Chapter 402 Meeting Tang Bo
Princess An Ning's carriage entered the palace gate directly. Her red skirt swept across the white marble steps, startling a few birds that were resting there. "My brother looks very good today."
The eldest princess walked straight in without waiting for the message, and none of the eunuchs beside her dared to stop her.
This is normal, which shows how favored it is.
She sat down on the rosewood armchair below the emperor and placed her round fan on the table.
The emperor looked up from the pile of memorials, a genuine smile in his eyes: "It's rare for a girl like you to have time to come and see me."
He signaled the palace servants to replace the iced sour plum soup, "It's been hot lately, and I specially gave you some woven gold cloud gauze a while ago. Is it enough?"
"Qizhou donated some silk a while ago. If you still need anything, go pick some yourself."
"My sister is not here for this today."
The princess suddenly interrupted, looking directly at the emperor, "I heard that the emperor has captured Tang Bo. I wonder if I can meet him?"
With a "pop", the red pen fell on the memorial, splashing a few spots of scarlet.
The emperor's face suddenly darkened: "Who is gossiping in front of you? There is no such thing."
The princess sneered and slammed the plum soup in her hand heavily on the table in dissatisfaction: "There are only a few people in this palace who can get information from the emperor's side."
She looked towards the harem with a hint of meaning, "Her people are talking in all the right words, but my royal brother still wants to play dumb with me?"
"It's true that the person next to you is more caring than your own sister. You are willing to let her know, but you hid it from me."
The emperor was slightly stunned. Was this referring to Madam Zhaohua?
Now that Concubine Liang is gone, only Madam Zhaohua and Concubine Zhao have some power in the palace, not to mention that An Ning and Madam Zhaohua have always been at odds.
How did Madam Zhaohua know?
He rubbed the ring unconsciously with his fingertips, but ultimately did not ask further questions.
The emperor picked up the teacup to hide his expression: "Tang Bo died in the fire many years ago, don't believe the rumors."
The cicadas outside the window suddenly became noisy, and the cold air in the ice mirror condensed into water droplets, which slowly slid down along the gilded patterns.
"Still trying to fool me!"
Princess An Ning immediately stood up and approached the emperor in three or two steps. The hem of her scarlet skirt swept across the gold bricks on the ground, and her phoenix eyes burned with scorching anger.
She slapped the dragon table with her palm, causing the teacups on the table to jump. She stared at the emperor with an unhappy look on her face: "Brother, you should still remember that when the emperor's sister-in-law passed away, I said that Tang Bo was definitely not that kind of villain!"
"But you swore that I had misjudged him and that I didn't know him well."
"Now that he is in your hands, I must ask him in person what happened back then."
"Brother, if you don't let me see him, I will think about this matter even in my grave."
"Nonsense!" The emperor threw the teacup, and the broken porcelain splashed on the bright yellow hem of his clothes. "Why are you cursing yourself for no reason?"
The hall was filled with an eerie silence; even the bronze bells under the eaves were silent.
After a long while, the emperor rubbed his brows tiredly and said, "Forget it... I tell you, Tang Bo is indeed wronged."
"You don't need to see him again."
The emperor sighed and said, "Everything is my fault."
"What?!"
The princess staggered back half a step, her jade earrings dangling on her cheeks. She suddenly covered her mouth, and a trembling voice escaped from between her fingers: "Is Concubine Liang in prison..."
The emperor looked out the window with a gloomy look: "She plotted to murder the late queen, every detail..."
Veins popped out on the back of his hand beneath his dragon robe. "It's just that this involves the secrets of the imperial palace, and it's not convenient to announce it to the world."
"What a vicious woman!"
The eldest princess suddenly sneered, and her gilded armor made a harsh sound when it scraped against the table. "Although I think she is pretentious, she used to pretend to be virtuous and generous, never had a temper, and didn't act like a real person, but I didn't expect that she actually has a vicious heart!"
"It is true that you can know a person's face but not his heart."
The emperor slowly exhaled and tapped his fingertips on the dragon-patterned armrest: "Now that we know the truth, this matter ends here."
