Red Mansion Rebirth: Ghost Phoenix

The Lantern Festival actually started on a small scale after the tenth day of the first lunar month, and by the fourteenth day of the first lunar month, eight out of ten lanterns had been hung up, and the festival was already very lively with lantern riddles, snacks, lantern mountains, etc.

On the fourteenth night of the first lunar month, the prince called He Ke to the Lizheng Palace on the pretext of studying. Without telling anyone, he quietly brought a few personal guards with him and accompanied his daughter out to play for half the night in disguise.

It was not until the second watch that He Ke came back with his cheeks flushed with excitement, and tiptoed back to his warm room.

Jing Li breathed a sigh of relief.

Wang Xifeng lay on the bed, listening attentively to the little girl's suppressed voice as she pleaded with Madam Ji: "Good Madam, I will go to school next year. If I want to go to the lantern show again, my father said that I have to wait until I get married..."

Pooh!

Next year, I will be given the title of princess and live in Princess Yongning's mansion. It won't be a problem for me to go out and play all night on the 15th day of the first lunar month. What do you mean after I get married?!

This is just to fool ghosts!

Pursing her lips, Wang Xifeng laughed again, closed her eyes and fell asleep peacefully.

On the day of the Lantern Festival, the Crown Princess was still in bed recuperating from her injuries. Although the concubines of the Eastern Palace were invited to go to Chengtian Gate of the Daming Palace to watch the people having fun together, only Wu Liangyuan was willing to go.

Wang Xifeng used the excuse that He Ke had caught a cold and had a cough and that she had to stay to take care of him, while Mei Ruoqin and Geng Simiao said they wanted to tend to the Crown Princess.

Anyway, no one is willing to go.

Wu Liangyuan happily spent half the night acting coquettishly beside the prince.

Emperor Shengping saw this and felt even more annoyed. He turned around and complained to Dai Quan in private: "I am so old and I don't know how to judge people. Why did you send such a scourge to the East Palace?

"It's really hard for my son to deal with her these past few years, and he also has to consider the face of Princess Kangle..."

Dai Quan smiled and didn't answer.

Emperor Shengping turned around and thought of Wang Xifeng again, and consoled himself: "Fortunately, Wang's temperament and means should be able to suppress Wu a little."

Dai Quan smiled again but still said nothing.

Emperor Shengping found out that he was pretending to be dumb, and he frowned: "You are a good person, and you refuse to say a single wrong word."

"What can a servant say? How can others interfere in such matters in the backyard? Doesn't it all depend on what the prince plans to do?" Dai Quan said with a smile.

Emperor Shengping glared at him and said, "Okay, okay, I got it. If you are not dumb or deaf, you will not be a patriarch!"

Then he asked him, "What is Wu's father, Wu Tianyou, doing?"

"I work as a deputy minister in the Ministry of Revenue. I am neither busy nor idle. I just report to work every day. In the early years, Princess Kangle was good at business, and her dowry has more than doubled.

"When Mr. Wu is not working, he takes care of his family's business, and he has quite a few clever ideas.

"Many of the Ministry of Revenue's money-making initiatives were decided after him." Dai Quan said this and looked down at the ground.

Emperor Shengping frowned as he listened, "Are you saying that Wu Tianyou took advantage of his position as a deputy minister in the Ministry of Revenue to profit from the Ministry's plans?!"

Dai Quan groaned and said with a smile: "It hasn't gotten to this point..."

Emperor Shengping slammed the table angrily and said, "The royal family complains to me every day, saying that I treat those people from noble and military families better than my own flesh and blood relatives!

"I would like to make use of the royal family, but there are a few selfless, people-oriented, smart and capable people in the royal family!

"Everyone wants to be a rat!

"I just rely on my soft heart and have never killed any member of the royal family!"

As he spoke, there was a hint of murderous intent in his eyes.

Dai Quan hurriedly advised: "This is my fault for being too talkative! It's just eight thousand silver coins, how can it be worth your spending so much money!"

"The New Year is over! I am no longer afraid of getting angry and killing people!"

The next day, Emperor Shengping called the prince over, and the two of them closed the door and discussed for most of the day.

On the seventeenth day of the first lunar month, the Ministry of Internal Affairs began the selection process in accordance with the imperial decree.

Princess He Ke, the daughter of Wang Liangdi in the East Hall of Yi Qiu Palace, also wiped her tears while packing her luggage. She moved into Princess Yongning's mansion with two cars and large and small bags, along with Nanny Ji, two maids, and a new female guard Duan Ping.

Yichun Palace sent a message to Wang Liangdi: "When will we move?"

Wang Xifeng smiled sweetly: "Of course I will wait for Wu Liangyuan to vacate the main hall. After all, if I move into the side hall, once the imperial court issues the seal, I am afraid someone will submit a memorial to accuse your Wu family of not distinguishing between the superior and the inferior."

Wu Liangyuan was so choked that she could only roll her eyes.

Juanjuan sighed, "If you don't ask, and she doesn't mention it, we can live in peace like this!"

"She is just bullying me! Why didn't she urge Mei Ruoqin to change the main palace for her in Yi Qiu Palace? Why does she have to change it when it comes to me? And impeachment? Does she believe that I will find someone to impeach Mei Ruoqin and her father right now!?"

Wu Liangyuan was furious.

Juanjuan: "But His Highness has already ordered Wang Liangdi to move in, so Mei Ruoqin must have a reason for not switching with her!"

Wu Liangyuan shot herself in the foot and had to suppress her anger and pack up all her things in the main hall and move to the west hall.

By the time she had moved in, cleaned the main hall, and furnished it with all the furnishings required of a Liangdi, it was already the twentieth day of the first lunar month.

However, Wang Xifeng refused to move and asked the inner court to pick an auspicious day, which was the 22nd day of the first lunar month. She informed the Crown Prince and the Crown Princess and reluctantly said goodbye to Mei Ruoqin and Geng Simiao. Then she moved into the main hall of Yichun Palace.

This day was also the day when the imperial court opened its seal.

The first thing Emperor Shengping did when he sat down to court was to announce: "I am old and ill, and I am unable to sit in court. I have asked the Ministry of Rites to check the etiquette for abdicating the throne to the crown prince."

However, soon after, he received a memorial: a joint petition from the descendants of Prince Xining and the Dukes of Zhenguo, Liguo, Qi, Ningguo, and Rongguo, opposing the emperor's abdication and suggesting that the crown prince serve as regent.

Emperor Shengping frowned, did not respond, and immediately dismissed the court.

When he returned to his bedroom, the old emperor was furious and smashed half of the Duobao Pavilion!

Dai Quan urged: "Don't be angry, don't get angry, the doctor told you to rest!"

Emperor Shengping pointed at the memorial and shouted, "How can you say such nonsense! Look at it, look at all these words. This is not respecting me, this is forcing me!

"I have only told the Ministry of Rites about this matter of abdication, and the rest is only known to the Crown Prince and the Queen!

"This group of people have always been at odds with the Queen. Where did they get this information?!"

As he spoke, his eyes stabbed at Dai Quan like a knife, and he gritted his teeth and said, "Old dog, did you drink the dirty water and leak it to these so-called old friends?!"

Dai Quan's legs went limp and he knelt down, crying and defending himself: "I have followed Your Majesty all my life, and not a single word from the Forbidden City has ever come out of this old slave!

"Although I also hope that Your Majesty can rule the world for eternity, such a major matter is your Majesty's sole decision, how can a minister interfere?

"Even if I were completely confused, I would never talk nonsense like this in my sleep!"