As Duke Anguo was summoned, the matter of Concubine Xian soon spread outside the palace.

At that time, the King of Shu was leaning on a jar and watching two crickets fighting.

Frightened by Yu Jin's impressive military achievements, the King of Shu decided to temporarily withdraw from the battle for the throne. In order to cultivate his character, he spent a large sum of money to buy a pair of crickets to temper his temper.

Not long ago, he used the winning cricket to fight with the cricket of Prince Kang, and actually won a thousand gold coins, which can be regarded as saving money for the royal palace.

Upon hearing the news that Concubine Xian was gone, the King of Shu nearly knocked over the jar with a trembling hand. He held the jar with his heart pounding for a long time.

After recovering from the shock, the King of Shu wiped the sweat from his forehead and became more determined in his decision: stay away from that evildoer, Old Seven!

The seventh child brought bad luck to the eighth child, and then to the fourth child, and now he has even killed his own mother...

What, this incident has nothing to do with Lao Qi?

The King of Shu sneered.

How could it be unrelated? Anyone who messes with Lao Qi will either die or get injured. Who would believe that it was all a coincidence?

Suddenly a cricket chirped loudly, and the King of Shu, who had some experience, knew that one of the crickets had won.

Looking down at the giant cricket showing off its might in the jar, the King of Shu slowly exhaled a breath of foul air.

Forget it. Actually, it's not bad to raise crickets and win some money. Just make do with it for now and wait until Old Seven gets into trouble before taking action.

The death of Concubine Xian caused quite a stir in the court. The ministers began to ponder one thing: the emperor was almost done with the princes, but the throne was still vacant. This could not go on. Should they suggest to the emperor to appoint a crown prince?

The ministers calculated that it had been almost a year since the deposed crown prince was executed. The emperor should be able to keep his composure if they proposed to appoint a crown prince at this time. At least they wouldn't be hit to death with a paper ballast as soon as they opened their mouths.

In this atmosphere of anxiety, more than half a month had passed since Concubine Xian's incident, and finally a minister brought up the issue of appointing a crown prince during court session.

After a lot of arguing between the emperor and his ministers, the two naturally parted on bad terms.

After returning to Yangxin Palace, Emperor Jingming was so angry that he paced back and forth in the room.

It hasn't been long since then, and they're forcing him to appoint a crown prince.

Why can't the court and the harem make him worry-free?

Emperor Jingming felt a sorrow that no one understood. He walked out with his hands behind his back and unknowingly found himself outside Kunning Palace.

Taking a glance at the gate of Cining Palace, Emperor Jingming was startled.

How did he get here?

Ever since that day when I parted ways with the Queen on bad terms - well, we've had more and more partings on bad terms lately.

Anyway, after the empress left that day, he never set foot in Kunning Palace again, and the empress didn't even send anyone to invite him.

Thinking of this, Emperor Jingming became angry.

Not only does he have no one to share his worries, but the Queen also makes things more difficult for him. Life is simply unbearable!

Emperor Jingming walked over with a gloomy face.

When the palace maid saw Emperor Jingming coming, she opened her mouth to announce it, but was stopped by Emperor Jingming.

Just kidding, he was in the middle of a cold war with the Queen, and now everyone in the palace knew about it. How could he save face?

The Queen was eating grapes at this time.

The grapes are like agate, with a pleasing purple color. After being soaked in well water, they are cool and sweet. It is so comfortable to eat them.

When Emperor Jingming walked in, he saw a palace maid peeling grapes with great skill. A crystal plate beside her was piled with green grape beads. Another palace maid used a silver toothpick to pick up a grape bead and put it to the empress's mouth.

Emperor Jingming was so angry that his face turned greener than a peeled grape.

Shouldn't the queen be terrified and frightened after being neglected, unable to sleep or eat? What is going on?

"Cough, cough!" Emperor Jingming coughed loudly.

The queen turned her head and wiped the corner of her mouth with a handkerchief, then stood up and came to greet him: "The emperor is here, why didn't you let the palace maids inform you?"

Emperor Jingming's expression twisted.

Did he get to see the Queen eating grapes so happily?

He was really pissed off!

Emperor Jingming walked past the empress, sat down on the chair, reached out to pick up the toothpick placed on the crystal plate, inserted a grape pearl into his mouth.

The empress waved her hand to signal the waiters to leave, came to sit opposite Emperor Jingming, and asked, "Is it sweet?"

Emperor Jingming nodded.

It's really sweet, especially when you eat one when you are upset.

The queen smiled and said, "Then your Majesty, please eat more."

Emperor Jingming suddenly came to his senses: Did he come here to eat grapes? He clearly came here to settle accounts with the empress!

It’s not quite right to say that he’s settling accounts, but anyway, if he’s not happy, the queen can’t be so at ease.

Other couples share the joys and sorrows, but this woman is the only one who is a little ignorant.

After unconsciously eating another grape, Emperor Jingming spoke: "Today, those old guys... ahem, the ministers mentioned the issue of establishing a crown prince again."

The queen hummed calmly and lowered her eyes to eat grapes.

Emperor Jingming saw the empress taking grapes left and right, and in the blink of an eye, most of the grapes on the plate were gone. He gritted his teeth and asked, "What do you think, empress?"

The queen paused, glanced at Emperor Jingming, and said, "The harem is not allowed to interfere in government affairs."

Emperor Jingming was choked and said unhappily: "I just asked the Queen's opinion, not to interfere in government affairs."

The queen wiped her hands with a handkerchief and said calmly, "Your Majesty asked me for my opinion, so I spoke out boldly. I hope Your Majesty will not blame me."

"You said it."

"The princes are all grown up, and the throne is left vacant, just like a bonfire at night attracting moths to it, and there is no way to stop it."

Emperor Jingming was silent for a while, then asked, "Does the Empress also agree to appoint a crown prince as soon as possible?"

The queen said nothing and continued to eat her grapes.

Of course she supported the establishment of a crown prince. Not only that, she also wanted her adopted son Yu Jin to sit on that throne.

But it was not easy for her to say this out loud.

Emperor Jingming stood up and murmured, "I need to think about it carefully."

He stood up and walked out, picking up the last grape and throwing it into his mouth.

The queen stared at the empty crystal plate in astonishment, then finally smiled.

After returning to the Yangxin Palace, Emperor Jingming locked himself in his room and fell into deep thought.

When he was young, his mother once said to him: If you are not a genius, when everyone disagrees with you, it proves that you are wrong.

Was it really wrong that he was not in a hurry to appoint a crown prince?

He is still in good health, and can stay in this position for another ten or eight years without any problems. But now that he has been appointed as the crown prince, who knows what kind of accidents may happen in such a long time?

Looking at history, those who appointed a crown prince early almost all had no good results, and his legitimate son Yu Lang was no exception.

However, the ministers are probably worried because of his age. It must be said that he has been quite overwhelmed in the past two years. Perhaps it is time to choose a crown prince to share his worries.

Worry?

Emperor Jingming's eyes lit up.

Yes, the Empress cannot worry about court affairs, but the Crown Prince can!

He can't be the only one who is bitter and resentful every day. The ministers can curse in the streets and bang their heads against the pillars when they want to. The women in the harem can eat roast chicken and grapes when they want to. Each of them lives a more comfortable life than him, the emperor.

Emperor Jingming felt aggrieved for himself and began to think about his sons.