Chapter 57

"What nonsense!"

Even the emperor felt a little embarrassed at this moment. He glanced to the side with his drooping eyes and saw the prince with a pale face, bent over anxiously and not daring to respond. Then he knew what the prince had done.

Although the two had been engaged, they had not yet married. He was so impatient that he made an unmarried girl pregnant with his child, and the girl was a noble lady from the Yao family, a relative of his.

How did the Yao family raise such a girl? Even if the prince was a scoundrel, how could he be allowed to do such a thing?

Now, not only has the matter been exposed, but it has also been exposed to all the civil and military officials in the court, and even among the women in the backyard. I'm afraid that before today, the whole capital will know about the embarrassing thing the prince has done.

The emperor was so embarrassed that he was so angry that he wanted to slap his son twice for not being able to control himself.

"Prince! Come out and talk!"

Xiao Yan was covered in cold sweat and knelt tremblingly beside the emperor. He lowered his head and glanced back twice, only to see Chunying, who had just been whispering in his ear, almost fainting with a pale face. She leaned against the servant and looked at him cautiously twice.

It was a good thing, but it was picked out at this time. He really couldn't laugh. He just regretted that he had called Chunying a few times, but how could it be such a coincidence that she got pregnant.

This kind of thing would bring shame to the royal family before the marriage. My father values ​​the royal family's reputation the most, and he will definitely not let him off easily this time.

But there was no other way. When the time came, I had to save him and his mother first.

"I was confused for a moment. Please punish me, Father!"

The ministers behind the emperor were watching him closely, keeping silent but muttering a lot in their hearts. The misconduct before marriage could be a big or small matter, but who asked him to be exposed in front of everyone, which was a serious offense.

How could the emperor not know what these people behind him were thinking? They were just a bunch of old stubborn people who grumbled about the ancestral temple etiquette all day long. Even if he was reluctant to punish them, these old men would write to him behind his back to force him to issue an edict.

So we can only blame this disappointing son!

The emperor frowned deeply and said, "The Crown Prince will go to Taihang Mountain to worship his ancestors starting today. He cannot leave without permission until the wedding day. Prince Shou will temporarily take over the official duties."

After hearing the punishment, Xiao Yan was so angry that his face turned half blue. Not to mention that worshiping ancestors in Taihang Mountains meant practicing like a monk for several months, not being allowed to eat meat or drink alcohol, and not being allowed to see outsiders.

He couldn't accept the mere thought of handing over the power in his hands to Xiao Heng.

Who is he to dare to take over the affairs in his hands? Being able to hold the position of the Eastern Palace means that his power will be even higher. By then, these court officials who are opportunistic will not be willing to wait for him to come back. I am afraid that they will go to Xiao Heng to curry favor with him while he is away.

Thinking of this, he subconsciously looked at his mother, wanting her to say a few words for him at this time.

However, when he looked up, he saw that his mother did not look at him after hearing his father's punishment, but looked at his uncle behind his father. They looked at each other secretly behind the people, his uncle shook his head slightly, and his mother just lowered her head, not intending to say anything.

Suddenly, something extremely strange took root in his heart. He couldn't tell what it was, but he had a vague feeling that something was wrong.

"Queen, what do you say?"

Perhaps because the queen didn't say anything, the emperor was a little surprised and turned to walk towards her.

"You have no objection, right?"

The Queen bowed respectfully and said, "I have no objection. It is entirely up to Your Majesty to decide."

Seeing that the Empress had nothing to say, the Emperor fixed his eyes on the still-frightened Yao girl. He felt rather disappointed. She was clearly a girl well-raised by her family. Was the Yao family not as good as it used to be? This generation was simply unbearable.

He waved his hand, and Su Fu beside him immediately stepped forward and helped the man up.

"Go back and take good care of him, and don't embarrass yourself before the wedding day."

After saying this, the emperor lost his mood to enjoy the scenery today and returned to the palace with the queen.

The ministers had been enjoying the emperor's grace during the festive season, but now they saw a big joke. It was not appropriate to stay any longer, so each family's carriage rushed to the shore and picked up the people one by one.

The Crown Prince was the first to return to the East Palace with a grim face and prepare to leave. In the end, only the Yue family, the Yao family, the Teng family, Prince Shou and the eldest princess were left in the water pavilion.

Yao Chunying glared at Yue Qingning with anger, as if she wanted to eat her.

She thought that no one would notice it. Even when they were extremely intimate with each other, even the prince didn't notice. How did she see it?

Yue Qingning was helped up by her father and mother at this moment. Seeing the three generations of the Yao family looking at her with different expressions, she did not dodge, but stood up steadily in their sight without shaking.

She just wanted Yao Chunying to know that she was not drunk and everything was just a play to embarrass her.

Yao Chunying looked at her viciously, and couldn't help but hold her stomach and curse at her.

"You... Yue Qingning! You bitch..."

The evil words were stopped by the old man of the Yao family before they could come out. He had made enough of a fool of himself today, so how could he let his grandchildren continue to embarrass themselves in front of outsiders?

But Yue Qingning is not an ordinary girl. She may have had the help of the Teng family to notice the difference in Chunying's body, but she has the courage to point it out, which is not a courage that ordinary people can have.

