Jiuzhu, Prince Chen, and Prince An all turned their eyes to Princess An.
Princess An turned her head silently and looked at the only doctor who didn't look at her: "Sir, mother has used this incense several times in recent days. Is it harmful to her body?"
"A few times won't have much of an impact." Doctor Yu glanced at her. The fact that she could eat secretly showed that her spleen and stomach were not affected at all.
"That's good." Princess An heaved a sigh of relief and asked the palace maid to give the doctor Xie Yin. She turned her head and looked at Prince An: "Your Highness, this incense was sent by Empress Wei Zhaoyi. Do you want it..."
As they are younger generations, they dare not make a decision lightly when it comes to other concubines.
"Fifth brother." Although Prince An was timid by nature, he was a little braver than usual when it came to the safety of his mother. "I want to report this to the Empress."
The Queen is the master of the harem. No matter how things develop, no one can bypass the Queen.
He was a little confused. He had been mediocre in both literary and martial arts since he was a child, and his personality was mediocre. He neither competed with his brothers for power and profit, nor did he act independently. The most outrageous thing he had done was to follow a few brothers to the injured fourth brother's room to boil a hot pot.
But it was the fifth brother who came up with the idea, and it was the eldest brother who ordered the palace servants to prepare. Even if the fourth brother wanted to hate someone, he shouldn't hate him the most.
As for his mother, after his father ascended the throne, he gave her the title of Zhaoyi. In the past few years, the title of his mother has never been promoted. On weekdays, when his father passed by her, he would not even glance at her.
Who would be so resourceful as to plot against them and their son?
What are you trying to achieve?
It can't be that he is trying to save some money for his father to support their family, right?
Suddenly, his expression changed and he looked fiercely at King Chen.
Could it be that someone discovered that he had succeeded in currying favor with someone and started to hate him?
Or maybe someone hates the fifth brother, but this person can't do anything to him, so he takes it out on him?
He only knew that competing with his brothers for the position of crown prince would be fraught with danger, but he did not expect that clinging to someone powerful would also be risky.
"It seems that we can't have Empress Zhaoyi's lunch for the time being." Prince Chen stood up and turned to look at Lu Zhaoyi who was walking back to the door: "Empress Zhaoyi, please go sit with our mother."
Lu Zhaoyi didn't expect that she had just gone out for a while, but when she came back, the faces of the young people changed. She asked anxiously, "What happened?"
Could it be that she secretly ate stinky tofu, fire-baked bread, ash-water rice cakes, snail noodles and other folk snacks and was discovered by the Prince?
There are rules in the palace, and you can't eat food from outside the palace at will. But these rules are basically turned a blind eye. Which concubine in the palace has not eaten food from outside the palace?
"Mother." Princess An's face turned pale. "There is a problem with the incense that Wei Zhaoyi sent you."
Of course, she didn't mention the slip of the tongue.
Lu Zhaoyi was slightly stunned, then nodded to Prince Chen and Jiuzhu: "It's time to go to the Empress Dowager. I need to trouble the Empress Dowager with my affairs."
She looked at the four young men in the hall and sighed in her heart.
The descendants of the royal family will eventually have to reach this point.
I hope the tragedy of the last years of Xian De will not be repeated on these princes.
Wei Zhaoyi was sitting at the table eating, and Princess Jing was standing by the table serving her food, her face looking a little pale.
After Princess Jing had taken a few bites of food, Wei Zhaoyi motioned for her to sit down: "I see you look unhappy, what happened?"
"My dear mother, my daughter-in-law's family just sent me a message that her uncle was taken to Jingzhao Prefecture by the Jinwu Guards for questioning." Princess Jing lowered her head and said respectfully, "I didn't mean to disturb your meal. Please forgive me."
"What's going on?"
"My daughter-in-law doesn't know either. She only knows that it was the order of Prince Chen and Prince An." Princess Jing forced a smile and said, "Prince Chen had a bad relationship with the noble families two years ago. Maybe there was some conflict again."
"I'm not surprised that Yun Duqing gave such an order. Why is Prince An trying to add to the excitement?" Wei Zhaoyi was a little confused. When did Prince An have the courage to do this?
"Recently, Prince An has been trying to please Prince Chen. Perhaps..." Princess Jing whispered, "Perhaps he is surrendering to Prince Chen."
"Is he so sure that Prince Chen can inherit the throne?" Wei Zhaoyi sneered, and then said: "Don't worry, Jingzhao Yin is an upright man. Even if it is Prince Chen's order, as long as Du Qingke has not committed any crime, he can still return home safely."
