Chapter 357 Imperial Edict
Lord Wang glanced at Master Sun coldly and said, "I heard everything you said just now. You're already old, and you're not ashamed? You actually forced a woman of good character to be your concubine? And you dare ask me to judge for you? I think you want to go to jail!"
Master Sun was stunned when he heard this and tentatively asked, "Master Wang, this is different from what we said. Why are you...helping outsiders?"
Upon hearing this, Lord Wang's face immediately turned stern. He said, "What do you mean by 'outsider' or 'in-law'? Young Master Yun is my guest of honor, so who says he's an outsider? I think you're getting old and confused. You're already so old, and you're still thinking about taking a concubine? Even if you want to take a concubine, then Madam Qin...it's okay if you just covet her, but you don't even let Madam Shen go. Do you know that Madam Shen is the one that Young Master Yun has his eyes on..."
As he spoke, Lord Wang turned towards Xiao Yunshuo and said with a smile: "Mr. Yun, you see, we are all family. Don't ruin the relationship because of two women. I think the Sun family is well-off. Madam Qin will definitely have a better life if she marries there than if she lives in poverty in this village. I will make the decision. You two should take a step back. Madam Qin will marry into the Sun family and become Mr. Sun's concubine. As for Miss Chen, she will become your concubine. Wouldn't everyone be happy?"
Although Mr. Yun's family is quite wealthy, he has also gained a lot of benefits.
But the Sun family gave him a lot of money as filial piety, and many money-making matters required the Sun family to step in.
He didn't want to offend the Sun family easily just for the Yun family who had just arrived.
The best thing, of course, is that both parties are well taken care of!
Chen Fenghe listened from the side and couldn't help but twitch his lips.
This prefect should have been invited by Xiao Yunshuo.
But... she is Mr. Yun's sweetheart, so why would she be Mr. Yun's concubine? What's the connection?
What exactly is Xiao Yunshuo planning?
Xiao Yunshuo glanced at the 'peacemaker' Lord Wang and said, "Lord, I invited you here this time because I wanted you to act as a matchmaker. I want to marry Miss Shen as my principal wife, not as a concubine. As for Miss Qin, I heard that they have a very harmonious relationship. Therefore, I thought of recognizing Miss Qin as my godmother, bringing her to my house, and serving her until the end of her life. If I follow Lord Wang's advice today and let Miss Qin marry into the Sun family as a concubine, wouldn't I be a very unkind person?"
Chen Fenghe: “…”
What?
What is this unfolding...?
How could she not know that she would have to remarry Young Master Yun as his legal wife?
Chen Fenghe looked at Xiao Yunshuo in shock.
Didn't this bastard even bother to check with her before making the decision?
Upon hearing this, Lord Wang's face turned grim. He looked at Xiao Yunshuo coldly, flexing his authority and saying, "So, Young Master Yun doesn't even give me face?"
Xiao Yunshuo looked at Lord Wang, shook his head, and said, "I still hope that you will grant me your blessing."
Seeing that Xiao Yunshuo was not getting his point across, Lord Wang put on a show of authority and said, "Mr. Yun, I gave you some face because you came with the general's personal letter. I didn't expect you to be so unreasonable! In this matter, I have to give Mr. Yun some face. I will betroth Madam Qin to Mr. Su as a concubine, and Madam Shen to Mr. Yun as a concubine!"
When Xiao Yunshuo heard this, a cold look flashed in his eyes.
It looks like this matter will not end well today.
Qin Mengyue suddenly said, "What qualifications does the prefect have to decide whether Feng He and I should marry? If the prefect insists on forcing me to do so, then I will kill myself to prove my resolve!"
Lord Wang sneered upon hearing this: "Ha! Madam Qin doesn't still think she's the Empress of the Palace, does she? As the official in charge, how can I not be qualified? Master Sun, have your men take Madam Qin back to the palace now. Anyone who dares to stop me will be arrested and thrown into prison!"
Upon hearing this, Master Sun was naturally overjoyed. He immediately ordered his servants, "What are you still standing there for? Didn't you hear what the prefect said? Why don't you invite Madam Qin to the sedan chair immediately?"
As he spoke, he glanced at Shen Fenghe with envy.
This Miss Shen looked much more beautiful and younger than Miss Qin. But... he didn't dare to disobey Lord Wang's words, so he could only give it to this useless Mr. Yun.
Humph! There is still a long way to go.
It seemed that Young Master Yun had become a new upstart in front of Lord Wang simply by relying on his connections in other places. But...his Sun family could actually send real money to Lord Wang.
