Palace Upheaval and an Uncertain Endgame

The fiasco at the wedding—Serena knew about it that very night. It wasn’t exactly a secret; with so many people present, and Prince Nolan making no effort to hide anything, he said it all out loud for everyone to hear. Ordinary citizens might not know, but in official circles, everyone was talking.

Serena might think Yara had it coming, but she still shed a sympathetic tear for her. To get hit with something like that on your wedding day—truly rotten luck. Only Serena herself had suffered worse.

Of course, sympathy is one thing, but Serena never forgets to add a biting remark: “To nearly wreck your own wedding just because of a few words—Princess Yara, you really let me down.”

Her fighting spirit is seriously lacking!

Crunch—Serena grabbed a piece of fruit from the table and bit into it. Only the royal family could get fresh fruit this time of year; Feng Manor would never have any. These were all brought over from Ninth Prince Manor by Prince Nolan, who didn’t care for fruit, so Serena got to enjoy them.

Maybe she was just too happy, or maybe she’d gotten used to being casual around Prince Nolan—juice dripped down the corner of her mouth, and Nolan shook his head, got up, and wiped it away for her.

Seeing Serena looking so smug, Prince Nolan couldn’t help poking her cheek: “Don’t underestimate Princess Yara. Her mother just died, and the charges are serious. If she can keep her cool after all that, she’s cold-blooded—and honestly, pretty scary.”

“Fine, I’ll admit Princess Yara finishing the wedding wasn’t half bad.” Serena quickly finished the fruit in her hand, dropped the pit into the dish, and automatically held out her hands to Prince Nolan.

Requesting a hand wipe!

“You’re getting lazier by the day.” Despite his words, Prince Nolan indulgently picked up a damp cloth and carefully wiped Serena’s hands clean.

Serena chuckled, breathing in the bamboo scent from Prince Nolan and looking at his magnified handsome face, with those eyes that hid a gentle warmth. Her heart felt warm too.

This man—he showed up at a chaotic, perfumed wedding for her, ignored all the criticism, and openly made things difficult for another woman.

If you’d asked her before, Serena would never have believed Prince Nolan could do something so undignified. But now? The facts were right in front of her—she couldn’t deny it.

"What will happen to Yara now?" Since they’d gone this far, Serena wanted it finished—she didn’t want Yara to have any chance of bouncing back. Women could be even more ruthless than men, and while she wasn’t afraid of Yara’s revenge, she did worry about her losing control.

"After this? She has no future. Lady Yvonne died accused of adultery in the palace; Yara’s life is ruined, and Lyndaria has basically given up on her."

"Normally, even if a consort commits adultery, it wouldn’t be made public. The Emperor would do everything to cover it up—not just for the royal family’s reputation, but for the sake of the princes and princesses."

"Lady Yvonne’s son is the Crown Prince, her daughter was sent abroad for a diplomatic marriage. As long as the Lyndarian Emperor had any affection left for them, he wouldn’t have done this. But this time, he made no attempt to hide it—he openly announced Lady Yvonne’s adultery, which means he must truly hate Terrence and Yara. Otherwise, he wouldn’t ruin their mother so thoroughly. Destroying Lady Yvonne is the same as destroying Terrence and Yara."

"With a mother like that, it’s a stain Terrence and Yara will never wash away. Even if Terrence keeps his Crown Prince title, ascending the throne will be nearly impossible. As for Yara? If she behaves, maybe she’ll stay Princess Consort of Chun for a few years; if not, the Emperor probably wouldn’t mind her dying suddenly."

Prince Nolan spoke calmly, but Serena understood the danger in all this. This was the price of losing the palace struggle—so long as the Lyndarian Emperor lived, Terrence and Yara would never rise again, unless Terrence rebelled.

"Poor Lady Yvonne—from a beauty who fought her way up to Noble Consort, even raised a Crown Prince son. After all those years, she was about to become Empress Dowager, but ended up dying so miserably."

If the Lyndarian Emperor hadn’t recovered, everything would be different—Lady Yvonne would be the honored Empress Dowager, Yara would be the Emperor’s sister, her status unmatched. But now...

"Lady Yvonne was clever, but her enemies were even stronger. The Princess Royal and the Empress joined forces, and with the Valley Master from Mystic Healer Valley treating the Emperor, she never stood a chance. If she’d been truly ruthless, she would’ve killed the Emperor outright."

The harem’s battles never end—being Empress or favorite consort isn’t the finish line. The real goal is Empress Dowager. Even with a Crown Prince son, Lady Yvonne’s fate was never secure; unless her son became Emperor, she could fall at any time.

"So Lady Yvonne had something to do with the Emperor’s illness?" Serena thought back on the whirlwind month in Lyndaria and guessed the heart of it.

For a ruler to humiliate the consort who bore his children, there’s only one explanation—the woman tried to kill him.

"If not, why would the Lyndarian Emperor drag Lady Yvonne down so thoroughly, leaving her no chance at all? In the palace, if the Emperor wants a woman dead, he has plenty of quiet ways. This public disgrace was meant to end Terrence’s future for good." The love or hate of an Emperor is more than most can bear.

The Emperor didn’t spare Terrence out of fatherly love—he wanted to break him bit by bit. Give him hope, then crush it, forcing him to live every day in fear.

"So Prince Titus ended up with the biggest windfall." After all the scheming, it was Titus who came out ahead—while Crown Prince Terrence was the real tragedy.

"What windfall? Titus’s situation is actually dangerous. The Emperor now trusts no one but the Princess Royal. He’s discarded Terrence but isn’t supporting Titus either. From Lyndarian intelligence, it looks like the Emperor has other plans." Emperors are always suspicious; he even doubts why Titus returned home, especially since Titus managed to bring a legendary healer back at the crucial moment—proof Titus isn’t simple.

After one betrayal, the Emperor no longer trusts his sons. Prince Nolan understood this, but there’s nothing he can do; their only goal is to make sure Terrence never ascends the throne.

Serena stared up at the sky. "Emperors are always suspicious. But from here on, there’s not much you can do. If the Emperor finds out you’re helping Titus behind the scenes, it’ll only hurt him."

"Exactly. I’ve helped him as much as I can—now it’s up to him. The Emperor’s health has suffered, but having another son isn’t hard; imperial physicians aren’t useless." Prince Nolan thought of Titus’s suspicions and felt a flicker of worry.

Titus said the Princess Royal’s unborn child has been judged a boy by the imperial doctors, and his father seems intent on passing the throne to that child. No one knows who the father really is, but it’s enough to make the Emperor consider a drastic move...

Note to readers: Don’t get the wrong idea—the child really isn’t the Lyndarian Emperor’s... (Yesterday I wrote the Crown Prince’s name wrong; his name is Zitian, I’ve fixed it!)