The tiny infant was wrapped in swaddling clothes, only a small face visible.

Lin Hao looked at her niece with affection. As she looked, she sighed inwardly: newborn babies are really quite ugly.

Then she heard Lin Shi laugh. “She looks so good—exactly like Chan’er and Ah Hao when they were little.”

Lin Hao: ?

The new mother was weak and couldn’t talk too long. Seeing her mother and sister about to leave, Lin Chan grasped Lin Hao’s hand. “Ah Hao, I heard from your brother-in-law that the heir was adopted by the Emperor—”

Like the Old Madam and Lin Shi, Lin Chan’s first reaction wasn’t joy but worry.

When she’d been betrothed to Prince Wei back then, afraid of worrying her elders, she hadn’t dared show anything on her face, but inwardly she’d been under great pressure. She had no desire to marry into the imperial family and live a life beyond her control. Just thinking about such days made her heart shrink with fear.

But her sister was about to become Crown Princess, and she was so devoted to the heir. If there were other women in the future, wouldn’t it be even harder to accept?

Previously she hadn’t thought much of it, but after marriage, living in harmony with her husband, she understood that only without love could one not care.

“Elder Sister, don’t worry about me. I can always make sure I live well.”

Rather than saying she trusted A’Shuo, it was better to say she trusted her own judgment in reading people, and her ability to live well even on her own.

This was probably the most precious wealth that living a second life had brought her.

Lin Chan looked at her sister’s bright eyes and let her worried heart settle.

After returning to the General’s Estate, Lin Shi spoke to the Old Madam about her little granddaughter. “I never imagined I’d become a maternal grandmother. Such a tiny person sleeping so sweetly with closed eyes—exactly like Chan’er and Ah Hao when they were little.”

The Old Madam was quite interested. “Really? Then she must be extremely beautiful…”

What followed was Lin Shi gushing endlessly about how lovely the little granddaughter’s features were, where she resembled her mother, where she resembled her little aunt. As for the son-in-law Han Baocheng? Don’t be ridiculous—if she resembled her father, wouldn’t she be ugly? She didn’t resemble him one bit.

Lin Hao really couldn’t listen anymore and quickly returned to Prince Jing’s estate.

The Crown Prince investiture ceremony was set for mid-spring in the second month, when flowers bloomed brilliantly.

The day before the auspicious date, Emperor Tai’an appointed Vice Minister Zhang of the Ministry of Rites to preside over the sacrificial activities, announcing the matter of establishing the heir to Heaven and Earth and the Ancestral Temple.

The next day brought brilliant spring weather, gentle winds and beautiful sunshine. Civil and military officials stood in the great hall according to their official ranks. Qi Shuo, dressed in vermillion robes with a solemn expression, listened as the Chief Minister read the imperial edict establishing the Crown Prince on the Emperor’s behalf.

Prince Jing stood before the officials, silently watching his eldest son—upright in bearing, handsome as jade—perform the ritual of greeting and thanking his new father. Tears immediately streamed down his face.

Fourth Brother was truly no good! That day in Yangxin Hall he’d looked like a pitiful dying candle. His heart had softened and he hadn’t insisted much, yet now Fourth Brother was lively and energetic holding the investiture ceremony.

Prince Jing thought of his grief and wiped away tears.

Emperor Tai’an, accepting the new Crown Prince’s prostrations, seemed to sense something. His gaze fell upon Prince Jing. Seeing Prince Jing with reddened eyes, not only was he not angry, but when Qi Shuo finished the great ritual and he spoke words of instruction in his capacity as father, his tone was especially gentle.

Prince Jing nearly cried aloud.

Fourth Brother was definitely doing this on purpose!

At the same time, the ceremony of investing the Crown Princess was held in the inner hall.

Lin Hao wore ceremonial robes and completed the ritual step by step, performing greetings and thanks to Emperor Tai’an who had returned to Qianqing Palace, then went to pay respects to Consort Zhuang who managed the rear palace.

Consort Zhuang’s attitude showed warmth within courtesy—she was someone who made interactions feel like a spring breeze.