Princess Jing hesitated for a moment and whispered, "My daughter-in-law is worried...that Prince Chen will deliberately frame me."
Wei Zhaoyi glanced at his daughter-in-law with a half-smile, and said with a hint of sarcasm: "Do you think Yun Duqing needs to frame someone in order to deal with him?"
"Mother..."
"Forget it, no need to say more." Wei Zhaoyi interrupted her: "There are no fools in the palace, don't show off your little tricks in front of me."
Princess Jing's face turned pale.
"Your Majesty." A eunuch came in hurriedly: "The Empress wants to see you."
Wei Zhaoyi frowned. It was dinner time now, and it must not be a good thing for Su Meidai to see her at this time.
She glanced at Princess Jing and said, "You should stay in the Zhangliu Palace and don't interfere in matters outside the palace."
After saying this, he hurried to Mingyue Palace.
Mingyue Palace is the most special palace in the harem.
The emperor's bedroom was named Taiyang, which means the highest center point and also means the scorching sun in the sky.
The Sun and the Moon are a perfect match and extremely noble, so what are other palaces?
The inconspicuous stars in the night?
Wei Zhaoyi looked up at the Mingyue Palace plaque, which was newly replaced after His Majesty ascended the throne, and the words were also written by His Majesty. From the beginning, His Majesty has been showing everyone everywhere that Su Meidai is different from other concubines.
"Wei Zhaoyi, please come this way." The palace maid at the door led her into the hall.
Then... she saw a lot of people sitting around the dining table, and Lu Zhaoyi was sitting in the corner, eating with a very satisfied look on his face.
"Your concubine has met the Empress." Wei Zhaoyi performed a great ceremony.
"Are you here?" Su Hou pointed to the empty seat next to Lu Zhaoyi and said, "Sit down and eat together."
"Your Majesty, I have already had my meal." Wei Zhaoyi's eyes swept across everyone and finally fell on Ming Jiuzhu.
Noticing Wei Zhaoyi's gaze, Jiuzhu raised her head and met her eyes.
Wei Zhaoyi smiled at her.
"What are you looking at?" Prince Chen put the dishes that Jiuzhu liked into her bowl.
Jiuzhu shook her head, leaned on Prince Chen's shoulder, and whispered, "Prince Jing and Wei Zhaoyi look alike."
"When it comes to humiliating people, Ming Xiaozhu, you are the master." Prince Chen laughed, "Everyone in the palace says that among the five princes, only Prince Jing looks the most ordinary. You also said that he looks like Wei Zhaoyi. Isn't this insulting?"
"Who brought up appearance?" Jiuzhu poked his shoulder gently, "As the Buddhists say, beauty is but withered bones. No matter how good-looking a person is, after death, he or she will only be a skeleton."
"How can someone who grew up in a Taoist temple talk about Buddhism?" Prince Chen brought the soup to her and said, "Drink the soup first."
At home, she was watched by her mother while she drank soup, and in the palace, she was watched by His Highness while she drank soup. Jiuzhu felt like she was the soup pot. She picked up the soup and drank it in big gulps, then put down the bowl and continued to whisper, "Shi and Dao are a family, but I'm not talking about their looks, but the feeling between them as mother and son."
They are clearly there, but it is very easy to ignore their existence.
Master once said that everyone in the world has a meaning of existence. If a person is ignored in any situation, it only means that this person is intentionally lowering his or her sense of existence.
Such a person would be unlikely to give the problematic incense to other concubines in the palace, as this would be inconsistent with her usual principle of keeping a low profile.
Lunch took quite a while. Although her mother did not tell Wei Zhaoyi why she was called, she just stood there quietly, with a respectful and humble attitude, without any sign of anxiety.
Whether it was Zheng, who had been sentenced to death by her father, or Zhang, they were all nervous when they came to Mingyue Palace alone.
Jiuzhu carefully observed Wei Zhaoyi, and after a while, he said to King Chen: "I think she has a connection with Buddha."
With such a good character, it would be a pity not to recite sutras.
"You, a traitor to Taoism, are actually concerned about the development of Buddhism." Prince Chen chuckled, "What if this is just false compassion? Wouldn't that damage the reputation of Buddhism?"
"Du Qing, Jiuzhu, what are you two whispering about?" Su Hou sighed when she saw the two heads pressed together. This is a harem trial scene after all, can you two be more serious?
