Chapter 344

Chapter 344: Gaining a Son Song Shulan had encountered nothing but setbacks lately—he could no longer even get through the gates of the Rong Commandery Prince Mansion. He had wanted to strike a deal with the Rong Commandery Prince Mansion, but Cui Lingrong was watching him closely, refusing to let him release Zhao Susu. He came once again to the Cui residence and met with Cui Lingrong. "Zhao Susu has been in Jing'an Hall for quite some time now. By all reason, no matter how great her sins, they should have been settled by now." "That really won't do. I'm someone who holds grudges and is petty-minded now—I just want Zhao Susu to continue suffering." Cui Lingrong had agreed to see Song Shulan today precisely to put pressure on him. "If you release her, I'll make sure the entire Bianjing knows about you and Zhao Susu's little affair." "Lingrong, why are you so stubborn?" Song Shulan was deeply puzzled. "The Emperor has no heir. The Rong Commandery Prince Mansion only looks troubled right now—no one can say what the future holds." Cui Lingrong countered, "Do you think the Emperor is that muddle-headed?" To pass over the sons of other imperial clansmen and insist on taking a son from the Rong Commandery Prince Mansion, whose reputation was already ruined? Cui Lingrong felt Song Shulan was still chasing pipe dreams. "What if? Everything has a 'what if.'" Song Shulan still wanted to negotiate with the Rong Commandery Prince Mansion. "Song Shulan, even if that 'what if' came to pass, given everything I've done now, it's more than enough for the Rong Commandery Prince Mansion to hate me for life. It's not as if I could release Zhao Susu now and the Rong Commandery Prince Mansion would let me off the hook." Cui Lingrong's mind was perfectly clear. "You should think about yourself instead of coming to me with all this nonsense." She paused, then added, "Song Shulan, just give up on your dreams of promotion and wealth. You're destined to be mediocre and useless for the rest of your life, because you simply don't have the boldness or the ability. After all... you're too spineless!" "You've gone too far! We were husband and wife once, after all. Does belittling me like this really make you feel good?" "It's quite satisfying, actually. Seeing you do poorly makes me happy." Cui Lingrong had said all she needed to say, and had her people throw Song Shulan out. Once again, Song Shulan was dumped at the doorstep. Qingshan sighed inwardly. Why couldn't the Marquis see it? The Madam had too much resentment stored up inside. Instead of lowering himself to appease her, the Marquis kept arguing with her. "Marquis, let's just head back for now." "Fine, let's go. Cui Lingrong thinks she's so capable now. But what I said wasn't wrong—the Emperor hasn't named an heir, so anyone could rise to power. And the Emperor has always looked after Prince Rong; there's still brotherly affection there. If not for that, the Rong Commandery Prince Mansion would have collapsed long ago." Song Shulan grumbled as he left. He was so frustrated. He was doing everything for everyone's good, yet Cui Lingrong simply refused to understand him. Even Yu-jie had people chase him away. Every single one of them, calling him incompetent and mediocre? The thing Song Shulan minded most in his entire life was being called mediocre. He was the eldest legitimate son of the Marquis's household—far more outstanding than his brothers. Since childhood, Song Shulan had believed that one day he would rise to great heights. His current predicament was only temporary; it wouldn't last forever. Even if the Rong Commandery Prince Mansion was a dead end, there were still other princes and imperial clansmen. Song Shulan schemed inwardly, thinking about how to find himself another patron. But what neither Song Shulan nor any of the princes could have anticipated was that the Emperor had gained a son. Not long after Song Shulan left the Cui residence, Zhuang Huaiming came to tell Cui Lingrong the news. "The Emperor has never given up on seeking an heir these past years—he just kept it tightly under wraps." Zhuang Huaiming was quite pleased. With the Emperor having an heir, the imperial clansmen wouldn't need to fight among themselves. "Apparently, even the Empress doesn't know about this." The Virtuous Consort who had given birth was originally just a low-ranking talent, the most inconspicuous person in the palace. She didn't even have the qualification to pay respects to the Empress. Combined with the fact that she stopped going out once pregnant, and that the Emperor's people were guarding her, she wasn't elevated to Virtuous Consort until after she delivered the prince. "The Emperor is even guarding