prince end up with amnesia?”
“Hmm?” Prince Lu’s wife frowned.
This was precisely why she had been happy today. What did her husband mean?
“The Crown Prince doesn’t remember that I beat him. My demotion was for nothing,” Prince Lu grumbled.
Prince Lu’s wife couldn’t help but laugh, “Isn’t this a good thing?”
Prince Lu blinked, “How is it a good thing?”
Although Prince Lu’s wife had a fiery and straightforward personality, it didn’t mean she lacked intelligence. Holding her teacup, she sighed softly, “Has my Prince considered that when you beat the Crown Prince, he was still the deposed Crown Prince? Now that he’s been reinstated, he’ll eventually ascend to that position. Wouldn’t he seek revenge then? Isn’t it better that the Crown Prince has amnesia? At least we’ll be safer.”
Prince Lu rubbed his face and said quietly, “You have a point…”
In Prince Qi’s residence, the mood of Prince Qi and his wife was not so good.
Prince Qi was the one who cared most about rules, or rather, he wanted people to believe he was a person who adhered to propriety.
Outstanding moral character was the evaluation Prince Qi wanted from the world.
On a day like the fifteenth of the eighth month, he naturally had to rest in the same chamber as his wife.
“How did the Crown Prince bump his head when he was fine?” Prince Qi’s wife turned to her side, propping her head with her hand and murmuring.
Prince Qi sneered, “After he caused such a scandal outside the palace, how could Father Emperor remain calm? In my opinion, Father Emperor must have struck him with something. We just didn’t expect the Crown Prince to lose his memory. This is very disadvantageous for us!”
“Disadvantageous?”
“Memory loss is usually troublesome, but who would have thought the Crown Prince was such a hopeless case before? This way, it gives Father Emperor some hope, thinking that with re-education, he might be able to mold that mess into something useful.”
“My Prince, what should we do?”
Prince Qi’s gaze turned sinister, “What can we do? We can only wait and see how things unfold.”
After the Treasure Pavilion incident, he had planned to follow up by exposing the Qianhe County affair, believing that Father Emperor would surely be disappointed in the Crown Prince then.
But the Crown Prince’s memory loss changed everything. For Father Emperor, who valued his eldest son, the Qianhe County scandal was also something the Crown Prince had done in the past, and it still wouldn’t erase Father Emperor’s hope for the Crown Prince.
Given these circumstances, it wasn’t the right time to expose the Qianhe County affair.
Prince Qi understood well the principle of using the best steel for the blade’s edge.
In the Yuhe Garden of Prince Yan’s residence, Jiang Si and Yu Jin lay side by side on the bed after washing up, also discussing the same topic.
“Ah Si, do you think the Crown Prince’s memory loss is real or fake?”