Chapter 53 I Believe You, You Big Head Ghost
As soon as the queen said this, all the concubines in the palace burst into tears.
The Empress was always gentle and generous, and it was rare to see her speak so harshly. In the past, even if a concubine made a mistake, she would rarely embarrass her in public, and most of the time she would just reprimand her and leave it at that.
Concubine Jing is about the same age as the Empress. She served Your Majesty when he was still a prince. The third prince she gave birth to has now grown up and is highly valued by Your Majesty. Among the many concubines, Concubine Jing is an important figure second only to the Empress and the Imperial Concubine.
But now, without any warning, the queen suddenly
How terrible it was that they had Concubine Jing Gui gagged and tied up. How big of a mistake did Concubine Jing Gui make?
The concubines' minds were in a state of confusion, and in a moment their thoughts had already wandered eight hundred feet away.
When the Imperial Concubine hurried in, Concubine Jing had already prepared herself mentally. She guessed that the Imperial Concubine was probably going to tell the Empress about the plot of the Third Prince against the Sixth Prince. Although she was a little nervous, she was not too scared.
In the past few years, several adult princes have been fighting openly and secretly. Everyone has known about it for a long time. It must be no secret to His Majesty. In the past, as long as the trouble was not brought to his sight, he did not care much. This time, it should be okay. After all, there has not been any consequence yet.
But when she heard the Queen's order, she was completely stunned. She asked in a fierce voice: "Your Majesty, what crime did I commit that deserves such a big fight?"
The Queen looked at Concubine Jing quietly and said, "I will let you know when you get to His Majesty."
Nanny Zheng came in with a few strong maids, glanced at the empress, who nodded, and then they stepped forward and subdued Concubine Jing, stuffed a handkerchief in her mouth, tied her hands with a rope, and carried her out.
The other concubines watched this scene and stood aside trembling with fear. Everyone felt insecure and dared not say a word.
The queen waved her hand and ordered, "Something big has happened in the palace today. You should go back to the palace first and don't move around."
"Yes." Everyone answered in unison, bowed, and hurried out.
The Queen glanced at the Royal Concubine and said, "Let's go."
The two of them went out. The empress sat in a sedan chair, and the imperial concubine followed her. The group took Concubine Jing and went straight to Chongde Hall.
As soon as she entered the room, the Queen ordered her men to throw Concubine Jing Gui to the ground.
When Emperor Wen Zhao saw the scene, he was startled and asked hurriedly, "What's going on?"
The queen bowed with great respect, her expression extremely solemn: "Your Majesty, I have something important to report."
When Concubine Jinggui saw Emperor Wen Zhao, she thought she had seen her savior and kept sobbing.
The empress glanced at the palace maids and eunuchs waiting in the hall. Emperor Wen Zhao understood and waved his hand to send them away, leaving only four people in the room.
The Empress looked at the Imperial Concubine, and the Imperial Concubine spoke and told Emperor Wen Zhao exactly what she had heard from Tong Tong.
Concubine Jing Gui was kneeling on the ground. When she heard these words, her face turned pale and she collapsed to the ground, trembling all over.
How is it possible? How could the third brother make a dragon robe? That is a capital crime.
"Evil creature!" Emperor Wen Zhao's face was filled with gloom, and he raised his hand and smashed the teacup on the table to the ground: "Beast, I am only over 40 years old, and it is still a long way to go before I die. This evil creature has already prepared a dragon robe. Does he wish for my death, or does he want to kill the emperor and his father?"
Seeing that Emperor Wen Zhao was furious, Concubine Jing Gui hurriedly knelt up, crawled forward on her knees, shook her head desperately, made sobbing sounds, and her eyes were filled with tears.
Emperor Wen Zhao waved his hand and said, "Let her speak. I want to see what she says."
There was no servant in the room. The Imperial Concubine walked over, reached out her hand, pulled the handkerchief out of Concubine Jing's mouth and threw it aside.
Concubine Jinggui spoke quickly, her expression flustered and her voice choked with sobs: "Your Majesty, there must be some misunderstanding. The third son is definitely not that kind of person. The third son has always been respectful and filial to you, and you know that."
