Chapter 337 The Authenticity of the Imperial Edict of Succession
Pushing open the door, sitting inside was an elderly man with white hair.
Yun Zhao was completely stunned.
The person who arrived was none other than Yan Shuqin, the Grand Tutor Yan!
She steadied herself and bowed gracefully to the other person.
"Yun Zhao greets Grand Tutor Yan."
A smile appeared on Yan Shuqin's serious face.
"You recognize me?"
"I was fortunate enough to meet him once from afar, and only later did I learn that it turned out that Grand Tutor Yan was my father's mentor."
"Come and sit down. How is your father?"
Throughout the past year, he received letters from the Prince of Jin, all of which reported that he was safe and sound.
He was worried that the Prince of Jin was only reporting good news and not bad.
"My master treated my father's injuries before, and after a year of recuperation, my father can now walk on his own with support."
With continued treatment in a year or two, he should be fully recovered.
Yun Zhao obediently sat down next to Yan Shuqin.
"That's good."
Yan Shuqin finally felt a huge weight lifted from his heart.
"But why is the Grand Tutor here?"
Could it be that Tingyu Pavilion has gotten in touch with Yan Shuqin?
"After you were taken away by the Imperial Guards, your family was very worried. I received an anonymous letter."
Later, I received a letter from your father, informing me of the case of Prince Qi.
When they sent people to investigate, they unexpectedly ran into an informant from Tingyu Pavilion, almost accidentally injuring their own men.
Yan Shuqin did not hide anything, and his words surprised Yun Zhao.
Why would Yan Shuqin say these things directly to a child? Does he know about her situation?
Yan Shuqin noticed Yun Zhao's confusion and smiled, "Your father said you are a very intelligent child, and there are some things you understand better than he does."
When he saw Yun Zhao in person, he realized that the Prince of Jin was not exaggerating.
He managed to escape from the Imperial Guards on his own and then contacted Tingyu Pavilion.
He's definitely not an ordinary child.
"So the Grand Tutor has discovered the connection between His Majesty and the case of Prince Qi?"
Upon hearing Yun Zhao's words, Yan Shuqin's expression instantly turned serious.
"I've made some progress. I've already sent a message to your father, asking him to find a way to return to the capital."
"Shall we head back to the capital now?"
Yun Zhao was somewhat surprised.
We can't just say that the most dangerous place is the safest place and make them risk their lives to come back from Fengyun City, can we?
"You must have heard about the case of Prince Qi back then, right?"
Yan Shuqin asked rhetorical questions.
“My father told me some things.”
"When Prince Qi was executed, his wife was pregnant. This occurred during his rebellion."
After the Princess Consort was sent out of the city, no one knew her whereabouts, and no one knew anything more.
It turns out that Princess Qi is pregnant. Eunuch Liu said that His Majesty's pursuit of Prince Jin is related to the case of Prince Qi.
I then ordered a reinvestigation of everyone around Prince Qi, including the old servant who had served Prince Qi's wife.
Only then did they learn that Princess Qi had been pregnant years ago and may have even given birth to a son.
They only came into contact with Tingyu Pavilion's undercover agents when they traced the old servant's hometown.
They almost got into a fight because they thought he was the son of King Qi.
"But His Majesty and Father are twins!"
By all accounts, her grandfather was the father-killer of the Prince of Qi's son.
Even a fool wouldn't team up with the son of their father's killer, would they?
"So you mean you suspect His Majesty is the grandson of Prince Qi?"
Once an absurd idea was born, it could no longer be suppressed.
"Back then, the late Empress suddenly went into premature labor and suffered severe bleeding during delivery. The late Emperor was not in the palace at the time."
The palace was controlled by the Imperial Noble Consort, who had a good relationship with the Empress.
At that time, the Empress's head maid went to fetch the imperial physician, and when she returned, the Empress had already given birth to a son.
She was pregnant when she suffered the massive hemorrhage; the late empress was already unconscious at the time.
