Chapter 46 Empty Greenery and Sparse Breeze (VI) "Ji Weixian deceived the emperor, behead him."...
The bedchamber was quiet. Palace servants lit the candles one by one, bowed their heads, and withdrew without a word. Through the curtains, Yan Chao stood, and Qiu Cong knelt.
The emperor was about to stand up, aided by the eunuch's hand, but after a moment's thought, he sat back down. He stared blankly at the patterns on the carpet beneath his feet for a while, his mind gradually clearing, yet the unease rising within him remained undiminished. He then coughed deeply and asked Qiu Cong, "Has Lan Huai'en returned?"
Qiu Cong replied, "Your Majesty, the Grand Eunuch should already be on his way back to the palace."
The messengers he sent out had not replied, so he could only make this estimate for now. From beginning to end, Qiu Cong was almost completely unaware of the situation, even though the emperor had just reprimanded him.
However, it was obvious that the emperor was quite dissatisfied with Lan Huaien's unauthorized actions.
The emperor rubbed his temples, frowned, and said, "Just a eunuch, and it's worth making such a fuss? It's late at night, and the palace rules are strict. Did he really think he could get past all the guards and escape from the palace?"
Before the words were even finished, Ji Weixian, bowing deeply with a face full of remorse, trembling as she entered, knelt down and said, "Your Majesty, please forgive me, it was my fault for failing to discipline you properly..."
Yan Chao's eyes darkened as she watched the emperor's movements behind the curtain. Her gaze seemed to meet his unintentionally, and she calmly lowered her eyelashes.
The emperor remained silent, clearly waiting for an explanation.
"Cheng'an said tonight that his uncle was seriously ill and begged me to allow him to go home. It wasn't dark yet, and he said he would return before the palace gates were locked, but he hasn't returned yet... Many people know about this, but the Grand Eunuch refused to listen to my explanation and insisted on a large-scale search. Later, for some reason, he wanted to leave the palace to search..."
By the end, his voice was barely audible. Ji Weixian ultimately did not utter the words "Prince Xin," indicating that he was still wary.
The hall fell silent. The emperor's breathing sounded heavy, each breath tugging at the hearts of the attendants, so tense that their heartbeats seemed audible.
Yan Chao glanced at Qiu Cong, who showed no intention of speaking. After a moment's consideration, he said to the emperor in a calm tone, "Father, regarding the assassination attempt on me at the beginning of the month, the Director of the Imperial Eunuch has been accused of being the mastermind. Now, the clerk has confessed that the eunuch Cheng An is involved. The Director of the Imperial Eunuch is trying to prove his innocence, which is why he is being too hasty."
Ji Weixian was stunned. He was filled with unspoken questions, but when he suddenly looked up and saw the Emperor, a chill ran down his spine. He managed to suppress his impulse and stiffly knelt down. However, his heart trembled even more. Cheng An had confessed? Why hadn't he received any news?
The Crown Prince's sudden mention of the matter only fueled the Emperor's growing irritation. Nearly half a month had passed since the beginning of the month, and the matter had dragged on without a clear resolution. Now, it was suddenly claimed that someone from the palace, someone close to the Emperor, was behind it. A nameless rage welled up within him, and his gaze towards Yan Chao turned hostile.
"Lan Huaien is too hasty; this should be the duty of the Embroidered Uniform Guard." He said this in a cold tone.
Qiu Cong kowtowed again to beg for forgiveness.
"And what about the Crown Prince? He ordered a search of the palace in the dead of night and even intervened directly in the Directorate of Ceremonial. Was he thinking of my safety, or was he taking the opportunity to vent his dissatisfaction, or did he have ulterior motives?"
These words were exactly what Yan Chao had expected. Hearing such sharp remarks time and time again, he couldn't help but feel somewhat numb. He slightly bent his fingers, quietly knelt down, and replied.
"Your Majesty, after Cheng'an disappeared, he appeared near the Eastern Palace. Your Majesty, I dared not be careless. I first sent someone to inform Commander Qiu, and then carefully searched the Eastern Palace, but still found no trace of Cheng'an. As for the Directorate of Ceremonial, from beginning to end, I was only worried about whether Cheng'an would endanger Your Majesty's health. I did not involve anyone else or even the eunuchs."
She paused, her eyes lowered, and continued, "Father, you are wise enough to know that I have no selfish motives. I am deeply grateful for your concern for me regarding the Juehui Temple matter. However, since we are investigating it thoroughly, it will inevitably cause some trouble. It was my fault for disturbing your rest tonight. I am willing to personally guard the Qianqing Palace for a month to atone for my mistake. I beg your permission, Father."
Yan Chao didn't look up, but she heard the sound of the emperor getting out of bed and slipping on his shoes shortly after the words were spoken, followed by the sound of the curtain being lifted. The emperor stopped five steps away from her.
She clenched her fist, took a deep breath, and spoke again through trembling teeth: "If Father does not trust me, you may have someone secretly..."
