Chapter 586 The Troubled Emperor Xiaozhao
Just as Li Sanqi approached Qiao Qinghe, the Crown Princess also brought the Crown Prince to visit her own grandfather.
"Grandfather, save His Highness the Crown Prince!" The Crown Princess knelt down in front of Old Master Zhong with a thud.
The Crown Prince looked at Old Master Zhong with a nervous expression and said in a trembling voice, "My lord, I don't want to die, nor do I want to be deposed. Please help me!"
Grandpa Zhong silently looked at his granddaughter, then at the Crown Prince, before coldly saying to the Crown Princess, "Sixth Sister, you may leave now. I have something to say to the Crown Prince alone."
"grandfather……"
"Get out!" Old Master Zhong shouted sternly.
The Crown Prince nodded to the Crown Princess, who then got up and went out.
After everyone left, only the Crown Prince and Old Master Zhong remained in the study.
“My lord, I had no other choice but to come here for help,” the Crown Prince said first. “The witnesses and evidence from Jiangnan are already on their way back to the capital.”
"If those things get into the capital, I'm completely finished!"
Old Master Zhong looked at the Crown Prince with a gloomy expression. "You are already the Crown Prince. Wouldn't it be better to just do your job well and wait obediently for your succession?"
Why get involved in those things in Jiangnan?
The crown prince gritted his teeth and explained, "I need money. I need to win over officials, solidify my position as crown prince, support the three hundred guards in my residence, and also fulfill my filial duties to my father and mother..."
Grandpa Zhong said with exasperation, "You're the Crown Prince! How can you get involved in life-threatening matters for money?"
"My lord, it's too late to say all this now," the crown prince pleaded. "Please, I beg you to think of a solution for me."
After a pause, the Crown Prince added, "My lord, Sixth Sister is pregnant. I beg you, for the sake of Sixth Sister and the child, please help me."
"Sixth Sister is pregnant!?" Old Master Zhong looked at the Crown Prince suspiciously. "When did this happen? How come I didn't know?"
After three years of marriage without children, how could one not be suspicious if she suddenly announced that she was pregnant?
"I'm newly pregnant, less than two months along. The imperial physician said I need to take good care of myself and wait until I'm three months along before announcing it to the public."
The Crown Prince quickly said, "If Your Excellency does not believe me, you can ask the royal physician to take Sixth Sister's pulse."
Grandpa Zhong waved his hand, "No need."
Although he was puzzled, he believed that the Crown Prince would not dare to lie to him about such a thing.
Seeing that Old Master Zhong was showing signs of relenting, the Crown Prince pressed on, saying, "My lord, if I can safely weather this calamity and smoothly ascend the throne in the future, from my time onward, the Empress of Dayan will definitely be from the Zhong family, and the throne of Dayan can only be inherited by the sons born to women of the Zhong family."
This is how half of the empire was promised. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that the Li and Zhong families shared the empire.
Old Master Zhong narrowed his eyes and asked calmly, "Have you thought it through?"
The Crown Prince nodded solemnly: "If the Zhong family does not betray me, I will certainly keep my promise!"
Old Master Zhong smiled, "Please remember what I said today, Your Highness."
"We will never forget each other!" The Crown Prince bowed deeply to Old Master Zhong.
***
In the palace, Emperor Xiaozhao leaned against his sickbed. Although he looked unwell, his expression was dignified, his eyes were sharp, and he was slowly turning the pages of a memorial in his hand. He did not look like someone who was paralyzed on one side.
After reading the memorial in his hand, Emperor Xiaozhao closed it and asked Liu Xin in a calm tone, "What have the Crown Prince and the others been doing these past few days?"
Liu Xin hesitated for a moment before saying, "His Highness the Crown Prince returned to the Zhong family with the Crown Princess and met with Old Master Zhong. The two had a private conversation in the study for two hours, but what they talked about is unknown."
Emperor Xiaozhao threw down the memorial in his hand and snorted coldly: "What else can we talk about? It's nothing more than an exchange of interests."
"The Crown Prince knows best what he has done. Now that he wants to rely on the Zhong family to save his life, who knows what benefits they will offer."
