Chapter 95
The Third Princess's mind went blank. She only instinctively grabbed Xue Jin'an to prevent him from actually killing the Ninth Prince.
The third princess felt she had to say something. She struggled to process her sluggish thoughts and stammered out a comprehensible sentence: "Although...but...it doesn't warrant killing him, does it?"
Xue Jin'an offered a logical explanation: "He will punish you even when you are innocent. According to the proportional formula, the cost of your crime will be more than twice as high as that of an ordinary person."
Xue Jin'an held up one finger to the somewhat dazed Third Princess, "And this is under the condition that no other factors interfere."
The Third Princess stared at the finger, her previously sluggish mind finally starting to work again, followed by a chill running down her spine: In other words, the punishment she was currently receiving was decided solely by her father, the Emperor, and that other forces, such as court officials and powerful families, would intervene to exert pressure, meaning the punishment she would face would only be more severe.
The Third Princess wasn't stupid, or rather, being around the Eldest Princess and listening to her seemingly plausible but ultimately misleading words would eventually make even the most dull-witted person understand. She knew that the Emperor wasn't a hardliner; while court officials and noble families might have excessive freedom of speech, he generally wouldn't rebuke their slightly overstepping actions as long as they didn't cross his bottom line.
The Third Princess, of course, didn't know what her father's bottom line was, but she knew she certainly wouldn't be that bottom line. Even her seventh brother, who was considered her father's favorite prince, couldn't get his favor when he was treated unfairly, so what could she expect?
Negative emotions surged up, and immense despair crashed over the Third Princess like turbulent waves, drenching her from head to toe. Her eyes were red, and she swayed precariously, looking utterly pitiful.
She already knew and was prepared to accept it, but why did she still feel so sad now that it had been pointed out? The Third Princess, whose emotions were holding her captive, had difficulty breathing. Just then, a calm and undisturbed voice entered her mind, putting all her emotions on pause.
Xue Jin'an didn't specify what the other factors were, but directly concluded: "Just in case, kill them directly."
Third Princess: ...It makes a strange sense, and I'm starting to feel a little tempted, what should I do?
Xue Jin'an, believing he had explained everything, took the dazed Third Princess's apparent understanding as acceptance of his actions, and simply dragged her out.
After being held captive for a while, Li Hechun finally came to his senses. He was drenched in sweat and quickly stopped his ancestor, his sharp voice trembling, "Your Highness! Seventh Prince, please calm down!!"
How could he not tremble? This ancestor really meant what he said he would do if he killed the Ninth Prince! I don't know what will happen to the ancestor if the Ninth Prince really dies today, but he will definitely be in deep trouble.
After hating himself for not being a blockhead, Li Hechun began to hate himself for not being able to walk slower. Why did he rush out in such a hurry just to avoid facing His Majesty's wrath? He should have realized it sooner. His ancestor's quiet departure must mean he was up to something!
No matter how much Li Hechun groaned inwardly, he had no choice but to go all out at this moment. Seeing that the Seventh Prince was ignoring him and was about to walk past him, and seeing the Imperial Guards poised to surround him, he drew his weapon, a feathered arrow, ready to strike.
—Wait, when exactly did this arrow return to the Seventh Prince's hands? It seems that from the very beginning of the journey back to Qian Yuan Palace, the Seventh Prince had already put away this arrow, with blood still on its tip, and tucked half of it into his sleeve, leaving only a thin, short section showing.
At the time, Li Hechun was too eager to bring the two back to Qianyuan Palace and get rid of this deadly task as soon as possible. He deliberately lowered his five senses and did not pay too much attention to it. However, he did not expect to lose both his wife and his army and make such a big mistake.
The Seventh Prince actually brought a sharp weapon to the Emperor's presence, leaving Li Hechun in a real bind.
However, there was a more urgent matter at hand. To prevent the situation from spiraling out of control, Li Hechun disregarded everything else and immediately threw himself on the spot, grabbing the Seventh Prince's leg and blurting out everything he could say: "Ancestor, please calm down! This won't solve anything, you..."
Li Hechun couldn't quite remember what exactly was said, but he racked his brains and even said, "The punishment was just His Majesty's joke in his anger, and there's still room for maneuver. But if the Ninth Prince dies, then it's really hopeless, my ancestor... Please listen to this servant's words!!"
Xue Jin'an took those last words to heart. The arrow was still firmly in his hand, no longer stained with the blood and flesh of anyone else. He simply looked down at Li Hechun and asked, "Really?"
Li Hechun, fearing that his next words would be "I don't believe it," immediately interrupted, "This servant will go and report to His Majesty immediately. Your Highness, please wait here for a moment and do not move. I will come immediately after I relay the message!"
