Chapter 43

Changxin Palace.

The place where Concubine Chu lived was turned upside down.

He hid the powder of the Wangye Fruit and planned to use it for the second and third time, but it naturally could not escape the grasp of Eunuch Yu, a palace search expert.

He gave the evidence to two imperial doctors for examination, and only after reaching a definite conclusion did he report it to Emperor Chongzhao.

A small bottle of powdered licorice leaves was placed on the table.

No one could tolerate doing such a cruel thing to a child just to satisfy one's own selfish desires, not to mention that the Seventh Prince was very friendly to the palace maids in the Zichen Palace.

Eunuch Yu said angrily, "Your Majesty, someone wants to depose the prince! If the little prince gets infected with this, wouldn't it be... wouldn't it be..."

The Purple Palace was cold and silent.

No one expected that Concubine Chu would be so bold as to use such forbidden substances to make the prince addicted and then keep him.

Just like Concubine Chu couldn't imagine why the Seventh Prince would suddenly have the urge to give the egg custard to the Emperor, she couldn't imagine that the Seventh Prince was so sensitive to the taste of the angelica powder in the egg custard... so sensitive that she only added a little bit and the child showed abnormality.

He obviously didn't eat a single bite!

It was as if the Seventh Prince knew what was in the custard.

But no matter how ridiculous it was, no one would doubt that this was a two-year-old kid's trick, and everyone could only blame it on her bad luck.

The way Emperor Chongzhao looked at Concubine Chu was as if he was looking at a dead person.

Poisoning the prince is a crime punishable by extermination of the entire clan. If it is not exposed, it is as rich as heaven. If it is exposed, it is hopeless. Concubine Chu held on tightly and refused to let go: "This is all someone framing me, Your Majesty! Someone is disgusted with my adoption of the Seventh Prince, so they use such a sinister method. Your Majesty, Your Majesty, please believe me!"

Emperor Chongzhao: "There are people from your mother's family in the Beimensi Inspection and Transportation Office. Your brother was imprisoned for transporting prohibited items back to the Great Zhou, including the powder of the leaf fruit. You are telling me now that you didn't know and it has nothing to do with you?"

He squatted down and lifted up Concubine Chu's chin, whose face was covered with traces of tears of fear.

Emperor Chongzhao said calmly, "I originally thought that since your face somewhat resembles hers and you have her character, you would be able to take good care of Xiaoqi. But the result really disappoints me. You have really tarnished this face."

"No, no, Your Majesty, please listen to my explanation. I can explain——"

Emperor Chong Zhao pretended not to hear. "However, my beloved concubine, what you did was for your family after all. Otherwise, you wouldn't have taken such a risk, right? Your courage is commendable. I must reward you with something."

He studied Concubine Chu's facial features and smiled slightly.

"How about I reward my beloved concubine and exterminate the three clans?"

Concubine Chu was stunned, and then said shrilly: "Your Majesty!!!"

Eunuch Yu waved his hand, and the guards outside came in and dragged Concubine Chu away.

Not long after, the Beimensi Transportation Officer came in and reported the in-and-out records that he had found. "Your Majesty, before Concubine Chu's brother was imprisoned, he did ask someone to send something to the palace. At the time, he just said it was a birthday gift for his sister. After the Transportation Officer checked it, he found no problem and approved it."

"The following is the confession of the palace servants on duty that day. After receiving bribes from Concubine Chu's younger brother, they confessed that they had indeed seen a bottle of something similar to spices placed in a box that day. It was the bottle that was seized from Concubine Chu. But they didn't know it was a forbidden item."

Emperor Chongzhao: "She was not wronged."

"Pass the decree down. Concubine Chu will be punished for both the crime of framing the heir to the throne and the crime of smuggling contraband. Her entire clan will be exterminated, and her entire clan will be banned from holding official positions for three generations."

Eunuch Yu: "Yes, Your Majesty."

Emperor Chongzhao: "It's time to clean up the transportation department again, Mr. Transportation Officer."

