Zhou Gu woke up to see the eldest Princess Sheng An holding a bowl of medicine to feed him, and he immediately sat up, intending to take the bowl himself.
Princess Sheng An dodged and refused to give him the bowl. Her face was stern as she said, "Grandmother is feeding you, and you are not allowed to refuse."
Zhou Gu looked at Princess Sheng An helplessly, "Grandmother, I can take the medicine on my own. The way you’re spoon-feeding me is too bitter. I’d rather drink it all at once to get it over with."
He stretched out his uninjured left hand, "This hand is working which means you really don’t need to trouble yourself, grandmother."
When Princess Sheng An heard him say that, she could only give him the bowl, "Drink slowly and don’t choke," she called behind her, "Quickly, bring the sweet treats."
Zhou Gu had already gulped down the medicine and wanted to reject the sweet treats. However, the fast-moving nurse had already prepared them, forcing him to open his mouth and eat the sweet treats that Princess Sheng An had fed him.
Seeing him too tired to keep his eyes open, Princess Sheng An said, "Go on and sleep!"
Zhou Gu nodded and collapsed back on the bed, falling asleep again.
The Lord Protector entered the room to find him sleeping again. He spoke with his hands behind his back, "You may all leave. What are you all doing standing here? Just leave someone on watch."
The Duchess then said, "Mother, Father, you two should go rest. I will stay here."
Princess Sheng An didn’t want to leave. She waved her hand to dismiss the Lord Protector, indicating that he should leave on his own.
The Lord Protector briefly raised his beard and grumpily left without a word.
Upon returning to the Eastern Palace, Yun Ze reported the situation to Yan Huisheng. Yan Huisheng heaved a sigh of relief internally and thought, "That was a close call." If Su Rong hadn’t happened to visit the Buddha Temple today and run into Zhou Gu, she predicted the danger on his journey back to the capital. She sent Fen Ling down the mountain to protect him, otherwise, Zhou Gu would have been killed fifty miles outside the city.
He furrowed his eyebrows, "When you were fighting with those men, could you make out who they were?"
Yun Ze shook his head, "The people who intercepted me were also determined fighters. I couldn’t tell who they were. They were unlike any of the assassins I’ve encountered before."
The implication was that they weren’t from the Crown Prince or the second Prince, as he often interacted with their people.
"So it turned out to involve Lipin." Yan Huisheng said solemnly: "The person who wanted to kill Zhou Gu couldn’t avoid those in the court. Although the Crown Prince and the second Prince have been dealing with me for many years, it’s hard to guarantee that they don’t have secret weapons."
After all, Yan Li hated Zhou Gu the most recently. If he hadn’t found an opportunity to deal with Zhou Gu before the examination, it’s possible he wanted to kill him after the examination.
He instructed Yun Ze, "Go investigate. Lipin is being investigated by the fourth brother along with Rui’an King. The Lord Protector should also not stand by. You go and check out the Buddha Temple." 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂
Yun Ze replied in the affirmative.
As soon as Yun Ze left, a young eunuch from the palace came to summon Yan Huisheng.
Yan Huisheng guessed why the Emperor summoned him. Once he was ready, he entered the palace, greeted the Emperor with a bow, and said, "Your Majesty."
The Emperor looked at Yan Huisheng, his most accomplished son, and his rightful heir to the throne. Regardless, as he grew up, his skills improved, and his popularity rose, reminding him that he was getting older and waiting for him to pass away, waiting to inherit his throne.
He asked solemnly, "Crown Prince, how did you find out that someone wanted to kill Zhou Gu?"
Yan Huisheng bowed his head and answered, "Your Majesty, I heard that Ding Man died a hundred miles outside the city near the Buddha Temple. Zhou Gu was investigating there with a team. I felt that the implication was quite deep once even the Buddha Temple was dragged into it. Knowing Zhou Gu didn’t bring many people with him when he left the city, there should be results after a night of investigation. So, I sent Yun Ze and his men to go meet him at the Buddha Temple. However, I did not expect someone to intercept us outside the city beforehand and intentionally delay the time."
"So, you’re saying, you predicted it?" The Emperor questioned.
"Yes." Yan Huisheng nodded.
The Emperor, upon hearing this, did not cling to this matter anymore. Instead, he asked him, "What do you think of Fen Ling rescuing Zhou Gu with her men?"
Yan Huisheng raised his eyes to meet the Emperor’s scrutinizing gaze. He said evenly, "Given that Lady Su Qi is guarded by such hidden guards, her identity must be extraordinary. Even though she and Zhou Gu have broken off their engagement, they still maintain a friendly relationship. It’s not surprising that she foresaw the dangers he might encounter on his way back to the Capital City from the mountain and saved him."
