Something happened. This is not going to be bloody.

Chapter 154: Northern Qi Concubine - Established as Crown Prince

In the Concubine Shu's palace, Caiyue stepped forward and knelt down to salute the emperor. She wanted to speak for her master. After she kowtowed, she said:

"Your Majesty, the Queen is just too tired. She fell asleep. Since she knew that the Emperor was ill, the Queen has not slept a wink. She only prays for the Emperor in the Buddhist temple every day. The Queen cannot eat on weekdays and only drinks a few sips of water every day. Now that she sees that the Emperor is in good health, the Queen can finally rest assured and fall asleep."

Gao Zhao was rarely moved. He held Concubine Shu's hand silently, and felt a little guilty in his heart, but just a little. He thought that Concubine Shu loved me deeply, and it would not be wrong for him to pamper such a silly woman a little more. Unfortunately, he discovered it too late, and he is already old now.

Gao Zhao looked at the kneeling palace maid and said:

"Go and tell the kitchen to prepare some food, and feed your wife when she wakes up."

"promise."

After Caiyue finished saying what she wanted to say, she went to tell the kitchen to cook porridge.

The imperial physician soon arrived at Concubine Shu's palace.

Zhou Leng didn't have any serious illness, but he didn't eat anything and practiced hard, which made him look so miserable. The imperial physician just said:

"In reply to the emperor, the Concubine Shu is worried sick and has a weak body. She needs to rest and eat more nourishing medicinal food. Otherwise, her life may be in danger."

The emperor directly asked the imperial physician to prescribe a prescription.

The emperor, who was busy with many affairs of state, could not stay in Shufei's palace all the time. After just two quarters of an hour, he left with Cao Fu. Before leaving, he instructed the palace maids to take good care of Shufei.

The palace maids were busy at once, some were making medicine, some were making porridge.

Perhaps many of his confidants were puzzled as to why the Queen, who loved the Emperor so deeply, was having an affair with the eldest prince?

Little palace maid, don’t try to guess what the superior is thinking.

It took Concubine Shu a month to recover. Although she still didn't look as plump as before, she was considered to have regained her health.

Of course, during this month, people around her have been finding ways to make sure Concubine Shu eats and drinks well, and Zhou Leng likes this feeling very much.

*****

Both the court and the harem seemed to have entered a period of calm. The incident involving the eldest prince seemed to send a signal to everyone that they should behave themselves, otherwise they would easily be killed.

In the past six months, the imperial edicts have either been to confiscate property or exile, or the princes have rebelled and been demoted to commoners.

People in Yecheng were in a state of panic, and there were fewer merchants on the streets. The playboys who roamed around in brothels did not dare to fight for favors.

The emperor knew that he should send out a signal now to let the people know the prosperity of Da Qi and the stability of the court. The best pretext was to pray for the critically ill Concubine Shu.

The emperor specially found an auspicious day and issued an imperial decree - a general amnesty and tax reduction. It may also be that the treasury was rich due to the recent confiscation of property, so the tax was reduced for two years.

The hard-working poor people were grateful for the emperor's grace.

Two years of good weather and tax reductions enabled the people to live and work in peace and contentment.

*****

Ever since the eldest prince was imprisoned, Zhou Leng still often cooked for the emperor, but he no longer took care of his body. So two years later, the old emperor's health was getting worse, but he would not die for the time being.

Gao Zhao gradually lost his energy and had no energy for government affairs. Most of the people who replaced the officials whose property was confiscated were arranged by the Lou family. It can only be said that even if the old emperor did not want to pass the throne to the third prince, they had the strength to kill him and ascend the throne.

The old emperor gradually realized that his time was up. He thought about his sons, and to be honest, there was no one he liked, but he finally chose the third prince Gao Ze.

The reasons for the choice were very simple. First, the Third Prince's mother was quite favored by him. Second, the Third Prince was kind-hearted. As long as loyal regents were left behind, the Great Qi could be saved. Third, the Third Prince's maternal grandfather, the Lou family, was quite powerful. If someone else was appointed, there would probably be another fight.

Gao Zhao thought, never mind, it’s him.

This time, the old emperor invited all the important ministers to the Daye Hall in person. Everyone watched as the emperor wrote the edict of succession in person and circulated it among them to prevent unnecessary fighting in the future.

Among these ministers was Lou Yue. As he saw the written document passing the throne to the emperor’s third son, Gao Ze, he was overjoyed in his heart, but he remained expressionless.

From today on, with the witness of many ministers, the crown prince was implicitly established. After specially consulting the Imperial Observatory to look at the stars and dates, the emperor issued an imperial decree to appoint the prince as the crown prince.

Gao Ze also moved from the Western Garden to the Eastern Palace.

From being the third prince to the crown prince, Gao Ze's mentality has changed a bit. He never thought that he would be the emperor in the future. He just wanted to be crowned a king and then take his mother out of the palace to enjoy life.

One day.

Gao Ze brought the eunuchs and palace maids to the Shufei Palace to pay his respects. Although he was a prince, he was more dependent on his mother. He was even reprimanded by the emperor for this, but it was difficult for him to change due to his personality.

Gao Ze sat in front of the window, looking at the flowers and plants outside, feeling depressed.

Zhou Leng personally carried the pastries and placed them on the table. She waved away everyone around her, leaving only the mother and son in the room.

Today Gao Ze wore a plain brocade robe, a jade belt around his waist, a crown on his head, and a sad look on his face. It must be said that although this child is not very smart, he looks very handsome.

He has long hair, a high nose bridge, thin lips, a face as white as jade, thick eyebrows and big eyes. Although he hasn't grown up yet, he is already about 1.7 meters tall at the age of ten, and he probably won't be shorter in the future. Even if he sits there with his eyebrows furrowed, he makes people feel that he is a melancholy gentleman.

Gao Ze's voice was also very attractive. He said in a listless tone, "Mother, I cannot play chess with you today."

Zhou Leng sat there with her chin in her hand, looking at her adopted son who was unhappy. She smiled and said, "Commoner Gao Jing has been fighting for the position of crown prince for many years, but now you are unhappy because of the position of crown prince?"

Gao Ze turned his head and asked his mother, "The emperor feels that he is not a wise ruler."

Zhou Leng put her hands on the table and said solemnly:

"My son, remember what your mother said today. You have to be the emperor whether you want to or not. If you do, your brothers will be able to live and your mother will be free. If you don't, and the throne falls on someone else, not only will you and I not be able to live a free life, I'm afraid we'll both lose our lives."

Gao Ze knew all this, which made him even more depressed. He nodded in agreement.

Zhou Leng added: "In fact, mother wants you to be the emperor. If you become the emperor, you can do many things that mother wants to do. You can rest assured that mother is here for you. You don't have to feel that the future will be difficult. Mother will always be with you."

Gao Ze finally smiled and showed some emotion. He asked again uncertainly, "Mother, are you serious? Will you always stay with me?"

Zhou Leng thought to himself, I am actually somewhat certain that I will always be with you. After all, you may not live longer than me.