The Deposed Crown Prince had Three Lifelong Regrets - Chapter 35

Chapter 35

Zhu Lingwei grew up to be five years old. Her Imperial Father’s kindness was still abundant, but he rarely came to visit.

Her mother neither competed nor schemed, maintaining a flawless image of benevolence and harmony. It was as if nothing in the world could upset her.

And she did not avoid letting the young Zhu Lingwei perceive the dangers of the palace prematurely. When other consorts fought amongst themselves, she would intentionally or unintentionally take her daughter out for a stroll.

She didn’t merely leave the child to figure things out; whenever the child asked, she would analyze every scheme the people used, making it perfectly clear.

Consequently, Lingwei knew from a very young age that her mother had no intention of competing for favor but was intentionally grooming her to be a competent assistant.

She originally thought it was for her to marry well later, but at the age of six, despite being a girl, she was named Crown Prince, and her mother immediately ascended to the position of Empress.

From then on, she had access to more subjects: classics, history, poetry, and strategies for governing the state.

The newly established Crown Prince was not foolish, but neither was she exceptionally brilliant; her learning pace was quite average.

However, the teacher in the imperial academy was a globally renowned Confucian scholar. When she couldn’t remember profound or flowery poems, the teacher taught her essays like “Be a pioneer for the world” and “Promote new policies.”

Outside the palace, a Madam Zhao often came to visit, always bringing her only daughter, Lu Fengmian, who was famous in the capital even at a young age for her beauty and talent. Both were top-notch.

However, when it came to enchanting beauty, only the Zhu family could truly claim the term “Heaven-blessed.”

Initially, Zhu Lingwei only liked playing with a leather ball and snuggling in her mother’s arms. Now, she had one more major hobby: peeking around the corner of the wall, looking longingly at Lu Fengmian.

It was hard to guess if she liked or disliked her; she just watched from afar, and would hide when the person approached.

The night was hazy, and the lamplight was dim. The palace lanterns, lit one after another, resembled a long dragon.

Most of the time, Empress Zhu had to deal with the affairs of the six palaces. Although her attitude was mostly one of mediating disputes, the cumulative work was still busy.

It was as if nothing could fully tie her down. She merely listened to the affairs of the imperial court, casually regulated the inner palace, and raised her child in a relatively free-range manner.

Zhu Lingwei was silently reciting ancient poetry, her expression growing more solemn, clearly meaning something other than the poem.

After a long time, she said to her Imperial Mother, “Mother, I don’t like Sister Fengmian. Can she stop coming?”

“She is always followed by an adult who looks very much like her, like her adult self. That adult looks at no one else once she sees her. She follows me wherever I go. It’s very annoying.”

The Empress glanced sideways, smiling gently, not taking her words seriously.

“But her mother is your mother’s friend. Your mother spent a lot of effort back then to become friends with her.”

Zhu Lingwei nodded. The other party never disguised the manipulation within her human relationships. However, she was too young to understand. These words, if spoken to that only daughter of the Zhao family, might have a different effect.

The young Crown Prince thought that her Imperial Mother must truly like that lady to put in the effort to get close to her.

Lu Fengmian was one of the smartest students in the academy, ingrained with etiquette and unlike ordinary children who liked to play and cause mischief.

Because she was frequently praised, other children loved to follow her, just to incidentally get a few pieces of candy or a few words of praise.

Zhu Lingwei was different. She liked to immerse herself in her own world and naturally drew boundaries to the outside world. She clearly separated who was inside her circle and who was outside.

If that person hadn’t come to the palace so often, she wouldn’t have noticed her, let alone slowly included her in her own territory.

However, the person she was paying attention to was not the girl her age, but the adult.

In the human world, the flowers of April fade, but the peach blossoms in the mountain temple just begin to bloom.

In late spring, the Emperor took the entire court to Pearl Spring to escape the summer heat. By the spring well, the hills were green, the water clear, and a cool breeze wafted by.

Normally, the court was too busy for leisure trips out of the palace at this time, but a great victory on the frontier half a year ago pleased the Emperor, creating this opportunity.

Consorts of the fourth rank and above were all allowed to accompany the trip to admire the flowers.

Empress originally disdained to attend such events, but this time, she acted against her usual custom, putting on the air of the ‘Mother of the Nation’ and joining the entourage.

Pearl Spring was close to the temporary palace. The late Emperor, in his time, had built a large temple there to pray for an everlasting prosperous age. In the spring, the mountains were verdant.

After settling down, since there were few monks in the temple, it became a wonderful place to enjoy the spring view.

The Empress spent her days eating vegetarian food, reciting sutras, and copying Buddhist scriptures. Her clothes were simple, yet they still did not hide her delicate beauty.

Consort Yu was of the fourth rank, a Pin. She had only been promoted twice over the years and was now expecting her second child.