After earnestly pleading with Xue Jin'an, Li Hechun immediately scrambled to his feet and rushed back to the main hall as if his life depended on it. He wiped the sweat from his brow and felt that he would rather face the emperor's wrath in the Qian Yuan Palace than have a living ancestor who might beat up his stepmother, brothers (concubines and princes) and other people he could neither afford nor dare to offend.
After all, when the emperor gets angry, he only has to clean up the table and make things a little harder for the eunuchs and palace maids who are sweeping and tidying up. But they just have to endure it in fear for a while, and everything will be fine once the emperor calms down.
Li Hechun wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, having already decided that if something like this happened again, he would stay by the emperor's side and would never leave, no matter what.
At that moment, Li Hechun, who was so confident, never imagined that he would soon overturn his decision.
It wasn't because the emperor had become more difficult to serve. On the contrary, Li Hechun entered the main hall with trepidation, thinking that persuading the emperor would be a difficult task and might even anger him and bring misfortune upon himself. But unexpectedly, although the emperor was dissatisfied, he dared to nod and agree quickly, ordering him to bring Xue Jin'an back in.
Li Hechun, seizing the thought that he wanted to explore, randomly pointed to a eunuch to bring the Seventh Prince in.
He now has a psychological aversion to the act of bringing the seventh prince to see the emperor. He thinks to himself: I still need to train a disciple to take over. My master is right, serving the emperor is like serving a tiger, the palace is too deep.
Manager Li wants to retire.
Before long, the Seventh Prince, who had left without saying a word, returned to the main hall. He came in alone. Although the Third Princess was the one being "judged," she was very clever and bold, and directly entrusted the power of the conversation to Xue Jin'an.
A glint of light flashed across the emperor's face, and he said with a troubled and helpless expression, "Baoning, you have really given me a difficult problem."
The emperor spoke at length, portraying himself as a "loving father who knows his child has made a mistake but doesn't know how to change it, so he can only indulge him." He said things like he was only willing to compromise and withdraw his order because Xue Jin'an was involved, revealing three parts helplessness, three parts indulgence, and four parts seduction, making him a perfect example of a spoiled parent.
The emperor concluded by saying, "Your father will always stand by your side."
Xue Jin'an remained unmoved.
He could naturally see that the emperor intended to solidify his status as the "emperor's most favored prince," clearly having some ulterior motives. However, it didn't matter. Whether the emperor intended to spoil him or something else, he treated it as the mere whining of a grasshopper in autumn.
Xue Jin'an bowed and left without looking back, taking the Third Princess with him as well.
The emperor watched his retreating figure, then suddenly chuckled, "Li Hechun, my little seventh son is indeed unruly and increasingly lawless."
He spoke accusingly, but his voice carried a hint of laughter.
To be honest, the emperor was initially furious at Xue Jin'an's insolence, thinking the same words but with murderous intent. However, he quickly calmed down, not only thinking of Xue Jin'an's once-in-a-century talent as a general, but also that Xue Jin'an's falling out with the powerful families and becoming a weapon only to curry favor with him was the best possible outcome.
"Baoning's heart is still good." He's not arrogant enough yet; he should offend all the court officials and powerful families.
The emperor chuckled softly.
Having vaguely discerned His Majesty's thoughts, Li Hechun concealed the disbelief in his eyes, only feeling a chill run down his spine.
Even though he already knew that the emperor was the kind of person who would deliberately drive assassins to the princes' quarters and sacrifice his own son's life just to lure out more information about the person behind the scenes, Li Hechun was still shocked by his cold-heartedness.
Was it really necessary to go this far? There were clearly other ways to achieve the same goal...
After being shocked, Li Hechun couldn't help but think of himself. If His Majesty treats his own children like this, if one day... can I, who have been by his side and know so many secrets, really have a good end?
Li Hechun hid all his unease, put aside the vows he had just made, and put the matter of training a successor and retiring as soon as possible on the agenda.
*
The Third Princess never expected that she would actually emerge from Qian Yuan Palace unscathed. She was still somewhat dazed and couldn't believe it. Recalling the entire incident, at a certain moment she suddenly understood what it meant that "dignity lies only on the edge of the sword."
Only by becoming strong enough can one change the corrupt status quo and avoid being swayed by the words of others.
"But... I can't become you." The Third Princess looked more sad than ever before, saddened that even though she had seen through the confusion of the road ahead and found the key to break free from the cage, she couldn't get it to liberate herself.
This is not because the Third Princess is being modest, nor because she is discouraged, but because she has a clear and thorough understanding of herself and is very self-aware.
She couldn't obtain or control the power her elder sister spoke of. She was just an orphan with no one to rely on, and she hadn't even read many books. She often only had a vague understanding of what her elder sister was talking about. She didn't have the talent in that area, and no matter how hard she tried, she could never become the elder sister.
She couldn't do what her seventh brother did, so recklessly. She couldn't bring herself to do anything without thinking. She was always worried about implicating those around her. She had no ambition, and she didn't ask for much. She just wanted to live peacefully and happily with Consort Wen.
