Chapter 66 - Falsed Sincerity

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It must be said that to deceive others, one must first deceive oneself.

Even the closest servants believed that Zhang Wenke truly loved the Emperor, which shows how well she had been acting.

"No need, I am a person who is already dead and long unworthy of seeing the light of day. That's enough, don't persuade me anymore. The Third Prince's health is poor. Let him live as a carefree prince in the future," Zhang Wenke said with a bitter smile.

In the past, she might have resented this son, but over time, and with no other children in the palace, her attitude changed.

The Third Prince had recovered long ago, but she concealed it from the outside world for fear that others might find out and harm him.

"Miss," Dongmei called out reluctantly, "Miss, perhaps you don't know, but several of the imperial concubines in the palace are already pregnant. The most important news is that both the Empress and Lan Guifei are expecting."

Dongmei hadn't wanted to mention this, but she couldn't bear to watch her mistress continue in self-destruction.

As expected, Zhang Wenke was stunned by this news.

"They... they're all pregnant?" Weren't the Emperor's health issues supposed to make it difficult for him to have offspring? How did this happen?

What, then, had her years of silence been for?

"Yes, the news is that there are five or six pregnancies," Dongmei replied, heart aching for her mistress. If this continued, what would become of the Third Prince?

Only Zhang Wenke and Prince Duan knew that the Third Prince was not the Emperor's biological child. That was why the Empress Dowager and others were so indifferent when talking about dealing with the Third Prince.

If it were known that he was actually Prince Duan's child, the situation would be entirely different.

Zhang Wenke fell into silence, unsure of what to do next.

She felt more sorrow than anything else. Her cousin had once told her that no matter how many women came, none of them could compare to her. Back then, watching the princess consort give birth and the concubine become pregnant had made her uncomfortable, and she had even complained to her cousin about it. He reassured her that letting those women have children was just to strengthen his power.

She had believed him.

After she entered the mansion, she became pregnant soon after, and her cousin, true to his word, treated the child as the most beloved offspring in his life.

But at that time, she hated the child and resented her own family and aunt. Consumed by hatred, she felt dirty because of her deep love for her cousin and hid herself away.

She thought that by doing so, her cousin would keep her in his heart forever, waiting until he ascended the throne and made her his empress.

Later, when the Zhang family was implicated, she knew she would never become Empress and that her cousin would never solely favor her. She receded into the shadows, plotting her next moves.

All these years, she had seen through the schemes of her aunt and family, but she didn't act because she knew that as long as she was alive, her cousin would always have her in his heart.

She had found peace in the fact that no sons had been born in the imperial palace for many years.

But now, with so many concubines pregnant, she felt unsettled.

"What about Shu Fei? Any news from her?" That younger sister of hers, so foolish to fall in love with the Emperor. It was one thing to fall in love with him, but to try and trade her family for the Emperor's affections, like she had once done? Ridiculous. If it were that easy, would she have spent so many years scheming?

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