"Impossible! My sister would never do such a thing. She must have been kidnapped by thieves. I beg Your Majesty to immediately send people to find Hui Shuren, lest she meet with misfortune," Song Anbang pleaded, kneeling before her.
Minister of Personnel Yan spoke up: "It is outrageous that someone would abduct a court lady right under the emperor's nose. I beg Your Majesty to find the mastermind behind this and punish him severely."
The second prince seized the opportunity to speak up: "Brother, it's obvious that Hui Shuren's disappearance is the work of a villain. You know, Hui Shuren just arrived in the capital and doesn't know many people. Could she have offended someone and suffered retaliation?"
He looked at the eldest prince with a meaningful gaze.
The officials all knew more or less about the feud between the eldest prince and Consort Hui, and they couldn't help but look at the eldest prince.
The eldest prince was furious. He was about to speak when the second prince interrupted him.
"Your Majesty, I also request that you send troops to search for Lady Huishu in and around the capital. Our dynasty cannot afford to lose such a capable person as Lady Huishu."
Several other officials seconded the motion.
The eldest prince was so angry that he couldn't catch his breath and his face turned ashen. At this moment, only the eldest prince and his supporters remained silent.
Seeing this, the eldest prince knew that if he didn't speak up, he would become the culprit. He flicked his sleeves, cupped his hands, and bowed, saying, "Your subject also requests that Your Majesty send troops to find the whereabouts of Lady Huishu and find the villain who kidnapped her and punish him severely."
Some officials who followed the second prince immediately seconded the motion.
The emperor looked at these people with a cold and solemn expression, his eyes deep. After a moment, he said, "General Yunhui, listen to my order. Immediately lead your troops to search inside and outside the capital. You must find Lady Huishu safely."
His eyes turned cold as he swept over the crowd below: "Bring the person who kidnapped Hui Shuren to me. I want to see who has such audacity."
"Your subject obeys the decree!" Yan Shuping bowed and accepted the order.
That's all for today.
The emperor rose from his chair and spoke.
"Respectfully seeing off His Majesty."
The crowd bowed and clasped their hands in greeting. After the emperor left, they looked up and their expressions varied.
Yan Shuping and the others, along with the Crown Prince, hurriedly headed out of the palace. Once outside the imperial city gates, they boarded a carriage together, where Lin Fenghe and Yan Ping'er were waiting for them.
"How is it? Is there any news from Uncle Yan?"
As soon as Yan Shuping got into the carriage, he asked eagerly.
Lin Fenghe and Yan Ping'er both looked grim and shook their heads.
Yan Ping'er continued, "My grandfather and Uncle Lu are still searching outside."
"What is the situation according to General Yan's report to His Majesty?" Lin Fenghe asked.
"His Majesty has ordered me to lead troops to find Consort Hui." Yan Shuping clenched his fists tightly. "I will search the capital thoroughly and find Consort Hui."
The Crown Prince's eyes were deep: "Investigate from the sides of the First Prince and the Second Prince, especially the First Prince's side. Keep a close watch on them. Hui Shuren's disappearance is definitely related to them."
Song Anbang looked regretful and self-reproachful: "It's all my fault. If my sister hadn't been waiting for me to pass the imperial examination and return to Linjia Village early, none of this would have happened. What... what will they do to my sister...?"
"Don't worry, Scholar Song, Lady Hui is definitely safe. These people kidnapped her not to take her life, and Lady Hui is so intelligent that she would never let anything happen to herself," Minister Yan said.
Lin Fenghe nodded in agreement, believing that his mother would do everything in her power to protect herself.
“Uncle, this is not your fault. If they intended to capture my mother, she would have encountered danger on the way back to Linjia Village even if she had set off earlier. I just never expected them to be so bold as to capture her.”
He looked up at the Crown Prince: "I'm afraid there's something they're plotting that we don't know about."
The emperor returned to his palace, coughed incessantly, and then spat out another mouthful of blood.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty!...You, you shouldn't push yourself so hard. Your health is important."
Eunuch Qi was almost in tears, and hurriedly helped the emperor pat his back to calm him down.
The emperor held it in for a long time before finally coughing it out. He took a breath and snorted coldly, "How can I let these people go when they are so restless?"
This night was destined to be a sleepless one.
When Song Anxin woke up, it was already dark outside. She covered the back of her head and felt a throbbing pain. Damn it, she never thought she would be kidnapped like in a movie.
She began to look around. It was a side room, and the room was elegantly furnished. The bed beneath her was also soft.
Just then, an old woman carrying food pushed open the door and came in. She was very happy to see that Song Anxin had woken up.
"Hui Shuren, you're awake. This old servant thought you should be awake by now, so I prepared a meal for you."
Song Anxin was completely bewildered. Why was she being treated so well? It made her wonder if she had been kidnapped.
"Cough cough..." Just as Song Anxin was about to question the woman, she felt her throat dry and itchy and couldn't help coughing. The old woman immediately brought Song Anxin a cup of tea and patted her back.
After drinking a cup of tea, Song Anxin immediately felt much better, but unexpectedly her stomach started growling again.
Song Anxin: "..." -_-||
All that momentum she had just built up was wasted.
The old woman smiled and went to the table to set out the food and dishes: "Hui Shuren is hungry, come and eat. From now on, this old servant will take care of your daily life. You can just call me Granny Zhang."
Song Anxin hesitated for a moment, then went to the table with a cold face and started eating.
Forget it, I need to fill my stomach to fight.
This woman was clearly a servant here, so asking her was pointless. Moreover, given the situation, they clearly weren't trying to kill her; otherwise, they would have killed her while she was unconscious, and she wouldn't be receiving such good treatment.
If it were just about money, everything would be fine. However, this woman called her Hui Shuren, which clearly indicates that she knew her identity. It seems that things are not so simple.
Now all we can do is wait and see what happens and wait for the mastermind who kidnapped her to come looking for her.
Granny Zhang was somewhat surprised to see that Song Anxin was not making a fuss and was eating so calmly. She had thought that Consort Hui would question and scold her harshly. It seemed that there was a reason why this woman could become a third-rank Consort Hui.
Song Anxin ate until she was about seven or eight tenths full, then put down her chopsticks and bowl. She took a sip of water to clear her throat and asked, "When is your master coming?"
Granny Zhang still had a smile on her face: "Master has official business tonight and can only come tomorrow. Lady Huishu can have a good rest tonight. I will inform you when Master arrives."
"Tomorrow again?" Song Anxin was a little anxious, but her face showed no sign of it. She nodded slightly and said, "Then you can go out."
"This old servant will stay by your side to take care of you. Don't worry, this old servant will not disturb your rest." Granny Zhang stood there without moving.
Song Anxin's brows furrowed. It seemed that they were going to keep a close watch on her. Although she was unhappy, this was their territory, so she could only accept it.
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