The next day.
Shi Qi handed a letter to Ling Shumo, and her face looked quite strange.
Ling Shumo unfolded the letter. The content of the letter was very simple and straightforward. Her elder sister Ling Shujiao was going to send someone to assassinate her in three days, and the letter was signed by Fu Yichen.
After Fu Yichen was given the upper hand by her, he sold her a lot of information about Ling Shujiao, but that information could not shake the foundation of the Grand Princess's Mansion. At most, it could only cause some trouble for Ling Shujiao.
But this time, Fu Yichen directly revealed Ling Shujiao's specific schedule and plan to assassinate her. She would then present the evidence of the death penalty to the emperor. Ling Shujiao would not be able to escape the fate of being imprisoned, and Fu Yichen, the princess, would not be able to escape unscathed either.
Ling Shumo's first reaction was that Fu Yichen had given her false information.
Shi Qi said, "Her Highness the Crown Princess has always believed that the virtuous prince is Lu Jinan, the eldest son of Lu Taifu. Some time ago, according to your request, Lu Taifu had the real eldest son of the Lu family, Lu Jinshu, meet the Crown Princess by chance.
Not long after that, Lu Jinan became the eldest prince's concubine, but the eldest prince always regarded him as a substitute for the eldest son of the Lu family.
Because Lu Jinan was afraid of being charged with deceiving the emperor, he did not dare to explain to His Highness that he was actually Lu Jinan, the eldest son of the Lu family.
Ling Shumo was almost confused by this series of messy relationships. She interrupted Shi Qi and asked, "Can you get straight to the point?"
Shi Qi said, "The point is, although His Majesty thought Lu Jinan was a substitute, he still favored Lu Jinan every day. Lu Jinan was arrogant because of her favor and did not take Fu Yichen, the Grand Princess, seriously at all.
Fu Yichen has complained to His Highness many times but to no avail. Furious, he sent this letter to His Highness. Fu Yichen has asked his subordinates to tell you that he has helped you a lot. He hopes that after you remove His Highness from power, you will not tell His Highness about what he did..."
Ling Shumo interrupted Shi Qi, almost laughing. "Fu Yichen is turning love into hatred, using me to bring down the eldest princess. When the empress orders her to be imprisoned, her other servants will surely cry and make a scene. But he, Fu Yichen, is willing to serve her wholeheartedly as before."
Shi Qi added, "When that time comes, Your Highness will understand that Lu Jinan only loves Your Highness's identity as a princess, while Fu Yichen loves Your Highness as a person. Other men follow Your Highness for the sake of comfort, but Fu Yichen is willing to endure hardships with Your Highness."
Ling Shumo laughed so hard that tears came out. "Shi Qi, don't say anything first. Let me relax. This is really... really interesting."
Shi Qi sighed, "The eldest princess has never taken Fu Yichen, her legal husband, seriously. If she had shown more concern for Fu Yichen, things wouldn't have gotten to this point.
Men are creatures that usually look weak and docile, but if they are really provoked, they can be like a house falling apart. A good family can be torn apart in the blink of an eye."
Ling Shumo finally stopped laughing. She sat up straight and said in a serious tone, "Ling Shujiao was stabbed in the back by her partner. It was indeed quite funny, but it also sounded a wake-up call for me. If there was a fire in the East Palace backyard one day, I wouldn't be able to laugh anymore."
Shi Qi asked, "Then when you go to the Lingyin Taoist Temple in three days, will you bring Prince Xianjun with you?"
Ling Shumo said, "To prevent Ling Shujiao from becoming suspicious, all the public personnel arrangements will remain as they were. When the time comes, I will have Xianjun hide in the last carriage and not get off. Also, do not tell him about the assassination, lest he panic and reveal his flaws."
Lingyin Taoist Temple is not the largest Taoist temple in the capital, but it is the most famous.
Her father, Queen Jun, had been married to the Empress Dowager for six years without any children. In order to conceive, she tried all kinds of methods. Until one day, her uncle came to the palace to see her father and left the fortune stick he had drawn for himself at the Lingyin Taoist Temple in Fengyi Palace.
Half a month later, her uncle and Queen Jun were diagnosed with pregnancy on the same day.
The emperor was delighted and personally wrote poems to praise Lingyin Taoist Temple. He also spent a large sum of money to expand the temple, but was rejected by the Taoist priest with the words "blessings come from the heart, kindness is nurtured by the heart, and when you make a wish to the gods, it will be answered as long as your heart is sincere, no matter whether it is a humble room or a magnificent palace."
Due to lack of sufficient money for repairs, the official road to Lingyin Taoist Temple is barely passable, while the other paths up the mountain are overgrown with thorns, and the safety measures are extremely worrying.
If Fu Yichen hadn't stabbed her in the back, Ling Shujiao's choice to assassinate her in such a secluded place would have been an extremely wise decision.
Three days later, it was Lu Jinshu's birthday. Ling Shumo asked Lu Jinshu what his birthday wish was.
Lu Jinshu said, "Your Highness, the Crown Princess, has no daughter or son. I have heard that the Lingyin Taoist Temple is the most effective place to pray for a daughter. If Your Highness is willing, could you accompany me to the Taoist temple and let me pray for a child for you?
"I have been bored in the backyard for a long time. The scenery of Lingyin Taoist Temple is pleasant. I also want Your Highness to accompany me out for some fresh air."
Ling Shumo thought of what Lu Jinshu had said at the beginning and couldn't help but sigh in her heart.
Three days later, Lu Jinshu was afraid that he would have the worst birthday in his history.
…
March 12, the tenth year of Zhaoping.
Chenyou Palace.
Lu Jinshu got up before dawn today to wash and dress. The last time he got up so early was on the day Ling Shumo promised him to return home in three days.
At that time, he had just married into the Eastern Palace, and he couldn't wait to return to the Lu family in the most glamorous manner. He wanted to tell those people that he was living a very good life, a thousand times better than those people had imagined.
Today, he was even happier than the day he returned home three days ago. Before this, no one had ever celebrated his birthday.
Lu Jinshu was wearing a coral pink brocade robe with floral patterns. He stood in front of the six carriages to ensure that he could see Ling Shumo as soon as she came.
Ling Shumo did come over.
Lu Jinshu greeted her with a bright smile, but heard Ling Shumo say, "I want to be alone today. You should stay in the carriage at the back."
Lu Jinshu was stunned.
Ling Shumo had already stepped onto the carriage.
Shi Qi looked at Lu Jinshu with some sympathy. She felt that even if Her Royal Highness the Crown Princess could not tell the virtuous king the truth, she should at least find a less hurtful reason to ask the virtuous king to change a carriage. After all, today was the virtuous king's birthday. There was no reason to have a cold face and let the birthday boy stay alone in the back.
But she just thought so, and it was not her job to decide for Her Royal Highness the Crown Princess.
Shi Qi kindly reminded, "My Lord, we are about to depart. You should get on the car quickly."
Lu Jinshu still hadn't come back to his senses.
The loud neighing of horses rang in my ears.
In front of the carriage where Ling Shumo was sitting, six tall, high-quality snow-walking black horses raised their hooves and quickly pulled the carriage more than ten feet away.
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