Chapter 74 074 Princess Qi smiled beautifully at Luo Fu.
Although Luo Fu was no longer able to ride horses due to her pregnancy, she could still play cards and admire flowers, so Princess Kangping did not intend to neglect her.
On September 17th, Luo Fu arrived at the Princess's residence with a purse after being told by a maid that there was a mahjong game that day. Upon arrival, she learned that the other two mahjong partners were an old acquaintance, Princess Shun, and the wife of the Duke of England, whom Luo Fu rarely interacted with.
The current Duke of Yingguo, Gao Kun, is the younger brother of Empress Gao and the maternal uncle of Princess Kangping. His wife, Lady Xue, is Princess Kangping's cousin-in-law, making their relationship quite close. Lady Xue's background is equally illustrious, as she was the beloved daughter of the founding prime minister, Xue Xiang. However, Xue Xiang has long since passed away, and the Xue family's influence in the capital has gradually waned, their prestige falling short of that of the noble families.
Before Xue Shi and Princess Shun arrived, Kang Ping said to Luo Fu, "My cousin-in-law, like your sister-in-law, is a well-known dignified lady in the capital. If I hadn't been looking for a more suitable partner, I really wouldn't have wanted to invite her to come and play cards with us."
Boring as it may be, at least my cousin's wife wasn't that afraid of her. If it were any other lady, she would definitely be very careful after coming over, and wouldn't dare to do anything reckless.
Luo Fu liked ladies the most because ladies were very polite to everyone, and as long as she didn't offend anyone, no one would give her a hard time for no reason.
Not long after, Lady Xue and Princess Shun arrived one after the other.
When Princess Shun saw Xue, she chuckled and teased Kangping and Luo Fu, "Well, now I'm the only princess left who's really free to play cards with you."
Prince Fu must be just as eager for that position as Prince Qi. Less than two months after the deposed crown prince was buried, Princess Fu had to keep up with Prince Fu's grief and couldn't go out to play cards. Only her Prince Shun never had a chance. Prince Shun even openly went to the market to personally select rare birds and bring them back to his residence. So Princess Shun had no more scruples.
Luo Fu and Xue Shi both pretended to be confused, but Kang Ping jokingly retorted, "If Third Sister-in-law is really so free, why are you the last one to arrive?"
The two sisters-in-law joked with each other for a while, and then the four of them moved to the card room. A row of potted chrysanthemums was placed on one side of the window, adding a touch of elegance to the game of cards.
After only one round of play, someone outside suddenly came to report: "Princess, Princess Qi has arrived and says she wants to catch up with you."
Kang Ping raised an eyebrow and said to the cards in his hand, "Invite her over and tell her we're busy playing and don't have time to greet her."
"yes."
The princess sat firmly, the Princess Consort of Shun sat firmly, and Luo Fu and Xue Shi opposite her exchanged a glance.
Kang Ping clearly saw Luo Fu's hesitation and smiled, "Relax, this is my princess's residence, and I'm in charge."
Luo Fu had no choice but to continue sitting, though she was actually quite flustered inside. She had heard too many stories from the princess about how domineering and whip-wielding Princess Qi was, and she was afraid that Princess Qi was also petty and might target her one day because she hadn't come out to greet her.
As they waited, footsteps sounded outside. When the figure of Princess Qi, dressed in magnificent robes, appeared at the door, Luo Fu disregarded whether the princess was happy or not, and was the first to stand up. She walked around the mahjong table and respectfully bowed to Princess Qi: "This humble woman greets Your Highness."
Princess Qi had seen Luo Fu several times at palace banquets and remembered her face. She had also heard that Luo Fu had become Princess Kangping's new favorite.
If friends of enemies are also enemies, then Princess Qi should dislike Luo Fu. However, since Xiao Yu deserves the credit for the downfall of the deposed crown prince, Princess Qi finds Luo Fu quite agreeable.
"No need for formalities, no need for formalities. So Madam has some good news to share. Congratulations!" Princess Qi said with beaming eyes, her joy for Luo Fu as natural as if the two were old friends. But her happiness was just the joy of a happy occasion, not the kind of dignified princess who would fawn over the wife of an imperial censor.