His eyes were sharp as a blade. "Just pretend you have never heard of Tang Bo's affairs."
Princess An Ning raised her red lips slightly, and instead of retreating, she took another half step forward.
She always did what she wanted. Even the emperor could not make her back down. She clasped the gilded armor on her hand on the edge of the dragon table with a "click" sound: "Royal brother, I still want to see him in person."
The emperor's temples were throbbing.
If anyone else had dared to be so presumptuous, he would have been dragged out by the guards long ago.
He slammed the table and stood up: "An Ning! Some muddy waters are not for you to wade into!"
There was a kind of pressure unique to a supreme leader in his voice.
"My brother is joking."
The princess nonchalantly lowered her head and played with the jade bracelet. "I am just an idle princess who eats vegetarian food and chants Buddhist scriptures. How can I stir up trouble?"
She suddenly raised her eyes, a sharp light flashed in her eyes, "It's just that Tang Bo saved my life back then, and this cause and effect has not been resolved..."
She deliberately dragged out the tone and drew a Buddhist seal of reincarnation on the table with her fingertips.
The emperor narrowed his eyes, and the muscles under his dragon robe tensed: "How do you want to end it?"
"Simple."
The princess suddenly smiled brightly, as if the tension just now was an illusion, "Let me meet him and ask if he has any unfulfilled wishes."
She held up three fingers and said, "I swear, after this matter is resolved, I will completely forget about this person."
The emperor was silent for a while.
He suddenly noticed the Buddhist beads on his sister's wrist - in recent years, his mother had been eating vegetarian food and chanting Buddhist scriptures most of the time, which had allowed An Ning to acquire some Buddhist nature.
"Okay, you've seen it, and don't mention it again."
This sentence carries a strong warning.
The eldest princess bowed deeply and concealed the shrewdness in her eyes when she lowered her eyes.
"Don't worry, my brother. An Ning knows the seriousness of the matter."
-
Tang Bo was locked in a dark room specially set up by the emperor.
Of course, Princess An Ning did not set foot there, and the emperor had Tang Bo brought out.
When Tang Bo was brought in, he was not wearing any shackles. He was incredibly thin, and his plain clothes were hanging loosely on his body, but he remained calm.
"Your humble servant greets Her Royal Highness the Princess."
He knelt slowly, crossed his skinny fingers in front of him, and performed a standard imperial physician's salute.
Princess An Ning stepped forward quickly to support him. Her wide sleeves brushed across Tang Bo's wrist. She lifted the gilded armor inconspicuously, and the wax ball slid into his palm.
"Doctor Tang..."
The princess took a half step back, her voice choked with just the right amount of sobs, "We haven't seen each other for so many years. I never thought our meeting would be like this."
"My brother has told me everything. You..."
She suddenly stopped and glanced at the guards in the shadows in the corner.
Tang Bo moved his fingers slightly, and the wax ball disappeared into his sleeve.
When he raised his head, his expression was as calm as an ancient well: "Your Majesty is wise, my wish has been fulfilled, and I have no regrets in death."
His voice was hoarse but firm, as if he really had no worries.
The air in the hall was filled with the scent of incense, and the man in the corner kept his hawk-like gaze fixed on the two of them.
The eldest princess suddenly raised her voice: "Do you have any unfulfilled wishes? I will... do my best."
Her fingertips unconsciously stroked the Buddhist beads on her wrist.
Tang Bo's eyes moved slightly, and he suddenly looked at the floating clouds outside the window, coming and going freely and lightly.
"If Your Highness has mercy..."
His voice was so light that it sounded like a sigh. "Please hand over my remains to Doctor Su at Qihuangzhai."
His skinny fingers clenched in his sleeves. "He knew... where to bury me."
The eldest princess' pupils suddenly shrank. What a coincidence!
"Okay, I will definitely do this for you."
"Thank you, Your Highness."
Tang Bo suddenly smiled as if he was relieved, "I have been living in humiliation for these years..."
He looked into the void, as if he saw a distant figure, "Finally... I can go see my wife and children."
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