The Beimensi inspector was so frightened by the word "sir" that he quickly apologized: "I promise that this will never happen again in the future!"

The Inspection and Transportation Department has been cleaned up by emperors of every generation, but problems still occur.

There are always people who can't stick to their bottom line.

When the water is too clear, there will be no fish. Normally, we would just turn a blind eye to it, but this time the incident involving Concubine Chu is enough to cost the entire Inspection and Transportation Department its heads.

The inspector cursed his men in his heart.

Emperor Chongzhao: "I will only give you one last chance. If you make any mistakes, you will be beheaded. I will give you fifty strokes of the cane. Count them yourself. Get out of here."

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

After dealing with Concubine Chu and the Jianyun Office, Emperor Chongzhao thought back to the past two days and sighed deeply, "I originally wanted to choose a mother for Xiaoqi, but I didn't expect it to turn out like this. It almost harmed him instead."

Eunuch Yu: "How can you be blamed for this? It's clearly Concubine Chu who doesn't know what's good for her."

"Bring him here. Looks like he'll have to sleep here with me today."

Eunuch Yu responded, and Qu Dubian was brought in from the west warm pavilion. Concubine Chu was no longer in the palace, and it seemed that the matter was probably resolved.

He nestled in Ye Xiaoyuan's arms.

Emperor Chongzhao: "You haven't recovered yet?"

Ye Xiaoyuan held Qu Dubian in his arms and knelt down to salute, "Your Majesty, the imperial physician said that the young prince may have been frightened and has a slight fever."

Emperor Chongzhao frowned and said, "Come here and give me a hug."

He took his little son, reached out and touched his forehead, feeling a little relieved.

Fortunately, the temperature is not very hot.

"Are you really scared? You are usually so brave."

The simulator's third-level fever had not yet kicked in, and Qu Watanabe's temperature was only slightly high, but he was still affected. His spirit of charging forward in the puppy car deflated little by little like a deflated balloon.

Qu Dubian strangled Emperor Chongzhao's neck with his arms and said in a muffled voice: "Does Empress Chu want to harm me? I don't like her as my mother, but I didn't treat her harshly. I just ignored her."

It's because you ignored her that she came up with such a vicious trick.

Fortunately it was exposed and Xiaoqi didn't fall for it, otherwise if Xiaoqi was raised by a person of such character, it would be hard to say whether he could grow up safely.

Emperor Chongzhao: "I will find a better one for you."

Qu Watanabe choked.

He saw through Dog Dad's vision in selecting people and couldn't trust him at all.

He was really confused, "Isn't it okay for Empress Xuan? I like her very much."

"No," Emperor Chongzhao said quickly, "I'm worried that she will beat you."

Qu Duanbian was silent for a moment: "Has Empress Xuan ever beaten you?"

Emperor Chongzhao said angrily: "Nonsense, who told you that?"

The countdown was about to start. This time he was not in a hurry, so he could take his time. When the time came, Qu Dubian felt a heat rising from his body.

He sighed, it was so warm.

If anyone hugs him in winter, he will have an automatic heat storage heater.

His body became weaker and weaker, his head resting on Emperor Chongzhao's shoulder. He yawned sleepily, and the tip of his nose suddenly felt itchy. Qu Dubian reached out and touched it, and a touch of bright red appeared on his fingertips.

Qu Watanabe: “…”

Although he had a slightly higher tolerance for his own blood, he still wiped his fingers on the emperor's body in disgust. Fortunately, he didn't eat much that night, otherwise he would have vomited loudly.

Level 3 was indeed different. Would my nasal mucosa bleed every time in the future? He would rather not brush this score, unless the option of blocking the sense of smell was really released in the future.

Emperor Chongzhao felt a little itchy on his neck, as if something was sliding down.

Could this kid have fallen asleep on his shoulder and drooled? Thinking of this, Emperor Chong Zhao turned his little son who was lying on his shoulder over and said, "If you are sleepy, then..."

His pupils suddenly shrank.

