Emperor Kangxi was so angered by the other party's shamelessness that he lost all his temper.
"Go back! I grant your permission!"
In the end, Kangxi granted his request, and with a flourish of his pen, angrily threw the memorial on the ground.
"Thank you for your grace, Your Majesty! Long live the Emperor!" Marhan was overjoyed. He thanked the Emperor, withdrew from the Qianqing Palace, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and felt as if he had just walked through the gates of hell.
Now that his wish had been fulfilled, Marhan happily went straight to the mansion and immediately ordered people to pack his things.
That excited energy showed no sign of old age or weakness.
Seeing the Crown Prince being deposed and reinstated, the princes each used their own methods, taking turns to try and bring down the Crown Prince. Many officials in the court suffered misfortune either because of the Crown Prince or because they supported other princes. He was unwilling to stay in the capital at this critical juncture and be caught in the middle as a scapegoat.
They're all so powerful, he can't afford to offend them, but he can at least avoid them, right?
Besides, his daughter had just lost her child, and he was genuinely worried about her, so he always wanted to go and see her in person.
Don't be fooled by how fierce your daughter is outside, even daring to hit a prince. In her father's eyes, she's still just a child. He can only imagine how upset she must be after suffering such injustice. Besides the Thirteenth Prince, she has no other relatives by her side. How can he bear to do this to her?
Among the women, Aunt Sun had a son and a daughter. Her daughter was married, but her son was still in the capital, so she stayed in the capital to manage the household.
Aunt Bei only had one daughter. After her daughter got married, she was all alone. She didn't want to continue serving the Fujin (principal wife) or live under Aunt Sun's care.
After all, the master's only son was born to Consort Sun. Even if Guanzhu becomes an official in the future, only Consort Sun will benefit. What chance does Consort Bei have? She might even be ostracized by Consort Sun.
But Aunt Bei had nowhere else to go but here.
She couldn't very well go to her daughter's husband's house, could she? What kind of behavior would that be? So she made a scene, demanding that Marhan find her a place to stay, and resolutely refused to remain in the manor.
Marhan found her annoying and made a final decision: she had to stay and was not allowed to go anywhere, or he would break her legs.
Aunt Bei dared not say anything more, secretly annoyed but helpless.
Marhan quickly packed his things and left the steward, Gui Bo, to assist Aunt Sun in looking after the mansion, but in reality, he was also keeping an eye on them to prevent them from causing trouble.
The next day, he left the Forbidden City in a carriage with his valuables, two servants, two guards, and a coachman.
Prince Lian's Mansion
Guo Luoluo put down the letter heavily, her face showing extreme annoyance.
Is this the person you've been longing for and determined to protect with your life?
That evening, Yinzhi entered the room and saw Lady Guoluo leaning against the daybed, looking absent-minded and unhappy. A maid rubbed her temples and asked, "What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"
Guo Luoluo opened her eyes, shook her head, and forced a smile: "Nothing, how was today?"
Yinzhi could tell something was wrong from her expression, but he didn't have time to ask any more questions. After sitting down, he frowned and told her about what had happened that day: "Marhan has resigned from his post and left the capital."
Guo Luoluo paused for a moment, but was not surprised: "He's already so old, it's time for him to resign from his post."
Yinzhi stared at her expression for a while, then sighed softly: "You know that Marhan's wife also left the capital a few days ago. Why didn't they leave together? One just left, and the other resigned from her official post. It's too sudden."
Guo Luoluo hesitated for a moment, her lips trembling, before finally saying what had happened: "I just received a letter saying that Heyue has miscarried."
Yinzhi was surprised, then suddenly realized: "So that's how it is. Before Irgen Gioro left the capital, Fourth Brother went to Marhan's residence. It must have been for this matter. It seems that Fourth Brother and Thirteenth Brother are still very close brothers, and they spare no effort in such matters."
A hint of mockery played at the corners of his mouth.
Guo Luoluo remained silent.
“I always felt that the thirteenth brother would not just fade away. It seems that Father Emperor has not completely given up on the thirteenth brother. Since the fourth brother told Marhan this time, Father Emperor must know about it, but he let them do it. It seems that he still cares about the thirteenth brother.”
"I didn't take your advice about dealing with the thirteenth brother seriously before, but now I increasingly think you're right. The fourth brother outwardly submits to the Crown Prince, and now he's retired at home, seemingly devoted to Buddhism. But too much of a good thing can be bad; who knows if he doesn't have a grand plan in mind? Father has repeatedly reprimanded me, but he remains unmoved, clearly waiting to watch the two tigers fight."
The more Yinzhi spoke, the colder he felt inside. He never imagined that he had misjudged someone all these years.
“Prince Yong is a very cunning man, and he also resembles Empress Xiaoyi. How could he not have his own ideas?” Lady Guoluo said, “I said long ago that Father Emperor is wary of brothers fighting for the throne. Before, when the Crown Prince was deposed, Father Emperor asked the court officials to discuss the matter of establishing an heir apparent. Your popularity was too high, which is why you incurred Father Emperor’s suspicion. It’s also because Ninth Brother and Tenth Brother were too anxious and did not listen to my advice at all. They encouraged you to compete for the position of heir apparent, which led to this passive situation.”
Yinzhi held her hand and comforted her, "Alright, alright, why be angry? Ninth Brother and the others were only doing it for my own good. Besides, it was a helpless situation, and we had no choice in the matter."
Guo Luoluo knew this, which is why she didn't do her best to stop it; she was just troubled.
“Although the Crown Prince has been reinstated, once is never enough; there will be a second time. His position is unstable, and he could be deposed again at any time. What I’m worried about is Fourth Brother. He’s too cunning, and we have to be wary of him.” Yinzhi looked at Guo Luoluo Shi: “To deal with Fourth Brother now, we can only start with Thirteenth Brother. Since the Heaven and Earth Society has its eyes on him, we can also have someone impersonate members of the Heaven and Earth Society…”
"No!" Guo Luoluo instinctively refused.
Yinzhi frowned: "Why?"
Guo Luoluo hesitated: "Jiangnan is too far away. If we send people to Jiangnan, what will happen to the capital? I only have a few people under my command, and besides, the Thirteenth Prince has other people protecting him. We may not be able to succeed."
Yinzhi smiled faintly: "You don't need to worry about that. The people around me are not to be trifled with either. If my people hadn't left the capital, they would have been discovered very quickly, and I wouldn't have needed to use your people."
Guo Luoluo, however, sensed something else and looked at him in surprise: "What do you mean? Do we still need to distinguish between 'yours' and 'mine'? You know I'm devoted to you, and I'll do anything to help you, but there's one thing..."
"Is it because of Zhao Jia and Yue?" Yinzhi interrupted her with a cold smile.
Guo Luo clenched his fist, speechless.
“From the time I met her until now, you have made exceptions for her more than once. Back then, you told me to be careful of the thirteenth brother and to get rid of him, but later you gave up and even forbade me to deal with the thirteenth brother. Just because I didn’t say anything doesn’t mean I agree with it.”
Yinzhi sighed and held her hand tightly: "Is she really that important? Compared to our love as husband and wife? That you've made to back down time and time again for her sake?"
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