So Yin Yuyao smiled and replied, "Xi Xi is right. Before I transmigrated here, the original owner of this body was also unable to have children. The emperor knew about this a long time ago, which is why he took Ning Ci and Yuwen Li as concubines. That's why he later brought back the third prince, whose birth mother was unknown, and raised him under my name, claiming to the outside world that he was my biological son, and thus he had a legitimate son."
"I'm quite happy raising my child, and Ning Ci and Yuwen Li keep me company and help me pass the time, so I don't find life too difficult. But as you know, ever since I entered Yin Yuyao's body, I've been immortal."
“My appearance will not change. I have been able to deceive outsiders for seven years, but I certainly cannot hide it from those close to me. The Empress Dowager and the Emperor, Ning Ci and Yuwen Li, and even Consort Lin and Consort Liang, they all know.”
"The Empress Dowager was quite calm, perhaps because Ning Ci had said something to her. But the Emperor thought I was a witch who had possessed Yin Yuyao's body, and in a sense, that was indeed the case. He tried to kill me, but I was only 'dead' for a short while before 'coming back to life.' He was most afraid of evil spirits, and when he wanted to depose me, it was Yu Jie who entered the palace and saved me."
After five years of refinement, Yin Yujie had gained a lot of favor in the emperor's eyes, becoming a special woman in his heart, though he himself was unaware of it.
Upon entering the palace, Yin Yujie explained to the emperor that her sister had always been like this since childhood, and was not some kind of demoness, but perhaps a fairy descended from heaven. She even brought up her parents' story, saying that her parents had accumulated good karma in the first half of their lives, so it was not strange that they had given birth to a fairy. Finally, she mentioned that she wondered how Mu Yang was doing.
With the triple buff, the emperor completely abandoned the idea of deposing Yin Yuyao. He even asked Yin Yujie in a roundabout way if she wanted to stay overnight in the palace. Yin Yujie looked surprised, as if she remembered what happened that year, and shook her head dejectedly, refusing the emperor for the third time.
The emperor did not insist, but silently watched Yin Yujie leave.
But a seed was planted in his heart, a seed called 'to make Yin Yujie willingly become a concubine'.
Upon hearing this, Chen Xiao and Xi Xi couldn't help but applaud.
He couldn't help but exclaim, "Brilliant! Yin Yujie is truly skilled at seducing men; even this damned emperor is completely subdued. Let me guess, is this part of Yin Yujie and the Yin family's plan?"
Yin Yuyao didn't keep them in suspense and directly explained the background of why the Yin family was in such a state.
The Prince of Pingyang and the old emperor were sworn brothers, but the Prince of Pingyang was more famous than the old emperor.
The public's impression of the emperor is that 'the emperor was very sentimental; his friendship with Prince Pingyang and his love for the empress were both enviable,' and 'the loving and harmonious relationship between the emperor and empress was the most beautiful story in the Rong Dynasty, truly a wonderful tale.'
But my impression of Prince Pingyang was that he was 'a brave and skilled warrior, invincible in every battle, and the pillar of the Rong Dynasty,' and that 'Prince Pingyang was loyal to the emperor and patriotic, of noble character, and willing to sacrifice his life; he was a blessing to the people of the Rong Dynasty.'
Such words circulated in the palace, but the old emperor didn't think much of it, because these were all true words. He wasn't a general who risked his life for the people, so it was normal for the people to respect Prince Pingyang more.
But the eldest prince, Ni Chengli, didn't think so.
At that time, Ni Chengli was just ten years old and not yet the crown prince. When he heard these words, he thought that the Prince of Pingyang was too prominent and that as a subject, he should understand his status and should not overstep his father's authority.
He originally liked Yin Yuyao quite a bit, but because of this incident, he became indifferent to her. The original Yin Yuyao didn't mind at all, because she didn't like Ni Chengli in the first place. Her relationship with Ni Chengli was only to comply with her parents' wishes. No matter how Ni Chengli treated her, they would always be husband and wife in the future. She only needed to be a good future Crown Princess and a good future Empress.
However, Ni Chengli's attitude was very obvious and was quickly noticed by the Prince of Pingyang and his wife. Although it was a small matter, the Prince of Pingyang and his wife felt that Ni Chengli was not a good match for Yin Yuyao. Their reaction to such a small matter showed his character.
Prince Pingyang loved his daughter dearly and did not want Yin Yuyao to marry a man who disliked her, especially the future emperor. So he boldly brought up the matter with the emperor.
The emperor was somewhat annoyed, not only because the Prince of Pingyang actually wanted to break off the engagement, but also because his own son was so disrespectful. He and the empress reprimanded Ni Chengli and, as before, locked him up in the Fengxian Hall.
Only then did the Yin family realize that the Emperor and Empress's educational methods had always been nothing more than beatings and scoldings.
From childhood to adulthood, Ni Chengli was reprimanded by one of the emperors or empresses for every little mistake he made.
If one committed a minor offense, in addition to being jointly reprimanded by the Emperor and Empress, one would be confined to the Fengxian Hall. Not to mention committing a major offense; physical pain was a minor matter, but the fear that gripped one's mind and body was truly suffocating.
Fengxian Hall was the palace where the Rong Dynasty royal family worshipped their ancestors. The spacious hall was densely packed with ancestral tablets. At night, the empty palace was dimly lit with flickering candlelight, which made people feel a sense of trepidation.
Ni Chengli had been a regular visitor to Fengxian Hall since he was five years old.
It wasn't that he made mistakes frequently, but rather that the emperor was often dissatisfied with his behavior.
Because the emperor was the prince whom the late emperor neglected the most, and also the prince whom the late emperor disliked and looked down upon the most.
Unfortunately, when pearls and oysters fight, fishermen profit, and the least capable prince ends up on the throne.
The late emperor often said that the current emperor's personality was unlike his own, that he lacked the demeanor of an emperor and was too indecisive. The current emperor, on the other hand, believed that he was loyal and righteous, and that there was nothing wrong with that.
But his only son, Ni Chengli, looked remarkably like the late emperor.
It's not about appearance, but about personality.
From the moment he was born, Ni Chengli never cried or made a fuss in the face of anything. During his first birthday celebration, he even skipped over the other items and picked up the jade seal directly, then stumbled and walked towards the dragon throne.
At the time, the emperor and empress did not notice anything. It was not until Ni Chengli was three years old that he showed the same behavior as the late emperor. He valued social status and chose playmates not based on their personality or character, but on their social status.
They showed no kindness whatsoever to the palace maids and eunuchs, fully embodying their status as servants. They treated the senior matrons and head eunuchs with little respect, except for a sliver of courtesy they still retained.
But the emperor and empress would never do that. The emperor, having experienced the distinction between superior and inferior since childhood, would never treat everyone differently based on their status. The empress and the emperor had similar experiences in their childhood, and the same was true for them.
Therefore, they felt deeply uneasy about their son's behavior, which resembled that of the late emperor.
The late emperor was cold-blooded and ruthless, and he implemented the hierarchy of social status extremely thoroughly. Most of his consorts were young ladies from noble families or daughters of powerful clans, and there were very few women of low status. This was another way he used to consolidate his power in the court.
With more concubines, there were naturally more children, leading to frequent palace intrigues and countless deaths and injuries among the children, but the late emperor did not seem to care.
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