(For yesterday's chapter, I debated with my leader for over an hour... I'm truly miserable. I'm not Fan Xian, why am I so innocent?

My monthly votes have dropped to third place, and my fellow writers are catching up fast. Seriously, this month I want to see if I can get into the top three. These next seven days are crucial, so I'm constantly asking for votes. Brothers and sisters, please give me any you have. Thank you sincerely.)

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The news of the joyous event in the Fan residence spread like wildfire, flying over the high walls of the residences of powerful nobles, past the wary glances of the waiters in various teahouses, becoming a well-known piece of news. It became a hot topic of discussion among the nobles and aristocrats of Kyoto, and the greatest source of amusement for the common people during their leisure time.

This news naturally also flew into the Imperial Palace, not caring for the obstruction of the magnificent palace walls, reaching the ears of the Emperor and the Empress Dowager. According to Eunuch Yao's discreet revelation, the moment the Qing Emperor heard the news, His Majesty stroked his beard, looking very pleased, and visited the Little Building again that night. After the Empress Dowager learned of this news, she quickly went to pray to the gods behind the Han Guang Hall, constantly stroking her rosary beads with a smile on her face.

Strangely enough, including Fan Xian, the Qing Emperor had a total of five princes. The Third Prince was still young, so he didn't count, but the First Prince was not young and had been married for a long time, but he still had no children. The Second Prince and the Crown Prince were the same. After counting, the child in Sisi's belly in the Fan residence was actually the first of the Imperial family's third generation.

The nobles in the Imperial Palace couldn't help but be happy, but the Empress Dowager felt a slight regret. If the pregnant woman had been Chen Yatou, that would have been better. Regardless of whether she was a Junzhu (郡主, County Princess), Fan Xian's legitimate wife... was, after all, her most beloved granddaughter.

Given Fan Xian's current power and status, such a happy occasion naturally attracted countless guests bearing gifts and congratulations. In the following days, the front gate of the Fan residence in the southern part of the city was bustling with carriages and horses, and officials came and went in an endless stream. Teng Zijing and his wife almost ran their legs off.

Except for some important figures, such as those from the Jingwang (靖王) residence, whom Fan Xian personally greeted, the remaining guests were all handled by Fan Jian, the Minister of Revenue.

Fortunately, these guests only offered generous gifts and did not bother them for too long. The people in the imperial court and palace were actually making their own calculations. Although Fan Xian having a child was a major event, the pregnant woman was his concubine. If they appeared too enthusiastic at this time, who knew what the Junzhu (郡主, County Princess) lady in the residence would think?

Pleasing one side but offending the other was a very uneconomical deal, and these officials also did not know the extent of the joy in the palace.

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Three days later, the joy in the palace was displayed before the Qing officials and people in two ways. First, the gossip newspaper run by the Inner Court reported the good news to the people of the world in red ink.

The Inner Court newspaper always told officials' stories of jealousy and rivalry, funny faces in history, and Chen Pingping's first love story. Although some were boring and uninteresting, they were very eye-catching. However, since Fan Xian took charge of the Supervisory Council, he had rectified the atmosphere, making the council's affairs transparent, and ordered the Eighth Bureau to post countless notices at the entrance of the bureau, turning the gloomy official infighting process into a collection of detective stories – whether in his past life or this life, stories of "pillow talk" and "fists" were always the best sellers – the Inner Court newspaper only had "pillow talk" and lacked "fists", so its style was completely overshadowed by the notice boards at the entrance of the First Bureau.

Fortunately, Fan Xian had a son, and the Emperor tacitly allowed the Inner Court newspaper to make a big deal out of it, writing a lengthy and imaginative novel about Fan Xian's story from Danzhou to Kyoto, vaguely mentioning the Junzhu (郡主, County Princess), the Saintess of Northern Qi, and the past of that young mother in the Fan residence, the poetry night in the hall, the past in Jiangnan...

This was a brilliant summary of Fan Xian's fleeting twenty years of life. As soon as the newspaper came out, paper in Kyoto became expensive. The young ladies in the various residences asked their elders to spend a lot of money to buy one and put it in their boudoirs as a souvenir, while at the same time, they hoped in their hearts that the ethereal shrine could bestow upon them a man like... Master Fan.

