The Legend of the Concubine in the Harem

Inside Cining Palace.

Mrs. Hu, who usually looked like a kind and cheerful old lady, now had a look of fatigue on her face. She sat on a chair with the legs deliberately shortened, leaning back very tiredly.

The emperor stood in front of her and said, "Mother, you should take care of yourself. It is because I failed as a father that I raised such an unfilial son."

The Second Prince's actions, including criticizing his elders, are definitely unfilial in this era.

But what the emperor couldn't understand was that if it came to unfilial behavior, he was one of the best ones, so he had no doubt that his own children would also be unfilial. The strange thing was why the second prince was so incredibly stupid. Did he really think that he was the only one in good health and that he would be the one to hold the throne in the future?

"Deng didn't encounter any difficulties when she was pregnant and giving birth. How come this child is neither filial to his father nor to his mother?" the emperor said in a low voice.

Contrary to the second prince's guess about the relationship between his father and his non-blood-related grandmother, the emperor and Empress Dowager Hu were actually very close. Although the emperor was adopted by Empress Dowager Hu after his biological mother died, the relationship between them was not simply an exchange of interests as some people saw it.

"It's not that he's stupid, it's just..." Empress Dowager Hu slowly opened her eyes, "The Queen has no children, the first and third princes are both weak, and you, the Emperor, have previously expressed your intention to adopt the third prince away... The remaining sixth prince is too young, and his mother's family is not prominent, so he really can't compete with the second prince."

Things are rare.

According to the logic of normal people in this era.

The second prince grew up healthy until he was ten years old, and was also granted the title of a prince. In another three or four years, he would be able to have a concubine. Meanwhile, although his mother's family was a little declining, the title and heritage were still there. Moreover, his sister was backed by the Chengguo Mansion, which was of the same clan as Empress Dowager Hu... Such a prince was really worth investing in.

The second prince himself actually thought so.

The overly relaxed environment made him have no sense of crisis at all. In his opinion, no matter how favored the princess was, she could not threaten his position. It was not until Princess Cheng'an helplessly pointed out that Queen Xie was likely to adopt the Sixth Prince that the Second Prince panicked.

But Princess Lian Cheng'an could not have imagined that the Second Prince's ability to withstand pressure was so poor. However, when the Emperor called him and asked him a few questions, he could no longer sit still and shouted out the truth that should have been kept in his heart. What was even worse was that the Empress Dowager Hu, who was supposed to be the reinforcement, happened to hear it, and the old lady was so angry that her face changed immediately.

"The emperor still has too few children." Empress Dowager Hu looked at the emperor meaningfully.

The emperor touched the tip of his nose and said, "The eldest and the third are weak, the second is too arrogant, and the sixth is not good at the moment, but Yuanjun is really smart and clever, he is truly our son of Qilin."

Empress Dowager Hu: ...

She raised her hand helplessly and rubbed her forehead: "You... forget it, forget it, I'm old, I don't want to care about what you and the queen want to do, and I don't have the energy to care, just know it in your heart, but don't make me live in insecurity in the remaining one or two years."

As for the thoughts of the emperor and his wife, those who were slightly more informed in the court and the palace had some vague guesses. As the emperor's adoptive mother, Empress Dowager Hu had naturally guessed that possibility early on, but she did admit that she was old and didn't have the energy to fight like she did when she was young. She just wanted to treat the younger generations in the palace better while she was alive, so that they wouldn't have to live in fear like the heirs of the previous dynasty, who opened their eyes and saw nothing but calculations, the flesh and blood and bones of their brothers and sisters...

She also didn't expect that she treated the Second Prince well, but how could she get such an evaluation... When the previous emperor was alive, she was indeed keen on fighting for power, but if she didn't fight and had no power, she would really die! Empress Dowager Hu thought about it and looked at the emperor's head: "It's the father's fault for not educating the child. While the second prince is still young, he can still be changed. You, as a father, should pay more attention to him."

The emperor agreed very respectfully and said many nice things to appease his adoptive mother. However, he was thinking of the saying "A teacher who does not teach strictly is lazy" and planned to find a few new teachers for the second prince when he returned - he couldn't say that he didn't care about his son, right?

Thinking about his precious daughter, who was still young but had already performed far better than her peers, the emperor could not help but sigh in his heart about the uneven talents of his children. As Lu Weiyuan grew up, the emperor understood more clearly why she was the final winner, so he paid more attention to Lu Weiyuan's education, and as a result, he neglected his other children.

The mother and son chatted for a while, and Empress Dowager Hu asked the emperor to go back first: "Tell the concubines outside not to wait any longer. There are many things to do in the palace, and I don't need them to take care of me here. By the way, tell the queen to come to the Cining Palace after she finishes her work."

After sending the emperor away, Empress Dowager Hu's personal maid came back not long after to report that the emperor had taken away the second prince and Princess Cheng'an. Because the second prince had been beaten before, he was limping when he left, and Princess Cheng'an was crying non-stop, and it was not known whether she was ashamed of her mistake or she could not bear to see her brother being beaten.

Empress Dowager Hu was silent for a while before she said, "Cheng'an does look a bit like Deng. It's a pity that the adopted daughter was raised so well, but the biological son turned out to be like this. However, if Deng were still alive, she probably wouldn't regret it too much. Maybe this was her original intention. Go get some of Concubine Duan's old things for Cheng'an, and tell her not to rush into marriage. No matter what, I am both her grandmother and her great-aunt, and I will always make the decision for her."

This day.

Empress Dowager Hu was furious.

The second prince was beaten and Princess Cheng'an was scolded.

The worst thing was that He Sangrou completely lost her status as a lady of honor.

A plot against Lin Qiao was also blocked invisibly.

All of this was never made public by the parties involved. In the palace banquet hall, there was still singing and dancing, and everyone enjoyed fine wine and delicious food and had a great time.

Xie Yuzhen took the opportunity to reshuffle the palace servants in Chonghua Palace, and specially singled out the little eunuch who had gone to bring Empress Dowager Hu as "reinforcement" to the Second Prince, and then arranged for him to be sent to Princess Rongle's residence through the Shanggong Bureau - I receive your sincerity, but you're overreaching, and I don't like it.

Princess Rong Le took in the young eunuch, and the next day, she released some of the people in her mansion. One of them, a chief clerk whom she had trusted very much in the past, was also given special silver and returned home to retire.