Emperor Wen Zhao stared at Concubine Jing Gui's eyes with an scrutinizing look. The two had known each other for more than twenty years, and Emperor Wen Zhao knew Concubine Jing Gui very well. After staring at her for a while, he saw that there was only fear and confusion in her eyes, but she kept looking at him without dodging. Emperor Wen Zhao concluded that Concubine Jing Gui did not know about the dragon robe, and his expression eased a little.
But he still asked, "You don't know about this?"
Concubine Jing Gui hurriedly shook her head: "Your Majesty, I don't know, but I know that the Third Brother will never do anything to betray the emperor or his father. Please believe him."
The Imperial Concubine said, "Whether it was done or not, you will know after you go and take a look."
Concubine Jing looked at Concubine Huang with resentment, as if she wanted to eat her up right away.
The Imperial Concubine sneered and said, "No need to look at me like that, Concubine Jing. Making a dragon robe privately is a matter of great importance. If I didn't know about it, it would be fine. But now that I know about it, I must report it to Your Majesty."
The Queen also said, "Your Majesty, although Tong Tong's words are always accurate, it is a bit unfair to accuse the Third Prince. It would be better to send someone to search."
After such a long period of verification, Emperor Wen Zhao completely believed in Tong Tong. Even if the empress didn't say it, he had this plan. He nodded and said, "Liang Quan, call You Zheng to me."
"Yes." Liang Quanying, who was waiting at the door, said.
Soon, the commander of the imperial guards, You Zheng, arrived and after greeting him, asked, "Your Majesty, what do you want?"
Emperor Wen Zhao: "Take your men to surround the Third Prince's Mansion, the Fifth Prince's Mansion, and the house between the two mansions. Search them carefully, especially the tunnel between the two mansions."
"No matter what the result is, bring both of them to the palace."
This is a big deal. You Zheng was stunned for a moment, then he agreed and turned to walk out.
When a few people came to Chongde Hall earlier, the Sixth Prince also wanted to come with them, but the Royal Concubine did not let him.
She took Xiaoliu's childish nature into consideration and was afraid that he would show an inappropriate expression or say something inappropriate, and if His Majesty saw it, he would blame him for taking advantage of his brother's misfortune.
Xiaoliu does not consider the Third Prince as a brother, but to His Majesty, the Third Prince is his biological son, and the one he likes more.
The Royal Concubine told the Sixth Prince to go back to Furong Palace, or leave the palace and go back home. In short, he should not stay in the palace to avoid being affected by His Majesty's anger.
But the Sixth Prince was never an obedient person, and he quietly followed to Chongde Hall, but he did not dare to go in, and just waited from a distance.
After seeing the commander of the imperial guards, You Zheng, enter the palace, he came out with a serious look on his face, so he went to greet him and said, "Commander You, what's the matter? Do you want to leave the palace?"
You Zheng cupped his hands and replied, "Yes."
The Sixth Prince asked again: "But are we going to the Third Prince's Mansion and the Fifth Prince's Mansion?"
You Zheng did not stop, but walked forward at a brisk pace, answering as he walked: "That's right."
The Sixth Prince clapped his hands and said, "It just so happens that I have nothing to do. I will go with you to lend a hand."
Seeing that the Sixth Prince was ready to fight, You Zheng quickly refused: "Thank you for your kindness, Your Highness. I can handle it, so I won't bother you. I have official duties to attend to, so I will go first."
Just kidding, the Sixth Prince has always been at odds with the Third Prince and the Fifth Prince, especially the Sixth Prince who has always been a person who likes to stir up trouble. If he dares to let the Sixth Prince go, who knows what kind of trouble it will cause in the end.
Seeing You Zheng disappear in a flash, the Sixth Prince rolled his eyes in anger: "Hey, this guy, it's not like I can't find the way. If you don't take me with you, I will go by myself."
Having said that, she hurried out of the palace and headed for the Third Prince's residence.
Emperor Wen Zhao arranged things, and all that was left was to wait.
He sat back in his chair, his face gloomy, and he said nothing. The Queen and Consort Jinggui both looked at him, but they also didn't say anything.
Unless Emperor Wen Zhao ordered her to stand up, Concubine Jing Gui did not dare to stand up and just knelt on the ground.
