"The Fourth Prince's wife is no pushover either. The implications of her actions just now are astonishing."
The adults nodded in agreement. "This Lady of Linchuan is indeed a rare talent. We should try to befriend her, but not get too close to avoid unnecessary trouble."
Gu Qinlan was acutely aware of the enormous turmoil her words might have caused.
However, she didn't care at all.
She had a clear understanding of the positions of the Zheng and Zhao families, and at the same time, she was keenly aware of the Fourth Prince's wife's intentions.
If she had chosen to deal with the other party out of fear of the Fourth Prince's status as his consort, then given the Fourth Prince's faction's modus operandi, the Zheng and Zhao families would have been plunged into endless conflict.
The Zheng and Zhao families have a firm stance and need not fear any challenges.
After all, no prince currently surpasses the emperor's authority. They are the emperor's loyal subjects, and even if the princes harbor resentment, they dare not show them any disrespect at this moment.
Having lived two lifetimes, if she still cannot understand this principle, then she has truly lived in vain.
Therefore, she didn't care about the matter at all, and was even quite satisfied with her performance.
As she returned to her own carriage, Zheng Dinglian immediately praised her, saying, "You responded exceptionally well."
While the Fourth Prince's wife was talking to Gu Qinlan, he was invited outside by several colleagues for a conversation and was not present. However, he had already learned the details of the entire incident.
Gu Qinlan smiled and asked, "Aren't you worried that I might anger the Fourth Prince's wife and provoke her revenge?"
Zheng Dinglian replied with a smile, "Even if you don't provoke her, the Fourth Prince and the other princes won't treat us well. Since that's the case, you might as well provoke her completely and save yourself the trouble of all those hypocritical formalities."
"Moreover, His Majesty also hopes to see such a situation."
Gu Qinlan sighed softly, "Although the Emperor is the Son of Heaven, his life is not easy. He even has to be wary of his own son."
The current emperor ascended the throne relatively early, at the age of twenty. He is only fifty years old now.
However, his sons were all adults, with the crown prince, as the eldest, already thirty-three years old. The other adult sons were all over twenty.
As the emperor's sons grew up, they all coveted the throne. The emperor was still relatively young, but in ten years, his sons would become dissatisfied with his long tenure, feeling they had waited too long.
Zheng Dinglian also said in a low voice, "There are no fathers and sons in the royal family, let alone brotherly affection. For the sake of that throne, how many brothers have turned against each other and killed one another. Even patricide and regicide are not uncommon. The emperor has a gentle personality. If he were in an ordinary family, he would be a good father. But he is the ruler of a country, and this personality can easily lead to serious mistakes."
Gu Qinlan understood this very well.
In his previous life, the emperor was too soft-hearted to be ruthless towards his sons, which led to their infighting and the near-total death of all of them, ultimately allowing the ruthless fourth prince to succeed.
The fourth prince was selfish and cruel; after he ascended the throne, the ministers he promoted were not kind-hearted people. Before she died, she had heard many tragic stories about the common people.
Such a person ascending to the throne would be a disaster for the people of the land.
Thinking of this, Gu Qinlan asked softly, "Who is the prince you think is most likely to succeed to the throne?"
Zheng Dinglian glanced at her and whispered a reminder: "How can you ask such a question so easily? Aren't you afraid of losing your head?"
Gu Qinlan chuckled softly: "What's there to hide? Would you really leak this information out?"
Zheng Dinglian smiled and shook his head: "At present, the Crown Prince is the most suitable candidate, but the Crown Prince's personality is too similar to the Emperor's, and he is somewhat too optimistic. The other princes are also not to be underestimated. He will have to face so many competitors, so his chances of winning are not optimistic."
Gu Qinlan believed this without a doubt. After all, in her past life's memories, the Crown Prince's fate was extremely tragic. In that battle for the throne, several princes joined forces against the Crown Prince, leaving him isolated and helpless. Ultimately, due to a series of major mistakes, he not only suffered heavy losses but also faced severe impeachment from court officials, some of whom even threatened to commit suicide to remonstrate and advocate for the removal of the Crown Prince's status.
Faced with the overwhelming public opinion in the court, the emperor finally chose to compromise and deposed the crown prince. However, the deposed crown prince did not succumb to despair. Instead, he actively sought opportunities to redeem himself by performing meritorious service. He even personally led troops into battle when the enemy invaded, but unfortunately, he died in battle on the distant frontier.
Regrettably, the Crown Prince's death was not a heroic one, but rather a result of a clandestine plot, and his demise was far from honorable. To maintain the dignity of the imperial family, the Emperor had to expend enormous effort to cover up the Crown Prince's death. This incident dealt a severe blow to the Emperor, causing his health to deteriorate rapidly, and he soon passed away.
The Crown Prince was originally a benevolent ruler. If he could successfully ascend the throne, even if he might not be able to surpass the current emperor, he could at least maintain the stability of the country.
However, Gu Qinlan did not have much hope for the other princes.
Gu Qinlan especially couldn't accept the fourth prince ascending the throne again.
Therefore, when they returned to the Prince Duan's residence, Gu Qinlan couldn't wait to pull Zheng Dinglian into the study for a private talk.
Princess Duan and the others originally wanted to congratulate Gu Qinlan, since she had just been granted the title of County Princess, but they ultimately did not have the opportunity.
After the two entered the study, Gu Qinlan immediately dismissed all the servants.
Zheng Dinglian raised his eyebrows and asked curiously, "You seem to have something important to tell me?"
Gu Qinlan nodded and said seriously, "If I asked you to support the Crown Prince, would you be willing?"
Zheng Dinglian frowned, his sharp gaze sweeping over her: "You should know better than anyone that the Zheng family's stance is firm; we are only loyal to the Emperor. Although the Crown Prince is the heir apparent, as long as he has not inherited the throne, the Zheng family will not stand by his side."
Gu Qinlan pressed on seriously, "But if the future emperor is a selfish and ruthless tyrant who treats the lives of ordinary people like dirt, would you still support him unconditionally?"
"The Zheng family's ancestral precept is to be loyal to the emperor, safeguard the country, and protect the people—this is beyond question. But if a future emperor were to order us to use our swords to slaughter innocent civilians, could we still blindly obey?"
Zheng Dinglian looked at her with a complicated expression: "What exactly do you mean by that? How can you be so sure that the future emperor will be that kind of person?"
Gu Qinlan replied, "You yourself admitted that the Crown Prince's chances of winning are slim. As for the personalities of the other princes, you should know them well. Although the Second Prince supports the Crown Prince, the fact that the Crown Prince's chances of winning are slim indicates that the Second Prince's abilities are also limited. The Third Prince is arrogant and acts rashly. Although the Fifth Prince has some real skills, he is no match for the Fourth Prince."
Zheng Dinglian asked doubtfully, "The Fourth Prince is not without ambition to compete for the throne, but the issue of his offspring is an obstacle."
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