The extreme bustle was gone, and then there was emptiness. Gao Xuance's expression softened when he walked to the gate of the East Palace. The East Palace was a newly awarded mansion, also within the palace, but it was a separate palace.

After opening the door, he quickly walked into the bedroom. Yao Niang was reading a book with her head down. She was still the same as usual, never putting the book down and liked to read all kinds of books.

As if she heard footsteps, Yao Niang stood up, and when she saw him coming in, she smiled slightly, "Brother Xuan Ce."

Instead of calling him the prince, she called him brother Xuan Ce. Gao Xuan Ce felt relieved when he heard it, and his heart softened immediately. He had a lot to say to Yao Niang, but he had to take off his outer clothes first. Yao Niang immediately came over, helped him undress, and helped him to wash and comb his hair.

Gao Xuance could not wait to tell Yao Niang, "Although I got what I wanted today, I am not as happy as I thought."

"That's natural. The higher your position, the more things you have to take on and the greater the responsibility you have to bear. That's how life is. Back then, I tried my best to enter the palace as a companion to my parents. I wanted to let my father know that although I was a girl, I was very capable and would prevent them from bullying my mother in the future. But on the first day I became your sister's companion to my parents, I was slapped on the palm. At that time, I thought, what a promising future I have, I was slapped on the palm on the first day." Yao Niang felt angry when she thought about this.

Gao Xuance smiled in a very unkind way and asked her specifically, "Which hand did you hit?"

Yao Niang spread out her palm and said to him pitifully, "It was this one that almost broke my palm."

"Let me blow it for you." He held her hand and blew it gently.

Her hands were different from those of others. There was a thread on the tip of her middle finger. She could even feel a needle eye from her regular needlework. But the more she did this, the more she could feel that this was a living person.

Seeing him so gentle, Yao Niang's heart was filled with sweetness, and she wanted to pester him and whisper, "Honestly, when you are conferred the title today, do you feel like you are on the top of a mountain, looking down on all the other mountains?"

"A little bit. I can see everyone's expressions." Gao Xuance said.

Yao Niang couldn't help but say, "Today, many people of different ages came to pay their respects to me. Although I was a prince's consort before, I have always been in the palace, and I have to avoid suspicion with these ladies inside and outside the palace. I didn't expect it to be like this today. I always feel a little bit reluctant."

Gao Xuan Ce, however, disagreed: "What's the big deal? There are 19-year-old Jinshi and 70-year-old old Tongsheng. As Han Yu said, there is a sequence in learning."

"What? That's not what you meant." Yao Niang pulled her hand back.

"Anyway, that's what I mean. You're just too polite. Don't feel guilty about it."

"The same goes for you. Now that you are the crown prince, you have reached a new starting point. In the past, you wanted to seize the throne, but now that you have succeeded, you should be more decisive. But you are only the crown prince after all, and you have to listen to your father in everything. This is difficult for many smart people, but I think it is also a test for you." Yao Niang advised.

Gao Xuance nodded heavily, feeling as if his eyes had suddenly been opened.

The emptiness in his heart was filled again by Yao Niang's few words, and he even wanted to get up and go back to the study.

But he didn't expect that as soon as he stood up, Yao Niang grabbed his belt and asked in a coquettish voice, "What's the hurry?"

Gao Xuance coughed lightly, and Yao Niang stood up and pulled him towards the bed: "You are always so shy, it's so unpleasant."

Don't be fooled by Gao Xuance's tall stature and his noble and romantic appearance. Unfortunately, he is always too reserved, especially in sex. He is very shy, especially when kissing her. He has to ask again and again. He is simply not the type to be tough occasionally, and Yao Niang can't do anything about it.

In the dragon and phoenix tent, the lovebirds were neck to neck. On the first day of becoming the crown prince, the happiest thing turned out to be this. They were in perfect harmony, you were in me and I was in you.

…

Prince Zhou was quicker to take up his fiefdom than the fourth prince. When the day came for him to leave, Emperor Jianzhang and Gao Xuance personally sent him off, because after taking up his fiefdom, he could not return even if the emperor or the empress died, and he would be far away from everything in the capital from then on.

In the previous life, when King Zhou was enfeoffed in Anzhou, it was the same. Usually, the Jinyiwei would often spy on whether the vassal king had any ulterior motives, etc. If Emperor Tianlu had not been childless after ascending the throne and died suddenly soon after, King Zhou might have been confined to Anzhou for the rest of his life.

At least this time we went to Weihui, which is located in the heart of the Central Plains. The prince's palace is big enough and provides a lot of fertile fields and salt fields.

Yao Niang was also seeing Xu Qingrong off, and said, "Please rest assured, Second Sister-in-law. Mother said that she would let the Second Princess return to Beijing to study."

Xu Qingrong smiled and said, "Thank you very much, sister-in-law."

"This has nothing to do with me. It's all because Father and Mother are thinking about you."

No matter how reluctant Xu Qingrong was, at least Gao Xuance did not have as much ill will towards King Zhou as she had imagined. He even took the initiative to enter the palace to talk to King Zhou and asked him to take care of his health. Xu Qingrong knew that this might be a show of brotherly love for the Emperor Jianzhang to see, so she did not want to have a quarrel with Yao Niang at this time, so she smiled and spoke in a flattering manner.

Yao Niang exchanged a few pleasantries with her, but didn't see Hong Shuyi, so she asked another question.

Xu Qingrong said casually: "She feels a little uncomfortable today, I let her go to rest first."

