Chapter 215: Trouble
Shen Anan turned around and leaned on the couch. After hesitating for a moment, she said, "Tell Qingfeng to send people to search the city for any trace of Shen Yunbai. If there is anything suspicious, report it to me immediately."
"Yes." Mo Xiang lit some calming incense, covered her with a thin blanket, then quietly closed the door and left.
After working hard for a few days, Shen Anan slept relatively soundly and did not wake up until the next morning.
Before I could fully regain consciousness, I suddenly heard a woman sobbing in the yard. The voice sounded very familiar.
Squeak——
Mo Xiang pushed the door open and came in, "Princess, you're awake."
"What happened outside?" She asked as she half-supported herself and sat up, putting on her clothes.
"Yes... Miss Lin." Mo Xiang bit her lip, seeming to be hesitant to speak.
"Miss Lin?" Shen Anan suddenly raised her eyes, and stood up quickly after a moment, "My eldest brother is in trouble?"
"Ms. Lin has been visiting the eldest young master in the prison these past two days. She said he was fine a few days ago, but today the master suddenly stopped visiting. It was said that it was the emperor's will, and... and it is very likely that the eldest young master was tortured."
Mo Xiang stepped forward calmly to help Shen Anan dress and put on makeup, “Miss Lin has no choice but to come crying to find the prince’s wife.”
"What kind of torture was used? Have you found out? How is the person? Is he in trouble? " Shen Anan frowned and asked anxiously.
"I don't know. Miss Lin said those people kept their mouths shut and refused to say anything."
"No need to put flowers in your hair." Shen Anan stopped Mo Xiang from putting hair ornaments on her, stood up and walked out quickly.
"An An." Lin Yu Rou was standing in the yard. When she heard the voice, she immediately turned around.
His eyes were as red and swollen as peaches, and his face was covered with tear marks.
"An An, what should I do if I can't see Chang He anymore?" She was choked with sobs and couldn't speak.
"Don't be anxious. Tell me slowly. What's going on?"
Shen Anan pulled her to the main hall and sat her down, and asked Mo Xiang to serve her tea. Lin Yurou tried to calm down before speaking again.
"In the past few days, I went to the prison to see him every day, and the jailers were very polite. But today, for some reason, they suddenly stopped me from going, and even threw away the food I brought with me."
"I guessed something had happened, but no matter what, that gentleman just refused to see me. I didn't dare tell Uncle Shen and Aunt Shen to make them worry, so I could only come to you to find a solution."
Shen Anan frowned fiercely.
Lin Yurou said something right. The sudden change in attitude of those jailers must be due to someone pushing them from behind, or they must have received some kind of order.
The Dali Temple Minister had promised Xiao Yuan that he would keep the matter under wraps for the time being.
"Did you ask the warders what the matter was?"
Lin Yurou nodded. "I asked, and they just said it was an order from above, and they were just following orders, and they knew nothing else."
Shen Anan's face was gloomy, and her red lips were tightly pursed, "There are not many people who can surpass Xiao Yuan and suppress the Dali Temple Minister."
"What do you mean...? Your Majesty?" Lin Yurou's face turned pale.
"Don't worry about it for now. I'll go to my brother's place in person later. You go back home first and take good care of my mother. Don't let her know the news or something will happen to her."
"Okay." Lin Yurou immediately stood up and said worriedly, "If there is any news, send someone to inform me."
"rest assured."
Lin Yurou took two steps back and bowed to Shen Anan, "Thank you, Fourth Prince's Consort."
After saying this, he immediately turned around and left the Fourth Prince's Mansion.
"Mo Ran, send Miss Lin off."
After Lin Yurou left, Shen Anan sat in the chair for a long time without moving.
"Princess." Mo Xiang thought she was upset and advised softly, "The eldest master will be fine, don't worry."
Shen Anan shook her head, her almond eyes narrowed slightly.
"Prepare the carriage, let's go to the Dali Temple."
