Bait
Faced with the "generous gift" from Marquis Xichang, the emperor naturally had to give him some face.
So although the Marquis of Xichang was reprimanded by the emperor, he was still allowed to visit his son in prison.
Baili Hongyuan said, "He's suffered heavy losses this time, so he might lie low for a while, but he won't give up. Yan Rong will definitely be questioned, and she'll probably give you up. It's better for you to move back to Qingshan Lane, where it's safer."
Qin Yousi had other plans. In the past, she would have just expressed her thoughts directly. However, after returning from Yangcheng and facing Baili Hongyuan again, she felt a strange feeling of not being able to speak out.
"I intend to seek asylum from Prince Bao."
Baili Hongyuan's expression indeed changed.
Before, Sang Xingze went to Beijing to find Qin Yousi in order to give her to Prince Bao. Now that the Sang family has fallen, she wants to go to him herself.
Although he knew that she was definitely not trying to curry favor, Baili Hongyuan was still somewhat unhappy.
Seeing his expression change visibly, Qin Yousi soothed him, "I live in Qingshan Lane. Of course, the Marquis of Xichang wouldn't dare attack me, but he'd also push you forward as a shield. To avenge the Qin family, we need both overt and covert cooperation. Using Prince Bao is the safest method right now."
Baili Hongyuan knew that what she said was right, but his expression just couldn't improve.
In the mansion of Marquis Xichang, just as Baili Hongyuan expected, the first thing Marquis Xichang did after returning from his post as the warden of Bailutai was to call Yan Rong to task.
Yan Rong wanted to claim credit for the Sang family incident, and she defended herself by saying, "My Lord, please allow me to report this! The Crown Prince and the eldest daughter have been repeatedly framed. My father and brothers have investigated extensively and suspect Prince Bao is behind this. The Sang family betrayed the Marquis's residence and defected to Prince Bao. I targeted the Sang family to eliminate the traitors for my Lord. Now that the Sang family has been defeated, my Lord can simply annex their property. This will relieve the urgent need for military funds in the northwest."
"Stupid woman!" Marquis Xichang scolded.
Yan Rong had no idea how much leverage the Sang family had over Marquis Xichang. Investigating the Sang family would inevitably lead to the exposure of Marquis Xichang's affairs.
It was precisely because of these evidence that the Marquis of Xichang gave all the money he made from the transactions to the emperor in exchange for the safety of the Marquis's mansion.
But Xichang Hou was too lazy to tell Yan Rong about these things. He just asked, "Who taught you this stupid trick? Was it your father?"
Marquis Xichang always suspected that the Yan family was not sincere to him and was only forced to side with him because of the marriage alliance.
Over the years, the Yan family has always been reluctant to help the Xichang Marquisate and has only done superficial work. It is not impossible for the Yan family to turn against them.
Yan Rong wasn't completely stupid. She realized that the Marquis of Xichang was very angry about the Sang family's affairs and had no intention of rewarding them. After thinking it over, she said, "It was Sang Liuniang, who was abandoned by the Sang family. She wanted to seek revenge on the Sang family and had evidence against them, so my daughter-in-law conspired with her..."
"It's her again!" When Xichang Hou went to the prison to see Duan Zheng, he had already found out why he was arrested by the Supervisory Office.
Marquis Xichang had a serious expression, and the wrinkles between his brows only made him look more vicious. He said viciously, "How could an orphan girl have such great abilities? Where did she get the evidence against the Sang family?"
He ordered his subordinates: "Go and investigate for me. I want to find out whether it is Prince Bao or the Censorate behind her!"
The first to take action against the Duan family were the Supervisory Office. He originally thought that the Supervisory Office was carrying out the emperor's instructions to crack down on the Duan family, but this afternoon, Duan Zheng said something to him in prison, which made him feel that Baili Hongyuan seemed to have selfish motives.
The reason why Baili Hongyuan was able to sit on the position of the Supervisor of the Supervisory Office was not only because of his own ability, but also because he was the emperor's nephew and did not have to take sides in the court. He was the emperor's confidant.
But what if his stance changes?
Thinking of this, the Marquis of Xichang asked his subordinates, "Where are the people we sent to Yangcheng? None of them have returned?"
The subordinate lowered his head, not daring to look directly at him, and said, "Yes... no news has been sent back."
Marquis Xichang was already angry, and he became even more furious after hearing this.
