She had no idea how many times she had suffered losses, both openly and secretly, at the hands of the Wei family over the years.
Now, she was finally at ease, and even the jewelry she usually didn't favor looked more pleasing to her eyes.
In the days that followed, the Eastern Capital was gripped by a climate of fear.
Prime Minister Bai and Senior Official Xu, working in tandem, leveraged all the clues and evidence seized by Feng Jinlin in Jinling City to arrest nineteen court officials with solid grounds.
Some were accused of corruption, others of treason. In short, not a single one was innocent.
After their imprisonment in the Ministry of Justice, they revealed even more.
Some even implicated the Wen family father and son in the buying and selling of official positions. Everyone prayed for this storm to pass quickly.
Meanwhile, the Emperor and the First Prince were discussing other matters.
"Are the imperial physicians' words true?"
"Your Majesty, rest assured. The Chief Imperial Physician has examined him thoroughly. Although the Imperial Uncle's condition has improved, it has depleted half of his lifespan. He will likely live for at most ten years. Moreover, that arrow from that day seems to have injured his heart again, and he will probably never be able to fight on the battlefield again."
The First Prince reported truthfully, and Emperor Qi's long-standing worries finally eased.
At most ten years, and he might not even outlive himself. It seemed that as long as he was properly monitored, there would be no need for direct action; he would simply die from his own injuries, saving him a lot of trouble.
"However, the outside world is unaware of this, and everyone is eager to send their daughters to the Imperial Uncle's princely manor."
Given the current situation, those people naturally sought powerful patrons.
With a group of women and children in Prime Minister Bai's household and even fewer in Senior Official Xu's, they had no choice but to target Prince Ding.
Emperor Qi was well aware of these matters and was contemplating whether to bestow a marriage upon Prince Ding to alleviate the current panic.
As for bestowing a marriage, who would be the most suitable candidate?
For a moment, he couldn't quite grasp the direction.
It was the First Prince who suddenly spoke.
"Your Majesty, this humble son believes that the third young lady of the Feng family would be a suitable candidate. Firstly, the Feng, Bai, and Xu families are already closely related. If this third young lady were to find a suitable husband, it might be disadvantageous to the court and the imperial family due to their immense influence. However, if she were to marry the Imperial Uncle, it would appear glorious on the surface, but in reality, it would sever their ties. I have heard that this third young lady is not in good health."
"Not in good health" was a statement with deep implications.
When both individuals were not in good health, having children would likely be difficult.
Emperor Qi glanced at the First Prince, clearly approving of his reasoning, and said with satisfaction in his eyes.
"Indeed, you are beginning to consider matters. A ruler's primary concern is to weigh the pros and cons. It is not good for any single family to be too dominant. This candidate is good, but let us consider further; there is no need to rush."
"Yes, this humble son thanks Your Majesty for your guidance."
He would keep the matter of the third young lady Feng in mind and have people investigate first.
While Emperor Qi was preoccupied with the matter of their marriage, the Li Prince's manor was filled with lamentations.
The title of Princess Consort of Princess Huairan had been revoked. If she were not a member of the imperial family, she would likely have become a sacrifice to Prince Li's manor, just like the secondary consorts and concubines.
Watching her former "sisters" being taken away one by one, Princess Huairan's heart was not at ease.
It wasn't that she felt sorry for them, but rather that she found it too regrettable.
She was so close, just one step away, and the empire would have belonged to the Ninth Prince!
Once he ascended the throne, and she successfully gave birth to a legitimate son, she would find an opportunity to collude with Duke Wei to eliminate him. Then, she would rightfully become the Empress Dowager, the most noble woman in the Great Jin!
Alas, all of this had turned into fleeting smoke.
A servant reported that their luggage had been packed. They had only been married for a few days and were already being sent back to the Yu Prince's manor.
Whether she was being looked down upon or not was a secondary concern. What put her in a difficult predicament now was the child in her womb.
When the Ninth Prince was still around, this was her bargaining chip.
But now, with the current situation, she didn't know if this child would bring fortune or disaster.
In Prince Ding's manor, Xiao Tingyi had been "ill" again these past few days.
As a result, the manor was once again filled with the bitter aroma of medicinal soup, causing headaches. Especially the imperial guards monitoring Prince Ding's manor, who were overwhelmed by the smell, leading to a gradual relaxation of their surveillance.
Xu Lin informed Prince Ding of Princess Huairan's pregnancy, and he was somewhat surprised.
"I thought he didn't care for women, but I didn't expect him to leave himself an heir."
Xiao Tingyi said casually, but Xu Lin didn't know how to handle the situation.
After a moment of thought, he said.
"Find an opportunity to let Emperor Qi know about this. After all, it is his grandchild. How he chooses to deal with it is his own affair; we will not worry about it. Instead, the private soldiers in Qianzhou have yet to be found. This is the direction you should continue to investigate."
"Yes!"
The private soldiers in Qianzhou were not fabricated by Prime Minister Bai or Emperor Qi's suspicion; they genuinely existed.
It was just that Duke Wei had hidden the matter too well, making it difficult even for Prince Ding's manor's secret guards to get a handle on it. Therefore, that was the potential leverage that could threaten the Great Jin.
He rubbed the jade pendant in his hand, which was becoming quite hot. Xu Lin knew that the Prince was deep in thought, so he quietly withdrew.
After arranging all the matters the Prince had just instructed, he looked at the imperial guards hidden in the trees outside with a hint of mockery.
To be secret guards in such a state was truly embarrassing!
He turned and arranged for people to intensify the smell of the medicine, preferably to the point of knocking a few of them unconscious.
With the First Prince's diligent care, Emperor Qi's illness quickly recovered. Thus, the decree to enfeoff the Crown Prince was finally decided upon at the end of August.
The First Prince's faction was elevated, but those who had been in the hall at the time were gradually sidelined.
For no other reason than their meager "loyalty," the First Prince couldn't be bothered with them.
The enfeoffment ceremony was scheduled for the end of September, giving them a month to prepare. But with the imperial decree issued, the court, the harem, and the common people alike had all changed their address, referring to him as His Highness the Crown Prince.
Similarly, Princess Ke had become the Crown Princess, and the women in the Crown Prince's inner court were all overjoyed.
They spent their days bribing the servants around the Crown Prince, hoping they would lead him to them. The primary goal was to regain his favor, but having a child or two was even more crucial.
Unfortunately, they were unaware that the Crown Prince's heart was currently captured by Wen Yuwei from the outer court.
At this moment, he was lying under the grapevines, whispering sweet nothings to Wen Yuwei.
"Yu'er, you are truly my lucky star. It was thanks to your reminder about the matter at Fahua Temple that my father agreed to announce the decree of enfeoffment so quickly!"