——
Two quarters of an hour later, the carriage stopped at the gate of the Dali Temple. Without waiting for anyone to get off, the soldiers guarding the gate saw the sign of the Fourth Prince's Mansion hanging on the carriage, looked at each other, and ran inside without saying a word.
Shen Anan got off the carriage with the help of Mo Xiang.
"Fourth Prince's Consort, why are you here?" An officer came forward at a trot. Judging from his attire, he should be a small leader.
Shen Anan didn't waste any words and said directly, "I'm looking for your master, the Dali Temple Minister!"
"My master..." The officer was embarrassed for a moment, then smiled and said, "It's really unfortunate. My master is not in the mansion right now. He is out on business. How about the Fourth Prince's wife come tomorrow?"
"Are you sure he will be there tomorrow? If not, how about I cut off your head?" Shen Anan was smiling, but what he said made the man's face freeze.
"Fourth...Fourth Prince's Consort..."
"Is anyone inside?" Shen Anan asked coldly.
"Hmm... they should be back in a while. How about I lead the way and take the Fourth Prince's wife inside to rest. I will report immediately."
Shen Anan's expression eased a little, "Then lead the way."
The soldier wiped the sweat from his head and led the way. When there was a gap, he winked at a soldier and that person immediately left quietly.
Shen Anan just glanced at the man's back and ignored him.
She was originally going to see the Chief Justice of the Dali Temple, so it would be helpful to have someone to go and report the news.
In the study, Dali Temple Minister Chen heard his subordinates' report and his face turned pale. "You bastard, can't you just say I'm not in the government office?"
"I said so." The man was very aggrieved, "But the Fourth Prince's wife refused to leave and seemed to want to wait until you came back. I had no choice but to come and look for you."
Master Chen sighed heavily, "I knew this would happen sooner or later."
When gods fight, it is these little devils who suffer. But fortunately, the Fourth Prince is not in the capital, otherwise he would have died today.
It's not easy to be a fence-sitter.
After waiting for another quarter of an hour, thinking that the time was almost up, Mr. Chen stood up with his head down and went to the front yard.
"Princess, why are you here at this time without sending someone to inform us in advance?" He came quickly, looking exhausted as if he had just returned from outside.
“If you notify me in advance, I’m afraid it will be difficult to meet Mr. Chen.” Shen Anan’s eyes were cold and he said straight to the point.
Lord Chen's face froze for a moment, then he smiled again, "What are you talking about? I would never dare to say that."
Shen Anan was too lazy to play Tai Chi with him, "Master Chen, do you still remember what you promised the Fourth Prince?"
Lord Chen's face turned pale again.
"What does this mean now? Do you think that since the Fourth Prince is not here, I can't do anything to you if I bully a woman like you?"
Her face turned cold, and the pressure from a superior was immediately released.
Lord Chen is also an old minister. Apart from the emperor and Xiao Yuan, he has never been afraid of anyone. Now facing Shen Anan's eyes, he suddenly had the illusion that he was facing Xiao Yuan.
Could this be the legendary couple look?
The slight sense of hope in his heart disappeared, and he became more cautious.
"Your Highness, your words are too kind. Even if you lend me some courage, I would never dare to disobey you or the Fourth Prince. It is really... it is..."
He lowered his head, sighed heavily, and looked troubled.
He didn't want to offend either side, so he could only blame each other and tell the truth.
"That's what the emperor meant, right?" Shen Anan asked calmly.
"Fourth Prince's wife, don't dare to say anything." Lord Chen's face tightened and he looked around, "Be careful, there are ears on the other side of the wall."
That is to say, Shen Anan was right, the person behind the scenes was indeed the emperor.
Suspicion welled up in her eyes as she stared at Lord Chen.
Lord Chen immediately understood what she meant and bowed repeatedly, "Fourth Prince's wife, please understand. Since I have already promised the Fourth Prince, I will never go back on my word."
