novelcrest Chapter 164 Prince Min, Consort Shen
Chapter 164 Prince Min, Consort Shen
Li Yuanke went to see the eldest prince that evening and returned to Qianyuan Palace in the morning.
The imperial physicians stayed at Baoci Palace, never leaving its side.
There was no use in Li Yuanke staying at Baoci Palace. The eldest prince was delirious with fever and his body was burning hot. Although he had never fulfilled his responsibilities as a father, the prince was still his flesh and blood, and it was painful to see him like this.
He could still evade the situation, but poor Consort De was heartbroken, crying her heart out. She was pregnant, and every second was torture for her.
Interestingly, neither the emperor nor the empress mentioned punishing Consort Ping.
The Empress Dowager remained silent, only sending Aunt Qingruo over to check on him every day. After all, he was her own grandson. Although she had never raised him, how could she not be moved at all?
Despite the best efforts of the imperial physicians, they were still unable to save the eldest prince's life.
On the ninth day, early in the morning, the eldest prince was seriously ill. Upon hearing the news, Shen Shixi rushed over.
In her memory, he was a very handsome boy, whose appearance and demeanor resembled Li Yuanke in two or three parts, but he looked more like Consort De. At this time, he was so thin that he was skin and bones, with sunken eye sockets and a pair of big eyes, like an African refugee child.
Shen Shixi felt a pang of sadness watching this, and her nose began to sting.
The child woke up, his eyes somewhat unfocused, but finally settled on Li Yuanke. He smiled and weakly called out, "Father."
Consort De let out a loud howl, nearly fainting from the pain.
Li Yuanke was inevitably moved. He held the child in his arms and whispered, "Father is here. Take a nap, and you'll be fine!"
He patted the child's shoulder and closed his eyes.
The child breathed his last in his arms.
He sensed that the child's strength had dissipated, so he opened his eyes, which were completely calm.
Consort De was truly filled with hatred at this moment. Shen Shixi saw her leaning against the nanny's arms, her hands tightly clenched, the veins on the back of her hands bulging. But she remained calm, waiting for the emperor to say what to do about punishing Consort Ping.
It wasn't that she didn't want to avenge her child, but she was pregnant with another child, and she had many other plans of her own. She didn't dare to offend the Empress Dowager so drastically all at once.
Since the eldest prince is gone, she wants to maximize the benefits of his death and sow guilt and pity in the emperor's heart so that her youngest son can have a better future.
Shen Shixi saw it very clearly: she could not let the emperor feel such guilt, and in the future, she would transform that guilt into pity for Consort De and the child in her womb.
Because she will inevitably have a son in the future, and her son can compete with the living, but cannot lose to the dead.
She walked over and put her hand on the emperor's shoulder, saying, "Your Majesty, although the eldest prince is young, he has already lived a life in the mortal world. He is of imperial blood and cannot be without a name, a title, or support."
Your Majesty, I humbly beg you to show mercy and grant the eldest prince posthumous honors, so that he may be spared from suffering repeated injustices at such a young age, with no record of it in the historical annals.
While Consort Ping is guilty, she is not the only culprit who harmed the Crown Prince. Her words also enlightened Li Yuanke.
Li Yuanke gave Consort De a deep look, then glanced at the Empress, and issued an edict: "Consort Chen's words are quite right. The eldest prince is hereby given the name Cheng'an, posthumously granted the title of Prince Min, and buried with the rites due to a Prince of the Second Rank, to be interred in the Changling Mausoleum!"
Changling is the mausoleum that is being built for him.
The character 愍 is interchangeable with 悯, meaning to pity and sympathize.
This is a great honor for the eldest prince.
It serves as a constant reminder to those who are still alive.
The Empress was also stunned, as she had always been wary of Consort De.
Consort De was incredibly fertile.
Yes, the Empress has also come. It can be said that almost all the concubines who are confined to their homes or in confinement after childbirth have come today. This is a good time to see the Emperor.
The Empress said, "Your Majesty, isn't this going too far? The eldest prince is too young; according to the rules, this is unnecessary."
When a child dies, even a prince, the body is dragged to a place on the outskirts of the capital and buried. It is said that children who die young are full of resentment and are considered very unlucky.
He was posthumously granted a title and buried with the rites due to a prince, but instead he was buried alongside the emperor in the imperial mausoleum.
Because of her son's status, the eldest prince was buried in the imperial mausoleum. But what about Consort De? Is she destined for heaven?
But no one paid any attention to the Queen.
Consort De was extremely surprised. She had not expected Shen Shixi to speak up for her, and she had not expected to receive such favor from the Emperor after her son's death.
It is clear that the emperor still loved the eldest prince. If her poor son were alive and well, he would have no trouble getting the throne.
