manynovel Chapter 198 Establishing a Crown Prince
Chapter 198 Establishing a Crown Prince
Yongqi decided that this was the last thing he would do for Ruyi, just as a way of repaying the little kindness Ruyi had shown him in his childhood.
From now on, no matter how much threats or inducements Ruyi or Hailan use, Yongqi will not waver.
Having said that, after all, this was a crime of deceiving the emperor by defying his decree, and Yongqi felt a great burden on his mind. He did not dare to tell anyone else, so he could only say a few words to his most beloved concubine, Hu Yunjiao.
When Hu Yunjiao heard this, she was both worried and provocative: "This is a crime of deceiving the emperor. How can the prince agree to the queen? If the emperor finds out, he will definitely be angry!"
"Why didn't the Empress let the twelfth prince do such a dangerous thing? Why didn't she order the Ulanara family to do it? Why didn't she let Aunt Rong Pei and Eunuch Sanbao do it?"
"Since the Queen is angry with the noble and doesn't want to see him, why is she so polite to the prince?!"
Yongqi was also very dissatisfied, and rarely did he speak for Ruyi. He just sighed.
"Alas, Ling Yunche deserves to die. The emperor trusted me so much, but I pretended to obey him but secretly disobeyed him. I don't even dare to face the emperor! Just this once, only this once!"
Hu Yunjiao was also a little terrified. "Your Highness has done a favor for the Empress by giving Ling Yunche a grand funeral. It would be too conspicuous to ask the butler to go and pay homage every three months. Your Highness should not do it!"
"From what Concubine Ling said, she must have guessed what the Queen had told the prince to do, but she didn't report it to the Emperor for the prince's sake. If others knew about this, the prince would be in danger!"
Speaking of this, Yongqi was relieved, "The Empress Dowager and Empress Dowager have always regarded Empress Dowager Ling as their mortal enemy and have always wanted to kill her."
"But Empress Ling is so good to me. Even though she has the leverage over the Empress Dowager, she pretends not to know for my sake. Empress Ling is really kind. I will be filial to her!"
As the days passed, Ruyi still refused to see Hailan.
Although Ling Yunche's death temporarily dispelled the emperor's suspicion of Ruyi, the emperor did not do as Hai Lan had expected. He favored Ruyi again and returned the power to manage the six palaces to Ruyi.
Ruyi herself did not go out, and she also cancelled the rule that concubines had to visit their parents in the morning and evening.
Ruyi is now like a queen with only the title, but she can't have a say in anything and has confined herself to the Yikun Palace.
Hailan was anxious when she saw the situation, but she had no idea what to do.
To make matters worse, the emperor and his empress became estranged, and the empress neglected her duties for years.
The news came from somewhere, saying that the Emperor had the idea of establishing a Royal Consort.
One day, the emperor summoned Princess Hejing to have dinner in Changchun Palace.
"Your son pays respect to the Emperor!"
The emperor helped Princess Hejing up and sat her down at the end of Empress Xiaoxian's portrait. "Stand up. If your mother and Yonglian and Yongcong were still alive, how wonderful it would be for our family to be so lively and cheerful."
Princess Hejing looked at the portrait of Empress Xiaoxian, recalled the news that had been circulating in the court recently, and comforted the emperor.
"Your Majesty, I am so sad. Although my mother and brother passed away at an early age, I am very lucky to be respected and loved by you!"
The emperor said: "I value my legitimate son the most. Yonglian and Yongcong are very talented at a young age. If they were still alive, someone would inherit my throne! What a pity, what a pity!"
Hearing this, Princess Hejing felt mixed emotions.
Princess Hejing was naturally happy and relieved that her mother and brothers received such evaluation and promise from the Emperor.
But his brothers died young, and the throne was no longer within the reach of Fucha's bloodline. Seeing that the emperor had reached old age, choosing a suitable crown prince was inevitable.
At this point, Princess Hejing took the initiative to bring up the topic, "My brother doesn't have such a blessing, but there is nothing we can do. Yongqi is now the eldest son and the best among my brothers. Yongji is also the legitimate son and has a noble status."
The emperor said: "Yongqi is indeed excellent, but he is not the legitimate son, and I have always been bothered by this. Although Yongqi is the legitimate son, he is still young and not as good as Yongqi. I am afraid he will not be able to take on the important task."
Princess Hejing has already figured out the emperor's thoughts. Since someone must be the crown prince, she has no choice but to accept it no matter how unwilling she is, as long as it is not Ulanara Ruyi's son!
Princess Hejing said, "Father, your Royal Highness is in good health. If you are interested in Yongji, it is not too late to train him now."
The emperor shook his head slowly. "Yongji is too cowardly and is influenced by the Queen's gossip. I heard that the Queen didn't want to see Concubine Yu, and she didn't even want to see Yongji. I can only give up this idea."
Princess Hejing recognized Yongqi's abilities and character, but Yongqi's mother, Concubine Yu, was loyal to Ruyi. If she became the Holy Mother Empress Dowager in the future, wouldn't Ruyi still be able to live happily?
Princess Hejing asked: "Yongqi is the best choice for the emperor now. Yongqi is good in every way, but his biological mother, Empress Yu, is of too low a status..."
The emperor not only disliked the fact that Yongqi was not a legitimate son, but also disliked the fact that Yongqi's biological mother was Hai Lan.
"If I want to appoint a crown prince, I will have to promote Concubine Yu to a higher position. In the future, Concubine Yu, as the biological mother of the crown prince, will also have to be buried with me. I really don't want to..."
After finding out the emperor's intentions, Princess Hejing gave him some advice, "Your Majesty, don't worry. Could it be that you forgot that you sent Yongqi to Zhongcui Palace to raise him when he was young?"
The emperor's eyes lit up and he smiled, "Yes, yes, yes, Imperial Noble Consort Chunhui is Yongqi's adoptive mother, so she is qualified. If that doesn't work, Imperial Noble Consort Ling or Imperial Noble Consort Shu can both be Yongqi's adoptive mother!"
The matter of establishing a crown prince was thus tacitly understood.
After Princess Hejing left, she went directly to Yongshou Palace.
"Your Highness should have heard the rumors in the palace. Your Highness has fifteenth and seventeenth brothers. Don't you have any ideas?"
Yan Wan smiled and said, "Although Yongyan and Yonglin are princes, they are too young. As long as they are not the queen's sons, why should I wade into this muddy water?"
Princess Hejing smiled and said, "How could your majesty know that your twelfth brother would not be the crown prince, the future emperor?"
Yan Wan smiled and said, "The twelfth prince is a good child, but he has such a willful and reckless mother who has ruined his good future."
"Although Yongqi's mother is Concubine Yu, Yongqi has his own ideas now that he has grown up, and I have been good to him over the years. If Yongqi is really that lucky, he will not mistreat me and my child!"
Princess Hejing said: "It's good that your majesty can think positively. I'm afraid that Ulanara will not let your majesty go in the future as the queen mother or the empress dowager!"
Yan Wan said: "This matter does worry me, but Empress Xiaoxian is the emperor's original wife. Can the princess tolerate the queen robbing the honor of Empress Xiaoxian's mother, the Empress Dowager, and enjoy the incense of future generations of the royal family?!"
Princess Hejing couldn't stand it, "Ulanara is not even worthy of carrying my mother's shoes! Your Majesty, why don't we cooperate again?"
Yan Wan smiled and said, "What's the point of talking about cooperation? I came from Changchun Palace, so it's my duty to work for Empress Xiaoxian and the princess!"