Lan Jin did not continue this meaningless topic: "Yesterday I brought back several tails. Seeing that I didn’t even show respect to the Marquis Mansion, they will only think I have someone backing me. Before figuring out my background, they won’t easily take action against me, but there will be no shortage of probing. Follow the tails back and see who they belong to."
Zhao Tang acknowledged, then asked, "Does the young lady intend to select people from among them to use?"
"There are plenty of people to use; there’s no need to specifically choose from among them." Lan Jin spun the empty cup in her hand: "No matter how much you understand about the capital from outside, there’s always a layer of separation. Now that we are here, we need to tear away that layer and integrate the information we’ve gathered on paper into my perception, so that when needed, it comes naturally without deliberate thought."
The young lady’s thinking is always right, and Zhao Tang never doubted this: "Rest assured, young lady. Wen Xi assigned fifty people to me. I will have someone tail everyone who comes to investigate the background of 'Feng Deng.'"
"The capital is not like other places; nobles are everywhere, and few of them have good tempers. Tell them to act cautiously to avoid unnecessary suffering."
Zhao Tang glanced at the young lady and muttered, "I think the young lady is hinting at me."
"Having self-awareness means there’s still hope."
"Young lady, I’m not that reckless!"
Lan Jin raised her eyes and, seeing her unhappy expression, decided not to tease her further: "The fact that I can tolerate it means it’s not too excessive. However, the capital is not as free as it was outside. You really do need to rein yourself in a bit, especially in matters of etiquette. Etiquette can be trivial or significant, minor or major. The nobles in the capital are most adept at finding faults in this area, causing trouble for others. They manage to discipline people while still holding the moral high ground, leaving others speechless. Let me be clear upfront: if anyone suffers because of this, they’ll have to endure it. I won’t step in to rescue them."
Lan Jin tapped the table: "Without rules, there is no order. Even you, I won’t intervene. This kind of suffering won’t be fatal; endure it."
Zhao Tang obediently agreed. Having followed the young lady for eight years, she knew that when the young lady spoke in this tone, it was best to remember every word firmly.
Just as she was about to playfully slip away to avoid further scolding, footsteps sounded on the stairs.
The two exchanged glances and waited quietly.
Aunt Chang hurried in: "Young lady, Wen Xi sent a message. The imperial physician has left the Deposed Crown Prince’s Mansion. The reason for entering the mansion was that the deposed Crown Princess is pregnant and ate something unclean, nearly losing the fetus."
Lan Jin stood up: "Is it safe now?"
"Yes, it’s safe."
Lan Jin sat back down, pinching the scar on her left pinky finger as she fell into deep thought.
This was the young lady’s habitual gesture when pondering matters. Aunt Chang went outside to guard the door, preventing anyone from disturbing her.
Lan Jin thought of many things in an instant.
The deposed Crown Prince has been under house arrest for three years. Three years is not a short time.
During these three years, apart from a period of self-abandonment at the beginning, there have been no further negative rumors about the deposed Crown Prince. For his followers, this is undoubtedly good news, but in the struggle for imperial power, it is not.
A deposed Crown Prince who is not bad but has no opportunity to do anything noteworthy is easily forgotten.
If others forget, it’s one thing, but if the emperor forgets, that’s a serious problem.
At this time, if the deposed Crown Princess is pregnant, and if it was intentional…
No, if it were intentional, she should have conceived earlier to be more advantageous for him.
Moreover, getting a woman pregnant was not difficult—if the Crown Princess could not conceive, he still had a secondary consort. If he wished, he could elevate the secondary consort, and as for concubines, he could take as many as he desired. Having a child was hardly an insurmountable challenge.
Whether the deposed Crown Prince had taken any concubines was unknown to the outside world. Such matters were too trivial for his rival, the Fourth Prince, to even mention. Yet, based on the information she had gathered, the deposed Crown Prince had not elevated any secondary consort in the past three years, indicating he had no intention of using a child to achieve any particular goal.
Now, the Crown Princess was pregnant and had nearly lost the child. Then…
Although the Crown Prince had been deposed, he remained the only legitimate son of the Late Empress.
The Emperor and the Late Empress had known each other since childhood, growing up together as close companions with a deep bond.
The maternal family of the Late Empress was also prudent and knew when to advance or retreat. They had staunchly supported the Emperor when he was still a prince and, in the first year of his reign, voluntarily surrendered their military authority to live as wealthy idlers—a rarity among imperial in-laws in history.
The Late Empress was not only beautiful but also an excellent empress. Even when there were instances of jealousy and rivalry, she never acted recklessly or took lives, maintaining fairness within the harem.
Even after Zhen Xianfei gained favor, the Emperor never neglected the Late Empress. In disputes within the harem, the Emperor always sided with the Late Empress.
In the harem, people tended to follow the prevailing winds, but during that time, the influence of Zhen Xianfei never overshadowed that of the Late Empress. As for whether it might have in the future, there was no opportunity to find out.
When the Crown Prince was eleven, the Late Empress passed away.
At that time, the bond between the Emperor and Empress had not yet faded. The Emperor’s grief was genuine—he personally kept vigil, suspended court for several days, and even took the Crown Prince under his wing, personally instructing him for three years.
During those three years, some memorials bore the Crown Prince’s handwriting in vermilion endorsements, and some decrees were issued in his name.
The Emperor’s dedication to the Crown Prince was known throughout the court, and the Crown Prince’s position was as solid as a rock.
The Emperor never appointed another empress or elevated anyone to the rank of Noble Consort, instead entrusting the management of the harem to Zhen Xianfei.
Unfortunately, even the deepest affections could not withstand the passage of time.
Even the most secure position as Crown Prince could not endure the relentless erosion of year after year.
From the age of eleven to twenty-three, incident after incident occurred. The Crown Prince withstood countless open and covert attacks but, three years ago, made a critical misstep and was deposed, placed under house arrest in the Crown Prince’s Mansion.
Over the years, the Emperor must have protected the Crown Prince on numerous occasions, especially during the years before the Crown Prince established his own residence and still lived in the palace. Without his own faction, and with his maternal grandfather’s family having relinquished power entirely and his uncle holding only a nominal position, the Crown Prince might not have survived under Zhen Xianfei’s influence without the Emperor’s protection.
Yet, an emperor is first a ruler and then a father.
Lan Jin had learned from her grandfather that the Emperor often thought of the Late Empress. Every year on the anniversary of her death, he would suspend court and spend the day alone, refusing to see anyone.
Over the years, she had verified that this remained true to this day.
She had also asked her three mentors whether the Emperor’s actions were merely a performance or a genuine expression of his love and respect for the Late Empress. If it were genuine, why would he depose the Crown Prince?
One statement from her third mentor had left a deep impression on her: "How do you know that house arrest is not a form of protection for the Crown Prince?"
She had kept these words firmly in mind, often comparing and analyzing them whenever she received news about the deposed Crown Prince, considering whether such a possibility existed.
Over the years, she truly began to think it might indeed be the case. However, the emperor's heart is difficult to fathom—she had no absolute certainty that it was so. She also feared that after three years, the emperor might feel the Fourth Prince was no worse than the deposed Crown Prince. As long as the deposed Crown Prince's life was preserved, everything else could be overlooked.
She even wondered whether the deposed Crown Prince, after causing a few disturbances back then and then ceasing, had also realized that the emperor was protecting him.
If so, were his actions over these years intentional?
Could it be that he was deliberately showing the emperor that even in adversity, he had not given up!