The house was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop. The atmosphere was extremely depressing and dull.
After a while, Emperor Wen Zhao stood up and said, "Take her with you and leave the palace with me."
The Empress and the Imperial Concubine were both stunned, then responded, calling the palace maid to come in, untied Concubine Jing's hands, put a veil on her, and followed Emperor Wen Zhao out of the palace.
---
After the concubines came out of Fengyi Palace, they walked together in twos and threes, whispering to each other, all wondering what kind of mistake Concubine Jing Gui had made to cause the Empress to behave like that.
Rupin did not want to take part in the discussion, and walked ahead with her maids in her arms.
She was worried about Youyou, so she decided to take her back. She first went to Mingzhu Palace, and after asking, she learned that several princesses were in Furong Palace, so she hurried to Furong Palace.
After the Royal Concubine took the Sixth Prince away, the Seventh and Eighth Princesses took Ji Jinyou to play in the yard. After swinging on the swing for a while, she heard a puppy barking in the corner of the yard. She asked the Eighth Princess to take her down from the swing, and she ran over on her short legs to see what was going on.
Princess Seven and Princess Eight usually never leave Xiaojiu's side, but today they only told the palace maids to follow her while they sat on the swing and talked in low voices.
Ji Jinyou played with the puppy, kitten and rabbit for a while, then Rupin came. She didn't see Youyou squatting on the ground playing, and walked straight inside.
When Ji Jinyou saw Rupin, she put down the puppy in her hand, stood up and ran over: "Mother, Youyou is here."
Rupin turned around when she heard the voice and saw the little girl. She couldn't help but smile. She squatted down and picked up the little girl who ran over: "Youyou, something big happened in the palace today. The Queen Mother ordered everyone to stay in their own palaces and not to walk around. Would you like to go back with your mother?"
Seeing Rupin's serious expression, Ji Jinyou asked curiously, "Mother, what happened?"
