Chapter 44 Everyone is scheming for themselves
Princess Shou Kang's face immediately turned red from the slap.
She covered the side of her face that had been hit and looked calmly at Consort Wu.
"Mother, what are you saying? What do you mean by whether I did it or not?"
You overestimate my intelligence. Minister Ye and Chief Physician Liu both found out it was an accident. Do you think I did it?
"If I had that ability, would I still be trapped in this palace?" Princess Shou Kang asked calmly.
When Consort Wu heard Princess Shou Kang say this, she merely snorted and then sat down on the couch in Princess Shou Kang's bedroom.
"I just came to ask."
After all, you've argued with me more than once because you wanted to marry Cai Boju.
He suddenly died at your birthday banquet; people outside won't say a good thing about it.
"The Marquis of Wu'an's residence will definitely have its own ideas as well," Consort Wu sighed.
Princess Shou Kang slowly sat down on a bench not far from Consort Wu.
"I didn't do it! I couldn't have come up with such a perfect solution."
Also, Mother Consort, wasn't the Marquis of Wu'an's pawn a long time ago rendered useless?
When the old Marquis died in the north, the Marquis of Wu'an's mansion was left with nothing but a facade. I don't understand why you still insist on making me marry Cai Boju.
In the North, the Shen family is in charge, not the Marquis of Wu'an's mansion!
You've been pushing me to marry Cai Boju, simply because you're after the military power in the north.
Do you think Cai Boju can become General Shen's right-hand man like the old Marquis?
Does he have that ability?
If I marry him and he goes to the north, won't I become like the old lady of the Wu'an Marquis's mansion, spending my days alone in an empty room?
Mother, I was also born of you. You can't just care about Fifth Brother and ignore my life or death!
"I am not his stepping stone!" Princess Shou Kang said with dissatisfaction.
Consort Wu gave Princess Shou Kang a cold look.
"His Majesty says you are clever, but I don't see what makes you clever."
The old Marquis dedicated his entire life to the North, and his connections there are beyond your imagination.
Think about it, this time when we were escorting the grain to the north, there were clearly better candidates in the capital. The heir of the Shen family was personally trained by General Shen.
This was clearly a matter of taking credit, yet General Shen specifically requested Cai Boju to do it.
That's why the people of the North remember that old Marquis Wu'an.
General Shen also remembered the contributions that the old Marquis of Wu'an had made to the northern region.
Cai Boju went to the north, and everyone will place the feelings they had for the old Marquis of Wu'an on him.
Sooner or later, the northern lands and the foreign states will clash, and the powerful Great Yu will surely prevail.
With those people protecting him, Cai Boju will surely be rewarded with great merit. He is young, and even if he doesn't become the commander-in-chief of the North, he will definitely become the deputy commander in the future.
At that time, the people left behind by the old Marquis of Wu'an, along with the network of connections he had cultivated, all formed a considerable force.
The Northland...
It won't be a one-man show by the Shen family anymore!
"You actually look down on Cai Boju?" Consort Wu looked at Princess Shou Kang with a hint of helplessness in her eyes.
This daughter looks smart, but she's actually incredibly stupid.
"So what if we take over the North? Fifth Brother... at most he'll just be a powerful vassal king. The Crown Prince's position is secure!"
Mother, some dreams... are just for fun, why do you really want to take them seriously?
"You've risen from a lowly female official to the position of Imperial Concubine today; it's as if the heavens are blind!" Princess Shou Kang scoffed.
Consort Wu...
"You... I've been doing all this for you all! How dare you speak of your mother like that?" Consort Wu was so angry that she wanted to raise her hand to hit Princess Shou Kang again.
But after raising his hand, he lowered it again.
"They are all princes, but whoever has the ability should rule the Great Yu kingdom."
Crown Prince...
The crown prince was physically weak and spent half the year ill; he couldn't even ride a horse.
His Majesty has led troops in the north; how could he possibly entrust Dayu to such a person?
The outbreak of war in the north marked the beginning of your fifth brother's momentum overshadowing that of the crown prince.
The Crown Prince... the only reason he can hold onto his position is because His Majesty still cherishes his feelings for the Empress.
When it comes to the very foundation of Chongqing, what do those little personal feelings matter!
So what if I was born a lady-in-waiting? I'm still the most favored concubine in the palace.
"I can wait!" Consort Wu chuckled.
Princess Shou Kang subconsciously pursed her lips.
"Your father dotes on you, so why doesn't he make you empress!"
Alright, Mother, isn't it just that you want me to play a role so that Fifth Brother can have greater support?
I'll do whatever you say, but as for who I marry... I want to choose for myself!
Upon hearing this, Consort Wu immediately stared at Princess Shou Kang.
"Who have you taken a fancy to? You can't expect me to arrange a marriage for you now; Cai Boju's body is barely cold!"
"Mother, do you really think I'm a fool?!"
Cai Boju just died. Even though we haven't been betrothed yet, everyone in the capital knows about it. If I were to be betrothed to someone else now, wouldn't people point fingers and curse me behind my back?
Don't worry, your daughter is deeply in love with Cai Boju and heartbroken by his departure. So she plans to remain a widow for three years according to folk customs. Is that alright?
Originally, I wanted to marry Prince Shen.
You'd definitely be happy, wouldn't you? But Father would never agree, nor would the Shen family.
Shen Shizi is close to Xiao Huaijin and is one of the Crown Prince's men. How could he possibly marry me!
So... I plan to marry Wei Yanli, the second son of the Wei family.
As you can see, the old lady of the Wei family passed away at the beginning of the year, and the Wei family's children and grandchildren have to observe three years of mourning, so it's impossible for them to discuss marriage.
Perfect! I'll keep Cai Boju company for three years as a widow, what a perfect match we would be!
You can whisper in my ear when the time comes; my father has always loved me.
Now that you see I've been waiting for three years, you must feel even more sorry for me. How could you possibly refuse?
"Mother, what do you think of this?" Princess Shou Kang looked at Consort Wu with a smile.
Consort Wu stared at Princess Shou Kang for a long while before speaking.
"You've taken a fancy to Chun Bu Wan?"
"Yes! My daughter has taken a liking to Spring Never Ends!"
When Princess Fushun married the top scholar from the Wei family, Chun Buwan became her biggest dowry.
It was also with the support of Princess Fushun that the top scholar from the Wei family rose to the rank of Minister of Justice, a second-rank official.
Now... if I were to marry down again, I could just get Chun Buwan back!
I think Father would be very happy about it!
"It's better for the royal family's eyes and ears to be in the hands of the royal family!" Princess Shou Kang also stared at Consort Wu.
She knew that her mother would definitely be tempted.
Even if we can't achieve anything in the north, it wouldn't be bad to win over the "Spring Festival Gala" in Beijing...
"Okay! I will plan this carefully."
"Lately...you should watch less song and dance!"
After speaking, Consort Wu turned around and left Princess Shou Kang's palace without looking at her again.
When the palace servants of Princess Shou Kang, who had been waiting outside, entered, they immediately noticed that Princess Shou Kang's face was already somewhat red and swollen.
"Your Highness... this servant will go and have the physician examine you."
Princess Shou Kang shook her head and touched her face.
"Don't worry! It doesn't hurt! I'm overjoyed! I'm so happy I don't have to marry that good-for-nothing Cai Boju!"
Whoever did it, I admire him!
...
The atmosphere in the Tian Shu Courtyard of the Inner Palace was heavy.
Many people are applying ointment to their knees.
We knelt for quite a while and a lot today, and everyone's knees are bruised...
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