Chapter 47 "Since you've forgotten, then this king will help you..."
Chapter 47: Forgotten==
When they looked up again, His Highness Prince Cheng was gone. His horse galloped past like the wind. The guards looked at each other, wondering what important thing His Highness Prince Cheng had to entrust to the Emperor.
Inside the Hall of Mental Cultivation, the Emperor clearly refused to agree to Su Wanyue's proposal. As the atmosphere grew tense, a palace attendant knocked on the door. Eunuch Zhou bowed and went out. Upon seeing the tall and imposing figure outside, Eunuch Zhou's heart skipped a beat, and he hurriedly said, "Your Majesty, Prince Cheng has arrived."
That's it, the Crown Prince's plans are all going to fall through.
The Emperor's deep voice echoed from the Hall of Mental Cultivation, "Please invite Prince Cheng in."
The next moment, a man in purple robes and a jade belt, with an outstanding demeanor, walked in. He immediately saw his wife with her head bowed to his left. Her gentle appearance made a flash of malice appear in Xiao Yu's eyes. His wife had lied to him, and he couldn't bear to bully her. So why should others bully her?
Xiao Yu, with his refined and noble bearing, strode in with an air of nonchalant composure. "Your subject greets Your Majesty."
The Emperor gave him a deep look. Prince Cheng's return to the capital was at the Emperor's behest, but instead of going to Prince Cheng's residence first, he came to the palace, clearly indicating that he was there to take charge of the woman's case.
The Emperor concealed his thoughts and said in a deep voice, "Please take a seat."
Eunuch Zhou brought a young eunuch to serve tea to Xiao Yu, but Xiao Yu simply took his wife's soft hand in his own. He looked at Xiao Ruofei with sharp eyes and said calmly, "Your Majesty, my brother has returned. Please speak your mind."
His nonchalant attitude was seen by Xiao Ruofei as a deliberate provocation. Xiao Ruofei was so angry he almost ground his teeth to powder. Why did Xiao Yu not take him seriously? This couple was simply God's nemesis. Without them, his position as crown prince would have been much smoother.
"Third brother, you may not know this, but your wife went to the East Palace as a guest today. While admiring the flowers, she lost her footing and tripped, causing Ruohan to fall and lose her baby. I just want to ask Princess Cheng what grudge she had that made her do such a cruel thing. But Princess Cheng not only denies it, but also makes wild accusations and prevents Father from questioning the witnesses present. Third brother, how do you think this matter should be discussed?" Xiao Ruofei sneered and began to speak sarcastically.
The small hand wrapped in his palm twitched slightly. Xiao Yu tightened his grip, holding the hand even more tightly. He chuckled ambiguously and asked, "Then where's the evidence?"
"Isn't this just looking for evidence? As long as we arrest all the palace servants present and take them to the Censorate for severe interrogation, we'll know the answer, won't we?"
"Then why not arrest the imperial physician? He must know better than anyone how the Crown Princess lost her child."
Seeing him rambling on and on with such seriousness, Xiao Ruofei became somewhat annoyed. "Third brother, aren't you just making excuses? Since we have these palace servants as witnesses, why do we still need to interrogate the meritorious imperial physician?"
The crown prince looked furious and embarrassed, which others would interpret as him being guilty.
The Seventh Princess had been holding back her words for too long. She slammed her hand on the table and stood up. "Is it my brother who is being unreasonable, or is it the Crown Prince who is being unreasonable? Does the Crown Prince think that palace servants are inferior?"
They were already considered inferior to others.
A hint of mockery flashed in Xiao Ruofei's eyes. Just as he was about to retort, the Emperor spoke up to stop the farce. He instructed Eunuch Zhou, "Go to the East Palace and bring the imperial physician who examined the Crown Princess into the palace. Since this matter was caused by Princess Cheng, let Prince Cheng interrogate her."
"Yes, this servant will go right away."
When handed over to Prince Cheng for interrogation, Xiao Ruofei could hardly believe what he was hearing. His father's favoritism was so extreme that if he handed the case over to Xiao Yu for interrogation, wouldn't Xiao Yu be able to say whatever he wanted?
