Asking About Love Songs

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"The four great families have five sons. The sixth son is up to fate. If it is a daughter, she will belong to the Heavenly Family."

This saying, which circulates among the common people, refers to the four prominent families of Gao, Duan, Lu, and Su, who currently assist the imperial family.

In their early years, the four great families helped the court quell the war and were rewarded with great favors. However, they also paid another price: any child born after the fifth son of the four great families who was a girl would become a member of the royal family. The emperor would adopt her as a princess and bestow upon her the title of princess. Her demeanor would be as noble as that of a member of the royal family. Such honors were, in fact, a political bargaining chip!

When foreign tribes sought peace and marriage alliances, or even offered generous rewards to victorious generals and important ministers, the imperial family would bestow a marriage upon a princess, which would be the greatest honor. In this case, the "Imperial Princess" who was granted the title of princess would have to bear the responsibility of this political marriage. This was the imperial family's own choice, as they were unwilling to sacrifice their own flesh and blood!

In view of this, unless one is eager to climb the social ladder, no one is willing to send their children into the palace to be manipulated by others. Therefore, to avoid separation of family members, most of the four great families do not have more than five sons.

As the sixth son of the Su family, Su Shaochu was repeatedly warned from a young age to be careful about his identity and secrets.

"Chu'er, you must remember that the sixth son of the Su family must be male. The existence of the seventh son is a secret. You and Xiao Chu cannot appear at the same time. If these things are discovered, someone will separate you from your parents and brothers. Remember, you must never let anyone know about these things."

Before the age of three, she and her younger brother rarely left the courtyard. After the age of three, they were sent away from the capital and grew up in a town near the capital. During this time, her second sister married the crown prince as a concubine. When her eldest brother came to visit, he told her with relief that the fate of the sixth son would no longer be confined to the four great families, because the crown prince who would succeed to the throne in the future would abolish this bad custom.

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Through the lush foliage, a pair of bright black eyes gazed at the beautiful woman sitting before the blossoms, meticulously sewing the pattern on her handkerchief with a needle.

"Wow, that's the legendary Nanyuan Maiden, she's as beautiful as a fairy," the little boy holding the ball exclaimed.

"I heard from my father that Nanyuan is inhabited by people like Xuanyuanwa. The girls there are very beautiful and good at dancing, and the boys are very good at sword forging. They are also very good at herbal medicine!" The little girl looked at the beautiful woman in front of her and spoke with the air of a little adult.

"Shanshan, don't worry, you'll grow up to be prettier than the fairy in front of you!" The little boy assured his playmate, his small, delicate face already strikingly beautiful.

The compliment truly delighted the little girl, who smiled sweetly. "Shaochu, I like you the most."

"Your Highness." A palace maid carrying a meal approached and saw her mistress about to bend down to pick up the ball of thread that had fallen to the ground. She quickly stepped forward to help her, looked around to make sure no one was watching, and then reminded her, "You forgot, your current body is not suitable for bending over or lifting heavy objects."

"Linglong, it's only been less than a month, it's alright." Song Meige smiled as she looked at Linglong, her personal maid who had been with her since childhood. She had accompanied Linglong all the way from Nanyuan to the Central Plains royal family.

"It's always better to be careful, especially in this palace. It would be troublesome if something went wrong." Linglong helped her back to the chair and sat down, lifting the lid of the food bowl that had been brought out, releasing a rich aroma of medicinal cuisine. "You need to eat something nourishing right now."

Song Mei'e covered her nose, as if she were about to vomit. "I hate these smells."

"Given Your Majesty's current condition, this is understandable, but you still need to nourish your body, so drinking some soup would be good."

Unable to resist Linglong's insistence, he could only accept the soup she served.

"Third Prince, has he... sent any message?" she asked hesitantly, sipping her medicinal soup.

Linglong shook her head.

"No news, and he no longer comes to Yizhai Pavilion. Is he simply giving up?" She lowered her brows in disappointment and let out a long sigh. "Was I wrong? I shouldn't have insisted on staying..."

"Maid, now that you've made your decision, don't think about it anymore." Linglong invoked her mistress's highly respected status in Nanyuan.

"After committing the greatest sin and mistake in the cycle of life and death, what right do I have to possess such a title?" She smiled bitterly. "I shouldn't think about it anymore, otherwise, the pitiful thing is..." She gently stroked her now flat stomach and couldn't help but sigh deeply. "If only I could be as ruthless as him, but I just can't let go and can't bear to part with him."

