Chapter 393: True and False
The emperor was so angry at Liu Tanhua's halting manner that he wanted to pick up the inkstone on the imperial desk and smash it at him.
However, Liu Yan was well-known for his integrity. If he left the palace injured after meeting the emperor in the imperial study, the censors would certainly say that the emperor did not care for his subjects and that he had become tyrannical in his old age.
So the emperor smiled and endured it again, "You saw a fake? How can you say that?"
Liu Yan said, "When I first escorted the princess into Beili, someone lurked in a valley somewhere and tried to kill the princess and the escort. They shot poison arrows and attacked people. After Lord Mu Xumu led his troops to counterattack, those people claimed to be sent by the King of Chang'an to pick up the princess, and said that the King of Chang'an and the Princess Consort were on their way to Beili..."
What Liu Tanhua said was a mixture of truth and falsehood, but he had a very upright face, and these words did not sound false at all when they came out of his mouth.
The emperor looked down at Liu Yan, trying to discern something from his face.
But there is no way to tell the difference.
Liu Yan said that those were all conspiracies of the Xiling people. The Xiling people wanted to destroy the diplomatic relations between Daxing and Beili, so they sent people to secretly kill the princess. They were afraid that Daxing would attack Xiling, so they put the blame on King Chang'an.
After all, everyone knows that Princess Changning and Prince Chang'an were raised together by Queen Wang. Although they are not born of the same mother, they have a deep brother-sister relationship. If there is anyone in Daxing who does not want Princess Changning to marry far away in Beili and dares to go to Beili to kidnap the bride, it must be Prince Chang'an.
This sounds flawless.
But the emperor still felt that the appearance of Prince Chang'an and his wife in Beili was not just a simple frame-up by the people of Xiling.
He asked Liu Yan, "You really haven't met the King of Chang'an in Beili?"
Liu Yan's previous answer was flawless. Facing the emperor's questioning, he did not answer but asked, "If the Prince and Princess Chang'an really went to Beili, why would they allow Princess Changning to stay in Beili?"
When the emperor heard this, he was silent for a moment.
Huo Zheng is a sentimental person, and his princess doesn't have the slightest sense of weighing the pros and cons like a royal aristocrat. If they go to Beili, they will definitely bring Thirteen back to Xizhou.
But now, Thirteen stayed in the Beili Royal Court.
Beili even sent a letter to thank Daxing for marrying Princess Changning to them, and specifically mentioned the civil strife in Beili and the secret destruction of diplomatic relations between the two countries by the people of Xiling.
Furthermore, Liu Yan said with a serious face, "Beili has been in chaos recently. Many secret agents from various countries are disguised. It is unknown who sent the secret report back to the capital."
When the emperor heard this, he suddenly felt a little distressed. He did not ask Liu Yan whether he had met King Chang'an in Beili. He waved his hand to signal Liu Yan to leave.
"emperor……"
Liu Yan looked like he wanted to say something else.
Eunuch Xu stepped forward at the right moment and said, "Lord Liu, the emperor is tired. Lord Liu has had a hard journey. Please return home and rest first."
Only then did Liu Yan take his leave with a hint of regret and walked out of the imperial study.
The older the emperor gets, the more suspicious he becomes. Not only has he demoted Prince Chang'an to Xizhou, but if he gets evidence that Prince Chang'an and his wife have sneaked into Beili, he doesn't know how he will rectify Xizhou.
The capital city is already in chaos enough.
It now seems that Prince Chang'an was quite far-sighted in keeping the princess in the Beili Royal Court.
Liu Yan wanted to take the princess back as soon as possible, and the only one who could do this was Prince Chang'an.
I hope that what he said in front of the emperor today can buy more time for Xizhou to grow stronger.
The morning sun was a bit dazzling. Liu Yan put his hands behind his back, breathed a sigh of relief, and left quickly without looking back.
Not far from the imperial study, a middle-aged female official and two young palace servants blocked Liu Yan's way.