The Crown Prince's dissatisfaction was written all over his face, and the Emperor's expression was displeased. Before he could speak, Xiao Yu spoke first, "If the Crown Prince is worried that his younger brother might do something underhanded, he can assist him from the side."
Xiao Ruofei's face was sinister, and he wished he could tear him to pieces. They were determined to harm him, so of course they would do things their way. He was naturally worried about interrogating the imperial physician alone, but he couldn't appear too eager, or he might arouse suspicion.
Little did he know that from the very beginning, every action he took and every word he uttered was riddled with flaws.
The Emperor glanced at Xiao Ruofei and said that the Crown Prince would assist from the side. Xiao Ruofei was overjoyed. He had already taken care of everything that needed to be taken care of. No matter how capable Xiao Yu was, he couldn't get anything out of him. With him by his side, he wouldn't be able to get a single word out of the imperial physician. Xiao Ruofei was determined that he would not believe in evil until he trampled this couple under his feet today.
Eunuch Zhou acted swiftly, and within half an hour, he had brought back the imperial physician whom the emperor had sent to the Eastern Palace. The imperial physician was terrified and trembled like a leaf when he met the emperor, and he could barely speak.
The Emperor waved his hand somewhat disappointedly, handing the man over to his two sons to deal with.
Having gotten a chance to catch their breath, the Seventh Princess took Su Wanyue to Consort Qin's Chengqian Palace. Consort Qin had already learned the whole story from the servants and was furious. She was about to go to the Yangxin Hall to rescue the two girls when Su Wanyue and the Seventh Princess appeared.
Consort Qin looked them up and down, "You haven't suffered any injustice, have you?"
In Consort Qin's eyes, the two girls in front of her were her own daughters. She didn't want them to suffer any injustice, but someone still had designs on them, or more accurately, on Wei Yang.
Consort Qin found it absurd that Wei Yang caused the Crown Princess to miscarry. What right did Wei Yang have to cause the Crown Princess to miscarry? The Crown Princess was only three months pregnant and didn't even know if it was a boy or a girl. Who would want to harm her?
"My sister-in-law and I weren't wronged, we're just angry." The Seventh Princess pouted, feeling very indignant. She pulled Su Wanyue to sit down and told Consort Qin what had happened. "Anyway, that's what happened. My sister-in-law and I planned to leave from the beginning, but the Crown Princess wouldn't let us. Later, she wanted to go see the daffodils in the pond. My sister-in-law and I thought that she was pregnant and definitely shouldn't get too close to the pond, so we tried to stop her, but she still insisted on going. The road was paved with stone steps all the way there, but when we got to the pond, the ground was covered with pebbles. Mother, if this isn't a frame-up, what is it?"
The Seventh Princess felt a pang of anger whenever she thought about how the Crown Prince had deliberately set a trap for them. It was one thing for the Crown Prince to bully her, but he even dared to bully his sister-in-law.
After bullying them, they still dared to speak so confidently.
The Seventh Princess was so excited that her face turned bright red and she could hardly breathe. Su Wanyue checked the temperature of the teacup and handed it to her, saying, "Princess, please drink some water to soothe your throat."
What the Seventh Princess could think of, Consort Qin, who had long resided in the palace, could also think of. This matter was definitely a deliberate frame-up by the Crown Prince's Palace. However, using a child to frame someone was indeed beyond Consort Qin's expectations. The Crown Princess was the Crown Prince's legal wife, and she was carrying the Emperor's eldest grandson. Once this child was born, the Crown Prince's Palace would definitely have an extra layer of protection in the future. Why would the Crown Prince and his allies do such a thing?
Consort Qin: "Zhang Mama, why don't you take Xiao Qi to the side hall to wash his face first?"
The Seventh Princess, like a wronged rabbit, followed Granny Zhang away.
With her gone, Consort Qin's headache subsided. She turned her gaze to Su Wanyue, "Weiyang, why do you think the Crown Princess would deliberately frame you?"
The woman before her was always intelligent, so she must know the answer. Su Wanyue's eyes were clear and bright. After mentally preparing herself, she said, "I think what happened today was not Her Highness the Crown Princess's intention."
