Chapter 13
Inside Yikun Palace, fragments of blue and white porcelain were scattered all over the ground.
Early in the morning, Consort Shen received a wicked letter from a eunuch. Upon reading it, she was both shocked and furious. She almost smashed everything she could in the palace, but even that could not quell her overwhelming rage.
"Your Highness, please don't upset yourself. Health is the most important thing. With such a big incident, the Emperor will definitely send people to investigate. Let's stay in the palace and wait for the mastermind to be caught."
The palace maid gently advised from the side.
At this moment, Consort Shen leaned back in her round chair, staring blankly at the mahogany gate, like a stone statue, eagerly awaiting something.
When Shen Yao entered Yikun Palace, the broken porcelain pieces on the ground had already been cleaned up by the palace servants, but she still keenly sensed the tense atmosphere in the air.
I doubt that the Imperial Concubine would be happy about something like this!
After the two paid their respects, Consort Shen smiled and beckoned Shen Yao to come forward, while Xu Xuan stood far away with his lips pursed, his expression inscrutable.
"Were you cold on the way here?"
Shen Yao shook her head. "Auntie, I'm not cold."
She paused, then suddenly looked around before lowering her voice and saying, "Auntie, we have something very important to tell you."
Consort Shen's face darkened upon hearing this. What mysterious things could the two of them possibly be saying? It must be her father's intention. So she ordered, "All of you, leave."
Palace servants and eunuchs filed out, and when only a few people remained in the room, Consort Shen took a sip of tea and slowly said, "Speak."
Xu Xuan stepped forward and said, "I have come for the seditious book."
"Your Majesty, I believe that the matter of the seditious book is related to the capital inspection. Someone deliberately distributed the notices to incite the two factions to fight each other, so as to wipe them out in one fell swoop. I beg Your Majesty to investigate thoroughly."
Consort Shen raised her eyes, exclaimed in surprise, and asked, "Jingcha, where did you get this information?"
"I am acquainted with Deng Yan, the principal officer of the Ministry of Justice. He told me this while we were drinking."
Consort Shen was stunned for a moment before saying, "The head of the Ministry of Justice is just a lowly sixth-rank official. How could he know such confidential matters? Xu Xuan, you're not lying to me, are you?"
"Although Deng Yan held a low official position, he had many friends, so his sources of information were quite reliable."
Consort Shen suddenly laughed and said, "So, the Imperial Inspectorate says that their target is not me. Very well, very well indeed!"
Clenching her fists, she felt as if her internal organs were violently churning with hatred.
The target of the wicked book was not Consort Shen, but its contents accused her of disrupting the court and undermining the foundation of the country. Consort Shen was a proud and arrogant person, so how could she not be furious after learning about this?
Xu Xuan lowered his head and remained silent. He knew the time had come. Given Consort Shen's temperament, she would never swallow her anger. Now, all it took was a spark to ignite the flames.
He was about to speak when Shen Yao, who was always so clumsy, interrupted him, "When gods fight, little devils suffer. Although this matter involves us, they are not targeting us, so Aunt, it's best not to get involved."
Let them fight! In any case, Wei Luo will be the ultimate winner. No matter how fiercely they fight, it will only benefit someone else.
Consort Shen glanced at him and sneered, "So you think we're just little devils, not gods?"
Shen Yao was suddenly startled. What did this mean?
Before she could speak, Xu Xuan preemptively met the Imperial Concubine's ambitious eyes and replied, "Of course not. When Qin lost its deer, the whole world chased after it. The wise strategize, the brave fight. So who is the god and who is the devil remains to be seen."
Shen Yao was greatly alarmed.
They were too busy trying to avoid it to actually get involved in this mess. Shen Yao frowned and glared at Xu Xuan, coldly saying, "We can't get involved in this matter. The best solution right now is to stay out of trouble."
She turned back to the Imperial Concubine and said, "Aunt, this is also what Father asked me to convey to you. I know you feel wronged, but acting impulsively will ultimately harm yourself and the Shen family."
"So you think we should just swallow our anger and let others bully us?" The imperial concubine's voice grew even colder.
“Some things are permissible, and some things are not. The crown prince’s ascension to the throne is inevitable. Those who comply will prosper, and those who resist will perish. This is not about swallowing our anger, but a wise move after assessing the situation.”
Consort Shen fell silent after hearing this, then gritted her teeth and said after a long while, "Did your father teach you to say that?"
Shen Yao was suddenly taken aback. The words were her own thoughts. Her father had only told her to tell her aunt not to get involved in the matter, but he hadn't said anything else.
But Consort Shen's question carried another layer of meaning: whether her family could still support what she wanted to do.
Fighting alone or pooling our wisdom and efforts?
Shen Yao's eyes flickered slightly, and finally, under the sharp gaze of the Imperial Concubine, she nodded emphatically. Since she couldn't be the victor, it was better to dispel Imperial Concubine Shen's ambition to seize the throne as soon as possible.
The hall fell into complete silence; you could hear a pin drop.
A few moments later, Xu Xuan came out to ease the tension. "Your Majesty, please forgive me. Shen Yao acted impulsively and said some outrageous things that displeased you. I will take her away now."
Consort Shen remained silent, but after a moment of contemplation, she spoke up: "The Crown Prince must be very frightened by what has happened. Since you are praying for the Crown Prince, A Yao, go to the East Palace now and offer your condolences on my behalf."
Xu Xuan frowned, praying for the Crown Prince?