Liu Xin didn't dare to reply.
"What about the third and fifth princes?" Emperor Xiaozhao was unwilling to say more about the crown prince. There was no point in saying more about a crown prince who had long been abandoned.
Liu Xin quickly replied, "These past few days, His Highness Prince Qi has come to see His Majesty every day before entering the palace. After learning that His Majesty is not seeing anyone, he will inquire about His Majesty's condition with the imperial physicians before proceeding to Consort Hui's palace."
"This old servant observes that His Highness Prince Qi is very concerned about His Majesty's illness."
Emperor Xiaozhao offered no comment, only urging calmly, "Continue."
Upon thinking of the King of Chu, Liu Xin hesitated for a moment.
"What? Did Fifth Brother do something that's hard for you to talk about? You're stammering and asking me to cover for him?"
Emperor Xiaozhao's expression turned grim.
Liu Xin knelt down with a thud, "This old servant dares not!"
How dare he conceal the truth from the Emperor for the Fifth Prince? Doesn't that mean he's siding with the Fifth Prince?
Haha, he doesn't want to die yet!
Emperor Xiaozhao raised his hand. "Get up. What exactly happened?"
Liu Xin dared not hide anything any longer and quickly told the whole story.
The inner quarters of the Chu Prince's mansion originally housed only one female member, Min Pan'er, and everything was peaceful.
However, ever since the eldest daughter of Vice Minister Zhou entered the Chu Prince's mansion as a concubine, the two have been irreconcilable enemies and constantly at odds.
Consort Zhou, relying on her superior birth and status in the household, targeted Min Pan'er at every turn.
Min Pan'er was a cunning woman. Even when she suffered a loss, she didn't confront Consort Zhou head-on. Instead, she pretended to be pitiful in front of the King of Chu.
Consort Zhou said she had no official title or status, so she cleverly relayed her words to the King of Chu.
Thus, she, who had no official title or status, naturally acquired the identity of a concubine.
When Consort Zhou withheld her monthly allowance, she subtly let the King of Chu know about her forbearance and grievances.
Therefore, her monthly allowance could go directly to her without going through Consort Zhou. Not only that, the usual monthly allowance had also increased significantly.
In short, the two women were having a great time, and the King of Chu's lawsuit would never be resolved.
These things wouldn't have been a big deal, but unfortunately, during the few days that Emperor Xiaozhao was ill, apart from visiting him in the palace on the first day, the Prince of Chu spent the rest of his time at home dealing with the trouble caused by the two women.
It is said that Consort Zhou somehow learned that the King of Chu had never favored Min Pan'er, so she happily went to mock her to her face.
Min Pan'er gradually realized that the King of Chu disliked her. She usually hid it well and pretended not to know the King of Chu's thoughts.
However, Consort Zhou exposed this matter in public, which made Min Pan'er furious and she pushed Consort Zhou hard.
But Min Pan'er's push led to a major problem.
No one expected that Consort Zhou would become pregnant.
It was only because the period was still early and Consort Zhou's menstruation was always irregular that no one noticed.
Min Pan'er's push caused Consort Zhou, who was caught off guard, to fall and miscarry.
After learning of this, the Zhou family went directly to the King of Chu and demanded an explanation.
What could the King of Chu do? He could only go to Min Pan'er.
However, before the King of Chu could find her, Min Pan'er committed suicide.
Fortunately, the servants noticed in time and saved the person.
The King of Chu was heartbroken. He then inquired about the cause and effect of Consort Zhou's miscarriage and learned that it was Consort Zhou who had initiated the incident. Moreover, he himself was the root cause of everything.
Thus, the King of Chu was once again caught in a dilemma. After much deliberation, her guilt and self-reproach towards Min Pan'er ultimately prevailed.
So he took all the blame upon himself, letting the Zhou family vent their anger on him and trying their best to meet all their demands.
There was only one condition: the Zhou family was not allowed to harm Min Pan'er in the slightest.
Heaven knows how much the Zhou family regretted marrying their daughter into the Chu King's mansion when the King of Chu uttered those words!
...
After listening to Liu Xin's account, Emperor Xiaozhao fell silent.
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