The peerless and dark princess

Because Muruohan had given birth to a son, even Empress Meng Yujiao became less picky about her and even asked Guan Yilian, the prince's principal wife, not to neglect Mu and Muruohan. Because Muruohan gave birth to the eldest grandson of the emperor, the first male offspring of Emperor Chen Yan's generation, Chen Yunfeng was able to easily promote Muruohan to a concubine.

Because of Mu Ruohan's relationship, Mu Heng treated Shen Xinyue a little better, and fortunately he did not neglect his wife Qiao Yan.

Mu Ruohan was extremely popular for a while, and even the stain of giving birth to a child before she reached the age of 15 was drowned out. Of course, there were a few old-fashioned ministers who mentioned it, but they were retorted by the followers of the second prince Chen Yunfeng's faction as soon as possible.

Mu Wange remained in Tingxue Garden, ignoring the situation. She didn't want to touch either Mu Ruohan or the entire Shangshu Mansion just yet. After all, Mu Haolin was still young, and Mu Yuqi had only just caught Mu Heng's eye. If it weren't for wanting to give Mu Heng an advantage, the Shangshu Mansion would have ceased to exist long ago. As for Mu Heng, he remained complacent, believing that the Shangshu Mansion's connection with Mu Ruohan and Chen Yunfeng, coupled with his status as Crown Prince Chen Yunjie's betrothal partner, meant his position as a follower of the emperor was already secured. Little did he know that neither side took him seriously. While Chen Yunfeng had given Mu Heng face because of Mu Ruohan, he had Queen Meng Yujiao and advisors like the Shangguan family behind him. How could he possibly be interested in Mu Heng, a man who had everything his way? Did he really think everyone was a fool?

The Prince of Yan's Mansion and Zuo Ci had quietly arranged for several people to enter the court, and the replacement of those inconspicuous civil and military officials went unnoticed by the others. Admittedly, there were those who wanted to notice these changes, but the chaotic atmosphere in the court prevented these loyalists from expressing their opinions. With the Prince of Yan's Mansion obfuscating the public, they naturally allowed it to happen.

Chu Moxuan had long since disappeared from the public eye in the capital, and the Prince of Yan's Mansion was planning to bring her back from the border. For over six months, a young woman had been away from home, even under the care of Chu Lianyao's master, and he still missed her. Fortunately, Zuo Yunxin's adoptive parents were by her side, along with Zuo Yunxin's company, otherwise they would have planned to bring her back long ago.

Guan Yilian was vomiting blood in her heart. She married into the second prince's mansion because Chen Yunfeng was the legitimate son of the queen. Although the current queen was named after the death of the previous queen, she was still a legitimate son. Although Chen Yunjie was made the crown prince early on, he was neither a legitimate son nor the eldest son. Therefore, not all the ministers submitted to Chen Yunjie as the crown prince. It should be said that this crown prince did not win the trust of the ministers. However, as the queen, the second prince Chen Yunfeng was naturally the object of choice for many ministers. After all, he was the son of the current queen and had the support of the Meng family. It is said that no one who sits firmly on the throne of the emperor has a bloody road. As long as the dust has not settled, everything is possible.

No one paid any attention to Guan Yilian's inner plans, while Muruohan, the eldest grandson's mother, was brimming with pride. Although she had lost face previously, this incident was enough to erase the past. Furthermore, she could suppress Mu Wange and even Guan Yilian, the second prince's consort. Unbeknownst to her, the deceased Zhao Yaxin had given birth to a daughter, who lived a leisurely life in the simple mountain village.

On the surface, Dong Mingrui and Prince Heng Zuo Ci had no connection. Most people knew that the Dong family had originally sought to marry Zuo Ci's elder sister, but due to the fire, only Zuo Ci survived. The Dong family soon arranged for Dong Mingrui to marry Lu Qinghan, the adopted daughter of the Lu family. Privately, the Dong family had already used the opportunity to discuss the marriage with Chu Lixiao of the Prince of Yan's Palace to pass on the information Dong Mingrui had uncovered to the Prince of Yan's Palace and Zuo Ci. Many officials on the sidelines had a vague sense of the calm before the storm.

"Miss, the young master has been feeling much better these days."

When she was about to reach the age of 15, Zuo Ci asked Leng Qing to inform her of the discovery of the miracle doctor. After she reached the age of 15, Zuo Ci secretly brought the miracle doctor to the Prince of Yan's residence, as Prince Heng's residence was under surveillance. This shows how incredibly talented Zuo Ci was at the time. After all these years, Emperor Chen Yan still hadn't let him go.

"Well, then I'm relieved. By the way, you should also take care of Qingyu and make sure he knows what he should know. It would be bad if he is too ignorant..."

"I understand. I will naturally tell you more about the people around you, sir."

Mu Wange naturally asked Nanny Chen to take Qingyu to see more of the dark side. After all, the people around Mu Haolin in the future might not necessarily want them to be kind to them, so they had to experience the wickedness of human nature. If Mu Haolin was not still young, she would have wanted the little girl to understand more about these things.

"Yan Qing, it's time for you to take action. The Crown Prince is definitely furious right now, so you have to add fuel to the fire~"

When Chen Yunjie heard that the Second Prince Chen Yunfeng's concubine—oh, now the Prince's concubine—had given birth to the Emperor's eldest grandson, his face suddenly turned extremely grim. His position as Crown Prince, neither the eldest nor the legitimate heir, was already precarious, and now that the Prince of the Central Palace had given birth to the Emperor's eldest grandson, where was his place in the court? Although he was the Crown Prince, his kind father had never allowed him to participate in court decision-making, let alone to guide him. This simply told the court officials that he was only a Crown Prince, and whether he would eventually become Emperor was uncertain.

"Your Highness, there's no need to worry. As long as the Emperor doesn't change the imperial edict, even if the Second Prince becomes his successor in the future... he still won't be legitimate."

"But, but my father never gave me the opportunity to participate in the affairs of the court, and that person is..."

"Doesn't the Second Prince look down on Mu Wange? And Mu Wange is the granddaughter of Prince Yan's mansion..."

"So you let me take a concubine, the daughter of the Shangshu Mansion."

"No. I want you to start from the Shangshu Mansion. After all, I heard about how Mu Heng treated Mu Wange and his brother... As for Mu Heng, his concubine's daughter..."

Mu Heng still didn't know that because of Mu Ruohan, he had been completely abandoned by Chen Yunjie. He was currently dreaming of a grand future. After all, he and Crown Prince Chen Yunjie had already boarded the Crown Prince's ship when they were sent abroad, and because of Mu Ruohan, the concubine's daughter, he had also boarded the Second Prince's line. As long as he used it properly, no matter which side ascended to the top, he would be the most powerful official and could protect the Mu family's linchpin.

"Mingrui, you said Ah Ci said Xin'er is still alive?"

"Yes. Yun Xin is still alive, and A Ci will bring her back soon."

Lu Qinghan (Zuo Yunhan)'s eyes suddenly became moist. When she saw Zuo Ci, she thought that they were the only two siblings left. She didn't expect that her sister was also alive. Of course, she didn't dare to ask, for fear that mentioning it would make Zuo Ci sad.