Looking at the woman in his arms, Ninth Prince reflected on his actions over the years. It seemed he had indeed been supporting Eighth Prince, but what benefit had he gained? Eighth Prince had promised to help him connect the world with the imperial court and travel the globe; his only wish seemed to be to open his own banks throughout the country. Now, Eighth Prince had been demoted to a bald prince by his father, the Emperor, and those grand ambitions seemed impossible to fulfill.

Ninth Prince's wife looked up at him, who was deep in thought, and said, "Your Highness, isn't it enough for us to just live our own lives? It doesn't really matter to you who holds that position. They are all your brothers. As long as you can assist them well in the future, your ideals will naturally be realized."

This was the first time Ninth Prince had heard such words. He pondered them and realized that Ninth Princess Consort's words were indeed true. He seemed to have initially believed that only by following Eighth Prince could he secure a comfortable position, but in reality, it was very difficult for Eighth Prince to reach that rank. Even after years of secretly plotting for him, cultivating relationships with so many officials, and submitting joint petitions to Emperor Kangxi, he still hadn't been able to elevate him!

“The Eighth Prince was born too low. Father Emperor has so many outstanding sons, why would he choose one born so low? The Prince is wise all his life, but he has made a foolish mistake this time!” said the Ninth Prince’s wife.

The Ninth Prince's wife's words were like a blow to the head in the darkness, forcing him to confront whether his past actions were truly right.

Seeing that she had said enough, Ninth Prince's wife immediately got up from him.

As they spoke, the carriage arrived at the main gate of Tanzhe Temple. Unlike Huangjue Temple, this temple was located not far behind the Forbidden City, so people flocked there to offer incense and pray.

There were quite a few distinguished guests like Master Eight and Master Nine. They were all dressed in ordinary clothes and blended into the crowd, so no one knew their identities.

Ninth Prince helped Ninth Princess down from the carriage, and they immediately saw Eighth Prince's carriage parked across the street. Eighth Prince was also dressed in casual clothes, and Eighth Princess was standing beside him, looking in Ninth Prince's direction.

"Eighth Brother!" Ninth Master greeted Eighth Master across the crowd. Ninth Princess Consort, standing beside him, followed Ninth Master in bowing to Eighth Master and Consort Consort. Her face regained its usual indifference. From Eighth Master's various actions towards Ninth Master, she felt that her master had been used, used as a stepping stone.

That's right, Dong E Jin Yu is no longer the same Dong E Jin Yu as before, but she is not a modern person who has traveled through time like Lan Qin. Half a year after her wedding to Ninth Master, she somehow rolled down a rockery and fainted.

At the time, Ninth Prince and Dong'e Jinyu seemed deeply in love. But after that fall, Dong'e was no longer the same Dong'e. When she awoke, her mind was completely different. She had been reborn. That fall had brought her to the brink of death, but for some unknown reason, death had granted her a second chance. Immediately, she saw the horrific scene of Ninth Prince being poisoned in prison, and herself, along with all her concubines and children, being taken to the Imperial Clan Court. At first, Dong'e dared not speak out, so she feigned indifference and gradually distanced herself from Ninth Prince. She didn't want to watch her beloved man favor another, become involved in the Eighth Prince's faction, and ultimately meet such a tragic end. Therefore, she decided she would no longer be that kind of Ninth Prince's wife, and lived like a ghost in the Ninth Prince's mansion. She only wanted to avoid experiencing that heart-wrenching pain again. She considered changing Ninth Prince's fate, but she couldn't think of how to tell him. If you tell him directly that he has been reborn, it will probably scare Ninth Master half to death; if you directly intervene to stop him from associating with Eighth Master, Ninth Master definitely won't listen.

Ninth Prince, arm in arm with Ninth Princess, crossed the road together and joined Eighth Prince and the others. After exchanging greetings, Eighth Princess keenly sensed that Ninth Prince and Ninth Princess seemed less distant than before.

“You women should go pray to Guanyin, while Lao Jiu and I will go worship the Buddha!” said Eighth Master.

After the Eighth Prince and the Ninth Prince left with their respective servants, the Eighth Prince's wife looked at Dong Eshi with surprise and said, "Ninth Sister-in-law seems to be acting differently than before."

Lady Dong'e looked at the Eighth Prince's wife and gave a faint smile. She disliked the Eighth Prince and his wife. After all, the Ninth Prince's ultimate fate was due to his involvement in the couple's struggle for the throne. If the Ninth Prince hadn't interfered, she and her children wouldn't have met such an end. Although the Eighth Prince's wife's final fate was also tragic—self-immolation—the Ninth Prince's wife still harbored a deep reluctance to be close to her.

"Eighth Sister-in-law looks very energetic today. I'm still the same as always!" Dong E's usual way of hiding herself was to praise others and belittle herself, so that others wouldn't bother her.

As expected, when the Ninth Prince's wife spoke like this, the Eighth Prince's wife reverted to her usual disdain for Dong E Shi. She felt that Dong E Shi had been neglected by her master for seven or eight years, allowing concubines and maids to bear children, yet she still acted as if she didn't care at all, which was an insult to the dignity of the primary prince's wife.

The two women, each with their own hidden thoughts, walked together, supported by their maids, toward the Guanyin Temple at Tantuo Temple. There, women came seeking children. Seeing the Guanyin statue, the Eighth Prince's wife thought to herself that she had been married to the Eighth Prince for almost nine years, yet had no children, and felt truly saddened. So, she took her maid's hand and went ahead. Seeing the Eighth Prince's wife so desperately seeking a child, Dong'e Shi thought to herself: "Praying is useless; if you are not destined to have children, you are not." The Eighth Prince's wife never bore him a son or daughter, and was ultimately forced by the Fourth Prince to commit suicide by self-immolation.

Thinking of this, Dong E felt a pang of sorrow in her heart. She herself had only given birth to one daughter, and it seemed that she had given birth to her this year! Dong E suddenly realized, could it be that her passionate lovemaking with Ninth Prince yesterday had already planted a seed? Otherwise, it's already the end of March, and if she didn't conceive soon, she wouldn't be able to give birth this year!

Thinking of this, Lady Dong'e, supported by her maid, walked over. She looked up at Guanyin Bodhisattva, her heart filled with resentment: Guanyin Bodhisattva, in my past life, how much incense did I burn for you, how much money did I donate? Why couldn't you save Ninth Master's life, or the lives of my whole family? In this life, why should I still believe in you?

"Ninth Sister-in-law, why aren't you bowing?" The Eighth Prince's wife had already finished bowing, but seeing that Dong Eshi kept looking up at Guanyin without bowing, she asked.