Chapter 909 The Emotional Entanglements of the Elders

Only now did everyone realize the identities of Prince Kang and Princess Kang. With the Emperor present, no one dared to discuss or make any rash remarks, and everyone shut their mouths.

Soon Xie Kang and Princess Kang were brought before the Emperor.

Princess Kang held onto Consort Chang's arm tightly, preventing her from escaping.

Upon seeing Xie Shang, Yuezhi was filled with rage. She was so angry that she stammered, "Did the Emperor send Xie Kang to Shengjing just to find a woman? Your Xie family really knows how to bully people. He's already so old and still goes boating on the lake with a woman. The two of them are even being all lovey-dovey. Who is he trying to humiliate by finding an old woman? Is this how people behave?"

Xie Shang sat calmly in the main seat in the middle of the cabin. He picked up his teacup and took a sip. "Aunt Wang, please calm down. Go and change your clothes. The night air is cool, so don't catch a cold."

The Yuezhi were stunned, then said, "Xie Kang wasn't like this when he was in the Northwest. He didn't dare to take a concubine, but he changed after returning to Shengjing."

She threw Consort Chang in front of Xie Shang and cursed, "Why did he have to pick an old woman of all people?"

Chang Mingxiu covered her face, looking aggrieved, "It's not what you think."

Xie Shang sneered inwardly. What else could it be? He deliberately asked, "Uncle Wang, please explain. What exactly is going on? Who is this woman?"

"She was actually just a wet nurse in the Fourth Prince's residence." Xie Kang's explanation seemed somewhat weak; the dignified Consort Chang had suddenly become a wet nurse.

Xie Shang hadn't expected Prince Kang to explain Consort Chang's identity in this way. He looked a little embarrassed and quickly took a sip of wine to cover his embarrassment. He then glanced outside unconsciously, wondering why Ruan Ruan hadn't come in yet.

Consort Chang knew that her identity must not be exposed. If she died, no one would know who she was. The royal family was so ruthless. She had done so much for Xie Kang, spent half her life in loneliness in the harem, and distanced herself from the late emperor for him, but he wanted to abandon her. How could she accept that?

Consort Chang struggled to break free from Princess Kang's wrist and, with the air of a consort, said in a deep voice, "I have known Xie Kang for more than 30 years. If he hadn't gone to the Northwest back then, I would have been the one to marry him. Even after all these years, he has only ever loved me. That's why we made an appointment to go boating on the lake tonight."

Yue Shi was furious and raised her hand to slap her, but Chang Mingxiu seemed to have expected her to do so.

She grabbed Princess Kang's wrist and shoved her hard, nearly causing Princess Kang to fall.

Princess Kang said coldly, "Who do you think you are? How dare you speak to me like that? I am Xie Kang's wife."

Chang Mingxiu sneered, "Wife? You've been married to him for so many years, do you really treat him as your husband? Your Yuezhi clan has power and influence in the Northwest. You bully him because he's a down-on-his-luck prince, and you've taken him in as a son-in-law. You suppress him at every turn, look down on him, and make him live without any dignity. You still dare to say you're his wife? How could a real wife wrong her husband? You're just raising him like a dog!"

The Yuezhi said coldly to Xie Kang, "Is this what you told her? Have you suffered all kinds of grievances in our Yuezhi?"

Xie Kang was indeed down on his luck when he was demoted to the Northwest. His rebellion failed, and he had no power of his own. He lived a very hard life in the Northwest. It was the local people of the Northwest who took him in. Later, he married a daughter of the Yuezhi tribe. He lived a somewhat stifled life and did not have the honor and prestige he had in Shengjing. Fortunately, he survived.

At this moment, Xie Kang just wanted to hide, but he was indeed not comfortable living in the Yue family. The natives of the Northwest did not take the princes of the Great Zhou seriously at all. They were not governed by the laws of the Great Zhou. Although they were not an independent country, no one dared to provoke them. The Great Zhou and the natives kept to themselves and would live in peace as long as there was no conflict.

Xie Shang knew that the Northern Xiao Kingdom had dealings with the northwestern natives, and he kept this matter in mind.

-

Meanwhile, Jiang Fenghua remained on the deck enjoying the cool breeze. Prince Kang and his consort were brought before the emperor, and guards stood watch on the shore. Naturally, the onlookers on Baihua Lake dispersed.

In everyone's eyes, it could only mean that Prince Kang had a woman outside and was caught red-handed by Princess Kang. This kind of drama would play out every day in the families of ordinary people, let alone among high-ranking officials, nobles, and even royal relatives.

There's no need for anyone to care about things that are commonplace.

Xie Yun walked up to Jiang Fenghua and said, "Your Majesty the Empress seemed quite happy while watching the play!"

Jiang Fenghua glanced at Xie Yun, then thought of how he had deliberately exposed her identity. She just wanted to laugh at Xie Yun for being stupid. Everyone says that family scandals should not be aired in public, but he didn't seem to think that way.

Jiang Fenghua said, "I also sympathize with Aunt Kang. Prince Yun also saw it. Uncle Kang seems to prefer other women. I shouldn't interfere in the emotional entanglements of our elders."

So she didn't go in to uphold justice for them; Xie Shang alone was enough, since the matter was under Xie Shang's control.

His real intention was to set fire to Xie Kang's residence, because he simply did not believe that Xie Kang would not rebel.

Jiang Fenghua also wanted to know who had relayed the news of Xie Kang's meeting with Consort Chang to the Yue family. The Kang Prince's lineage hadn't made many moves in Shengjing, and the Yue family and her two children hadn't shown their faces. Many people in Shengjing didn't know their identities.

The feud between the late emperor and Xie Kang was over decades ago, and no one would care whether he had rebelled or not.

Xiao Shang was quite close to the Yuezhi, but Xie Kang and Consort Chang's affair was kept very secret. He knew nothing about it. He only appeared at the Shang residence during the day and then ran away. So this was not something Xiao Shang planned.

Jiang Fenghua kept wondering who had exposed Xie Kang's relationship with Consort Chang to Princess Kang.

She was quick-witted, analyzing the pros and cons. Xie Kang certainly didn't want Yue Anxin to know that he had another woman in Shengjing, and even a daughter. Having an affair with the late emperor's concubine was not a glorious thing.

Alternatively, it's not impossible for him to use this incident to leave Shengjing City.

If the Yuezhi cause trouble, she will definitely leave. What excuse will Xie Shang use to detain the Yuezhi in Shengjing?

She looked at Xie Yun and also thought it was impossible, because he had been imprisoned by Xie Shang's men and had only just been released, so he knew nothing about this matter.

Xie Yun frowned slightly upon hearing the Empress's high-sounding words. He didn't care how many women his father had outside, because he was a man. He only cared about why the Emperor had kept them in Shengjing, even making up various excuses, and now another woman had appeared.

He knew things weren't that simple, and he even secretly sent a message to his maternal grandfather, waiting for news from the Northwest.

Xie Yun thought his message had been spread, but little did he know that the entire Kangwang Mansion was under Xie Shang's surveillance, and his message had not been sent out.

Xie Shang's voice came from inside the cabin. He said with difficulty, "It is normal for men in the Great Zhou to have three wives and four concubines. Uncle Kang has just fallen in love with a woman. He has not done anything to break the law. I cannot put him in jail. Besides, does Aunt Kang really want me to lock Uncle Kang up?"

The Yuezhi were certainly reluctant to let Xie Kang go to jail. She pointed at Chang Mingxiu and said, "Drag her out and kill her, you shameless vixen."