But why is living so difficult? What should I do? Overwhelmed by the surging sadness, the Third Princess looked helplessly at the two people who had ever offered her a helping hand in her short yet long life, and subconsciously wanted to add weight to their souls.
Xue Jin'an said matter-of-factly, "You are you, of course you can't become me."
"As expected, I can only live like this, without any dignity..." The light in the Third Princess's eyes died out.
"Why would you think that? Why give up on yourself?" Xue Jin'an didn't understand, so he directly showed her the meaning of the word in his browser: "Dignity, nobility and solemnity, a respected and inviolable identity or status... Humans are born free and enjoy equal dignity and rights."
The third princess paused, pondering the last sentence, and slowly murmured, "Born with it? Isn't it necessary to possess power?"
The third princess looked confused.
Xue Jin'an's data analysis immediately revealed that the origin of this concept was the eldest princess.
He immediately understood that this was the princess's interpretation of the saying, "Dignity lies only on the edge of the sword, and truth lies only within the range of the arrow."
Is there any error in the understanding? No, there is. This statement was originally made from a national perspective, and a weak nation has no diplomacy. If a country wants to have a voice, it must stand at the center of the world and possess the power to control the rules.
The consequence of a nation losing its power is the loss of sovereignty and national humiliation. This is what countless authors of Republican-era literature have told Xue Jin'an through their poignant historical accounts.
When this applies to an individual, there is more than one path. After all, human beings are not simply black and white; their independence is divided into spiritual and material aspects.
Xue Jinan said, “Dignity is self-reliance, mastering power and reaching the top is dignity, and sacrificing one’s life for the country is also dignity… These are all just forms of dignity, so don’t be bound by their forms.”
"What should I do?" the Third Princess asked impatiently.
Before today, she could almost foresee her future.
If she's lucky, she'll be completely forgotten. When she reaches marriageable age, she'll leave the palace and live a free life where no one cares. Then she'll marry a man with little family background or wealth but a good temper. After her father passes away, she can request permission to bring Consort Wen out to live out her days in peace and quiet.
If she's less fortunate, she might become a political resource, perhaps like her birth mother, a political sacrifice for marriage alliances, peace treaties, or other means of winning over others. Or perhaps, like her adoptive mother, Empress Wen, she'll be powerless to resist fate, like a butterfly bound by layers of spider webs, unable to break free from destiny, and casually thrown to others. In any case, it won't be a good outcome.
The Great Qi Dynasty was the absolute hegemon of this eastern continent, so naturally there were no strict quotas for marriage alliances. However, every year there were countries that wanted to marry princesses from the Celestial Empire in order to maintain relations between the two sides through marriage, such as the countries in the Western Regions.
Besides being famous for its gems, spices, and merchants, the Western Regions were most notorious for their chaotic political landscape and numerous small states. In fact, a hundred years ago, there was a unified regime there, but it was broken up when it invaded the Central Plains by being attacked from both sides (the previous dynasty and the Rong and Di tribes).
Then each side supported a regime, and the two sides fought a civil war and split apart, eventually forming several small countries. Most of these small countries were relatively peaceful, and in order to survive and make money, they even formed a merchant alliance, which had a bit of a federal system to it.
However, there are always some ambitious people who are not satisfied with the status quo and want to restore the glory of the Great Xia Dynasty a hundred years ago, which has led to the constant changes of regime in the Western Regions over the past hundred years, with the fastest change being three times in two years.
The Jieshi regime, which has been in power for four years, was overthrown in the early days of the founding of the Great Qi Dynasty. Its rule is unstable and it is eager to gain the support of the Great Qi.
When her eldest sister came of age, Jieshi had just regained power and offered her the title of queen in marriage. However, her eldest sister had her own ideas, and her father loved her very much, so he naturally refused.
My second sister has already died young, and she is the next daughter to come of age. Regardless of whether the one in power in the Western Regions is Jieshi or not, it is very likely that they will come to ask for my hand in marriage again. Will Father Emperor refuse this time?
No. The Third Princess already knew the answer; she refused to accept it.
She used to pretend to be deaf and dumb and wait for fate to judge her, but now she can't wait to grasp at a glimmer of hope.
This was the first time Xue Jin'an had been asked for life advice. His mind raced, and a multitude of ideas immediately popped into his head, all sharing a common premise: "Are you afraid of losing your princess status?"
The third princess decisively shook her head. Her status as a princess brought her no benefits. In this place of fine clothes and splendor, she still suffered from hunger and cold, and was bullied and looked down upon.
If it weren't for Consort Wen, she would probably have died long ago.
“Then you have nothing to fear. You have countless paths to take.” Xue Jin’an did not point out the way forward for her. He just looked at her with his dark eyes that seemed to devour all light and said, “What you need to do now is to ensure that you can still live well after you lose your identity.”
