Shu Lingfeng of the Imperial Clan Court has passed away.

He was confined to a small space for three years, and from the second year onwards, he suffered from constant illness.

Shu Chengfeng did not forbid him from seeing the imperial physician, but unfortunately the imperial physician was not a god; he could only diagnose and prescribe medicine, but could not make him completely better.

If he wants to get better, he needs to move out, live in a normal place, and see the sunlight. He can't live in this cramped and cold environment.

They need someone to accompany and serve them.

Unfortunately, this is impossible for sinners.

Therefore, his illness could only worsen until he faced death.

In the less than three years that Shu Lingfeng was imprisoned, he thought about too many things.

From the very first year, he hated the Empress and the Crown Prince. His hatred intensified, especially after they became the Empress Dowager and the Emperor.

The following year, things gradually changed. He hated them, but he hated the capriciousness of fate and the cruelty of his father even more.

In the end, amidst his immense hatred, he gained enlightenment and self-mockery.

He had so much time that he started thinking about it from his childhood.

He thought of his mother.

Consort Li was so favored back then. Even before Consort Zhen was favored, she was the most favored woman in the harem.

Because of her stunning beauty, which was exactly what the late emperor liked, she received a great deal of favor.

She gave birth to a second prince, and surprisingly managed to keep him alive.

Shu Lingfeng remembered that when he was a child, his father often held him, talked to him, and played with him.

He felt that his father loved him the most.

Compared to him, his elder brother, who was clearly the eldest son of the legitimate wife, could only be asked about his studies when he met the Emperor.

There were hardly any heartwarming moments.

As they grew older, their mother was promoted again.

He was even more favored, and his father openly and secretly expressed his intention to entrust the country to him.

I urged him to study hard and do his best.

Yes, that's what he believed back then.

The eldest brother is simply not favored and will be deposed sooner or later; he is the eldest son after all.

Even though she had a fifth brother who was also born of the principal wife, the Empress still didn't have his favor.

That's what he thought, that's what he believed, and that's what his mother thought too.

But then one day, Consort Zhen arrived.

Even though her mother had become a virtuous consort by then, so what? She was still ranked lower in the hierarchy.

However, his anger did not last long. Although his father had made his fifth brother the heir, everyone knew that it was out of necessity.

He even stated explicitly that he would eventually be deposed.

At that time, the eldest brother had already passed away, and Shu Lingfeng was the eldest prince.

The late emperor suppressed the crown prince at every turn, but entrusted the second prince with important responsibilities.

Whether it's inside or outside the court, who can't see it?

The second prince is of noble status and the most favored, so His Majesty's intentions are obvious.

So, Shu Lingfeng indeed started working hard from there.

For many years, he has been fighting with Shu Chengfeng.

Fantasize about that position falling into your lap.

Actually... a few years before the late emperor passed away, he had a vague feeling about it, but he dared not think about it, could not think about it.

Until I was completely abandoned.

In the end, he lost because he was not good enough, but how did he end up like this?

He didn't want to think about it, didn't dare to think about it, and didn't dare to think about it in the past.

But one day, when Ken finally faced his past, he discovered that he had lived his whole life in lies.

He is, and so is the seventh brother.

If the late emperor could live a few more years, then so could my twelfth brother.

Who was the late emperor?

Selfish and hypocritical, insecure and malicious. Many tricks up their sleeve, but small-minded.

He never seriously considered the question of who his successor would be; all he wanted was for an heir to not appear so soon.

His eldest son was upright and honest, but he was not the one he desired.

Wu Zi is cunning and scheming, and is not the person he wants.

And they are the legitimate sons.

He could no longer easily ruin a legitimate son.

Therefore, he supports Shu Lingfeng, and he supports the Third Prince and the Seventh Prince...

They were like dogs dangling from a bone, lunging and biting wildly, but their father, the emperor, never cared about their lives.

He easily gave up on the seventh and eighth brothers.

She also easily gave up on Shu Lingfeng.

He can give up anyone.

In the prison, Shu Lingfeng leaned against the wall and cried so hard that he almost stopped breathing.

But I don't know why I'm crying.

Is it because I've been crying over the past twenty-odd years, all of which have been a dream?

Is she crying because her father, whom she has trusted and respected since childhood, only used her as a pawn?

Why is he crying over the tragic and ugly death of his mother?

Or should I cry because I'm ultimately a useless person?

But when he was a child, he would sit in his father's lap and be held by his father while he wrote and read.

The acacia trees in Linhua Palace bloom and bear fruit every year, and he grows taller little by little.

It was also filled with laughter and joy.

Her father had embraced her mother and told her that he would protect them and their child and ensure nothing happened to them.

And at one point, he did it.

He really protected them, mother and child, very well.

When he was twelve, his father gave him a horse, patted him on the shoulder and said, "You can't pat my head anymore. Ling'er has grown up. After your birthday, you'll be a big boy. Your father is waiting for you, waiting for you to grow up a bit more so that you can share your father's burdens."

Shu Lingfeng no longer remembers what he answered at the time.

It's nothing more than being overly ambitious.

He genuinely wanted to share his father's burdens.

But what happened in the end?

Was it all a lie from the very beginning? Was Father's affection all a lie from the start?

On his deathbed, he seemed to return to Linhua Palace.

It was the season when the rosary peas were bearing fruit, and the sunlight was perfect. Each rosary pea was plump and red.

The Emperor stood under the tree, and the Empress Dowager stood under the eaves.

The Emperor beckoned to him: "Ling'er, come here. Look what I've brought you lately. It's the inkstone you like. The one I had wasn't suitable for you, so I had a new one made. Now that you have such a fine inkstone, shouldn't you study hard and stop being naughty?"

The Empress Dowager never came from the corridor; she just smiled.

Smiling.

As I got closer, I realized that her face was covered in tears from smiling.

Shu Lingfeng turned around and looked at the extremely beautiful acacia flowers under the sunlight.

Turning my head, I saw my father's loving, unreal face bathed in sunlight.

He reached out and took his father's hand.

He was in a daze; perhaps it was all an illusion.

However, one thing he had always known since childhood was that although the acacia seed was beautiful, it was poisonous.

Just like the Emperor's love. Perhaps it was real at one point, but ultimately it became a lie.

...

Inside the Beichen Palace, Eunuch Liu bowed his head and said, "The Second Prince of the Imperial Clan Court has passed away. It happened around midnight."

"What did he say?" Shu Chengfeng's hand paused only briefly.

"This... he only managed a few vague words at the end, saying... saying, 'Father, why did you plant the acacia seeds in Linhua Palace? The acacia seeds are poisonous after all.'"

"His Highness has been ill for a long time, and perhaps he's confused. Where in Linhua Palace can one find a love-sick flower?" Eunuch Liu smiled.

Shu Chengfeng smiled as well. "Yes, where in Linhua Palace can one find love-sick flowers?"

That's been gone for over ten years.

How many people today remember that?

Second brother, it was all just a pipe dream after all.

"Then restore his title and give him a proper burial. Since Second Brother misses the love berries, let's plant a few in front of his tomb."