Chapter 132: A Lesson

The Crown Princess looked at Crown Prince Li Hanwen in disbelief upon hearing his words. Li Hanwen stared back at her and asked, "What? Are you surprised?"

The Crown Princess immediately lowered her gaze. Li Hanwen placed his hand on her stomach and said, "This pregnancy is stable now. Whether you can give birth to the imperial eldest grandson depends entirely on you."

His voice was cold, devoid of any joy expected of a father. The Crown Princess nodded and stood up. As she walked away, Li Hanwen watched her, his sinister eyes flashing with dissatisfaction.

Lin Miaomiao learned that Emperor Yongchang had rebuked the Seventh Prince, Li Yankang, during the morning court session and stripped him of all his official titles.

Curious, Lin Miaomiao looked up and asked Li Yanhe, "Your Majesty, why did the Emperor punish the Seventh Prince? Could it be that he orchestrated the assassination attempt that night?"

Li Yanhe set down his teacup, pondered for a moment, and asked, "Do you think that is possible?"

Lin Miaomiao rubbed her chin, considering the matter. "It’s possible! Look, the people involved were from the Seventh Prince’s camp. If an assassination occurs, people will naturally suspect him first."

"So, it’s a form of reverse deduction. Everyone expects it to be the Seventh Prince, which in turn becomes a point he can use to defend his own innocence."

Li Yanhe nodded at her analysis. "That is indeed a possibility, but the Seventh Prince’s true misfortune is not about the assassins."

"What you can imagine, everyone else can too. But the Seventh Prince acted too anxiously; he was in too much of a hurry to prove that the assassins among the dancers were not arranged by him."

Lin Miaomiao was momentarily confused by his logic. "Wait, what do you mean? If he didn't do it, of course he would be anxious!"

Li Yanhe smiled at her soft, naive remark and shook his head. "Yes, in any other setting, that would be perfectly normal."

"But in the imperial family, it becomes a problem. The Seventh Prince’s hands are not clean; for all these years, it’s not as if His Majesty didn't know what he was doing."

"The Seventh Prince was too reckless. In truth, who actually sent the assassins does not matter. What matters is who His Majesty chooses to believe sent them."

Lin Miaomiao frowned and looked at him earnestly. "If that’s the case, isn't that too unfair to the Seventh Prince?"

"Doesn't that make the country's legal system meaningless? Those who truly want to kill go unpunished, while those who didn't are implicated."

Li Yanhe sighed after a long silence. "The law? His Majesty is the master of this nation. Under the vast sky, all land belongs to the King; within the borders, all people are subjects of the King."

"Whomever the Emperor decides is the culprit, that person is the culprit. Miaomiao, you must only say such things to me. Do not speak of this to anyone else."

Lin Miaomiao furrowed her brow. Seeing her expression, Li Yanhe sighed again and said helplessly, "Why bother thinking so much? These matters have no direct relation to us."

Lin Miaomiao tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear and clicked her tongue. "Who’s to say? If I find something distasteful, I’ll just look away."

Li Yanhe nodded in agreement. "Indeed, if you don't like it, just don't look."

While the two shared this moment of intimacy, many of the Seventh Prince’s businesses were being sealed off. Members of the Seventh Prince’s faction were being ousted, and many officials in the court were implicated, leading to wave after wave of exiles. The various positions in the capital were soon filled by a new batch of officials.

This reshuffling left the Seventh Prince’s residence in financial straits, as a prince’s annual stipend was quite limited. With his shops suppressed by the Emperor, Li Yankang was forced to survive solely on the allowance provided by the Imperial Household Department.

Consort Xian was also implicated due to her own transgressions and was demoted to the rank of Pin (Concubine). The honorific "Xian" was stripped from her title. As winter set in, Li Yankang fell gravely ill. Upon hearing this, Emperor Yongchang spoke to his attendant, Bai Qiu, behind him: "Send an imperial physician to see if he is truly sick or merely feigning it."

Bai Qiu bowed and retreated silently. Looking up at the sky, he felt a chill in his heart. "The Seventh Prince is truly finished. Whether he survives to be seen again is a different matter entirely."

As Li Yankang’s condition worsened, Concubine Qiu knelt outside the Imperial Study, begging for mercy. The Emperor, irritated, threw his brush onto the table and said to Bai Qiu, "One after another, they come to pressure me! Did I not already send a physician?"

Bai Qiu dared not voice the truth. What good were the physicians? They were not there to serve the patients; the person in the Eastern Palace did not wish for the Seventh Prince to survive the winter.

