Chapter 438 The Truth About Death
At Princess Taiping's mansion, the vermilion lacquered gate was closed tightly like iron.
The golden nails on the animal heads flickered with a cold light under the lead-gray sky, isolating the inside and the outside.
The once luxurious and graceful mansion was now shrouded in a heavy and suffocating atmosphere.
In the courtyard, Crown Prince Yan Xingtian stood alone.
The young crown prince was still rather thin, but his ordinary crown prince attire made his back look as straight as a pine tree, and he had a calmness that was not suitable for his age.
However, at this moment, the almost cruel calmness on that handsome and usually stern face was suddenly torn apart, and a look of surprise and confusion flashed across his face.
He glanced around and the scene before him happened too suddenly.
Dozens of guards, palace maids, and maids from the princess's mansion had their hands handcuffed behind their backs by guards from the Eastern Palace and runners from the Ministry of Justice, and were forced to kneel on the ground.
Everyone looked ashen and trembling.
And in the center of the courtyard was Princess Taiping Yan Shishu.
This aunt has always been graceful and elegant.
At this moment, her hair was disheveled, her pearl hairpins were hanging sideways, and a few strands of hair were stuck to her cheeks covered with tear marks and stains.
She slumped on the cold ground, her arms tightly hugging a small figure in an exquisite goose yellow palace dress like iron hoops.
That was Princess Jiahe, who was only five years old!
The little body nestled softly in the mother's arms, with eyes closed.
The little face, which should have been delicate and exquisite, turned a horrifying purple-blue color.
A black, clotted bloodstain meandered around the corner of her pale mouth, leaving no trace of life.
"Jiahe! My son!"
A heart-wrenching wail erupted from Yan Shishu's throat. The sound was sharp and shrill, filled with the pain and despair as if her heart was being gouged out.
"Wake up! Open your eyes and look at Mother! How could you...how could you bear to abandon Mother--!"
Her tears burst forth like a dam bursting, washing away the makeup on her face and mixing into muddy mud, making her look as horrible as a ghost.
Several imperial doctors knelt beside him, their faces pale and their foreheads covered with sweat.
At this moment, Yan Shixu, Prince Lin, Prince Cheng and others stepped into the courtyard and stopped abruptly.
Even though everyone's resolve was as strong as a rock, they couldn't help but feel a piercing chill running down their spines, and a complex and indescribable emotion surged in their hearts.
Shock, heaviness, compassion...
After all, this little girl is their niece who grew up in their care.
A life as vibrant as the morning sun suddenly withers away before our eyes?
Yan Shixu's gaze almost instinctively turned to the prince who was in a mess.
At the same time, the prince turned his head and met his gaze.
Their eyes met, and in a flash, the doubts in Yan Shixu's heart instantly solidified -
The son in front of him was Tiantian, not Yan Xingtian.
So… what had Yan Xingtian done on his own initiative? He had violated the rules that bound him, and was once again forcibly "pulled away"?
Yan Shixu calmly withdrew his gaze, his face as solemn as the abyss, and took a step forward.
"Minister Liao!"
His voice was not loud, but it carried a tremendous pressure that instantly drowned out Yan Shishu's sobs.
"What exactly happened? Why did Princess Jiahe... suddenly pass away?"
Lord Liao, the Minister of Justice, who had accompanied the prince all the way from the horse farm to here, was now sweating through his heavy clothes.
He suppressed the turmoil in his heart, took a step forward, bowed and reported, his voice trembling slightly with nervousness:
"Your Majesty! According to the Imperial Physician's preliminary examination, Princess Jiahe...died from congenital heart disease due to a sudden and severe shock, which triggered her death and led to heart failure!"
“Ah ...!!!”
Minister Liao's words were like sparks thrown into a frying pan, instantly igniting Yan Shishu's pent-up grief and despair.
She hugged the cold little body in her arms tightly, and let out a dying roar from her throat like a beast:
"You're talking nonsense! My Jiahe is not dead! She is not dead!!!"
"Jiahe, wake up! Wake up! Open your eyes and look at mother!"