She must have gone to his house because of Cui Huji, but this hatred came out of nowhere. General Cui died of malaria, and it was impossible to blame the eldest son who went with him. Could she also blame his family for not taking good care of General Cui?

Thinking of this, he looked at the old woman beside him who was glaring at the Yue family. He didn't know what was wrong with her today. She was always angry at the Yue family, as if she knew some hidden secret.

It was not convenient to ask questions here, so Old Master Yao had to ask his family to take Chunying back first. This family was hiding more and more secrets from him, and it was about to get out of hand.

As soon as the Yao family left, the rest of the people finally breathed a sigh of relief, especially Yue Qingning, who relaxed at this moment. The smell of alcohol was in his head, and his eyes became more and more confused.

Seeing that Ah Heng seemed to have something to ask, the princess asked the Yue and Teng families to leave first, leaving the two younger generations behind.

Zhong frowned, extremely worried, but she did not dare to delay the eldest princess's conversation. After her husband's comfort, she looked back three times and finally got on the carriage.

The eldest princess ordered the banquet to be cancelled and took the two girls to the Misty Rain Tower built along the mountain. Yue Qingning was drunk and lay there for a long time, only waking up at dusk.

As soon as her feet touched the ground, her head was in a mess as if there was a little person hammering the wall inside, and she was so anxious that she couldn't stand up.

Unexpectedly, when someone was called, the person who came was none other than His Royal Highness Prince Shou who was still staying here.

Seeing that she woke up, he washed a white handkerchief on the other side of the mist curtain and walked over with the cloth.

"Your Highness..."

The words she hadn't asked yet were stuck in her throat. She hadn't drunk like this for a long time, and her throat was so hoarse that she couldn't speak.

Prince Shou naturally poured her a glass of water and placed it in her hand considerately.

"Although I have a rough guess, I still want to hear it from you personally."

It was quite easy. He took the handkerchief and pressed it on Yue Qingning's forehead. She quickly raised her head and covered her face with the handkerchief with one hand. She blinked before she came to her senses.

"Your Highness's guess was correct. I tested Yao Chunying today, and she does know about this. Since she was involved in the assassination of Cui Lang, I will not let her off easily."

Hearing this, Prince Shou took off the scarf on her head and replaced it with another warm, wet handkerchief, saying helplessly.

"So urgent? So urgent that you don't have time to discuss it with me?"

There was nothing to say about this. He was really impatient for her to have some fun today. After all, there would never be a second chance like this.

"His Highness is in the Imperial Court, so it's inconvenient for him to see you."

Prince Shou looked at her raised little face, and her thin cheeks revealed after the wet cloth wiped off the powder. Her slender chin was like a sharp needle, deeply piercing his chest.

He could hardly bear the pain.

"Do you know what will happen to you today if your father makes a mistake and blames you?"

Yue Qingning took off the scarf from her face and said calmly, "I know."

"Know what? Know that you might be implicated by Thunder's Fury and your entire family will suffer as a result?"

She knew there were risks, but she also guessed that no matter how much His Majesty hated her for causing trouble, he would not pretend to be ignorant in front of everyone. As long as he still wanted to maintain the royal family's reputation, he would never teach her a lesson in public.

This is what she bet on!

There was silence for another moment. When Prince Shou saw her twisting her handkerchief and not speaking again, he knew that she was physically and mentally exhausted today and had drunk a lot of wine, so he couldn't bear to say anything harsh to her.

But she was really a cause for concern. He had clearly been told that he would be in charge of Cui Hu's affairs, but she disobeyed.

After Cui Hu's death, it seemed that the gentleness in her body also disappeared completely. Now she is like a hedgehog, showing her thorns to everyone she sees.

"The Yao family and the Crown Prince have both remembered you this time. They will definitely not let you have an easy time in the future. Why are you getting involved in something that doesn't need your involvement?"

Upon hearing this, Yue Qingning looked at him and asked him steadily.

"How can I interfere in my business? Cui Lang's business is my business!"

When she said this, her eyes were already filled with clear water. In the reflection of the lights, Prince Shou saw his image swaying in her eyes, but she clearly did not take him in.

He frowned and smiled in self-mockery, but the smile was actually a bit bitter, and he couldn't pretend anymore. He turned around and looked at her again, holding half of her cheek with a warm handkerchief in his hand.

"Are you some kind of Bodhisattva? How come everyone here is favored by you?"

Where did this vague sentence come from? Yue Qingning's tears, which were about to spill, hung in the air. She dodged the hand that Prince Shou extended strangely and shook her head in confusion.

Prince Shou sighed deeply, seeing that she seemed to have not understood at all. Perhaps it was because she was young, or perhaps she was just a stubborn blockhead.

He shook his head, pulled the towel from her hand, and dipped it in the water.

"Don't think about those things. If you have such a thing again, you must discuss it with me. Otherwise, if you do it again next time, I will punish you even if it's nothing serious."

Yue Qingning stared blankly at him as he wrung out the towel and pulled her hands over to him, carefully wiping her hands one by one. She felt a little weird and her whole body was covered with hair.

But seeing that she didn't answer, her "uncle" Prince Shou raised his eyes and glanced at her again. Yue Qingning didn't care about anything for the time being and vowed to discuss it with him first next time.

She thought that the two of them had been through thick and thin together, and hoped that they would be partners in crime for the rest of their lives.