Confucius said, “I have never seen a truly resolute person.” Someone replied, “Shen Cheng.” Confucius said, “Cheng is driven by desires; how can he be resolute?” This is the meaning of “being resolute when one is without desires.” Xue Jin’an told her a story and continued in his fair tone, “You have never enjoyed the conveniences that come with your status, so naturally you don’t need to bear the responsibilities of it. You just need to live your own life well.”
The third princess was taken aback. She opened her mouth, then realized that those so-called obstacles were merely attached to her status. After abandoning her status, her future was bright and clear.
"I understand." Yes, she had nothing to lose, she didn't ask for much, so there was no need to be afraid.
The third princess finally smiled, a smile of understanding and relief. She said firmly, "I will definitely go to Jiu Tian Yi."
When Cui Zui first met the Third Princess, he paid her to make clay figurines, hoping she would supply goods to Jiu Tian Yi. However, because the Third Princess was self-taught and had many problems with her skills that needed to be corrected, he suggested that she go to Jiu Tian Yi to learn from the masters.
The Third Princess had kept this matter in mind, but for various reasons, she did not take action. Even though Xue Jin'an had provided her with a way to find the Eldest Princess, she hesitated and did not seek help.
At this moment, she finally made up her mind to take the first step towards independence and self-reliance.
The two walked to the Imperial Garden. It was early spring, and the chill of winter had not yet dissipated. It was a time when green leaves were scarce and withered, and as far as the eye could see, there were only withered branches and fallen leaves, with little color to be seen.
It was already getting dark when Xue Jin'an noticed a strange light source in the distance. He squinted, guessed what it was, turned around the artificial hill, and sure enough, saw a group of people carrying lanterns in a pavilion in the distance.
Two women dressed in palace attire, one standing and one sitting, were brewing tea and preparing incense with their backs to the artificial hill, their posture relaxed.
The woman standing there was dressed rather thinly, with a pale face and a frail figure. She was pacing back and forth anxiously, glancing around every now and then. Her squinting eyes were somewhat unfocused, clearly indicating that she had an eye ailment.
Xue Jin'an turned on the night vision camera and could see the people in the pavilion clearly. He immediately knew that these people who were deliberately waiting here were Consort Zhuang from Chonghua Palace and Consort Wen, the foster mother of the Third Princess.
However, the first thing he noticed was the tall palace maid standing next to Consort Wen. When they came out from behind the artificial hill, she quickly lifted her eyelids and glanced at them. Her eyes were calm and cold, the eyes of a martial arts master.
Xue Jin'an recognized her immediately; she was the one who took the Ninth Prince away at the palace banquet. She had a lotus tattoo on the side of her neck, the same lotus pattern as the one on the hilt of the lotus sword.
Qingye, the head palace maid brought in by Consort Zhuang from the Lin Yuan Marquis's residence, is suspected to be a wandering swordsman kept by Prince An.
Xue Jin'an guessed the identity of the person in the pavilion very accurately.
When the Third Princess finally saw the figure in the pavilion, she was overjoyed and couldn't help but call out her private address: "Your Majesty!"
—The Third Princess was raised under the care of Consort Wen since birth. She was unaware of her origins as a child and called Consort Wen "Mother".
In the palace, there wasn't such strict adherence to the distinction between legitimate and illegitimate mothers in noble families. Although one could only address the Empress as "Mother Empress" and had to avoid using the term "Mother Consort" to address one's birth mother or concubines, it was perfectly acceptable to call them "Mother" or "A-niang" in private.
Consort Wen was trying to avoid mentioning that her status was too low. She came from a poor family, was a palace maid who had become a mistress, and was not favored... Multiple factors combined were not good for the future of the Third Princess.
The Third Princess's birth mother, Consort Yu, was at least of the bloodline of the Marquis of Dinghai, making her a more presentable wife in future marriage negotiations.
Consort Wen spent a lot of effort to correct the Third Princess's form of address, but the Third Princess was stubborn despite her young age. She would cry and call for her mother even when her hands were slapped. In the end, Consort Wen relented and allowed her to call her "Niangniang" (娘娘), which has a similar pronunciation and meaning, but only in private.
The third princess called out and rushed towards Consort Wen like a swallow returning to its nest.
Consort Wen didn't care about the form of address at this moment. She handed the warm hot water bottle she was holding to the nanny. Even though she could barely see, she was able to open her arms and accurately catch the Third Princess in her arms. Her slender figure swayed slightly, but she stood strong in the cold wind.
The Third Princess threw herself into Consort Wen's warm embrace, only then realizing how thin her clothes were and how cold the fabric at her waist was.
She immediately understood that Consort Wen had deliberately kept a hot water bottle warm in her arms so that she wouldn't get cold when she rushed over.
