In Xuanyang Palace, there spread a strange deathly silence.

After listening to the Crown Prince’s words, the emperor’s brows lifted slightly, his smile becoming exceedingly patient, the look in his eyes as he watched the Crown Prince like one looking at a wretch who could not understand human speech.

“Only a few days into your marriage and you take concubines, two at that—have you ever considered the feelings of your principal wife?” the emperor asked with great curiosity.

He was curious about many things, for instance the intimacy on the desk between the Crown Prince and the Crown Princess on the second day after their marriage—though restrained, it carried a rare sincerity. If not for that, the emperor would not have favored a political marriage for no reason.

A young couple—true feelings were rare. The emperor had missed it once, and did not wish his son to make the same mistake again.

A man being affectionate was not a fault, but that did not mean he should disregard the Crown Princess’s dignity.

Seeing the two of them now, could it be that all those bits of sincerity before were false, and that his old eyes had truly grown dim?

For the first time, the emperor began to doubt his own judgment of people.

“Cousin Xinyi and I grew up together since childhood; naturally I am unwilling to treat her poorly,” the Crown Prince casually glanced at the quietly standing Lin Yuanjin beside him, smiling indifferently, “and the eldest daughter of the Lin family is also the Crown Princess’s elder sister. Presumably the Crown Princess would not wish to treat her elder sister poorly either.”

Lin Yuanjin parted her lips, her throat dry, her gaze cold, quietly looking at the Crown Prince before her. His features were handsome, his figure upright like a pine, his whole being exuding luxury and nobility, truly a dragon’s bearing and phoenix’s appearance.

Clearly, both his looks and figure were exactly the same, yet she felt they were entirely different.

What had she been expecting just now, when she saw the Crown Prince enter the hall?

Lin Yuanjin lowered her eyes, a trace of disappointment between her brows, saying nothing, acting as if she did not exist.

“Good, good!” the emperor repeated “good” several times. There was no longer any concealment of joy or anger; his fury burst plainly from his eyes, hot blood rushing straight to his head as he spoke in thunderous rage, “What a perfect arrangement!”

The empress’s face instantly turned ashen; she staggered back a step, one hand pressed to her forehead, the other holding onto the palace matron beside her, as if she might faint, yet forcing herself not to collapse.

The emperor was furious, the look in his eyes as he watched the Crown Prince filled with vicious reproach.

What he hated most was not that this matter had caused the Crown Princess grievance, but that the Crown Prince was not foolish, yet still behaved so absurdly, acting in concert with his maternal clan, the Cui family, disregarding the position of Crown Prince and the imperial authority of the Zhou family!

Among so many noble ladies in the capital, why had the emperor chosen, of all people, the Lin family’s legitimate second daughter—one with little scheming mind, obedient and compliant—as Crown Princess? Had the Crown Prince already forgotten?

Now, only a few days after marriage, the Crown Prince wished to bring a daughter of the Cui family into the household as a secondary consort. If the emperor had not designated Lin Yuanjin as Crown Princess, would not that Cui family girl have entered directly as the principal wife?!

The Crown Prince showed not the slightest understanding of his painstaking intentions as a father, insisting on his own way, disregarding the greater situation—truly a great disappointment!

“I had thought that after committing such an ugly deed, you would feel ashamed, compensate the Crown Princess more, and in the future conduct yourself with restraint and discipline,” the emperor stood up, as if overcome with anger, pointing at the Crown Prince without the slightest restraint as he scolded, “yet judging by your words and actions today, not only do you show no intention of correcting yourself, you do not even know where you have gone wrong!”

The Crown Prince was stunned, clearly not expecting the emperor’s fury to be like heavenly fire crashing down, fierce and overwhelming.

“With such corrupt conduct, you truly disappoint me!” The emperor’s anger came too quickly, his speech rapid, not giving the Crown Prince time to think it through, immediately followed by an indignant shout, “Men, bring the family rod!”

Only under the rod could a filial son be made—he must make this Crown Prince, whose mind was clouded like by pig’s fat, come to his senses!

Eunuch Li sighed repeatedly, saying “Your Majesty, please calm your anger,” while giving a signal to the young eunuch beside him to present the Dragon-Tiger rod that had already been brought from the study.

The Dragon-Tiger rod was entirely golden, thick enough for an adult to grip with one hand, engraved with lifelike patterns of auspicious dragons playing with tigers, imposing when swung.

“Rebellious son!” The emperor held the Dragon-Tiger rod, striding forward, striking directly at the Crown Prince.

“Your Majesty!” The empress panicked at once, instantly recalling how the emperor had been when he was still a prince leading troops in battle. Her face turned pale as she hurried forward anxiously, “You must not, you must not!”

Her Fuyi, even though proficient in the six arts, unable to fight back, already weak from illness—how could he withstand a furious beating from the emperor in his rage?

Had she known it would be like this, she should not have let him come today—letting the substitute come would have been better!

If today the emperor truly beat the Crown Prince in public, the empress did not even dare to imagine how, after today, she would face the others in the harem, and where the dignity of the Crown Prince and the Cui family would remain?!