Just wait!
In time, Lord Wang will find that Young Master Yun is useless and it is their Sun family that can bring him benefits!
When the time comes, he will try to kill this Young Master Yun and get Miss Shen!
Seeing that the prefect was so unreasonable and wanted to force them in broad daylight, Chen Fenghe and Xiao Yunshuo couldn't help but narrow their eyes dangerously and almost took action.
At this moment, an official rode his horse straight into the village, then fell off his horse breathlessly. Seeing Lord Wang, he immediately knelt down and said, "Lord... Lord, no... no..."
When Lord Wang heard this, he frowned and said, "That's nonsense. What's wrong with that?"
The official gasped for breath and said, "Sir... Imperial Envoy... Sir Imperial Envoy, you have arrived early... early..."
Lord Wang was stunned for a moment, then he suddenly remembered that the day before yesterday, he received news from the Dingzhou City Post Station, saying that an imperial envoy would come to Youzhou to convey the imperial edict. It was originally said that he would arrive tomorrow, so why did he come early today?
"Quick! Prepare the carriage immediately. I will return to the yamen immediately. Also, you should return quickly and have everyone at the yamen make arrangements to welcome the Imperial Envoy!"
The official said intermittently: "Sir, I'm afraid... it's too late... The Imperial Envoy has already... has already..."
Lord Wang stamped his feet anxiously:
"What do you mean it's too late? What happened to the Imperial Envoy? Please explain clearly!"
At this time, several fast horses also entered the village.
An official in red court robes came down from the front. Seeing so many people gathered here, he was stunned and asked, "Why is it so lively here?"
The officer who came to deliver the message finally finished his words: "Sir, the imperial envoy has arrived at Shili Village..."
Lord Wang naturally recognized the red court robes, which were the kind worn by the Imperial Envoy. He immediately went forward and bowed, saying, "I didn't realize you had arrived so early. I apologize for not welcoming you. I hope you will forgive me!"
The Imperial Envoy and Lord Wang exchanged greetings, and then said, "Don't blame Lord Wang. It's really because I have the imperial edict with me that I traveled day and night and arrived early."
Seeing that the Imperial Envoy was not surprised, Lord Wang breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Thank you, Imperial Envoy. I just don't know what order you want to convey, and why you are so urgent. This Shili Village is simple and crude. It would be better for the Imperial Envoy to return to Youzhou with me. I will give you a warm welcome before delivering the order."
The Imperial Envoy shook his head and said, "The person I want to convey my imperial decree to is right here in Shili Village. That's why I came all the way here. If I had gone back to Youzhou, I would have missed the opportunity."
When Lord Wang heard this, he was surprised.
"The person to whom the decree was conveyed is in this village? What does this mean? Could it be that the decree was not intended for me?"
The Imperial Envoy glanced at the crowd before speaking, "That's exactly what I meant. Lord Wang, I wonder if the deposed Empress, the deposed Crown Princess, and the Ninth Prince have been assigned to settle in Shili Village?"
Lord Wang was startled and nodded, "That's right..."
The Imperial Envoy didn't wait for him to finish and said, "Then please ask Lord Wang to invite those three people to come out and receive the order immediately."
Lord Wang couldn't help but feel a jolt in his heart. The deposed empress and the deposed crown princess had already been deposed and exiled, so naturally no one cared about them. So why did the emperor actually issue an imperial edict specifically for them now?
Although he was nervous, he did not dare to stop them in front of the imperial envoy. He glanced at Qin Mengyue and Chen Fenghe and said, "These are them..."
Upon hearing this, the Imperial Envoy took out the imperial edict, opened the scroll, and read aloud, "Qin Mengyue, Chen Fenghe, the Ninth Prince, receive the edict!"
Qin Mengyue and Shen Fenghe couldn't help but look at each other, and then looked at Xiao Yunshuo.
After hearing this, everyone present knelt down together.
Although Chen Fenghe didn't want to kneel, she had to kneel because of the atmosphere.
The imperial envoy then read out the imperial edict aloud: "By the providence of Heaven, the Emperor decrees that the Crown Prince's conspiracy to rebel, His Majesty, out of consideration for the relationship between father and son, has granted him a pardon. All those implicated in the Crown Prince's conspiracy shall be pardoned. The deposed Empress and I were once married, and in remembrance of our old relationship, I hereby restore the deposed Empress to her position as a concubine, naming her Mengpin. Upon receiving this decree, she is ordered to immediately return to the palace with the Ninth Prince, Xiao Yunhao, without delay! Even the deposed Crown Princess is permitted to return to the capital with her and be properly placed in the palace. This is my decree!"
