Prince Ji’s expression changed, and he sharply turned to glare at Princess Ji, his eyes filled with a reprimanding “Why are you speaking out of turn?” intensity.
Princess Ji, however, turned her face aside. She deeply resented Song Tang Ning for publicly humiliating her and Yuyan earlier, and even more so for her arrogance, backed by Xiao Yan, forcing a princess of a princely household to apologize to an orphaned girl whose parents were long dead.
Now, seeing someone peel back Xiao Yan’s facade, with the possibility of dragging this eunuch down, if Xiao Yan truly had colluded with Empress Lu, the Emperor would surely not spare him!
Princess Ji naturally wanted to pile on, deliberately avoiding Prince Ji’s gaze as she said, “Your Majesty, it would be best to investigate thoroughly. Supervisor Xiao is your most trusted vassal, and the Lu family’s affairs have always been handled by him. How could he defy your will and have private dealings with the Empress? Perhaps someone used his name to deceive her.”
“This way, we can avoid wronging Supervisor Xiao.”
Her words left the hall so silent you could hear a pin drop.
Princess Ji claimed she wanted to clear Xiao Yan’s name, but her words heavily implied he had long been in contact with the Empress.
The Lu family’s affairs were entirely investigated by him, and now they had been eradicated. So when exactly did Xiao Yan collude with Empress Lu?
Before the Emperor investigated the Lu family, or after?
Princess Ji all but directly told Emperor An that Xiao Yan was suspect. Prince Ji, looking at Xiao Yan’s cold expression, nearly fainted from anger, glaring at Princess Ji with the urge to curse her outright.
What did the affairs between Xiao Yan, Cui Lin, and the noble families have to do with Prince Ji’s household?!
Even if someone was plotting to bring down Xiao Yan tonight, who could guarantee Xiao Yan would fall? At this moment, staying neutral was the wisest course, whether Xiao Yan or Cui Lin won, it wouldn’t affect Prince Ji’s household.
But she insisted on jumping in to kick him while he was down. If things turned around and Xiao Yan emerged unscathed, Prince Ji’s household would be finished!
That foolish woman, Princess Ji!
Prince Ji wanted to strangle her, but Emperor An, clearly growing more suspicious because of her words, fixed his gaze on Xiao Yan and said gravely, “When did I ever tell you to say such things?”
Xiao Yan frowned. “This vassal never did.”
“If not, why would the Empress mention Supervisor Xiao’s name before her death?” Cui Lin interjected. “Could it be that Supervisor Xiao did something behind Your Majesty’s back?”
His gaze on Xiao Yan was sinister, his sickly, unhealed face carrying a hint of mocking amusement.
Emperor An’s expression grew darker.
Everyone in the hall was watching Xiao Yan.
Standing before the steps, Xiao Yan felt the myriad gazes on him. After a long pause, he spoke.
“A few words from others, and Your Majesty would doubt this vassal?”
Before Emperor An could respond, Cui Lin cut in, “Why dodge the issue, Supervisor Xiao? If you had no close ties with the Empress, why would she say such things before her death? Now that someone has overheard, won’t you explain?”
“What should this supervisor explain?”
“Your dealings with the Empress, naturally.”
Hah.
Xiao Yan let out a soft chuckle. “What dealings could I have with the deposed Empress? I personally sent her to the cold palace. If we were connected, why would I do that? But you, Minister Cui, seem awfully eager for me to have some connection with her.”
Cui Lin bristled. “I only said this because of Lady Xuan’s words. Don’t slander me!”
“Is that so?”
Xiao Yan gave him a half-smile, his mockery unhidden.
Before Cui Lin could glare back, Xiao Yan turned directly to Emperor An. “Your Majesty, whether Minister Cui’s words are true or not remains unclear. Regardless of what the Empress said before her death, isn’t the most urgent matter to apprehend the two palace servants who frightened Lady Xuan?”
“The Imperial Garden is heavily patrolled by guards, yet two servants dared to openly attempt to kill a titled lady and a maid from the Empress Dowager’s palace without alerting anyone.”
“And outside Zichen Hall, with countless guards, anyone approaching would be stopped. Yet Lady Xuan, disheveled and in distress, managed to charge in without announcement, reaching the hall before startling the attending officials.”
“Either Deputy Commander Yu gave prior instructions, or someone tampered with the palace’s guard defenses.”
“I didn’t!” Yu Yanfeng immediately protested.
“I believe Deputy Commander Yu, of course.”
Xiao Yan looked at Emperor An. “A few slanders against this vassal are of no consequence, I’m used to having enemies everywhere. But if there’s a flaw in the imperial guards, or if someone can freely manipulate them, that endangers Your Majesty and the consorts in the palace.”
Yu Yanfeng’s expression shifted dramatically, and he dropped to his knees.
“Your Majesty, the palace’s guard defenses are my responsibility. Both in the Imperial Garden and outside Zichen Hall, I stationed men to patrol around the clock.”
“For tonight’s banquet, without Your Majesty’s orders, I would never allow anyone to barge into Zichen Hall. Unless someone tampered with the guards!”
Emperor An’s eyes narrowed, his expression unreadable, though he didn’t suspect Yu Yanfeng of wrongdoing.
The defenses inside and outside Zichen Hall were all arranged by him, and the imperial guards followed his orders. If someone truly committed a crime in the palace undetected, and the guards at the hall failed to stop even a woman, Yu Yanfeng would bear the brunt of the blame, and his position as deputy commander would be untenable.
As Emperor An’s thoughts churned, he cast a cold glance at Cui Lin and spoke. “Yu Yanfeng, take men immediately to search the palace and bring those two audacious servants to me. If they escape, I won’t forgive you!”
Yu Yanfeng let out a sigh of relief. “This vassal will go at once!”
As he stood, he glanced at Xiao Yan, a trace of gratitude in his eyes.
Though Emperor An’s words were stern, it was clear he knew this incident wasn’t Yu Yanfeng’s fault, thanks to Xiao Yan’s earlier remarks.
Had Xiao Yan not pointed out the implications and cleared his name, Yu Yanfeng wouldn’t have been able to explain himself even with a hundred mouths.
Grateful to Xiao Yan, Yu Yanfeng shot a hateful glance at Cui Lin before striding out to lead men in the search.
In Zichen Hall, the music stopped, and the dancers retreated. The once-lively atmosphere vanished entirely.
Emperor An hadn’t permitted Lady Xuan to rise, so she remained kneeling, her sobbing gradually quieting. The hall, shaken by the sudden turn of events, was eerily silent.
With Emperor An silent, no one else dared speak.
After a long while, commotion arose outside again. Yu Yanfeng strode in, dragging a person dressed in eunuch’s clothing. Behind him were armored men, some carrying two corpses, others escorting over a dozen tightly bound men with gags in their mouths, stripped of their light armor and wearing only white undergarments.
As the group entered, the women and young ladies in the hall couldn’t help but gasp. Though the men’s attire was improper, they weren’t exposing skin, so the exclamations quickly subsided.==============
You can read ahead to chapterr 470 (100+ extra chapters) here
Comments
Post a Comment