Su Jun feels it's impossible.
Firstly, in the dream, the Crown Prince lived beyond his enthronement, and Zhang had given birth to the Crown Prince's eldest son.
Secondly ...
Su Jun scoffed: "With the ability to stick nails in the Crown Prince's side, why choose Zhang Shishi, a person full of errors?"
At least before appointing Zhang Shishi, why not properly nurture her to ensure that there are no leaks on the surface.
No one knows whether the Crown Prince will be attracted to Zhang Shishi. Before that, if his strange behaviors are discovered by others, it would be ruined.
Dong Shuang: "Shall we inform the emperor?"
Su Jun spoke in a matter-of-fact tone: "No need to worry about it. Since the Crown Prince loves her, he must know she's fine."
Su Jun actually hopes that Zhang Shishi has some problems, so that she can help kill the Crown Prince.
The ability to handle the heir apparent without being discovered is complicated.
It was very troublesome in the dream when Su Jun could kill him regardless of whether his family had a way to survive, but now... it's really complicated.
"I hope we won't reach that point."
In the dream, she discovered that the emperor's death was related to the Crown Prince, but she had no idea how exactly the Crown Prince had managed it.
The emperor passed away the following year, and if that didn't work out, she would have to wait until the Crown Prince moved until next year.
Su Jun doesn't want the emperor to die, but compared to the Su family, that's all she can do.
Even if she rushes to the emperor and tells him, "The Crown Prince wants to kill you," would the emperor raise his guard?
Perhaps he would think she's gone crazy.
Wait!
The emperor dies, the Crown Prince dies, and then... the Marquis of Qi ascends to the throne!
The Su family would definitely be safe, and she, as the widow of the Crown Prince, would also be able to survive.
Su Jun's heart was pounding, this ending was too captivating!
*
The second day, the Su family.
Su Shaoxian had all his hair and beard white, his appearance wan, and he couldn't stop falling asleep after speaking for two sentences.
Su Jun rubbed the handkerchief, feeling sad in her heart.
When the Crown Prince was led to the front courtyard by his eldest brother, Su's father suddenly became alert.
He asked, "What brings you to the house?"
"As a daughter, she cares about your health, does she have to do something for it?"
Su Shaoxian smiled and said: "Sure, but the more you do, the more mistakes you make. I haven't reached the stage of life and death."
"I'm getting old. Every winter, I fall ill once a year. Aging is such a thing."
Su Jun could hear the hint of indifference to death in his words.
The monarch and the subject complement each other, and the Su family had a hereditary position. Their offspring flourished, their daughters were the Crown Princess of the state, and they were also cherished by the Crown Prince ... As long as Su Jun's body doesn't have any problems, her children will be the next Crown Prince.
The Su family has enjoyed wealth and ease for generations.
Su Shaoxian indeed has nothing to regret.
Su Jun thought expressionlessly that in the dream, her father passed away two years later, which was indeed because he found life too uninteresting.
For someone like him, who has floated through the political sea his entire life, there's no need to rest on his laurels. He should be pulled up and continue to plot against others.
Su Jun looked outside and confirmed that the one guarding the door was her father's trusted confidant. She said, "The Crown Prince doesn't love me; he likes the Imperial Concubine of the Eastern Palace."
"Oh, the Crown Prince still harbors resentment towards me."
Su Jun recounted the events of the past few days in detail, and indeed—
"It's just a quarrel between husband and wife."
People cannot imagine what they have never seen.
The current dynasty has been established for over a hundred years, and the oldest person in the court was born during the reign of Emperor Taizong.
Once they were able to enter the civil service, they had long heard stories about the love between the emperor and the empress.
Let's talk about the past thirty years.
Feng Zong was wise throughout his life, but he chose his young son to succeed him because of the concubine. After the death of the first empress, the emperor never remarried and raised the Crown Prince himself...
What you see and what you hear are all these things.
It's hard to understand why they think the emperor will overthrow the concubine and her family will be massacred.
Even if we broaden the scope to the previous dynasty, there were a total of twenty-eight empresses, and only two were actually discarded by the emperor.
One was because she insisted on supporting other princes as heirs, and the other was because she had no sons and was discarded.
Both of them died peacefully in Daoist temples, and their families were not affected.
So there's no precedent for it at all.