"My Queen Mother, we are worried about the future development of Buddhism." Prince Chen said confidently, "I and Jiuzhu have no say in the affairs of the harem, so you don't have to worry about us."
Su Hou: "..."
I don't want to care, but the way you two were whispering to each other was really arrogant.
"Wei Zhaoyi." Empress Su looked at Wei Zhaoyi and said, "Do you know that the incense you gave to Lu Zhaoyi was poisonous?"
Jiuzhu saw surprise on Wei Zhaoyi's calm and self-possessed face. It was an unexpected suspicion, but this expression was quickly magnified by her, as if she wanted everyone to know her feelings at the moment.
"Your Majesty, I don't know." Wei Zhaoyi knelt down and said, "I have no grudge against Lu Zhaoyi and we often interact with each other. How could I have the intention to harm Lu Zhaoyi?"
After saying that, she looked at Lu Zhaoyi anxiously, but because she had always been tongue-tied, she only managed to say a few words like "It's not me" and "Please believe me" for a long time.
"Don't be impatient. Tell me how the incense was made first." Empress Su took a sip of digestive tea and said, "Before the matter is thoroughly investigated, I will not wrongly accuse any innocent person."
"Your Majesty, I was sent to the Qian Residence by the Queen Mother and was the incense maker beside the Queen Mother." She looked a little unhappy when she talked about her past in front of several younger generations.
In fact, except for Zheng who was sentenced to death, the status of the other concubines in the harem was not very high.
"The incense given to sister Lu Zhaoyi was made by me." Wei Zhaoyi said, "But I also use the same incense given to sister Lu. How could I use it to poison sister?"
Empress Su raised her arm slightly, and the palace maid brought up the spices from Wei Zhaoyi's palace. Doctor Yu took the incense and examined it carefully.
"Your Majesty, nobles, the incense in Wei Zhaoyi's palace is indeed very similar to the incense in Lu Zhaoyi's palace, but the raw material of one of the flowers is slightly different." Doctor Yu said: "The flower that was replaced has a very similar taste, and its medicinal effect is incompatible with the other flower."
After hearing this, Wei Zhaoyi knew that he had been plotted against.
Who is plotting against her?
"Wei Zhaoyi, do you have anything to explain?" Empress Su looked at Wei Zhaoyi, but she did not show much anger on her face.
Even the victim, Lu Zhaoyi, did not show much hatred when he looked at Wei Zhaoyi.
"Your Majesty, I really don't know why there was a problem with the spices I sent to Sister Lu." Wei Zhaoyi kowtowed, feeling helpless, but she could only honestly choose to accept her fate.
"Mother," Jiuzhu said, "I thought that maybe when Empress Wei Zhaoyi was making the spices, someone replaced the ingredients, or she made a mistake by accident."
It is impossible for a person who is good at making incense to make a mistake with the raw materials.
Most people present guessed that Wei Zhaoyi might have been plotted against, but when there is no evidence, one can only accept one's fate.
Jiuzhu said this just to give each other a step down.
"Yes, Madam." Lu Zhaoyi reacted and took the initiative to say, "Sister Wei and I have known each other for many years. She shouldn't harm me like this."
"Since Lu Zhaoyi and Princess Chen have pleaded for you, I will reduce your sentence by three points. But the incident has already happened, and I cannot help but punish you." Empress Su turned around and asked Xiangxian beside her: "Xiangxian, according to palace rules, what crime should be punished for murdering a concubine?"
"Your Highness, if it's a minor offense, you'll be demoted and moved out of the main hall, and if it's a serious offense, you'll be caned and executed."
When the word "beheaded by beating" was uttered, Prince An and Princess An trembled and leaned towards each other, like helpless little bastards.
"Although Wei was wrong, his crime was not serious enough." Empress Su chuckled.
Prince An secretly glanced at Empress Su who was sitting at the top of the table, and didn't even call her "Wei Zhaoyi". It seemed that the Empress had no intention of showing any leniency to Wei Zhaoyi.
"From now on, Wei will be demoted to a concubine to reflect on herself." Empress Su smiled tenderly at Wei and said, "Are you satisfied with my punishment?"
Prince An shrank his neck.
Demoting someone from the second rank Zhaoyi to the third rank Jieyu and still asking her whether she is satisfied or not is like stabbing a needle into someone's heart.
"Thank you, Her Majesty, for your magnanimity." Concubine Wei looked at Empress Su gratefully and kowtowed to her, as if she had really gotten a huge bargain.
"This matter is over, everyone please leave." Empress Su yawned and said, "I am sleepy."
