good season

Zhao Shiqing ran very fast, regretting her carelessness today. It's not like she doesn't know how to disguise herself. Getting up a little earlier and putting a few fake moles on her face wouldn't be too tiring.

Now, people can recognize her as a woman at a glance, and they can even see her true face.

Yan Xia called that person Wei Wubing. Although it was the first time Zhao Shiqing had heard this name, there weren't many people with the surname Wei in the capital, and the few that were there were all from the same family.

Wei Wubing is most likely from the maternal family of Old Madam Wei.

The Wei family produced two old witches, one of whom created a fake son who not only caused the deaths of her parents who had given her life, but also her father who had raised her.
The other one was equally impressive; in Xiao Zhen's dream, she and her children and grandchildren killed her wonderful older sister.

Yes, although Zhao Shiqing was almost certain that Sun Lanzhi was the one who killed her sister, even a concubine with the greatest audacity would not dare to harm a princess without someone's authorization.

Therefore, the deaths of Zhu Yu and Sun Lanzhi alone are far from enough.

However, Zhao Shiqing did not want Old Madam Wei and her son to die so easily. They had to live, especially Old Madam Wei. She had to live in order to blackmail Consort Li and stir up trouble.

Zhao Shiqing considered herself a lecherous woman. She was slightly amazed when she first saw Wei Wubing, and she felt guilty about it. She washed her eyes as soon as she got home.

No matter who is from the Wei family, even if they are as beautiful as an angel, they cannot move her.

Besides being accidentally amazed by Wei Wubing, who seemed to have appeared out of nowhere, there was something else that made Zhao Shiqing feel even more guilty.

That was Zhao Tingxuan's marriage.

Madam Wei had originally been waiting to die in the manor, but it was her scheming that ignited her fighting spirit. Madam Wei believed that Consort Li wanted to harm her, so she entered the palace.

It was precisely because Madam Wei entered the palace that Zhao Tingxuan was able to arrange such a marriage.

Zhao Shiqing felt very guilty; she never expected to implicate her second brother.

However, my second brother was really unlucky. He always managed to get lucky, but while others got pleasant surprises, he got frights.

That day, when Zhao Shiqing went to see Zhao Tingxuan off, she gave him many instructions, but Zhao Tingxuan remained noncommittal. At that time, Zhao Shiqing was prepared to leave him alone from now on. If others couldn't teach him, then she would let him teach him.

But now Zhao Shiqing felt guilty. Since she had implicated him, she couldn't just stand by and watch her second brother be used and crippled like a fool. So she still had to take care of him.

As for Madam Wei, she was a woman of noble birth, and if she were to die in the palace, it would be a very, very big deal.

Even if Consort Li hated her to death, she would never poison her in the palace.

Therefore, Madam Wei believed that the palace was the safest place, so she stayed there. There was only one adult male in the palace, and that was the emperor. She was an old woman, not a young wife. Did she really have to worry about rumors about her and the emperor?
Therefore, Madam Wei lived in the palace with a clear conscience, ordering Consort Li around and turning Emperor Yongjia's harem into chaos.

Zhao Shiqing was happy to see this happen. In the past, she thought the more chaotic things were, the better, letting them fight like dogs. But now, she decided to be more careful to avoid dragging the Liang Prince's Mansion into it again.

Whatever you say, it comes.

The Second Prince, whom Zhao Shiqing and Zhao Tinglu had just been talking about yesterday, was reported dead the very next day!

Zhao Shiqing thought that Emperor Yongjia was quite patient; he didn't rush to hold a banquet after killing his son, and dragged it out for a whole month.

Since news of the Second Prince's illness had already spread, and he was not seen at various occasions during the New Year that required the princes to attend, the entire court had long suspected this. Therefore, when the news of the Second Prince's death came out, no one was shocked.

Then another piece of news came: the Second Prince's wife was so grief-stricken that she committed suicide.

Emperor Yongjia was heartbroken at the loss of his beloved son, a white-haired man sending off his black-haired son. He was so grief-stricken that he suspended court for three days and posthumously conferred the title of Prince Fuling upon his second son.

The announcement of the title of King Fuling shocked the entire court.

Fuling King, this is the title of a prince.

Although the Second Prince was a son of a concubine and not born to the Empress, there were quite a few sons of concubines in this dynasty who were granted the title of Prince. For example, the Prince of Fu and the Prince of Lu were both outstanding talents, and their mothers were even just lowly palace maids.

The second prince's birth mother was Consort Xian, who ranked among the four consorts. Although the second prince was not very prominent, he was neither outstanding nor deserving of any merit. Compared with the other princes, his only shortcoming was that he did not compete or fight for anything. He died at a young age and could only be posthumously granted the title of Prince of the County, without even the posthumous title of Prince of the First Rank.