The Inner Court newspaper finally seized this opportunity to successfully conquer the people of Kyoto in front of the First Bureau's notice board once again.

The second attitude of joy in the palace was the rewards.

Whether it was the Emperor's or the Empress Dowager's intention, the palace's rewards poured into the Fan residence like flowing water. Although it was Sisi who was pregnant, heavy rewards were given to everyone from Fan Jian to Liu Shi, and even to the Fan family's young lady studying in Northern Qi. Fan Xian's legitimate wife, Lin Wan'er, received the heaviest of the heavy rewards.

Silks and satins, gold, stone, jade, food, and toys were densely arranged in the residence, making Teng Dajia's daughter-in-law a little dazed with busyness... thinking that the young master had saved His Majesty's life in the first place, but it was not as much as the rewards he received this time.

Sisi naturally received an award, given a certain title. Anyway, Fan Xian couldn't understand the title. Even the child in her belly, who had not yet been born, had already received a peerage.

The newspaper and the rewards, one after another, conveyed the joy of the people in the palace to every inch of land in Kyoto, and those officials who had sent gifts in advance were relieved.

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Only Fan Xian was not very happy. He shook his head while looking at the list of gifts brought by Eunuch Yao, a complex emotion arising in his heart. He said to his father beside him, "What are the people in the palace thinking? What does my having a child have to do with them?"

"That's an angry remark." Fan Jian said with a smile, "I thought you would be more mature, but I didn't expect you to still say angry words at this time. What does it have to do with them? What do you say it has to do with them? This is the first of the third generation. The Empress Dowager has been anxious for many years, and she can finally hold her great-grandson. Being happy, the rewards are a bit out of proportion."

Fan Xian sneered, "Hold a great-grandson? I'll send Sisi back to Danzhou tomorrow. She'll be born in Danzhou, raised in Danzhou, and let Grandma hold her and play with her."

This was still an angry remark. Sisi was pregnant, so how could she travel thousands of miles? Fan Jian laughed loudly, but he didn't bother to blame him, because since he learned the news of Sisi's pregnancy four days ago, this usually serious and upright Minister of Revenue had been unable to conceal his true nature, exuding a hint of pride and joy from his face to his bones.

There were not many people in this world who snatched a son from the Emperor and won, and this son would soon give him a grandson, so Lord Fan Jian couldn't help but feel old and comforted, inexplicably proud.

"Don't forget to return to the palace tomorrow to thank the Emperor." Fan Jian took a sip of tea and glanced at his son, finding that his son clearly hadn't listened to this sentence.

"Speaking of which, why doesn't the Crown Prince have a Crown Princess?" Fan Xian suddenly thought of something, frowning and saying, "Even if it's in order, now that the First and Second Princes are married, a year has passed. Isn't the palace worried about the Crown Prince's affairs?"

His words were very natural, cleverly concealing the probing in his words. Fan Jian clearly did not notice that his son was probing him while he was happy, frowning and saying, "As early as three years ago, the Empress Dowager was anxiously planning the Crown Princess's affairs. The Empress was picking people from various residences in Kyoto, and even picked from our residence..."

Fan Xian shuddered, thinking that if his sister had really become the Crown Princess... that would have been terrible. It wasn't that his sister would have been miserable, but that he would have been miserable. Wouldn't he have immediately fallen to the Crown Prince's side and planned the succession with the Crown Prince brothers? Fortunately, this didn't happen.

Fan Jian continued, "It's just that I don't know why the Crown Prince has always refused to agree... This can be regarded as a strange thing in those years. The Crown Prince, as you know, was more absurd in his early years and liked to frequent the Jiaofang (教坊, Imperial Music Academy) brothels. He was originally a person who was very interested in matters of men and women, but he just refused to get married."

Fan Xian thought for a while and said, "But the Crown Prince's marriage is not something he can refuse if he doesn't want it."