Qu Dubian felt dizzy and was still wiping the blood from his nose. Some of the blood was almost getting into his mouth. He couldn't stand it.

While wiping it, he raised his head belatedly, as if he found the frightened expression on Lao Deng's face too funny, and he couldn't help but grinned as well.

Emperor Chongzhao couldn't laugh at all. He stood up suddenly and said sternly, "Imperial Physician!"

-

Changxin Palace.

It was a chaotic scene.

All the people in Concubine Chu's palace were arrested. Concubine Rong did not expect things to turn out like this, so she hid in her palace and did not come out.

The fifth prince followed her and said, "Mother, will my seventh brother come back?"

Concubine Rong looked at his face and patted her chest in fear.

"No, Concubine Chu looks so inconspicuous, but she is actually crazy. She dares to do such a thing. No, she actually has that kind of thing."

"What?"

"It's something that can turn people into fools," said Rong Guiren. "Fortunately, you have your mother to protect you, otherwise you might be harmed by others at any time."

"Mother, I will take a break from classes in a few days. I want to go to the Purple Palace to see my seventh brother."

Rong Guiren's words of refusal turned around in her mouth, "Okay, show more love for your brother."

Now that Concubine Chu of Changxin Palace is gone, she is the only one left. If her son can please His Majesty, the position of concubine will be within his reach.

-

In order to gain more lifespan value, when Qu Watanabe did not turn on the shield, the third-level heating power was so terrifying.

Qu Watanabe's brain is so slow that he's like a mentally retarded person.

The nosebleed stopped, but he was stupid no matter what he did. However, his body reacted instinctively, remembering his master's habit of tormenting Emperor Chongzhao, and he spit out every time he drank the medicine.

He didn't say a word no matter who asked him. He just sat cross-legged on the bed with his head drooped and cried.

No one could appease him, and finally even Dahei who was outside was called in.

The low whining sound of the big dog caught Qu Dubian's attention. He finally raised his head, then slowly climbed down from the bed. Under the terrified gaze of Emperor Chongzhao, he staggered and squatted in front of Dahei.

Dahei lowered his head and sniffed the cub in front of him.

The Twoleg cub is sick.

It whined twice anxiously, then suddenly rushed out, grabbed a piece of meat that Qu Dubian had prepared for it from the puppy cart, ran back quickly, and threw it next to the child.

Then he arched Watanabe's shoulders a little anxiously.

It divides out its food.

Qu Dubian watched for a while, then raised his hands and hugged the big dog's head. The pent-up emotions in his heart found an outlet with the fever.

He said to Dahei with tears in his eyes: "I want to go home..."

I want to go home.

Eunuch Yu: "Your Highness, this is your home!"

Qu Watanabe closed his eyes tightly. Under normal circumstances, he would not have such strong emotions. After his body became weak, his control over his emotions was almost reduced to zero.

He wasn't talking about this home.

His home is thousands of years later.

But he couldn't tell anyone, and no one could help him share this loneliness.

Qu Dubian could only hold Dahei's head and, in the context of his current identity as a child, express his loneliness that no one understood.

-

A dinner time.

The news that Concubine Chu had secretly murdered the Seventh Prince spread out. Although Concubine Xuan and Concubine Guo, who lived in Shunning Palace, were far away from the harem turmoil, Concubine Guo had several close friends among the concubines and heard about it.

After returning, he told Concubine Xuan.

Guo Changzai also liked the Seventh Prince from the bottom of her heart. After all, her daughter would be very happy every time the Seventh Prince came.

In addition, the Seventh Prince praised the food she cooked, so no one would have any bad feelings towards such a child.

As soon as they returned to Shunning Palace and finished talking about this matter, Guo Changzai was still indignant and said, "What a vicious heart! Isn't this clearly bullying the Seventh Prince for not having his mother to take care of him in the harem? If Concubine Yun... Empress Dejing were still alive, how could the Seventh Prince be bullied by these filthy things!"

"Mother, is something wrong with my brother?"

