Emperor Wen then said expressionlessly, "Since the Crown Prince has already had physical contact with these two young ladies, then they should both be included in his concubines! This will be the royal family's explanation to the two young ladies!"
The Queen's mind was buzzing with confusion. Two young ladies? Two young ladies whom His Majesty didn't even recognize? They had so easily taken the position of the Crown Prince's concubine?
The Queen suppressed her inner shock, gathered herself, and asked, "Which two young ladies from noble families are they?"
At this moment, Chu Caiwei and Luo Lingyue had already changed their clothes and hurried in.
Chu Caiwei burst into tears and sobbed, "Father! The whereabouts of my two cousins are still unknown!"
Li Mingfu walked in right after him. When he heard this, his face turned pale and he almost fainted! It turned out that the two concubines who were rescued with the prince were actually his own daughters!
The Empress and Li Mingfu secretly groaned inwardly. They had never imagined that things would develop to this point. They had originally planned to plot against Chen Manping, but now, their two concubines had inexplicably become the Crown Prince's concubines. This was completely unexpected for them.
A tense and eerie atmosphere permeated the entire antechamber. Everyone fell silent, no one daring to speak. They all knew the impact this sudden change would have on the palace.
As for the Crown Prince, he had no idea how things had turned out like this. He was supposed to save Chen Manping! Everything seemed to be getting confusing...
A beloved tale circulated throughout the capital: the Crown Prince heroically leaped into a lake to rescue two stunning beauties, winning their hearts and making them his concubines. However, this secret was circulated privately within the capital only by a select few. It turned out that these two stunning concubines were actually twin sisters from the Prime Minister's household, and half-sisters of Crown Princess Li Jingshu!
Rumors swirled throughout the capital. Some rumoured the prime minister was seeking personal gain by sending his daughter into the crown prince's harem; others speculated that this was part of a conspiracy to usurp power by the imperial relatives. These rumors spread like wildfire, garnering widespread attention and heated debate.
Many people expressed doubts about this marriage, fearing that the Prime Minister's Office would take this opportunity to expand its sphere of influence and affect the country's stability and development.
Li Mingfu was so distraught after hearing the rumors in the capital that blisters formed at the corners of his mouth. Li Jingshu also kept complaining to her father, "I told you long ago that those two vixens were restless and should have been sent to Yuewu Kingdom sooner. Now, they're coming to the Eastern Palace to compete with me for the Crown Prince!"
Li Mingfu's eyes were bloodshot and red. He shouted angrily, "Not only are the common people spreading these rumors, but even the censors are submitting memorials to His Majesty! How on earth could this prince have come up with such a thing? Someone, go and get these two young ladies!"
Li Jingshu gritted her teeth and said, "Father! Why don't we give them both to the Crown Prince of Yuewu Kingdom right now? This way we can avoid more trouble!"
However, Li Mingfu closed his eyes helplessly and shook his head: "It's too late! They have already been included in the royal family tree! If we send them away now, it would undoubtedly be deceiving the king!"
Not long after, the servants brought Li Xuemei and Li Xuelan into the house. As soon as these two seemingly fragile women stepped into the room, their bodies began to tremble uncontrollably.
Li Xuemei took a deep breath and mustered up the courage to speak, "Sister! This situation hasn't developed in the way we wanted. It's simply because the Crown Prince has been pestering us in the lake and won't let go!"
Upon hearing this, Li Jingshu was immediately furious and asked, "Then how did you fall into the lake?"
Li Xuelan was so frightened that her whole body trembled. Tears streamed down her face as she sobbed, "Sister! When we heard that the prince had fallen into the lake, everyone on the boat we were on wanted nothing more than to rescue him. Who would have thought that one careless mistake would cause the boat to capsize, and we all fell into the lake!"
Li Xuemei's eyes were filled with tears, and her voice was slightly choked with sobs: "Father! My sister and I are both unable to swim, so we just kept sinking. As for what happened afterwards, we have no idea!"
Seeing that he couldn't get to the bottom of the matter, Li Mingfu waved his hand impatiently and asked the two sisters to leave!
The Crown Prince sat in the Eastern Palace, his brow furrowed in frustration. He couldn't understand why Chen Manping had vanished without a trace, having been thrown into the lake himself. And who was the person pulling his hair from the lake's depths?
The prince roared in rage, "Xuanhu! Xuanbao! Go and find out immediately who was the one who tried to murder me at the bottom of the lake that day!"
Inside the Soul-Dying Gate, Shang Zhi questioned the gate master with a worried look on his face: "Master, since the Crown Prince is the King of Qin's mortal enemy, why didn't you just drown him that day?"
Blood Shadow replied calmly, "The Crown Prince is a perfect shield! Emperor Wen is a suspicious person and will not tolerate anyone who threatens his imperial power. If the Crown Prince dies, the General's Mansion will inevitably be implicated. This way, the Prince of Qin will be forced to step into the spotlight, facing Emperor Wen's suspicion and the attacks of the other princes! If we spare the Crown Prince's life, it won't be too late for us to take action against him when Emperor Wen's time is up!"
Shang Lu walked in with light steps. He lowered his voice carefully and said, "Master, we have successfully led the evidence to the Third Prince!"
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