Chapter 44
But at this moment, due to Sheng Yu's sudden fainting and Ling Wu's deep sleep, the Empress lost all her anger, and her sense of powerlessness quickly disappeared. She coldly ordered:
"Keep the news of His Majesty's fainting a secret! No palace maid or eunuch in the Imperial Study is to divulge even a single detail of this matter; anyone who disobeys will be executed by slow slicing!"
Zhang Delu bowed and replied, "This servant will obey the Empress's decree!"
The Empress coldly looked down at Yu Bai, whose face remained calm, knowing full well that Sheng Yu and Jiao Jiao were unharmed; otherwise, he would never have looked like this.
"Yu Bai, do you know your crime?"
Yu Bai looked up at the Empress and saw the knowing look on her face.
In an instant, his limbs felt cold!
Did the Empress already know that His Majesty and Bai Mihan would do this for the sake of the young prince?
Therefore, the Empress would wait in front of the dark room, so when she saw His Majesty faint, she was not very panicked.
But the Empress's hands were trembling as she held the little prince. Did this mean that in the Empress's heart, the life or death of His Majesty was not as important as the safety of the little prince?
Yu Bai's breath hitched. He lowered his head, pretending not to know, and said, "Your humble servant knows his crime."
The Empress glanced at him indifferently, then carried Ling Wu out.
But with just that one glance, Yu Bai changed his opinion of the Empress. Now, thinking about the Empress's identity more carefully...
The only daughter of the General Who Guards the North.
In Fengqi Palace, the Empress tenderly touched Lingwu's small face, her lips inevitably pursed slightly.
"Your Majesty, His Highness the Crown Prince requests an audience."
As soon as he finished speaking, the Crown Prince hurriedly entered the inner room. Upon seeing this, the Empress frowned almost imperceptibly. "Have you forgotten everything I taught you?"
"Your subject knows his mistake, but he is, after all, your subject's father, and your subject cannot remain undistracted." The Crown Prince's gentle face showed a hint of worry.
But the Empress raised her eyebrows slightly, a hint of sarcasm in her lips, "How many of his blood relatives are truly devoted? It's one thing to put on an act in front of him, but to do the same to your mother will only annoy her!"
The worry between the Crown Prince's brows vanished instantly, and he smiled gently, "It's good that Mother Empress doesn't soften her heart."
The Empress lowered her gaze to the exquisitely beautiful baby and said, "Spare her life."
"Has Mother truly fallen for him?"
The Empress scoffed, "Then kill him?"
The Crown Prince's smile faltered for a moment, then he breathed a sigh of relief. "As long as Mother wasn't joking just now, that's good."
Ling Wu's long, silvery-white hair drooped slightly in mid-air, almost fooling even her.
It's interesting that there's more than one heartless and ungrateful person among them.
“But my maternal grandfather hasn’t agreed yet.” The prince blinked.
"He will agree after the autumn hunt."
"Is Mother so certain that Grandfather will break his promise to the late Emperor and force Father to abdicate ahead of schedule?"
"Heh, if you don't abdicate and wait five or ten years, not only will your General's Mansion be wiped out, but your maternal clan will also be completely destroyed."
The Empress held Lingwu's small hand, a complex expression in her phoenix eyes.
The Crown Prince did not say, but it seems that Sheng Yu has already changed his mind.
He glanced at Ling Wu's tender and adorable face, his gentle eyes filled with affection, "Mother asked me to also coax my younger sister..."
"Go to Chuxiu Palace. Little Fifth Princess should be sleeping right now." The Empress sneered. Surely the Fifth Princess wasn't his imperial sister?
The Crown Prince tapped his back teeth. "Over the years, Mother has never given any leeway to me or my brother."
"You're calling me so affectionately, so don't be soft-hearted during the autumn hunt."
The Crown Prince lowered his eyelashes. "Your subject understands."