The West Wind Guards were his carefully selected and trained death squad, and they also carried □□ on them. What ability did Baili Hongyuan have that could allow them to be completely wiped out?
Marquis Xichang narrowed his eyes slightly. He had to take a closer look at this Supervisory Office.
Because of the emperor's oral order, the Supervisory Office released Duan Zheng, who had been imprisoned for many days, that night.
Marquis Xichang was very disappointed with him. He was reluctant to say some things about the prison visit, so when he saw him return home, he summoned him to the martial arts training ground for a lecture.
"You're my son, and you've been arrested repeatedly by the Inspectorate, yet you're completely defenseless. Is this what you're capable of?"
Duan Zheng was imprisoned for a month. Although he was not tortured, he looked very haggard.
He said gloomily, "My father commands an army at the border, and if I, your son, also prosper in the capital, how can the emperor sleep peacefully? As long as my father returns to the court and submits to the emperor, your son will be released safely, won't he?"
For military generals who hold military power, their families who remain in the capital are called "hostages."
Hostages should have the awareness of being hostages. They cannot have close contacts with important cabinet officials, form cliques with the governors of the capital, or have secret dealings with relatives of the royal family.
These are the emperor's taboos.
Marquis Xichang's expression eased a little, it seemed that his son did not disappoint him terribly.
What disappointed him most was the tragic death of his daughter and his stupid daughter-in-law.
"The stupid woman of the Yan family cannot be kept any longer." Marquis Xichang felt heartbroken when he thought of the Sang family's property that he had lost. Especially now that the emperor was watching him, he could not touch the remaining wealth of the Sang family.
Duan Zheng understood and said, "My son also has the same intention and will divorce her as soon as possible."
Marquis Xichang frowned and rebuked him with disdain, "You are too soft-hearted!"
Duan Zheng was slightly surprised, then understood what his father meant. After a moment of silence, he said, "Yes, son, I understand."
July is the height of summer, as scorching as fire.
A fire broke out in Prince Bao's Mansion, located on the bank of Baojing Pond in the south of the city. The small kitchen in the backyard was burned. Although the fire was put out in time, it affected the food expenses of the backyard and caused complaints from people in the palace.
Prince Bao's Palace is one of the few palaces in the capital that was built according to the specifications of an imperial garden. Its magnificent architecture and picturesque scenery are comparable to those of an imperial palace.
If they followed the rules and waited for the people from the Zongzheng Temple and the Ministry of Works to come and repair it, it would take at least half a year. So the old princess decided to find the most reputable Siding Construction Workshop in the folk to repair and rebuild it.
Master Deng personally led the construction team, and after finishing work every day, he would invite the stewards of the palace to have a drink or two to build closer relationships.
During the conversation, Master Deng talked about his frail and sickly grandson, who was recently treated by a folk pediatrician. His long-standing illness disappeared, and he gained more than ten pounds in a month. Now he can run and jump, and even eat a large bowl of rice at every meal during the hot summer when he has the worst appetite.
The palace steward was particularly moved by these words, because the palace's biggest worry was Prince Bao's only son. He was now ten years old, but as thin as a bean sprout, weighing less than 40 kilograms. He lay in bed for 20 days a month. The old princess and the princess cried all day long because of him.
Since the small kitchen burned down, the young master's medicine and three meals a day became even more of a problem, so the old princess urged the work to be repaired as soon as possible.
The steward asked tentatively, "Is there really such a miracle doctor? Perhaps your grandson originally had a minor illness, and as he grew older, his health gradually improved, and the symptoms naturally disappeared. Don't mistakenly attribute the credit to someone else."
Master Deng waved his hand and said, "The healing effect is obvious. How could we make a mistake like this? I only have this one grandson. For his illness, our family has searched for doctors and medicines for years, but to no avail. This time, we met a miracle doctor who is said to be a descendant of the Qin family. He has the Qin family's secret recipe and has also received the true teachings of a Taoist master."
The steward's expression tightened, and he said, "Don't say that carelessly. The Qin family has had all five clans exterminated. How can there be any descendants to inherit the mantle?"
Master Deng said, "It is true. They were not members of the Qin family, but cousins, and were not implicated. If you don't believe me, you can ask the Pingtung County Prince's Mansion. The princess's appearance was also cured by that miracle doctor."
