Eleventh Prince Yongxing's talent and magnanimity surpass those of Fifteenth Prince Yongyan, and he is favored by the majority of court officials. Yongxing is passionate about calligraphy, which the Emperor has reprimanded him for, but he remains unrepentant. Now that the Emperor is in good health, he is even more attached to power, fearing that others might take even a share. Therefore, the strong-willed and opinionated Yongxing is more favored by the Emperor than the submissive and obedient Yongyan.
Agui, Liu Yong, and other close advisors of the emperor had all guessed his intentions and knew that the position of crown prince had been decided. However, the incident of Yongyan punishing the wife of the Third Prince of Fu greatly diminished the emperor's impression of Yongyan's gentleness and obedience. The tide of opinion in the court regarding the crown prince shifted, and the eleventh prince, Yongxing, who was devoted to calligraphy and painting, regained the emperor's favor.
The Eighth Prince suffers from a leg ailment and is destined to have no chance of ascending the throne. He can only choose one of the other three Princes to rely on in order to secure his future wealth and honor. Yonglin is young and was born to the same concubine as Yongyan. At present, he seems to have little chance of ascending the throne. However, if the Emperor lives a long life, he will also be one of the contenders for the crown prince position.
Agui was not close to any of the four princes, and Yuan Shoutong followed his example. Yongyan only had civil generals by his side, which was not as good as Yongxing having Li Shiyao and the marriage alliance with the Fucha family.
Although the Fucha family has not expressed its opinion on the four princes, the most fearless of them all is Yongxing, whose primary wife is Fukang'an's elder sister, Fucha Ruohan.
To regain the Emperor's favor, Yongyan needed civil and military officials to speak favorably of him. Within the court, the only military officials capable of influencing the Emperor's mind were Agui, Fukang'an, and Yuan Shoutong. Yongyan knew that even if he lowered himself further, he couldn't gain the help of Agui and Fukang'an. Currently, the only one he could win over was the Han general Yuan Shoutong.
If Heshen, Fu Chang'an, and Yuan Shoutong were to associate with each other, and Yuan Shoutong were to favor Yongyan, Yongyan, out of consideration for Yuan Shoutong, would no longer antagonize Heshen and Fu Chang'an. When Fu Chang'an was by Yongyan's side, he embezzled a considerable amount of silver using his name. Yongyan, being meticulous, must possess evidence of Fu Chang'an's embezzlement.
Fukang'an persuaded Yuan Shoutong, and Yongyan would then remember this favor as a debt to the Fucha family. Fukang'an didn't explicitly state his intentions, but through Yuan Shoutong, he conveyed to Yongyan that the Fucha family would not currently side with Yongxing. For Yongyan, who had lost power, the more pawns the better. He would then be inclined to rekindle his interest in winning over the Fucha family, and would not cause them any further trouble in the short term. Fukang'an could also enjoy his peaceful life, no longer making things difficult for Yan Ning and her child.
Fukang'an and Yan Ning sat by the window, the candlelight flickering on the low table. Yan Ning's gaze was obscured by the dim shadow cast by the candlelight, preventing her from seeing his features clearly. Only his steady voice came from the other side of the table, each word bringing her peace of mind. These court affairs were intricate and complex, but Fukang'an was willing to meticulously pave the way for her.
Yan Ning was somewhat surprised when she first heard Ruo Han's name. She had never heard that the Eleventh Prince's wife was the eldest daughter of the Fucha family. She had only heard Zhao Xing mention it once before, that both of the Fucha family's daughters had married members of the imperial clan.
She asked in confusion, "Why have I never seen my eldest sister?"
A strange look flashed across Fukang'an's face. He said hastily, "My eldest sister was not born to my mother. My mother and Aunt Yun were never on good terms. When she passed away, my eldest sister mistakenly believed that my mother had murdered Aunt Yun. Although my father cleared my mother's name afterward, my eldest sister held a grudge. Since my father also passed away, she rarely had any contact with the household after she got married."
Seeing that Fukang'an had succinctly recounted a case of jealousy and rivalry among the women of the manor, Yan Ning didn't seem to care much about Concubine Yun. Such incidents were common in the manor houses of officials in the capital. Yan Ning didn't press the matter to find out if the old lady had harmed Concubine Yun; old matters were hard to explain, and she feared Fukang'an himself didn't know the truth. She simply trusted her mother more than the other woman.
A thick layer of snow had piled up in the courtyard, and oil-paper lamps were lit under the eaves, casting a dim light. By the light, Yan Ning saw that Fukang'an's weapon rack, which he usually kept covered with a thin layer of snow, was also covered with a cold, menacing aura of swords and spears.
Because it was late at night, few people were around, making Fukang'an and Fuchang'an's footprints exceptionally clear. Fuchang'an was wearing boots, while Fukang'an's low-cut shoes must have been filled with a lot of snow water. Just thinking about it made Yan Ning's feet feel cold.
Yan Ning assumed that there were too many people in the capital who knew Fukang'an, so he couldn't leave during the day and could only leave disguised as his attendant when Fukang'an was on patrol at night.
However, in the midst of spring's vibrant beauty, someone in the Jilin prefectural government accused General Fucha Fukang'an of neglecting his duties, using the pretext of escorting He Longwu to secretly return to the capital. The impeachment memorial, delivered to the Emperor by Yongxing, was praised by the Emperor for his righteous act of putting aside personal ties. Yongyan and Heshen both spoke highly of Fukang'an, giving the Emperor a way to save face, so he suppressed the matter and did not discuss it in court. Unable to offend Yongxing, the Emperor could only transfer Fukang'an to the position of General of Shengjing as punishment.
Although the General of Shengjing and the General of Jilin were of the same rank, the area under Shengjing's jurisdiction was not as large as that of Jilin. Therefore, everyone in the court knew that Fukang'an had been punished, but they did not know the reason.
These events that occurred in the Hall of Mental Cultivation were told to Yan Ning by Consort Rong. She found the days in the palace too long, so she ordered Yan Ning to bring her two children to keep her company.
From the vibrant beginnings of spring to its fading end, the apricot blossoms in Jingyang Palace bloomed half a month later than usual. Consort Rong sighed softly, "All the spring dew in the palace has been sprinkled on Yikun Palace. How can the apricot trees bloom without the spring dew?"
When Yan Ning saw that Consort Rong's affection for De Xuan and Yun Wan was even greater than that for her grandmother, she knew in her heart that the Emperor's favor towards the Tenth Princess was a natural extension of his affection for her. Consort Dun's status had already surpassed that of Consort Rong, who was wearing the jade pendant personally bestowed by the Empress Dowager around her neck, all because of the Tenth Princess.
Having lived in the palace for two months, Yan Ning, though having read about Consort Dun's arrogance in historical records, was still shocked by the fierce aura emanating from her eyes when she witnessed it firsthand. With no head of the harem—Consort Shu had already passed away during the Empress Dowager's mourning period, and Consort Xun was still young—only Consort Dun and Consort Rong held equal status within the harem. Consort Dun consistently outshone Consort Rong. For a time, Consort Dun reigned supreme in the harem, even the newly promoted Consort Xun personally visiting Yikun Palace daily to pay her respects.
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