Everyone hurriedly left.
After everyone in the palace had left, Empress Su sneered, "The spy who sneaked into my son's palace and tried to replace the incense was probably one of Wei's men."
"Your Majesty is kind-hearted. She just demoted her rank." Xiangshen quickly replied, "What else could she be dissatisfied with?"
"Yeah." Su Hou raised her eyebrows lazily: "Whether it's her or not, some things are inseparable from her."
Anyway, she is a domineering and doted on queen. What principles does a doted queen need to follow?
"What a pity." Jiuzhu walked out of Mingyue Palace and sighed.
"What a pity?" Prince Chen was curious.
"It's a pity that such a good seedling with a connection to Buddha is still a concubine and cannot become a nun." Jiuzhu shook her head and sighed: "Maybe, this is fate."
Hearing what Buddha said, Lu Zhaoyi recalled the fear he had felt when copying Buddhist scriptures last year, and he quickly moved to the side, away from Jiuzhu.
Prince An and Princess An looked at Jiuzhu in horror. The Queen only wanted to demote Wei's rank, but Princess Chen wanted her to become a nun.
Cruel, Ming Jiuzhu is still the most cruel.
Prince Chen raised his eyebrows and glanced at the couple, then quickly retracted his frightened look.
"Ming Xiaozhu, why do I feel like you seem to have a little aversion to the Wei family?" Prince Chen stretched out his hand, hugged Jiuzhu's waist, and walked to the side: "Come, tell your prince, I will give you some advice."
"Maybe it's because I was raised by a Taoist." Jiuzhu looked mysterious: "This is the competitive consciousness of Taoists facing people who have a connection with Buddha."
"What a mess." Prince Chen poked her head and said, "Speak human language."
"She doesn't suit my taste."
An hour later, Concubine Wei, who had just been demoted, received a new imperial decree ordering her to move out of the palace within three days.
There is nothing special about the new palace, it is just very far away from the Qilin Palace.
"Su Meidai will take this opportunity to reduce the rank of Wei. She relies on the emperor's favor and does things without any scruples."
"Master, it is a good thing that Wei moved to another palace. She is far away from Lu Zhaoyi."
"What's the use of Lu Zhaoyi? She's just a cowardly waste. Considering Su Meidai's personality, lowering the rank of Wei has already achieved her goal. Why did she deliberately make her move to the palace?"
"I don't know, but I have already sent someone to deal with the person who replaced the spices."
"What a pity! I had hoped to use this incident to turn Prince An and Prince Jing against each other. I didn't expect the incense matter would be discovered so quickly. I wasted a good chess piece."
"Yes, it's a pity for your chess piece, Master."
Upon hearing that the maid who had served her for many years had died suddenly, Concubine Wei did not stop combing her hair. She sneered and murmured in a low voice: "I think I have caught this rat."
After hiding for so many years, the fox's tail finally came out.
It's not easy to plot against her and get away with it.
"Your Highness." Jiuzhu squatted at the foot of the wall and found two ants fighting. They bit each other's legs and quickly called the King of Chen: "Come and see, ants are fighting."
"Why are you watching ants fighting?" Prince Chen picked her up and said, "Why don't we fight it ourselves?"
"Your Highness, you can't beat me." Jiuzhu hugged his neck and thought seriously for a moment: "I should be better at fighting."
"Are you willing to hit me?" Prince Chen put her down on the bed, supported her with his hands, leaned over and kissed her on the forehead, then wrapped her in a blanket: "How can you hit me like this?"
"Your Highness, you are using the beauty trap!" Jiuzhu struggled to crawl out of the quilt, took off the hairpin on her head, threw it aside, pulled the Prince down, and said proudly: "Your Highness, do you know what it means to defeat ten with one force?"
"Then do you know what the real beauty trap is?" Prince Chen smiled and dragged Jiuzhu into the bed.
Taiyang Palace.
"Your Majesty, Qingming Festival is in five days." Li En bowed and said, "Will this year's ancestral worship ceremony still follow the rules of previous years?"
"No." Emperor Longfeng looked up at him and said, "This year, let Prince Chen offer sacrifices on my behalf."
Li En's eyes widened: "Your Majesty?!"
"Why, my son can't go?" Emperor Longfeng said slowly, "He will go sooner or later anyway, so let him get used to it sooner."
Li En's legs felt a little weak.
Oh my god, is this what he should hear?
Your Majesty, please tell this to your trusted ministers!
I am not worthy!
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