Consort Qin raised her beautiful fox-like eyes, signaling her to continue.
"Actually, long before Father Emperor sent His Highness to Fuzhou, His Highness had mentioned to his daughter-in-law that the accident that the Seventh Prince suffered was very likely related to the Eastern Palace. I suppose His Highness the Crown Prince himself had some suspicions, which is why..."
As for the fact that all of this was a scheme orchestrated by a man, Su Wanyue didn't say.
Then all of this makes sense. The Crown Prince, seeing that he had made a mistake, was worried about being punished by the Emperor. So he thought that the Prince Cheng's Mansion should also make a mistake, so that the two would offset each other and the Emperor would not have to punish him. The only thing the Crown Prince did not think about was that if his schemes were discovered, then his crime would be compounded.
Consort Qin summoned Su Wanyue to her side and patted her hand. "The Crown Prince's methods are incompetent, and there are many loopholes in this matter. I believe the truth will come out soon. The Crown Princess is also a pitiful person, but she chose this path herself. Weiyang, don't think too much about it."
There are so many pitiful people in this world. When Lin Ruohan chose to marry the Crown Prince, Madam Xie of the Xie State Duke's Mansion tried her best to persuade her to stay, saying all sorts of nice things to her. Xie Cheng said that if she wanted to leave the capital, this place of sorrow, he was willing to give up his status as the eldest son of the Duke's Mansion and be an ordinary couple with her. If her younger sister wanted to go with them, he would protect her. If she did not want to go with them, the Xie State Duke's Mansion was also willing to adopt another daughter. Because Lin Ruohan married the Crown Prince, Xie Cheng almost lost his life. Now that she regrets it, there is no turning back in this world.
Just as Consort Qin had predicted, the imperial physician confessed within half a day.
The Crown Prince thought he had done enough, having already taken care of the Imperial Physician's family beforehand, and that the Imperial Physician would rather die than confess. But Xiao Ruofei overlooked one thing: the method he could think of, others could also think of.
When Xiao Yu was interrogating the imperial physician in the secret chamber, making the physician refuse to speak even at the cost of his life, he waved his hand, and in an instant, the iron door of the secret chamber was pushed open. Mo Yu and Qing Yi pushed the person in. When the Crown Prince saw who it was, he wanted to kill Xiao Yu. His eyes were bloodshot. "You are despicable."
He had clearly hidden these people in a mansion outside the capital, and had even sent a large number of soldiers to guard it. Where did Xiao Yu find them?
"Not as good as His Highness the Crown Prince." Xiao Yu curled his lips, his smile like that of a demon about to take a life. He wondered who had spread the rumor that His Highness Prince Cheng had an exceptionally good temper. "Your Imperial Physician, aren't you going to tell me?"
Xiao Ruofei knew that the situation was hopeless, and his heart was filled with hatred. He could only watch helplessly as the imperial physician recited his meticulous plan word by word and signed it in front of him.
Eunuch Zhou waited outside the secret room. Soon, the charges against the imperial physician were presented to the emperor. The emperor's face darkened little by little, as if a storm was brewing. "My lord, you have had a hard journey. Go to the Imperial Concubine's place first and bring Princess Cheng back to the mansion. I will summon you again tomorrow."
"Your subject takes his leave."
As soon as Xiao Yu left, the Emperor slammed his hand on the chopping board. If it hadn't been sturdy, it would have been abandoned by now.
The Emperor asked with a cold smile, "Crown Prince, do you have anything else to say?"
"Father, I didn't mean it. Ruohan is carrying my child. I couldn't bear to do this. It's just that..." In front of the Emperor, Xiao Ruofei could no longer be arrogant. Cold sweat dripped from his forehead as he tried to evade responsibility.
But the more he did this, the angrier the Emperor became. He grabbed an inkstone from the chopping board and threw it at the Crown Prince. Eunuch Zhou was so frightened that he knelt down. He knew that the Emperor was truly angry. In order to frame Prince Cheng and his wife, he did not hesitate to use the child as bait. It was a wonder that the Crown Prince could do such a thing. The inkstone grazed the corner of the Crown Prince's mouth and hit the Crown Prince's chest. If it had been a little off, it would have hit the Crown Prince's face.
