The prince loves me like his life, but I force him to rebel

The next morning.

Mao Shi.

A group of workers gathered at the side door of Duanmen.

To celebrate the Queen Mother's birthday, starting two months ago, workers would enter the palace every day to renovate Changyin Pavilion.

"Today two workers have their turn to take leave, so there are two fewer people than yesterday. Today there are only 38 people in total." The foreman handed over the list respectfully.

The guard glanced at it casually.

The workers were all wearing tattered work clothes, looking dusty and listless.

"That tall guy looks unfamiliar. Has he never worked here before?" The guard pointed at Shu Huaiyuan and asked the foreman.

"You have a really good eye!" The foreman pointed at the list in the guard's hand, "We are almost done with the renovation. Some jobs like painting require tall people, so we added a few tall people. I have already reported everything in advance. This person is... Zeng Aniu."

Shu Huaiyuan pretended to be an inexperienced person, lowered his eyes slightly and stared at his feet.

Fortunately, the guards did not investigate further and let the entire team in.

Gu Nianzhi was mixed in the team, struggling to carry the mixing bucket which was a bit heavy for her. Sima Yao saw this and without saying a word, reached out and picked up the mixing bucket.

The two of them didn't say a word, but they had a tacit understanding.

After entering Changyin Pavilion, everyone started to work. According to the usual practice, the eunuch in charge would come to conduct random inspections and verify the identities of the workers.

"Zhang Tiankun..."

"exist……"

"Zeng Aniu..."

"They went to relieve themselves." The foreman smiled and went forward, "Eunuch Li, I'm really sorry, Zeng Aniu, Zhang Ben, Song Cheng and Li Zhaoji all happened to go to relieve themselves. Look, the bucket is still here."

"How long have you been there?"

"I just went there, but I heard from the workers that they went out for a midnight snack last night and have a slight stomachache. I'm afraid we'll have to wait for a while..." The foreman swept his sleeves across a wooden rack: "Why don't you sit here and wait for a while..."

"It's so annoying. I'm not the only one in charge of your affairs. I have many other things to do. Who knows how long I have to wait?"

"There's really nothing I can do about it. This person has three urgent needs... Should I not go and urge him?"

"Why are you rushing me? How can you rush me when it comes to pooping and peeing?" Eunuch Li was too lazy to wait. "You are also an honest man. You have been working in the palace for so long and nothing has gone wrong. I will trust you this time and I will take it as something I have seen."

"I'm so sorry, I'll send you off..."

At this moment, the prince and his four companions had changed into guard uniforms and left Changyin Pavilion.

Inside the Qinzheng Hall, a group of ministers were discussing the matter of the Crown Prince.

"Your Majesty, the throne of the Eastern Palace is vacant and people's hearts are unstable. Since it is a fact that the crown prince died in Qiangyi, we must determine the new crown prince as soon as possible to avoid panic among the people..." The speaker was the Minister of Rites, who was once a disciple of the Queen's father and a staunch supporter of the Second Prince.

"Yes, Your Majesty, the news of the Crown Prince's death has spread among the people..."

"The Crown Prince died suddenly, and the people are worried that it will harm the country's destiny. Please, Your Majesty, decide on the Crown Prince as soon as possible..."

With the Minister of Rites taking the lead, the second prince's followers began to follow suit one by one.

The emperor said nothing.

He looked very haggard, with big dark circles under his cloudy eyes. It seemed that he did not sleep well last night.

"If we don't decide on a crown prince candidate, I'm afraid the rumors will spread even more..."

"I beg Your Majesty to make a decision as soon as possible..."

……

The serious court suddenly became noisy.

"Shut up!" The emperor finally couldn't help it. "I just lost my beloved son, and you ignored my grief, didn't try to find my missing third prince, didn't try to find the reason for the crown prince's death, and forced me to appoint another crown prince right away! What are you thinking?"

The emperor was angry and the court fell silent.

"I am the emperor, but I am also a father."

The prince's mother, Queen Chun, entered the palace when the emperor was the prince. She was in love with the young emperor and was the emperor's childhood sweetheart. She was also the only white moonlight in his heart. Even the third prince's mother, Concubine De, was able to enter the palace because she looked too much like the deceased queen.

Unfortunately, God will never allow two people in love to have a happy ending.

After Queen Chun gave birth to the prince, she and the emperor still had a good relationship. However, she became pregnant again several years later and died of bleeding during childbirth, and the fetus in her belly also died. Before she died, she held the emperor's hand and asked him to promise her that he would treat their only child well...

The emperor always kept that promise in mind, but now, he broke his promise to the former queen.

The eldest prince actually walked in front of him.

No one comforted him in his pain of losing his beloved son, no one mourned the crown prince with him, and everyone just kept nagging him to choose another crown prince.

It seemed that the prince had disappeared from everyone's heart.

And they were eager to erase the trace of the prince in the emperor's heart.

After a moment of silence, someone finally spoke.

This time, it was Empress Xian’s father, General Bai Feng of Pingxi.

Logically speaking, if the Emperor were to appoint a new Crown Prince, the Second Prince would be the only candidate. As the Second Prince's grandfather, he shouldn't have shown up, so he said nothing at first. But seeing the Emperor's current mood, he had to speak up.

The night is long and dreams are many. He must decide this matter for the Second Prince in the court today.

"Your Majesty values ​​friendship and loyalty, and his love for his children is truly touching. However, Your Majesty is indeed the father of the Crown Prince, but who among the people of the world is not your subject? The border is in constant turmoil right now. If you decide on the position of Crown Prince as soon as possible, and bring Princess Qiangyi to Dasheng, the people of the border can suffer less from the war."

"Yes, Your Majesty, the Crown Prince's death is a reality. Don't let this accident affect the relationship between Qiangyi and Dasheng..."

"If the Crown Prince had not insisted on leaving the soldiers who were welcoming the bride behind and went there on his own, perhaps this tragedy would not have happened..."

Seeing that everyone's emotions were once again aroused, Bai Feng lost no time in shouting, "The dead cannot be resurrected, Your Majesty!!!"

Everyone followed his lead and said in unison: "The dead cannot be resurrected, Your Majesty!"

Outside the palace gate, the Queen Mother's loud voice was heard: "Who is saying that my grandson is dead?"

Everyone turned to the palace gate. The Queen Mother, along with a group of eunuchs, palace maids and several guards, were standing at the entrance of the Qinzheng Hall.

"Greetings to the Queen Mother..." Everyone knelt down, but they were wondering in their hearts, why is the Queen Mother here?

"Greetings, mother." The emperor stepped down from the dragon throne and supported the queen mother. "Mother, why are you here?"

"If I don't come soon, my grandson will really be cursed to death by these people!"

The Queen Mother looked around angrily.

After hearing the Queen Mother's words, those who had previously urged the rapid establishment of a new crown prince felt somewhat guilty.

Only General Bai Feng of Pingxi remained tough.

"Queen Dowager, I know you have always loved the Crown Prince, but the Crown Prince was burned alive in Qiangyi State. This is a fact. It is not as you misunderstood that we are here to curse..."

"Burned alive?" The Queen Mother's eyes suddenly turned and looked straight at Bai Feng: "General Lin, you are so sure, as if you saw it with your own eyes. Could it be that the fire was set by your people?"