As Concubine Qiu knelt, Crown Prince Li Hanwen, draped in a black cloak, slowly walked past her. He looked down at her and said, "If a mother is incompetent, she should not complain when her child suffers."

His voice was cold. A mocking smirk appeared on his lips. "To be so heartless toward one's own brothers—I suspect the Seventh Brother’s illness will likely not improve."

Concubine Qiu looked up at him coldly. With her head held high, even while kneeling, she said with great dignity, "I am the Emperor's consort, not the Crown Prince’s. The Seventh Prince is the Emperor’s son, not your own brother. If he survives this, I wonder if someone with the Crown Prince's character will be able to endure."

As she spoke, the biting wind howled. She remained kneeling, straight as an arrow, her eyes red as she stared at the Crown Prince. Li Hanwen offered a pleasant smile and turned to enter the Imperial Study.

"Father, Concubine Qiu is an elder of the palace, after all. Why not let her rise? Seventh Brother’s illness is indeed serious; perhaps you should send another physician."

The Emperor glanced at him and nodded. "Since you are so concerned, you may arrange it."

Li Hanwen smiled, bowed, and walked out. He stood over the kneeling Concubine Qiu. "Concubine Qiu, Father has agreed to let you rise and has allowed me to send a physician to check on the Seventh Prince."

She stared at him coldly, a sneer curling her lips. She shouted toward the Imperial Study, "This concubine thanks the Emperor for his grace! Long live the Emperor!"

Li Hanwen kept his smile, laughing softly to himself as he heard her shout. "Such behavior will only make Father despise you more. You have gambled and lost."

He turned and left. Concubine Qiu was helped up by her maid, shivering as the cold wind bit into her. Soon, a second group of physicians was sent to the Seventh Prince’s residence, and Concubine Qiu was demoted again, this time to the rank of Da-ying (Attendant).

With this demotion, she would likely never rise again. Looking at Bai Qiu, who held the imperial decree, she said, "Attendant Qiu... yes, Attendant Qiu. Please, rise."

She stood unsteadily and said, "Eunuch Bai, please give me the decree."

Bai Qiu handed it over. As she looked at the decree, she vomited a mouthful of blood. Bai Qiu turned and left, the sounds of her angry, desperate cries trailing behind him, but what did that matter?

There were too many women in the palace who met such fates. After weeping for a while, Attendant Qiu handed all her valuables to her maid. "Give these to Kang'er, and do not return. My life is forfeit; the one in the Eastern Palace is already watching like a tiger."

The maid wept as she carried the valuables away. Shortly after she delivered them to the Seventh Prince, news of her mistress's death reached the palace.

When Lin Miaomiao and Li Yanhe heard that the Seventh Prince’s birth mother had passed away, they were stunned. Li Yanhe closed his eyes and said to Lin Miaomiao, "She will likely be unceremoniously tossed into a mass grave."

Lin Miaomiao did not understand why he said this. Li Yanhe sighed, looking at the snowy sky outside. "With the New Year approaching, the death of an attendant is nothing but a bad omen for the Emperor."

Lin Miaomiao fell silent. After a long while, she looked up and said, "Let us leave the capital soon. The hearts of the people here are too cold."

Li Yanhe nodded, saying nothing more. He held her close, and they watched the snow from the pavilion, their thoughts drifting far away.

When Emperor Yongchang heard that Attendant Qiu had died from a severe cold, he frowned with disgust. "She was an elder of the palace, after all. Do what you must."

He then turned and headed to the palace of Imperial Noble Consort Xianrou, Yuan Chuxia. She, too, had received the news. Having spent so many years in the palace, she knew this was the Crown Prince’s way of intimidating the Seventh Prince.

The Seventh Prince had orchestrated the downfall of the Fourth Prince, Li Deren, leaving him unable to even step out of his own residence. The Crown Prince was no saint either; the debt from when the Fourth Prince had nearly died of illness had to be repaid in blood. This was the Crown Prince's lesson to the Seventh Prince.

Imperial Noble Consort Yuan Chuxia sighed, picked up her book, and continued to read.

When the Emperor arrived, he found the palace quiet, with very few servants in sight. He frowned and asked curiously, "Why are there so few people here?"

Yuan Chuxia looked up and replied, "I have always preferred tranquility. I have never known peace in my life, and now that I am old, I find I prefer the quiet."

Hearing this, the Emperor looked at her, dazed. The strands of white hair on the Imperial Noble Consort’s head pierced his heart.