Moreover, although it was a posthumous title, he still had a fiefdom. The fiefdom of the King of Fuling was in Fuzhou, far from the capital.

The second prince had two sons, the elder seven years old and the younger only two. After the second prince's burial, the two children were to be sent to Fuzhou. They were young and orphaned, and the Prince's residence could not employ eunuchs or palace servants. The loyal eunuchs and nannies who had served the second prince could not accompany them. From then on, they would be cared for by temporary hires. The two children had no relatives or loyal servants, and it was hard to say whether they would survive to adulthood.

What others could think of, Emperor Yongjia, who grew up in the palace, would not know?
Didn't he know that these two young princes were likely in grave danger?

By this point, what could those seasoned veterans of officialdom not understand?

The death of the Second Prince was suspicious. He was probably disliked by the Emperor. Posthumously granting him the title of Prince was already the greatest honor he could receive. As for the two young princes, the Emperor never intended for them to live.

This is the emperor's family matter. Moreover, the second prince is not Prince Jing. Prince Jing is the son of the empress and the emperor's only legitimate son. Even if he makes a big mistake and is no longer the crown prince, he is still a prince. Even if he is far away from the capital, he can still be reunited with his family and live out the rest of his life in peace.

However, the Second Prince was just one of many princes. He died, but the other princes were still alive. No one in the court wanted to offend the other princes because of him, let alone make the emperor dislike him.

Emperor Yongjia didn't even want to wait for the forty-nine days. Just after the second prince's seventh day memorial service, the two young princes left the capital, and from then on, they were separated by mountains and rivers, with no way to return.

The young prince's convoy passed another convoy without stopping to give way or kneeling in salute.

Approaching them was the carriage of the Princess of Changling. Although the Prince of Fuling was a prince and the two young imperial grandsons had not yet inherited their titles, they were still imperial grandsons. Even if the Princess of Changling and her entourage did not have to kneel, they should at least give way.

However, the dozen or so carriages of the Wei family did not stop at all; instead, the imperial grandsons' convoy moved aside to make way.

A magnificent carriage travels along the official road in early spring, the crisp sound of hooves accompanied by the laughter of women, creating a beautiful scene in the slightly chilly February breeze.

On the other side of the landscape, Zhao Tingxuan finally returned to Liangdu, which he had been away from for a year.

He was born and raised in Liangdu. The ancestral home of the Zhao royal family was not here, but for Zhao Tingxuan, Liangdu was his homesickness, his wanderer's lament, and the thread in his loving mother's hand.

Yes, when he saw the sorrowful look in Nie's eyes, all his previous doubts and accusations vanished.

He is so unfilial! He actually doubted his mother because of his sister's marriage!

He was so foolish. His younger sister was still a child, her moods unpredictable, yet he harbored resentment towards his mother because of her innocent words. The imperial envoy read out the decree of marriage, and it wasn't until he received the decree that Zhao Tingxuan formally met his sister-in-law, Princess Meng Xiaotang of Liang, for the first time.

His first impression of Meng Xiaotang was quite good.

Meng Xiaotang was bright and elegant, with a dignified demeanor and proper manners. She did not seem like a woman who grew up in a mountain village at all. Her demeanor and bearing even surpassed those of the well-established women from noble families in the capital.

Meng Xiaotang is the kind of woman who can be spotted in a crowd even when she is wearing the most ordinary clothes.

Zhao Tingxuan couldn't understand how Meng Xiaotang could be so disrespectful to his mother.

The marriage to the Princess of Changling was so sudden that Zhao Tingxuan only saw a smile on Nie's face.

Nie laughed heartily, her smugness blatantly displayed on her face.

Zhao Tingxuan was taken aback. Was he seeing things?

This was the first time he had ever seen such a smile on his mother's face.

Is the Empress Dowager very satisfied with this marriage?
how can that be possible?
Although he was not knowledgeable in politics, he knew that this marriage was not a good match.

Although the younger sister harbored misunderstandings about the mother, many of her words resonated with Zhao Tingxuan.

He had no interest in managing Liangdi; he simply enjoyed composing poems and indulging in romantic pursuits.

He also disliked the officials around his father and elder brother, who always managed to magnify trivial matters into conspiracies.

Compared to these people, he preferred literati and scholars. He loved to hold poetry and literary gatherings, he loved to listen to music, and he could spend a whole day in an antique shop.

These are the friends he wants, the life he wants.

Originally, with his elder brother supporting him, he could have simply lived a carefree life of wealth and leisure. However, his marriage to the Princess of Changling County has put him in an awkward situation.

