As the imperial physicians withdrew from the hall, the Second Prince and Cui Lin had already arrived at the Yulong Terrace.
Noticing the growing number of palace attendants around them, both tacitly refrained from speaking further, standing silently before the hall, awaiting a summons from within.
Inside, Cao Dejiang and Grand Tutor Liang watched Xiao Yan kneeling on the floor and Emperor An, his face filled with rage, their minds a tangle of complex emotions.
“This humble minister is guilty and begs Your Majesty’s punishment,” Xiao Yan said.
“You are guilty!” Emperor An glared at him. “Did I not order that no one else was to interfere in the Lu family’s affairs?!”
Xiao Yan’s face was still somewhat pale. “This humble minister strictly followed Your Majesty’s orders. After the Lu family was imprisoned, the Privy Council sealed them off, allowing no one to approach. I personally handled all interrogations, not daring to let anyone else interfere.”
“The Second Prince tried several times to pry information from me, but I rebuffed him each time. I never imagined he would approach the Fourth Prince, nor that the Fourth Prince would tell him about the jade bracelet…”
He all but said outright that the Fourth Prince was a fool, who could have predicted he’d dig a pit for his own mother?
Seeing Emperor An momentarily speechless, Xiao Yan continued, “I never allowed outsiders to contact the Lu family. As for Lu Zhixuan from the main branch, he was gravely ill and young, at risk of dying. Unsure of how Your Majesty would handle the Lu family, I feared mishandling Your Majesty’s affairs, so I had no choice but to let the imperial physicians tend to him briefly, keeping him outside for less than two days.”
“Who could have guessed that Minister Cui would bribe someone from the Imperial Medical Office to extract information from a mere child?”
“As for Jinzhi, the Empress’s maid…”
Xiao Yan’s expression suggested he’d rather not continue. “When I was recovering from my injuries at my residence, the palace was entirely under Commander Yu’s supervision.”
“When Your Majesty ordered me to interrogate the Lu family, Jinzhi had already been reported as suddenly deceased, her records erased from the palace. Everyone believed she was dead. How could I have known someone had the audacity to smuggle her out of Fengxi Palace right under the imperial guards’ noses?”
“I uncovered the Empress’s matters and did my utmost to conceal them, intending to report to Your Majesty privately. But who could have predicted the Second Prince and the others…”
His face bore an indescribable expression before he lowered his head. “It is my failure to anticipate the Second Prince’s actions. I beg Your Majesty’s punishment.”
Cao Dejiang remained silent, thinking Xiao Yan was utterly ruthless. He appeared to be confessing guilt, but in truth, he was practically pointing at the Emperor’s forehead, accusing him of being unreasonable.
The palace guards were the Emperor’s trusted men. Fengxi Palace was watched by the Emperor’s appointees. The one who exposed the imperial scandal in court was the Emperor’s own son. Xiao Yan, the poor, innocent minister, had done everything to cover up the disgrace, but who could have foreseen the imperial family producing such fools?
What kind of son would broadcast his father’s cuckolding to the world?
Sure enough, Emperor An’s face darkened completely, but this time his fury was directed entirely at the Second Prince and Cui Lin.
“Summon the Second Prince at once!!”
Eunuch Feng hurriedly scurried out to deliver the order.
Seeing Eunuch Feng, the Second Prince stepped forward eagerly. “How is Father? Is he well?”
Eunuch Feng paused, meeting his smile. “His Majesty is… fine.”
Not dead from rage yet, so that probably counted as fine, right?
“His Highness, His Majesty summons you inside.”
The Second Prince knew the main event had arrived. Emperor An likely wanted to question him about the Fourth Prince. He quickly adjusted his sleeves and strode into the hall.
When Cui Lin tried to follow, Eunuch Feng swiftly blocked him. “Minister Cui, His Majesty only summoned the Second Prince.”
Cui Lin froze. “His Majesty didn’t summon me?”
Eunuch Feng: “No, Minister Cui, please remain here.”
As Eunuch Feng turned back to the hall, leaving Cui Lin alone outside, Cui Lin couldn’t help but frown, feeling something was off.
Emperor An summoning the Second Prince must be about the Fourth Prince, so why wasn’t he called in as well? Was the Emperor worried they’d collude and wanted to question them separately?
Before, Cui Lin might have worried about the Second Prince stealing the spotlight, but after the Second Prince’s earlier display, he felt it didn’t matter anymore.
