The Crown Prince's Poison
Lou Xuan waved his hand, "After A Jin returns to the capital, Wei Shu will pay more attention to you, but you have also really become his weakness. Those old foxes in the capital will definitely keep an eye on you. I will assign you another secret guard then."
"Your Highness, rest assured, anyone who dares to touch me will never return." Jiang Jin personally inserted a hairpin into Lou Xuan's hair.
"His Majesty wishes to elevate Commandant Chang through Your Highness's status, and Your Highness can also use Commandant Chang to win over the court officials." Jiang Jin waved his hand at Xue Ya.
"Your Highness, His Majesty now wants to sit back and watch the tigers fight. Why can't we fish in troubled waters?" For the first time, Jiang Jin had a different understanding of power.
"No matter what, as long as men are in power, it will be very difficult for women to rise in the ranks. Even if we go to great lengths to get women into official positions, it will only be a drop in the ocean." Lou Xuan smiled knowingly upon hearing this.
"Actually, it's not difficult. Supporting a puppet to become a regent is something men can do, and so can we. However, I disdain using such underhanded methods."
Lou Xuan walked to the window. "Since ancient times, men have always sat in that position. Now it's time to change it."
"Your Highness, Commandant Chang is quite useful now, but how can we win him over?" Jiang Jin was somewhat at a loss.
“He is my husband, and our child will naturally be the next generation in power.” Lou Xuan touched her belly. “No one can refuse power, especially the power to be second only to the emperor.”
"What if his ambitions become too great at the beginning? Will Your Highness show leniency because of the child?" Jiang Jin didn't quite agree with Lou Xuan using this matter as bait to manipulate Chang Yi.
"Ah Jin, there are so many heartless men and unfaithful men in the world, how come men can do it but we can't?" Lou Xuan pinched Jiang Jin's cheek.
"Didn't my mother also accompany my father step by step to the throne? In the end, didn't she also die like a lamp going out? Didn't my father also want to destroy the Dou family? There is no such thing as a soft heart in the art of emperors." Lou Xuan returned to his desk, picked up a register, and handed it to Jiang Jin.
"This contains information about the intricate web of relationships among various powerful families. Do you think Father Emperor didn't want to kill them all? Who would allow powerful families to supersede imperial power? It's just that there's no one else to replace them." Lou Xuan pointed to the names inside.
“My father is not a kind-hearted man. When the Dou family sent people in, they claimed to be taking care of me and the Crown Prince. Later, the Dou family's daughter became pregnant and poisoned the Crown Prince.”
Lou Xuan held the paperweight in his palm and felt it carefully. "I was thinking of sending someone in again a while ago, and I suddenly remembered this past event, so I had someone investigate it and found something interesting."
"Could the poison have been administered by His Majesty?" Jiang Jin speculated wildly, but Lou Xuan raised an eyebrow without refuting it.
"I had someone find the medical records from back then. They show that the poison administered by the Dou family woman was extremely potent. If it hadn't been discovered in time, the Crown Prince would have truly perished. However, the symptoms don't match the Crown Prince's at all." Lou Xuan picked up a bronze mirror and glanced at his features, which bore a slight resemblance to his father's.
"Unfortunately, the people who originally served the Dou family's daughter were all beaten to death long ago. I could only write to Zhai Wan to check her memories of the Crown Prince's symptoms. Unexpectedly, she actually found out. It's a very rare medicine that's terrible when it flares up, but it doesn't cause much damage to the body. With proper care, he'll be fine." Lou Xuan felt a chill when she received this news.
"At that time, who in the entire harem would have the ability to replace the poison in Dou's daughter's body with a harmless one? Those people would have loved for the Crown Prince to die, so why would they have replaced it with a harmless one?"
"Your Majesty intends to kill three birds with one stone. First, it allows you to legitimately execute the Dou family daughter who is pregnant with the imperial heir. Second, it weakens that branch of the Dou family, causing chaos within the family. Third, it serves as a warning to the Crown Prince, making him see the true nature of the Dou family." Jiang Jin felt a pang of fear. How ruthless must someone be to use their own flesh and blood to orchestrate such a scheme?
"Sometimes I wonder, did I really find this out myself, or did my father deliberately let me see it to give me a warning?" Lou Xuan closed her eyes, unable to look at herself in the mirror any longer.
“Your Highness, His Majesty will not take action against you for the time being, no matter what. You are a rather important pawn now. Besides, His Majesty only intervened to warn the Crown Prince when he approached the powerful families. Now, Your Highness is loyal to His Majesty, at least our goals are currently aligned.” Jiang Jin took the bronze mirror from Lou Xuan’s hand.
"Your Highness, please pretend you know nothing about this. Whether it's a warning or a test, since we've already embarked on this path, we might as well go all the way. After all, what member of the royal family doesn't scheme?" Jiang Jin placed the booklet in Lou Xuan's palm.
"Your Highness, the most important enemy of His Majesty is right here. As for you, you are merely protecting yourself." Lou Xuan smiled upon hearing this.
"Ah Jin, thank you so much." Lou Xuan looked at the scar removal cream on Jiang Jin's arm and smiled, "Did Wei Shu give it to you?"
"Your Highness knows?" Jiang Jin raised his arm; the scars on it had faded considerably.
"He sent someone to ask the imperial physicians in the palace. I can still find out about things happening in the palace, and besides, he didn't seem to be trying to hide anything." Lou Xuan smiled and tapped Jiang Jin's forehead.
“Ah Jin, don’t trust men too much. Back then, that Dou family girl was very favored when she entered the palace, but she was still easily abandoned by the Emperor.”
