Chapter 198 Xie Tianyu doesn't care about Xie Yin's fake son
The palace was exceptionally quiet after nightfall. The fire in the Wangxing Tower of Prince Cheng's mansion outside alarmed half of the capital, but it did not have much impact on the deep palace.
In Fengxi Palace, Jinzhi was dozing off on a small couch in the ear room. The sudden knock on the door startled her.
"who?"
"Aunt Jinzhi, it's me."
Jinzhi recognized the voice of the person who was speaking, and quickly stood up, stepped on her cloth clogs, lifted the curtain and went out, and saw a thin figure standing in front of the door.
She lowered her voice and showed displeasure: "Didn't I tell you that the Queen has been feeling unwell and unable to sleep recently, so I asked you not to disturb her at night..."
"Something happened outside," the young eunuch said hurriedly, "News just came from outside the palace. It says that Prince Cheng was secretly hoarding weapons and recruiting soldiers with the intention of rebellion, and he was caught red-handed by Marquis Wenxin and Governor Xiao."
"impossible!"
Jinzhi's expression changed instantly, and she reflexively shouted, "How could Prince Cheng rebel?!"
The young eunuch said, "It's true. Marquis Wenxin and his men seized a number of forbidden items in the palace. After presenting them to His Majesty, His Majesty was furious and had Prince Cheng and his son imprisoned."
"I heard that the old concubine of Prince Cheng's mansion was murdered, and that Prince Xie was not the biological son of Princess Cheng. His Majesty has ordered the Privy Council to investigate this matter and has deposed him from his position as Crown Prince."
"Prince Cheng's mansion has been surrounded. It looks like they're going to confiscate all the property. Right now, the news hasn't spread because it's dark. By daybreak, the whole capital will know."
The eunuch's words made Jinzhi pale. He was also worried: "The Second Prince is also involved in tonight's events. I don't know why he is with Marquis Wenxin and the others."
"His Highness the Fourth Prince has been in trouble recently because of the Lu family. If the Second Prince were to use the matter of Prince Cheng to gain merit and gain favor with His Majesty, His Highness's life would become even more difficult. Aunt Jinzhi..."
He was worried that the Fourth Prince would be overshadowed by the Second Prince, and he was also worried that the Second Prince would gain power over their prince and seize the position of the Eastern Palace. However, halfway through his words, he saw Jinzhi with her face down and his expression unclear.
"Aunt Jinzhi..."
"Aunt Jinzhi?"
The young eunuch couldn't help but call out twice, and seeing that Jinzhi was distracted, he reached out and gently pushed her shoulder.
Jinzhi seemed to be suddenly awakened and let out an "ah".
The young eunuch was puzzled: "Aunt Jinzhi, what's wrong with you? Why do you look so absent-minded?"
Jinzhi only felt her heart beating violently and her face was even paler. Fortunately, it was very dark at night and there was wind and rain to block her view. She stood in the dark in front of the door and did not let the eunuch in front of her notice anything unusual.
She clutched her sleeve tightly, suppressed the panic in her eyes, and tried her best to speak in a normal tone, "It's nothing. How could our Highness lose to the Second Prince?"
Jinzhi said this casually, and then she felt her mouth dry and she just wanted to get rid of the people in front of her as soon as possible: "I know about the matter of Prince Cheng's Mansion. You have done a good job. The Queen and His Highness will remember your contribution."
"I'm afraid things are going to get chaotic outside right now. Keep gathering information and keep an eye out for any changes. If you have any news, come back and tell me immediately. Don't forget to tell me, whether it's Prince Cheng's Mansion or the Second Prince and his men."
As Jinzhi spoke, she pulled out an exquisite silver bracelet from her sleeve and put it into the young eunuch's hand: "This is a reward for you."
The young eunuch was delighted when he received the reward: "Thank you, Aunt Jinzhi."
"Okay, do your job well, and you will definitely benefit from it in the future."
"Yes, then the servant will withdraw first."