Before she could even express her gratitude, the Emperor said, "Consort De has failed in her duty to care for the imperial heir, is unkind as a mother, and her virtue is unworthy of her position. She is demoted to the rank of Second Grade Consort, and her title is to be cautious!"
Consort De was struck dumb, unable to believe it!
Her eldest son was posthumously granted a title, but she herself was demoted.
The title "Shen" was a reminder to her to be cautious, and also a warning that the emperor resented the stone that the Duchess of Xin had used to poison the imperial heir.
As for the Duchess of Xin's good intentions, how could you kill my son just because you meant well?
Those in positions of power only look at results.
The phrase "a mother who is not kind" is a warning to her that she should not use the death of the eldest prince to calculate her own interests.
Shen Shixi despised those who schemed against pregnant women and children, but there was nothing he could do. Who would be the next emperor had too great and far-reaching an impact, so these two types of people became the main targets of his schemes.
That day, the Empress Dowager invited the Emperor to Cining Palace. No one knows what they talked about, but she did not issue any decree to Consort Ping. In everyone's eyes, it was as if the Empress Dowager was protecting Consort Ping.
Ping Meiren herself breathed a sigh of relief.
But Shen Shixi knew that the emperor had gained another bargaining chip in dealing with the Empress Dowager. Even though the eldest prince was destined to die anyway, it was Consort Ping who saw him off on his final journey, and there was no doubt about that.
From now on, whenever the Empress Dowager wants something from the Emperor, she will have to consider this carefully.
With the death of the eldest prince, the interests of all parties have been maximized, and a temporary balance has been achieved.
When the eldest prince died, all those who served him closely, and those who did not protect him that day, were all sentenced to death.
After that, the emperor didn't come to the inner palace for several days, and Shen Shixi was happy to have some peace and quiet.
In her previous life, people usually went back to work on the eighth day of the lunar new year. Shen Shixi asked Chaoyu to leave the palace and tell her third brother to investigate the concubines of the Prince of Jin who had died suddenly, to see if any of them were useful. If they were useful, great; if not, they should find a way to use them.
After Chaoyu left the palace, she brought the account books back to her. She had quite a few businesses, and there were several thick account books. She flipped through them and found that everything was normal. So she asked Chaoyu to make another trip and tell her third brother that 10% of the annual profits would be used for Yongxi Academy and 10% for Gewu Academy.
It wasn't that she had a lot of kindness or high moral character, but rather that in her past life, wherever there was war in the world, her father and brothers would go there, and wherever there was a change of regime, they would get involved.
Her mother carried a money basket around every day, doing charity work and praying to gods and Buddhas, fearing that one day her father and brothers would be hit by stray bullets or be ambushed by a political party that had stepped down.
Of course, they are not without principles; the interests of the motherland and the people are paramount, this is their family motto.
Shen Shilang naturally wouldn't tell his father that the money from his daughter's business was sponsoring the academy. He lied and said it was a wealthy businessman he knew who wanted to accumulate merit. Shen's father was so moved that he burst into tears and insisted that his third son tell him who it was so he could light a longevity lamp for the person.
One lie often requires a hundred more to cover it up, and it's easy to be exposed if you're not careful.
The third brother was also badly tricked by Shen Shixi. He should have firmly rejected his younger sister back then, but he was greedy and let her recruit him.
Since things had come to this, he had no choice but to continue lying, "Father, how much salary do you get in a year? I'm just a laborer outside now, I don't earn much money, and I even have to light a longevity lamp, the lamp oil is free, right?"
"We don't even have oil to eat ourselves, and we have to rely on my younger sister for help. What's the point of lighting a lamp? They need your lamp; isn't that a waste?"
The key question is, can he reveal this person's name?
If her father knew that his younger sister also ran a brothel, he would be furious!
If the Emperor finds out, will he give the Shen family a way out?
With my younger sister in the palace, my father can no longer control her. So, how can he, the one who does all the work, possibly survive?
If there's anyone in the world who most longs for their little sister to enter the palace, it's undoubtedly their third brother. Back then, he was constantly worried that his little sister might lose control and end up living in a brothel.
Mr. Shen acted on impulse, "Yes, hey, what a good person! There are still more good people than bad in this world!"
The third brother's lips twitched. A good person?
He couldn't help but feel sorry for his father!
Shen Shixi was unaware of all this. Feeling restless, she went to look at the roses.
Rose has recently developed a strong interest in a royal horse and often tries to climb on it. The people at the Imperial Horse Stables are terrified. If the donkey dies, the Emperor will be furious, and they will have no chance of survival.
But this was Consort Chen's donkey, and they dared not offend it, so they gave Rose a luxurious private room for the donkey, keeping it far away from the horses.