Since Consort Chen's burial, the Emperor has never seen Xie Jingyan again.

With so many people in the Ling Prince's mansion contracting smallpox, the Emperor must be extremely worried.

Shen Wan then said to Xie Jingyan, "Then you should go to the palace."

Xie Jingyan said, "It's not too late to go to the palace after we've strolled through the garden together."

Shen Wan, "..."

Why can't this habit of asking for a beating be broken?

Isn't he afraid of being so angry that the emperor would find out?

It's just a stroll in the garden, it's not like I absolutely need him to come with me, is it really necessary?

Shen Wan pushed Xie Jingyan away, saying, "You go into the palace first, and I'll go stroll in the garden after you come back."

Xie Jingyan looked helpless.

Father should have something important to discuss with him.

Xie Jingyan did not insist any further and strode towards the main gate of the Prince's Mansion.

Shen Wan watched him walk away, then headed towards the garden.

Yinshuang was bewildered. "Didn't the Princess Consort wait for the Prince to return to the manor before going to stroll in the garden?"

Shen Wan raised her hand and tapped Yin Shuang's head. "Can't I just go and look around by myself first, and then look around again when the Prince comes back?"

Silver Frost, "..."

She definitely caught Chen Feng's tongue-tied problem.

Yinshuang rubbed her head and followed Chen Wan to the garden.

Shen Wan hadn't strolled in the garden for almost two months. But strolling in the garden was secondary; the important thing was that she wanted to get out more. She had been cooped up in the house for a full forty-two days, and she couldn't imagine what it would be like to be in prison.

While Shen Wan strolled around the garden, Xie Jingyan rode his horse into the palace, heading straight for the Imperial Study.

The Emperor summoned Xie Jingyan to the palace; he entered directly without needing to be announced.

The Emperor was reviewing memorials when he heard Eunuch Yuan report that Prince Ling had arrived. The Emperor glanced at Xie Jingyan, looked behind him, and frowned, "Why are you the only one here?"

Xie Jingyan asked, "Who else did Father Emperor summon?"

The Emperor put down the memorial in his hand and said unhappily, "Don't you know how to bring your princess and child into the palace for me to see?"

The child was born in the dead of winter, making it inconvenient to bring him into the palace. Now that spring has arrived and the weather is no longer so cold, why don't they bring him in to show his father, the emperor?

He has wanted to hold his grandson for a year, but he still doesn't know what his little grandson looks like.

As expected, summoning him to the palace was not for anything important. Xie Jingyan said with a sour face, "Can't you just say you want to see the child?"

The Emperor looked at Xie Jingyan and changed the subject, saying, "How come so many people in the Ling Prince's residence contracted smallpox?"

Although the smallpox was over, the emperor still wanted to find out the truth and felt that this should not have happened.

Xie Jingyan glanced at the palace servants attending to him in the Imperial Study, and then Eunuch Yuan waved for them to leave.

After the palace servants left, Xie Jingyan said, "Someone, under the guise of a reward from the Emperor, sent more than a dozen bolts of silk to the Ling Prince's residence on the second day of the smallpox outbreak. Those silks were contaminated with smallpox and infected the embroiderers in the residence..."

The emperor's anger surged instantly, and he was furious.

Eunuch Yuan gasped in shock.

No wonder Prince Ling asked the Emperor if he had bestowed silk upon Princess Ling; it was indeed related to smallpox.

Who could be so vicious as to devise such a harmful method? This isn't just about killing Prince Ling; it's about annihilating the entire Prince Ling's mansion!

The Emperor said coldly, "Can you find out who sent it?"

“The investigation only started today,” Xie Jingyan said.

He avoided the palace servants to prevent alerting the enemy.

The Emperor said, "Once the truth is found, no matter who it is, I will not let them off lightly."

Before the Emperor could finish speaking, there was a knock on the door of the Imperial Study, and Xiao Xizi entered and said, "Your Majesty, the Minister of War has something to discuss with you."

