"By the way, how is that child Yongzong? I haven't seen him for many days. Bring him into the palace these past few days for me to see."
Mentioning her own grandson, the Empress's smile never faded. She said to Emperor Qi with a gentle smile.
"Your Majesty doesn't know yet, that child is at a very active age. He doesn't sit still properly and just likes to crawl around. I miss him dearly too. I'll have him brought to the palace tomorrow."
"That would be excellent."
When Princess Kè received the imperial decree from the palace, she didn't think much of it.
She immediately ordered people to prepare things and set off for the palace the next day.
The side hall of Changle Palace had always been their mother and son's residence, which was approved by Emperor Qi himself.
This showed the favor bestowed upon the Emperor's eldest grandson.
If nothing else, ever since this child was born, the faction of the First Prince had been incredibly smooth sailing.
Therefore, both the Empress and Prince Kè felt that the child's destiny was auspicious, and they doted on him even more.
Raised amidst the pampering and careful protection of everyone, although he was only a few months old infant, he already displayed some spoiled behavior.
He had already broken several toys made of colorful pearls and jade by the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
If these items were in the common folk's hands, they would be enough for ordinary people to eat and wear for a lifetime. Yet, every time he broke one, those around him were unconcerned and even called him intelligent and clever.
Over time, the first word he learned to babble was: "Da, da, da."
When Emperor Qi held him, as the Empress had said, he was plump and agile.
One moment he was interested in the Emperor's thumb ring, the next in his jade pendant, and finally, he stared at the dragon robe and drooled, making Emperor Qi chuckle.
"Does Yongzong like it?"
Emperor Qi pointed to the coiled dragon on his clothes.
Whether Yongzong truly understood or was just making childish movements, he actually nodded at Emperor Qi.
The Empress feigned surprise and stepped forward to explain for Yongzong.
"Your Majesty, please forgive him. The child has never seen a dragon robe before, which is why he is so curious."
"What are you afraid of? It is only natural for my imperial grandson to like the dragon robe. In a few days, I will have the Ministry of Internal Affairs send a few sets of suitable clothes to Prince Kè's mansion, made to resemble this dragon."
"Your Majesty!"
The Empress was so excited that she almost cried. She knew that even Prince Kè was not qualified to wear anything similar to the dragon robe. She never expected the little Yongzong to receive such an honor. Did this mean that Prince Kè was one step closer to the position of Crown Prince?
Emperor Qi did not answer her unspoken question, but focused his attention on Yongzong.
The grandfather and grandson played for a while. Yongzong became hungry and started crying loudly, so the wet nurse took him away.
"Yongzong is growing up now. Since he is my only imperial grandson, I am naturally a bit worried. Since you are the Empress, you should bear more responsibility for this matter. Regardless of gender, the princes should have more offspring."
"Your subject obeys Your Majesty's decree. Tomorrow, I will summon several princesses to the palace to discuss this matter. Also, Sixth Prince has been working hard outside. I will discuss with Consort Xian these past few days to see if we can select a suitable candidate for his principal wife."
"Good, I trust you with this matter."
Emperor Qi still had great respect for the Empress, his wife.
They had been married for over thirty years, and apart from a lack of unexpected children, this Empress could be considered a model of virtuous, dignified, and generous conduct.
He was very satisfied.
However, what the Empress was thinking was different from Emperor Qi.
Since Yongzong was growing up, Princess Kè should indeed think of other ways. If she could conceive again, that would be a double guarantee.
It was common knowledge that children in the imperial family had a difficult time growing up.
Therefore, they dared not put all their hopes on Yongzong alone. The best way was to have many sons and grandsons, and thus much fortune.
Thus, after Emperor Qi left Yongle Palace, the Empress summoned Princess Kè and clearly explained the matter to her.
Princess Kè was somewhat hesitant. She naturally wished to have more children, but she currently had a hidden ailment.
The Empress, seeing her hesitation, asked without much thought.
"What is it?"
After much deliberation, Princess Kè revealed the matter of Wen Yuwei.
"Currently, the Prince often stays in the outer courtyards. You heard that Miss Wen serves him very attentively. Your daughter-in-law thought, why not bring her back to the mansion? If she could have a son or daughter, they could keep Yongzong company."
Hearing that Wen Yuwei had been taken in by the First Prince, the Empress was shocked and angry.
She did not have a good impression of this woman.
No matter what, the Wen family was her support. A woman who turned her back on them and disregarded her own relatives would only be a disaster if she stayed by the First Prince's side!
Therefore, she immediately said to Princess Kè.
"How can such a venomous person enter the Prince's mansion? You don't need to worry about this matter. I will handle it. You only need to take care of your health and seize the opportunity to give me another imperial grandson."
Although Princess Kè was gentle, it did not mean she had no thoughts of her own.
If she could use the Empress's hand to eliminate Wen Yuwei, it would be a great thing.
Thus, she calmly began to think about how to conceive again.
At this moment, Wen Yuwei was unaware that she had already been targeted by the Empress in the palace.
She caressed her slightly bulging belly, thinking that all future glory and wealth depended on this one.
Beside Fahua Temple, in Prince Dìng's private residence, two people were playing chess.
He had secretly sent word to Prime Minister Bai that Feng Jinxu was unharmed. Prime Minister Bai would find a way to inform the Feng family.
The reason Feng Jinyao had not appeared was that Feng Jinlin had not yet returned from Jinling City.
She had gone with her second brother to find medicine. Although it was a pretense, if outsiders knew that she had secretly followed Prince Dìng back to Dongdu City, they would drown her in their gossip.
However, to avoid suspicion, she still stayed in the small courtyard where she had previously stayed with Xu Mingyue and Bai Siruo.
Prince Dìng, on the other hand, lived in his private residence.
These days, news from Dongdu City, Liangzhou, the Southwest, and Jinling City were continuously being sent here.
Feng Jinyao naturally did not miss these updates, so she would come over during the day to listen.
The most exciting news for her was that the traitor in her second uncle's household had been caught.
However, it also implicated Linggui Kingdom and the He Yu family, which were levels she had never been involved in, so she couldn't offer any advice.
It was only when Chi Zimo and Qiao Shanwei were resolving issues for river transportation in the Southwest that they were noticed by the Sixth Prince.
He had openly and secretly extended olive branches to both of them, but unfortunately, neither had taken the bait.
One was disdainful, the other did not need it.
The attitude of these two did not anger the Sixth Prince. However, upon reflection, it seemed normal.
Someone who could lie dormant for so many years naturally possessed an unimaginable level of patience, so he did not make things difficult for them.
With the fall of a black piece, a large portion of Feng Jinyao's white pieces were captured.