Chapter 752 Don't Cut the Hair of the Man on the Roadside (17)
The second prince's mind raced.
The current empress has no son; otherwise, the position of crown prince would certainly belong to the legitimate heir.
This would prevent princes from killing each other to fight for the position of crown prince.
Moreover, his father seized the throne through a coup, and he didn't want to be forced by his son to write a decree of succession with a sword pointed at him in the future.
"I understand, but is there any way to prevent concubines from giving birth to sons?" They can't fight if they only give birth to daughters.
Ning Yan: ...You've really thought of everything.
"No sleep, no birth."
Second Prince: ...What you said makes a lot of sense, but I can't do it.
Looking at the Second Prince's stiff face, Ning Yan suddenly felt somewhat relieved. That's just how the world is; it's impossible to stop a prince from sleeping with his concubines. Therefore, she offered another solution.
"Get the medicine according to this prescription. After the Second Prince's Consort becomes pregnant, you should put these medicines in your purse and carry them with you every day. Of course, you can also give them to your concubines."
"I guarantee I won't have a son, and it won't harm my health."
The second prince was satisfied and took the prescription, carefully blowing the ink off it.
He was certain that he had indeed survived a great calamity and was destined for good fortune.
I don't know how I caught Miss Ning's eye. She's practically my lucky star. With her around, I might actually be able to get that position.
"How long am I supposed to keep faking being sick?"
"You can keep pretending as long as you want, but you must remember one thing: what kind of person does your father want you to become?"
After thinking for a long time, the second prince finally realized what kind of people his good father, the emperor, most hoped his sons would become: filial to their father and loving to their brothers!
The position of crown prince has always been established by the eldest son of the legitimate wife.
But what an emperor most desires is for his heir to be filial and obedient.
Talent and ability are important, but they are not the most important thing. Winning the Emperor's favor is the top priority.
"I understand."
"Good, I'm leaving now. Take these medicines for now, and I'll get you the fertility medicine when you feel better."
...
After returning from the Second Prince's residence, Ning Yan stayed obediently in the mansion.
In August, my eldest brother Ning Yi also participated in the autumn imperial examinations.
The heir inherits a title, not an official position. If the elder brother wants to become an official in the court, he has to take the imperial examination.
He was a man of both literary and military talent, but because his father already held military power, he feared that if he joined the army and became successful, the royal family would be wary of him, so he chose to take the civil service exam.
At the same time, Young Master Li and Mo Qinglan also stepped into the examination hall.
The autumn imperial examinations ended, and the results were finally released in mid-September.
Mo Qinglan topped the list.
Ning Yi ranked seventeenth, and Young Master Li ranked third.
The following year, when the results of the imperial examination were announced, Mo Qinglan was personally selected by the emperor as the top scholar, while Young Master Li became the third-ranked scholar.
Ning Yi performed exceptionally well, ranking ninth and becoming a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations).
The following May, the Second Prince's wife gave birth to a big, healthy boy. The Emperor bestowed many treasures upon him and even held the baby during the child's one-month celebration. Although this brought the Second Prince a lot of trouble, he was both in pain and happy.
With the arrival of his grandson, the General of Zhennan immediately requested to resign and retire to his hometown, which the Emperor granted.
Time flies, and three years later, Ning Yan has become a seventeen-year-old young woman.
During these three years, the second prince, relying on his "sickly" body and "sweet tongue," not only won the emperor's favor but also pleased the empress dowager.
The emperor's health had also deteriorated to the point of near collapse.
It's that time of year again when osmanthus blossoms.
A chilling atmosphere pervaded the capital.
Uncle Kang was so busy that he hadn't seen anyone for several days. That evening, he made a special trip back, told his family to stay home and not go anywhere, and then left in a hurry.
He didn't return until four days later, and the old lady immediately went to the front hall to see her son.
"how's it going?"
"The eldest prince and the fifth prince forced the emperor to abdicate."
The sixth and eighth princes led troops into the palace to rescue the emperor.
A fierce battle ensued, resulting in the deaths of the eldest and fifth princes. The sixth prince forced the emperor to abdicate, and was subsequently imprisoned.
The royal father and son are not father and son, but enemies. Fortunately, the emperor was only pretending to be sick and had made preparations in advance, otherwise he would definitely not have survived this time.
The third and fourth princes had made mistakes and had long been granted the title of Prince of the County, thus losing their chance to ascend the throne.
Now, among the older princes, he's the only one still alive and well.
"Then wouldn't that leave only the Second Prince?"
Kang Anbo's eyes flickered. Over the past few years, he had noticed that the Second Prince had been secretly sending gifts to his daughter from time to time. At first, he thought that the Second Prince had taken a liking to Yan'er, so he asked his daughter about it.
That's not the case.
In retrospect, the ascension of the second emperor to the throne was the best outcome for their household.
"His Majesty is in good health. Besides, even if these princes had an accident, His Majesty still has more than a dozen sons."
The old lady sighed, "Alas, the Emperor should have established a Crown Prince sooner, then those princes wouldn't have had to fight for him."
Earl Kang An: ...No, they will only fight even more fiercely!
Moreover, the emperor's health is not very good.
In this incident, the Emperor did feign illness to some extent, but he was indeed genuinely ill, just not seriously so.
Today, he left behind several important officials, presumably to discuss the selection of the crown prince.
A few days later, the emperor indeed made a big move.
First, Consort Liang was made Empress.
Then the imperial edict appointing the crown prince was issued.
The second prince really did become the crown prince.
Ning Yan wasn't surprised at all when she heard the news.
The Emperor did have some genuine feelings for Consort Liang; the reason she was a consort was simply because her family held military power.
But the Second Prince and Consort Liang were both very obedient to advice.
After Ning Yan gave him a hint once, Consort Liang summoned her family and implied that her father could step down.
The General of Zhennan quickly relinquished his military power and returned to his hometown to farm. Only his eldest son held the official position of Assistant Minister of Rites in the capital. It can be said that he retired very thoroughly.
Soon, news spread throughout the palace that the Emperor frequently stayed overnight at Consort Liang's palace.
Ning Yan knew then that the Second Prince's position was secure.
Another month passed, and the emperor abdicated in favor of the crown prince. He did not intend to travel the world with Consort Liang, but rather because his health was truly failing.
Abdication is safer than succession after death, and it saves the other princes from vying for the throne. Fighting back and forth only wastes money and lives. It's better to let the officials and soldiers below live well.
Sure enough, the second prince had only been on the throne for a little over a month when the retired emperor passed away.
In March of the following year, the new emperor was assassinated while leaving the palace, but was rescued by the eldest daughter of the Earl of Kang'an. The new emperor bestowed upon the second young lady of the Ning family the title of Princess Xiaoyao and granted her a princess's residence.
This imperial edict was opposed by good ministers in the court. However, the new emperor had only one attitude: I will not listen, I will not listen, I will not listen!
My life was saved by them, and my two clever and intelligent sons were also given to me by them. This is a debt of gratitude that amounts to three lives. They won't even give me a princess title. Are you kidding me?
Thus, Ning Yan was born as the only princess of a different surname in the Great Yu Dynasty.
Haha, so happy! She can marry any husband she wants in ancient times.
Just as Lady Kang'an was painstakingly choosing a husband for her, someone from her princess's residence came to visit.
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