"Regarding Mr. Shen's matter, I specifically told my subordinates not to say a word, and I have suppressed it and never reported it. I don't know how the emperor suddenly knew about it."
He looked helpless.
He was even more furious with the scholar who came to report the case. Why didn't he go to the yamen or other places to report the case? Why did he come to the Dali Temple?
How can he be an official when he is stuck in the middle?
"What did the emperor tell you?"
Lord Chen frowned and opened his mouth, but in the end he said nothing and chose to remain silent.
"Can't say?" Shen Anan raised his eyebrows.
Lord Chen lowered his head and said, "Fourth Prince's Consort, please don't embarrass me. The Fourth Prince is not in the capital now. If the Emperor were to purge me, I would have no means to save my life."
If the Fourth Prince were here, he would tell it. If he was ever purged, he could still turn to the Fourth Prince for help. But the Fourth Prince was not here, so how could he possibly gamble his life and property?
Shen Anan knew that it was impossible for her to make Lord Chen disobey the emperor, so she said calmly, "What about my eldest brother, how is the situation?"
"I, your humble servant, can only say that I will do my best to save Master Shen's life. If the Fourth Prince's wife wants to save your brother, the Fourth Prince must return quickly to take charge."
Shen Anan's face was extremely cold, "Try your best?"
"I can tell you that even if Xiao Yuan is not here, if my elder brother dies or becomes disabled, I can still take your life. If you don't believe me, Master Chen, you can try and see if I can do it!!"
“…”
Lord Chen looked miserable.
What did he do to offend anyone?
However, facing Shen Anan, he was still no match for Xiao Yuan's intimidation. Although he was wary, he was not that afraid of her.
"I will do my best."
"You arrange it. I want to see my eldest brother."
"This... may be inconvenient." Lord Chen frowned and refused.
"Sir Chen, if Xiao Yuan can take your things, so can I. Do you need me to take them out and show them to you?" She had a cold face and her eyes were full of hostility.
To control officials is nothing more than evidence of corruption. The reason why Lord Chen is so afraid of Xiao Yuan is that he must have surrendered to him or that Xiao Yuan has some evidence against him.
Shen Anan simply tricked him.
As expected, Lord Chen's face immediately turned pale. "Fourth Prince's Consort, it's not that I don't want to help, it's just that they are keeping a close eye on them. Even the torturers are sent by the palace. I really can't do anything."
Otherwise, he would not have said that he could not guarantee Shen Changhe's life or death. His greatest authority now was to tamper with the torture instruments and give Shen Changhe good medicine for his injuries.
It allows people to persist longer.
Hearing this, Shen Anan's eyes suddenly became extremely grim.
The emperor seems to be trying to take someone's life while he's ill.
"Fourth Prince Consort, please forgive me for being so nosy. Is there any other purpose behind His Majesty's doing this? If so, you should obey him as soon as possible to save Master Shen from the pain of his flesh and blood."
Lord Chen also saw the clue. The emperor's repeated torture was not intended to kill people, but he must have some other ideas.
Shen Anan certainly knew that the emperor wanted Chen Tian.
She stood up and left the Dali Temple without saying a word.
Lord Chen bent over to see the person off, and when he stood up his eyes were full of thought.
"Sir, it's over over there. The person has fainted again."
Lord Chen came back to his senses and asked, "How is the person?"
"Those people were ruthless, but they seemed to have some tricks up their sleeves and didn't kill him."
He heaved a sigh of relief as expected, "As long as he's alive, it's fine. Send a doctor to apply medicine to him and use the best ginseng to keep him alive. Don't let anyone in the palace find out. We must not let him die."
"Sir, those are the emperor's men. Isn't it too dangerous for us to do this?" The man hesitated.
"What do you think I want to do? Why are you just standing there? Go now."
Lord Chen glared at the man fiercely and walked away.
If he hadn't been caught dead, how could he have taken such a risk?
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