Before Luo Fu could return the greeting, Princess Qi had already circled around behind Kang Ping, affectionately put her hand on Kang Ping's shoulder, and said reproachfully, "In the past, my sister liked to invite your fourth sister-in-law over to play cards, and I could only feel jealous but there was nothing I could do. Now that your fourth sister-in-law is not available, why do you still not think of me?"
Kang Ping twitched the corner of his mouth.
Ultimately, she and her second sister-in-law had no major grudges; it was simply that two equally arrogant people clashed and neither was willing to give way to the other, hence their mutual dislike.
Today, my second sister-in-law took the initiative to be friendly, most likely to help my second brother secure the position of crown prince. After all, she, Kangping, is the most favored daughter of the emperor and empress. If she speaks well of any of her brothers, regardless of whether the emperor and empress listen or not, outsiders will think that her support might be useful.
"You can't hit someone who's smiling," Kang Ping said helplessly, "I was thinking of my second sister-in-law, but I was afraid she wouldn't want to come, so..."
As soon as the princess expressed her opinion, Luo Fu immediately stepped aside as if she had seen a savior, saying, "If Your Highness doesn't mind, please sit here with me. I'm not good at cards and always lose money, which is really bothering me."
Princess Qi gave her a satisfied look and sat down.
Kangping instructed a maid to place a chair next to her so that Luo Fu could sit and observe.
Because of the sudden arrival of Princess Qi, there was much less gossip at today's card game. After the game ended, Kangping did not invite Luo Fu, Xue Shi, or Princess Shun to stay for dinner, but only invited Princess Qi, who made excuses to stay.
As Luo Fu traveled by carriage back to the Marquis's residence, Xiao Yu of the Censorate received an official document from Gaoyang County in Jizhou. The document was written by Wang Xiangru, the supervising censor sent to inspect the county's officials. However, Wang Xiangru was not impeaching any local official; rather, he had received a grievance from a family in Boye County of Gaoyang County. After verifying the facts, Wang Xiangru confirmed that the injustice was largely true and reported the case to Xiao Yu, the head of the Censorate, so that the Censorate in the capital could impeach the powerful official who could only do so in court.
In this situation, Xiao Yu, along with the two Censor-in-Chief and the Grand Censor, were all qualified to go to court to impeach him.
Xiao Yu delivered the document to the Imperial Censor Fan Yan. No matter who impeached him, the impeachment memorial had to be signed by the Imperial Censor or the Vice Imperial Censor.
After Fan Yan had reviewed it, he summoned the two vice ministers and asked them to take a look as well.
The Left Chancellor frowned after reading it, as if deep in thought. The Right Chancellor perked up after reading it, but since this matter was to be decided by Fan Yan, he couldn't rush to express his opinion.
"Since it was reported by an imperial censor from the Censorate, Xiao Yu will write the memorial. You will be in charge of impeachment at the court assembly the day after tomorrow."
Xiao Yu accepted the task and took the document back to the Censorate to write a memorial.
The Right Chancellor was very disappointed. After holding it in for a long time, he finally waited until Fan Yan left before saying sourly to the Left Chancellor, "The doctor is really biased towards Xiao Yu. He didn't even take care of you and me when he had such a good opportunity. Xiao Yu made great contributions when he deposed the Crown Prince. He doesn't need to do this again."
It was obvious to everyone that the Emperor favored Prince Fu, and the document was intended to impeach Prince Qi.
If the impeachment truly wipes out the already slim chances of the Prince of Qi seizing the throne, wouldn't the victor, the Prince of Fu, remember the merit of the censor who impeached him?
The Left Chancellor said quietly, "You want to compete with Xiao Yu? I dare not. I am afraid of being retaliated against by the Prince of Qi. That man is not a kind person. He dares to hit any minister he wants. Even if the emperor punishes him afterward, the minister will suffer injuries he should not have suffered."
Right Chancellor: "...Would someone be that arrogant?"
Left Chancellor: "I guessed, you can try it."
.
Xiao Yu finished writing the memorial and obtained Fan Yan's signature. He then put the memorial into a locked drawer on his desk and locked it. He left work promptly at the beginning of the afternoon.
