Chapter 277 Coveting
"Grandmother must be terrified. It would have been a disgrace to the family to marry such a woman. Fortunately, Grandmother was not misled by the Meng family's reputation or Meng Xiyao's appearance... Yan'er, are you listening? It's so late, where are you going?"
Grandmother was still sighing when Guyan turned and walked out of the mansion.
"Grandson suddenly remembered that there is something urgent to report to the Emperor. Grandmother, please rest early and do not wait for grandson."
Grandmother followed behind, offering words of advice.
"Let's go tomorrow. The Emperor is probably in a bad mood today, and he might take his anger out on you. What should we do then?"
Gu Yan walked very fast. Before her grandmother could hear a reply, she looked up again and saw that Gu Yan had already left the mansion.
"How can this child be so reckless these days?"
After leaving the mansion, Gu Yan moved even faster.
Meng Xiyao's accident happened on her way back to the palace. If he wasn't mistaken, it was caused by the two petty thieves he was chasing who broke into Meng Xiyao's carriage.
Having a grandmother who placed great importance on rules and etiquette, Gu Yan understood the importance of a woman's reputation better than anyone else.
They thought that the presence of maids inside the carriage and guards and nannies outside would prove Meng Xiyao's innocence, but they never expected that Meng Xiyao would be publicly flogged to death.
This matter arose because of him and involves a human life; he has a responsibility to explain it clearly.
Gu Yan kept recalling the fleeting glimpse he had made in the carriage earlier that day. How could such a delicate and shy girl be accused of defiling the palace? How could she be subjected to such a terrible punishment as being beaten to death?
Gu Yan's official position originally prohibited him from freely entering and leaving the palace, but considering that his family was full of loyal martyrs and that he was the only son left, the emperor granted him special privileges in order to appease the heroes, allowing him to enter the palace to meet the emperor in case of emergency.
This was the first time he had used this privilege.
But it was all for a woman.
He went to the palace at night to discuss this matter, already guessing that the emperor might be angry, and his grandmother would be even more furious if she found out, but these concerns did not deter him; he had only one thought in his mind.
This is a misunderstanding. Once the misunderstanding is cleared up, Meng Xiyao can be saved.
The Emperor was quite surprised to hear that Gu Yan was requesting an audience. Gu Yan's grandmother was right; he was indeed in a bad mood.
He thought that once the news of Meng Xiyao's execution by caning spread, Meng Xiyao would realize he was serious and admit her mistake. But even now, that ignorant woman still insists that she is innocent and without fault.
Upon hearing this, the Meng family members were in a state of shock and uproar. Some ministers couldn't stand it and came to him to plead for mercy, asking him to wait until Meng Xingyuan's matter was settled or the Northern Frontier King was defeated, even if he wanted to kill Consort Xi.
These are not major issues, but tonight was supposed to be a wonderful night of pampering a beautiful woman and sleeping together, but it was ruined by Meng Xiyao's lack of appreciation, and now he is even more annoyed.
He had intended to have Eunuch Chu find some excuse to send Gu Yan away, but considering that it was Gu Yan's first time seeing him at night, he thought that Gu Yan might really have something urgent to discuss, so he still had Eunuch Chu bring him in.
After Gu Yan bowed, the Emperor spoke gently.
"I have heard that my young general never leaves his residence at night. What brings him to the palace tonight?"
Gu Yan said directly.
"Your Majesty, I have heard that Consort Xi had a secret rendezvous with a man on her way back to the palace, and Your Majesty ordered her to be beaten to death. I should not speak much about matters of the inner palace, but today, when Consort Xi was kidnapped by a thief on her way back to the palace, I was present at the scene and knew the situation clearly. I believe there must be a misunderstanding."
"A misunderstanding?" The Emperor's expression darkened upon hearing this. "You entered the palace at night just for this?"
He was already somewhat dissatisfied with Gu Yan when he carried Sun Taichang's body into the palace last time. Now this kid has actually set his sights on his harem.
Doesn't he know whether it's a misunderstanding or not?
Not to mention that Meng Xiyao spent half an hour in the closed carriage with another man, just the fact that she refused to serve him in bed is enough to warrant tearing her apart.
However, since Meng Xingyuan's body was still warm, Meng Xiyao's use of the pretense of mourning as a pretext could not be brought up openly, and could only confirm Meng Xiyao's crime of secretly meeting with another man.
Does it matter whether there's a misunderstanding or not?
Whatever he says is an undeniable fact.
Gu Yan sensed something was off about his tone, but still said earnestly, "Yes, in truth, this matter is my fault. If I hadn't been chasing the thieves all the way, those two thieves wouldn't have been able to kidnap Consort Xi. This concerns a woman's reputation and Consort Xi's life. I must clear up this misunderstanding and reveal the truth to the world."
Seeing his earnestness, the Emperor laughed and said, "You say you want to clear up the misunderstanding, so let me ask you, were you outside the carriage at the time? Did Consort Xi spend half an hour with the two thieves inside the carriage? During that time, could you see what was happening inside the carriage? If you couldn't see, how can you guarantee that the two thieves didn't touch Consort Xi? After all, Consort Xi is exceptionally beautiful. In that situation, even ordinary men would find it difficult to remain unmoved, let alone two morally corrupt thieves?"
In other words, Gu Yan's skills are quite good; he topped the list in the recent martial arts examination.
The Emperor wanted to keep him around to deal with the King of the Northern Frontier, which is why he was patient enough to talk to him a few more times.
Gu Yan said anxiously, "Although I cannot see what is happening inside the carriage, there is Consort Xi's personal maid inside. Those two thieves were in such a hurry to escape that they had no time to think about anything else. Besides, there were so many people outside the carriage. Even if they were confused, they wouldn't have done anything reckless on a moving carriage. If Your Majesty really doesn't believe me, you can summon the two thieves and Consort Xi's personal maid for a face-to-face confrontation."
The Emperor narrowed his eyes slightly, looking at the man with a smile, but impatience was already showing in the corners of his eyes.
"Her personal maid naturally sided with her. The thieves are evildoers, so how can their confessions be trusted?"
Gu Yan sensed the Emperor's displeasure, but with lives at stake, he was unwilling to give up.
"Even if there are no witnesses to prove Consort Xi's innocence, there is also no evidence to prove that she had an affair. The two thieves were chased by me and had nowhere else to go, so they fled to Consort Xi's carriage. The affair was not established. When the thieves jumped off the carriage, Consort Xi's clothes were intact, her hair was not messed up, and she was calm. There was no sign of her overstepping her bounds."
"You've seen her? General Gu's protectiveness towards Consort Xi makes me wonder. Let me guess, could it be that General Gu has taken a fancy to my woman? Could it be that Consort Xi's secret rendezvous wasn't with a thief, but with you?"
The Emperor's tone was sharp, and his last sentence was filled with chilling anger.
Gu Yan didn't know why the Emperor misinterpreted his meaning, but he knew the consequences of the Emperor's words: coveting the Emperor's woman would implicate the entire clan.
"I did not! I simply did not want innocent people to die unjustly, and I wanted to report the truth to Your Majesty. Even if it were any other woman today, instead of Consort Xi, I would still bear the responsibility!"
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