Cui Lin adjusted his robe and stood back in the open space before the hall, already plotting how to divide the Lu family’s interests among the other noble families once they fell. He was calculating how to secure the maximum benefit for the Cui family from Grand Tutor Liang and the others.
…
After the Second Prince entered, he found the hall eerily quiet. Xiao Yan was kneeling on the floor, with Cao Dejiang and Grand Tutor Liang standing to the side.
Emperor An sat in the elevated seat, his expression unreadable.
“Your son pays respects to Father.”
The Second Prince knelt and saluted, stealing a glance at Xiao Yan, hoping for some hint. But Xiao Yan ignored him, his face impassive, his eyes devoid of their usual warmth.
The Second Prince’s heart sank. He suddenly remembered that he had acted on his own in the Lu family matter, keeping both the Cui family and Xiao Yan in the dark. Xiao Yan, who was in charge of investigating the Lu family, hadn’t uncovered anything about Empress Lu, yet he had.
Was Father blaming him?
The Second Prince didn’t care about Cui Lin, as he never intended to share any benefits with the noble families once he ascended. They were merely stepping stones. But Xiao Yan was different.
Xiao Yan had propelled him to his current position, and much of his status was thanks to Xiao Yan’s efforts. He knew all too well the cunning of this eunuch.
If he offended him, his future…
“Why are you looking at Xiao Yan?”
The sudden voice from the throne snapped the Second Prince back to attention.
He quickly lowered his head. “Your son wasn’t. I just remembered that Lord Xiao was gravely injured while protecting Your Majesty and hasn’t fully recovered, according to the physicians. I was wondering why Your Majesty has him kneeling.”
Emperor An’s tone seemed mild, devoid of anger. “How considerate of you. But Xiao Yan failed in his duties, so I’m punishing him.”
The Second Prince, thinking Xiao Yan was being dragged down because of him, hurriedly said, “Lord Xiao has always served Your Majesty diligently. Any small oversight was surely unintentional…”
“Is that so?” Emperor An looked at Xiao Yan. “Since the Second Prince pleads for you, stand up.”
But Xiao Yan didn’t spare the Second Prince a glance. “This humble minister is guilty, and Your Majesty’s punishment is just. I dare not trouble the Second Prince to intercede.”
The Second Prince: “…”
It’s over.
He’s really offended him.
Seeing Xiao Yan openly display his disdain for the Second Prince, not giving him the slightest face, Emperor An’s anger toward Xiao Yan eased slightly.
He recalled that during the morning court, Xiao Yan had indeed tried to conceal the Empress’s scandal, avoiding any mention of it. It was only because of the Second Prince and Cui Lin that he had been utterly humiliated.
Emperor An turned to the Second Prince. “Since he doesn’t appreciate your kindness, let him kneel.”
His gaze swept over the Second Prince, his expression neutral. “I always thought you were too dull for great responsibilities, but I never expected you to outpace Xiao Yan and uncover the Empress and her son’s affairs.”
The Second Prince hurriedly replied, “Serving Your Majesty is my duty. Lord Xiao and the others never imagined the Empress would be so bold, so they didn’t dare investigate thoroughly. I only stumbled upon this by chance.”
He quickly pulled out prepared documents from his sleeve, holding them up with both hands. “Upon learning of the Empress’s deception and the Lu family’s betrayal, I was furious. I had Jinzhi write down the Empress and Prince Cheng’s crimes and compiled all the evidence I found. I beseech Your Majesty to review it.”
Emperor An’s expression was hard to read. “Feng Lai, bring it here.”
Eunuch Feng, feeling his legs weaken, stepped forward to take the documents from the Second Prince. Seeing the barely concealed excitement on his lowered face, Feng thought to himself that the Second Prince was doomed.
After handing the confession to Emperor An, he swiftly retreated a safe distance.
Emperor An looked down at the documents, his eyes growing darker the more he read.
After a long pause, he looked up.
“You’ve worked hard to uncover so much in just a few days.”
The Second Prince raised his head, smiling. “Serving Your Majesty is no hardship…”
Bang!!
Emperor An, seeing that smiling face, suddenly lost his temper. He grabbed the porcelain pillow he’d been leaning on and hurled it at the Second Prince’s head.
Caught off guard by the sudden rage, the Second Prince was struck squarely, his head bleeding as he staggered and fell to the ground. The porcelain pillow shattered into pieces upon impact.
Kneeling nearby, Xiao Yan calmly shifted to the side, pulling his robe away from the splattering blood.
Ugh~
So filthy!
==============
You can read ahead to chapterr 470 (100+ extra chapters) here
Comments
Post a Comment