The third princess felt the warmth of her palm being absorbed by the cool fabric, yet she refused to let go, sniffling and choking out, "Your Majesty, aren't you cold—"
Before she could finish speaking, tears were already streaming down her face.
"Oh, it's good that you're alright, don't cry..." Consort Wen's eyes also reddened. Seeing that she was alright, she finally felt relieved. All her words turned into comforting pats, and she hid her face in her arms to keep her tear-stained cheeks from being chilled by the cold wind.
The Third Princess's tears flowed even more because of this thoughtful gesture. She had only one thought in her mind: I still have to beat the Ninth Prince half to death. My Seventh Brother is right. It's only worthwhile to reuse him!
The Third Princess was literally "meticulous" in her calculations.
The moment the mother and daughter embraced, Xue Jin'an saw Consort Zhuang, who was standing with her back to them in the pavilion, make a gesture. All the palace maids stopped what they were doing and quietly gave the mother and daughter more time to be alone.
It was at this time that Xue Jin'an discovered that most of the palace maids brought by Consort Zhuang had some martial arts skills and their lower body was more stable than that of ordinary people. Of course, most of them only had rudimentary skills and were no match for Qingye.
This green leaf exudes a long and deep aura, moves silently, and stands with a seemingly casual stance yet without any flaws... Analyzing all these details, even without engaging in combat, one can tell that this is definitely a master.
Even if Prince An were to search for martial arts masters, those at this level would be few and far between throughout the entire martial arts world.
There are many intrigues and schemes in the harem. More important than physical strength is intelligence. So, who was Consort Zhuang trying to guard against by bringing such a person into the palace?
Xue Jin'an narrowed it down to one person: Lu Bingzhu, who had retired to Cining Palace, and behind Lu Bingzhu was the Empress Dowager.
However, the Empress Dowager is old and has been out of the center of power for many years. Her influence is less than one-tenth of what it used to be when she was in power. Prince An has been plotting for so many years, and his hand has even reached into the palace. It is not an easy task, but it is not difficult either, to truly deceive the Empress Dowager and take over the throne.
So why isn't he taking action? Surely he can't be waiting for the Empress Dowager's approval?
Xue Jin'an temporarily ruled out this smallest possibility.
As Xue Jin'an's thoughts raced, he felt Fu Lu approaching from behind. He quietly tugged at Fu Lu's sleeve and whispered, "Your Highness, let's go slowly."
"Oh." Xue Jin'an didn't understand, but he respected the pace and simply slowed his steady pace to 0.5 times the normal speed, moving forward at a snail's pace.
Fuling was a little annoyed by the slow pace, so she stopped and looked at Xue Jin'an with some curiosity as he continued to walk at a steady pace.
The speed adjustment was so smooth that Fulu, caught off guard, crashed into it, clutching his forehead and hissing involuntarily.
The Third Princess and Consort Wen immediately realized what was happening and separated, both lowering their eyes almost simultaneously with identical expressions of embarrassment.
"Seventh Brother!" The Third Princess saw Xue Jin'an still crawling like a tortoise and thought he was teasing her, so her whole face turned red.
Fu Lu couldn't bear to watch any longer and tugged at Xue Jin'an's sleeve again: "Master, let's hurry over there."
Xue Jin'an tilted his head, indicating that he still didn't understand why it was sometimes fast and sometimes slow.
He didn't understand, but obediently adjusted the speed to double and swept into the pavilion like the wind.
Consort Wen felt cold and instinctively pulled her hand away. The Third Princess quickly placed the warm hot water bottle in her hand.
With a stern face, Fulu hurriedly caught up, thinking in despair: Master, how do you manage to be so fast and slow at the same time?!
Fuling didn't seem to realize what was happening until Fulu had been gone for a while. Then she let out a soft "Wow!" that only she could hear, and quickly caught up with him, arriving at the pavilion almost simultaneously with Fulu.
The two bowed to Xue Jin'an, saying, "Greetings, Consort Zhuang and Consort Wen."
"Your Highness, there's no need for such formalities!" Consort Wen was a concubine in the harem and needed to avoid suspicion with the Seventh Prince. She could only extend her hand to help him up, and said with a sincere tone of gratitude, "If it weren't for Your Highness's help, Nian'er would probably be... It should be this concubine who thanks Your Highness the Seventh Prince."
Even though she didn't know exactly what had happened in Qian Yuan Palace, she had already guessed a bit. She knew that without the Seventh Prince's intervention, her daughter wouldn't have been able to get out so easily.
Originally, Consort Wen Zhao wanted to go to Qian Yuan Palace to plead with His Majesty, but Consort Zhuang stopped her after learning about the situation outside.
"Neither of us has much face in front of His Majesty. Going there would probably backfire. Isn't that why you came to me? You know this, don't you?" Consort Zhuang's voice was low, carrying a cold, melancholic quality like underground spring water.
