Happiness arrived so suddenly!
Jiang Xinyue could only say it was unexpected—she was about to beco The Empress Dowager.
On the day of Crown Prince Shen Mingye's wedding, the emperor issued an imperial decree, abdicating the throne to the Crown Prince and retiring as the Retired Emperor, while Empress Jiang Xinyue beca The Empress Dowager.
The fourth prince was granted the title of Ming Prince, with a princely mansion in the capital, and was instructed to assist the Crown Prince in becoming a wise and capable ruler.
Just thinking about the title "Ming" given to the fourth prince, the Crown Prince couldn't help but recall the earnest teachings of his father and mother.
He also rembered the tireless guidance of his forr tutor, Jing.
On the night of the Crown Prince's wedding, countless morials were moved from Kunning Palace to the Crown Prince's Eastern Palace.
Xiao Xiangzi's smile seed anything but innocent: "Your Highness... oh! Look at my poor mory, I should address you as Your Majesty now."
He directed the eunuchs from Kunning Palace: "Place them here. The Retired Emperor said that after the coronation ceremony, Your Majesty will move to Chengqian Palace. Since these morials will need to be moved again, there's no need to place them in the Eastern Palace study. It saves the trouble of moving them twice, doesn't it?"
This was truly adding insult to injury!
He hadn't even held the coronation ceremony yet and was not officially the emperor. Xiao Xiangzi was clearly trying to trick him into taking on these morials by saying so.
On his wedding night, although his mother had instructed him to wait until ng Yixuan turned eighteen before...
Couldn't he at least hold her hand while they slept?
But with his father sending over so many morials, it was clear he didn't want him to have a peaceful night.
He was completely unprepared. How could he suddenly be thrust into the role of emperor? Was there no justice in the world?
How could his father push all these responsibilities onto him just because he wanted to travel and enjoy life with his mother?
Xiao Xiangzi pretended not to notice the young emperor's exasperated expression: "Your Majesty, don't worry too much. The Empress Dowager has sent Chun, Xia, Qiu, and Dong to assist you."
Chun, Xia, Qiu, and Dong were the female officials in Kunning Palace responsible for sorting morials.
With their help, reviewing the morials would indeed be much easier.
But that didn't justify his father's abrupt abdication!
And he had done it so shalessly.
ng Yixuan secretly lifted her red veil, but her maid, Hong Dou, quickly pulled it back down: "Oh dear... my lady, you mustn't lift the veil yourself before His Highness arrives. It's bad luck."
"I think I hear His Highness's footsteps."
"Then please sit properly."
Shen Mingye, thinking of the mountain of morials, felt his back hunch under the weight.
His third, fourth, and fifth brothers were truly wise!
They knew being emperor was no easy task and had made their positions clear early on. Now they were probably relieved they didn't have to think about state affairs on their wedding night.
"Are we being a bit too harsh on him?"
Jiang Xinyue stood outside the Eastern Palace, watching the palace servants carry morials back and forth, feeling a pang of guilt: "We didn't even tell him you were planning to abdicate."
"What's there to say? It was bound to happen sooner or later."
He had been planning to pass the throne to the Crown Prince for over a decade. For him, it had been a long wait.
Jiang Xinyue was right. They were getting older, and their good years were limited. The children, on the other hand, had a long life ahead of them.
So it wasn't a big deal for them to endure so hardship while they were young.
Which emperor hadn't gone through this?
At least during his reign, he had paved the way for the Crown Prince. When the previous emperor passed away suddenly, he hadn't left him with any preparations.
Now that the Crown Prince was finally married, he couldn't wait any longer.
Watching the Crown Prince inside, scratching his head and directing the servants to move the morials, Jiang Xinyue couldn't help but laugh.
In truth, the urgent morials had already been reviewed. If they had waited until after the wedding and the coronation ceremony, when would they ever get to the rest?
The morials sent here were all trivial matters. The emperor's mischievous side simply enjoyed teasing his sons.
Jiang Xinyue joined in the fun because she knew that once the Crown Prince cald down, he would understand that her disruption of his wedding night was a reminder not to touch ng Yixuan.
If he wanted his Crown Princess to remain healthy and unhard, he should wait until she turned eighteen before consummating the marriage.
As for grandchildren, Jiang Xinyue wasn't in a hurry.
She was only in her thirties, the pri of a woman's life. She wasn't ready to be a grandmother.
The emperor had already said that once the Crown Prince's coronation ceremony was over, they would imdiately charter a plane to the Maldives... no, wait...
The places the emperor ntioned were all ones Jiang Xinyue had seen in the paintings of the young artist Xie.
She wasn't sure if it was Xie's exceptional skill that made those places look so beautiful or if they truly were that stunning.
In any case, Jiang Xinyue wanted to see them for herself.
On the first night of their marriage, the Crown Prince and Crown Princess didn't get to sleep hand in hand. Instead, they sat in the study together—one sorting morials with Chun, Xia, Qiu, and Dong, and the other staying up late to review a small portion of them.
As the child most favored by the emperor and Jiang Xinyue, Shen Mingye had grown up surrounded by morials in Kunning Palace, so he was quite adept at handling such tasks.
His frustration stemd solely from his father's mischievousness, leaving no room for even a mont of newlywed bliss.
There was no tradition of a "three-day return visit" for those married into the Eastern Palace, but the Crown Prince, considerate of his bride, and the still-reigning emperor and empress, who were equally kind, allowed the Crown Princess to return ho.
Who in the capital didn't envy ng Yixuan?
Her mother was a close confidante of The Empress Dowager, treated like a sister. She had married the deputy general of the empire's most promising cavalry, and her father had risen to the rank of first-grade Flying Dragon General in just thirteen years, with her mother receiving a noble title.
Since birth, she had frequented the palace, becoming a playmate to the princesses and princes. Thanks to her mother's connections, she had earned the deep affection of The Empress Dowager.
The Crown Prince was devoted to her, rejecting all politically advantageous matches—he loved only her.
After marrying into the Eastern Palace, she wasn't subjected to any harsh treatnt or strict rules. Instead, The Empress Dowager, the emperor, and the Crown Prince all doted on her, even allowing her to return ho after three days.
How had she been so fortunate in her reincarnation? How did she manage to earn the love of the three most powerful figures in the land? Others could only dream of such luck.
The grandeur of the Crown Prince's wedding was still fresh in the minds of the capital's residents, and the spectacle of the Crown Princess's return ho would astonish them for years to co.
But to Shen Mingye, it was all quite ordinary.
Even the least impressive items in the Eastern Palace were beyond the reach of ordinary wealthy families, let alone the gifts of gratitude to his in-laws for raising such an exceptional daughter.
Inside the ng family's side gate, a girl two years older than ng Yixuan watched Shen Mingye with gleaming eyes: "ng Yixuan is such a fool. How could she possibly be a good Crown Princess? Mother is right—I must beco the Crown Prince's concubine."
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