Particularly, the Su family is on the side of the Crown Prince and can be considered a thoroughgoing faction of the Crown Prince. After the Crown Prince takes power, he cuts off his loyal followers. What good will this do?
Especially, this is the Su family that has the merit of being a regent.
Other than alienating yourself from your subjects and earning a bad reputation in the historical records, what else is there?
Normal people cannot do this.
But... Su Jun scoffed coldly, who says that the emperor must be a normal person?
With absolute power, one naturally wants to act recklessly, paying no heed to what impact it might have on future generations.
In Su Jun's persuasion, Su's father had some doubts, but didn't take them seriously.
Su's father sighed and said, "The Crown Prince's temperament... Ah."
Although the Crown Prince likes the daughter, he is proud and meticulous about his reputation, and young people wouldn't know how to be tender towards their in-laws!
Fortunately, Su's father didn't say it out loud, otherwise Su Jun would have vomited up a mouthful of blood.
*
As they were on their way back, Su Jun raised the curtain and looked outside, but she froze.
Prince Qi happened to stand by the side of the road. Their eyes met and then parted.
Su Jun lowered the curtain, but her mind was elsewhere. It was the dead of winter, and he was dressed too thinly.
That's why he developed a cold disease in the future.
Prince Qi gripped the horse's reins, watching the carriage drive away.
While he was hunting in the suburbs, he knew that the Crown Prince was visiting Su's family, so he hurried, but still managed to catch a glimpse of her.
Just, did she see him just now?
He has a keen eye that can see the movement trajectories of birds high in the sky, but he can't see where Su Jun's gaze falls.
It might be his own overestimation of his feelings, but he still hopes she will glance at him.
*
After Su Jun had dismissed the people, Dong Shuang said, "Madam, Zhang Shishi received the Crown Prince's favor in the year of An Tai II."
The tea cup in Su Jun's hand tipped over, wetting her skirt.
An Tai Year 2 came a full year before the Crown Prince asked for her hand in marriage.
The Crown Prince had already had a relationship with Zhang Shishi before asking for her hand in marriage!
But why didn't the Crown Prince raise Zhang Shishi's position when he favored her at that time?
It is very common for a prince to have a concubine who has been beautified before he gets married.
The imperial family is full of sentimental people, but not every person is a sentimental person!
Among the six emperors so far, the only ones who truly loved their wives to the bone were the founding emperor and the second emperor.
Following their examples, the emperors don't even make the cut!
Looking at the Crown Prince's expression, it is obvious that he loves Zhang Shishi to death.
If they had a history together, the Crown Prince shouldn't have sought her hand in marriage, but instead select a concubine with a lower background and a gentle nature from the court officials.
It's not that Su Jun is boasting. As the only daughter of her father, and with her father having a reputation as someone who treats people like Zhou Gong, as long as the royal family doesn't want to deeply hurt the hearts of ministers, they will only show concern for Su's descendants.
After all, this is giving a precedent to the people of the world, telling them that the imperial family will never neglect loyal ministers.
Now that the current throne is secure, it's possible to indiscriminately kill the Su family now and then again later, but the kingdom won't just pass down through two generations.
You Chu family treats Su Shaoxian, who is disinterested in power and has poured his heart and soul into assisting the emperor, in such a way now. In the future, when there is another young monarch on the throne and the kingdom is in peril, who will still be willing to swear allegiance and serve you with their life?
Moreover, Su Jun was personally requested for marriage by the Crown Prince and raised by the Empress Dowager.
Now, even if she behaves recklessly and mercilessly kills Zhang Shishi, can the Crown Prince demand her life for it?
That's impossible.
Even if the Crown Prince takes revenge for Zhang Shishi after he becomes emperor, Zhang Shishi is still dead.
So the Crown Prince should choose a concubine with less backing instead of Su Jun.
Su Jun asked herself honestly, her temperament is truly not the kind that worships her husband as the supreme authority.
She couldn't understand why the Crown Prince would ask for her hand in marriage a year later.
More puzzled—
The Crown Prince had slept with Zhang Shishi for two years without any cost, with Zhang Shishi working during the day and serving the Crown Prince at night, doing the work of two people for one wage!
Even if it were Su Jun, she couldn't help but feel that Zhang Shishi was too exploited.