“But…” Consort Wen hesitated. She knew that Consort Zhuang was right, but she really couldn’t bear to let the Third Princess face it alone.
"Qingye went to ask, and they said the Seventh Prince went along as well," Consort Zhuang said.
Consort Wen was taken aback. She had only just realized that the Seventh Prince was also there. But then she understood why Nian'er and the Ninth Prince had met, and why it was the latter who was carried into the Imperial Hospital.
Xue Jin'an's reputation as a "Rakshasa" in the palace was so great that she naturally assumed that it was the Seventh Prince who had made the move.
However, she didn't think there was anything wrong with it. She was even grateful, because if it weren't for the Seventh Prince, her daughter would have been injured.
Even if they will be held accountable afterward, a mother who truly loves her child would never want her child to be bullied without fighting back or arguing.
"Will the Seventh Prince be alright?" Consort Wen asked worriedly.
Consort Zhuang chuckled, her tone ambiguous, and said, "Don't worry, the Seventh Prince is His Majesty's favorite child. The First and Second Princes both fell into his hands, so the Ninth Prince won't make a difference."
Her tone when mentioning the Ninth Prince was too ordinary, without a trace of warmth.
Consort Wen didn't allow herself to overthink it, and she understood Consort Zhuang's unspoken meaning: the Seventh Prince might have other plans. She was also afraid that her sudden appearance would disrupt the Seventh Prince's plans, so she had no choice but to give up the idea of going to Qian Yuan Palace.
However, she was still somewhat worried. Instead of going to Qian Yuan Palace, she led her people to wait in the Imperial Garden, which was a necessary stop on the way.
Consort Zhuang felt that since she was the Ninth Prince's adoptive mother, she had to maintain a proper attitude even if something happened, so she brought her people along.
And so the wait has continued until now.
Consort Wen bowed to Xue Jin'an, and Consort Zhuang also turned around and apologized gently, "Xiao Jiu has caused you trouble. It is my fault for not disciplining him properly."
The last time Xue Jin'an heard the same words was from Helian Cheng. He had the same attitude towards Helian Yong and the Ninth Prince: "He is like this all along, it has nothing to do with you."
"I am, after all, his mother." Consort Zhuang rubbed her temples wearily, letting the matter drop. "Never mind, let's not talk about him anymore, lest it spoil the mood."
When asked about their affairs at Qianyuan Palace, Consort Wen turned pale upon hearing that the Third Princess had almost been punished by kneeling.
The most grueling methods in the inner quarters are standing in strict order and kneeling in the ancestral hall. They may seem less painful than beatings, but they can completely wear a person down.
Consort Wen was brought from the Marquis's residence by Imperial Noble Consort Min, whose branch originated from the Earl of Annam.
Unlike the Kangtai Princess's lineage, which had only one son per generation for three generations, the Annan Marquis's family was very prosperous. Consort Min's brothers and sisters could be counted by name eight or nine times, not even counting the old Annan Marquis's mistresses.
However, although the Earl's family had many members, few of them were successful. If it weren't for Princess Kangtai giving birth to Jiang Wen, who became the Grand Secretary of the Cabinet, the Earl of Annan would have long been a nobody in the capital.
As the household grew larger, so did the secret affairs. Consort Min's mother, the old lady Hou, also came from a noble family. In her youth, she was fierce and intolerant of any wrongdoing. However, the old Marquis of Annam was a womanizer and took concubines one after another after their marriage, which caused quite a few troubles.
Having served in the Marquis's residence, Consort Wen naturally witnessed those methods firsthand.
Kneeling as punishment, especially on a cold floor like this, would ruin an adult's knees if they knelt for several days in a row, causing pain in their bones even on rainy days.
"Thank goodness, thank goodness..." Consort Wen held the Third Princess's hand, her heart filled with lingering fear. She suppressed the resentment that she shouldn't have felt and was even more grateful to Xue Jin'an.
"It's all in the past." Consort Zhuang personally poured tea for them, the rising steam softening her features. She said, "If Ruyun knew about this, she would probably cry too."
"Fourth sister..." The Third Princess opened her mouth, her tone hesitant.
"She's very worried about you, but it's getting late today. Come to Chonghua Palace tomorrow, and she'll be very happy." Consort Zhuang could tell that she was worried that the Fourth Princess would be angry, since the Ninth Prince was also related to her by blood, so she simply brought it up directly, giving her peace of mind.
The third princess immediately nodded happily in agreement.
Consort Zhuang then invited the Seventh Prince, but Xue Jin'an declined, saying he was still under house arrest.
"I forgot," Consort Zhuang said casually, glossing over the matter.
The Third Princess had been very active today, and her emotions had been fluctuating wildly. She soon became sleepy, and the three parties said their goodbyes and parted ways.
As Consort Wen lifted the Third Princess to stand up, she stumbled slightly. Xue Jin'an reacted quickly, reaching out to steady her. However, just as his hand was about to touch Consort Wen, another hand suddenly slipped in.