against the Empress?" Cui Lingrong caught the key point. Zhuang Huaiming was a pure defender of imperial authority, always standing from the Emperor's perspective. "It took the Emperor great effort to have another heir, so naturally the fewer people who know, the better." No sooner had he finished speaking than Xie Yunting walked in from outside. "Lord Zhuang certainly knows how to talk. The Emperor has had consorts become pregnant before—some even gave birth—but the children just didn't survive. By all rights, any child born should belong to the Empress, but the Emperor is guarding against even her. That shows he doesn't trust the Empress." There must have been consorts harmed by the Empress before. "General Xie, it's best not to speak of matters without evidence." Zhuang Huaiming's face stiffened. "Without evidence doesn't mean we can't reason it out for ourselves." Xie Yunting smiled. "Lord Zhuang is too rigid. No wonder those old ministers don't like you. Oh, by the way, I just came from the palace—the Emperor has stripped Prince Gong of his title. Not a single male heir was spared, and the women have been exiled to Lingnan." "Prince Gong?" Cui Lingrong rarely encountered this prince, though he was someone who frequently moved in the Emperor's circles. "It's him. The Emperor didn't make a move before because he wanted the princes to keep each other in check. Now that the Emperor has a son, he naturally needs to clear obstacles for the prince. And Prince Gong is the most arrogant among the princes—he's been rallying quite a few court officials lately," Xie Yunting said. Cui Lingrong immediately understood—when one prince falls, a whole network of factions crumbles with him. Xie Yunting sighed. "Good thing you didn't agree to that marriage proposal from Prince Wu's household back then, Sister Cui. Those princes are all terrified now. Though Prince Rong is faring all right—he was just punished recently, so the Emperor won't move against him so soon. You could say his misfortune turned out to be a blessing." Zhuang Huaiming frowned deeply at this, but he never got along well with Xie Yunting anyway. Preoccupied with court affairs, he took his leave first. If the Emperor was clearing obstacles for his son, he would inevitably move against many people. And those people were deeply interconnected—striking at them could easily destabilize the very foundation of the dynasty. Zhuang Huaiming immediately went to the palace and urged the Emperor to think twice, advising that even if he must act, he should proceed gradually. Meanwhile, Xie Yunting continued chatting cheerfully with Cui Lingrong. "It's a good thing the Emperor has an heir. With the succession settled, the court will be stable. And since Consort De comes from a humble background, there's no need to worry about her relatives seizing power. The only thing is the Emperor is getting on in years—I just hope he lives another twenty years." Twenty years would be enough for a prince to grow into a capable man. But the Emperor was already past sixty, and no one could guarantee how many more years he had. Cui Lingrong dared not voice such disrespectful thoughts. This matter didn't affect her much anyway. But Xie Yunting, once seated, showed no sign of leaving—staying for another free meal as usual. A few days later, the Emperor issued an edict establishing the Crown Prince, completely dashing the other princes' hopes, and appointed Zhuang Huaiming as the Crown Prince's Grand Tutor. Overnight, the Zhuang family's status soared, and countless people came calling to curry favor. Even Song Shulan deliberately waited for Zhuang Huaiming several times, trying to get closer to him. Some even wanted to arrange a marriage with Zhuang Huaiming, offering their daughters to him. However, Zhuang Huaiming was truly difficult to approach. He shut his doors to all visitors, accepted not a single gift, and certainly never met anyone privately. He maintained his old habits—his only contacts were his fellow scholars and Cui Lingrong. Some people, unable to reach Zhuang Huaiming, tried to get close to Cui Lingrong instead. But she handled such matters with ease—whenever anyone brought up Zhuang Huaiming, she would only praise him without taking the bait. After several rounds of this, people came to realize that Cui Lingrong was too slippery to get a handle on. And so it went until the Crown Prince's full-month celebration, when the Emperor declared a general amnesty and decided to hold this year's autumn hunt on a grand scale. When Cui Lingrong heard the news about the autumn hunt, she immediately thought of Song Shulan. And so, for the first time since Xie Yunting had moved in next door, she went over to visit.