Chapter 144 Daughter-in-law

Emperor Qi Yuan was almost laughing out of anger:

"You admitted it so readily! Regardless of how a servant like you dared to covet your master and destroy his reputation, what do you think my Chengqian Palace is? How can you come and go as you please?"

He slammed the dragon table and shouted, "Someone come!"

The substitute Jinwu Guards were already in place, pouring in from the palace gate like a tide and surrounding the two men.

"His Majesty!"

Xiao Yuheng hurriedly knelt beside Shen Yue, "The reason why she trespassed into Chengqian Palace was entirely at the instigation of this humble servant."

Emperor Qi Yuan frowned, "You gave the order?"

"That's right. Today, I promised my mother that we would go to Changchun Palace to celebrate my birthday together. Before entering the palace, I told her to keep an eye on the time. She must be worried about being late for Changchun Palace, so she came to look for me."

"Ha!" Emperor Qi Yuan smiled and shook his head.

His younger brother, the Emperor, must be thinking of him as a fool, right?

"Okay, even if your explanation makes sense, how do you explain your behavior just now?"

"Well..." Xiao Yuheng pursed his lips, "I promised her that she could be close to me anytime, anywhere, whether in the inner palace or on the streets."

Emperor Qi Yuan's cold eyes narrowed slightly. "Oh? So, it's not just this little guard's wishful thinking, but Seventeen and him are in love with each other?"

"no!"

"yes!"

Shen Yue and Xiao Yuheng said in unison.

Xiao Yuheng looked at Shen Yue, who was in shock, with the corners of his mouth curled up beautifully.

"It's okay, Ayue. I know what this means."

Since returning to Beijing, A Yue has been dressed as a man. If he admits that he has feelings for A Yue, it is equivalent to admitting that he has a homosexual tendency.

If a prince of a country is fond of homosexuality, it not only affects his personal morality, but also damages the reputation of the royal family.

No one would want such a person to be emperor, including the people who love him.

Therefore, once these words were spoken, it was almost equivalent to giving up the qualification to inherit the throne.

After hearing this, the anger on Emperor Qi Yuan's face subsided a lot, and was replaced by a look of helplessness and heartache.

"Seventeen, you are so foolish! How could you develop such a ridiculous habit for a mere guard? How can a dignified prince like men? How will the world view the royal family? Don't you care about the royal family's reputation? Don't you care about the country?"

Xiao Yuheng smacked his lips and was about to reply when a cold and low female voice came from outside the hall:

"Who said my son likes men?"

As soon as the words fell, a woman in royal blue and gold-woven palace attire walked slowly into the palace gate in the sunlight.

Her steps were light but powerful, her skirt fluttered, and her wide sleeves embroidered with gold peony patterns rustled. The golden hairpins on her high bun swayed slightly, making her look even more arrogant.

"Mother?"

"Mother Concubine"

"Rou Rou?"

The three of them spoke in unison again, but the latter just realized something as soon as he said it and subconsciously covered his mouth.

Jiang Rou looked down at the two people kneeling on the ground, said "be good", and took a few steps forward to meet the shocked gaze of Emperor Qi Yuan.

It’s more like looking at each other than looking at each other.

Those eyes, stained with red makeup, were as cold as an ice-hardened blade. When her gaze swept over the man sitting on the dragon throne, it was even more indifferent than looking at an ant.

"Your Majesty, I live in the harem and shouldn't be in the court. I came here because Your Majesty is holding my son hostage. Your Majesty won't be angry, will you?"

"No, I'm not angry."

Emperor Qi Yuan seldom saw Jiang Rou dressed so brightly. His eyes were fixed on her and he had no time to be angry.

"good."

The corners of Jiang Rou's plump lips curled up in a sarcastic arc, "Since Your Majesty has forgiven me for trespassing, I will get straight to the point."

After saying that, she took out a piece of letter from her sleeve, and with a flick of her slender fingers, the letter paper unfolded like a sharp blade out of its sheath.