Liu Yan was shocked. Ever since he won the third place in the imperial examination, he had been stopped by many people, including maids and servants of princesses and noble ladies.
The people who blocked his way today were different from those who had just stared at him before.
Moreover, her clothes and appearance were not like those of an ordinary palace maid, but those of a female official of a certain rank.
Liu Yan bowed politely and was about to speak when he heard the middle-aged female official in front of him say, "Tanhua Liu, the Empress Dowager invites you."
When Liu Tanhua heard that it was the Queen Mother who invited him, he immediately understood.
Princess Changning went far away to Beili, and Queen Wang missed her daughter very much. It was reasonable for her to send someone to invite him over for questioning after he, the envoy who accompanied the princess, returned to the capital to meet the emperor.
However, Liu Yan was a cautious person and did not believe what the other party said immediately. After all, it would be a serious crime for a man from outside to rashly enter the harem.
If you are framed by someone, losing your job is the least of your worries, but your life may be in danger.
Liu Yan asked the young female official in front of him, "What is your name, sir?"
"My last name is Gao." Seeing that Liu Tanhua was quite cautious, Lady Gao immediately added, "The princess has called me Aunt Gao since she was a child."
“It turned out to be Aunt Gao.”
When Liu Yan heard the other party's surname say Gao, he immediately thought of her as the female official Gao that the princess had described to him earlier.
Ms. Gao had been with the Empress for so many years, had never married, and had no children, so she had long regarded the princess as her own child.
She knew that Huo Yanran liked Liu Yan, and when she heard Liu Tanhua calling her "Aunt Gao", she couldn't help but think that if Liu Tanhua became the princess's consort, and when he went to the palace to visit his mother, the young couple would call her "Aunt Gao" together. How wonderful would that be?
It’s a pity that the princess is now alone in Beili, while Liu Tanhua has returned to the capital.
The two are thousands of miles apart, and they don't know if they will ever see each other again in this life.
Lady Gao felt sad, but now was not the time to talk about it, so she took Liu Tanhua and walked towards Qiwu Palace.
The Queen Mother was still waiting to see Liu Tanhua and ask him how the princess was doing in Beili.
The group quickly passed through the numerous palace gates and soon arrived at Qiwu Palace.
Queen Wang had just finished painting a portrait of Huo Yanran. They had only been separated for a few months, and she seemed a little unsure of what the little princess looked like.
They say girls change a lot when they grow up.
Huo Yanran was only seventeen when she left Daxing. After the New Year, she turned eighteen.
"My Lady, Mr. Liu is here."
Female official Gao brought Liu Yan inside and reported respectfully.
"Your Highness Liu Yan pays homage to the Empress."
Liu Yan stepped forward and bowed deeply.
"Master Liu, please get up quickly." Queen Wang said in a gentle voice, "I sent someone to invite you here just to ask how Yanran is doing after going to Beili. I have no other intentions. Master Liu, there is no need to do this."
"Even if Your Majesty doesn't send anyone to look for me, I still request to see you." Liu Yan took out a letter from his bosom and presented it with both hands. "This is a handwritten letter from the princess to Your Majesty. She specifically instructed me to hand it to Your Majesty personally. Please review it."
"This child..."
When Queen Wang heard that Yanran had written a personal letter to her and specifically asked Liu Tanhua to bring it back, she couldn't wait for the female official Gao to get it for her. She went forward to take it herself and opened it to read.
From the Queen Mother——
The familiar handwriting, accompanied by Yanran's usual tone, instantly brought a sense of intimacy.
Huo Yanran said that she was living a good life in Beili. She had learned horse riding and was still learning archery. She had helped many people who had been harmed by the civil strife and even opened a school to teach reading and writing to the children in Beili who had lost their parents and relatives.
She told her mother that although Beili was very far away from her hometown, the world was vast and she had transformed from a bird in a cage into an eagle that could soar into the sky.
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