When the Seventh and Eighth Princesses saw Rupin coming, they got off the swing and walked over to hear Rupin's words. After greeting her, they also asked, "Yes, Madam Rupin, what happened?"
In fact, both of them knew exactly what was going on, but they did not go to Fengyi Palace. They still wanted to hear Rupin talk about the situation on the scene.
如嫔也不隐瞞，壓低聲音，把在鳳儀宮發生的那一幕和幾個小公主說了。
七八公主故作震驚：“為什麽？”
如嫔搖了下頭：“暫且還不知道。”
季瑾悠忙問系統：【統統，皇後娘娘把靜貴妃綁了，你可知道是為什麽？】
系統：【不知道啊。】
七八公主早就總結出了規律，劇情一旦發生變化之後，桶桶就不知道了。
事情說完，如嫔就提出把悠悠帶回去，七八公主自是答應。畢竟今天肯定有好戲，若小九在的話，她們還真不太方便。
季瑾悠擺着小手和兩位姐姐告別，被如嫔抱着走了。
七八公主把母女二人送到門口，等她們走遠，兩人牽着手就往鳳儀宮跑，到了鳳儀宮之後，發現皇後和皇貴妃還沒回來，兩人又趕往崇德殿，結果也沒人，喊過內殿服侍的一個小太監一問，說是幾人出宮去了。
兩人對視一眼，又趕回明珠宮，翻出男子服飾換好，梳上男子發髻，二人急匆匆，也出了宮。
---
三皇子正在書房寫信，一名随從驚慌失色地跑來：“殿下，不好了。”
三皇子不悅皺眉：“什麽事慌裏慌張？”
随從臉色煞白：“禁軍把咱們府上給圍了。”
三皇子手一抖，手裏攥着的筆掉在桌上：“是誰帶人來的？”
随從答道：“是禁軍統領尤大人。”
三皇子臉色難看起來：“可有說是因何緣故？”
随從搖頭：“尚且不知，前頭管家還在周旋，不曾開門。”
三皇子眸色幾變，連忙把寫了一半的信拿起來撕毀，撕完之後發現沒地方丢。
他回身從書架上拿下一本書冊，把撕成一條一條的廢紙夾到裏面，随後又從書架的一個暗格裏翻出幾封書信，一同遞給随從：“快去，趕緊拿去燒了，親手燒，不要假手于人，也不要被人看見。”
“是，奴才明白。”随從接過應道，拿着東西轉身跑出門，回到自個房間去燒。
三皇子又喊了一個護衛進來，吩咐道：“去前頭應付着，能拖多久盡量拖多久。”
護衛應是，又問：“若尤大人問起殿下，屬下該如何回答？”
“就說不知。”三皇子翻出一個火折子揣進懷中，快步流星往外走，在府裏七拐八繞走到一個假山後頭，推開一道暗門，閃身進去。
在不遠處的涼亭上方趴着兩個人，把這一幕全都看在眼裏。
六皇子腦袋上頂着一片荷葉，指了指假山後消失的人影，小聲對一旁趴着的尤征說：“怎麽樣，尤大人，本王說了老三不會老老實實開門吧，你還不信我。要不是本王帶着你翻牆進來，躲在這裏守着，還真被他給跑了。”
其實他知道，老三不是要跑，而應該是去銷毀龍袍，但這事兒他沒法跟尤征說，只能說老三要跑路。
“六殿下英明，微臣自愧不如。”尤征拱手，起身，躍下涼亭，朝假山後頭奔去。
“等等本王。”六皇子扔了荷葉，也跟着跳下，追上去。
三皇子急匆匆進了地道，走了一段距離，在一個三岔路口處向右一轉，随後又在一個三岔路口處向左一轉，最後來到一處上了鎖的密室。
他回頭看了一眼，見無人跟上來，掏出鑰匙打開門，走進去，把門從裏面栓好，從一處擺着尊佛像的壁龛後面拿出一個木制錦盒，打開，拿出裏面的龍袍，掏出火折子就去點火。
也不知是這密室裏空氣不足，還是他太過緊張，只覺心口憋悶得慌，手也抖得厲害，拿着火折子的手哆哆嗦嗦，點了半天竟然沒有點着。
他低聲咒罵了句，幾番深呼吸，強迫自己冷靜，随後又去點火。
剛點着個衣角，身後厚重的木門就被一柄利劍直接劈開一條縫。
三皇子沒料到竟被人跟到這裏來了，吓得驚惶失色，手一抖，龍袍掉在地上，火折子也掉在地上，火勢陡然變大。
尤征砍了一劍，只把門砍出一條縫來，卻沒劈開，便高聲喊：“三殿下，微臣已經瞧見您進去了，您速速将門打開，配合微臣搜完府邸好去向陛下交差。”
“快砍，快砍，快接着砍，耽誤不得。”見尤征只劈了一劍居然不砍了，六皇子在一旁急得跳腳，上前一把搶過他手裏的劍，拼命朝木門砍去。
六皇子功夫不弱，又是情急之下，可謂使盡全力，咔咔咔幾劍劈下去，就把木門劈得稀巴爛，他擡腳，哐哐就是兩腳，直接把門踹出一個大洞來，他俯身一躍，從洞口蹿了過去。
一個翻滾站起來，就見三皇子正蹲在地上燒着一堆明黃色的衣物。
他一個箭步上前，用劍一挑，把那件衣物挑起來，丢在自己腳下，兩只腳齊上陣，拼命一陣踩。
三皇子立馬撲上來去搶，六皇子一腳過去，重重把他踹翻在地，随後接着踩。
邊踩邊罵：“好你個黑心肝的老三，你害我也就罷了，你居然還敢私下裏造龍袍，你這是想篡位嗎？虧的父皇那麽喜歡你，你的良心是不是都被狗吃了。”
他大哥能文能武，滿腔的雄心壯志，幾乎是大半個朝堂都公認的儲君人選。
可他大哥即便那麽想得到儲君之位，那麽想獲得陛下的認可，卻也一直踏踏實實地做事，坦坦蕩蕩地努力，從來沒有任何不臣之心。
