Eunuch Yuan forbade Zhao from revealing that Empress Song was pregnant, or his entire family would be exterminated. This terrified Zhao so much that his legs went weak. If Eunuch Yuan hadn't caught him in time, Zhao would have collapsed to the ground.
The pregnancy of a concubine is a great joy, but the emperor's face turned ashen, and Eunuch Yuan gave him a wink and then issued a gag order. How could Zhao, the Imperial Physician, not know what had happened?
Fortunately, he was absolutely loyal to the Emperor; otherwise, he would most likely not have made it out of the Imperial Study today.
Eunuch Yuan escorted Zhao Yuanzheng out of the Imperial Study, and then ordered the guards and eunuchs outside the Imperial Study to step back thirty paces.
The soundproofing in the Imperial Study wasn't that good either; if you were too close, you might hear something.
The guards found it strange, but since Eunuch Yuan had spoken, they dared not disobey and all retreated thirty paces away.
When Eunuch Yuan returned to the Imperial Study, he saw the Emperor pull Empress Song up from her couch from afar, demanding, "Who is the adulterer?!"
Empress Song was so weak that she couldn't stand up. She knew she was going to die. She was glad that she knew the Empress Dowager and was on guard against her. She had sent Xie Jingyin away from the capital when the Prince Cheng's concubine became pregnant.
Empress Song looked up at the Emperor with her head held high, "Your Majesty, I will not tell you whose child I am carrying. If Your Majesty wishes to kill me, then kill me!"
The emperor was so angry that the veins on his forehead bulged.
With a flick of his hand, Empress Song was thrown to the ground. The itching of the rash, the fear of certain death, and the shove caused her to curl up in pain.
The emperor wished he could order Empress Song to be beaten to death on the spot.
The Emperor grabbed Empress Song by the neck, choking her until her face turned blue. Just as she was about to die, Xie Jingyan said, "Killing her like this is too easy on her. She still has a use."
The emperor was so angry that he was almost completely out of his mind.
No man can tolerate being cuckolded.
Especially given the previous incident involving Consort Chen, the Emperor was even less tolerant of this matter.
Eunuch Yuan quickly advised the emperor, "Your Majesty, please calm down. With the empress dead, the adulterer will not be found."
The word "adulterer" brought the emperor back to his senses a little, but only a little. "Throw this slut into the cold palace!"
It's easy to be banished to the cold palace, but—
Eunuch Yuan asked, "What's the reason?"
Empress Song was, after all, an empress, and there needed to be a plausible reason to banish her to the cold palace.
The Emperor was so angry he wanted to kill someone, yet he still had to find an excuse. Xie Jingyan said, "The Empress has gone mad and stabbed the Emperor with a gold hairpin. The Emperor has ordered the Empress to be banished to the Cold Palace and the entire Left Prime Minister's family to be imprisoned."
That's a good reason.
The crime of regicide was so heinous that no one dared to plead for the Empress and the Left Prime Minister's residence.
Eunuch Yuan quickly went out, summoned two guards, and dragged the limp Empress Song to the Cold Palace.
After everyone had left, the Emperor looked at Xie Jingyan, his face full of anger, and said, "You knew about this all along?"
Xie Jingyan said, "On the day the results of the autumn imperial examination were announced, the Empress's personal maid went out of the palace to buy abortion pills. The Princess Consort's maid thought that the Empress was going to harm someone again, so she replaced the abortion pills with a pregnancy-preserving pill. The Empress probably guessed that she was pregnant, but she couldn't frame the Emperor, so she had no choice but to have an abortion. After taking the pills, there was no effect, so she thought she had guessed wrong and dared to summon the imperial physician for a consultation. That is why Physician He died in the Imperial Garden yesterday."
"I can't guarantee that my guess is correct. It can only be that the Empress poisoned her and then had the imperial physician take her pulse. She would never dare to have the imperial physician take her pulse in front of the Emperor, so my guess is correct."
The Emperor knew his son was intelligent, but even the most intelligent man couldn't suspect the Empress of having an affair and becoming pregnant based solely on an abortion pill and the death of Physician He.
