Forcing me to become a concubine? Remarrying the Ninth Prince, she'll be pregnant all over the

Wei Wujiu paused, and the past seemed to vanish in an instant.

Two of these old princes were quite advanced in age and had difficulty recognizing people, yet whenever they were slightly lucid, they would mutter, "Where is Chengji? Where is the Crown Prince?"

"We must find him! We can't let anything happen to him! Emperor Jing only left behind this one heir..."

"Zhaohua is already... sigh!"

The old princes felt guilty for not being able to take good care of Shen Zhaohua, but as men who had come of age early and left the palace to establish their own residences, how could they keep going to the palace to visit the princess without a reason?

To put it bluntly, they also have to consider Shen Zhaohua's reputation.

Thinking of this, An Yang felt ashamed, her eyes reddening, and she choked back tears as she dabbed at her eyes with a handkerchief: "Your Highness, please don't say such things. It's my conscience as your aunt that's bothering me!"

Unable to protect those within the inner palace, the old princes entrusted Shen Zhaohua and the other two illegitimate princesses to her. However, she had already married and had a consort back then. Although she could occasionally enter the palace, she was careless and never expected that Emperor Shen Hu's ruthless hand would... not touch the two illegitimate princesses, but instead poison and ruin Shen Zhaohua!

So, even though Shen Zhaohua has been gone for some years, An Yang is too ashamed to face the Sixth Prince. He can only take care of her by privately instructing the eunuchs.

Wei Wujiu's heart ached terribly for his sister; every breath felt like a slow, agonizing torture. He clenched his fists, suppressing the bitterness in his heart, before finally speaking: "These past years have been difficult. My uncles have shown me so much concern and care, yet I have been unable to acknowledge them due to various circumstances, and even intentionally deceived them time and again. I apologize to my uncles here!"

The two confused old princes didn't hear clearly, but Prince Gong hurriedly got up and quickly helped Wei Wujiu up, saying, "Your...Prince..."

For a moment, Prince Gong was unsure whether he should change his mind. But upon seeing the Imperial Seal again, his doubts lessened somewhat. However, the royal bloodline was not to be trifled with, and he could not afford to be careless.

"Absolutely not, and it mustn't be." Prince Gong spoke first, then exchanged glances with the other old princes before finally saying, "Lord Wei, please don't blame us for being suspicious, but royal blood cannot be confused. Please allow me to ask you a few questions—"

Wei Wujiu stood up, lowered his eyes slightly, and nodded calmly: "Please ask, Your Highness."

After thinking for a moment, Prince Gong pointed out a few things that only those who had experienced them firsthand would know, asking, "First, what did this old minister give His Highness Crown Prince Shen Chengji for his third birthday?"

"Secondly, after Your Highness's first birthday ceremony, what did I say to Your Highness while holding you?"

"Thirdly, does Your Highness still remember who was closest to you back then?"

Three questions. Logically speaking, even if Wei Wujiu is Shen Chengji himself, how clear and distinct could his memories be from when he was three years old? But if he is Shen Chengji himself, even if he doesn't remember, he must have heard the eunuchs who took care of and protected him when he escaped from the palace mention it at least a hundred times over the years.

Wei Wujiu, without a second thought, said directly, "For my third birthday gift, Prince Gong gave me a pure white jade flute with exquisite craftsmanship, because when I was doing my first birthday celebration, I picked up this Imperial Seal of the State."

"Afterwards, my father and mother had a long and happy chat, believing that I was born to be the crown prince and a pillar of the country. But I was young at the time and naively said that it was jade, cool and refreshing. I liked it very much and almost angered my father. It was only thanks to the advice and understanding of the chief eunuch Zhu Hongtu that I was spared from blame."

"And Eunuch Zhu was the person closest to me when I was young. But because he was dissatisfied with Shen Hu forcing my mother to commit suicide, he spoke sarcastically and rebelliously. Enraged, Shen Hu ordered his men to beat him to death with sticks. Before he died, his blood splattered everywhere, and he shouted loudly, 'The royal family is legitimate, and Shen Hu, a villain, cannot be eradicated. One day, one day...'"

The rest of the shouts stopped, and Grandpa Zhu died on the spot, filled with resentment.

Wei Wujiu was there. He didn't have many memories from when he was three years old. He couldn't remember how his father died, but he remembered watching his mother being forced to hang herself, watching the eunuch Zhu, who had taken care of him and doted on him, being beaten to death, and watching his elder sister tearfully send him into the tunnel, telling him to leave quickly, to run, and to survive.

Upon hearing the fluent and insightful answers, Prince Gong was so shocked that he immediately knelt down, looked up, and cried out with tears in his eyes, "Does Emperor Jing see this from heaven? Crown Prince Shen Chengji has returned!"

"Your Majesty, I have failed you. I will atone for my sins even in the afterlife!"

Overwhelmed with grief, Prince Gong kowtowed heavily to the ground, performing three kneelings and nine prostrations: "Your subject pays respects to Your Highness the Crown Prince! May Your Highness live a thousand years!"

The other princes also responded to the call and knelt down to perform a grand ceremony of worship.

Even the two elderly princes, whose memories were already hazy, knelt tremblingly, supported by their eunuchs, mumbling, "Found them, they're back... I can close my eyes now... Emperor Jing should close his eyes now too..."

Wei Wujiu looked up slightly, his heart filled with anguish. After more than twenty years of forbearance and seclusion, finally... finally today had arrived.

After the relatives recognized each other and verified their identities, the news spread like wildfire, and the attitudes of all the officials, who had previously held differing opinions, changed spontaneously.

"He really is..."

"So he wasn't castrated? Then there's no doubt about it. This is also the true crown prince, and a more legitimate and rightful one than the one in the palace!"

Does it really need to be made clear who we should pledge allegiance to and who we should support?

Even so, some stubborn officials still objected, insisting on supporting Shen Huai'an and refusing to compromise.

The next day, when they saw Wei Wujiu emerge from Jingyuan, the numerous officials, both civil and military, who had already recognized his legitimate identity, immediately prostrated themselves and kowtowed, shouting "Long live the Emperor!"

Those who were adamant in their stance still scoffed at him.

Wei Wujiu didn't make things difficult for these people. As circumstances changed, everyone had different thoughts, and he didn't force anything. He just told them to observe the situation quietly.

Lin Rucong was worried about Lin Wantang. After giving a passionate speech, citing classical texts and analyzing the pros and cons, and repeatedly persuading several key veteran officials, he also approached Wei Wujiu and asked bluntly, "Your Highness, what should we do now?"

"If we follow Shen Huai'an's wishes, the palace will have enough food and drink to last at least a month. But within that month, the Southern Army will be able to march on the capital in force. Where will we be then?"

"Even though Your Highness currently holds the Tiger Tally and has an army of 800,000 in the Northern Frontier, plus the Embroidered Uniform Guard and the Imperial Guard to make you even stronger, the Southern Frontier Army should not be underestimated. Moreover, if the two armies are locked in a stalemate and a fight to the death is inevitable, then..."

Lin Rucong was worried about national affairs, the turmoil in the western border, and only then about Lin Wantang, who had been taken to the palace, and the current situation. He had seen too many battles and bloody fights in his life, and countless lives had been lost... on the battlefield, wrapped in horsehide.