Chapter 78 Father, Your Majesty, I am innocent!
After a period of chaos and turmoil, the Empress Dowager was quickly sent back to Shou'an Palace.
The Prime Minister and his wife left dejectedly.
The mere presence of Wen Heyun directly caused heavy losses to both the Prince of Jin's residence and the Prime Minister's residence. The Prince of Jin was filled with resentment but was powerless to do anything about it.
"Prince Jin," Emperor Zhaode looked down at his son, "when was it discovered that Princess Jin had gone missing?"
Prince Jin snapped out of his daze and replied respectfully, "She was still at the palace last night, and her maids were helping her to bed. When I was about to go in to help the princess get up at dawn, I found that she was gone."
As he spoke, a look of worry appeared on his face, "Your Majesty, I ordered people to search the entire palace, but we have not been able to find any trace of the Princess."
“Although the Prince of Jin’s mansion is not as well-equipped as the Prince of Yan’s mansion, it is still heavily guarded.” Yan Yang frowned, using his keen intuition as the commander of the town’s command. “It is impossible for the Princess of Jin to disappear without a reason. It would be extremely difficult for thieves to sneak into the mansion and take her away. Even if they succeeded, they would not be able to do so without alerting a single guard.”
Prince Jin looked up at him: "So, what my second brother means is..."
“The Princess Consort of Jin should still be in the manor,” Yan Yang concluded confidently. “Could it be due to jealousy and rivalry among your wives and concubines? I heard that one of my fifth brother’s concubines is pregnant and was given a drug by the Princess Consort of Jin to induce an abortion?”
Yan Cang stood expressionless to the side, as if nothing had happened, without showing the slightest unusual expression.
Prince Jin's eyes darkened: "Second brother, what do you mean by this? Do you think a concubine would dare to plot against the princess?"
"I can't guarantee whether the concubine would dare to harm the princess." Yan Yang was about to shrug when he realized that there was still a woman in his arms. "She might not dare under normal circumstances, but there is a saying that a mother is strong. If the child in her womb is killed, this concubine might do anything out of resentment."
“Concubines are not entitled to give birth to the eldest son of the Prince’s family; that is the rule.” Emperor Zhaode frowned. “Even if the Princess Consort of Jin did something she shouldn’t have done, it is understandable.”
“Father is right, but rules are rules, and human nature is human nature.” Yan Yang smiled faintly. “A mother who has lost her child may not consider the consequences or retain much rationality. Therefore, I believe that the responsibility for this matter lies with Fifth Brother. If he could have controlled himself before giving birth to the eldest son, none of this mess would have happened.”
Whether Yan Yang's words were intentional or unintentional, they were undoubtedly an accusation that the Prince of Jin was unable to manage his household affairs or his sexual desires.
Emperor Zhaode suddenly remembered the Qingfeng Tower incident.
His gaze fell on the Prince of Jin: "I heard from the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review that you didn't see clearly who hit you that day?"
Yan Cang's eyes deepened slightly as he glanced at Prince Jin without revealing his expression, a hint of indifferent mockery flashing in his eyes.
"Your subject..." The Prince of Jin gritted his teeth in hatred. The culprit was right here, but he couldn't point it out and could only swallow this bitter pill. "Your subject really didn't see what that person looked like. If your subject knew who it was, he would definitely cut him into a thousand pieces and chop him into mincemeat!"
Yan Cang remained calm and indifferent, as if it were none of his business.
Emperor Zhaode sneered: "You yourself have improper conduct, yet you dare to be indignant! Although Qingfeng Tower is just a place to eat, it is a place where people spend lavishly. It seems you know how to amuse yourself."
The Prince of Jin's expression changed, and he hurriedly explained, "Your subject only went there once in a while, and did not—"
"Fifth Brother has indeed grown accustomed to wealth and luxury," Yan Yang said lazily. "Eldest Brother is imprisoned in the Prince's Mansion, while I am in charge of the Zhenfu Division, busy investigating cases and supervising ministers in the court every day. Fourth Brother is either fighting on the battlefield or busy with military affairs. Only Fifth Brother lives a carefree and leisurely life, like a noble young master. He has the most wives and concubines in the mansion and occasionally goes to brothels to eat. He lives a very comfortable life."
The Prince of Jin's face turned pale: "Before I was injured, I also shared my father's burdens—"
"By the way," Yan Yang ignored Prince Jin's words and looked at Emperor Zhaode, "Your Majesty, I recently learned from an investigation that Princess Yan was always rumored to be in contact with Prince Jin. However, according to what I've learned these past few days, those rumors were spread by Prince Jin and his wife. Although I don't know their purpose, doing so has truly damaged Princess Yan's reputation. I urge Your Majesty to investigate thoroughly. Don't let these people ruin the reputation of the royal family and chill the heart of Fourth Brother."
He lowered his eyes to look at the Prince of Jin: "Fifth brother, as a man, you actually did something like deliberately ruining your sister-in-law's reputation. I find it unbelievable."
Emperor Zhaode's expression darkened slightly: "Prince Jin, is this true?"
Prince Jin's expression changed: "Father, I am innocent!"
"Prince Yan," Emperor Zhaode looked up at Yan Cang, "has Princess Yan been going out frequently lately?"
Yan Cang replied calmly, “Your Majesty, the Princess Consort recently visited General Pei’s residence, accompanied by me. The reason was that Pei Yi’an wanted to take a concubine, and the Princess Consort wanted to seek justice for her sixth sister.”
"I visited the Prince of Jin's residence once later, accompanied by my son, to inquire about the Prince of Jin's injuries."
“I went to the Princess’s residence twice, yesterday and today. Yesterday I was invited to the Princess’s birthday banquet, and today the Princess invited me to have tea. This morning, when I was leaving the Princess’s residence, the Princess was insulted to her face by Wen Heyun. I happened to be there to pick up the Princess when I overheard it.”
"This shows that the princess's reputation has already been ruined by them. Even if she does nothing, those who are misled by rumors will still curse her."
At this point, Yan Cang looked guilty: "Your subject used to stay at the border and rarely returned to the capital. I was misled by rumors and ended up being indifferent to the Princess, which directly led to a bad relationship between us."
“After I resolved my misunderstanding with the Princess Consort these past few days, I realized that I had been misunderstanding her all along. The Princess Consort is a very kind and gentle woman. I had blamed her because of my mother’s matter, but no matter how much I asked her, she said that she didn’t remember what she had said that day.”
Prince Jin clenched his fists at his sides and turned to look at Yan Cang: "Does Fourth Brother mean that Princess Yan does not admit that she slandered the Imperial Concubine?"
Emperor Zhaode looked at Yan Cang thoughtfully.
Thinking back to the last time he said he wanted to divorce the princess, I didn't expect that his attitude towards the princess would change so much in just a few days. Could there really be some hidden reason behind this?
Moreover, Yan Cang also said that day that Chu Yunjin firmly denied framing the Consort, and even said that she was bewitched... Who bewitched her?
Emperor Zhaode thought for a moment and decided to speak with the Consort tonight: "You may all leave now and go about your business."
The three men bowed and said, "Your Majesty, we take our leave."
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