Seeing his reaction, the Empress felt a chill in her heart. "Your real brother died fourteen years ago, on... the day your father ascended the throne." The Empress's breathing became erratic for a moment, but then returned to normal.
A shadow crossed the Crown Prince's eyes, but he composed himself.
The Empress saw through the struggle in his eyes and gently reminded him, "He was just an abandoned baby back then. If it weren't for me, he wouldn't be alive today. You are the child on whom I have placed my hopes. I have never taught you to be soft-hearted."
“From my son’s province.”
As the Crown Prince left, he glanced at Ling Wu, who was sleeping soundly on the bed, with a deep look in his eyes, and then strode towards the Imperial Study.
His father, perhaps, regretted it, though he still deceived himself by saying that he had never had the intention of seizing the throne.
Pshaw, how ironic.
Lingwu glanced at the Crown Prince and then returned to her body.
Deep resentment lingered within the palace, yet it was suppressed by the dragon's aura, confined to a dark place and never given a chance to wreak havoc.
The Crown Prince still appears refined and gentle, but in recent years, Sheng Yu has sent him to the common people to experience their hardships. Therefore, in addition to his gentleness, he now exudes a more resolute and composed demeanor.
His mother was pressuring him, forcing him to choose between his father and her.
He sighed softly, but his sigh eventually turned into determination.
On the day of the autumn hunt, Lingwu wore a long, fiery red dress embroidered by the Empress herself.
The twelve-year-old fifth princess has shed her naivety and is now full of heroic spirit. "Jiaojiao, when your older sister wins the first prize, I will win back all the prizes that Father and the others set up and give them to you!"
"Sister is amazing!" Lingwu exclaimed, her beautiful eyes crinkling.
The Fifth Princess blushed slightly, but didn't forget to reciprocate with a compliment, "Of course, after all, I am Jiaojiao's elder sister!"
The third prince is now thirteen years old, and his dark armor makes him look even more aloof.
He pursed his lips, his face cold, ignoring the gazes of the noble ladies fixed on him.
However, she did not forget to remind Lingwu, "Jiaojiao, you must not be greedy for cold drinks. You should only have a small sip of fruit juice."
The Third Prince, who always had a cold face in front of outsiders, would give Ling Wu a doting smile when she turned her head, which made countless girls of the same age lose their hearts.
The fourth prince, who is the same age as the fifth princess, was much shorter than her before, but in the past year he has grown taller and is now half a head taller than her.
His face was pale, and his eyes were still gloomy, but his handsome face made many noble ladies blush with embarrassment.
He lazily raised his eyes and spoke gently to Ling Wu: "If Jiao Jiao likes it, then Your Majesty can warm up the fruit drink, so that some old-fashioned people who are not old can stop lecturing our Jiao Jiao."
The Third Prince and the Fourth Prince locked eyes. One was aloof and handsome, the other wicked and dashing, yet both were captivating, especially the way they looked at Ling Wu.
Ling Wu was caught in a dilemma: whether to put the fruit cup down or not. In the end, it was the Second Prince, who arrived late, who came to her rescue.
"Jiaojiao is already tired of drinking it. Why are you two still bothering her with this? I think the task Father Emperor gave you two is too easy." The Second Prince, dressed in a red black armor, was flamboyant and domineering.
The third and fourth princes looked away, their somewhat similar faces both filled with displeasure.
The second prince rested his head on the back of his head, winked at Ling Wu, and then whispered closer:
"Second brother knows all about the bad things your little darling told Father the other day! Hmph, second brother is handsome and kind-hearted, so I won't hold it against your little darling. Look, second brother has even helped you out of that situation. Don't say it again next time, okay?"
He blinked, then thought to himself, "But my second brother wasn't wrong. Father will indeed have trouble using the toilet when he gets old!"
The Second Prince's eyes seemed to hold a cluster of dazzling stars, and when he looked at Ling Wu, they were filled with a spring-like warmth. He blinked his long eyelashes and then spoke smugly, "What? Little darling, are you perhaps stunned by your brother's good looks?"
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