Who is spreading rumors that my filial piety towards them has changed?

The Crown Prince's Eastern Palace.

The guards patrolled as usual, the palace maids stood watch outside the palace gates, the zithers played in harmony inside, and the dancers' graceful figures swayed and undulated, creating an elegant scene.

But if you walk up to these guards, palace maids and dancers, you will find that their eyes are lifeless, their smiles are stiff, and upon closer inspection, they are even a little frightening.

They are not dead, but their minds have been sealed.

The outside world would only think that the Crown Prince enjoyed the music and dance all night, unaware that a major event was being secretly planned inside the palace.

"Envoy, are you certain that this operation will be foolproof? If there is any mishap, we will both be doomed!" said the man dressed in the prince's robes.

With his back to the messenger, he stared greedily at a portrait of a woman hanging on the wall—a treasonous image.

The woman in the painting is the current empress!

"Of course, Your Highness, do you like this precious painting that I have gifted you?" said the black-robed envoy wearing a ghostly smile mask.

Its bizarre appearance was accompanied by a faint, round halo of condensed extreme yang energy behind it, resembling a Buddha's halo.

At first glance, he seemed like a saint in the world.

"I love it, I love it so much! This saves me the trouble of painstakingly training assassins to practice painting." The prince reached out and stroked the woman's face in the painting.

Although he was only touching the painting, he felt as if he were touching a real person, and that he would soon be able to touch the real person and possess this most beautiful woman in the world.

Even if she is his own mother!

Copying the empress's portrait and keeping it for private viewing is a capital offense, which would cost him his status as crown prince. Yet, this is the woman he has been longing for day and night.

They were worried about leaking secrets if they hired ordinary painters, so they sent their own henchmen to learn painting, but unfortunately, these self-taught artists couldn't capture the essence of the art.

The gift from this holy messenger was quite thoughtful; it allowed the artist to secretly record a woman's expression and demeanor while viewing the painting simply by letting her glance at it.

It's not some powerful weapon or rare treasure, but the value of a gift lies in its sentiment.

This gift,

The Crown Prince liked it very much!

He composed himself, carefully put away the Empress's painting, and returned to business with the messenger:

"Father has fallen ill, which is a strange thing. How could he fall ill when he is protected by the dragon vein of the country? And he has been sick for so many days without any improvement."

But this is mostly fate; Heaven is telling me it's time for me to ascend the throne!

The messenger bowed, his tone sounding earnest, yet at first glance it sounded like he was joking:

"Succession is a major event. The Crown Prince is the rightful heir, but he still needs to achieve some great merit to convince the people. Otherwise, there are still many ministers and generals in the court who are standing with the other princes."

"The existence of the lineage of kings of different surnames is like a fishbone stuck in the throat of my Heavenly Extreme Royal Family. It has been stuck there for generations, and it is left for me to remove."

After it's removed, no one will be able to criticize me, the Crown Prince!

As they talked, the Crown Prince wanted to take out the Empress's painting to admire it again. Her beauty was like a magnificent and beautiful flower, but also like an addictive and alluring poppy.

He took a sip of tea to calm himself and continued to confirm things with the messenger, as the time was drawing ever closer.

"Can you handle the sword immortal who is protecting Chu Mingkong? When Chu Mingkong entered the capital, she was the one who fought her way in. Those kings and nobles who wanted to swallow up the Xiling territory all sent their precious assassins, but they all perished."

"Everything is in order, Your Highness, please rest assured..."

However, the Emperor has always preferred to draft imperial edicts in advance and store them in the Court of Imperial Clan Affairs, and his actions are often unpredictable. It is said that he previously gave considerable thought to the matter of the Crown Prince's legitimacy and entrusted it to the Court of Imperial Clan Affairs. Does the Crown Prince know what that matter is?

After pondering for a moment, the crown prince suddenly remembered what the messenger had said:

"My uncle from the Imperial Clan Court told me that the Emperor has taken a liking to the second daughter of the Guan family. She is intelligent and, being a woman, is easy to control. There is no need to worry about her becoming too powerful. She can be supported to serve in the court, balance the power in the court, and prevent any one faction from becoming too dominant."

Shangguan Rong... she's not bad, her looks are good enough to make her my crown princess, but unfortunately she still lacks something."

The messenger understood what it meant.

The best way to consolidate control is through marriage.

Since they are to be used by the royal family and kept in the capital, who else could they be betrothed to but the crown prince? Or perhaps to those princes who will be enfeoffed as kings in the future?

"I heard from Deputy Commander Gao that Miss Shangguan has been in close contact with Prince Chu recently, and that she has even asked someone to inquire privately about the cure for the Abyss Wound."

The Crown Prince snorted coldly. Although he did not have a deep relationship with Shangguan Rong, he already regarded her as his own, and she was his future helper in the court.

"Hmph, she's just pitying a stray dog ​​that's about to die. Chu Mingkong's position as heir isn't quite right yet. But my things really shouldn't be so close to Chu Mingkong."

"I will immediately have my uncle inform the Shangguan family of Father's decision, and instruct Shangguan Rong to stay home and diligently learn how to serve her husband's family, and not to go out again."

He had an urgent desire for the throne.

His father was seriously ill, and the throne was within his grasp. Soon he would no longer have to abstain from sex and remain chaste!

