Everyone looked at the Second Prince and Second Princess in shock, and the King's eyes widened slightly, showing his astonishment.

Back then, he knew that the second son was in love with Shen Ningyun, but he still married Shen Ningyun as his second wife. One reason was to restrain the Shen family, and the other was that he was sure that the second son would forget Shen Ningyun soon.

A good man has great ambitions, so what does love matter to him? Moreover, as a child of the royal family, true love is even more illusory and not worth mentioning.

The king judged others by himself and thought that the Second Prince had gotten over it long ago, but he never expected that there was a love-sick man in his Baili family who disregarded moral principles and was still obsessed with his stepmother for more than ten years!

"Second brother, you...you are really useless!"

The king shouted angrily at the second prince, and then looked at the second princess.

"Lan's daughter... and you!"

The Second Princess saw the King glaring at her, but she felt no fear in her heart. She saw clearly that the outcome of tonight had been decided and nothing was up to the King.

"My Lord, I... no, I am a willful person and cannot stay in the inner house. Moreover, wealth, power and status are worthless to me."

"When the Lord granted the marriage, the Second Prince had already told me that he had someone in his heart and that he would never let her down."

"As a daughter of the Lan family, although I have ambitions to see the beautiful mountains and rivers of the world, I have not yet repaid the kindness of my parents, and I dare not do anything ungrateful."

"So on the wedding day, Your Highness and I made a pact for twenty years. I will use my twenty years to exchange for the glory of the Lan family and a meteoric rise in the world!"

"After tonight, the overall situation is settled. I will go far away from home. From now on, I will embrace the wind and the moon. No one can restrain me, Lan Manyong, in the slightest!"

As the Second Imperial Concubine finished speaking, her eyebrows curved, and at this moment it seemed as if all the shackles on her body had been removed. Her appearance was truly radiant, and it was impossible to take your eyes off her!

When Meng Guxue heard this, her mouth opened slightly and her eyes were full of admiration!

Oh my God, second sister-in-law, no, Miss Lan is really a role model for us, she also wants to travel around the world with Miss Lan!

Lan Manrong shouldered the responsibility of the family and quietly wasted eighteen years in the backyard, playing the role of a competent second imperial concubine. She drove away all the beautiful girls who came after the second prince and endured rumors that she was infertile.

Over the past decade, with the help of the Second Prince and the intentional or unintentional connivance of the King, the Lan Family has become one of the great families in Kyoto.

She lived the first half of her life for her family, but every day from now on will completely belong to the free and easy Lan Manrong!

The second prince was extremely grateful to Lan Manrong and nodded at her.

He helped the Lan family to rise to prosper as agreed, and Lan Manrong indeed spent the best eighteen years of her life in the inner house of the Second Prince's mansion.

The two of them each got what they needed and cooperated well, so they could be considered friends.

Shen Ningyun didn't expect that there was such a secret behind it. The sentence "I will never let you down" in that letter turned out to be... true.

Erlang never betrayed her, but...but she had already given herself to the king. For the sake of the Shen family, she had to do everything she could to give birth to a son. She was no longer worthy of him...

Thinking of this, Shen Ningyun felt so aching in his heart that he almost cried.

The second prince seemed to have guessed Shen Ningyun's thoughts. He turned to look at her, waiting for Shen Ningyun to raise her head.

But Shen Ningyun was already heartbroken and unable to control himself.

Fate plays tricks on people. How many people have been crushed by the word "fate".

Back then, there was the Shen family and the king between them, but now there are social norms, mountains and rivers between them. It is impossible for them to be together anymore...

The second prince opened his mouth, but even though his heart was raging with rage, the words that flowed from his lips and teeth seemed pale and powerless.

He slowly calmed down his turbulent thoughts, turned to look at the king, and said calmly: "There is no need to say more. Please, father, draft an edict to pass the throne to my third brother, and let the dust settle tonight."

When the king heard this, he looked at the second prince in disbelief. At this moment, not only was his heart beating like a drum, but his head was also buzzing.

How could there be someone... How could there be someone in this world who doesn't even want the throne!

"Second brother, the Shen family is powerful. Even if the country changes hands and the Baili family's foundation is destroyed, you don't care!"

When Shen Ningyun heard this, he suddenly raised his head and was shaking with anger.

"At this moment, my lord, right now, do you still think that my Shen family covets this throne?"

"Your Majesty——"

"Second Prince!"

A sudden shout came from outside the hall, interrupting Shen Ningyun's accusation.

When the king and the eldest prince heard the person outside the door calling the second prince, they felt really disappointed.

This is the imperial study. The visitors did not bow to the king but called him the Second Prince. This meant that all the people outside were the Second Prince's or even the Third Prince's men.

The two brothers had been planning for a long time and were already sure of victory today!

"What is it?"

The second prince frowned and responded solemnly.

The man said hurriedly: "Outside the palace gate, the eldest son of the Shen family came to announce the death with an obituary in his hand!"

When these words were spoken, everyone in the hall was stunned. Shen Ningyun seemed to have thought of something, his face suddenly turned pale, and suddenly he leaned to the side.

Baili Chengyou turned around and caught Shen Ningyun, his face also extremely pale. He suddenly realized something, and his whole body began to tremble uncontrollably.

Seeing this, the Second Prince took two or three steps forward and opened the door of the Imperial Study, shouting, "Hurry up and call Master Shen into the palace!"

The person who brought the news left in a hurry upon hearing this, and Shen Ningyun's suppressed crying could be heard in the hall.

Now, there is only one elder in the Shen family who has passed away and needs to be reported to the palace, and that is the head of the Shen family, Shen Gaolang!

When the Second Prince saw Shen Ningyun’s grief-stricken look, he was immediately heartbroken.

The king was also stunned. He stood there motionless, not coming back to his senses for a long time.

Shen Gaolang...died? How is this possible? How could Shen Gaolang bear to die?

His sister is the former wife of the king, his daughter is the current wife of the king, and his grandson is a prince who is only one step away from the throne!

Shen Gaolang's reputation spread far and wide, he had many disciples and extensive influence. He was only one step away from controlling the government and being second only to the emperor!

How could Shen Gaolang bear to die!

Baili Chengyou knelt blankly beside Shen Ningyun, no longer the man who was in charge of the overall situation just now. He clenched his hands tightly at his sides, and his whole body felt as if he had been struck by lightning.

After a while, the sound of hurried footsteps was heard on the palace road.

Baili Chengyou stood up suddenly and saw from a distance that his uncle had red eyes and was staggering towards them.

Baili Chengyou opened his mouth, but tears rolled down before he could utter a word.

Shen Yongning, the eldest son of the Shen family, knelt down at the door of the imperial study, holding the obituary in his hands and crying loudly:

"My Lord! My father died of a sudden illness, and I am here to report the death!"

The king looked at Shen Yongning, who was thin and haggard, whom he had not seen for a long time. The young man who stood next to Shen Gaolang with high spirits in the past flashed through his mind, and his eyes were full of astonishment.

Shen Ningyun crawled forward a few steps, and at this moment his whole body felt numb and he was completely confused.

When she looked up, she saw her eldest brother, whose face was already covered in tears. She could no longer hold back and cried out, "Dad—"