“If he is so ignorant of propriety today, is it not the result of your daily indulgence?!” The emperor showed not the slightest courtesy, scolding with brows raised in fury, “Stand aside! I do not even pursue your faults as a mother, but today I must make him feel pain in his flesh so he can properly come to his senses!”

The way he said it, it was as if he had already been exceedingly lenient?!

The empress’s vision went dark; she had never expected that after living a lifetime in nobility, such an undignified physical struggle could occur in the palace.

She cursed inwardly—if her Fuyi was good, it was because he resembled his father and carried imperial bearing; if he was not, then it was because of her indulgence. Yet ordinarily, she had never seen this father put in much effort or patience in teaching him!

Seeing that she was about to be pulled aside by the emperor, the empress held on and blocked him, her voice choked, “Your Majesty!”

“Whatever it is, speak after the beating.” The emperor spoke rapidly, without the slightest softness, striking backward at the Crown Prince like an eagle snatching a chick.

The Crown Prince clearly knew his answer had not pleased the emperor, but before he could figure out the emperor’s true intention, he already knew that the empress should not be blocking him at this moment—yet he obviously did not have time to pull her away.

Those involved were blind; the empress, in her desperation, was grasping at straws. The emperor was currently in a fit of anger— the more she tried to stop him, the more it would provoke his contrary nature, and the more impossible it would be to restrain him.

“Fuyi has been diligent in his studies all these years—you have seen it with your own eyes. When has he ever made any grave mistake?” the empress refused to yield, speaking stubbornly, “Today he merely thought of old affection, wishing to give his childhood sweetheart the dignity of a secondary consort. It is nothing more than deep-rooted feelings—how can that be considered a great fault?”

“How could it warrant such a severe beating from you?!”

“‘Deep-rooted feelings’?!” The emperor’s eyes widened; he had never expected to hear such words from the empress.

It was simply nonsense!

What kind of deep-rooted feelings?

For whom were the Crown Prince’s feelings deep-rooted? For Cui Xinyi, or for the Cui family?

The emperor rebuked angrily, “Fine, he has deep-rooted feelings, and then in the middle of the night he was intercepted by the Lin family’s eldest daughter—he does not even know what propriety is anymore!”

The empress choked, her confidence faltering a little, “A man being affectionate is also common…”

Was the emperor himself not the same?!

She did not say it aloud, but after years as emperor and empress, the emperor immediately read this meaning in her eyes. His anger grew even stronger, lumping himself together with the Crown Prince, “I bestowed upon him a Crown Princess, and this is how he disgraces her!”

The empress suddenly felt that the crux still lay with the Crown Princess. While inwardly cursing the emperor for once again indulging in self-satisfied remembrance of the former empress, she cast a meaningful glance at Lin Yuanjin, who stood to the side as if at a loss.

Lin Yuanjin had never seen such a scene.

She wanted to step forward to stop them—fan the flames a little, or calm them—but Nanny Zhang held her tightly, as if afraid her frail body would be caught in the crossfire.

Lin Yuanjin was probably the most enthusiastic supporter of the emperor in the entire palace. It would be best if he could thoroughly beat the Crown Prince, beat him until he could no longer rise, settling everything once and for all—then she would not have to worry about matters of the bedchamber every day.

“Father Emperor, please quell your anger. Your son’s wife has never blamed His Highness.” Lin Yuanjin glanced at Nanny Zhang, whose face was full of urging, and hurriedly yet earnestly looked at the emperor, “His Highness the Crown Prince has never held any intention of slighting me; everything is due to my own negligence. If there is blame, let it fall on me!”

When she entered the palace, it had been under Nanny Zhang’s guidance, to plead guilty on behalf of the Lin family—not to come and lodge a complaint.

“Look at you, hiding behind two women—what kind of behavior is that!” The emperor grew angrier the more he listened, both resentful of the Crown Prince’s failure and fond of Lin Yuanjin, “What negligence could you have? Did you teach your elder sister? If someone else’s legs walk, can you cut them off?!”

Lin Yuanjin stood there at a loss.

The Crown Prince glanced at Lin Yuanjin, who appeared somewhat bewildered. Though he felt that if she had not entered the palace, things would not have become so ugly, she most likely had not expected this turn either—it was probably that nanny beside her who had deliberately guided it.

But at present, with mother and son in an awkward position, Lin Yuanjin could not escape responsibility. It could only be settled later.

“Last night was your son’s fault, but your son was also deceived by others.” The Crown Prince reacted swiftly, kneeling down to admit his mistake, looking ready to be beaten or scolded, just short of breaking into tears, “If not for the Lin family’s eldest daughter claiming that the Crown Princess was weak and had already retired to rest, your son would not have gone elsewhere halfway to take shelter from the rain!”

He spoke convincingly, as if it had all been out of consideration for the Crown Princess.

Unfortunately, the emperor did not buy this at all. He sneered, “Are you trying to fool me? Taking shelter from the rain all the way to the bed?”

The Crown Prince’s expression stiffened.

His intention had been to drag this matter out and eventually let it pass lightly, but he had not expected that the Crown Princess would turn around and bring it straight before the emperor.

