The sixth prince's face gradually became rosy, and his hands also warmed up.
Body temperature gradually returned to normal.
The sixth prince said, "I feel much better! If it weren't for you all here today, I..."
Qi Junlin: "Sixth Prince, there's no need to be so polite. I just happened to be passing by."
The palace banquet is underway.
Consort Li, the mother of the Sixth Prince, was playing music and singing for the Emperor, completely unaware that her child had been missing for so long.
Consort Li was jealous of Consort Chen's excellent dancing, so she sang and played instruments with great effort, hoping to outshine Consort Chen.
After the piece was finished, the Emperor clapped his hands and exclaimed, "Excellent! A reward!"
Consort Li said sweetly, "Thank you, Your Majesty!"
Another concubine said, "Your Majesty, I also have a performance to put on."
The Emperor: "Very well! Anything else? Your families may also perform on stage. Please feel free to do as you please today. I hope to see a diverse array of talents from all walks of life!"
The Empress glanced at the concubines who were eager to vie for the Emperor's favor, and finally her gaze settled on the sixth prince's seat.
For the empress, who had long lived in the deep palace, jealousy and rivalry in the harem were commonplace, and she was no longer surprised by them.
However, the Sixth Prince is acting strangely today. He's been gone for so long and hasn't returned yet; could something have happened to him?
The sixth prince is usually very filial to the empress and is a very obedient child.
After all, they were relatives, and the Empress also cared a lot about the Sixth Prince.
After Consort Li finished her performance, she went on to prepare for the next program and did not pay attention to the Sixth Prince.
The Empress became anxious. After asking the Emperor for a short leave, she went to look for the Sixth Prince.
In the vast palace, the Empress softly called out, "Xing'er, Xing'er, where are you?"
But after searching for a long time, they still couldn't find the Sixth Prince.
The Empress also sent people to look for him, and someone reported that the Sixth Prince was seen by the pond.
The Empress quickly walked to the pond where the Sixth Prince was.
She saw the sixth prince, who was soaking wet, and then looked at Qiuqiu and her two brothers standing to the side, and immediately understood what had happened.
The others bowed to the Empress: "Greetings, Your Majesty the Empress!"
Ignoring the mud and filth covering the sixth prince, the Empress hugged him tenderly and asked, "Xing'er, what happened? Did you accidentally fall into the water and get rescued by them?"
The sixth prince was speechless for a moment.
How should I put this?
It concerns the face of the royal family and the career of the second prince.
Even if he said it, would anyone believe him?
Others might not believe him, but the Second Prince might find someone to turn the tables on him. In that case, he would not only harm himself, but also those around him who saved him.
Seeing that the Sixth Prince remained silent, the Empress comforted him, saying, "Xing'er, were you frightened? Be careful next time, and don't slip into the water again. Thank goodness you were all here this time!"
Chiu Chiu watched from the side with a displeased expression.
[Why isn't the Sixth Prince telling the truth? He didn't slip down on his own. He was clearly pushed down by the Second Prince and that Consort Li. Speak up now, and let the Empress uphold justice for you!]
The sixth prince didn't hear this, but the empress did.
The Empress shuddered.
This is shocking! The emperor's concubine is actually with a prince.
She dared not imagine what the consequences would be if the Emperor found out.
No wonder the Sixth Prince Xing'er was unwilling to talk about it.
I simply can't bring myself to say it!
The Queen looked around and saw a handkerchief lying on the ground not far away.
The Empress picked it up and noticed the character "δΈ½" (Li) embroidered on the lower right corner of the handkerchief. It was undoubtedly Consort Li.
The sixth prince said, shivering, "Your Majesty, I'm cold!"
Empress: "Someone! Quickly find a clean set of clothes for the Sixth Prince!"
Eunuch: "Yes, Your Majesty!"
Empress: "Xing'er, this concerns your life. We still need to go to your father, the Emperor, to demand an explanation."
The sixth prince hesitated for a moment, then nodded and said, "Yes!"
The Empress took the Sixth Prince's hand and led him to the Emperor's study.
The palace banquet had ended, and the Emperor returned to his study early.
The Emperor was surprised to see the sixth prince soaking wet.
The Emperor asked, "Where did Xing'er go? Why are you all soaking wet?"
The Empress, holding the Sixth Prince's hand, knelt down before the Emperor with a thud.
Empress: "Your Majesty, please seek justice for Xing'er!"
The Emperor said, "What's wrong with the Empress? Please rise! Are you trying to seek justice for him? He is the Sixth Prince; who would dare to bully him?"
The Empress said, "Someone is bullying him. But he doesn't dare to say anything."
The Emperor frowned deeply: "Oh? Xing'er, just speak! You are my son, is there anyone who has bullied you that you dare not speak up about?"
The sixth prince stammered, "I, I..."
The Emperor stood up: "Who is it? Speak quickly!"
The Empress took out a handkerchief and showed it to the Emperor.
"Your Majesty, this handkerchief was found where Xing'er fell into the water."
The Emperor took the handkerchief, stroked the character "Li" on it, and looked at the Sixth Prince, saying, "Is it Consort Li?!"
The sixth prince nodded.
The sixth prince stammered, "And..."
The Emperor: "Who else? Who else is plotting to murder a prince in the palace?"
The sixth prince whispered, "And the second brother too."
The emperor angrily smashed the cup on the ground.
"You wretched creatures! Guards! Bring them here!"
Xiao Dezi: "Yes!"
After the palace banquet ended, the second prince was in a hurry to leave, wanting to end this nightmare as soon as possible.
Although he had gotten rid of the sixth prince, he was still quite uneasy.
The Sixth Prince was a prince, not some eunuch or maid in the palace. After he died, no one would even remember him.
If the Sixth Prince's body is discovered after some time, it will inevitably cause a great stir in the palace.
In the end, it would be best if Consort Chen took the blame and cleared him of all responsibility.
Just as the second prince reached the palace gate and was about to breathe a sigh of relief, he was stopped by Xiao Dezi.
Xiao Dezi: "Your Highness, please wait! His Majesty requests your presence!"
The second prince frowned deeply: "Did Father say something?"
Xiao Dezi said, "This servant does not know. I would be grateful if Your Highness would hurry over there, otherwise His Majesty will lose his temper again."
Second Prince: "Good!"
The second prince was already feeling uneasy.
They found Sixth Brother's body so quickly? Sigh! There's no escaping it now, so I have no choice but to bite the bullet and go.
Running away at this point is tantamount to admitting defeat.
Let's go check it out; maybe things will take a turn for the better.
After the palace banquet ended, Xu Ruyun searched everywhere for Qiuqiu and her two brothers.
In order not to give away any clues and to prevent his family from getting involved in the royal power struggles, Qi Junlin specially changed into a clean set of clothes.
Qi Junzhou knew what they were going to do and advised his mother not to worry.
Qi Junzhou thought that it would attract too much attention if the three brothers left the banquet together, so he stayed behind to protect his mother.
Hsu Ju-yun: "Where could they go?"
Xu Ruyun was anxiously searching for Qiuqiu when a voice called out to her.
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