Chapter 171: The Consequence Is Terrifying

Perhaps spurred by some trauma, Qi Wuxiu always spoke in a disjointed way—just mentioning the Crown Prince, he'd veer off to the imperial consorts.

Chen Guanlou didn't interrupt him; he let him ramble, and in the end, the facts were clarified.

The imperial family banquet was far from harmonious.

The old emperor was obsessed with cultivation, even attending family banquets dressed as a Daoist priest, while the consorts were both infatuated and resentful. The one with the heaviest resentment was none other than the Crown Prince himself, who muttered, "How can there be a Crown Prince for thirty years?" and excused himself to freshen up.

Then, during his refreshment, he casually slept with a young palace maid.

At the time, Qi Wuxiu was on duty in the side hall and witnessed the Crown Prince's lewd act firsthand. He was stunned to learn the maid was from the Taiji Palace.

A maid from the Taiji Palace was, of course, the old emperor's property—regardless of whether she had ever served him in bed. Not a blade of grass or a single twig in the Taiji Palace could be touched without the old emperor's explicit permission.

How brazen was the Crown Prince? So brazen he was oblivious to death. He knew the maid came from the Taiji Palace, knew the banquet was being held right next door, knew the old emperor could burst into the side hall at any moment, and knew that if exposed, he'd face the old emperor's furious retribution. Yet he still did it.

In front of the guards, he took the maid without the slightest restraint.

Qi Wuxiu was deeply shaken.

He had seen plenty of men and women coupling; if it had been just an ordinary pair, he wouldn't have been disturbed. But it was the Crown Prince.

He simply couldn't accept that the Crown Prince would act so madly, as if driven by self-destruction.

"Can the state be entrusted to such a man?" Qi Wuxiu asked himself, then answered, "I've always heard people speak of the Crown Prince as one of the rare wise rulers—humble, open to advice, quick to embrace goodness."

After listening, Chen Guanlou burst out laughing, mocking Qi Wuxiu for being naive, still clinging to dreams and ideals. Was he really an undercover agent for the Embroidered Uniform Guard? He couldn't even handle this? What had the Embroidered Uniform Guard been doing all these years, training such a weakling?

"What are you laughing at?"

I laugh at your foolishness! Since ancient times, who in the imperial family hasn't been insane, hasn't been mad? Born as the supreme ruler of all under heaven, they already possess everything—except that one throne. Without it, life has no meaning. If they're not mad, how can they be imperial?

"That's wrong!"

"Where's it wrong?"

"But for all these years, court ministers have praised the Crown Prince as a worthy ruler—proving he's mostly sane. If he's mad, why not lock himself in the Eastern Palace and go mad there? With his intelligence, doesn't he know acting madly at a family banquet will eventually be discovered? Doesn't he fear angering His Majesty?"

"Does the Crown Prince avoiding angering His Majesty mean he'll earn praise or favor? Disliking someone doesn't vanish because they do good things—it only deepens."

"On what grounds do you say His Majesty dislikes the Crown Prince?" Qi Wuxiu protested.

Chen Guanlou sneered. "Look at you again—falling into foolishness! His Majesty's dislike of the Crown Prince is common knowledge. Go ask your elders: does His Majesty like the Crown Prince? Maybe he once did, but certainly in recent years, his dislike has only grown. Even Jiang Tu is more favored than the Crown Prince in His Majesty's eyes."

Qi Wuxiu's chest heaved with rage—he was furious, yet powerless to refute.

"But why would he do this?"

"To vent! To disgust people! To satisfy his whim! To seek trouble! Any excuse at all could drive the Crown Prince to sleep with a maid at a thirty-year banquet. After all, His Majesty already dislikes him—adding one more act of bedding a maid won't make him lose his title. But I think the Crown Prince's behavior is nothing but the tantrum of a middle-aged rebel, deliberately provoking his father."

Qi Wuxiu looked bewildered. He finally understood the literal meaning of "middle-aged rebel," and corrected him: "The Crown Prince is middle-aged—he can't be called a youth."

Chen Guanlou smiled faintly. "Then call him a middle-aged rebel. That's better, isn't it?"

"That's actually quite apt," Qi Wuxiu muttered bitterly.

Chen Guanlou added, "Do you—and your elders—support the Crown Prince?"

"Don't you? The Crown Prince is naturally the heir. There's no other possibility."

"Why no other possibility?" Chen Guanlou was curious. Isn't deposing a Crown Prince not uncommon?

Qi Wuxiu shot to his feet. "To depose the Crown Prince would shake the very foundation of the state. The nation is already in dire straits—the treasury is empty, even officials' salaries can't be paid. To depose him now would be pouring oil on fire. The court has no such capital to endure such upheaval. The ministers will never agree."

Chen Guanlou nodded repeatedly, fully agreeing.

Saying "depose the Crown Prince" is easy. Actually doing it? That would be a cataclysmic event, reshaping the entire world's balance.

He added, "You're right. Many ministers have staked their entire fortunes on the Crown Prince. If His Majesty deposes him, it means generations of savings vanish overnight. Who could accept that? His Majesty can't do this—no one wants to re-invest now, except for upstarts like Jiang Tu."

"Exactly! The Crown Prince is the son of Empress Wenzhao—his legitimacy is unmatched. To depose him? How could you even think of it? Don't ever speak such nonsense again—I'll pretend I didn't hear it," Qi Wuxiu snapped angrily.

The old emperor had three empresses in his lifetime. Empress Wenzhao was his first wife and principal consort, the most honored. The Crown Prince was her only child—his legitimacy was unsurpassed. Who else could be Crown Prince? Who else could inherit the throne? If the old emperor so much as hinted at deposing him, every minister would rise in unified opposition—not just civil officials, but military commanders too. By the way, Empress Wenzhao's family were also noble meritocrats.

The old emperor's second and third empresses both died young and bore no children. Afterward, he never appointed another empress. The harem was managed collectively by several imperial consorts.

The relationship between the old emperor and the Crown Prince was strained, but the truth was, the old emperor found fault with every one of his sons. No one ever imagined he'd depose the Crown Prince. Even if someone had considered it, they'd ultimately shake their head and dismiss it—the old emperor wouldn't take such a step unless he'd lost his mind.

Even if the old emperor truly had lost his mind and tried to depose the Crown Prince, the ministers would never yield. They'd hold the line firm, overturn his decision, and refuse to let him act alone. They'd risk their lives to stop it.

To save one's family, even at the cost of one's life—when the Crown Prince ascends, the family rises again. The ministers know this trade-off well.

If the Crown Prince is deposed, the family falls—and won't recover for three or five generations, sinking into utter ruin. The consequence—just thinking of it sends a chill down the spine.