She had an indecisive look about her. She almost miscarried during her first pregnancy. Firstly, her rank was low and she lacked family support. Secondly, since Emperor Huijing had few descendants, the birth of an imperial child would have a huge impact.

If this fetus were successfully born, a boy would be called ‘Two Dragons Playing with a Pearl,’ and a girl would be ‘Double Dragon and Phoenix’ (a sign of good fortune).

The palace residents rested for a few days, chose a good time, and went out for a spring outing. Few people remained in the temple, with only Consort Yu and the Empress, along with three other consorts, staying behind.

The temple had many flowers, plants, fish, and insects, as well as plenty of cats and dogs. Zhu Lingwei often squatted outside, fiddling with them.

As dusk fell, crickets chirped endlessly.

Zhu Lingwei turned her head to look toward Consort Yu’s room, which startled the adult Lu Fengmian who had just appeared, thinking she had been discovered.

But the girl remained unperturbed, turning her attention back to stroking the kitten on the ground.

People gradually returned. The next day, when the nuns went to change the incense, a scream suddenly came from inside the room.

Consort Yu covered her belly and backed away continuously. Blood flowed down her thigh, soaking a large area of her clothing.

In less than half an incense stick’s time, the matter had already reached the Emperor.

Everyone in the temple was in danger. Several large bags of almond spices were dug out from beneath the Bodhi tree by the wall, along with a porcelain jar containing a cursed doll.

Consort Yu, lying in bed, wept profusely. The other consorts also cried, their faces stained with tears.

Late that night, a rare heavy rain fell, washing away all traces of the sin.

Since the cursed objects looked quite old, it was unlikely they had been buried in recent months. The matter was widely investigated but yielded no results and eventually had to be dropped.

Raindrops heavily pelted the paper windows, sounding like marbles dropping. Thunder rumbled, as if a thousand troops were galloping past.

Empress Zhu sat composed by the window. The red candle illuminated the window softly. Sipping a cup of misty green tea, she said to the Crown Prince:

“It was here that I met the Tanhua…”

The sound of rain and water blended together. The loudness made the smoky words sound even more vague and inaudible.

During the farce, Lu Fengmian analyzed the situation thoroughly: the Empress’s maternal family was now located in the Southwest, the strongest frontier.

Even with the Emperor’s favor for her, he needed to find a balance. Openly suppressing the Zhu family was impossible. Instead, he had to indulge Lingyi, waiting for her to make a mistake herself.

In a blink of an eye, she was back in the palace, gilded and magnificent.

Zhu Lingwei, wearing the bright yellow Crown Prince attire, walked glumly to her side. Just when Lu Fengmian thought they would pass each other, the girl suddenly looked up and asked, “Do you recognize me?”

Lu Fengmian was speechless, slightly stunned.

“It’s all fake. You should go back.”

“No one’s life is always smooth sailing. You and I are the same. You have to seek fairness and justice for your mother, and I have to settle the debts in this palace one by one.”

Her heart pounded non-stop, the pain like a meat grinder.

But no matter what she did, little Lingwei’s eyes remained vacant, numb, and listless. Like a statue, unresponsive to all earthly emotions.

“Hearsay.”

Water ripples spread around. A green color gradually emerged.

It’s all fake. It’s all what you’ve heard. What do you actually remember yourself?

I…

Voices faded into the distance. By the time the person reacted, she was already at the bottom of a lotus pond. Outside the pond were curved corridors and pleasure boats, a very disjointed scene.

The pond water was green and the flow was steady, like a man-made viewing lake dug by a wealthy family.

On the shore, a small, exquisitely delicate girl was peeking out from a boat, watched by an exasperated child her age behind her.

The lotus pods were fully open. The little girl, delighted, didn’t notice the person behind her and was suddenly pushed into the water.

Plop.

The person crashed into the water, sinking deeper the more she struggled. Her cheeks puffed out, and bubbles continuously rose.

Lu Fengmian found it amusing at the bottom of the water. Her swimming skills weren’t great, but this was her dream, so swimming was easy.

In a moment, she was at the same level as the girl, face-to-face.

Her hair drifted in the water. She finally recognized that this was probably her younger self.

Memories of the past flowed through her mind—joy, anger, sorrow, resentment, hatred, and foolishness—like a dying person’s life flashing before their eyes.

She and Zhu Lingwei couldn’t piece together a single happy childhood. Zhu Lingyi constantly tried to control the imperial court. After being defeated, she gave birth to the Imperial Daughter in the Cold Palace. Lingwei had to be adopted by the Eldest Princess and another favored consort.

As her maternal family in the Southwest gradually grew stronger, the Noble Consort was able to leave the Cold Palace. The fight for the position of Empress was another bloody path.

Young Zhu Lingwei, caught in the tides, sensed things but couldn’t understand or make decisions.

All talk of harmonious marriage and mutual respect was fake. Time had painted a façade of peace, and the palace secrets, passed down until now, had long deviated from the truth.