The following day, news of the night raid on the Fourteenth Prince's residence reached the palace, shocking the Fourth Prince. Fortunately, the commander of the Imperial Guards, knowing the gravity of the matter, had sealed off the news early that morning and secretly entered the palace alone to meet the Emperor.
After calming down for a moment, the Fourth Prince slowly said, "You did well. This concerns the face of the royal family. Were there any casualties in the Prince's mansion?"
After looking around, the leader of the Imperial Guards clasped his hands in self-reproach and said, "I failed in my duty. Two princes and several concubines of the Fourteenth Prince were assassinated. There were ten assassins. Three of them were wounded and committed suicide on the spot. The rest escaped..." Su Peisheng stood aside and gasped. He timidly glanced at the Fourth Prince. The Fourth Prince's face was as cold as ice, and he remained silent.
The commander of the Imperial Guards, seemingly to make amends for his mistake, added, "They were all masked, highly skilled and agile assassins, and had already scouted the entire Prince's residence beforehand..."
The Fourth Prince gave a low snort, and the Imperial Guard leader immediately knelt on the ground, kowtowing heavily and begging for forgiveness, saying, "This subordinate deserves to die a thousand deaths, please punish me, Your Majesty..."
The Fourth Prince closed his eyes and sighed, then said coldly, "How is the Fourteenth Princess Consort?"
The Imperial Guard leader said, "The night the Fourteenth Princess was assassinated, she hid under the bed and escaped..."
The Fourth Prince remained silent for a long while. The captain of the Imperial Guards knelt below, trembling with fear, not daring to move. Suddenly, the Fourth Prince spoke: "Keep this matter quiet for now. Everything at the Fourteenth Prince's residence will continue as usual, and the young prince's funeral will be held in secret..."
The Imperial Guard leader dared not utter a sound, and silently withdrew after agreeing. Su Peisheng, waiting beside the Fourth Prince, was also at a loss. The Fourteenth Prince had only recently escaped, and they had finally found a clue. Now the Prince's mansion had been attacked again. Although the young prince was a convict, he was still a prince after all. It was understandable that the Fourth Prince was grieving, but he was even more furious...
"Go and summon the Prefect of the Capital..." The Fourth Prince gave the order, and Su Peisheng quickly accepted it. A short while later, he hurriedly led the Prefect of the Capital back to the Hall of Mental Cultivation.
The Prefect of the Capital could tell that the Fourth Prince was displeased, as if he had encountered a very difficult case. He soon learned that it was about the attack on the Fourteenth Prince's residence.
The Fourth Prince calmly said, "I entrust this matter to you. You must find out who the assassin is, and why they attacked the Fourteenth Prince's residence. What was their purpose?"
The Prefect of the Capital was startled. Investigating royal murder cases was always the most difficult. Just as he was about to ask about a few key points, the Fourth Prince suddenly lowered his voice and ordered, "The Fourteenth Prince is not in the Prince's residence! Therefore, this matter should not be publicized..."
The Prefect of the Capital suddenly realized why the Fourth Prince had been so eager to bring the Fourteenth Prince and his family from the Changping villa to the capital. But if the Fourteenth Prince wasn't at the Prince's residence, why would the assassins have launched a night raid? The Prefect felt a chill run down his spine…
Unfortunately, since the matter was personally ordered by the Emperor, the Prefect of the Capital had no choice but to agree, no matter how unwilling he was.
Meanwhile, Wanyan Shi remained unconscious all night, only groggily opening her eyes the next morning. Seeing the concerned and pitying eyes all over the room, Wanyan Shi immediately thought of the deaths of her two sons and cried her heart out again.
Unwilling to give up, Wanyan rushed to the gate of the Prince's mansion, trying to force her way out, despite the maids' attempts to stop her. The imperial guards, knowing that Wanyan had lost her son the previous night, did not forcibly stop her, but simply forbade her from leaving.
Wanyan clung to the gate, crying out frantically, "I want to see the Emperor! Please, please let me see the Emperor! My son died under mysterious circumstances! I want the Emperor to give me an explanation... Please, just let me see the Emperor..."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