"This is where the Crown Prince's cleverness is shown." Fan Jian said with a smile, "To persuade the Empress Dowager and the Empress, the Crown Prince also thought of many ways. First, he said that his elder brothers, the First and Second Princes, had not yet married. Qing Yu Nian (庆余年) governs the world with filial piety and emphasizes brotherly respect. How could he, as a younger brother, get married before his two elder brothers...? At that time, the First Prince was still fighting the Hu people in the west, and there was no way to arrange a marriage for a while, so it was dragged on until later."

"The reason is sufficient, but it's not convincing." Fan Xian said with a wry smile, "After all this, it turns out that I am the representative of early marriage, and this first child can also be considered natural."

"The same is true, but when it comes to the affairs of the emperor's family, it naturally needs to be said from the mouth of someone convincing." Fan Jian smiled and said, "The Crown Prince invited Shu, the Grand Scholar of the time, who was the Crown Prince's tutor. Shu, the Grand Scholar, was stubborn and deeply believed that what the Crown Prince said was reasonable. Not only did he write to the Emperor to ask him to postpone the Crown Prince's marriage, but he even wrote to the Northern Kingdom, asking Zhuang Dajia to speak out."

Fan Xian laughed, "So it turns out that Mr. Zhuang Mo Han also did this kind of thing back then."

Fan Jian suddenly looked at the tiredness between his son's eyebrows and sighed, "Haven't you been sleeping well these days? Go and rest."

Fan Xian smiled awkwardly and bid farewell, leaving the study.

He had indeed been resting poorly these days. First of all, Sisi was pregnant, so of course he had to stay by her side at all times, comforting and caring for her. On the other hand, Wan'er didn't show anything on the surface, and was still happily taking care of Sisi's daily life, but everyone knew that the young lady's mood must be full of mixed feelings. Fan Si felt very sorry for her and had to spend a lot of time accompanying and comforting her. He had to take care of both sides, so naturally he didn't have much time to rest.

In the corridor in front of the study, he stretched and yawned, shaking his head with distress. He suddenly thought of the life philosophy he had thought of a long time ago, also in the garden of his own residence.

Men, getting married too early is always a very stupid move.

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However, the Crown Prince's insistence on not getting married early was probably also based on a very stupid idea. Fan Xian yawned and sighed in his heart, "I didn't expect the Crown Prince to be a romantic. It's really a karmic debt!"

Suddenly, he saw Liu Shi walking in with an old man with a gentle smile. Fan Xian's wide-open mouth couldn't close for a moment, and he jumped up, shouting loudly, "You're finally here!"

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The visitor was not a guest, but Fei Jie, Fan Xian's very respected, trusted, and loved teacher. However, today was the first time the two teachers and students had met in almost a year, and there was a surge of wind and thunder, and the intent of swords flashed between the old and the young, as if they would throw a poison at each other at any time to let the other taste it.

Liu Shi was a very intelligent person. Although she didn't understand the reason, she could see that this was not a place to stay for long. She said a few casual words and left. The important news of Fei Jie's arrival was not even notified to Fan Shangshu (范尚书, Minister Fan).

"Teacher." Fan Xian looked at the strange color in Fei Jie's eyes with a smile that was not a smile, and said, "You've been hiding from me for so many days. Why did you come today?"

Fei Jie gave him an annoyed look and shook his head, "Don't think about good things. I've tried the medicine and prescription you sent many times, but I can't find anything wrong with it. Basically... it's difficult."

Fan Xian shook his head with distress. He had originally thought that since Fei Jie was willing to come to the residence, he must have solved the problem. He didn't expect to hear an answer that wasn't very pleasant.

In fact, all along, he hadn't cared too much about whether Wan'er could have children. Even whether he had offspring himself was not in his consideration. The goal of having a lot of children that he told Uncle Wu Zhu on the cliff in Danzhou was just a joke. However... Wan'er wouldn't think that way. She wanted a child too much, so Fan Xian could only be forced to become nervous.

The two teachers and students sat in a quiet corner of the back garden of the Fan residence. After a servant brought tea, she retreated.

"Will cousins marrying each other have any impact on their offspring?" Fan Xian asked after a long silence, asking a question he hadn't asked for a long time.