The young eunuch stuffed the bracelet into his sleeve and left happily in the night. After everyone left, Jinzhi's body swayed and her legs became weak, and she almost fell down.
She leaned against the door frame and stood up straight. She took several deep breaths before her weak legs regained some strength. Jinzhi spoke in a steady voice and dismissed the palace guards outside, asking them to move away. Then she turned around and quickly entered the back hall.
Queen Lu was still asleep in the inner room. Ever since the incident with the Lu family, she had been restless and unable to sleep at night. Even when she finally fell asleep, she would be awakened by the slightest noise.
Jinzhi had just walked to the bedside when the slightly heavy footsteps made Queen Lu open her eyes.
"Golden Bough?"
Queen Lu had her long hair loose, and her eyes were filled with deep displeasure as she spoke in a hoarse voice. The restlessness of being woken up after finally falling asleep gave her a splitting headache.
But before she could open her mouth to scold, she saw Jinzhi's pale face. Her expression softened, and she frowned and said, "Why do you look so bad? What happened?"
"Your Majesty..." Jinzhi's lips trembled. After seeing her master, she could no longer hold back: "Prince Cheng... Something happened in Prince Cheng's mansion..."
Empress Lu paused as she rubbed her brows and asked, "Something happened?"
"Prince Cheng secretly stored military equipment and intended to rebel, but was captured on the spot by Marquis Yongxin and Xiao Yan..."
Swish——
Empress Lu sat up abruptly, her brows furrowed. "What nonsense are you talking about? How could Xie Tianyu rebel?"
"It's true. Prince Cheng's mansion has been surrounded, Prince Cheng and his son have been imprisoned, and... and Prince Xie's background has also been discovered..."
Jinzhi was so panicked she didn't know what to do, her voice trembling as she spoke, "His Majesty knows he's not Princess Cheng's son, and has verbally stripped him of his title of Crown Prince. He has handed the matter over to the Privy Council and Xiao Yan for investigation."
"Your Majesty, Xiao Yan and the people from the Privy Council are mad dogs. They've been biting at the Lu family for a long time. If they find out that Prince Xie is your descendant from the Lu family..."
"Shut up!!"
Queen Lu shouted coldly before Jinzhi could finish her words.
Seeing Jinzhi shivering with fear and looking at her with a pale face, Empress Lu sat on the bed with a cold expression, curled up in the quilt in front of her, and spoke word by word.
"Xie Yin is Xie Tianyu's son. He and Rong Yue have raised him for over ten years. They're just relying on some rumors that came from nowhere to claim he's not Princess Cheng's son. Where's the evidence?"
Jinzhi trembled: "But Your Majesty..."
"Your Majesty has always disliked Prince Cheng, and he's simply taking this opportunity to embarrass him. But who can prove that Xie Yin isn't of royal blood?"
Empress Lu looked up at her, her voice extremely calm. "Even if it's discovered that he's not Rong Yue's son, it was Xie Tianyu who deceived Rong Yue with someone else's bloodline. It has nothing to do with me or the Lu family."
"I also feel very sympathetic towards Rong Yue. As a woman myself, I also empathize with her and feel for her difficult situation."
After she finished speaking, she paused for a moment before continuing:
"You've been with me for so many years, you should know what to say and what not to say. Don't lose your composure and say nonsense because of irrelevant things."
Jinzhi's face turned pale, and she was still panicking: "But if Prince Cheng speaks..."
"He won't tell."
Queen Lu looked indifferent.
He secretly stored weapons and stationed troops, but never actually rebelled. At most, he would have lost his life. If he could find a way to take advantage of Emperor An's concern for his reputation and use the royal family's bloodline to force him, it would not be impossible to save Prince Cheng's life.
But if Xie Tianyu said something he shouldn't have said, he and Xie Yin would surely die, and even everyone related to him would not be able to survive.
He may not care about Xie Yin's fake son, but he cannot ignore his own blood.
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