Xue Jin'an was certain that he was the first to reach out, and in such a short time, no one should have reacted faster than him, unless it was premeditated.
That hand wasn't particularly delicate; the knuckles were slightly large, and you could see thin calluses on them.
Qingye's hand. Xue Jin'an silently stopped the command in his mind to withdraw his hand.
Qingye put her arm around Wen Zhaoyi's shoulder and helped her up, and at the same time Xue Jinan's hand touched hers.
The instant their skin touched, Xue Jin'an felt the immense, dormant inner force emanating from her body. As if startled, it instinctively sent a wisp of it into his body.
Xue Jin'an immediately withdrew his hand, and that trace of pure internal energy quickly vanished without a trace.
Aoba looked up at him, her eyes showing a strange and questioning look, but she quickly concealed it.
Xue Jin'an understood and told them the answer to their probing question very frankly: "I have no internal energy."
He was telling the truth; he cultivated magical power. As mentioned before, some martial arts manuals are essentially pirated versions of immortal cultivation techniques; similarly, internal energy is also a pirated version of magical power.
Xue Jin'an cultivated pure magical power. For him, internal energy had too many impurities, and mixing it into magical power would pollute it. So he simply stopped cultivating it, since he could defeat the opponent even without internal energy.
Moreover, he is currently just a spirit, essentially a soul, which doesn't quite match this physical body. All his magical power has been used to adapt to the body, so there's no shortage of it, and naturally, it can't be detected.
No one present expected Xue Jin'an to suddenly say that. Qingye subconsciously looked at Consort Zhuang, whose face stiffened almost imperceptibly.
However, Consort Zhuang quickly composed herself and explained in a gentle voice, "You are a promising martial arts talent. Qingye has a top-notch internal energy cultivation method that has not yet been passed on."
Generally speaking, internal energy cultivation methods are only practiced in one way. If one practices multiple methods, it is easy to go astray and become possessed by evil spirits. Most top-level internal energy cultivation methods are very domineering and do not allow practitioners to practice other martial arts.
Xue Jin'an was certain that Qingye's actions were not motivated by a desire to find a successor. However, when Consort Zhuang spoke of the internal cultivation method, there was no sign of her lying, indicating that the top-tier internal cultivation method did indeed exist.
Unfortunately, Xue Jin'an wasn't interested; he responded with a nonchalant "Oh."
When Xue Jin'an spoke, Consort Wen felt a sudden jolt and sensed something was wrong. After a few words between them, she understood what was going on. She hugged the half-asleep Third Princess tightly and stood there awkwardly, not knowing what to do.
Fortunately, neither Xue Jin'an nor Consort Zhuang intended to say anything more, and they tacitly parted ways.
Consort Wen caught up with Xue Jin'an and nervously tried to explain, "I, just now, I really did fall, no..."
She was afraid that the Seventh Prince would think she was in cahoots with Consort Zhuang, so she deliberately set a trap to test him.
"I know." Xue Jin'an was certain of this.
However, he did not see Qingye make a move, nor was he sure whether Consort Wen's fall was a genuine accident or staged.
Consort Wen was still somewhat uneasy, and she asked, "Is there anything I can do to help?"
Xue Jin'an initially wanted to say no, but then, remembering the relationship between Consort Wen and Imperial Noble Consort Min, he changed his tune and asked directly, "Twin lotus blossoms, what comes to mind?"
Consort Wen found the question puzzling, but she still thought about it carefully and gave her answer, "The lotus is noble and pure, and the flowers grow in pairs, twin flowers..."
Consort Wen's temple throbbed violently, and she suddenly fell silent, as if remembering something.
"What's wrong with the twin flowers?" Xue Jin'an asked patiently.
Consort Wen swallowed hard, suppressing the pounding fear in her heart, and spoke slowly and with difficulty, “When I was still the Lady of the Marquis’s Mansion, I heard that there was a flower in the outer regions that had two flowers blooming on one stem but could not coexist. If one flower bloomed, the other would wither and die. So one of them always bloomed in the bright sunshine of June and was called the June Flower, and the other bloomed in the autumn night of October and was called the October Flower.”
"This flower is called the twin flower, also known as the two-flowered flower."
Xue Jin'an did indeed know about this flower and had heard its legend. It turned out that Teacher Xiao X wanted to combine it with the Chinese almanac to create some kind of lucky flower for the day, so he pulled it out from the database. Anyway, it was a money-grabbing feature that he planned to launch along with the new feature.
Xue Jin'an remembered it immediately after only reading it a short time ago; otherwise, he would have had to search the database.
"This is a legend from a very far away place." Xue Jin'an looked at Consort Wen, implying that there should be another person involved in her hearsay.