Fei Jie glanced at him and said in a hoarse voice, "Do you think your luck will be that bad?"

Fan Xian laughed, thinking that he was right. It was just a matter of probability, and he was undoubtedly the luckiest person in the world.

"Will it... be more difficult to have children?" Fan Xian suddenly frowned and asked.

"Who said that?" Fei Jie understood that he was talking about blood relatives and said mockingly, "More than a hundred years ago, the Emperor of Great Wei raped his own daughter for more than ten years, and as a result, he gave birth to seven cubs in a row."

"Of course, not many of the seven cubs were normal." Fei Jie shrugged.

"The... the royal family is indeed the most chaotic place in the world." Fan Xian said with emotion.

Fei Jie frowned slightly, wondering if his disciple's words were implying something. It's just that the matter was too widespread, and in order to protect Fan Xian, he and Chen Pingping would not tell Fan Xian anything in advance.

"What do you teach me today, teacher?" Fan Xian asked sincerely.

Fei Jie thought for a while and said, "Director Chen guessed that your family is uneasy, so he asked me to come and put your mind at ease."

"Put my mind at ease."

"Yes, give me another half a year, and it may be possible to solve the problem that is giving you two headaches." Fei Jie said with a smile, "Then I must remind you of one thing, your return date is approaching, don't use Sisi's pregnancy as an excuse to not go to Jiangnan."

Looking at the palace's attitude, it was possible that Fan Xian would be left in Kyoto because of this matter. This was what Chen Pingping and Fei Jie were really worried about. Fan Xian thought for a while and nodded, vaguely feeling that Chen Pingping and Mr. Fei did not want him to stay in Kyoto for too long. It seemed that the other party should have noticed that something big might happen in Kyoto.

He finally couldn't help it. Fei Jie was his teacher in childhood, and in his opinion, he was the person in the world who was least likely to harm him. After hesitating for a moment, he said, "Is something going to happen in the palace?"

Fei Jie laughed and said, "What could happen?" A trace of worry flashed in his eyes, but it escaped Fan Xian's eyes.

He looked at Fan Xian's face, which was still as pure and spotless as it had been more than ten years ago, and couldn't help but think of the time when he took Fan Xian to dig graves and admire corpses, dissecting bellies and taking intestines. His heart was slightly dimmed, and he said with a soft laugh, "Be careful when you are alone in the future, and don't be deceived as often as you were when you were a child."

Fan Xian was slightly stunned, and a strange emotion surged in his heart. He hurriedly asked, "Teacher, what does this mean?"

Fei Jie scratched his head, not caring about the dandruff flying around, and said, "It doesn't mean anything, it's just that you know I've been wandering in the mountains for many years, and I'm rarely by your side... um, the Isoniazid medicine, I haven't explained it to you clearly, it's my fault."

Fan Xian was very moved and quickly said, "Teacher, what are you saying? Without you, the two of us would have died countless times."

Fei Jie smiled and didn't say anything more.

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The next day, he entered the palace to thank the Emperor. Although Fan Xian was reluctant, he still wore a sincere and grateful smile on his face. He walked around the palace, especially in front of the Empress Dowager and the Emperor, he presented his grateful heart and covered it with a layer of ignorance and excitement as a new father. His performance was excellent.

Walking along the way, the white snow in the vermilion palace was gone, clean and beautiful. Fan Xian was now sitting in the East Palace, looking at the Crown Prince in front of him, talking casually. He looked at the Crown Prince of the East Palace wearing a light yellow shirt, looking at his seemingly sincere face, thinking about what would happen in the near future, and for some reason, a bit of apology arose in his heart.

At this time, the Crown Prince was persuading him and his aunt, that is, his mother-in-law, to ease their relationship. It could be seen that the Crown Prince was speaking very sincerely, but he didn't know whether he was considering the problem from Fan Xian's or the Eldest Princess's point of view.

"Let's forget about the things in the past. Just like I said to you in Baoyue Lou (抱月楼), why should the elders' affairs affect our present?"

The Crown Prince said calmly, patting Fan Xian on the shoulder.