The steward drank a glass of wine with a worried look on his face, and finally asked, "Which clinic are you talking about?"
"The newly opened Yuan's Clinic on Suzaku Street, Doctor Yuan's adopted daughter, Sang Liuniang."
Within three days, the news reached the ears of Princess Bao through the steward. She murmured the name, and it sounded familiar to her. She asked the nanny beside her, "When Madam Ye came to the mansion earlier, she said that the girl Qi Lang had arranged to be married to since birth was also surnamed Sang, I remember?"
The nanny was meticulous and remembered everything. She immediately said, "Your Highness has a good memory. Her surname is Sang. It's a rare surname. I vaguely remember that she is also the sixth child in the family and a cousin of the Qin family. Perhaps they are the same person."
The princess pondered for a moment and then asked, "Before the Sang family got into trouble, was she the girl they wanted to send to the mansion?"
The nanny's expression changed. She hadn't thought of it that way before, but now she saw that it was indeed the case.
"Could it be that since she saw that the Sang family had fallen and she couldn't enter the palace, she was looking for this way to get close to us?"
The princess also had this suspicion, but according to the steward, it was he who took the initiative to ask, not someone from the clinic who volunteered.
Unable to bear the thought of missing out on any chance of curing her son's illness, she instructed, "Please ask Madam Ye to come over. I have something to ask her."
Mrs. Ye Gu never dreamed that Princess Bao would ask her about Sang Liuniang.
She and the princess were both daughters of the Gu family, but they were from different families and were not biological sisters.
Normally, she would ask for an audience with the princess to do something, but she was not always able to do so. She would always take advantage of the festivals to exchange gifts to strengthen their relationship. If she thought about it carefully, this was the first time that Princess Bao had taken the initiative to look for her!
Madam Ye was quite familiar with the situation in the palace and immediately guessed why the princess was looking for Sang Liuniang. She wanted to seize this opportunity to show off her achievements and quickly said, "Although Qilang and Sang Liuniang have broken off their engagement, our two families parted ways amicably and nothing embarrassing happened. The friendship still exists. If you need anything from her, please tell me and I will intervene."
Princess Bao didn't rush to state her request. She asked, "I heard that she cured Princess Pingtung's appearance. I found it quite novel. She shouldn't be that old. Is she really a skilled doctor?"
Madam Ye said, "This is indeed true."
Mrs. Ye recalled that she had gone to the Pingtung County Prince's Mansion to propose marriage to Ye Jiashu but was rejected. She felt frustrated again and complained a lot about the Pingtung County Prince's Mansion being ungrateful.
"If it weren't for Qilang's sake, why would Sang Liuniang have devoted herself to treating her? Now that the princess's appearance has been restored, she wants to choose another good family. How unethical..."
Princess Bao would not listen to her. She only knew that the woman was indeed capable.
"Since she's the daughter of an old friend, and both her parents are deceased, even though there's no engagement, you should still take care of her. A daughter of a noble family, reduced to living as a street doctor, would be discredited if someone with ulterior motives found out."
Mrs. Ye nodded awkwardly. This was what it was like to be a second wife. People would always talk about you.
But she had been blackmailed out of two shops by that little girl. Although she was heartbroken, she couldn't say these words.
Princess Bao and Madam Ye instructed, "Even if you consider her half-elder, go ask her for me. The Sang family is gone now, but the promise the prince made to them still stands. If she's willing to come to the palace as a concubine, I'll have her brought in anyway. If not, as long as she can take good care of Xiang'er, Prince Bao's palace will be her support from now on."
When Mrs. Ye first learned that Prince Bao wanted Nasang Liuniang as a concubine, she was really shocked.
I couldn't figure out what was going on for a moment, so I had to take note of the princess's words and go back to discuss it with Lord Ye.
Madam Ye and Ye Zhenglun sighed, "Fortunately, I didn't have a falling out with that girl when I broke off the engagement. Who could have thought she would have such good fortune? She actually caught my sister's eye! Master, what do you think of this matter? What should we do?"
Ye Zhenglun asked, "How good is her medical skill? Can she really cure Xiang'er?"
"I...I don't know either..." Mrs. Ye said embarrassedly.
Ye Zhenglun said, "You should test the waters first. If we can really cure Xiang'er, not only the princess but also Prince Bao will remember us as a great achievement. When we return, we won't have anyone to back us up. But if she messes up, it will be very troublesome!"
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