Thirteen felt a pang of unease. Was she still not going to be honest with him?
He hugged Heyue and whispered softly in her ear, "Don't hide anything from me, okay?"
He Yue's face stiffened, realizing he might have heard something, so she smiled again: "What am I hiding from you?"
They seemed determined not to mention it at all.
Thirteen didn't pressure her, but just sighed. That night, he was a little rougher with her, as if to vent his pent-up anger.
Heyue knew he was unhappy, but there were some things she couldn't say, so she could only let him be.
That night, each of them had their own thoughts.
The following afternoon, after leaving the palace, Thirteen followed Prince Yong to the study in the front courtyard of Prince Yong's residence.
Noticing his bad mood, Prince Yong asked him, "What has upset you? You've been acting like someone owes you something all day."
Thirteen sullenly finished a cup of tea, his face dark and gloomy. He slammed the empty teacup heavily on the table in anger: "What exactly is this Eighth Sister-in-law trying to do? She clearly doesn't associate with Heyue anymore, yet she still comes to upset her. What does she mean by this?!"
Prince Yong looked surprised: "What's going on?"
Thirteen recounted yesterday's events, indignantly declaring, "I won't let her get away with this!"
Prince Yong seemed to be deep in thought.
"One day, I will make them pay the price!" Thirteen gritted his teeth, his eyes filled with deep-seated hatred.
Prince Yong knew perfectly well who the "they" he was referring to were; he had also heard about their time in the borderlands, and a ruthless glint flashed in his heart.
“The Crown Prince seems to be treating us differently lately. What are your thoughts?” Prince Yong changed the subject.
"What he thinks is none of our business." When the Crown Prince was mentioned, Thirteen no longer showed the same admiration as before, but instead looked at him with disdain.
The Crown Prince's behavior in recent years has greatly disappointed Thirteen.
Beating officials, keeping male lovers, and doting on concubines—how could he be befit a crown prince? He has utterly disgraced the Qing Dynasty.
The emperor turned a blind eye and let the crown prince do as he pleased.
If it weren't for his apparent status as the crown prince, Thirteen wouldn't have bothered following him.
Prince Yong shook his head: "He is still the Crown Prince after all. He must not say such things again."
He said "or," but Thirteen didn't notice, only pursing his lips and not taking it seriously.
Prince Yong frowned, wondering if the trouble was caused by Thirteen's straightforward nature.
"You'd better rein in your temper, lest someone find something to use against you." Prince Yong loved his younger brother dearly and would never allow him to end up in such a situation, so his tone was particularly stern, startling Thirteen.
His fourth brother had never spoken to him so sternly before, but he always trusted his fourth brother, so he nodded sullenly in agreement.
Prince Yong's tone softened a bit: "The Crown Prince is not only the Crown Prince, but also our second brother. Father Emperor has his own decisions on some matters. We shouldn't interfere in things that are not our business. We should just help Father Emperor and the Crown Prince with their duties."
Be careful around the Crown Prince these days. I always feel he's suspicious of us. As long as he's still the Crown Prince, we must be respectful to him and not upset him, lest our brothers find fault with us.”
There were some things he couldn't tell his thirteenth brother, so he could only try to remind him as much as possible.
Thirteen's eyes widened, indignantly: "Why does the Crown Prince suspect us? We've followed the Crown Prince for so long and have never been disrespectful. If he suspects us for this, how can we help him?"
"The Crown Prince is only suspicious now, and he probably won't do anything to us. Just be respectful to the Crown Prince. As long as we don't make any mistakes, the Crown Prince will believe us sooner or later."
Prince Yong was only trying to comfort his thirteenth brother; he himself didn't really believe it.
But it is the only feasible method at present.
Thirteen was not one to tolerate things easily, and hearing this made him feel even more depressed. Suddenly, as if he had realized something, he looked up sharply at his fourth brother.
If I heard correctly, Fourth Brother said "when the Crown Prince is still the Crown Prince." What does that mean? Could it be that the Crown Prince could not be the Crown Prince?
He shook his head again. He himself thought it was unlikely. How many emperors in history had deposed their crown princes? Unless it was a huge mistake, which emperor would depose his crown prince?
Fourth Brother is truly confused.
In October of this year, the Tenth Prince Yinwo married his primary consort, namely the daughter of Prince Urjingalap, of the Abaga Borjigit clan.
This Abaga Borjigit woman was a Mongol. Many years ago, Emperor Kangxi had arranged this marriage with Prince Urjingalap, and now the day for the wedding had finally arrived.
Of all the princes, only the Tenth Prince, Yinzhi, married a Mongolian princess. Yinzhi's birth mother was Consort Wenxi, of the Niohuru clan, the younger sister of Emperor Kangxi's second empress.
I, Yinzhi, am of noble birth, and now I have married such a noble Mongolian princess, making our wedding day even more lively and extraordinary.
However, everyone knew that marrying a Mongolian princess as a consort was not necessarily a good thing. At least, apart from Prince Lian, Ninth Prince, and Fourteenth Prince, the other princes attended the wedding with a gloating attitude.
Heyue learned from the thirteenth prince that Yinzhi's maternal grandfather, Ebilun, was punished in the early years of the Kangxi Emperor's reign because of the Aobai incident. If it weren't for the presence of an Empress and Consort of the Niohuru clan in the palace, the Niohuru clan would probably have already fallen into decline.
However, both of Niohuru's daughters are now gone, leaving only one prince with Niohuru blood.
However, because of his mediocre talent, Yinzhi was not favored by Emperor Kangxi.
If we only consider their status, although the Niohuru clan gradually declined, they still had a certain influence in the court, and the Niohuru clan was also a significant help to me, Yinzhi.
Even without a crown prince, I, Yinzhi, still have a chance to compete for the position.
However, I, Yinzhi, have always been dull-witted, always following in the footsteps of Prince Lian and Ninth Prince. Now that I have married a Mongolian princess, even if I wanted to, I am no longer destined for that position.
"When Eighth Brother took Tenth Brother by his side, wasn't it because he had his eye on the Niohuru clan behind Tenth Brother? It's just a pity for Tenth Brother, who was devoted to Eighth Brother and Ninth Brother, and was willing to be a stepping stone for others."
After attending the wedding and returning to the mansion, the two of them bathed with the help of maids, changed into their nightgowns, and Thirteen held her close, smelling the faint rose scent emanating from her body after her bath. He slipped his hand inside her nightgown and stroked her as he spoke.
"In that case, the Tenth Prince is a pitiful person. Given his awkward position, perhaps this is the best outcome." He Yue pondered these relationships, recalling the Tenth Prince she had met before—simple-minded, impulsive, and willing to play second fiddle to others.
Perhaps the Tenth Prince was not as dull as he thought, and his choice to follow Prince Lian was not without careful consideration.
"Hmph, why are you so concerned about other people's business? What's so pitiful about him?" Thirteen glared at her fiercely, his jealousy flaring up again.
He raised his hand and pinched her chin, his eyes blazing with fury, threatening, "You're not allowed to mention him again! You're only allowed to think about me!"
He Yue chuckled, unmoved by his threat: "You brought this up yourself, what does it have to do with me?"
Thirteen looked at her smiling face, gritted his teeth, lowered his head and suddenly captured her lips.
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