The Emperor asked, "Who is the adulterer?"
The Emperor was certain that Xie Jingyan knew.
Xie Jingyan did indeed know.
It is said that to catch an adulterer in the act, one must catch them red-handed. The Empress Dowager already knows about Prince Cheng and Empress Song's affair. With the Empress Dowager watching over them, Prince Cheng and Empress Song will never dare to continue their illicit relationship.
But unexpectedly, Princess Cheng was so virtuous that she feared the king would have no heir, so she asked Doctor Tao to treat the king's hidden illness, and he was cured.
Although they were not caught red-handed, Empress Song had solid evidence that could cost her and Prince Cheng their lives.
Xie Jingyan looked at the Emperor and said, "If I tell you who the adulterer is, will Father believe me?"
"Father, you should interrogate the Empress yourself!"
After saying that, Xie Jingyan turned and left.
After taking two steps, Xie Jingyan stopped again and looked at Eunuch Yuan, saying, "The Empress Dowager will not believe that the Empress would kill Father. She will definitely question Eunuch Yuan. Eunuch Yuan, please tell the Empress Dowager the truth, but remember not to mention me. Also, tell the Empress Dowager that Father will not kill the Empress until the adulterer is found out."
"Remember to send people to guard the Cold Palace, so that the Empress won't be silenced."
After saying those two sentences, Xie Jingyan walked away.
Watching Xie Jingyan's departing figure, Eunuch Yuan felt a mix of emotions he couldn't quite describe.
It seems there's nothing that Prince Ling doesn't know.
He specifically mentioned the Empress Dowager...
There must be a deeper meaning.
Eunuch Yuan couldn't understand why Empress Song, now that she was Empress, would be so foolish as to have an affair. The Emperor hadn't visited her palace in so long, yet she dared to commit such an immoral act without taking contraceptive medicine, and even dared to try to frame the Emperor. Thinking of the two children Empress Song had given birth to, Eunuch Yuan felt that the Emperor's head had become even greener.
Seeing the Emperor's fierce expression, Eunuch Yuan didn't dare to say a word of advice.
Meanwhile, Shen Wan had rested for a while after lunch before falling asleep. She was sleeping soundly when Yin Shuang shook her awake, "Your Highness, wake up quickly, there's good news..."
Shen Wan was still sleepy and mumbled, "What good news? Can't you wait until I wake up to tell me?"
She wanted to, but she couldn't help herself.
Yinshuang said, "The Empress has gone mad and stabbed the Emperor. She has been banished to the Cold Palace."
A sudden jolt swept over her, and Shen Wan's drowsiness vanished instantly.
Her voice suddenly rose, "The Empress has been banished to the Cold Palace?"
Yinshuang nodded repeatedly, "Even the Left Prime Minister's residence was implicated and imprisoned in the Ministry of Justice's death row."
Shen Wanren was still bewildered.
Did Empress Song assassinate the Emperor?
"Has she gone mad?" Shen Wan asked.
"..."
Yinshuang's lips twitched.
It seems the princess only heard that the empress had been banished to the cold palace, and didn't hear the first two sentences.
Yinshuang said, "The Empress has gone mad, which is why she hurt the Emperor and was banished to the Cold Palace."
Shen Wan looked at Yin Shuang.
The reason—
She didn't believe it.
When Empress Song was banished to the Cold Palace, Xie Jingyan was in the palace, and he knew that Imperial Physician He had been murdered. Empress Song's banishment to the Cold Palace must have been related to him.
When Xie Jingyan returned, Shen Wan asked, "Why was the Empress banished to the Cold Palace?"
Xie Jingyan wouldn't tell anyone else, but he wouldn't hide it from Shen Wan: "The Empress is pregnant..."
How could a pregnant woman be relegated to the sidelines?
They'll just be hailed as geniuses, right?
etc!
Thinking of Empress Song buying abortion pills, Shen Wan's eyes widened, and her voice trembled, "Is she not carrying Father's child?"
"Um."
"..."
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