Upon returning to the manor and seeing his wife, Xiao Yu hadn't even spoken when Luo Fu pulled him into an inner room to whisper: "This morning I saw Princess Qi at the Princess's residence. Princess Qi and the Princess usually dislike each other, but now she's actually putting aside her pride to try and please the Princess. She must be trying to win the Princess over to the Emperor and Empress to speak well of Prince Qi."
Xiao Yu nodded, indicating that this should be the case.
Luo Fu: "But you can't expect to succeed by cramming at the last minute. I've heard the princess say that she and Prince Fu are the closest. They are only five years apart in age. When the princess was little, Prince Fu was the only prince who liked to play with her and was the most patient with her."
Xiao Yu thought of the royal brother and sister who stood side by side on the bridge to admire the moon during the Mid-Autumn Festival that year. Prince Fu was known for his virtue, and he should not have done such a thing as occupying the bridge if it were just for his own sake. The fact that he arranged for the guards to drive the people to occupy the bridge in order to please the princess shows that Prince Fu really dotes on his sister, but it also shows that Prince Fu is somewhat muddle-headed and may do things that harm the people in order to indulge his relatives in the future.
Of course, it is also possible that Prince Fu completely repented after his words of advice and would not make a similar mistake again.
"If I were a princess, and if I could really help, I would definitely help my closer relative, Prince Fu."
Luo Fu whispered these words in Xiao Yu's ear.
Xiao Yu, who had been celibate for too long, lost his composure due to the warmth of his wife's breath, but he had prepared a basin of cold water for himself.
Slowly pulling his wife into his arms, Xiao Yu held her hand and said, "I just received an impeachment document from an imperial censor, impeaching Prince Qi for beating a maid to death six years ago."
Luo Fu: "..."
The smiling face of Princess Qi, whom she had met up close that morning, flashed through her mind. Without much hope, Luo Fu asked, "Who will impeach her?"
Xiao Yu: "Doctor Fan asked me to come forward, I think he wanted me to gain merit in front of Prince Fu. Madam, think about it, in the case six years ago, why didn't that maid's family come forward earlier or later, but instead jumped out at the critical moment when the two princes were vying for the throne? There must have been someone behind it, and the other party must have been confident that the case was true and that it could make Prince Qi lose the Emperor's favor."
Luo Fu immediately thought of Prince Fu. If you were to ask who in the capital most wanted Prince Qi to suffer misfortune, it would definitely be Prince Fu.
So, Xiao Yu's impeachment this time will finally not bring any more trouble?
Because the whip used by Princess Qi had left such a deep impression on Luo Fu, Luo Fu continued to ask, "If the impeachment is successful, what punishment will Prince Qi receive?"
Xiao Yu gave a wry smile: "They might punish the maid with a demotion or confine her to reflect on her actions, but it won't be too severe. Firstly, Prince Qi can frame the maid and claim that he only intended to punish her severely and didn't intend to beat her to death. Secondly, the Emperor won't severely punish a prince for a maid. Neither the Emperor nor any previous or subsequent emperors would, unless the prince involved has committed other serious crimes."
This is the privilege enjoyed by the royal family. No matter how wise the emperor is, he cannot avoid protecting his own, and no matter how courageous the censor is in giving advice, he cannot change the emperor's selfishness.
Luo Fu fell silent, touched her belly, and then pinched Xiao Yu: "You've caused me trouble again. What if Prince Qi really loses his chance at the crown prince position because of your impeachment? What if he goes to report you? What if Princess Qi comes and whips me?"
Xiao Yu: "If Prince Qi retaliates against me, I should be able to handle him for a while with my skills, enough for others to intervene. If Princess Qi wants to retaliate against you, you should give her a stern warning before she makes a move, saying that if she touches even a hair on your head, I will go to the Emperor to impeach her for favoritism and retaliatory actions. She is just the Emperor's daughter-in-law, she doesn't have Prince Qi's backing, and she will be wary."
Luo Fu thought to herself that a fierce expression might not be able to frighten Princess Qi. If Princess Qi really made a move, Luo Fu would first clutch her stomach and cry out in pain, and then add Xiao Yu's threat of impeachment!
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Author's Note: Princess Qi: I only took up your card table, your card table!!!
Haha, 100 little red envelopes, see you tomorrow~
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