[They're here! Turns out they weren't going to skip it, they were just making a grand finale appearance!]
The Empress frowned as she looked at the person who was paying her respects. She asked in a low voice, "Didn't I tell you not to come today?"
It was just an ordinary remark, but Ling Pingying reacted unusually strongly, as if the Empress had threatened her.
Her eyes widened and she trembled. The Empress didn't understand what was wrong with her and tried to have someone reach out to help her up, but Ling Pingying fell to the ground instead.
With tears in her eyes, Ling Pingying said, "Your Majesty, I dare not do it again. I will never again covet Your Highness."
Empress: "?"
What are you doing right now?
She had clearly already agreed with Ling Pingying that she would choose someone else for the position of Crown Princess, but the position of Consort was definitely hers. The Empress hadn't allowed her to come in order to avoid anyone finding out that the Consort's position had already been decided. What trick was she trying to pull now?
"Your Majesty, please spare this humble woman."
The Imperial Concubine, who was excitedly eating melon, clicked her tongue twice upon hearing this, "Daring to scheme against the Empress, she won't even know how she died in the end."
Empress: "Help her up."
The maidservant, having received her orders, stepped forward to help Ling Pingying up, but because of her lack of cooperation, it seemed more like she was being carried on a leash. Just then, the Crown Prince arrived.
Ling Pingying struggled, "Your Highness, save me."
The crown prince asked angrily, "What's going on?"
The Empress glanced at the Crown Prince, and said calmly, "So, you're saying that your provocation of me was partly orchestrated by the Crown Prince?"
The crown prince was bewildered. He quickly said, "What is Your Majesty talking about? I have no idea."
The Empress glanced at the noble ladies who were intentionally or unintentionally glancing in their direction. She clenched her fists. "Whether you know it or not, you've ruined today's flower-viewing banquet."
[This is nothing yet; she hasn't even mentioned that she's pregnant with the Crown Prince's child.]
The imperial concubine gasped. This girl was incredibly audacious! Wasn't she just daring to challenge the powerful?
The Empress said in a deep voice, "Take her away and hand her over to Lord Ling. He will discipline her properly."
"Yes."
"Your Highness, if you don't care about me, don't you care about the child in my womb either?"
"Child?" The Queen raised her hand. "Wait."
She gave Ling Pingying a cold look, Ling Pingying shivered. The Empress said, "What did you just say? The child?"
Since things had already come to this point, Ling Pingying decided to go all out, "Yes, the child, I am already pregnant with His Highness the Crown Prince's child."
The Empress sighed, utterly amused by the two fools.
She had assumed the Crown Prince was only interested in Ling Pingying because he genuinely liked her, but it turned out she was already secretly pregnant. All that effort she had put into scheming for the Crown Prince was for nothing.
The Crown Prince looked at the Empress with concern, "Mother, are you alright?"
The Empress raised her hand and slapped the Crown Prince hard across the face. "You're utterly hopeless."
The prince's face swelled up. He lightly wiped his mouth, looked at the blood on the back of his hand, paused, and his expression grew increasingly cold.
"His Majesty has arrived."
The emperor entered the garden and sensed an unusual atmosphere. He smiled and asked, "Why is everyone so solemn today, as we are choosing a crown prince's consort?"
The Emperor strode to the Empress's side and saw the handprint on the Crown Prince's face. His expression darkened. "What happened?"
The Empress said, "I did it, Your Majesty, please punish me if you wish."
The emperor and empress were childhood sweethearts who had walked hand in hand to this day. He knew the empress's temperament and would never lay a hand on her unless she was extremely angry.
After hearing the whole story, the emperor cursed, "You worthless piece of trash!"
The Crown Prince, in a fit of despair, declared, "Yes, I am utterly useless, no match for Xue Lin."
The emperor paused, then asked, "What did you say?"
Why drag Xue Lin into his own mistakes?
The crown prince looked at the emperor, his eyes filled with intense displeasure. "Isn't that so?"
The emperor was bewildered as to how his well-fed crown prince had turned out this way. He said, "Get back to your Eastern Palace!"
Ha, if Xue Lin made such a mistake, how would his father punish Xue Lin? He really wanted to know.
As the Crown Prince was leaving, he brushed past Xue Lin, who was rushing over.
Sichen asked, "What's wrong with the Crown Prince? The way he looked at you just now, it was like he wanted to devour the Young Master."
Xue Lin: " Sichen, be careful with your words and actions."
Sichen reluctantly replied, "Yes."
He was told to be careful with his words and actions, but upon hearing that Tong Aning had also entered the palace, the young master forgot all manners and eagerly ran over.
Who should really be careful with their words and actions?
The flower-viewing banquet really did turn into a flower-viewing banquet.
The Crown Princess has not been chosen, but the Crown Prince's concubine has been decided: Ling Pingying.
Ling Pingying's efforts were ultimately pointless; she might as well have done nothing at all.
Tong Aning was holding a round fan and chasing butterflies in the garden.
She didn't catch a single one, and Su Zhouyue and the Imperial Concubine were still standing by, laughing at her.
Tong Aning said angrily, "I'm not playing anymore."
The imperial concubine urged, "No, you might pounce on him right away!"
Tong Aning's eyes lit up, "Really?"
Imperial Concubine: "It's fake."
Tong Aning: "..."
She wrapped the shawl around herself, utterly depressed.
The imperial concubine laughed heartily.
"Hey, Heir Xue, what brings you here?"