Yao Niang thought to herself that Hong Shuyi had schemed so many things and finally ended up sending her to be a vassal, but she didn't expect that Hong Shuyi was already in critical condition.

The King of Zhou was listening to what Emperor Jianzhang was saying. Gao Xuance actually had no intention of killing his brother. It has been a habit since ancient times to harm brothers and sisters. In the future, things will change, and what will happen to his own descendants?

Of course, all this was based on the fact that King Zhou was obedient. He didn't mind Emperor Jianzhang and Queen Hong treating King Zhou better, and even personally stepped forward to encourage King Zhou's eldest son Gao Rui.

He wants to pretend, and he does it very well.

The King of Zhou only hoped that his younger brother would be lenient with him when he ascended to the throne. He even recited a passage from the Book of Songs: "Two sons were in a boat, floating on the scenery. I wish I could say that I miss you, and I would nourish you with my heart! Two sons were in a boat, floating on the scenery. I wish I could say that I miss you, and I would do you no harm!"

This is the poem "Two Sons Boating" in Mao's Preface to the Poems of Poetry, which talks about the brotherhood between the two sons of Duke Xuan of Wei, Ji Zi and Gong Zi Shou.

Gao Xuance nodded, "Every time I read about the relationship between Mu Yi and Duke Xiang of Song, I couldn't help but be moved. I am fortunate to be conferred the title by my father. We are brothers, and we share the same mother. We are closer than Mu Yi and Duke Xiang of Song. In the future, if there is anything in the vassal state, as long as I can help, I will go through fire and water without hesitation."

When Duke Huan of Song was seriously ill, Prince Zifu, the half brother of Mu Yi, asked Mu Yi to make him his successor, but Mu Yi refused. Later, Duke Huan of Song died, and Prince Zifu ascended the throne as Duke Xiang of Song. After Duke Xiang of Song ascended the throne, Mu Yi served as the left teacher and handled important government affairs, and Song State was thus stable and peaceful.

The two brothers always had a good relationship.

When King Zhou heard Gao Xuance's analogy, he knew that he had returned defeated last time, and although Gao Xuance had almost crippled all of his people, he had only stopped at a certain point and had not caused any serious damage. Now that he had become the king and defeated the enemy, he had nothing to say.

Seeing Gao Xuance's sincerity and Yao Niang's kindness to Xu Qingrong, Emperor Jianzhang could not help but nod his head. A superior should have the bearing of a superior.

After the King of Zhou's carriage left the capital, Xu Qingrong said to the people around him, "Keep an eye on Lady Hong. Don't let her get to the vassal state alive."

There is no way a person who knows so many of her secrets could survive in this world.

Hong Shuyi usually kills countless people with someone else's knife, but she never expected that she had been feeling weak and uncomfortable since the evening, and now she was almost exhausted.

She was not stupid and quickly figured out the key point. However, no matter how smart she was, she could not have imagined that Xu Qingrong wanted to not only teach her a lesson but also silence her.

When the news of Hong Shuyi's death came, Queen Hong just sighed slightly: "This child is really unlucky. Princess Zhou once told me that when she arrived at Weihui Mansion, she would find a good marriage for her. As a daughter of the Hong family, she would definitely have many people knocking on the door. They even specially prepared a dowry for her. It's a pity that she has a small and unlucky life."

Yao Niang listened and felt that it must be Xu Qingrong who took action. If she had not dodged quickly in her previous life, Xu Qingrong would have done the same thing.

But Xu Qingrong's refusal to do good will backfire in the future? This is what Yao Niang no longer cares about, because Xu Qingrong did not give birth to Gao Shuo in this life, but only a daughter, and Gao Xuance became the prince. Even if Gao Xuance died, there were still Chengyun, Chengze, and even Xun Ge'er.

It will not be King Zhou's turn again.

Compared to the departure of Prince Zhou and Xu Qingrong, the farewell to the Fourth Prince and his wife was not so grand. After all, the Fourth Prince and Gao Xuance did not have the same mother. Emperor Jianzhang had always taken care of him only because he had a lame leg. Later, because of the matter of Concubine Yan, Emperor Jianzhang still took care of him, but not like before.

Besides, he originally liked the clever Gao Xuance more.

Mu Wantong turned her head and took a deep look at Shangjing. When Yao Niang saw her eyes, she knew that Mu Wantong was actually unwilling to accept the result, but to some extent, she was afraid of losing the Fourth Prince.

Sure enough, Mu Wantong and Xu Qingrong are different. King Zhou is the head of the family, so King Zhou has accepted his fate. Xu Qingrong dare not say anything more, but Mu Wantong is not the same.

She said to Yao Niang, "I grew up in the Ming court and was raised in luxury, so I don't want to be inferior to others. I am not here to serve as a vassal, but I obey my husband and am willing to accept defeat. My husband is different from your husband, so our fates are different. No matter how I struggle, it will be useless."

Yao Niang understood what Mu Wantong meant, that you just found a good man, and no one else is as good as me.

Yao Niang had not let her go before, let alone now, so Yao Niang laughed and said, "You think too highly of yourself. Don't you know that from the first day you married him, it was doomed to fail? Kings of different surnames in every dynasty have sought self-protection by desecrating themselves, but you are ambitious and have even let the King of Zhennan secretly pull together the ministers. What, do you want to rebel?"

These words were spoken so softly that no one heard them except Mu Wantong.

Mu Wantong listened to it and looked at Yao Niang in disbelief. Yao Niang shook her head and said, "You don't even know this, but you blame the Fourth Prince. I think he is the one who really understands."

The most important thing for people is not how to see others clearly, but to see themselves clearly.