Guo Changzai touched Zhiyi's face and said, "My dear daughter, your seventh brother is fine. The bad guy has been caught."

The little princess waved her fist angrily, "If they bully her brother again, Zhiyi will throw stones at them. How abominable."

Guo Changzai: "Sister, why don't you speak?"

Concubine Xuan raised her hand and called her chief maid: "Go outside and find out if there is any new news about Xiao Qi."

The head maid was called Xinqing. She had been with Concubine Xuan for many years and was very calm and steady.

She was out for about a quarter of an hour and then brought back the news, "Your Majesty, there's news from the Purple Palace that the Seventh Prince was frightened by the incident with Concubine Chu and now has a high fever. The Imperial Hospital is treating him."

Concubine Xuan stood up immediately.

"high fever?"

Xin Qing said worriedly, "Yes, the Empress has also passed away. It is said that her condition is more serious than when Madam Hou entered the palace. His Majesty only asked the imperial physician to go in and see her, but we don't know the exact condition yet."

Concubine Xuan couldn't help but tighten her handkerchief.

"If you are worried, you can go and take a look. The queens are also there."

Concubine Xuan shook her head and frowned, "I always feel that things are not that simple. According to what you said, Concubine Chu did not seem to go to the Imperial Garden to block Xiao Qi at the beginning. It is impossible that His Majesty appointed her to be the first person to look after the prince, and she had bad intentions."

Guo Changzai was startled for a moment: "Sister, are you saying that there is someone behind this?"

"You and I have watched the harem's tactics for so many years, how could we not know the tactics of borrowing a knife to kill someone." Concubine Xuan pondered for a moment, "You take Zhiyi back first, I will think about it myself."

Guo Changzai took Zhiyi away, and Concubine Xuan came to the desk, her hesitation visibly evident.

After a few seconds, she suddenly seemed to realize something and smiled.

She was still struggling with whether to accept the Seventh Prince and whether she was really ready to bear the Seventh Prince's expectations and love.

Little did she know that from the moment she hesitated, fate had already made the decision for her.

She closed her eyes, and when she opened them again, there was only determination in her eyes.

"Grind the ink."

Xinqing ground the ink for her, and Concubine Xuan picked up the pen and wrote a short letter quickly, which she rolled into the size of her little finger and stuffed into a small bamboo tube.

"The North City Gate Inspection and Transportation Office is in chaos right now. Pass this letter on and make sure it reaches the Xie Mansion, you know."

Xin Qing responded solemnly: "Don't worry, Madam."

Everyone knows the Inspection and Transportation Office well. His Majesty sometimes turns a blind eye to it for the sake of information flow. It is possible that many well-known families have sent people there, and of course the Xie family is one of them.

This is the first time the Empress has sent a letter home in five years.

-

Xie Mansion.

The swallows that used to fly in front of the Wang and Xie mansions now fly into the homes of ordinary people.

The Xie family in the capital, although not the Xie in the poem, is a family famous for their honest officials.

Concubine Xuan's original name was Xie Mingxuan. She was the daughter of Grand Tutor Xie who came of age later in life. She had only one older brother and was doted on by the whole family.

It's just that she had conflicts with Grand Tutor Xie. After Old Lady Xie passed away, Concubine Xuan had little contact with her family.

At this moment, a letter was suddenly sent out, and the current head of the Xie family, Concubine Xuan's brother, Xie Jingshan, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works, rushed directly into his father's room.

Master Xie was soaking his feet. He glared at you and asked, "What's the matter? Why are you so flustered? Have you learned the calmness I taught you?"

"Yes, Dad, I was reckless," Xie Jingshan took a few deep breaths, cupped his hands, and narrated in a steady voice, "My sister wrote to me, just now..."

"Why didn't you tell me about your sister's letter earlier?!"

Master Xie blew his beard, jumped out of the footbath, and snatched the letter from Xie Jingshan in the blink of an eye.

