"Your Majesty, the Crown Prince is not in the Eastern Palace."
In the evening, the Empress sent someone to the East Palace to invite the Crown Prince to the Phoenix Palace for dinner, but the Crown Prince never appeared.
The Empress then sent someone to invite him again, but the palace servants told her that the Crown Prince was not there.
"Are you really not here?"
Or is it just an excuse to avoid seeing her?
Xie Tingzhou has been back in Beijing for several days, but he has not yet come to Fengyi Palace to see the Emperor.
The Empress was somewhat angry and uneasy.
It must be that Ye Zhen complained to the Crown Prince. The Crown Prince has fallen for someone and forgotten his mother, and he's angry with Ye Zhen for her sake.
But the emperor was right about one thing: right now, she only has the crown prince by her side, and he is the son who will inherit the throne. Their relationship cannot be allowed to become distant.
Thinking of her son, she also thought of Prince Ning.
He's heartless; he went to the border town and never came back.
The palace maid bowed her head. "I heard that he left the palace with Wang Jingshuo around dusk."
The Empress's face grew increasingly grim.
She had sent many people to invite the Crown Prince these past few days, but he always used the excuse of being busy with affairs to leave the palace.
But they didn't know to come and see their mother, the Empress Dowager.
Even under those circumstances, she never considered giving up on him and insisted on giving birth to him, but this is the result she got in return.
The Empress felt a lump in her throat.
“Send someone to keep an eye on him at the East Palace; he’ll come back eventually.”
She refused to believe that the Crown Prince would stay outside the palace forever.
The palace maids left.
The Empress then asked, "Has His Majesty rested?"
After being impeached, the emperor did not set foot in Fengyi Palace for half a month. Even when he came afterward, he would not stay there every night as before.
The Empress never dreamed that Ye Zhen alone could bring about such a dramatic change in her life.
My son and husband have completely changed.
But what did she do wrong?
Ye Zhen had pushed her to this point after only a few words.
If she marries into the family in the future, and the Crown Prince only has eyes for her, then he will not even respect his own mother. Will he have any chance of survival?
no.
We cannot allow the Crown Prince to have eyes only for Ye Zhen.
When the Crown Prince asked her to propose marriage at the Marquis's residence, he said that Ye Zhen was the only one for him in his life, and that he and the Emperor were both devoted lovers.
If the emperor could refrain from taking concubines for her sake, the crown prince would surely do the same. If that happened, Ye Zhen would only become more arrogant.
We need to distract the Crown Prince's attention.
Ideally, it should be someone from her faction, who could occasionally whisper sweet nothings in the Crown Prince's ear and put Ye Zhen to the test, thus suppressing Ye Zhen's arrogance...
Xie Tingzhou returned to the palace late at night.
Upon seeing him, Yu Nie said, "The Empress has sent someone to invite you again. My subordinate said you left the palace, so she has people keeping a close eye on the East Palace."
Xie Tingzhou nodded. "Understood. Prepare water; I wish to take a bath."
Let the Empress keep an eye on things if she wants.
After soaking in the water, Xie Tingzhou let out a deep sigh.
Marquis Zhongyong just got drunk and cried for a long time, saying he missed his wife.
Imperial Censor Wang righteously berated the Marquis of Zhongyong for being spineless, but his words implied a desire for him to bring them back.
Wang Jingshuo looked resentful and sighed that they were already living apart after just getting married.
He naturally missed Ye Zhen very much.
But he was surprised and angered that the Empress would treat Ye Zhen that way.
Therefore, he did not go to see the Empress.
Prince Yun deserved to die, and the Empress's anger towards Ye Zhen was also a sign of her looking down on him.
As the crown prince, he was twice targeted by his younger brother for his fiancée, and during his years on the run, he was repeatedly schemed against by him. He should be the one who is angry.
But it was clear that the Empress's heart was biased.
Xie Tingzhou submerged his face in the water.
It was only this time that he realized his previous feelings were not a misunderstanding; the Empress was indeed biased.
If that's the case, why should he bother to get close to him?
But the Empress has repeatedly invited him, probably because she is unwilling to give up.
Thinking of something, he emerged from the water and ordered, "Keep an eye on Fengyi Palace."
In order to control Ye Zhen, the Empress even schemed about the marriage between Yin Yue and Wan Xing. Would she allow herself to distance herself from Ye Zhen?
But what will she do?
Xie Tingzhou's brows gradually furrowed...
Fifteen minutes later.
Xie Tingzhou brought two jars of wine to the outside of the emperor's bedroom.
Chen Banjun tiptoed forward, bowed softly, and asked, "Your Highness, what brings you here at this hour?"
Xie Tingzhou glanced into the room. "Has Father fallen asleep?"
Chen Banjun nodded.
If he weren't asleep, would he be able to move around so quietly?
His gaze fell on the wine jar in Xie Tingzhou's hand, and he said with difficulty, "His Majesty has not been sleeping well these days."
After decades of loving marriage, a rift suddenly appeared between them. His Majesty, being a man of deep affection, reprimanded the Empress, but he himself was also deeply troubled.
And so, tonight was like making pancakes; I had just finished making them when the prince arrived.
Seeing that the father and son still intended to drink together, Chen Banjun felt a pang of sympathy for his old master.
I hope the Crown Prince can show some understanding.
He's overthinking it.
Xie Tingzhou, arriving at this hour, was unlikely to show any consideration; he bypassed Chen Banjun and pushed open the door.
The emperor, a light sleeper, was startled awake. "Who's there?"
Chen Banjun and the others dared not disturb him like this after he fell asleep.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Xie Tingzhou casually sat down beside his bed. "Father, I can't sleep. Shall we have a drink together?"
emperor,"……"
It's the middle of the night, and I've finally drifted off to sleep when you come to ask me to drink?
They really don't know how to care about their father.
Seeing Xie Tingzhou's dejected look, and thinking about how young people's feelings are always intense and inseparable, his son had returned victorious from a hard-fought battle, but his fiancée had left him.
It was all because of his mother that this departure turned out so unpleasant; how heartbroken his son must be.
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