Wow!
Stimulate!
The emperor's eyes lit up, and he leaned forward slightly, very curious: "With whom?"
The Queen coughed, hiding the smile in her eyes. Wasn't this a coincidence? She felt like she was sleeping on a pillow, saving her from setting up a trap. She tried to keep her voice calm and "warned" Lu Yan, "Lord Lu, don't say that carelessly. The so-called catching an adulterer and arresting both can only be done when and where there are witnesses. What's more..."
The Queen paused and continued, "What's more, Madam Lu has been staying home all these years, taking care of household affairs and has hardly ever left the house. Furthermore, the wives of wealthy families are always surrounded by servants and attendants when they go out. If they really did do it, how could there be no traces?"
The emperor reacted and stared at Lu Yan with unfriendly eyes. Could it be that he was afraid that Bai would not be able to get in, so he threw dirty water on Qin?
This is too despicable!
What does he think of the emperor?
The emperor grew angrier and slammed the table, saying, "Right! Where's the evidence? Where's the witnesses and evidence? You can't convict someone based solely on your own words! Furthermore, this concerns the reputation of the Qin and Lu families. You don't care about your face, but the women of the two families do! Are you trying to force them to death?!"
The ethics of the Zhou Dynasty were not particularly strict. Although divorces were rare, they were allowed.
But if they have an affair with others, it will also bring shame to both families. At the very least, they will be quietly dealt with by the clan - being put in a pig cage. At the worst, they will be stripped naked and punished in public as a warning to others. Not only will they suffer pain and shame and lose their lives, but the entire clan, young and old, men and women will lose all face, and no woman in the clan will be able to get married anymore.
Lu Yan bit the flesh inside his lip to prevent himself from saying the name of Crown Prince Xie Qing. His eyes were red. "Your Majesty, I... cannot say it, but Wan Yi also saw this."
Bai Wanyi hadn't expected Lu Yan to involve herself. She was now completely obsessed with marrying the Crown Prince and becoming his consort, and she couldn't let Lu Yan and Qin Wan be separated. She hurriedly tugged at Lu Yan's clothes, "Brother Yan, please stop talking. Maybe we saw it wrong? Maybe it's all a misunderstanding?"
The emperor nodded in satisfaction. It would be better for Qin Wan and Lu Yan not to separate. If they really separated, they couldn't use such an excuse!
Isn't this offending the Qin family?!
The emperor gritted his teeth and said, "Lord Lu, please think carefully!"
Lu Yan was determined to divorce Qin Wan, but now in front of the emperor, facing his majesty, he retreated and remained silent.
The Queen frowned and hesitated, saying, "Today, I heard from a young eunuch who was out shopping that something happened at the First-Rank Pavilion. He saw it all, and later saw Marquis Lu and his wife leave one after the other. Because this concerns the family affairs of an important official at the court, I didn't ask any further questions. I just told him not to talk about it outside. I'm summoning them in now to ask questions, to avoid any rift between you and your wife, which would be unpleasant."
After the queen finished speaking, she sent for Lu Yan to speak without waiting for him to speak. In the blink of an eye, the person arrived.
The Queen glanced at the Emperor and saw that he still looked resentful. She smiled inwardly and said to the young eunuch, "I didn't let you finish what you said to me today. Now, in front of His Majesty, Marquis Lu, and his wife, explain everything clearly."
"yes."
The young eunuch kowtowed and then eloquently recounted the events of Yipin Pavilion in detail, without exaggeration or embellishment. He only mentioned the key points, aside from the details: "No one knows what Madam Lu and Miss Bai said, but Madam Lu nearly fell down the stairs. It was His Royal Highness the Crown Prince who held Madam Lu in his arms. After Madam Lu regained her footing, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince handed her an earring."
The whole cause and effect is clear, the only unclear thing is where the earrings came from and how they ended up on the prince.
Qin Wan frowned as she listened. "Your Majesty, the Crown Prince was only doing a good deed to save me. How can this be considered an affair with someone else?"
The Queen exclaimed, "Eh!" and said, "Those earrings..."
She glanced at Qin Wan's ear but didn't say anything else, but her meaning was clear. Could it be that she was using this as an excuse to return the earrings?
The emperor fixed his gaze on the young eunuch: "Are you telling the truth?"
The emperor's gaze seemed to have substance, but the young eunuch remained unfazed. "I was ordered to go to Yipin Pavilion to purchase tea, and that's when I came across this incident. What I'm saying is what I saw, and I haven't said a word about what I didn't see."
Lu Yan clenched his fists. He also realized that something was wrong, but what could he do?
One is the emperor and the other is the queen. No matter what they say, they will not be able to save face today.
It would be better to follow the Queen's words. If...
Lu Yan's eyes flickered, and he looked up at the emperor with a resolute gaze, saying, "Even if it's urgent to save someone, you shouldn't be so hesitant. Qin and I haven't seen each other for eight years, and now that I've returned to the capital, she's clamoring for a divorce. Where does that leave my face? Where does that leave the Qin family's face? Where does that leave the Lu family's face?"
"She doesn't care about the reputation of either of our two families. I can only tear my face off to protect the last bit of dignity of my Lu family. Your Majesty! I beg for a divorce!"
The emperor glared at Lu Yan. Great! He was thinking that since he had treated the prince coldly for so many years, he was pouring cold water on him!
My son, how can you plot and slander against him?
"Xie Qing! Get out here!" The emperor roared at this troublesome son!
Lu Yan was startled and a chill instantly ran down his spine.
Only Bai Wanyi's eyes lit up, and he looked around secretly. Where was the prince hiding?
Qin Wan seemed not to hear the emperor's roar. Taking advantage of the moment when everyone was distracted, she looked around and moved her knees. She had been kneeling for too long and it was too painful.
Xie Qing, with his hair loose and his belt baggy, peeked out from behind the screen with his shirt half-hidden. He glanced disdainfully at Lu Yan, then at Bai Wanyi, and finally at Qin Wan, sizing her up and down before saying, "I heard everything just now. I just helped your wife up, and you've accused us of having an affair."
"Why don't you tell me that I personally welcomed you and brought you into the bridal chamber?"
"Nonsense!" The queen laughed and scolded him, waving him to sit next to her.
"Did your Majesty see that your son likes to drink tea at Yipintang that you specially asked someone to buy tea for him?" Xie Qing laughed happily. Seeing that there was no seat next to the Queen, he lifted up his clothes and sat on the Queen's footstool with a casual and unrestrained attitude.
The Queen's eyes flickered, and she raised her finger and tapped Xie Qing's forehead, complaining, "You keep running away every day, causing trouble everywhere. How can I be at ease with you? If you want me to be at ease, then you should bring me a daughter-in-law who is satisfactory to me."
Xie Qing squinted at Qin Wan, looking somewhat embarrassed but also somewhat unruly and mischievous. "It's hard to find someone who can satisfy your mother. But this Qin, your mother, look at her. People are throwing dirty water on me. How about I take her in? Are you satisfied?"
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