Although the Ning family's power is still considerable, Consort Ning will never become Empress.
As for the Imperial Concubine, it is well known that she is infertile.
Will Consort Ning come to make a deal?
If the Empress Dowager doesn't object, the Ye family won't object either.
What else? Shu Chengfeng is so determined to do this, what reason is there for remarriage? Yan Nangui has never taken this seriously.
Therefore, as long as she can afford it, the position of empress will naturally fall into her lap.
"Father is just worried about you. If things get out of hand, His Majesty might hold a grudge," Yan Lingyun said.
“Empress will not be appointed now. We will have to wait. But as long as I am here, he will not appoint anyone else. It is the crown prince who is difficult to decide. The third prince is not suitable now, and I do not like the eldest prince. So I can only look at the younger princes,” Yan Nan Gui said.
“Yes, you can handle these things as they come. No matter what, your father can still work for a few more years, and I will always support you. But do you think His Majesty doesn’t think much of the eldest prince?” Yan Lingyun asked.
"The Ning family is a thorn in His Majesty's side. The Empress's first pregnancy was a thorn in his side. The Ning family's power remains strong to this day. The more this is the case, the more uneasy he becomes. After all, Consort Ning has never been favored. To be honest..."
Yan Nangui smiled and said, "If he really thought highly of the eldest prince, he wouldn't have shown any intention of establishing an empress so early."
If they've already decided to favor their eldest son, then not establishing an empress after a few years isn't out of the question, for the sake of their son. After all, the person they favor is already Consort Duanyi, who is also the most favored.
But now, he has already revealed to the world that he wants to establish himself as the heir, which means he doesn't have much faith in the eldest son.
Or rather, even if the eldest son could become the crown prince, the Ning family would not allow them to continue to grow powerful.
The more this is the case, the more the Ning family, especially Consort Ning, has to follow the emperor's lead.
At least Consort Ning dared not covet the position of Empress.
Since I can't become empress, should I try to win her over?
"I never imagined you could go so high and so far. I'm proud, but I'm also worried. After all, you're capable. These are things I don't really understand." Yan Lingyun sighed, "You must be careful."
“Don’t raise all of your eldest and second brothers’ sons to be military generals. In times of peace, there needs to be some who can wield the pen,” Yan Nangui said.
“Yes, your eldest brother’s eldest son is Xiwen, and he has a calm temperament. Your second brother’s children are all learning martial arts, but we’ll see in time. They’re still young,” Yan Lingyun said.
When the Seventh Princess returned, she looked at Yan Lingyun with a sense of unfamiliarity.
Yan Nangui then said, "This is Grandpa. Go and talk to Grandpa."
"Mother, is your maternal grandfather your father, the Emperor?"
"Your subject dares not, these words cannot be spoken to others." Yan Lingyun was terrified upon hearing this.
“Silly child, only your father is called Emperor. All our fathers are fathers,” Yan Nangui said.
"Oh, oh, oh, I misspoke, haha, Sodo's father is called 'Dad.' Wei Huan's father... uh, he's just called 'Dad.' I misspoke," the Seventh Princess said coquettishly.
“Okay, I remember, this is your maternal grandfather. He's your mother’s father,” Yan Nangui said.
"Grandpa!" the seventh princess exclaimed, reaching out her hand. "Grandpa has such a thick beard!"
"Your subject dares not accept such praise." Yan Lingyun looked at her, his eyes filled with joy, yet he didn't know what to say.
The seventh princess was very outgoing, so she pulled her grandfather aside and started talking to him.
At noon, His Majesty treated the general to a meal.
The key point is that His Majesty himself came over.
The seventh princess was overjoyed to see her father and rushed over to hug his leg, saying, "Father, Father, look how long Grandpa's beard is!"
"Your Majesty." Yan Lingyun rose and bowed.
"No need for formalities, please sit. Let's have our meal together." Shu Chengfeng held his daughter's little hand: "Father has ordered the imperial kitchen to make your favorite fish, would you like some?"
"Yes, yes, yes!" The seventh princess jumped up and down with joy.
Yan Lingyun wasn't used to palace etiquette, so she didn't enjoy the meal.
But I felt relieved. At least I saw the Emperor's undisguised affection for the Seventh Princess, and the unintentional concern he showed for his own daughter.
Before leaving, he didn't say anything, just watched Yan Nangui for a while, then smiled and left.
The seating arrangement at the grand banquet naturally caused quite a stir. Inevitably, some officials submitted memorials criticizing His Majesty's actions as inappropriate.
Shu Chengfeng ignored all of this and did not reply.
The Ning family remained inactive, and the other ministers also kept silent.
Everyone is waiting, waiting for an opportunity.
On the fourth day of the eleventh month of that year, Li Lingyi of Liuyun Palace launched an attack.
After a long and arduous process, she gave birth to His Majesty's tenth prince. Both mother and child are safe and sound.
The Empress Dowager was delighted and bestowed many gifts upon the Empress Dowager.
He also told Shu Chengfeng to promote Li Lingyi.
It seems that the mother and son had recently failed to reach an agreement, and the emperor granted their request, promoting Li Lingyi to the rank of Liangren.
At this point, she was already a fifth-rank concubine.
With the birth of the tenth prince, at least if Consort Li doesn't do anything reckless, things will be peaceful from now on.
There was an unspoken envy everywhere, at least among the concubines who had no children.
On the same day, news came from outside that the late emperor's seventh son, Shu Yufeng, was critically ill.
The late emperor's seventh son has been imprisoned for almost fourteen years.
Many people have forgotten this prince who was once very famous and was deeply favored by the late emperor.
Several years ago, the eighth prince, who had been deposed by His Majesty, had already passed away. He was sent away quietly.
Now, the Seventh Prince has also reached the end.
Shu Chengfeng still sent the imperial physician to treat him; the grudges from back then had long since faded. He simply no longer cared or paid attention to them.
"Let's ask Third Brother to go and take a look," Shu Chengfeng said.
Prince Ping received the imperial decree and set off for the outskirts of the capital.
Unfortunately, before he arrived, news of the Seventh Prince Shu Yufeng's departure reached them.
A'lu followed closely behind and hanged herself.
Prince Ping, Shu Xiufeng, stood at the entrance of the villa, lost in thought and silent for a long, long time. Many past events flashed through his mind, yet it seemed as if he couldn't grasp anything at all.
No matter how fierce the struggle was back then, my second brother died at the Imperial Clan Court.
The eighth prince also died in prison. The twelfth prince was adopted out and became a member of the imperial clan. Although he was free, he was also humiliated.
I... am just living a cautious life. And these people, back then, were all full of youthful vigor, all believing they could replace the crown prince...
Now, even the seventh brother is dead.
Back then, the seventh prince, full of vigor and ambition, was far more successful than I was. How much Father Emperor favored the seventh prince back then!
They just died like that anyway.
Is it true that humans cannot defy fate? Prince Ping wondered, perhaps they simply cannot.
Your Majesty, are you perhaps the one destined by Heaven?
"Your Highness Prince Ping, we urge you to take charge of the overall situation." Someone came out from the courtyard and invited him in.
King Ping took a deep breath and stepped into the courtyard.
Despite it being the height of summer, the place felt desolate.
People who have lost power are always like this. It's not surprising. It's just that looking at this scene, it's hard not to feel sad.
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