Chapter 41
Concubine Liu finished washing her hands, holding her daughter. She was completely stunned.
[I never thought my brother would scold the arrogant and haughty Fourth Prince so fiercely, and then lecture the new crown prince, Third Prince Cheng Qing, so harshly.]
[And then, Third Prince Cheng Qing, the new crown prince, seemed to have been conquered by my brother.]
[Wow, is he a masochist?]
Concubine Liu: "..."
Strange things happen every year, but this year there are especially many!
Isn't the future crown prince, Third Prince, always arrogant and overbearing? Now he has been scolded by her son, and cured of that? And he even fell for her son?
How strange.
There are all kinds of people in the world!
Concubine Liu's mouth twitched as she listened.
Xiao Chuchu was still gleefully mocking, [When my brother was scolding them, the Emperor Father was standing outside the Qianqing Palace, and heard everything.]
Concubine Liu's heart skipped a beat.
The Emperor is also a suspicious person.
After hearing this, how could he tolerate it?
Would he blame her son Cheng Qian for being too outspoken and disrespectful to his brothers?
[Unexpectedly, the more fiercely my brother scolded them inside, the more the Emperor Father outside enjoyed listening.]
[He then decided to pass the throne to my brother!]
Concubine Liu: "???"
She couldn't figure it out at all, how could there be such good news?
[The letter of crown prince was hung behind the Qianqing Palace plaque, with my brother's name on it.]
[Oh, my brother must continue to maintain this, before ascending the throne!]
Concubine Liu forgot to breathe as she listened.
[In the future, the maternal clan must also be more careful. It's difficult to be a prince's mother, and even more so to be a crown prince's mother.]
[Since ancient times, there have been many crown princes who were harmed or demoted, and their maternal clans were confiscated.]
Concubine Liu's heart was heavy again.
This path ahead is getting harder and harder.
But in the future... will she be the Empress Dowager?
Xiao Chuchu was being held by her mother, and soon noticed her mother's expression becoming increasingly strange.
Wanting to laugh but not daring to, wanting to hold it in but unable to.
*
Not long after, the Imperial Censor Concubine Liu's father, went to the Yan Region and happened to discover Liao King's plot to rebel, and brought him back to the capital. This news quickly spread throughout the entire palace.
Kunning Palace.
The Empress's face looked unpleasant as she looked at her mother. "Fortunately, I didn't give Concubine Liu a hard time that day at the palace banquet, otherwise the Emperor would have certainly embarrassed me."
Now she knew why the Emperor had bestowed the dishes that day.
If she had made things difficult for Concubine Liu and Madam Liu that day, she would have been in big trouble, certainly scolded by the Emperor!
No wonder the Fucha family had all been demoted.
The Empress thought and felt quite clever, "Father is really something, how come the Liu family discovered Liao King's rebellion, such a big event, but didn't send someone to tell me in time? They almost caused me to make a mistake."
She finished speaking and found her mother's face embarrassed.
"This, your father doesn't seem to know either."
The Empress was puzzled, "Father has so many students scattered throughout the court, how could he not know?"
"Don't mention it, the Emperor was furious about this matter and scolded all the officials." Lady Tong shook her head and sighed, "Your father told me to tell you that the Liu family discovered Liao King's rebellion in advance, avoiding disaster, making the other officials seem... seem useless."
"The Emperor wants to secretly appoint the crown prince, without informing the officials who he is, and no one can stop him."
The Empress took a deep breath, her face unpleasant.
But she soon regained her smile.
"Even if other princes' names are written now, they still have to be able to last until the Emperor's old age."
"Hasn't there been many crown princes who made mistakes in the past?" The Empress smiled.
Lady Tong nodded, "Yes, you must keep the First Prince diligent, not slacking off, obedient to the Emperor and Empress Dowager, and caring for his younger brothers. With time, there may still be a chance!"
The Empress nodded.
Concubine Liu, Fifth Prince.
The days are still long, and in the future, one never knows who will prevail.
*
In the study, the tutor announced the end of the class.
The princes each went to their mother's palace to pay respects.
As soon as they reached the intersection, they encountered the little eunuchs coming back from the kitchen with desserts.
"This is what the Emperor specially prepared in the Imperial Kitchen for the princes to enjoy." Wei Zheng, walking at the back, respectfully said, "The princes should have it quickly."