這個老三倒是好的很呢，不光想害他性命。居然直接越過儲君之位，觊觎上了皇位，可真是該死。
得虧他偷偷跟來，半路追上尤征，又極力說服他翻牆進來盯着，不然等他把門敲開，這龍袍估摸着早就已經被老三毀屍滅跡了。
在六皇子的不懈努力下，已經燒了一小半的龍袍終于被他撲滅。
他松了一口氣，彎腰把龍袍從地上撿起來，抖了抖，團吧團吧抓在手裏，朝着三皇子啐了一口：“我呸，你個狼心狗肺的東西，你等着父皇收拾你吧。”
尤征持劍而立，面若寒霜。
陛下今天突然下了這樣一道旨意，他猜到三皇子和五皇子應該是犯了什麽大錯，可萬萬沒想到竟是如此。
這三皇子也是個拎不清的，想要那個位置，暗戳戳在心裏想就好了，身為皇子，想要皇位，無可厚非。
若有真本事，就都使出來，一路殺到最後，那便是贏家，人人得俯首稱臣。
可這八字都沒一撇呢，就把龍袍做了出來，這豈不是犯了陛下心中最大的忌諱，陛下原先還好，可最近幾年越發多疑，連儲君都遲遲不肯立，又怎會容忍此事，三皇子危矣。
不過話說回來，平日裏，六皇子看着吊兒郎當，極其不靠譜，沒想到居然還真的有點大本事。
不光能找到如此隐秘的地道，而且剛才一進來就去搶龍袍，面上只有焦急，沒有絲毫意外之色，那說明他事先已經知道了這事。
以往，衆人都以為六皇子是個只知道吃喝玩樂的閑散皇子，可如今看來，大家全都大錯特錯了，這位才是隐藏最深的主，心中這麽想着，尤征目露敬佩地看向六皇子。
三皇子看着被六皇子抓在手裏燒了一半的龍袍，又看了看尤征，“尤大人，既然你們能找到這地道來，想必就已經知道，這地道是通往老五府上的。”
“是。”尤征面不改色地撒了個謊。
心中卻說，要不是六皇子指點，他還真不知道這地道裏頭有龍袍，當初陛下也沒跟他說這事啊。
若按照他的想法，就在正門敲門，若一直敲不開，就硬闖進來，可若真是那樣，一定會耽擱許久，等他找到這地道來，怕是一切證據都沒了，那到時候他将無法向陛下交差。
密室內光線昏暗，空氣也不好，尤征拎着劍把路讓開：“六殿下，三殿下，咱們出去說吧。”
“走走走，出去說。”六皇子也不愛在這黑不拉叽的地方呆着，拎着龍袍，率先一步走了出去。
三皇子緊跟其後，尤征提劍緊緊跟着，神情戒備，生怕他突然對六皇子出手。
三人依次走出地道，從假山處走了出來，來到前面一處空地。
三皇子環顧四周，發現除了夏日鳥蟲鳴叫，再無人語，便知道，禁軍已經控制了整個府邸。
三皇子嘆了口氣，接着說：“事到如今，我也沒有必要瞞着了，其實這龍袍并不是我的，我只是代人保管。”
“哈？”六皇子直接氣笑了，舉起手裏的龍袍，難以置信地質問道：“你說這龍袍不是你的，那是誰的？”
三皇子再嘆氣：“是老五的。”
六皇子被三皇子的厚顏無恥深深震撼到，震撼得眼珠子都要掉下來，他把龍袍往三皇子腦袋上一摔。
“我信你個大頭鬼，老五那蠢貨一向唯你馬首是瞻，他自個兒壓根沒那腦子去想那個位置。再說若真的是他的，你這麽精明，怎會幫他擔着這麽大的風險。”
The Third Prince was not annoyed and took off the dragon robe from his head: "When I first found out that the Fifth Prince had made this dragon robe, I wanted to report it to my father, but then I thought, if my father knew, he would be furious. I couldn't bear to see my father angry, nor did I bear to see the Fifth Prince being punished, so I hid it for the time being."
The Third Prince's words were so convincing, as if they were true. The Sixth Prince rolled his eyes and said, "Okay, if you have the guts, say it again in front of your father. Let's see if he believes you."
The Third Prince was about to say something else when he heard the angry voice of Emperor Wen Zhao: "No need, I heard it all."
Then he led a few people out from the other side of the rockery.
The fifth prince was also among them. His face turned pale and blue, and he stared at the third prince with an extremely complicated look. He gritted his teeth and said, "Third brother, I have never seen that dragon robe before."