However, since Shangguan Rong could increase his status as the crown prince, it would be best to get her under his control as soon as possible!

"I will also inform my uncle that I have decided to use my own marriage to bring good luck to my father. I will soon marry the second young lady of the Shangguan family, but all wedding preparations will be kept simple to show the spirit of frugality."

From this moment forward, the Crown Prince felt he needed to make real preparations for ascending the throne, leaving no verbal grounds for criticism.

That spot was very close to him.

"Messenger, do you know which day and time is auspicious in the coming days?"

"The day after tomorrow is the day the Sword Immortal falls, the day Chu Mingkong loses his protection."

The crown prince pondered deeply and felt that it was a bit abrupt and hasty: "The day after tomorrow is too hasty, but it is indeed an auspicious day."

--------------

Shangguan Mansion.

While everyone outside was celebrating the Lantern Festival, Shangguan Mingzhe gave all the servants in the mansion a short holiday, letting them go out and have fun for a night, leaving only a few necessary servants behind.

This year's Lantern Festival was organized by the head of the Shangguan family, and everything is normal now. Shangguan Mingzhe is enjoying some peace and quiet at home.

However, some unexpected news arrived tonight.

Shangguan Mingzhe was completely bewildered. Looking at the teacup in his hand, he thought he had accidentally drunk too much and was hallucinating.

The eunuch sent by the Court of Imperial Clan Affairs to read out the Emperor's pre-arranged edict just now said...

Is his second daughter, Shangguan Rong, going to become the Crown Princess?

And the wedding date was set for just a few days later?

Keep everything simple?

Putting aside the fact that the timing was abrupt, he himself didn't even keep things simple when taking a concubine, yet he kept things simple when his own daughter was married to the Crown Princess.

Although it's a good thing that our family has produced a crown princess, it all seems so perfunctory, almost like a joke.

Shangguan Mingzhe approached and asked:

"Father-in-law, is this true? Are you making fun of me? Marriage is a serious matter. How can it be so abrupt? You just informed me and then got married a few days later?"

Even the father-in-law himself felt that the royal marriage was being treated like a joke, but he was only responsible for relaying messages and was not allowed to make any comments.

"No joke, it was Prince An from the Imperial Clan Court who asked me to come and read out that the Emperor had long intended to do this, and had asked Prince An to choose a date to arrange this marriage for His Highness the Crown Prince."

However, these days I've been preoccupied with the Emperor's health and safety, so I've forgotten about the Crown Princess.

This visit was also intended to give you a heads-up. When you later told others about it, you said that the Imperial Clan Court had already informed the Shangguan family, but the Emperor suddenly fell ill, so you didn't make a fuss.

So, this wasn't abrupt at all; it had been prepared long ago, only with the Emperor's side in mind.

This is clearly a case of being given prior notice!

Shangguan Mingzhe was a man who valued the reputation of his household. Even if the Crown Princess's wedding involved an eighty-bearer dowry, there should at least be a regular banquet and celebration, right?

Everything was kept simple, down to just two families having a meal together.

Moreover, the Crown Prince's cultivation level is not yet high enough to allow him to relinquish his primordial yang body, so the formal wedding night will most likely have to wait until he ascends the throne.

So what is this?

When people ask, "When did your family get a Crown Princess? How come we didn't hear anything about it? Didn't you send me an invitation?"

Shangguan Mingzhe had a headache just thinking about it, but his father-in-law painted a rosy picture for him, saying how wonderful the Crown Princess was, how she would become Empress in the future, and so on.

Shangguan Mingzhe quickly accepted the other party's explanation of "keeping things in touch".

......

Accompanied by her maid Cai Cai, Shangguan Rong bought several dresses and returned to the mansion. Soon after, she heard the news from her father.

She desperately wanted to know if this was a joke, but her father was a man who valued appearances above all else, regarding the family's reputation as his lifeblood, and he cared more about outsiders than his own family.

These words didn't sound like a joke coming from him.

The fleeting joy accumulated from browsing clothing stores quickly turned into a serious expression on my face.

"So, Father, you sold me off to be the Crown Princess without saying a word?"

"This is the royal decree, a written edict left by the Emperor! Do you think your father has the right to refuse or negotiate? Do you think our family is one of those five powerful clans?!"

--------

P.S.: This is a transitional chapter. I'll add another chapter later. I probably won't be able to add any more after this, as I haven't saved up many drafts. Orz

Chapter Fifty-Eight: The System is Hiding Something from Me!

the next day.

Doctor Baili arrived, even faster than expected.

She had an eagerness to meet other men behind her husband's back, even though Chu Mingkong knew that what she really wanted was that bottle of Golden Crow Heart Essence.

She was more cautious when traveling during the day than at night, wearing a veiled hat over her head, with an inner veil covering her face, and an inconspicuous gray robe draped over her body.

When Chu Mingkong saw her attire, he almost thought she had come to the Prince's mansion to clean up the plague and malaria, otherwise why would she be dressed so "grandly"?

Today I need to find a way to squeeze out some more corrupted filial piety, because after upgrading the filial piety system a few times, now if I want to break through the system level, I have to consume corrupted filial piety.

His previous betrothal gift was to his master, Zuo Qiuchi, but now he doesn't know where she has gone, so he can only borrow some from Doctor Baili as a backup.

Something's not right...

Chu Mingkong had been restless ever since Doctor Baili left last night.