The imperial physician then administered acupuncture, and the Empress gave birth to Prince Jin, but due to excessive bleeding...
Ultimately, they were unable to save the late empress's life, but both children survived.
After the late emperor returned to court, the palace maids who served the late empress naturally took charge of the daily lives of the two princes.
Coincidentally, the palace maid assigned to the Second Prince's palace was the one who gave birth to the first prince on the day the Empress gave birth.
The only person who remained by the late Empress's side was, coincidentally, the palace maid who was executed for plotting against the Second Prince when he was twelve years old.
I'll say it again.
If everything in this world were just right, then it wouldn't be a coincidence.
"Is there something wrong with that palace maid?"
“When someone dies, nothing can be found out, but Tingyu Pavilion did bring some information.”
Tingyu Pavilion had been investigating for nearly ten years, and it was last year that Xu Yifei caught a spy from the Western Frontier and extracted some clues from him.
"It is said that the royal family of Western Xinjiang possesses a secret medicine, one of which contains a 'heart-stopping herb' derived from the snow-capped mountains of Western Xinjiang."
It can relieve chest pain, but long-term use can lead to severe chest pain.
Even death, with symptoms resembling dying from chest pain, was a sudden symptom of the late emperor's passing.
Considering this, it's quite strange that the late emperor passed away in the first place.
And what a coincidence.
That spy was the personal bodyguard of the Third Prince of Western Xinjiang.
Years ago, I was ordered by the Third Prince to give this medicine to a merchant in the capital.
"That merchant, could he be one of the emperor's men?"
Yun Zhao felt a chill run down his spine.
These events, when put together, reveal that the son of the Prince of Qi switched his own son with the second prince of the late emperor.
Later, the second prince learned of his true identity and, in order to prevent it from being exposed, killed the palace maid who had raised him since childhood.
Fearing his identity would be exposed, he poisoned the late emperor and plotted to murder his younger brother.
Meanwhile, the Western Frontier wanted cities in the northwest to threaten the Second Prince and falsely accuse the King of Loulan of colluding with the Western Frontier.
With the help of the Second Prince, the Western Frontier massacred the Loulan Royal Palace.
Among the late emperor's sons, only the Prince of Jin could rival the Second Prince.
As long as Prince Jin dies, even if the Second Prince's identity as Prince Qi's grandson is revealed, he will still be the most suitable prince in the royal family to succeed to the throne.
"There's another strange thing: the emperor is very interested in Lu Yuan, the former Minister of Works."
My investigation revealed that before Lu Yuan's accident, he had written a letter to Elder Yuan of the Imperial Observatory.
After Lu Yuan's death, Yuan Lao used this as an excuse to retire early and return to his hometown. It is said that Lu Yuan was very talented in feng shui and divination.
That letter might contain something, making Yuan Lao's letter extremely crucial.
"Lu Yuan?!"
Yun Zhao suddenly stood up, remembering Lu Yuan's notes.
The prince was replaced by a raccoon dog.
"Your father said that you once saved a woman, who was Lu Yuan's daughter, is that right? But did you learn something from her?"
"Sister Lu has some manuscripts written by Lord Lu during his lifetime."
One of the bundles contained a secret, related to the tale of the previous dynasty's substitution of the crown prince for a cat.
Yan Shuqin's heart skipped a beat, and his expression grew increasingly grim.
If Lu Yuan foresaw the replacement of the imperial heir, thus revealing his true intentions and being killed by the emperor.
This explains why the emperor was wary of Lu Yuan and didn't want to mention him at all.
Lu Yuan's letter was probably telling Yuan Lao that there was a problem with his divination results.
To save his own life, Yuan Lao resigned from his official post and went into seclusion after Lu Yuan's death.
Yan Shuqin felt increasingly cold inside.
If all of this is true.
"So, could this imperial edict of succession be a forgery by Yun Qi?"
He committed patricide and fratricide.
What wouldn't they dare to forge an imperial edict?
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