The Emperor, seeing the other party's tearful distress, couldn't help but feel a lump in his throat. The two most important women in his life were none other than the Empress and Consort Ru, who stood before him. The Empress and he had shared a sweet period in their youth, a time that could be described as deep marital affection. He had never expected to reach this point. After marrying the Empress, he had settled his mind, never imagining that this foolish woman would wait for him.
No one could persuade her to marry anyone else; she insisted on waiting for him, stating that if he didn't marry her in this life, she would remain single forever. Although he was in a difficult position then, he was touched. Later, as he slowly prospered, he fulfilled his promise and brought her into his household. He felt he had already wronged her by not making her the main wife in this life. Now, in his old age, his son had turned out this way.
The Third Prince was the happiest about the Second Prince's misfortune. He lived in constant fear that the Emperor would eventually recall the Second Prince's good qualities and cherish him once more, rendering all his efforts in vain. With the Second Prince in his current state, he was forever barred from the throne. Hadn't all those who once supported the Second Prince now flocked to his side?
He understood that all of this was inseparable from Wu Caiwei. He had also inquired about the situation at the time, unaware of how she had orchestrated it, only knowing that the Emperor had no suspicions whatsoever towards her. However, the Empress knew about the matter and understood that Wu Caiwei was his confidante. She worried about when Wu Caiwei would expose her. Yes, he considered the Empress a ticking time bomb, certain to reveal everything at some point. Although she was also involved, she no longer cared. With only her left in the palace, her position was unshakeable as long as she didn't make any major mistakes.
In the past few days, the villagers had been looking at the village chief with envy. No one expected Li Shengxu, who had just returned, to know such a wealthy woman. It was sheer luck that someone was willing to contribute money and effort to help the village chief build his house.
The house's layout was peculiar. In the surrounding ten miles, aside from the capital, such a structure had never been seen elsewhere. With its pavilions and towers, one might mistake it for a garden built by a noble family.
Whenever he had time, the village chief enjoyed strolling around the house he was about to move into. Although the house had only just had its foundation laid and was not yet built, its general outline was visible. To think that he would live in a new house in his old age, all thanks to his children's filial piety. Before even entering the house, he had been invited. When he tried to stop them from building, the other party directly stated that the land had been bought and the money paid. Refusing to build would mean a loss, so he reluctantly agreed. Such a large garden for just the two of them, even with them added, was too much. He heard Wu Caiwei was also planning to buy some servants, implying he would live like a lord. The thought alone made him overjoyed.
What made him speechless was that Li Shengxu even accompanied him to supervise the house's progress, completely living off the woman's generosity. Any other woman would have turned away long ago. But this Wu Caiwei, for reasons unknown, kept visiting their home, and there would be no turning back for her now. However, he believed that despite Li Shengxu's disappearance for so many years, his intentions were good. Hadn't he been filial to them since his return? And he and his wife were not meddlesome people. As long as she didn't mind their poverty, they should be able to live together.
Wu Caiwei and Li Shengxu had been strolling around the village affectionately for the past period. In reality, the two had secretly dispatched many people to investigate Li Shengxu's true identity, and they had not forgotten to keep abreast of the Second Prince's latest developments.
He remembered how he had imprisoned Li Shengxu in the underground secret chamber, enduring countless hardships. To let him die just like that felt somewhat unwilling. The current situation was perfect. He could administer more medicine to him another day, letting him suffer even more, which would be even more ideal.
However, the Empress likely lacked the patience. If he guessed correctly, she was now searching for him all over the city. But he couldn't appear before the Emperor now; he had successfully made him forget him. If he reappeared before him, it might attract the Emperor's attention. He couldn't withstand scrutiny and needed to avoid the spotlight.
Although the Empress was surrounded by the Emperor's men, she also had her own secret channels for transmitting messages. She wanted to contact Wu Caiwei to see what her next plan was. But no matter how she searched, she couldn't find her. She secretly sent people to contact the Third Prince, but he feigned ignorance. This made her indignant, feeling the coldness of human relationships. While she was still in her position, everyone had started to be perfunctory. She couldn't help but burst into tears. Su Dan Novel Network.
Little did she know that the Third Prince was also searching for Wu Caiwei everywhere. However, every time he inquired, Lu Zi claimed to not know where she had gone.
In reality, he genuinely didn't know. That night, he and his master had gone to catch a thief in the middle of the night. He had expected the thief to be highly skilled, as so many people couldn't catch him. Unexpectedly, when Lu Zi personally took action, the opponent couldn't withstand even a few moves.
It was then that he realized he might truly be a martial arts master, and he felt a surge of joy, believing he had found a treasure in finding such a good master. Consequently, he worked even harder, which gave his master more time to go out. He hadn't seen her for some time and didn't know what she was busy with.
After a period of investigation, Wu Caiwei had indeed obtained some information. It was said that about twenty years ago, a change had occurred. The Third Prince's birth mother, Consort Li, had a sister who entered the palace as a concubine and was deeply favored by the then Emperor. Unfortunately, she died of excessive bleeding during childbirth, and gave birth to a monster, which became a taboo subject in the palace.
The timing matched. All they needed was confirmation. They began their investigation from the Third Prince's maternal family, given their strong resemblance, which certainly implied a connection. Twenty years ago, the current Emperor did not reside in the capital, so it couldn't be his child. It was highly likely to be the child of Consort Li's sister.
Li Shengxu's mother was of legitimate birth, which allowed her to enter the palace. The Third Prince's birth mother, however, was of concubine status. Seeing the rapid rise of the Li family back then, and the Emperor's desire to win them over, they struck a deal and sent Consort Li into his harem as a concubine.
Although she was a concubine, due to her powerful maternal family, no one dared to slight her.
However, Consort Li was somewhat dissatisfied at the time, feeling the vast difference between her and her sister. In her youth, she inadvertently let her emotions show, incurring the Emperor's displeasure. As a result, for so many years, the Third Prince had not held a prominent position in the Emperor's eyes. If not for the successive downfall of the Crown Prince and the Second Prince this time, it would never have been his turn.