After the imperial edict was read, everyone was stunned.
This... can it be like this?
Chen Fenghe was speechless.
This emperor is truly... a fighter among scumbags...
They had already deposed and exiled her, and now they turned around and made her a concubine? They wanted to take her back?
Is it because the prince is "dead" that he is pretending to be a sentimental person again?
Lord Wang and Master Sun were the first to come to their senses.
Lord Wang's back was instantly soaked with cold sweat!
He suddenly turned his head and kowtowed to Qin Mengyue.
"Your Majesty! I pay my respects to you! I hope you will forgive me. What I said just now was because I was kicked in the head by a donkey and was not in my right mind. I said it out loud and it offended you. Please forgive me, Your Majesty!"
You know, he just used his power to abuse his authority and arbitrarily betrothed Lady Qin to Master Su—and not as his legal wife, but as a concubine!
How could he be so stupid? He actually thought that since the queen had been deposed and exiled to this borderland, no one would care about her life or death.
Why did the imperial edict come to restore her position as a concubine?
If the emperor knew that he had betrothed the concubine in the palace to an old man without authorization, not only would he lose his official hat, but even his life and property would be in danger!
"Empress Mengpin, I will immediately arrange for a carriage to take you to Youzhou first. Once everything is arranged for the return trip to the palace, I will then send you off!"
Now he just hopes to cover up what just happened immediately!
After hearing the imperial edict, Qin Mengyue couldn't help but feel a little stunned, and her stunned feeling was mixed with heartache and determination.
If she had known that it was Emperor Yucheng who secretly instigated Qu Wenmin to murder her father and brother, she might have been foolish enough to happily accept the decree and return to the palace, and even feel grateful to Emperor Yucheng for pardoning the crown prince...
But now, after learning all the cruel truths, she will no longer be deceived.
The Imperial Envoy was unaware of what had just transpired and said with a smile, "Master Wang is truly thoughtful. Concubine Meng, His Royal Highness the Ninth Prince, and... Madam Shen, please accompany Master Wang and this humble official back to Youzhou City. We will depart for the capital shortly to report back to the Emperor."
Qin Mengyue came back to her senses, her face cold. She was about to open her mouth to disobey the order, saying that she would rather die than return to the palace to be his concubine.
However, before she could speak, Chen Fenghe had already guessed her intention and whispered, "Mother, please be patient. We can't let anyone accuse us of disobeying the emperor's order. Otherwise, the emperor or the people in the palace will definitely use this as an excuse to embarrass us..."
Qin Mengyue heard Chen Fenghe say this and whispered, "Could it be that... we just go back to the capital?"
Chen Fenghe smiled and said, "Mom, don't worry. I have a way..."
Qin Mengyue's heart was in turmoil, but she always believed in Chen Fenghe, so she nodded and said, "Okay. Mother will listen to you."
Chen Fenghe couldn't help but sneer at Lord Wang's fawning look.
Originally, she was thinking of taking advantage of the night to empty out the prefect's residence and Mr. Sun's residence tonight, which would be considered as revenge for Qin Mengyue and her.
Now, due to her status, she had to act secretly.
However, now that she had received the imperial decree, she naturally would not allow Lord Wang to act here and cover up everything that had just happened.
It was also a good opportunity to use him to casually evade this imperial decree.
"Your Excellency, Lord Wang wants to take us to Youzhou City, but we dare not go. Please forgive us, Your Excellency."
The Imperial Envoy was stunned when he heard this and asked, "Why?"
Lord Wang was also anxious: "This... Madam, and Miss Shen, the emperor's decree requires you to set off for the capital immediately after receiving the order. If we delay, not only will the imperial envoy and I be punished by the emperor, but even Concubine Meng and the Ninth Prince will be implicated... So it's better to set off as soon as possible..."
Chen Fenghe glanced at him indifferently, and said with a half-smile, "Master Wang, are you saying that we are defying your orders and deliberately delaying our return to the capital?"
Upon hearing this, Lord Wang quickly knelt down and kowtowed, saying, "Your humble servant... dare not."
Chen Fenghe then looked at the Imperial Envoy and said, "Imperial Envoy, we dare not follow Lord Wang to Youzhou. We are really worried about our own safety!"
As she spoke, she paused deliberately, stole a glance at Lord Wang, and acted as if she wanted to say something but hesitated.
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