When he was young, King Zhou read about how Zheng Bo defeated Duan in Yan. He was very impressed by Zheng Bo's mother, Wu Jiang, who favored her younger son. The two of them even quarreled to the point where they would never see each other again in the underworld.
It's really funny. Now that things have come to this, what's the difference between him and Zheng Bo?
His mother, Queen Hong, was asking him to swear to be kind to his younger brother, but his younger brother was born a rebellious person. In the past, when the Lin mother and son were around, he secretly sabotaged their possibility of ascending to the throne. Now his mother asked him to swear just to be nice to both sides.
They cannot fight against the patriarchal system. No matter how smart you, Gao Xuance, are, or how partial Empress Hong and Emperor Jianzhang are, they can never change the system of primogeniture that has existed for thousands of years.
In fact, he had never thought of seizing the throne. In the early days, he hoped that the eldest prince would become the emperor legitimately and he would be a subject.
But now things have gone against his will, but even so, he cannot reveal any evidence now. Why should a person make any promises when he already has the wisdom in his hands?
The eldest prince was defeated because Lin was not favored. The Lin family was powerful, but Lin herself was not favored. Gao Xuance also made some adjustments, forcing Lin and her son to lose step by step and fall into the trap.
And why should he do this?
"Mother, you have just been crowned queen today. Many matters will be decided by father. No matter what, your son will be filial to you and friendly to your third brother." King Zhou said lightly.
But King Zhou was not completely without means. He knew that if he was too cold, Queen Hong would definitely turn against him in the future. Therefore, he said, "My son can do it. I hope that Queen Mother can persuade my third brother not to kill his brother. Otherwise, it will not be me who will deal with him, but the people of the world."
Empress Hong was not completely without political qualities. The emperor of this dynasty shared the world with the literati, and the current emperor relied on his status as the eldest son to ascend to the throne.
Has the late emperor's Consort Liao ever been unfavored? And has Prince Heng ever been unwise and wise? Is this bad?
Unfortunately, the people of the world opposed it. This is why Concubine Liao, who once held a high position of power in the palace, was always depressed. She wanted to fight against the whole world, not the emperor.
The emperor himself is subject to constraints and cannot easily change the crown prince.
If the Prince of Chen does not surrender as soon as possible, I believe he will be forced to rebel like the eldest prince and will have no choice but to take risks. The fate of taking risks will be the same as that of another eldest prince.
If the two sons get into trouble and both suffer losses, then others will take advantage of the situation.
At least when King Zhou came to the throne, he was the biological brother and would not really take Gao Xuance's life, whether from a moral point of view or because of the four words "we are brothers from the same mother", and she, the queen mother, could even mediate between them.
Prince Chen's Mansion
Yao Niang was holding her belly while discussing the birthday gift with Bai Ying and the others: "The prince told me a few days ago that Zhao Si has always been someone he can use, so the birthday gift will be given to him, but he should do it as soon as possible, because the official enthronement ceremony will be held next year."
After saying that, she pressed him, "Although it's next year, it would be best if we could see each other by the end of the year."
Bai Ying said, "Princess, do you want to ask him to buy something first?"
"No need, gifts are secondary." Yao Niang waved her hand.
The most difficult thing now is that Consort Hong has become the empress, Emperor Jianzhang is old, and Prince Zhou has not yet done anything wrong. He is different from the eldest prince and others, and he even cares about Prince Chen.
Even Xu Qingrong didn't dare to use real weapons to attack Yao Niang, because she was afraid that King Zhou would find out.
Bai Ying and the others still don't understand, and they wonder why Yao Niang is not as attentive as before. After all, the Royal Concubine has become the Empress, and Prince Chen will be one step closer to ascending to that position in the future because of his mother's status.
After all, Queen Hong has always favored Prince Chen the most.
But Yao Niang had already known the coming autumn even before the wind started. Brothers Cheng Yun and Cheng Ze did not understand this. Cheng Ze was even counting on his fingers, waiting for his brother to come back and talk.
People from the Hong family quickly entered the palace in a small group to congratulate. Now the person who stayed by Queen Hong's side throughout the whole process was Xu Qingrong. Old Madam Hong had passed away last year, and now the head of the Hong family is Madam Hong Dongfang.
Dongfang looked at Empress Hong in surprise, thinking that the world had changed so much.
Although Xu Qingrong was in high spirits, she knew King Zhou's attitude and did not dare to stand out too much. Instead, she was humble and polite. With the help of Hong Shuyi, she established relationships with the Hong family. Even Dongfang, who usually claimed to be able to read faces, almost changed his mind.
"Why don't you see Princess Chen?" Hong Shutang asked.
This Hong Shutang is Dongfang's biological daughter. She is about to reach marriage age this year and has been waiting for a good price, and is in no hurry to get married.
Queen Hong laughed and said, "Her belly is getting heavier, so I didn't let her come over. She can't stand the smell."
"So that's how it is." Hong Shutang had hired many teachers to teach her the art of geomancy since she was young. She was not like other girls who only had an acre of land. When she was growing up, the Hong family had already risen, and the people she interacted with were either rich or noble. Although she had heard from her mother outside the palace about how favored and brave Prince Chen was, it now seemed that Prince Zhou was a low-key person, yet now had a great advantage.
Dongfang was better at maneuvering situations than her daughter. Even at this time, she did not directly say that she did not want Prince Chen to be her son-in-law, because she knew very well that Prince Chen might not become the emperor, but Empress Hong would always be biased towards this son.