"You know the Crown Princess is carrying your own child, so why didn't you think of him as your own child when you wanted him dead?"
Xiao Ruofei was born to the Empress, and the Emperor had always placed high hopes on him. Even though he made many mistakes, the Emperor turned a blind eye to them. But he made so many mistakes that the Emperor wanted to take his life.
The Emperor closed his eyes tightly, his face turning ashen with rage. "Selling smuggled salt, plotting against your brother, killing your own flesh and blood—Crown Prince, how do you think you've done as heir apparent?"
Xiao Ruofei kowtowed to the ground, "Father, I was wrong. I had no intention of harming my seventh brother. It was all done by the staff in my household. I regretted it too late after I found out. I beg you, Father, to see the truth."
The magnificent palace was filled only with the Emperor's panting breaths and the Crown Prince's pleas for mercy. Xiao Ruofei's mind went blank, and all he knew was to admit his mistakes. He was truly panicked because he suddenly realized that his father might really take away his position as Crown Prince.
He was filled with remorse, but he was determined not to lose his position as crown prince. Although the emperor was disappointed in him, he did not really want the crown prince's position. After a short while, the emperor said, "Those people in your household can no longer be kept."
Xiao Ruofei suddenly looked up, tears streaming down his face, at the Emperor.
Father Emperor is planning to give him another chance.
The Emperor gave Xiao Ruofei a deep look. “Crown Prince, I will give you one last chance. If you make another mistake, I will strip you of your title as Crown Prince. My word is law.”
"Your subject thanks Your Majesty. Your subject will do your utmost to share Your Majesty's burdens in the future and will not do such a wrong thing again." Xiao Ruofei kowtowed heavily, feeling as if he had escaped death, both surprised and delighted.
Only Eunuch Zhou understood that His Majesty would give the Crown Prince another chance after weighing the pros and cons. The Eighth Prince had already been imprisoned, and the Seventh Prince was originally a balance between the Crown Prince and Prince Cheng, but he fell off a cliff and his body was never found. If the Crown Prince were deposed as well, Prince Cheng would become too powerful, and since he had married a princess from the Southern Qiong Kingdom, it could lead to a situation where the world would be dominated by Prince Cheng. His Majesty was in his prime and naturally did not want power to change hands so quickly.
In Chengqian Palace, Su Wanyue was sitting next to Consort Qin, telling her the story of Nanqiong. Consort Qin had a smile on her lips until a maid came in and said, "Your Highness, His Highness has arrived."
After Xiao Yu sat down, Consort Qin asked impatiently, "Has the matter been investigated?"
Xiao Yu said calmly, "It has been found that the Crown Princess's child was sent away by the Crown Prince."
Consort Qin was hardly surprised. How could the Crown Prince, who was so ruthless, become a wise and benevolent ruler? But seeing her son's expression, the Emperor did not punish the Crown Prince. Consort Qin sighed and said lazily, "I understand. You should take Weiyang back quickly. Weiyang has suffered an undeserved calamity."
Xiao Yu looked at the woman with gentle eyes. Su Wanyue stood up and curtsied to Consort Qin, saying that she would visit her mother with His Highness another day.
Consort Qin was greatly relieved and patted her hand, "Go quickly."
The couple arrived at the palace gate. Servants brought chairs, but Xiao Yu picked up his wife with one hand and the two of them got into the carriage.
The coachman hurriedly started to drive the carriage. There were only the two of them in the large carriage. Su Wanyue's eyelashes were lowered, and her voice was soft, "Why has Your Highness returned at this hour?"
"Your Highness has forgotten again." Seeing her looking at him as if she didn't know him well, Xiao Yu chuckled. It had only been a little over a month since they parted, and she had already become distant from him.
Forgot something...
Su Wanyue's eyebrows furrowed in surprise, not quite understanding what he meant.
"Your Highness has forgotten what to call me again." Xiao Yu's voice was deep as he untied the ribbon around her waist and nibbled at her earlobe. "Since you've forgotten, I'll help you remember."
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