"This is the secret decree left by the late emperor. Your Majesty should recognize it, right?"

As soon as these words were spoken, all the civil and military officials in the hall were in an uproar, and even Emperor Qi Yuan was shocked.

The late emperor doted on Concubine Rou and left a secret decree before his death to prevent the new emperor from murdering her. They had heard about this before, but they thought it was just a rumor at the time. They never thought it was true!

Jiang Rou suddenly turned around, holding the secret decree, and walked around in front of the ministers in a dignified manner.

"The secret decree is stamped with the late emperor's imperial seal. If you, my dear ministers, do not believe it, you are free to verify it."

After saying that, she walked in front of Lu Zhengyan again.

"I've heard that Prime Minister Lu is the best at identifying the authenticity of handwriting and seals. Take a closer look. Is the secret decree in my hand fake?"

Lu Zhengyan took a deep breath, took the secret decree and examined it carefully, then nodded, "This is indeed the seal of the late emperor, but..."

Just judging from the color, the mark looks a bit new. Is that okay?

"cough."

Seeing his expression change, Jiang Rou quickly took back the secret decree and put it into her sleeve.

Although her radish seal was carved very realistically, old man Lu Zhengyan had sharp eyes and she couldn't let him look at it for too long, otherwise the secret would be exposed.

"I have also read the secret decree. Your Majesty, please explain why you summoned so many Jinwu Guards to surround my son and daughter-in-law."

"Daughter-in-law?" Everyone was shocked again.

Even the young couple kneeling on the ground showed a look of surprise.

"Have you told the queen?" Shen Yue asked in a low voice.

Xiao Yuheng shook his head, "I still want to ask you!"

"I didn't say..."

"Cough!" Jiang Rou cleared her throat.

"Chen Yue is a member of the Lingyuan clan. She is the daughter-in-law I chose many years ago, and she is also Ah Heng's designated princess!"

"She has served Ah Heng since she was young. To make things easier for her, I ordered her to dress as a man. Your Majesty saw her many years ago and never said anything. Do you have any objections?"

Emperor Qi Yuan choked when he heard this.

Over the years, he hadn't even paid attention to Xiao Yuheng, let alone who was following him.

Jiang Rou looked at the ministers again.

All the ministers lowered their heads and said they had no objection.

This Concubine Rou looks like she wants to eat someone, and even His Majesty doesn't dare to say anything. What else can they dare to say?

Emperor Qi Yuan sighed deeply:

"Even if she had no choice but to disguise herself as a man, how do you explain her killing my Jinwu Guards and trespassing into Chengqian Palace?"

"Ah, Your Majesty." Shen Yue was not happy. "I just beat them so hard that they couldn't move. I didn't kill them."

"I didn't ask you!" Emperor Qi Yuan roared.

He was so angry.

It would be fine if Rourou and her son didn't take him seriously, but even this little servant dared to interrupt!

"Why does Your Majesty need to vent his anger on a child?"

Jiang Rou squatted down, picked up the snow toad on the ground and looked at it again and again.

"Ah Heng has been afraid of cold since he was a child. Whenever he touches something cold, he suffers from unbearable abdominal pain and a persistent high fever. Your Majesty, it's fine if you don't care about his health, but what's your intention in giving him this?"

After she finished speaking, a fierce look suddenly flashed in her eyes. She flipped her wrist and slammed the snow toad to the ground.

With a loud bang, snow-white jade pieces flew everywhere, and the huge Chengqian Hall fell into deathly silence in an instant.

Jiang Rou knelt on the debris with a thud, frightening Xiao Yuheng so much that his face turned pale.

"Mother..."

Jiang Rou smacked her lips and whispered:

"What are you afraid of? Mother is wearing thick clothes today. You have a stomachache. You should take care of yourself first."

Xiao Yuheng reacted and immediately covered his abdomen and cried out in pain.

Jiang Rou looked at Emperor Qi Yuan with a firm and resolute gaze.

"Since Your Majesty cannot tolerate us mother and son, sentence us to death today!"