Tong Aning moved closer to Xue Lin, her bright eyes fixed on him curiously. Xue Lin said awkwardly, "I'm going to the palace to pay my respects to my Imperial Uncle."
Sichen mumbled incoherently, "Please come this way to pay your respects."
Tong Aning tilted her head. " Sichen, what did you say?"
After being glanced at by Xue Lin, Sichen quickly said, "No, I didn't say anything."
Tong Aning nodded, then looked at Xue Lin again and asked, "Shall we go admire the flowers?"
Xue Lin: "Okay."
Tong Aning waved to Su Zhouyue and the Imperial Concubine, and the two walked side by side, gradually disappearing into the flower bushes.
The Imperial Concubine said, "Young people are so much better; they find us annoying."
Su Zhouyue: "... If you hadn't made fun of Aning, Aning would have eagerly picked the flowers and given them to you long ago."
The Imperial Concubine retorted, "That's because your Aning is so beautiful. I just wanted to tease her all the time, so who's to blame?"
Su Zhouyue curled her lips into a smile.
The Imperial Concubine suddenly leaned closer and whispered, "What do you think about Aning's marriage? I think Heir Xue is quite good, and he and Aning are a good match."
Su Zhouyue covered her mouth and chuckled, "Stop talking nonsense."
Imperial Concubine: "..."
What nonsense! She's telling the truth.
Just wait and see, the Imperial Concubine believes the two of them will definitely succeed.
Tong Aning exclaimed, "Her Majesty the Empress has taken such good care of these flowers."
"The flowers in Radiant Youth Garden are also well-maintained."
"Eh," Tong Aning looked at Xue Lin, her eyes sparkling, "Has the young master visited Radiant Youth Garden?"
Looking at Tong Aning's face, Xue Lin suddenly felt a tightness in his chest. He pursed his lips and said, "Yes, Miss Tong asked me to move flowers to decorate the house more, and I've kept that in mind."
Tong Aning chuckled, and Xue Lin asked, "What makes Miss Tong so happy?"
Tong Aning blinked and said slowly, "I was just wondering, what have I done to deserve such obedience from the young master?"
Xue Lin subconsciously said, " Miss Tong has such ability."
He was willing to do what Tong Aning said.
Tong Aning's smile deepened.
*
That day after court, Tong Aobai and Tong Yibin had strange expressions.
Su Zhouyue asked in bewilderment, "What happened to you two today? Did His Majesty scold you?"
Tong Aobai said, "It's even more terrifying than being scolded."
Su Zhouyue: "What exactly happened?"
Tong Yibin said, " Prince Kangle proposed in the main hall today that he wants to change the heir apparent."
Prince Kangle is the emperor's uncle, and he is now over seventy years old. When he was in his twenties, he made his first son the heir apparent. Decades have passed, so why is he now thinking of changing the heir apparent?
"And what's more," Tong Aobai said, pressing his temples, "The heir he wants to make is his newlywed queen, the one who just gave birth to his child."
[At over seventy years old, she can still have children? Prince Kangle is truly vigorous in her old age!]
Su Zhouyue was incredulous. "The Crown Prince agreed?"
Tong Yibin: "The father and son argued incessantly in the main hall, and even started fighting."
"Who's winning?"
" Prince Kangle "
[Sure enough, seventy is the age when one is most adventurous; one can beat one's son and then have another.]
Su Zhouyue: "..."
Tong Aning has such a talkative mouth; how can she be so good at it?
Su Zhouyue nudged Tong Aobai's arm, "So, in the end, how did His Majesty handle it?"
His Majesty has instructed Prince Kangle to return and reconsider.
Even if Prince Kangle went back and thought about it eight hundred times, he would still have the same idea.
The three of them glanced at Tong Aning secretly.
Tong Aning was completely unaware and was still happily eating pastries.
After finishing her meal, she clapped her hands and said, "Father, Mother, Big Brother, I'm going out."
The three people. "..."
Why do you only ever tell half of the story?
Su Zhouyue asked, " Aning, who are you going to play with?"
Tong Aning said seriously, "Mother, I'm not going to play."
Su Zhouyue rephrased it, "Who are you going to talk to about serious business?"
Tong Aning: " Heir Xue."
After Tong Aning left, Su Zhouyue asked Tong Aobai, "Have you noticed that Aning often goes to see Heir Xue?"
Tong Aobai thought for a moment, "No, I don't think so."
Tong Yibin said, "She's Xue Lin on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays Lou Yingyu; and on the remaining day, she'll go see Mu Yao."
Su Zhouyue: "... t..."
Day by day, listening to Tong Aning's innermost thoughts, Tong Yibin began to discern patterns.
Since she wasn't constantly going to see Xue Lin, Su Zhouyue a little relieved.
She instructed Tong Aobai, "There's still something about Prince Kangle tomorrow; you must tell me about it."
Tong Aobai: "Yes, madam."
Su Zhouyue laughed and said, "You old rascal."
*
Xue Lin is looking for a conman this time.
We didn't find the scammer, but we did find some gossip.
[Isn't this the new queen consort of Prince Kangle, and his second son?]
Tong Aning and Xue Lin followed them furtively.
[How come I'm so despicable, while Heir Xue remains so upright and honorable?]
Xue Lin: "..."
[Wow, what a talent! Since I can't be the heir apparent, I'll make my son the heir apparent. Are your father and elder brother aware of your abilities?]
Xue Lin and Sichen paused.
Sichen was frantically processing things in her mind.
He finally realized that the youngest son of the Prince Kangle was actually born to his queen and his second son!