Princess Changling will likely marry as a princess, and her background will far surpass that of the eldest sister-in-law who is in charge of the household. Moreover, Princess Changling is backed by Consort Li, and Zhao Tingxuan suspects that he cannot control her.

He was very worried that the Princess of Changling would fight with his sister-in-law. If that happened, how would he face his elder brother?

His older and younger sisters will definitely blame him.

When my elder sister marries into the capital, she will be too far away to help him. Besides, my elder sister is reasonable and will not make things too difficult for him. At most, she will write a letter to reprimand him.

But his younger sister was different. Zhao Tingxuan was convinced that his younger sister would travel thousands of miles back to Liangdu, shave the head of the Changling County Princess in the middle of the night, no, his younger sister would shave his head as well, and then scold him for three days and three nights.

Therefore, Zhao Tingxuan found Nie's smile too irritating, and he turned his face away, not wanting to look at her.

But when he showed the gifts he had brought back from the capital to Lady Nie that evening, Lady Nie, who had been cheerful during the day, cried bitterly, her heart breaking.

"Ah Xuan, you're finally back. You have no idea how much suffering your mother has endured. If your father knew this in the afterlife, he would be furious with your elder brother. It's one thing that he's in poor health, but he's also easily swayed and manipulated by the Meng family without even realizing it."

"Women of such lowly birth as Meng are the most opportunistic and treacherous. Not only did she disrespect me, she also tried to kill me!"

Zhao Tingxuan was shocked: "Sister-in-law wants to kill you? What exactly happened?"

Nie cried until she almost fainted: "She poisoned my food, and she almost killed me."

Zhao Tingxuan asked, "Does elder brother know about this?"

Madam Nie cried out, "Of course he knew! They are husband and wife, how could he not know? But he pretended to be deaf and dumb, letting that vile woman harm me."

"What about your eldest sister? Didn't you tell her?" Zhao Tingxuan asked.

"Her? That ingrate!" Madam Nie sneered. "That slut Meng was someone she brought here, and she was the one who introduced her to your elder brother. She was going to marry far away and was worried that your elder brother wouldn't support her, so she disregarded being laughed at and stuffed that granddaughter of the Meng family, whom she had found in the mountains, into your elder brother's hands. That slut Meng is an old maid who can't get married. No lady from any prominent family in the entire Liang capital is willing to associate with her. How could such a woman be worthy of the Liang Prince's Mansion?"
"My son, only a woman of noble birth like the Princess of Changling is worthy of marrying into the Liang Prince's mansion."

Zhao Tingxuan wanted to say that it wasn't like that. Although his sister-in-law didn't come from a high social class, her demeanor was noble and elegant. He might not have thought so before, but after returning from the capital, he had met the princess and the top noble ladies of the Dayong Dynasty. He really felt that his sister-in-law was in no way inferior to those people.

On the contrary, Zhao Tingxuan truly had no hope for the Princess of Changling, whom he had not yet met.

The great-aunt of the Princess of Changling County was Madam Wei, and Madam Wei's most beloved grandson was Zhu Yu.

Zhao Tingxuan had suffered at Zhu Yu's hands before, and he knew what kind of person Zhu Yu was. Both the Princess of Changling and Zhu Yu were blood relatives of Old Madam Wei, so how could the Princess of Changling be any better?

Zhao Tingxuan felt suffocated just thinking about this marriage.

If he had known this would happen, he should have written to his elder sister in advance and asked her to select a lady from a prestigious family for him in Liangdu.

Since his sister-in-law was chosen by his eldest sister, he believed that his eldest sister had good judgment in choosing people and would definitely be able to find him a suitable wife.

Moreover, that Lady Changling wasn't very good-looking either.

The eldest sister has almond-shaped eyes, and the younger sister also has almond-shaped eyes. The young women that Zhao Tingxuan has seen the most and is closest to are Zhao Yunnuan and Zhao Shiqing. Unconsciously, his older and younger sisters have become his aesthetic standards.

As for the Princess of Changling County, whether it was a mistake by the painter or she really looked like that, her eyes were slanted and narrow, and her mouth was particularly small, which made her whole face look chubby, like a bean.

Zhao Tingxuan felt that if Princess Changling married into the Liang Prince's Mansion, she would be severely outshone by her sister-in-law, elder sister, and younger sister one day.

That's his wife. His wife is the ugliest, and he's embarrassed because of her.

In Liangdu, and even throughout the entire Liang region, who doesn't know that he is a handsome and charming young man?

A handsome young man paired with a bean?

His poetic sentiments, his artistic visions, his moonlight, his frost on the ground, his unforgettable love—all of it eventually turned into a deep sense of regret.

As Zhao Tingxuan thought this, all he could hear was Nie Shi's complaints. He suddenly froze. His younger sister was right, she was right about everything! (End of Chapter)