Lin Hao felt her luck was good.

As the de facto mistress of the rear palace, if Consort Zhuang had been harsh and difficult, she as Crown Princess who would frequently interact with her would have endless headaches.

Next she had to pay respects to Consort Jing, the birth mother of the former Crown Prince.

Consort Jing resided in Ningxin Palace, not far from Consort Zhuang’s Yuhe Palace. But unlike Yuhe Palace’s vitality, all of Ningxin Palace exuded depression, quiet as a cold palace.

Lin Hao didn’t see Consort Jing’s face.

“Her Ladyship is ill and worried about passing the sickness to the Crown Princess. She asks to be excused from the audience and requests the Crown Princess’s understanding.”

“Then when Her Ladyship recovers, I’ll come pay respects again.”

Lin Hao wasn’t surprised by Consort Jing’s avoidance.

The pain of losing a son wasn’t easily alleviated. Consort Jing thinking of her son who’d met with disaster shortly after becoming Crown Prince and not wanting to see this newly invested Crown Princess was perfectly natural.

Emperor Tai’an’s rear palace wasn’t particularly full. Only four held the rank of consort. After Lin Hao paid respects to the other two consorts, she didn’t need to see those below the consort rank. Afterward she returned to the Eastern Palace and met with Qi Shuo, now clad in vermillion robes.

According to ritual, the Crown Princess should bow four times to the Crown Prince. Lin Hao had just begun the gesture when Qi Shuo pulled her back.

“Are you tired?” Ignoring the female official’s shocked expression, Qi Shuo asked as if nothing were amiss.

Lin Hao also paid no attention to the female official’s gaze shifting from shock to accusation, smiling as she said, “I’m all right. What about you?”

“I’m also all right.” Qi Shuo naturally took Lin Hao’s hand.

Though the ritual had been tedious, lengthy, and boring, thinking that Ah Hao was also going through this process, that they were always people standing side by side, made it feel meaningful.

The female official finally recovered from her shock and spoke up to remind, “Crown Prince, this—”

The four words “violates propriety” hadn’t yet emerged before they were blocked by a cool glance from the vermillion-robed young man.

“This is the Eastern Palace.” Qi Shuo said flatly.

Outside the Eastern Palace was one thing, but at least in the home that belonged to the two of them, he didn’t want to be a masked couple with Ah Hao merely to conform to others’ expectations.

The female official’s lips moved, but ultimately she lacked the courage to object and meekly retreated to the side.

“I’ll change clothes—I still need to meet the noble wives.”

The meeting with noble wives meant the noble wives would pay congratulations to the Crown Princess.

This was Lin Hao’s first time interacting with noble ladies from various estates in her capacity as Crown Princess.

These past two years, the noble ladies had heard various stories about Second Miss Lin until calluses had formed on their ears. Unfortunately, Lin Hao was a generation younger than them, and Lin Shi wasn’t someone who would take her daughter out for social engagements. For most noble ladies, this was a rare opportunity to closely observe the woman who lived in rumor.

Upon careful observation, the Crown Princess turned out to be someone whose etiquette was flawless.

Quite a few people quietly exchanged glances, thinking this wasn’t normal. So much so that after returning to their estates, they still couldn’t quite recover.

The day after the investiture ceremony, edicts were proclaimed throughout the realm. News that the Great Zhou had a new heir spread completely among the common people.

The winter snow had long melted. That palace coup occurring in the cold winter and the Empress Dowager’s death seemed very distant. Several main streets in the capital were decorated with red silk to celebrate the heir’s investiture, and pedestrians on the streets wore smiles.

By convention, such great joyous occasions in the imperial family came with some favors for the common people. The people truly received benefits—how could they not be happy?

There were always exceptions. A young man walking slowly out of a bookshop heard this news and first froze, then randomly grabbed someone who was speaking animatedly to ask for clarification before stumbling homeward in a run.

That was an area of low, dilapidated houses. In the narrow alley, sewage flowed across the ground with an unpleasant smell. He paid no attention to dirtying his shoe soles and violently pushed open a door to rush inside.