“Yes, I’ve never been interested in these things. Someone told Miss about them.” Consort Wen paused for a moment before organizing her thoughts, “Miss is very clever. She learns everything very quickly, even better than the young masters and ladies in the manor…”
The story isn't actually that complicated. It's roughly about how the descendants of the old Marquis of Annam were all quite incompetent, and he was distressed that no one was there to support his family. At this time, a daughter of his stood out, and he was overjoyed, feeling that the family's prosperity was promising. So he asked his daughter's twin brother to be named the heir apparent.
However, what the daughter wanted was to be like Princess Kangtai, with glory bestowed upon herself, rather than becoming her brother's blood bag. No one understood her, not even her own mother, who thought she was being unrealistic and restless and wanted to marry her off.
Once they get married, manage the household, and have children... they'll become sensible and everything will be fine.
Her daughter was confined at home, causing her great distress and depression. Until one day, she met a distinguished man who told her the story of the twin flowers. So she left her family without hesitation and went with him to build her own career.
Consort Wen did not continue the story, but Xue Jin'an had already guessed what happened next.
The daughter in this story is Consort Min, and Xue Jin'an guesses that the person who told her the story of the twin flowers was the emperor.
It's unclear whether he was the emperor during his time as crown prince or when he first ascended the throne, but it doesn't matter which one it was, since their situations were similar, both being during the reign of the Empress Dowager.
A new emperor brings a new court. At that time, the emperor urgently needed an ally to consolidate and maintain his rule. The most convenient and effective way to win over court officials, noble families, and military generals was through marriage.
The daughter in the story is ambitious and wants to take over the family business. To persuade an ambitious person, one must offer him a great reward.
How did the emperor manage to reach an agreement with this ambitious woman? Was it the position of empress, the position of crown prince, or... the future throne?
However, it seems they all miscalculated. The emperor, having secured his position, forgot his promises, and the women, trapped and unable to return to the past, could only grit their teeth and continue their downward spiral.
Xue Jin'an suspected that Empress Zhaoren might have been tricked into entering the palace through a combination of persuasion and coercion. He now viewed the palace as a giant pyramid scheme, with the emperor as the pyramid scheme leader who deserved to be executed eight hundred times over.
"A thought-provoking fable," Xue Jin'an said earnestly, "that will be passed down through the ages."
He wanted to compile all the stories of the emperor's deceptions into a book of fables so that all children in the world could read it from a young age.
"Um..." Consort Wen was somewhat speechless, trying to stop her, "Miss probably wouldn't be too willing..."
Although everyone knew perfectly well who the young lady she was referring to was, Consort Wen still did not intend to explain, only using a euphemism.
“Oh, then let her come and talk to me, and I’ll pay the copyright fee.” Xue Jin’an casually explained what a copyright fee was.
Consort Wen: "..." I think Miss would rather pay you hush money.
When Xue Jin'an returned to Zhaoyang Palace, it was already completely dark. The news of the Ninth Prince being sent to the hospital had spread throughout the palace, and everyone knew, whether they should or shouldn't.
The guards at the door seemed to show him much more respect. Even Xuan Shiyi and Xiao Xiazi, who usually avoided getting too close to Xue Jin'an, couldn't help but keep a distance and look at him with an indescribable gaze.
Xue Jin'an analyzed the situation, and the look in that eyes seemed to say: How come you offended a prince as soon as you stepped out the door? How are you still alive? Is it that the eldest prince is too weak to wield a knife, or is the second prince trapped at home and unable to leave?
Xue Jin'an looked at the analysis results innocently and blinked.
After confirming that they had genuinely just happened to be passing by and had no ulterior motives, Lingzhi sighed and said, "Your Highness, it seems your 'cursed' fate is about to be confirmed."
Even Lingzhi, who has never believed in fate, felt that this was a bit strange. How come her prince always seemed to be there whenever a prince or princess was beaten?
Lingzhi is somewhat melancholy, but only Lingzhi is melancholy.
Shouquan and Fulu whispered to each other for a while, then counted on their fingers and said, "Master, excluding the infant Tenth Prince and the Eleventh Prince, there are still the Sixth Prince and the Eighth Prince whom we haven't offended. Who will you go to next?"
"I'm betting on the Eighth Prince, Master," Fu Lu added, seizing the opportunity, his expression eager to try.
Shouquan: "Hey, I also bet on the Eighth Prince..."
The two slowly looked at each other, trying to persuade the other to change the election, but then fell silent.
It wasn't that the Eighth Prince was particularly bad, but rather that the Sixth Prince, being the only good and normal person among the princes, simply couldn't bring themselves to speak ill of him against their conscience.
Lingzhi, unable to bear it any longer, grabbed the two of them by the ears, her smile extremely dangerous: "You both know you're offending His Highness, huh? And you still dare to incite him, huh?"
Completely unaware of what offending others meant, Xue Jin'an, who only felt that she had done what she should do, tilted her head.
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