“Pa!” This time, the rod landed solidly on the Crown Prince’s back, striking him until his face darkened and sweat broke out instantly.

“Your Majesty, you must not!” The empress, seeing the rod strike the Crown Prince, felt the pain in her own heart; her eyes filled with tears at once, “If Your Majesty must beat someone, then beat this concubine—it is all this concubine’s fault.”

Had she known, she would not have argued that one sentence at all. She would have just let Xinyi be made a minor consort, and at worst plan things slowly in the future—Lin Yuanjin was not any formidable person.

Now it was like drawing water with a bamboo basket—nothing gained, and instead a loss piled on.

“When I was obstinate in the past, the late emperor also disciplined me with family law like this.” The emperor was unmoved, snorting coldly, “If I could endure it then, why can he not endure it?”

Truly, the empress spoke one sentence and the emperor countered one sentence, each line leaving her speechless, while his hand never paused. The heavy, dull thuds struck the Crown Prince, beating him until his face turned pale-green and his whole body trembled.

The emperor did not know, the empress did not know the details either, but Lin Yuanjin knew— not only had the Crown Prince just taken a potent aphrodisiac, he had also exerted himself all night. His body must be severely depleted; he absolutely could not withstand a beating from the emperor.

Inability in the bedchamber would be a small issue; if he truly vomited blood and fell ill on the spot, then yesterday’s banquet would become the crime of deceiving the sovereign.

She needed to protect someone.

“Father Emperor, His Highness already knows he was wrong.” Lin Yuanjin immediately knelt at the Crown Prince’s side, her eyes glistening, forcing a gentle expression, speaking with utmost sincerity, “Your son’s wife has never been as capable as my elder sister since childhood, much less compared to the noble ladies of the Cui family. That I can marry His Highness is already a blessing bestowed by Heaven. His Highness, considering my status, only wished to grant the two of them the position of secondary consort.”

“I ask Father Emperor for leniency. His Highness is far from Your Majesty’s far-sightedness; in the future he will simply study diligently. If the Crown Prince’s noble body is harmed, then it will be this daughter-in-law’s fault for entering the palace to plead guilt.”

Her words were earnest, placing all the blame onto herself.

Seeing the Crown Prince pale and sweating, the emperor felt him even more detestable. He threw the Dragon-Tiger rod to the ground, then delivered a fierce kick to the Crown Prince’s chest, sending him to the floor. Without a trace of a smile, he left behind one sentence—“The Crown Princess is intelligent and sensible, thorough in her conduct. As for the matter of the Crown Prince taking concubines, it will be postponed”—and flicked his sleeve as he turned to leave.

The Crown Prince staggered forward weakly, and chaos broke out in the hall.

“Fuyi!” “Your Highness.”

The empress slapped Lin Yuanjin’s hand away with a “pa,” not sparing her even a glance, only supporting the Crown Prince with heartache, scolding the people beside her, “Chief Physician—summon the Director here at once!”

The eunuchs hurried forward, helping the sweating Crown Prince onto a soft chair.

They crowded around him, just enough to isolate Lin Yuanjin outside the circle.

Nanny Zhang frowned, looking at Lin Yuanjin, who was clearly being vented upon, and said with concern, “Your Highness has been wronged. Would you like some tea?”

“No need.” Lin Yuanjin smiled as if she did not mind, speaking softly, “As long as His Highness is unharmed, that is enough.” Having said that, she slowly walked toward the outside of the hall, as if she only wanted some air.

The farther she walked, the quieter the noise in the hall became.

“Nanny, did I do something wrong?” Lin Yuanjin asked softly.

“Your Highness only did what was within your duty—how can there be right or wrong?” Nanny Zhang immediately said, afraid Lin Yuanjin might wander into a dead end, “His Majesty has a sense of measure, the Crown Prince has always been strong and healthy since childhood, and Her Majesty the Empress is only anxious out of a mother’s love—it is nothing serious.”

Lin Yuanjin lowered her eyes guiltily, her raven-feather lashes concealing the emotion in her gaze.

Just now before the emperor, she feared something might truly happen to the Crown Prince; now that the emperor had left, she instead hoped that something would happen to him.

“But the Crown Prince’s reputation…”

The news could not be concealed, all the more so for a matter as grave as the emperor caning the Crown Prince—most likely, in the blink of an eye, the entire palace would know.

Forget it, let it be.

The sky dimmed slightly; it was already late. The imperial palace, already imposing, seemed even more somber.

A young woman walked out from the corner of Xuanyang Palace. Seeing that only a nanny stood beside Lin Yuanjin, she quickened her steps, came before her, and bowed respectfully. “This subject, Cui Xinyi, greets Her Highness the Crown Princess.”

Cui Xinyi seemed to have just come out from a side hall, a trace of worry still lingering on her face.

Lin Yuanjin turned her head, first startled, not having expected Cui Xinyi to also be in Xuanyang Palace, but quickly understanding. She raised a faint smile and said, “I happen to have something to say to you.”

Cui Xinyi was taken aback. “Your Highness, please speak.”

“I do not wish for you to marry the Crown Prince,” Lin Yuanjin said seriously.