"Wow," Sixth Prince Cheng Shan, hearing there were delicious things, was excited and couldn't wait to lift the lid, "What did Father Emperor get good news about? What is it, let me see."
The smiling but silent Wei Zheng's gaze fell on Fifth Prince Cheng Qian.
The Emperor's reward was naturally because of Fifth Prince.
First, his maternal grandfather had captured the Liao King, establishing a great merit.
Then, Fifth Prince's words about studying for the country.
The Emperor decided to reward his sons, each receiving something.
Because the Emperor felt that Fifth Prince was right, he wanted to make his sons study harder and strive for excellence!
"The princes are all growing, and with their hard work day and night, they need to eat more. The Emperor is concerned about the princes' arduous studies, and specially consulted the Imperial Academy of Medicine to make these nourishing desserts."
Eating well can help them study more.
Wei Zheng smiled and introduced, "There are chrysanthemum cakes, apricot and jujube paste cakes..."
Sixth Prince Cheng Shan leaned forward to take a look.
The First Prince smiled and let the servants take it, leading the way in thanking, "Thank you, Father Emperor, Wei Gong has worked hard."
The princes all nodded and smiled at Wei Zheng.
But Fifth Prince Cheng Qian, after nodding, frowned and stood with his hands behind his back in a serious manner.
He didn't quite like these sweet and greasy things.
Pinching his nose, he couldn't even eat them.
His little sister was still young, her teeth not even grown out yet, she couldn't eat them either.
His mother also didn't particularly like sweets.
Fifth Prince Cheng Qian thought he should have the little eunuch send his portion of the desserts to his gluttonous Sixth Brother.
But he then heard the greetings of the palace maid Qiuli by his mother's side, "This servant greets the princes."
Fifth Prince Cheng Qian paused, turning around to see Qiuli and the nanny holding Chuchu, coming out to take a walk in the sun.
His face immediately lit up with a smile. He had just heard from his sister's heart that children should go out more to soak in the sun, so their bones will grow tall.
Cheng Qian immediately bid farewell to his brothers, "I'll take Third Sister for a walk, you brothers can go first."
"Little Zhong, give my portion of the desserts to -"
He gestured to Sixth Prince.
But halfway through, he saw the swaddled Xiao Chuchu stretch her neck, curiously peering into the food box.
[Oh, it's apricot and jujube cake, Mother also ate this before, it's very sweet and a bit cloying.]
[My Fifth Brother definitely doesn't like to eat this.] Xiao Chuchu thought to herself.
Cheng Qian's face immediately softened with tenderness.
His little sister already knew his preferences.
This little fairy was still concerned about her big brother.
His heart felt warm and fuzzy.
But soon, Cheng Qian heard the follow-up of his sister's thoughts and was taken aback.
[Ah, our Emperor Father really cultivates too casually, he doesn't even know what his own sons like. No wonder the crown prince he raises can't do anything!
Among the princes, only Third Prince likes sweet things.
The others all dislike eating sweets. Even Sixth Prince likes to eat salty or mildly sweet things.]
Cheng Qian was shocked, involuntarily looking at the previously arrogant and proud Third Brother.
Third Brother actually likes sweets?
He looked at the gluttonous Sixth Brother Cheng Shan, and sure enough, saw him eagerly open the food box, but after lifting the lid, he pressed his lips together without further action, completely unlike his usual impatient manner to dig in.
It turns out Sixth Brother also has things he doesn't like to eat.
Cheng Qian's outstretched hand became a bit stiff.
He almost gave his very sweet portion to Sixth Brother to eat.
[This walnut cake in the food box is not bad, not too sweet, with a slight osmanthus fragrance. Sixth Prince should like it.]
Cheng Qian took a deep breath.
The First and Second Princes had already left.
He quickly redirected his outstretched hand.
"Sixth Brother, you take the walnut cake, I don't like these sweets."
"And that apricot and jujube paste cake, Third Brother, it's yours, this younger brother really can't eat the sweet stuff."
Sixth Prince's eyes lit up.
The Third Prince had already walked three steps away, when he suddenly stopped.
He turned back, somewhat surprised.
How did the Fifth Brother... know that he loved to eat date paste the most?
The Third Prince's heart was instantly filled with warmth.
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