In Yishou Palace, after reading Prince Han’s letter, Princess Consort De angrily cursed him as a rebellious son. 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

The Third Princess, seeing her mother’s face turn ashen with rage, quickly asked with concern, "Mother, what did brother write in his letter that made you so angry?"

Princess Consort De, dizzy with anger over her unfilial son, raised her hand and fiercely slapped the table beside her, gritting her teeth, "I asked him to return to the capital, and he said he didn’t want to wade into the murky waters of the capital. He also said he’s doing well in Youzhou and asked me not to worry about him." Thinking of the rebellious son far away in Youzhou made Princess Consort De’s liver ache. "What’s so good about that barren place in Youzhou? I think he’s turned into a savage by now."

"Is brother out of his mind? Why stay in the desolate Northern Desert of Youzhou instead of returning to the perfectly fine capital?" Though Prince Han was the Third Princess’s own brother, she had never been able to understand his thoughts since childhood. When her brother went off to the desolate and uncivilized Youzhou, their mother fainted from anger. Now that Prince Zheng has returned to the capital, her brother still refuses to come back, and she truly doesn’t understand what he’s thinking.

"Who knows what he’s thinking." Princess Consort De was thoroughly helpless with her son, Prince Han; whether she tempted him with rewards or threatened him, he remained indifferent. When choosing a fief, they arranged for him the affluent Huaizhou near Yangzhou, yet he refused to go to Huaizhou and insisted on heading to Youzhou in the Northern Territory, which infuriated her. "How could I have given birth to such an unfilial son?" She must have committed some sin in her past life to have given birth to such a rebellious son, determined to anger her.

"I truly don’t understand why brother loves doing business and making money?" Regarding her brother’s love for business and making money, the Third Princess really couldn’t comprehend it at all. "Brother isn’t from a poor family; he grew up enjoying a life of luxury and is never short of money. I don’t see why he loves money so much?"

"You ask me, and who do I ask?" Princess Consort De was furious at the thought of her son’s money-loving nature. "How could I have given birth to such a disgraceful thing?"

"Mother, since brother doesn’t want to return to the capital, are you really going to let him stay in Youzhou?" The Third Princess was anxious because, after Prince Zheng returned, her brother was still reluctant to return to the capital. "If brother doesn’t come back soon, he truly won’t have a share of the throne." Now is the perfect time for him to return. If he doesn’t come back, not only will he miss the throne, but he might even lose his life.

Princess Consort De was more anxious than anyone. Her eyes narrowed as she gritted her teeth and said, "Whether he wants to return or not, he must return. Does he intend to defy the imperial decree?!" Her unfilial son may not listen to her, may not want to return to the capital, but he will surely listen to the emperor, right? She didn’t believe that if the emperor issued an edict for him to return, he would dare disobey.

"Mother, you mean to ask father to decree brother’s return to the capital?"

Princess Consort De nodded slightly and said, "Yes, if the emperor decrees for him to return to the capital, he must return."

"That’s easy to say, but will father actually ask brother to return to the capital?" The Third Princess recalled past events, "Mother, don’t forget that previously, uncle led the opposition against father’s implementation of the three new policies: equal field system, household registration reform, and tax reforms. Although father didn’t say anything, he was certainly displeased."

Upon mentioning this, Princess Consort De furrowed her brow immediately.

"Back then, I advised your uncle to learn from Duke Anyang and support the emperor’s new policies, instead of opposing them, but your uncle didn’t listen."

"Mother, I think father won’t summon brother back to the capital." The Third Princess sighed deeply and said, "If uncle had supported father’s reforms like Duke Anyang did, perhaps brother would have already returned to the capital as Prince Zheng did."

"Your uncle lacked sense and insisted on opposing the emperor, nearly ruining himself." Princess Consort De had served the emperor for over twenty years; although she didn’t fully understand his personality, she could discern some of it. "As long as one agrees with the emperor, everything is negotiable, but your uncle refused to listen and insisted on clashing with the emperor." In other matters, the emperor might turn a blind eye, but on state affairs, he absolutely disallowed opposition.

"Mother, it’s already happened, and talking about it now is futile." The Third Princess’s in-laws also hoped Prince Han would return to the capital. As long as Prince Han stayed away, they had nowhere to exert influence. "We must find a way to bring brother back to the capital."

"Counting on your brother to voluntarily come back to the capital is impossible; we can only find a way through the emperor." Princess Consort De, for the moment, couldn’t think of a better solution.

"There are reasons father doesn’t favor brother. Brother has been in Youzhou for so many years, earning a lot of money but never properly showing filial respect to father. In this regard, he’s not even as good as Zhao Yao, who sends gifts to father immediately after acquiring something good in Lingnan, while brother doesn’t give a penny." The Third Princess was both angry and resentful towards her brother’s stingy nature. "Father may not lack money or good things, but as a son, showing filial respect by giving good things to father is expected. Yet, whatever nice items brother has, he keeps them for himself, never giving them to father or you, mother."