…
Yao Niang knew how lively Kunning Palace was. When Gao Xuance came back, she told him about this matter and said, "I think the Queen Mother has already recognized my second brother in her heart."
"That day, the Queen Mother asked my second brother to stay and talk to me. I already knew it." Gao Xuance sat down and stroked Yao Niang's hand.
Yao Niang frowned: "Did Xing Er tell you?"
Gao Xuance nodded.
That was true. Empress Hong trusted Xing'er and Lady Mo very much. Even if she dismissed them, she would let someone spread the news about the mother and son's conversation, and Xing'er might have heard it when the news was spread.
"Even if Xing'er didn't say it, I could guess about 80% of it." Gao Xuance was still a little discouraged.
He was ruthless and cruel to outsiders, and dared to do anything, but King Zhou and Queen Hong were his biological brother and mother after all, and he did not expect his mother to turn against him so quickly.
Yao Niang didn't think it was a big deal: "Even if he is named the crown prince, I advise you to be more stable. Sometimes the time is not right for you, so you have to learn to be patient and accumulate strength for the time to come."
"Okay." Gao Xuance needed Yao Niang's encouragement at this moment.
Because many of his subordinates had left him openly or secretly, he didn't care, because a strong wind knows a strong grass, and a turbulent weather knows a loyal minister, and what he was going to do was inherently risky.
Now, almost all those who remain are those who truly support him.
Outside, he always acted indifferent, without even showing any strange expression. Only when he saw Yao Niang did he dare to reveal his true feelings.
Most people in the world thought he was a rebel, and wondered why he couldn't let his legitimate brother inherit the throne.
"I felt the same way when Emperor Taizong of Tang Dynasty experienced the Xuanwu Gate Incident. If you are willing to submit to me, our family will stay away from the capital for the rest of our lives and become a vassal as soon as possible. If you are unwilling, then you can stay and wait for the time to come. There are always choices in life. Don't hesitate and try to do it instead of deliberately hiding your talents." Yao Niang looked at him, just like she usually encouraged Cheng Yun.
Gao Xuance smiled and said, "I understand. You should stay at home to take care of the baby. When you gave birth to your first two children, I was not at home with you. This time, I must accompany you well."
Yao Niang said happily, "That's great. I have a feeling that this time it will be a girl. I've heard people say that when you are pregnant with a son, you will become ugly, but when you are pregnant with a daughter, you will be very beautiful. You see, I had spots when I gave birth to the first two boys, but when I was pregnant with her, my complexion was the same as before."
"I like it whether you give birth to a boy or a girl." Gao Xuance mischievously leaned his head on Yao Niang's belly, his hands being a little restless.
Yao Niang's face flushed immediately: "No."
Gao Xuance hugged her and said, "Don't worry, I won't do anything rash."
"Actually, it's possible." Yao Niang knew something about pregnancy. It was possible to have sex occasionally during the middle three months of pregnancy.
Gao Xuance said seriously: "No, I was just joking just now."
He loves Yao Niang so much, how could he let her satisfy his sexual desires?
He was in a good mood just being able to talk to Yao Niang every day.
…
With Yao Niang's comfort, Gao Xuance became more determined in his beliefs. He did not seek to be mediocre, but instead did a great job in the tasks assigned to him by Emperor Jianzhang.
Not only that, he also personally attended certain literary gatherings and attracted many scholars with his outstanding talent.
Everything he did seemed to be in line with Emperor Jianzhang's ideas.
"Okay, okay, Xuan Ce, if this batch of firearms really belongs to me, it will shock the enemy in the future."
Gao Xuance smiled and said, "I don't know anything. I just listen to my father."
At lunch, Emperor Jianzhang summoned Empress Hong again, and the three of them ate together as usual.
You should know that Gao Xuance always knew how to please these two. Even when they were having meals, he would serve them personally. Of course, this kind of service meant just saying one more thing to the palace maids, saying that if the emperor liked this dish, it could be presented to him.
Even so, Emperor Jianzhang was very happy.
He even mentioned the Zen ceremony at Mount Tai and prepared to have the Prince of Chen go to Mount Tai.
Empress Hong was shocked to hear these words. She thought that Prince Heng was much more favored in the past, so what was his fate?
The emperor wanted to use his son, but he deliberately praised his son and killed him. I'm afraid his fate will be even worse in the future.
After coming out of Funing Palace, Empress Hong asked him to go to Kunning Palace and talk behind closed doors.
Empress Hong said earnestly, "He has not issued an edict to make you the crown prince, but he has allowed you to do things for him. No matter which emperor is in power in the future, he will not tolerate you."
"Then what should I do?" Gao Xuance did not refute, but just asked Queen Hong.
He may still hold out a glimmer of hope, but Queen Hong lowered her eyes and said, "I have already told your brother and made him swear that as long as you stop now, he will never hurt you in the future. Good boy, you must get out of this as soon as possible. I will ask your father for a good fiefdom for you, and you can live a good life with Yao Niang in the future."
"Okay?"
Queen Hong even looked at her sons pleadingly. She didn't want her two sons to fight each other and both suffer losses. In the future, they would be picked up by others, which would make life even more miserable.
Gao Xuance raised his lips and uttered two words: "Too late."
"What?" Queen Hong grabbed her sleeve.
Gao Xuan Ce suddenly started to fight: "It's too late for me to say this. If you had been submissive and served the Queen well when you were in the Qian Mansion, and never had any improper thoughts, we, your sons, would not have had such thoughts. It's too late for you to say this now!"