An Qingran was doing the accounts with a notebook in her hand. When she saw her come in, she greeted her and asked her if there was anything she could do for her.
Seeing that An Qingran's expression was really unrecognizable, Murong Lanxin said, "Sister, you've been working so hard, you should take a break. There's no way you can finish all these tasks, why don't you ask for help?"
An Qingran has been very busy these past two days, mainly because she is unfamiliar with everything in the harem. She doesn't even know the names of the people, the departments, and the monthly salaries. Now she realizes how difficult it is to be the head of a household, especially such a large one.
"Looking for help? Wouldn't Father think I'm being lazy? Besides, for something like this, even if there is help, it has to be chosen by Father."
"That's right, but since you're busy with these things, I'm afraid you won't be able to take good care of the prince, right?"
An Qingran was stunned. She rarely mentioned the prince before, so why was she so careless this time?
Seeing that she didn't say anything, Murong Lanxin changed the subject. When she left, Dongfang Jin came back. Murong Lanxin thought that she would soon marry the man in front of her, so she couldn't help but smile shyly, causing Dongfang Jin to have pimples all over his body. After entering the house, he asked in confusion: "What's wrong? Why is the princess so strange today?"
"What's even stranger is that she also asked me if I had taken good care of you." An Qingran looked at Dongfang Jin jokingly.
Dongfang Jin came forward upon hearing this and held her in his arms: "This prince feels that this is not thorough enough."
"Really? What's wrong with that?"
"What do you think?" Dongfang Jin said as he gently circled his fingers on her collarbone and moved his eyes all the way down.
"Crown Princess, Huang Siyi is here to report..." Rendong's voice suddenly stopped. Obviously she knew it was not appropriate at this time.
Dongfang Jin retracted his fingers and raised his eyebrows: "It turns out that my wife has something important to do. I will step aside first..."
An Qingran listened to his sarcastic tone and couldn't help but ask, "Are you blaming me?"
Dongfang Jin came close to her and whispered in her ear: "Don't fall asleep at night, wait for me..."
The sound is extremely warm.
An Qingran's heart skipped a beat.
I have reached the age of marriage, does he want to...
Thinking of this, Dongfang Jin's face turned red, but he smiled and left as if nothing had happened.
An Qingran was lost in thoughts all afternoon.
As a result, at night, Dongfang Jin brought back many snacks from outside the palace, including her favorite chestnut cake. She finally understood why he didn't let her sleep. She waited for him just to feed herself.
An Qingran kept rubbing her stomach and walking back and forth on the ground. Dongfang Jin felt a little regretful. Maybe he brought these snacks back at the wrong time. If her stomach was upset, wouldn’t he be even more distressed?
But what should I do?
As a result, the two of them tossed and turned for a long time before falling asleep.
The next morning, An Qingran received news that the Queen Mother had mentioned to the Emperor that the Crown Prince wanted to marry a concubine.
In fact, this matter was not concealed at all. The Queen Mother thought that the Emperor would definitely accept her suggestion. In fact, it was also a warning to An Qingran. Even if she got the power, she would soon lose her man.
An Qingran sat there, not wanting to do anything. She knew that this would happen sooner or later. The prince had made a promise to her, and she didn't know if Dongfang Jin could stick to their promise.
If the emperor insisted on arranging a marriage and the prince disagreed, it would be a great act of treason...
An Qingran sighed. She didn’t want to think about it any further. It would be better to let the prince solve it.
It's also a good opportunity to test their feelings.
She now understood why Murong Lanxin said that.
As soon as Dongfang Jin entered the room, he saw that An Qingran was different today and couldn't help but feel distressed: "It's my fault. I shouldn't have brought you something to eat so late. Is your stomach upset?"
An Qingran didn't look up.
Dongfang Jin put his hand on her forehead and said, "Eh, it's not hot. Is there something you can't handle?"
No matter what, Dongfang Jin never thought of that.
An Qingran finally spoke up: "Empress Dowager Murong suggested that you marry a concubine. Should I congratulate you first, Prince?"
"Did I hear it right? Are you jealous?" Dongfang Jin actually looked like he didn't care at all. Instead, he smiled brightly, as if what he heard was something very funny.
"It seems that you are happy as well, but you don't have to smile so obviously..."
When An Qingran said this, her heart really ached, although she knew that his smile did not mean that.
Dongfang Jin immediately became serious upon seeing this: "Don't worry, Qingqing."
Then he walked out.
An Qingran looked at his hurried back and felt a little worried. Was he going to see the emperor?
In fact, he really is.
Dongfang Jin went to the imperial study. In the past, he rarely took the initiative to look for the emperor, so Emperor Yunqi was a little surprised. But when he saw Dongfang Jin standing there, with the shadow of Queen Yun on him, handsome and elegant, his mood improved and he put down the red brush: "Jin'er, do you have something to look for me?"
