The eldest son, the eldest son! Again, the eldest son! Hongli was utterly annoyed. Every time he heard this word, a nameless anger would rise within him, especially at this moment, for the Empress Dowager to say such a thing was rather inappropriate.
"Yonglian's body is barely cold, and his golden coffin is still in the palace. Yet, Your Majesty, you are already eager for me to have another legitimate son. Have you ever considered Yonglian's feelings?"
"The dead cannot be brought back to life. I should make further plans. Yonglian is so sensible; he will surely understand my good intentions." The Empress Dowager, without any sense of impropriety, continued:
"Besides, I didn't ask you to have a child immediately. I'm just reminding you so you can be prepared and not overlook this matter later."
"No need for preparations. I have no intention of having another child with the Empress." Hongli refused decisively. The Empress Dowager's expression remained unchanged, and she emphasized solemnly.
"If you refuse to favor other concubines, I can ignore it; if you don't want to go to Changchun Palace, I can turn a blind eye. Before, there was Yonglian, and you could still be willful. But now that the legitimate son is gone, this is a matter of great importance concerning the country and the people, and you cannot act willfully! The legitimate son must be born, there is no room for discussion!"
The Empress Dowager's righteous words sounded utterly ridiculous to Hongli.
"Without a legitimate son, can the throne not be passed down? Empress Dowager, don't forget that you were the late emperor's concubine, and I was born of a concubine, yet I still inherited the throne. If Father insists on establishing the legitimate son, then you are no longer the Empress Dowager, but a concubine!"
Hongli's words left the Empress Dowager speechless, but she quickly calmed down and refuted him.
“Even if you are born out of wedlock, you still have legitimate Manchu blood. But look at your harem, now you only have three sons left. You harbor resentment towards Yongcheng and have never been willing to get close to him. Yonghuang and Yongzhang are born to the Su family, and their mother is Han Chinese. They are not qualified to be crown princes at all.”
They keep saying they are Han Chinese, but the Empress Dowager has probably forgotten one thing: "Your son has already raised the Su family to the Manchu banner system, and now Yushan and her son have been registered as Manchus."
The Empress Dowager, unconcerned, scoffed, "Raising her banner is only because you favor the Su family. You want to give her the title of Imperial Concubine, but that doesn't change the fact that the Su family and her son are Han Chinese."
“Yonghuang and Yongzhang are my flesh and blood. They have Manchu blood flowing in their veins, so they are Manchus!”
The Empress Dowager sighed inwardly, thinking that her son was being too simplistic. "I can disregard your favoritism towards Lady Su, but the heir apparent is a matter of national importance, and the future crown prince must be of pure blood!"
Yonghuang and Yongzhang are half Han Chinese, and they are not qualified to inherit the throne. Your Majesty, you should give up this idea as soon as possible!
"You must either bear a legitimate son with the Empress, or have children with other Manchu concubines. Preserving the pure Manchu bloodline is your duty as Emperor, and you cannot shirk it!"
"The Empress appears gentle and virtuous on the surface, but she is vicious and selfish at heart. Yonglian's death has nothing to do with Yushan and her son. What right does she have to blame others? She even asked why it wasn't Yonghuang who was in trouble. Is this the kind of thing a mother or an Empress should say? It's utterly unreasonable! I don't want to be close to such a woman. I find it annoying to even look at her!"
"The Empress is too heartbroken to talk nonsense because she lost her child. You should not blame her, but understand her and comfort and accompany her."
The Empress Dowager was very considerate towards the Empress, but she never showed him any understanding. "Your subject doesn't have the patience for her, Your Majesty, please don't force me."
"Then you should at least try to have another child with her. Once she's pregnant, if you don't want to go to Changchun Palace anymore, I won't interfere," the Empress Dowager repeatedly advised. Hongli kept repeating the same thing.
"Whom I favor and with whom I have children is my own business. Your Majesty, please don't bring up the matter of legitimate or illegitimate children or the crown prince. I am in my prime, and there is no rush to establish a crown prince. We can discuss it after I turn forty."
After saying goodbye, Hongli took his leave, and the mother and son parted on bad terms once again.
The Empress Dowager was deeply troubled by this. How could she make Hongli realize the importance of the child?
Mei Mama meant that since the Empress had just lost her child and was emotionally devastated, she was saying hurtful things and wouldn't be able to please the Emperor. It would be better to let the Empress recover for a while and wait until she was over her grief before trying to reunite the couple after the New Year.
In fact, the Empress Dowager wasn't pressuring them too much. She wasn't asking them to have children right now. She just mentioned it casually today, but she didn't expect him to react so strongly and refuse so decisively, leaving no room for negotiation.
Ultimately, it was all because of unforeseen circumstances. If Yonglian were still alive, the Empress Dowager wouldn't have had to urge him further, only adding to the conflict.
It's one thing for him to be willful on ordinary days, but the heir apparent is a major issue that must be planned for as soon as possible. After all, cultivating an heir apparent is a long process and cannot be accomplished overnight.
This time, the Empress Dowager would not let Hongli act recklessly; she had to find a way to make Hongli submit!
This matter was of great concern not only to the Empress Dowager, but also to the other women in the harem.
Lan Rong was still under house arrest, and Hongli had not released her, but she had heard about the major events that had occurred in the harem.
Upon learning of Yonglian's passing, Lan Rong was overjoyed and exclaimed with a smile, "This harem has been quiet for so long, with Su Yushan holding absolute power. Now, finally, there's going to be a good show to watch!"
Qiu Cha asked curiously, "Forgive my ignorance, but now that the Second Prince has passed away and the Fourth Prince is not favored by the Emperor, only the First Prince and the Third Prince remain. Wouldn't Consort Chun be even more pleased? Why are you so happy, Your Majesty?"
In Lan Rong's view, the emperor's favor towards Su Yushan was limited to the harem; once it came to matters of state, Su Yushan was at a complete disadvantage.
"What does it matter how much the Emperor favors her? She is still just a concubine. Her sons are all born out of wedlock. The Empress Dowager cares most about legitimate sons. She will definitely make the Emperor and Empress have another legitimate son."
This makes sense, but Qiu Cha felt that the Empress's chances were slim. "But the Emperor and Empress have many conflicts, and our Emperor probably won't sleep with the Empress again."
This chapter is not finished yet. Please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
