Because the previous empress was ill, the New Year's Eve banquet in the palace was held haphazardly without much of a festive atmosphere.
Now is the Lantern Festival, the Empress Mother's condition stabilized, want to see people lively lively.
Tonight's palace banquet is exceptionally grand, with all the noble relatives in the capital coming to attend.
At this moment, the absence of the Princess Consort from the Prince Consort makes her stand out even more.
Everyone knows that the Empress Dowager can only favor three people, one being the emperor, another the Crown Prince, and the third naturally her beloved daughter-in-law.
The Princess Consort has always been well-mannered, even if she is slightly unwell, she will endure and attend the event.
Not appearing even now, could it be that she is suffering from a serious illness?
But the above few don't seem worried, perhaps——
Counting the days, the Princess Consort has been married for two years, so it is indeed time for her to get pregnant.
There is a complete separation between the inner palace and the outside world, and the flow of information is obstructed, so the noble relatives are unaware of the subtle situation.
Not even the idea that the Chang concubine had a miscarriage. They have no idea that there is a concubine in the Crown Prince's palace.
This is normal. Only when one reaches the rank of a Crown Prince's Consort can they be noticed more by the noble relatives, and if they are a Consort favored greatly by the Crown Prince, then the noble relatives will have to consider it even more.
At this time, the Elder Princess laughed and asked the Empress Dowager, "Has the Crown Princess been pregnant?"
She and the Empress Dowager are of the same age, and she has always had a good relationship with this sister-in-law. So it's okay to say this directly.
The Empress Dowager shook her head, "No, the Princess Consort has recently caught a cold."
The Elder Princess was surprised, "How could it be that she is so sick that she can't even get up?"
The empress looked displeased at the elder princess.
The Elder Princess said, "The princess has always been observant of etiquette. I heard that recently, she didn't take off her clothes while taking care of you. Could it be that she collapsed from exhaustion, but was afraid to worry you and so deliberately concealed her illness?"
The Empress Dowager's expression eased: "The princess-in-law is indeed filial."
But there was really something wrong. Today the Princess Consort didn't come, but it was the Crown Prince who came to tell her.
In the past, when there was anything important, Su Junzhen would send her maid, Qinglu. But this time, it was the Crown Prince who delivered the message, and the Empress Dowager thought it was because their marriage was strong.
However, the long years of living in the palace made her sense something was wrong.
Hasn't it been a few days since the Crown Prince, disturbed by the miscarriage of the concubine, barged into the Cenning Palace to demand a doctor?
How has the Crown Prince become this close to the Princess Consort?
The Empress Dowager asked Zhao maid: "What about that concubine?"
Maid Zhao has been busy taking care of the Empress Dowager recently, and she hasn't paid much attention to the East Palace. When asked, she hesitated and said, "I haven't heard any news from the East Palace. Maybe it's still the same as before?"
The Consort pinched the handkerchief, hesitated for a moment, and then, taking a deep breath, said boldly, "Did I hear that the concubine had a miscarriage?"
The Empress Dowager looked at her coldly, disliking the Consort's interruption.
The Consort's face stiffened. Next to her, the virtuous concubine said, "It's not the concubine anymore. Now it's Zhaoxun."
The virtuous concubine explained, "I have been entrusted by Your Majesty to assist with the management of the palace and am responsible for the inner treasury. The other day, someone from the Crown Prince's palace came to pick up some items for a Zhaoxun. Since the person was unfamiliar, my people asked a few extra questions, and that's how I learned about this matter."
So it's not them eavesdropping on the East Palace.
Because the Crown Prince sent someone to fetch items used by female concubines, and not people usually in front of the Princess Consort, that's why the virtuous concubine knows about this matter!
The concubines in the palace have grievances against the Crown Prince. Usually, they endure and make allowances out of respect for his status as the legitimate heir.
However, the Crown Prince still requires them to be polite to his concubine, which is really laughable.
The Empress Dowager's face turned cold.
The rank of concubines in the Crown Prince's palace can be granted by the Crown Prince himself, unless it is a position above that of a concubine.
As long as they are not on the Royal Banquet Table, there is no need to report to the emperor.
Before the last time, when Zhang requested a title, it was necessary to get the approval of the Empress Dowager because she had already decided to take action against Zhang. The Crown Prince could only kneel and beg for his elders' consent.
When the Crown Prince was summoned by palace attendants to the Empress Dowager's presence, after hearing about this matter, he readily admitted, "Grandma, she had a miscarriage. I will compensate her with a rank."
The Empress Dowager said indifferently, "You like this type. I will find a few more for you in the future. This one should be left behind."
The Crown Prince furrowed his brow, "Grandma, she's different from the others."
"Where is she different?" The Empress Dowager's tone was too cold.
In the eyes of an Empress Dowager who has lived a life of high status, a concubine is simply something for her husband to pass the time, nothing more than an item.
She can play around, but if she really pours her feelings into it and clings to some tricks out of attachment, that wouldn't be good.
Simply put, she can like the body, but want a soulmate to play with.
That would be the case when both sides are immature.
The Crown Prince said, "She is my grandson's woman. Why does Grandma insist on interfering with my grandson's private matters?"
The people below sensed the atmosphere was off in Empress Dowager's place.
Qi King thought of Su Junzhen, put down his wine cup, and for the first time, actively approached the Empress Dowager.
The Crown Prince said, "That was my grandson's first child! It is of great significance. Zhang Shifei had a miscarriage due to saffron, so I merely punished the Princess Consort by seclusion to pray for the child who was not meant to be born. What's wrong with that?"
At that time, after beating Su Junzhen, the Crown Prince felt a mix of emotions. He was definitely regretful, but seeing that she didn't make a big fuss, he thought it was because they had not become close.
The Crown Prince's regret gradually turned into other emotions. It was better to blame Su Junzhen for this mistake than to regret it all the time and realize his own error.
It was Su Junzhen's fault for not being a proper wife, for fraternizing with Qi King before marriage, and for deliberately saying such things in front of him, which is why he disciplined her.
It was because Su Junzhen was not obedient and did not cater to his needs as a husband, so everything was her fault.
In this way, the Crown Prince's heart will not be entangled by self-blame, but rather be more justified.
Add to this the whispers of Zhang Shifei, and the Crown Prince sincerely believes that his current actions are sufficiently magnanimous.
Qi King happened to hear this sentence, with a breath of strong alcohol, but only a lack of taste in his throat.
At this moment, spurred by the Crown Prince's words, it was as if every part of Qi King's body was on fire, and his internal organs hurt. For a moment, Qi King thought he wanted to kill the Crown Prince.
How dare you treat Junzhen like this?
But Qi King managed to restrain himself.
Two years have increased Qi King's ability to endure.
He is no longer the impulsive boy he was two years ago, kneeling on the snow to beg the emperor for a marriage, not caring whether the emperor agreed to his marriage or not. After this, it would have a significant impact on Junzhen.
Stay calm. He must stay calm at this moment.
If he kills the Crown Prince now, Junzhen's reputation will be affected.
Just seclusion, just... foot!
Qi King scoffed and said sarcastically, "It seems the Crown Prince still knows about the order of age. As the second prince, it's not too much to ask him to kneel down and plead for forgiveness from his eldest brother?"
"After all, it was you who deliberately disabled your elder brother's leg!"
The Crown Prince turned angry and said, "Three brother you——"
The Crown Prince couldn't finish his sentence. His whole body's hair stood on end, as if he was being watched by a large beast. His brain was frantically sounding an alarm.
It was as if saying another word would be his death.
The Crown Prince was frightened and shuddered.