"Father..." Dongfang Jin smiled calmly, "I heard some rumors and wanted to confirm whether they are true."
"Rumors? What rumors?"
"The Queen Mother asked Father to choose a concubine for me, right?"
"You are well-informed. I wanted to find you, and now you are here. Your grandmother is worried that Qingran is too busy to manage the harem and take care of you, so she wants to find a concubine for you so that we can rest assured."
"Father, I feel that this is inappropriate. When I married Qingran, I made a vow with her that I would never marry another woman except her. So, please accept my promise, Father." Dongfang Jin said seriously.
Emperor Yunqi was stunned for a moment: "How did you get here? Only marry one?"
"Yes, I have always believed that since ancient times, the struggles in the harem, whether admitted or not, have always been cruel and bloody. I have not seen other things with my own eyes. We still haven't found out who poisoned me and my mother. If there were no other concubines in the harem, such a thing would not have happened. Moreover, my mother was poisoned. Aren't these tragedies all caused by fighting for favor? Without fighting, there would be no blood, no killing..."
Dongfang Jin had never spoken so bluntly before, without concealment or speculation, and he said what was in his heart.
Little did he know how furious Emperor Yunqi was when he heard this. His face turned pale with anger. “You said that all these tragedies were caused by me?”
"I have no such intention, but I am speaking my heart out to you, Father. I envy the love between swans and mandarin ducks, which is stronger than gold. I hope you will forgive me."
"Forgive me? You still know you are guilty. Get out of here right now. I don't want to hear your nonsense.
This is clearly treason, what's the point of calling it mandarin ducks? Come, pass on my oral order. The prince is disobedient and has spoken without discipline. He shall be confined to his room and reflect on his mistakes for a month. No one is allowed to plead for him."
This touched the bottom line of Emperor Yun Qi. He had always felt guilty about the death of Queen Yun. This was his greatest pain. He did not want to admit it, but today his son ruthlessly exposed it. The person he could not face was himself!
After the Crown Prince left, Emperor Yunqi swept all the memorials on the desk to the ground, and sat there with a pale face and uncontrollable anger. People did not dare to persuade him and could only wait from a distance. The death of Empress Yun made Emperor Yun think of the cruelty of Concubine Shu, and thought of himself as a king who could not even avenge his wife. He also thought of the Queen Mother, who threatened to die to force him to marry Concubine Shu. If the Queen Mother had not protected her so much, Concubine Shu would not have been so bold, and Yun'er would not have ended up like this.
The prince really made him angry just now. Is he blaming himself?
Is he blaming himself for killing his mother?
He did not admit it just now, but now thinking about it carefully, what the prince said makes sense, but he really only wants one woman in this life. He is young and full of vigor and can make this promise, but will he keep it for a lifetime?
For some reason, he actually felt a little admiration for the prince. This was his son, his and Yun'er's son. He was indeed different. Obviously different from Prince Kang. Prince Kang was busy having fun during the queen's funeral, and he married two women at a young age. I heard that he was going to marry Madam Yun. It was really disappointing.
Like mother, like son. This good boy was led astray by his mother.
The news of the crown prince being punished spread throughout the harem and the court in an instant. Prince Ning had been terrified ever since his mother's power was taken away. He thought this was some kind of omen, but he didn't expect that the crown prince would be punished in just a few days. It seemed that the emperor letting An Qingran take power didn't mean anything. He looked at the mountain of memorials in front of him, and the smile on his face became brighter and brighter.
The matter of the Crown Prince being punished has aroused many people's concerns. Concubine Xian and Concubine Shu Guifei naturally applauded secretly. The two did not stand on the same camp again because of An Qingran's power. Concubine Xian saw through Concubine Shu Guifei, and Concubine Shu also knew Concubine Xian's forbearance and ambition. The two women couldn't even get along well.
Murong Lanxin, however, was the most conflicted and painful one. She knew exactly why he was imprisoned. She had been waiting for him since four years, waiting for him to grow up and marry her, waiting for him to see her in his eyes and for him to have her in his heart. However, she had never expected that she was already seventeen years old, and what she had been waiting for was nothing more than such a sad result. If she gave up just like that, everything would be wasted. Her heart was on him, and she would no longer accept anyone else.
What's more, looking around, all the princes and nobles have wives and concubines, so who can she choose?
Queen Mother Murong sat there, looking at the spring scenery outside the window with no special expression on her face. She had already heard about the prince's affairs and she had done everything she could.
"Queen Dowager, Lan Xin has a favor to ask." Murong Lan Xin walked over with fruit in her hand, a smile on her face.
"Tell me, little girl. I have already told the emperor about this for you. But now things are obviously not what we imagined. You should be mentally prepared."
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