"What is her identity? Do you know that?" The Emperor pressed.
Yan Huisheng lowered his eyes, "Son is unaware, but after today’s events, I have some speculations."
"The old Duke and Zhou Gu didn’t tell you?" The Emperor didn’t believe him.
Yan Huisheng shook his head, "I have not seen him since Zhou Gu took the examination. He has not been to the Eastern Palace, nor has he been in contact with me. Regarding the old Duke, I saw him on the day of the grand court assembly."
The Emperor, of course, knew about this. On the day of the grand court assembly, the old Duke was detained by him and then returned directly to his residence after leaving the palace without meeting anyone else. He stared at Yan Huisheng, "Tell me your speculation about Su Rong."
"Miss Su Qi, should be related to Princess Zhenmin since many people have said that Su Qi looks like Princess Zhenmin from years ago. The rest, I dare not speculate." Yan Huisheng replied with a calm face. "Lately, I have been busy with the examinations arranged by Father Emperor. Even if they are successfully completed, there should be no mistakes in the grading. If it weren’t for Zhou Gu’s involvement with her, I wouldn’t have paid much attention to Miss Su Qi."
Seeing that his answer was watertight, as if he really did not know Su Rong’s true identity, the Emperor said directly: "She is the daughter of Princess Zhenmin and the Nanchu King."
Yan Huisheng showed a perfectly timed expression of shock.
Crown Prince Yan Huisheng, known for his calmness from a young age, was never flustered, even in the face of astonishment. Aside from a touch of surprise on his face, there was no other sign of panic. This had always been the case, and the Emperor had never seen him lose his composure.
"On the day of the grand court assembly, under my questioning, the old Duke revealed her true origin to me. I initially wanted to meet her, but the old Duke advised against it, insisting it was not the right time." The Emperor did not miss any change in Yan Huisheng’s facial expression, "So, I still have not seen her until now. However, the assassination attempt on Qingping was actually targeting her. And the storytelling case at the First-Class Scented Tea House was obviously directed at her too. What do you think about these two cases?"
Yan Huisheng pondered for a while, then asked calmly, "Father Emperor, would you like me to tell you the truth or just placate you with lies?"
"What are you talking about! I naturally want to hear your opinions." The Emperor looked displeased, "You just speak."
Yan Huisheng said, "The truth is, if these incidents were indeed targeted at Miss Su Qi, someone within the Nanchu Country probably wanted to use someone from our court to get rid of Su Rong. Father Emperor’s decision to entrust these two cases to Rui’an King was indeed wise."
The Emperor nodded, "What else?"
Yan Huisheng shook his head, "I have not met Miss Su Qi, and I have only met Second Young Master Ye briefly at the birth celebration of the Duke of Chengguo’s granddaughter. Beyond that, we have just exchanged a few words. Speculating further would be detrimental. We need to wait for Rui’an King to clarify the cases before we can draw a conclusion."
"I am not asking you about Su Rong and Ye Guixue, but about Lipin. You must have heard about it from Yun Ze. This case involves Lipin." The Emperor stared at him and said, "Do you think Prince Yan Shen, the fourth son, is involved?"
Yan Huisheng knew that the Emperor wanted to probe for information from him, but he would not let him succeed. He still shook his head saying, "We still need to wait until the details are thoroughly investigated before we can come to a conclusion. It is not appropriate to make premature judgments."
The Emperor was dissatisfied internally, but Yan Huisheng wasn’t wrong, so he had to let it go. Then, he began to act more like a fatherly figure, reminding him, "You are the heir apparent, you should pay close attention to both the internal and external movements of the Capital City. You cannot let the government fall into chaos. Report anything unusual to me at any time."
Yan Huisheng scoffed silently at his ’wonderful’ father. His father, who held the highest authority, always had a sharp instinct, accurately sensing imminent major events. Whenever this happened, he would always have him, Yan Huisheng, step forward and devote himself to the country. However, once the situation was under control and he was no longer needed, his father would start suppressing him again, cutting off his support, and promoting his older brothers to counter him. This had happened innumerable times over the years, and this time was no different.
He laughed silently, lowered his head and said, "Father Emperor, rest assured. This is my duty."
Regardless, this seemed to suggest that he had more freedom to act in the near future, which was always a good thing. Now, things were different from the past, with the list of successful exam candidates about to be released and Su Rong helping him secretly. If he could seize this opportunity, there was much he could achieve.
The Emperor waved his hand, "Go!"
After bowing, Yan Huisheng exited the Imperial Study Room.
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