"There's a result, but my Feng'er has also been slandered." Tears streamed down the Queen's face. "He's been dead for so many years, and yet he still has to suffer such an undeserved calamity!"
"Your Majesty, you must calm down. It is precisely at times like these that you must not panic." Aunt Fei also cried.
The Empress lay on the couch and wept bitterly. As a mother who had lost her son, she could not help but be heartbroken.
But how many people in the harem could see her sadness? Or rather, how many people were happy to see her sad?
So the next day, when they went to pay their respects, Consort Li Xian and Consort Xu began to find fault with each other, implying something was amiss.
Although they didn't dare to bring it up directly, their roundabout way of saying it was disgusting enough.
The Empress was furious and immediately ordered that the two of them be beaten.
Consort Zhen naturally remained silent, but silence was not an option; the Empress's hatred for her had reached its peak.
Without saying a word, he slapped each of the three people ten times.
Once the empress decides to act, who can stop her?
They were all veterans of the palace; to be slapped in the face was an utter disgrace.
Even though Consort Zhen complained to His Majesty, Shu Zhongjing showed no intention of causing trouble for the Empress this time.
He knew very well that this had hit the Empress and the Crown Prince where it hurt.
They would definitely be furious, and the Ye family would be furious too. So, the Empress was angry for a moment and punished a few concubines. He wouldn't step forward at this time.
Consort Zhen was extremely disappointed; this was a treatment she had never received before.
As expected, Duke Ye took the lead, the Ningguo Mansion echoed his sentiments, and many court officials submitted memorials demanding a thorough investigation into the matter.
Duke Ye knelt in the main hall, his voice trembling with grief: "His Highness Prince Qin is His Majesty's eldest son, of unparalleled nobility. How can such a villain be allowed to slander him? To slander His Highness Prince Qin today is tantamount to slandering His Majesty! His Highness Prince Qin has been gone for many years, and all the officials in the court and all the people of the land are heartbroken! This has happened, and I absolutely cannot tolerate it. I beg Your Majesty to investigate thoroughly and punish him severely!"
"Your Majesty, please investigate this thoroughly!" Soon, almost half of the officials knelt down.
The crown prince stood to one side, his lips pressed tightly together.
Shu Zhongjing sighed, "My dear minister, please rise. I didn't sleep well at all last night. Wasn't I just as angry and heartbroken?"
"The Crown Prince has already begun investigating this matter. I promise that whoever is found out will not be let off lightly!"
Duke Ye was then helped to his feet by the Crown Prince: "This old minister thanks Your Majesty!"
With His Majesty's promise, the Crown Prince investigated the case even more swiftly.
Shangguan Ba also had to cooperate throughout the entire process.
After the court session ended, Shu Zhongjing rubbed his forehead: "Who on earth is so stupid?"
"We still have no clue, but... it must be some prince who's in a hurry," said Eunuch Xiang.
"Fool. Serves you right." Shu Zhongjing snorted, not at all disappointed.
I was just thinking, what should I do if it's one of the second or third children?
A few days later, the person behind the scenes gradually came to light.
The Liu family.
Although the Liu family, the Yue family of the Eighth Prince, did not personally intervene, if they did something, it could always be found out.
The Liu family dared not come forward themselves, so they sent a relative, but in the end, the relative's family was also arrested.
Shu Chengfeng was in no hurry to submit a memorial; he simply led his infantry battalion to surround the Liu family.
The Liu family was merely the residence of a fourth-rank official, yet the Crown Prince personally came to their door to arrest them, leaving the entire family terrified.
Explaining was useless. Shu Chengfeng stood there in a black dragon robe, and with a wave of his hand, the whole family was pulled away.
Originally, as the father-in-law's family of a prince, the Liu family should have had some advantages.
Although the Eighth Prince is not a capable ruler, he is still better off than the average official's family, right?
At this time, Lord Liu and his family were imprisoned, and the next one to go was the Eighth Prince.
The Liu family's confessions were presented to the emperor, leaving Shu Zhongjing speechless.
It turned out to be this fool. But he breathed a sigh of relief. The second and third sons still needed to keep the Crown Prince in check, so they couldn't be harmed.
As for Lao Ba, forget about it.
"Father, even though my eighth brother is my younger brother, you cannot do such a thing. To slander one's own elder brother is something I cannot tolerate," Shu Chengfeng said expressionlessly.
"Guards! Bring that worthless thing to the palace. Liu is to be executed. Since the evidence is conclusive, all male members of the Liu family shall be beheaded, and all the women shall be made palace slaves," Shu Zhongjing said.
Someone will agree to take care of it.
In less than half an hour, the terrified Eighth Prince was brought into the palace.
He knelt in the Beichen Palace, trembling all over.
But he couldn't say anything.
He was furious. Why could his seventh brother be made a prince, while he, having reached the required age, wasn't? They were both princes! Why?
Even though Seventh Brother was disfigured, he could still be made a king, so why can't he?
That's why I listened to my father-in-law's advice.
The only way to remove the crown prince is to force him to step down, which would inevitably lead to infighting among the princes.
His mind was in a mess at that moment, and he couldn't think of any solutions.
The main problem is that his principal wife, Lady Liu, is pregnant...
Just now, I received the imperial edict ordering my death.
He knelt there as if in a dream, without any sense of reality.
"You wretched child! How dare you disrespect your elder brother like this? What else do you have to say?" Shu Zhongjing said angrily.
Recalling the Ye family's aggressive manner and the unity of the court officials, Shu Zhongjing was filled with rage.
He went up and kicked the Eighth Prince.
The Eighth Prince collapsed to the ground, unable to speak.
He's always been a coward, so what's there to say now?
"Your Highness, now that the matter has been investigated, you shall handle it. I have no desire to see this wretched child again," Shu Zhongjing snorted.
This is clearly a deliberate attempt to shift the blame to Shu Chengfeng.
If he goes too far in handling the situation, won't he be branded as someone who harms his brothers?
Shu Changfeng is a brother, but isn't Shu Yifeng a brother?
Shu Chengfeng knew what was going on, but he simply agreed and ordered someone to take the Eighth Prince back to his own residence.
Liu was not dead yet; she was already five months pregnant. She cried and begged the messenger to let her give birth before she died.
When Shu Chengfeng arrived, he saw that Liu's maid had kowtowed so many times that her head was bleeding.
"Father probably didn't know she was pregnant. To order the death of a pregnant woman is against the natural order. Since that's the case, let her give birth and then die. I will personally inform His Majesty. All the concubines and wives of the Eighth Prince should be dismissed and returned to their families. They should take all their belongings with them. Each of them should receive one hundred taels of gold. Dismiss the people in this mansion. The people in the front courtyard don't need to be touched; just keep them locked up like this."
"Your Highness, what...do you intend to do with me?" the Eighth Prince asked, his throat dry.
"Don't worry, the prince can't be killed easily, you won't die." Shu Chengfeng looked at him coldly: "Someone, summon the imperial physician. Make sure the Eighth Prince won't die after his leg is broken."
The Eighth Prince was shocked, his legs went weak and he stumbled backward: "You...you're going to break my legs?"
"Eighth brother, you're wrong." Shu Chengfeng sneered, "I'm going to take your legs off."
The Eighth Prince's vision went black, and he almost fainted.
Shu Chengfeng ignored the shouts behind him: "After Liu gives birth, send her three feet of white silk. As for the child, send it to the estate along with another child in this household." The Eighth Prince now has a daughter.
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