For some reason, a nameless rage suddenly rose in his heart, but he hid it very well, and his face showed no flaw.
Since we've already started pretending, we might as well keep up the act right under the Imperial Concubine's nose. Xu Xuan urged, "Hurry up and go."
Shen Yao turned around, glanced at Xu Xuan, and muttered, "You're in such a hurry!"
After dismissing the others, Consort Shen stared intently at Xu Xuan, her red lips parting slightly, "Tell me your thoughts!"
After planning for a long time, Xu Xuan was finally able to make his move. He stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, I believe that we can turn the tables on the Emperor and make him despise Liu Shen, thus turning the cabinet into Liu Zhengxin's territory."
Although the book is indeed demonic, it makes one thing true: Liu Zhengxin is on good terms with Consort Shen. If Liu Shen falls from power, the Shen family will benefit the most.
*
Inside Cining Palace, Wei Luo was lying in a rocking chair, chatting idly with Liu Heng.
"Who exactly wrote this demonic book? And what was its purpose?"
Liu Heng glanced at Wei Luo's furrowed brows but did not reply.
Wei Luo had asked this question no less than a dozen times today, but Liu Heng was not a strategist, but merely a loyal servant. He lacked the exceptional political knowledge to help Wei Luo analyze the situation.
However, he still used the experience of an ordinary commoner to answer, "There are three people in the cabinet, and Liu Shen is the only one not mentioned in the seditious document. Anyone would think that this was done by Liu Shen's faction. I'm afraid that His Majesty will suspect Liu Shen."
To doubt Liu Shen is to doubt the Eastern Palace, since his position as crown prince was secured by Liu Shen and others, and Liu Shen is his greatest reliance.
If Liu Shen loses the emperor's trust because of the seditious book, then his position as crown prince will likely be in jeopardy.
Wei Luo frowned. "So it was a setup, right?"
"It wasn't a setup." Their voice was heard before they were seen.
Wei Luo was so shocked he almost jumped up. Without any prior notice, Shen Yao barged in as if it were her own home and even eavesdropped on their conversation.
He was immediately furious and blurted out, "Chen Yao, what are you doing here?"
"I've come to see Your Highness!" Shen Yao blinked.
Wei Luo sneered, "Do you even believe that yourself?"
“I’m not lying to you. My aunt said the demon book made you worry and scared, so she sent me to see you.”
Wei Luo, his face still ashen, turned away and gave him a direct order to leave, "You've seen it, you can get out now."
Shen Yao sighed helplessly. Was she a plague? Why was she chased away wherever she went?
“Your Highness, I know you suspect that the Shen family was behind the demonic book, but I want to tell you clearly that the Shen family did not do it.”
Upon hearing the mention of the demonic book, Wei Luo trembled. He finally turned around and looked directly at her, but his eyes held more scrutiny and inquiry. He asked, "What do you mean?"
Shen Yao explained, "Your Highness should know the principle of 'when the snipe and the clam fight, the fisherman benefits.' The seditious book seems to be aimed at Liu Zhengxin, but the first person to be suspected is Liu Shen, so Liu Shen would not do such a thing."
"As for Liu Zhengxin, I think the shrewd and calculating Prime Minister would never do something like killing a thousand enemies while losing eight hundred of his own."
"So?" Wei Luo asked.
Meeting Wei Luo's gaze, Shen Yao said earnestly, "So who the author of the demonic book is isn't important; what's important is their goal—the capital inspection."
"The capital inspection?" Wei Luo frowned even more deeply. "How did you know?"
Shen Yao smiled and said, "I heard it from Xu Xuan."
Wei Luo: "..."
Xu Xuan was his husband; they were family, and he was his political enemy. It's like the big bad wolf telling the little rabbit that he's a friend and won't harm it.
In the past, he would never have believed such nonsense, but this time, Shen Yao's words seemed absurd at first glance, but upon closer examination, the capital inspection was indeed the most reasonable explanation.
Although he did not participate in court politics, he was aware of the power of the capital inspection. Many officials in the Great Min Dynasty had fallen from grace because of the capital inspection and were no longer eligible for high-ranking positions and generous salaries.
The Jingcha was truly a bloodless slaughterhouse.
But why did Consort Shen specifically ask Shen Yao to tell him all this?
Soothe? Test? Confound?
Wei Luo asked, "What else did she say?"
Shen Yao was taken aback and asked in confusion, "Who are you talking about?"
Wei Luo smiled and remained silent.
A few breaths later, Shen Yao realized that Wei Luo thought these words were spoken by Consort Shen.
Shen Yao felt a sense of helplessness. "Your Highness, these words were not asked to me by my aunt; I wanted to tell you them myself."
Wei Luo scoffed, and teased, "Miss Chen is really... eager to help others?"
"Being helpful is a traditional virtue of the Chinese nation. I'll take Your Highness's words as a compliment. As for what I said, Your Highness should think about it carefully and then you'll know whether it's true or not."
After Shen Yao finished speaking, she was about to turn and leave when Wei Luo's voice rang out from behind her, "Shen Yao, why did you tell me all this?"
Of course, it's about sucking up to someone powerful!
Shen Yao smiled brightly, “Because Your Highness has the world in your heart and ambitions for all corners of the world, you will surely become a wise ruler one day. The ambition of a wise ruler should not be confined to the mire of power struggles and schemes, but should roam freely among the stars and the sea.”
In the flickering candlelight, her face was as smooth as jade, and her eyes sparkled like pearls. Wei Luo suddenly felt his heart skip a beat...
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