"How could this be?"
The Crown Princess instinctively reddened her eyes. "It's impossible. If the Chang family hadn't fallen, Ling'er would have been the undisputed Crown Princess Consort. Yan Zheng... Yan Zheng would never refuse to have a legitimate heir."
At this moment, the Crown Princess was shrouded in overwhelming sorrow.
She dared not dwell too deeply on the reason behind it.
"Your Highness, if you don’t believe me, Imperial Physician Mei is waiting outside. What if Song Yanzheng had always been wary of the Chang family and wanted his heir to be born from someone else?" Song Shihuan curled her lips into a smirk. "To His Majesty, my father is a legitimate son, and the Crown Prince is also a legitimate son."
"If my father hadn’t existed, the Crown Prince’s status would only be more exalted."
The Eastern Palace saw the Qin Prince's Mansion as a thorn in its side, so when it came to Song Yanzheng, they outright stripped Chang Ling'er of the possibility of bearing children.
"Then what does my Chang family count for... What do I count for..."
The Crown Princess murmured in despair, her expression caught between joy and grief.
"If the Second Miss Chang fails to produce an heir after marriage, it would only make it easier to welcome a new Crown Princess Consort later."
Seeing the Crown Princess in such a state, Song Shihuan felt a dark sense of satisfaction.
Especially standing here in the Eastern Palace, recalling the suffering she endured in her past life, she couldn’t help but wish to exact vengeance a thousandfold on these people!
"My Chang family treated them well—how could they do this to me!"
The Crown Princess gripped Song Shihuan’s shoulders tightly. "Ah Huan, you wouldn’t tell me this for no reason, would you?"
"I have a way for Your Highness to take revenge. The question is whether you’re willing."
The moment Song Shihuan finished speaking, the Crown Princess answered without hesitation:
"I am willing."
She was willing.
Years ago, under the locust tree, her eldest brother had brought Song Ling toward her. Back then, Song Ling had not yet been named Crown Prince and had promised her that in this life, he would take no woman but one from the Chang family.
With the Chang family’s support, Song Ling had smoothly entered the Eastern Palace.
All these years, the Eastern Palace’s inner court had never housed another woman, and she had thought she had found a devoted husband. Who could have guessed she had fallen into a trap woven entirely of lies?
"What must I do?"
The light in the Crown Princess’s eyes gradually faded, replaced by a look Song Shihuan knew all too well—one brimming with hatred.
"Right now, the Qin Prince’s influence is rising. Who will emerge victorious in the end remains to be seen. Child, it’s fortunate you never entered this devouring Eastern Palace."
Song Shihuan straightened her expression. "I need to know every detail of the Empress and Song Yanzheng’s plans for the birthday banquet—nothing left out."
Then, she added one final spark.
"Years ago, my father was framed for an affair with a palace maid. If not for that, it would have been Your Highness marrying him. So this time, at the birthday banquet, we must expose the schemers behind it all."
"I will help you."
The Crown Princess’s nails dug deep into her palms, but she paid no mind to the pain.
That conspiracy had harmed more than just the Qin Prince.
......
As for the Crown Prince—
Just as Song Yu had predicted, he was so enraged that he spat blood.
Song Yanzheng rushed back, but in front of Song Yu, he could only swallow his hatred.
"Yan Zheng, you’ve returned just in time. Your father’s temper is too volatile—always talking of killing and fighting. You must advise him more."
Song Yanzheng looked at the Crown Prince, who lay on the bed gasping for breath, and forced out a smile with great effort. "Thank you for the reminder, Uncle."
"Enough, it’s late. I should take my leave."
Song Yu waved his hand, feigning utmost consideration. "No need to see me out."
With that, he left with Song Shihuan, who had just returned to the courtyard.
Inside the room, Song Yanzheng quickly grasped the Crown Prince’s hand.
"Father, are you all right?"
The Crown Prince’s right cheek twitched uncontrollably. "The Ministry of War is gone... Yan Zheng, I must see His Majesty—I must demand an explanation!"
Was he, the Crown Prince, to have no control over even a single one of the Six Ministries?
"Father, take heart. Even if His Majesty hands the Ministry of War to the Qin Prince, aside from those brutes, the rest are our people. How could they be swayed by the Qin Prince?" Song Yanzheng’s gaze darkened. "In the end, the Chang family’s downfall has dealt the Eastern Palace a heavy blow."
"Yan Zheng, if we had protected the Chang family a little more, would they not have turned to framing Song Yu?"
Regret tinged the Crown Prince’s voice. The Chang family had supported the Eastern Palace for so many years, lulling him into the illusion that the Eastern Palace could stand firm without them.
"Song Yu... he must also be eyeing the throne."
The taste of blood filled the Crown Prince’s mouth. Song Yu had changed.
"Appointing a Crown Prince is a matter of state—no trifling matter. Father, you need not worry." Song Yanzheng reassured him. "Soon, the Gu family will pledge their unwavering loyalty to the Eastern Palace. By then, the Qin Prince won’t last in the Ministry of War."
Before the Crown Prince could relax at his son’s words, he realized the twitching in his right cheek wouldn’t stop.
Terror filled his expression.
"Yan Zheng, summon Imperial Physician Mei—quickly!"
Chaos erupted in the Eastern Palace. Song Yanzheng stood beneath the eaves, listening as the Crown Prince’s furious shouts echoed from inside.
Song Yanzheng frowned deeply.
Had they truly gone too far with the Chang family?
But for his father to marry his mother, the Eastern Palace had never housed a concubine—not even a maidservant.
If his father ascended the throne one day, how could the courtiers allow an emperor to have only an empress in his harem? And if Chang Ling'er bore him a legitimate heir, the Chang family’s power would only grow stronger.
How, then, could his father keep the Chang family in check?
If so, it was better to cut off the Chang family’s path from the very beginning.
......
Qin Prince’s Mansion.
"The Ministry of War—this is the Ministry of War!" Shen Qingping licked his lips. "But it’s crawling with the Crown Prince’s lackeys. We’ll have to teach those dogs a lesson first."
Otherwise, it’d be hard to establish authority later!
"Do you have a plan?" Song Yu and Song Shihuan both looked at Shen Qingping. "I’ve already appointed you as my strategist—think of something!"
"Let me think."
Burdened with this responsibility, Shen Qingping immediately buried himself in thought, while Song Yu and Song Shihuan chatted about their visit to the Eastern Palace.
"I think the Crown Princess deserves it—she’s been an accomplice for years." Song Yu glared. "The way she treated you at the birthday banquet—I’ll never forget it, not even in death!"
A mother, treating her own child so cruelly.
It showed the darkness in her heart.
"Father is right. Now that the Chang family is gone, the Crown Princess and the Eastern Palace are at odds." Song Shihuan smiled. "Father’s name will soon be cleared."
"Then His Majesty had better compensate the Qin Prince’s Mansion handsomely."
Just as the father and daughter were getting excited, Shen Qingping suddenly lifted his head:
"I’ve got it!"
