…
The days passed uneventfully in the capital like nothing had happened. As the new year approached, people were busy buying new year goods. Even the poor families had joyful smiles all across their faces.
However, some people weren’t that happy at all.
In the palace, Prince Li and Prince Xiang were walking in the garden.
In Prince Li’s faction, Prince Xiang and Prince Cheng were not very powerful and were very respectful to Prince Li. Compared to the crown prince’s taciturn personality and Prince Zhou and Prince Jing’s high-profile ways of doing things, Prince Li was the most mediocre. He wasn’t the most outstanding prince, and his mother was not the most favored, but he was extremely tactful. Whether it was the court officials or his brothers, they were willing to give him face. In private, he was a friendly-looking villain.
“Sixth Brother, I heard that Father has been very cold to Uncle these days,” Prince Xiang said.
“Oh, you heard it too?” Prince Li smiled. When he smiled, small wrinkles appeared at the corners of his eyes, making him look very easygoing. His tone was also very friendly as he chatted with Prince Xiang. “Father has always thought highly of Uncle. However, the few times Uncle came to look for Father, he was shut outside and told that Father was too busy to see him. Anyone with a discerning eye can tell that Father is deliberately avoiding seeing Uncle.”
Emperor Wen Hui had been very protective of Prince Yu. Back then, Emperor Wen Hui had a consort who had offended Prince Yu. That consort’s family was quite influential, but Emperor Wen Hui still sent her to the cold palace without a word. He even warned everyone publicly, “Prince Yu is my brother. If anyone is disrespectful to him, then he’s disrespectful to me too!” The sudden change of attitude made everyone unable to help but wonder what happened.
“But why?” Prince Xiang asked in confusion, “Did Uncle do something to anger Father? But all these years, even if Uncle did something out of line, Father has never blamed him. I haven’t heard about Uncle causing any troubles these days.”
“Do you know why Uncle came to the palace to talk with Father?”
Prince Xiang shook his head.
“Seventh Brother.” Prince Li patted his shoulder, looking like he was sincerely concerned about this insensible brother of his. “You have to be careful about everything in the palace. If you are too honest, you’ll be the one to suffer.”
Prince Xiang smiled. “I’ll follow you. Sixth Brother, you are smarter than me. I’ll do whatever you say.”
“I heard that Uncle wanted to talk about something related to the Shen family with Father.”
“The Shen family?” Prince Xiang was enlightened. “Could it be that Uncle angered Father because of the Shen family?” He thought for a moment and continued, “But Uncle is going to marry the daughter of the second branch of the Shen family. Why should Father get angry over that?”
No one knew Emperor Wen Hui better than his own sons. The only reason Prince Yu could’ve angered Emperor Wen Hui would be that what he wanted was out of line. Power was always something the emperor wasn’t willing to share. The second branch of the Shen family, Shen Gui, was a third-grade civil official. He did not have any real power in his hands, so it would not affect the overall situation. Emperor Wen Hui did not have to be angry with Prince Yu because of this.
“That’s right.” Prince Li said meaningfully, “But what Uncle wants is to marry the daughter of the first branch of the Shen family, Shen Miao.”
“I see.” Only then did Prince Xiang think it through. “Shen Xin has military power. If Uncle wants to marry Shen Miao, he is definitely crossing the line that he never should. But why does Uncle suddenly want to marry Shen Miao? Didn’t he make Shen Qing pregnant already? I don’ t think Uncle is so stupid as to offend Father intentionally.”
“I don’t know either.” Prince Li shook his head. “Although Uncle has been messing around all these years, he’s never crossed the red line. This time, he’s not just a step over the red line but a stride…”