Xie Jingshan: “…”

He said helplessly, "The letter only said that they asked the Xie family to check whether Concubine Chu's brother had contact with anyone in prison, or whether anyone had ever inquired about Concubine Chu's family background, and who among the concubines could interfere with the Ministry of Justice and the Dali Temple."

Grand Tutor Xie: "Who is Concubine Chu?"

Xie Jingshan: "The news just came from the palace that Concubine Chu used a forbidden substance to poison the Seventh Prince. Although she failed, His Majesty was furious and issued an order to exterminate the three clans. The Dali Temple and the Ministry of Justice will discuss this matter in detail at the court meeting tomorrow."

Upon hearing this, Grand Tutor Xie fell into deep thought. He was old and had already retired.

Currently, only Xie Jingshan from the main branch of the Xie family works in the Qingshui Office of the Ministry of Works, and the rest hold positions with good reputations but little power.

They have a good reputation as an upright official family in the capital.

But that's what he meant.

The current Majesty is too easily suspicious of high-ranking officials. When he was an official in the court, he had many disciples. Over time, there is a fear that factions may form.

Only if he retires and the younger generations of the family are in important but non-critical positions, or even demoted to local levels, will they have a future of advancement and will not be suppressed.

Even so, with the Xie family's extensive network of contacts, it would be easy to investigate something.

Similarly, having served as an official for most of his life, he is very sensitive to some things.

"Your sister has not yet recovered from the loss of her child. His Majesty wants to choose a mother for the Seventh Prince, and she came to me at this juncture..."

Master Xie and Xie Jingshan looked at each other.

Xie Jingshan: "My sister wants to adopt the seventh prince!"

"But if we adopt the prince, if His Majesty the Seventh Prince wants to fight for power in the future, then my Xie family will naturally stand on the side of the Seventh Prince. Dad, this is different from your original idea of ​​not taking sides."

Master Xie held the note in his hand, and walked around the room barefoot twice with his hands behind his back.

Xie Jingshan looked at the wet footprints on the ground, seeming to want to say something but stopping himself.

"In fact, it is normal for the Sword Holding Marquisate to take action in this matter."

"Humph, how long has it been since the old lady of the Marquis entered the palace last time? The Marquisate has always responded whenever something happens to the Seventh Prince. It was okay once, and it can be said to be support, but it's always like this... The old Marquis is still in the Northern Frontier, what do you want His Majesty to think? Is this a threat?"

Master Xie sighed, "Madam Hou should not move, but we can give her the news and see how she responds."

Xie Jingshan: "What about us?"

Master Xie threw the note into the charcoal basin, and flames suddenly jumped up.

"The Xie family is not so afraid of trouble. If your sister can come out of this, it might be a good idea to adopt the Seventh Prince."

"Investigate this matter!"

-

The capital city is home to all the powerful people in the Great Zhou.

Anyone who can survive in the capital, under the emperor's feet, more or less has some means.

The seventh prince is on the hot search again in the court.

The recent events were all related to the Seventh Prince, and the court officials were almost tired of hearing about it. Before entering the palace, they bought milk tea to refresh themselves, and after drinking it on the way, they placed it on the high shelf outside the palace.

Since drinking a cup of hot milk tea every day had become a habit, Emperor Chongzhao specially built a rack at the door to place their bamboo tube cups.

If for no other reason, it was just so that after drinking milk tea, these ministers could be more energetic and speak louder when they went to court.

Civil officials and military generals lined up on both sides, with their heads bowed, waiting for the emperor to come to court.

After waiting for a long time, the time has exceeded the normal time by a quarter of an hour.

Everyone was gossiping about others, saying that Mr. So-and-so was punished by his wife to kneel on the washboard yesterday, and that Mr. So-and-so was caught cheating in the Taoist temple a few days ago and was so angry that he vomited blood and has been bedridden ever since. Some were also tearing off a side of the paper and playing Go on it.

Now everyone is wondering: Why hasn't His Majesty come yet? Is he going to attend the morning court? If he doesn't, they will have to go home.

