Madam Feng nodded, and Lord Feng said, "Madam, the capital may seem peaceful, but the princes are secretly fighting each other. This time, the Third Prince only resorted to this tactic to win over Father. In that case, after Wan'er is taken away by us, she will have to break ties with the Third Prince. In the future, not only Father, but also my brother and I will have to make things difficult in the court."
Madam Feng said, "My lord, the Third Prince's actions are nothing short of outright robbery. How far can such a person go? His Majesty is not a fool; he will not stand idly by."
Upon hearing his wife's words, Feng Zhongyi couldn't help but laugh and said, "It was I who was confused. I didn't think as far ahead as you, Madam. Yes, although the Third Prince is wise, he is actually narrow-minded and stubborn. However, of His Majesty's current adult princes, only the Third Prince seems to have some potential."
Madam Feng said, "My lord, although His Majesty is over fifty, he is in good health and the Empress is wise. Who can guarantee that His Majesty will not have another son in the future?"
Upon hearing his wife's words, Lord Feng fell into deep thought and said, "Madam, you have reminded me. A few years ago, I heard my brother say that the Crown Prince's maternal family had once hunted down a group of people, including an eunuch and a child of six or seven years old. Thinking about it this way, could it be that His Majesty has already begun to make plans?"
Madam Feng quickly said, "Sir, please be careful what you say."
Feng Zhongyi quickly covered his mouth, nodded to his wife, and said, "Madam, please don't worry, I will definitely save Wan'er."
Xu Di arranged for someone to have the inn's kitchen prepare dinner as soon as possible. After it was ready, he first sent it to Xu Ru and Li Yuexi, and then to the lobby. He sat in the lobby, waiting for Xu Bai and the others to return.
It took Xu Bai and the others quite a while to return after all the food was served. When Xu Bai saw that Xu Di had specifically arranged for him to come back, he knew that something must have happened. Because his cousins were present, he didn't ask anything. He just showed Xu Di the few trinkets he had bought and said that he would take them to Ganzhou to give to Xu Zhi. As for the Zhang family's cousins, they were also excitedly sharing the things they had bought.
Aside from visiting her maternal relatives in the capital, this was the first time Yue's cousins had traveled such a long distance, and they were very excited. Although the journey was tiring, they remained in high spirits. When they arrived in town, in addition to using their own pocket money to buy gifts for everyone in her third uncle's family, they also bought a few small items for Xu Ru. Xu Ru was delighted to see the gifts the children had bought for her.
After the meal, Xu Di told his brothers to rest, while he went to a small pavilion in the backyard of the inn. He needed to sort out his thoughts. He had been investigating the affairs of the court and even the families of powerful figures in the capital. He was trying to unravel the truth behind everything he had learned.
From Feng Zhongyi's words, Xu Di knew that the Third Prince must have used some underhanded means to make the Feng family's daughter his concubine. The Feng family was different from the Xu family. Feng Zhongyi was the current Grand Secretary, while Feng Zhongyi was only a fourth-rank prefect of Wuzhou. Xu Di knew that the girl of marriageable age for Feng Zhongyi was his eldest daughter, and the eldest legitimate daughter at that. Such a status was something Xu Zhi could not compare to. Although Xu Rao was favored by the Emperor, he was nominally only the son of the Marquis of Yongning. His eldest daughter, although the granddaughter of the Marquis of Yongning, unfortunately had a weaker background. Otherwise, when Xu Zhi wanted to marry Zheng Boyuan, Xu Rao and Zhang Zhaoci would not have invited Zheng Boyuan to discuss it properly. In many people's eyes, it was Xu Zhi's way of climbing the social ladder by marrying Zheng Boyuan.
On another note, Feng Zhongyi's eldest daughter could easily marry the third prince as his principal wife. With a grandfather who was the Grand Secretary and her own father having a successful career, what kind of family couldn't she find? There's no reason for her to debase herself and become a concubine for a prince. Although she was a concubine, a concubine was essentially a mistress.
Xu Di's words enlightened Feng Zhongyi. In fact, Feng Zhongyi was just trying to establish a good relationship. He knew his own family's affairs. As long as Xiao Yuan was in his family, his family would support Xiao Yuan's succession. This was also Emperor Liang Cheng's plan. Otherwise, Emperor Liang Cheng would not have gone to the trouble of sending people out of the palace to be raised by the Xu family. After Xu Di learned about the old lady's identity from Granny Lu, he had a better understanding of Emperor Liang Cheng.
The old lady is a descendant of the current dynasty's eldest princess. When this dynasty was founded, the eldest princess played a crucial role in its expansion and conquest of vast territories. She was a woman of exceptional talent and character, and it is said that she personally trained a troop that achieved great military exploits. After the eldest princess retired from public life, the late emperor decreed that this troop be left to her, stipulating that her descendants could inherit it. The eldest princess swore an oath to the late emperor to serve the Liang dynasty faithfully, and that if Liang were to go to war, her descendants would sacrifice themselves for their country. This is why the old lady accompanied her to the battlefield.
Emperor Liang Cheng was the successor chosen by the late emperor. Before his death, the late emperor told Emperor Liang Cheng the secret that could only be passed down orally when the emperor was handed over. Emperor Liang Cheng was shocked and had people inquire about the Yongning Marquis's residence. After carefully examining Xu Rao, he secretly entrusted him with the task.
Xu Di understood perfectly well that Xiao Yuan was the successor favored by Emperor Liang Cheng. In the future, if Xiao Yuan were to ascend the throne, he would inevitably have to win over important officials in the court. Why not befriend the Feng family now?
When Xu Di thought of the Third Prince, he felt that the man's actions were disgusting. In order to gain the support of the Feng family, he actually harmed a girl like this. Could the Feng family really want to help him if he obtained support in this way?
Xu Di then thought of Feng Zhongyi. This man was upright and honest. After listening to Xu Di's words, he immediately came up with a solution. Xu Di pondered for a while. Feng Zhongyi's approach was simply to have his daughter fake her death by taking medicine, then take her away and leave. Then, he would have his daughter appear in public under a different identity. This was actually a good solution.
Xu Di sat in the backyard pavilion for a long time before Xiao Yuan, who had changed his name to Zhang Yuyuan, came over.
Xu Di saw that it was Zhang Yuyuan and waved to him. Although it was already the twentieth day of the first lunar month, the moon, which was missing half of its rim, still hung brightly in the sky, sprinkling frost everywhere.
Zhang Yuyuan walked over to Xu Di, sat down next to him, and said, "Cousin, it's past midnight, why aren't you asleep yet?"
Xu Di said, "It's quiet here, so I came here to think about some things."
Zhang Yuyuan lowered his head, clasped his hands together, pondered for a long time, and said, "Cousin, I'm a little confused right now. I don't know what the point of studying literature and martial arts is."
Xu Di paused for a moment after hearing this before he understood what Zhang Yuyuan meant.
Zhang Yuyuan knew his identity and that his father had risked his life to send him away to prevent him from being harmed. However, after spending his days studying literature and martial arts with his older brothers, Zhang Yuyuan was unsure of what to do next, as he could neither take the imperial examinations nor join the army to serve his country.
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