The Emperor had summoned Xie Jingyan for nothing of importance, so Xie Jingyan prepared to leave.

The Emperor said, "You may stay and listen as well."

Xie Jingyan didn't leave. Xiao Xizi withdrew, and soon the Minister of War came in.

Minister of War Li entered the imperial study, bowed to the Emperor, and then presented a memorial, saying, "A memorial has arrived from the border, stating that Western Liang has been secretly reinforcing its troops and transporting provisions to the border..."

This was expected, and neither the Emperor nor Xie Jingyan was surprised.

The crown prince of Western Liang died in Great Chu. It was impossible for Western Liang not to demand an explanation from Great Chu. This was a preparation for a large-scale military invasion. If the court could not provide an explanation, they would directly attack Great Chu.

The Minister of War came to see the Emperor to discuss whether to send more troops to the border to prepare for the attack, so as not to be caught off guard by the Western Liang. Cities are always easy to defend and difficult to attack, and once they are captured, it is not easy to take them back.

The Emperor looked at Xie Jingyan and asked, "What do you think, Yan'er?"

Xie Jingyan said, "This battle is probably inevitable, but the death of the Crown Prince of Xiliang is in the wrong of our Great Chu. We cannot send reinforcements to Xiliang, but we cannot do nothing either. We can first transport grain to the border, and then let Marquis Pingyang lead the Iron Cavalry to Jianan Pass for training. Once the battle starts, the Iron Cavalry can arrive in two days."

Before the Emperor could speak, the Minister of War said, "Prince Ling's arrangements are very appropriate. He has taken precautions without giving anyone cause for criticism."

The Emperor nodded, "Let's do it this way for now."

After discussing preparations for war, Xie Jingyan left the imperial study half an hour later.

After leaving the Imperial Study, Xie Jingyan headed towards the outside of the palace. When he arrived at the horse parking area, he had just mounted his horse when he saw the First Prince riding over.

Upon seeing Xie Jingyan, the eldest prince came over to greet him, "What a coincidence to run into my sixth brother in the palace! These days, the smallpox outbreak at the Ling Prince's residence has terrified Father. Did you know that a plague would break out in the capital? Why did your residence neglect it?"

Xie Jingyan looked at the eldest prince with a detached and indifferent expression. "I never expected that someone in the manor would contract smallpox. Even the best-laid plans can go wrong."

The eldest prince said, "Fortunately, my sixth brother and sister-in-law are both safe and sound, which is a stroke of good luck amidst misfortune."

After exchanging a few pleasantries, the eldest prince went to visit the Empress Dowager, so one of them left the palace and the other went to Shou Kang Palace.

Xie Jingyan rode back to his residence. As he stepped into the Moyuxuan Pavilion, he saw the wet nurse holding a child in the sun, while Shen Wan played with the child using a rattle drum.

Seeing him enter, Shen Wan held the child's hand and smiled, "Father is back."

Those five simple words made Xie Jingyan feel completely at ease.

But he didn't want to hold the baby; the trauma of the baby urinating on him was still there.

Xie Jingyan walked over, and Shen Wan asked, "You've been back for so long, what important matter does Father want to see you about?"

Just as Xie Jingyan was about to speak, a maidservant came over and said, "Your Highness, the Emperor has sent someone to deliver a message, saying that you are to bring the Princess and the young prince into the palace..."

No wonder his father didn't say anything when he contradicted him; it turns out he was waiting for this.

She even resorted to scheming to see him in order to see the child.

Shen Wan looked up at the sky and said, "It's almost lunchtime. Is Father Emperor summoning us to the palace now to have us stay for a meal?"

Xie Jingyan was not so obedient, especially since he had just returned from the palace. He directly instructed the maid, "Go and report back that we will enter the palace again tomorrow."

Shen Wan asked, "Is it alright if we don't go today?"

“Father only told me to bring you into the palace, but he didn’t specify that it would be today. Obviously, he didn’t expect me to bring you into the palace today,” Xie Jingyan said.

"..."