After a while, there was movement ahead.

All the ministers hurriedly straightened their clothes, and saw a huge long screen appear first, which almost covered the area around the dragon throne and the aisles on both sides.

Then they saw the extremely blurry figure of His Majesty. He seemed to be holding something in his arms. He walked from behind the screen and sat on the dragon throne.

Several palace servants brought a wooden tray and placed something on the table. It smelled delicious, so it was probably food.

That's strange.

Your Majesty never eats during court sessions, at most he just drinks tea.

Today there is a screen and snacks, what is going on?

Eunuch Yu cleared his throat and said, "Go up—" His voice paused, and the tone suddenly dropped, "Go up."

Ministers: “…”

He suppressed his puzzlement and bowed, "Your Majesty!"

The sound is loud.

Emperor Chongzhao frowned. These ministers must have eaten too well on a daily basis, which is why one or two of them made such loud noises.

He looked down at the sleeping child in his arms. He was sleeping very soundly and was not woken up.

This child cannot leave him when he is sick. He worked with the imperial physician to take care of him last night and did not sleep all night. When he got up to attend the morning court, this child grabbed his arm tightly and bit his hair, refusing to let go.

There are only two ways to save his hair. First, cut it off. Second, bring the brat to court.

The hair on your body is given by your parents. Unless it is a natural disaster, the destruction of the country, or a national mourning, the emperor cannot cut his hair. He argued with Qu Dubian for a long time, but he couldn't get him out. The scene last night was really scary, and Emperor Chongzhao didn't dare to wake him up again.

The emperor bowed his head and admitted defeat.

She rolled up the quilt and took the child to court.

Emperor Chongzhao was sitting on the dragon throne at this time, and he felt as if he was in a dream.

If he could go back to the past, he really wanted to slap himself on the head. Why did he have to choose Concubine Chu? In just two days, he was back to the difficult days when he first took care of Xiaoqi when he was sick.

He touched the dark circles under his eyes and sighed.

How long have you been relaxed?

The commander of the imperial guards, Zuo Tianlang, stepped out and said, "Your Majesty, I have arrested the relatives of the Chu family in Beijing yesterday. They are now detained in the Ministry of Justice, awaiting their fate."

Qu Watanabe moved.

Emperor Chongzhao immediately covered his ears, waited for a while, and breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that he had calmed down.

If she cried in the court, and he tried to comfort her like he did in the Purple Palace, his image as a wise and brave man would probably no longer exist. He couldn't even imagine how history books would record it.

There was a hint of gnashing of teeth in his voice.

"Commander Zuo, you look very full, why are you so loud?"

Zuo Tianlang laughed loudly upon hearing this, cupped his hands, and said with a look of sincere gratitude, "It is all because of your majesty's kindness that you allow us to drink milk tea in the palace. Once I take a sip of this, my hunger is gone. Hahahaha!"

"My Lords, don't you agree? I am getting stronger and stronger as I work!"

Qu Watanabe was annoyed: "Ah, Daddy is so noisy, Daddy is so noisy..."

Emperor Chongzhao covered his youngest son's mouth and said to the commander of the left, "My dear, please shut up. It will be bad if you hurt your throat."

These words were almost squeezed out from between teeth.

Zuo Tianlang was as quiet as a chicken, and his voice was as soft as a mosquito: "Yes."

He joined the ranks, and the court fell into an eerie silence.

The attendant held his forehead with his hands, he was becoming more and more confused about the court meetings. He had to record the facts every day and polish them at the same time. Doesn't anyone care about his hair?

We are all workers, and everyone’s life is important.

He picked up his pen and wrote:

[On X day, the left commander said at the court meeting: Your Majesty has shown sympathy for all officials by giving you new drinks!

The emperor said: "Your voice is loud and you have eaten too much."

The left commander laughed and said: This is the benevolence of your majesty.

The emperor said: You should shut up, I'm afraid it will hurt your throat.

Commander Zuo gladly returned.

All the ministers were envious.]