She screamed madly for who knows how long, then suddenly raised her bloodshot eyes.
That gaze was filled with the most vicious hatred in the world, and it shot fiercely at the prince who was not far away with his head lowered, not knowing what he was thinking.
"It's you! Yan Xingtian——!"
Yan Shishu's voice suddenly rose, sharp enough to pierce through the thick clouds.
Every word was saturated with hatred and curses:
"You're such an ungrateful person! You're such an ungrateful bastard! How have I wronged you?!"
"Just now, I was just worried about the king, and scolded you for being 'immoral' and 'reckless'!"
"How could you be so cruel that you wouldn't even spare a five-year-old, ignorant child?!"
"Jia He is your cousin! How could you have the heart to do this to her? How could you bear to let her die! Is your heart stained black with ink?!"
She held Jiahe in her arms, like a lioness protecting her cubs, and struggled to pounce on the prince, but was held tightly by several frightened palace maids.
She struggled mightily, like a madman, her blood-stained fingertips pointed intently at Yan Xingtian, her shrill accusations echoing throughout the silent courtyard:
"Why?! Tell me why! Why did you scare my Jiahe to death?!"
Minister Liao's face was as pale as paper, and his back was soaked with cold sweat.
He stepped forward again, interrupting Princess Taiping's vicious curse, his voice trembling even more:
"Your Majesty! I, your Highness, have hurried to the Princess's residence with His Royal Highness the Crown Prince to investigate the case of the frightened horse at the horse ranch."
"After investigation, it was found that the sachet Princess Changle was wearing when she was in danger contained a large amount of Jingzhe powder."
"The foal went crazy because of the smell of the Jingzhe powder."
"And the sachet Her Royal Highness is wearing around her waist was given to her by Princess Jiahe herself this morning when she entered Wenya Palace."
Princess Jiahe is of similar age to Zhaozhao, Mumu and others, and they all study in Wenya Palace.
It is a very common form of sisterly love for young girls to give each other exquisite toys.
However...someone had mixed 'Qingzhe Powder' into this sachet, which could drive horses crazy!
Even more coincidentally, the Marquis of Pingnan had brought ten young princes into the palace today, and Princess Changle wanted to take them to the stables to see the newly acquired foals...
Princess Jiahe suffered from a congenital heart disease and was not suitable for participating in such strenuous activities, so she left the palace and returned home first.
The mastermind behind this incident extended his evil hands to two young children. His heart is despicable and outrageous!
Minister Liao carefully observed the emperor's expression and continued:
"His Royal Highness the Crown Prince immediately went to the Princess's residence upon learning of this crucial clue, intending to personally inquire with Princess Jiahe about the origins of the sachet!"
"However... Upon hearing this, Princess Taiping believed the Crown Prince's suspicion of Jiahe was absurd. She was also concerned that her young and frail daughter might be frightened, so she sternly ordered the Crown Prince to leave and refused to allow him to meet the Princess."
"The two sides clashed in words, and the atmosphere was tense. Seeing that the Crown Prince was determined to do so, Princess Taiping ordered the palace guards to 'invite' the Crown Prince to leave the palace..."
He swallowed hard and continued:
"When the guards of the Eastern Palace saw that the guards of the Princess's residence seemed to be about to attack, they were worried that the safety of Her Highness would be endangered, so in a hurry they also... drew their swords to protect Her Highness."
"In this moment of chaos and the looming sword flashes... Princess Jiahe learned that the Crown Prince had come to the mansion. Despite the servants' attempts to stop her, she insisted on meeting him in the front yard..."
“…Who knew that he would just witness a scene of swordplay in the courtyard!”
"The princess is young and was suddenly frightened by this. Her emotions fluctuated violently, and her congenital heart disease suddenly broke out..."
"The accompanying imperial physicians rushed forward to provide emergency treatment... but Princess Jiahe's illness was exceptionally severe, with signs of heart failure like a landslide or tsunami. Despite their best efforts, they ultimately... could not save her."
After Minister Liao finished his statement, the entire front yard of the princess's mansion fell into deathly silence.
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