Lou Xuan still harbored some unspoken suspicions: perhaps the Dou family woman never intended to poison him, but it was merely a scheme orchestrated by her father. However, none of this mattered; in the harem, survival was paramount.
“With Your Highness here, I always have a way out.” Jiang Jin shook Lou Xuan’s arm. “Your Highness, A Sui once told me never to put all my heart into a man, as it will hurt me.”
"You're always the same," Lou Xuan said loudly to the outside, "Make some roasted mutton for lunch."
"Your Highness, once the escorting soldiers arrive tomorrow, can we return to the capital?" Although we've only been away from the capital for a few months, so much has happened in that time that it feels like a lifetime has passed.
"Yes, Ziyuan has returned to the capital. The matter in Jiangnan East Circuit is over, and Father Emperor already knows about the assassination of the wife and daughter of the Prefect of Songzhou." Lou Xuan inserted a hairpin into Jiang Jin's hair. "However, we haven't found out who did it yet."
"How many months have passed before His Majesty only found out?" Jiang Jin asked, looking puzzled.
"What do you mean, 'month'? This just happened a few days ago. The wife and daughter of the Prefect of Songzhou were shipwrecked and their bodies were never found. But there were many marks of swords and knives on the salvaged ship. Father was very angry when he found out." Lou Xuan grabbed Jiang Jin's arm. "Could it be that they also experienced an assassination attempt a few months ago?"
"Wei Shu and I rescued them when we were traveling by water. They said Consort Chen was pregnant and came to the palace to visit, but those assassins didn't harm them at all." Jiang Jin felt a chill run down her spine as she recalled Consort Chen.
"Upon hearing this, Consort Chen fainted and bled, and the Crown Princess was severely reprimanded." Lou Xuan was also shocked when she heard this news.
“Chen Liangyuan’s pregnancy is very stable. Even if she is extremely sad, she will not suddenly bleed. I had people secretly investigate in the palace, but there were no results.”
Lou Xuan didn't take the matter to heart at the time; the infighting among the women in the harem was something the Crown Prince and the Emperor should be concerned with.
"Whose path has Consort Chen's pregnancy blocked? There are the Third Prince and Fifth Prince, who are constantly vying for the position of Crown Prince in the court, and the Crown Princess and other concubines in the harem. Why would these people involve Consort Chen's family?" Jiang Jin felt she had missed some crucial details.
"Is there any news from the prefect of Songzhou?" Jiang Jin thought it best to try and get some useful information from the living.
"He plans to choose another daughter to marry into the Crown Prince's household." Lou Xuan's face turned cold, and she felt nauseous.
"Why don't we let that old bastard die with us!"
Jiang Jin slammed his fist on the table angrily. "His wife and daughter's bodies are barely cold, and he's only thinking about his own wealth and glory. Doesn't he understand the principle of 'if the lips are gone, the teeth will be cold'? Maybe next time it will be his corpse left to rot in the wilderness!"
"Perhaps we could have someone investigate the Third Prince and the Fifth Prince, but they don't seem to have any reason to directly kill the governor's wife and daughter. The Crown Princess is sensible and probably wouldn't do it either." Jiang Jin analyzed the suspects again, but still had no clue.
"Don't overthink things that even Father hasn't found out. The capital must be in complete chaos right now. Would you like some almond porridge?" Lou Xuan's abrupt change of topic caught Jiang Jin off guard.
"Your subordinate wants to drink sesame porridge!" Jiang Jin blinked and stared at Lou Xuan. "I will grant your wish. Bring a bowl of sesame porridge and almond porridge for lunch."
"Your Highness, General Wei has arrived." Xueya shrank back as she looked at Wei Shu, who exuded a cold aura behind her.
"Come in." Lou Xuan didn't even glance at Wei Shu.
"Your subject greets Your Highness, may Your Highness be well." After bowing, Wei Shu walked directly to Jiang Jin's side.
"Isn't Madam coming back to have lunch with me?" Wei Shu carefully tugged at Jiang Jin's sleeve, a gesture that almost made Lou Xuan choke on her tea.
"Wei Shu, have you lost your mind? You should be seen by those courtiers who tremble with fear of you like a mouse." Lou Xuan crossed his arms and silently moved aside, giving the two of them the little space they had.
"Wei Shu, this is His Highness's courtyard. Can't you be normal for once?" Jiang Jin pinched Wei Shu's waist, trying to bring back his former self.
"Then let's go back to our own courtyard." Wei Shu still wouldn't give up trying to persuade Jiang Jin.
"I promised His Highness I'd stay here for lunch, and there's my favorite roasted mutton and sesame porridge!" Jiang Jin glanced at Lou Xuan and quickly planted a kiss on Wei Shu's cheek. Just as she was about to leave, he firmly pressed her head down, preventing her from moving.
Just as Lou Xuan was about to turn around, she finally let go of Jiang Jin, saying, "This is the real compensation."
"Wei Shu, you're dead!" Jiang Jin ran shyly behind Lou Xuan and pleaded, "Your Highness, please get rid of this lecherous man. I don't want to see him right now."
"Xueya, please ask General Wei to leave. Our Ajin doesn't want to see her for the time being." Lou Xuan gave a wink, and Xueya quickly ushered Wei Shu out.
"You two, you're just using me as a raft." Lou Xuan flicked Jiang Jin's nose and laughed as she watched Wei Shu's departing figure.
"Your Highness, please don't make fun of me!" Jiang Jin said shyly, sitting on the wooden stool with her back to Lou Xuan.
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