Married To The Cruel Crown Prince

Ying Lili met with the Empress and the Consorts in the Empress's manor. 

"It is rare to see the Crown Princess these days," Consort Ju Fen asserted. "The Crown Princess keeps herself busy in political affairs," she added. 

"Forgive me for not being able to attend the Internal Court meet, Consort Ju Fen," Ying Lili apologized and bowed. She lifted her head and said, "I was only lessening the work of the Crown Prince by giving him a helping hand." 

"The main reason we call the Crown Princess is because we want her to tell the Crown Prince to remove the restriction on us. We are the wives of the Emperor, yet the Crown Prince has limited our meeting time," the Second Consort complained. 

Ying Lili looked at the Empress and asked her opinion on that. 

"Crown Princess, I agree with the Consorts. Our movements shall not be restricted. It appears as if the Crown Prince is trying to take control over every matter," Deng Hui stated. 

"The Empress and the Consorts are not aware of the fact that a few days ago a poison bottle was retrieved from one of the Court Ministers," Ying Lili affirmed. The Empress gulped, and cold sweat started to appear on her forehead. The Consorts frowned and told the Crown Princess to explain. 

"The Crown Prince did not want me to tell any of you about this, but the day the Court Minister was caught, he revealed something unusual," Ying Lili replied. 

"What did he say?" the Second Consort asked the Crown Princess. 

"The Minister took the name of the Empress," Ying Lili answered. "Only the Military Generals and the Crown Prince know about this. The Emperor did not believe his words as he was trying to frame Empress Hui," Ying Lili told them. 

Ju Fen and Jinlong brought her hand near her mouth. "But how is it related to the restriction on our movements, Crown Princess?" Ju Fen curiously asked. 

"Consort Ju, the restrictions are not applied to you only or on the Consorts of the Empress. It is on every person from the Royal Family, Court Ministers, and the other people. Someone may try to harm the Emperor and can try to put the blame on any of us," Ying Lili explained to them. 

"Oh. Forgive us, Crown Princess for blaming the Crown Prince. The Crown Prince should have told us about this. These poisoning incidents have become frequent after Weng Wei poisoned the Crown Prince," the Second Consort stated. 

"Also, there is something I want to request from the Empress and the Emperor's Consorts. The Crown Prince does not hold absolute power. In these four months, I have seen how everyone treats Sheng Li. He has grown without the love of a mother. The reason behind his coldness is also because of that. The Crown Prince's position is not that comforting as it seems. I request you all to see Sheng Li as your own son," Ying Lili requested them and lowered her eyes. 

"We consider him as our son. It is the Crown Prince, who does not consider us as his mother," the Second Consort stated. 

"Forgive me, but I have never seen any of you ever talk to him and show care towards him," Ying Lili pronounced. The Consorts looked at each other. 

"I know every mother wants the best for their children. The Late Empress Wei took the life of Sheng Li's mother but what was the fault of Sheng Li in all that. He was abused and treated badly. None among you had ever tried to show motherly love towards him. However, he never minds that. He always focused on protecting you all and everyone in this Royal Family," Ying Lili blurted out. She knew Sheng Li would never tell his heart out, so on his behalf, she had to make the Empress and the Consorts understand. 

"Crown Princess, it seems you are to blame for Sheng Li's behavior," Ju Fen interpreted. 

Ying Lili shook her head. "Apologies, First Consort, but I do not intend to blame any of you. I am urging you all to become a support and show equal care towards Sheng Li. I want this Royal Family to come together. We have seen so many ups and downs within these four years. There is no use in fighting among ourselves," asserted Ying Lili. 

"Crown Princess, since we are on this matter, then I will be honest with you on the behalf of each wife of the Emperor. We feel that our sons have not received as much consideration as Sheng Li has received. Sheng Li is the Fifth son of the Emperor, yet he gets the maximum perks," Ju Fen affirmed. 

Ying Lili smiled a little. "Enough consideration? I think your sons have enough time to get that consideration. Except for Prince Wanxi and Prince Yu, every Prince elder to Sheng Li got an equal opportunity in everything. Even in military affairs, every Prince was given equal opportunity. However, your sons could not lead wars and military campaigns," stated Ying Lili. 

"But Sheng Li also lacks in the work in which the other Princes excel. A Kingdom does not work merely because of the Crown Prince. The Crown Prince's position was initially handed to the First Prince. Later, due to a reason, it was taken back from him and then offered to the Fourth Prince, the son of the current Empress. Prince Nianzu refused to take the position on his own. Then, it was given to Sheng Li. Why? Because he was leading the Army of Han. 

The Second and the Third Prince are the State Councillors. The work done by them in this period is marvelous. The Governor, who is the First Prince, got a lot of help because of the work of Prince Yongzheng and Prince Zemin."

"Respected Sisters, the Crown Princess is absolutely right," the Second Consort supported Ying Lili's words. "We shall look at the happiness of our sons. Prince Zemin was conversing with me two days ago, who is happy to work as a State Councillor." 

"Even my son told me yesterday that he wants to work in the Capital Bureau Office. I cannot go against his words as it will only impact our relationship and health," Jinlong stated. 

"My son does not live in the Palace. When he was here, he mostly told me that the work done by the Crown Prince cannot be easily done by the other Princes. We all failed to see true happiness without these positions," Deng Hui replied and agreed with the Crown Princess's words. 

"I am glad that all the mothers understood my points," Ying Lili stated and passed them a tiny smile. 

"Crown Princess, you did well by sharing the thoughts of Sheng Li with us. Late Sister Mei used to love our children as her own. However, we failed to do the same with her son. Heaven will surely punish us for this," proclaimed the Second Consort. "We will try our best to get close to the Crown Prince," she stated. 

Ying Lili was happy that the wives of the Emperor finally understood her. However, she was still skeptical of Consort Ju Fen. Ying Lili had the plan ready to bring her on the right path.. The Consorts took their leave while the Empress told Ying Lili to stay behind.