"I heard that the previous Holy Maiden was a kind and loving person. Why did she give birth to such a... cruel prince?" After all, he was the Holy Maiden's son, so Linglong couldn't bring herself to say anything harsh, but she really couldn't bear to say it.

Sixteen years ago, Song Piaoping, the Holy Maiden of Nanyuan, was a compassionate woman who wanted to resolve the war between the Central Plains and Nanyuan. She couldn't bear to see her people and innocent civilians suffer any more. So, she arranged a marriage to create peace between the two sides and became the concubine of the emperor of the Central Plains. However, she never expected that she would fall ill and die after giving birth to a son.

During this time, the cause of the Holy Maiden's death was questioned by the Xuanyuanwa clan, and the relationship between the two sides dropped to a freezing point. If the Holy Maiden had not given birth to a son in the Central Plains, the two sides would probably have gone to war again.

Sixteen years later, Nanyuan was unable to select a Holy Maiden. For the sake of the Holy Maiden's son, Xuanyuan Wa Shi was willing to resolve her inner conflict and allow the Protector Maiden to marry into the Central Plains Imperial Palace in the style of the Holy Maiden, to take care of and teach the prince Xuanyuan Wa Shi's history, and to mend the rift between the two sides through marriage.

The current generation of maid, Song Meie, is the younger sister of the previous generation's saintess, Song Piaoping. These two sisters, who are very different in age, were still infants when the older sister became a saintess and married into the Central Plains.

Although the maid of Nanyuan married the emperor of the Central Plains, it was only in name. Her duty was to serve the son of the Holy Maiden. The emperor of the Central Plains treated her with great courtesy and respect, granting her a separate villa and freedom of movement without being bound by palace rules. To avoid unnecessary disturbances from other concubines, only the emperor, empress, crown prince, and third prince were allowed to enter this villa. No one else was allowed to enter without her permission.

"The Third Prince has a problem, but no one has noticed." Song Mei'e's brows were furrowed with worry, her voice filled with bitterness. "Everyone is afraid of hurting him. The Empress is like that, the Crown Prince is like that, and the Emperor is even more so. Pampering him has become the only thing everyone can do for him."

When the Holy Maiden married into the palace, she was from a foreign tribe and had no relatives. The concubines in the harem fought fiercely. The emperor's favor and the Holy Maiden's extraordinary status, which set her apart from the other concubines, only made this foreign Holy Maiden a thorn in the side of the other concubines. This situation changed until one event occurred.

"Sister Piaoping saved the Crown Prince who was suffering from a strange disease back then, which made the Empress extremely grateful to her and treat her like a sister."

The kind and benevolent empress never indulged in vying for the emperor's favor in the harem. In addition, she was almost ten years older than the emperor, so he respected her more than anything. She always kept to her duty, and for many years she was a vegetarian and a Buddhist. She prayed for the crown prince who was suffering from headaches. When the crown prince's condition worsened and he fell into a coma, the Holy Maiden of Nanyuan, who came from a place with advanced herbal medicine, saved the crown prince and also exposed the conspiracy among the concubines to poison the crown prince in order to fight for the throne.

From then on, the Empress cared deeply for the Holy Maiden of Nanyuan. Due to the age difference and the Holy Maiden's thoughtfulness, the Empress felt a sense of affection for her as an elder. After the Holy Maiden's death, the Empress cherished and cared for the child she left behind.

"The Empress's affection for the Holy Maiden's son is obvious to everyone."

If outsiders didn't know that the Crown Prince was the Empress's biological son, they would really think that the Third Prince was her biological son.

Song Meie put down her soup bowl, shook her head, and sighed with a smile. "The Empress's affection for the Third Prince is more like that for her children and grandchildren. After all, the relationship between Sister Piaoping and the Empress is more like that of mother and daughter than sisters. So, the Empress should treat the children left behind by Sister Piaoping as if they were grandchildren."

The crown prince had to receive training to become the ruler of a country. He could only stay with the empress until he was three years old. As he got older, he began a series of palace etiquette training. Therefore, the third prince was the one who stayed with the empress the longest.

"Since arriving at the palace, I finally understand why the Third Prince wields such power at such a young age." Song Meige stood up, looking at the sky with a serene expression. "I should be happy that the Holy Maiden's son is so loved in the Central Plains, and I am also happy for my deceased sister, but... too much pampering and indul

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