"Why go to such lengths?" the emperor said, his tone slightly indifferent. He continued, "The crown prince, a man of such stature, is reduced to a bodyguard. You're not afraid of losing face, but I am afraid of being ridiculed by the world."
Yan Chao calmed himself down and said softly, "It was my oversight."
"Once Cheng An is found, you can interrogate him yourself. There's no need to report back to me again. We'll talk about it after the investigation is complete," the emperor said before Yan Chao could even respond. "You may rise."
Yan Chao responded with a "yes". When he got up, he saw that Ji Weixian was still lying on the ground, his body slightly slanted, clearly not in the right state.
The candlelight in the hall flickered suddenly. Yan Chao looked in the direction of the light and saw a candle with a blurry wick in the corner.
Just as the emperor was about to turn around, his vision suddenly went dark for some unknown reason, followed by a brief moment of darkness. His whole body stiffened abruptly, and he felt a sudden, inexplicable panic, but it only lasted for a moment.
In the instant his body swayed, Yan Chao caught him from behind.
"Father, be careful."
The emperor nodded slightly, finding it strange that there was no longer anything unusual, as if what had just happened was merely an illusion.
Once the emperor was steady, Yan Chao readily released him, refusing to take another step, and stood respectfully to the side. The emperor glanced at her, just in time to hear her speak: "Father, are you unwell? Should we summon the imperial physician?"
"No need, it's alright."
The emperor shook his head, looking into her eyes, but she didn't meet his gaze, and he couldn't help but frown.
She seemed afraid of him? Not really. The Crown Prince was always respectful of etiquette and rarely looked directly at the emperor's face, making him no different from any of the other ministers.
He suddenly realized he couldn't quite understand her. Sometimes humble, sometimes strong, sometimes submissive, sometimes stubborn. Standing there upright, she resembled a prince, a subject, yet somehow not a son.
However, he seemed to have gotten used to it a little. He might not listen to high-sounding words, but she absolutely had to say them.
"How is the Crown Prince doing lately? I heard from Chen Xiu that you are not in good spirits during the day."
She paused slightly, then said respectfully, "Thank you for your concern, Father. I am doing well and will listen carefully in the future so as not to trouble you, teacher."
She seemed unable to explain her poor spirits, claiming it was only occasional. Chen Xiu, being observant, asked her several times, but Feng Jingmo consistently insisted it was due to mental strain. However, she couldn't give such an answer in front of the Emperor.
The emperor didn't rebuke her further. He gave a soft "hmm," shifting his gaze from her to the two people not far away: "Both of you may leave. We can discuss this tomorrow morning. If Lan Huai'en returns..."
Before they could finish speaking, a eunuch suddenly came in and reported, "Your Majesty, Eunuch Lan has returned to the palace to request an audience."
The relaxed atmosphere in the hall became tense again.
The emperor clutched the curtain in his hand, his impatience growing stronger; Ji Weixian raised his head, trying his best to calm himself, but the tension on his face could not be concealed; Yan Chao, unaware of his condition and realizing that time had long been out of order, felt a growing sense of worry; only Qiu Cong remained calm, with a hint of expectation even in his eyes.
The emperor opened his mouth, but ultimately said, "Let him in."
He knew Lan Huaien's temperament; if he didn't tell her what happened tonight, Lan Huaien would cause him even more trouble tomorrow morning.
Then Lan Huaien strode in, looking somewhat travel-worn as he had just dismounted. Upon entering the hall, he greeted everyone, and as was customary, apologized first. After rambling on for a while, he changed the subject just as the emperor was about to speak.
"Your Majesty, Cheng An is indeed outside the palace. I have found him." He paused deliberately after saying this.
A quick glance revealed that Ji Weixian's expression had changed drastically.
"Your subject is at the Prince Xin's residence..."
He had barely begun to speak when Ji Weixian impatiently interrupted him: "Lan Huaien! How dare you cause trouble at the Prince Xin's residence? You dare to trespass on the Prince's mansion..."
The emperor's face changed color abruptly, and his sharp gaze swept over Lan Huaien.
Lan Huaien was not afraid. He turned to face Ji Weixian, just avoiding the emperor's gaze, and looked at Ji Weixian with a mocking smile: "How did Eunuch Ji know that I was going to break into Prince Xin's mansion?"
"You..." Ji Weixian was about to speak when he suddenly stopped, realizing he had said the wrong thing. He shut his mouth, feeling a pang of panic.
Lan Huaien continued, “Your Majesty, even with the greatest courage, I would not dare to offend Prince Xin… I found Cheng An in the large willow tree in front of Prince Xin’s residence. I don’t know if Cheng An’s uncle is the magpie in the nest, because when I caught him, he was covered in wounds from being pecked by the magpie…”
The emperor frowned: "Answer me properly. Why is it Prince Xin?"
Ji Weixian's face turned pale, and his heart sank. All the wit he had accumulated over most of his life was utterly useless now. The person who had informed him that Cheng An was dead was someone he trusted implicitly. At this moment, all he could think of was either betrayal or a deliberate scheme by Lan Huaien… but it was all in vain.
“I don’t know either,” Lan Huaien replied, glancing at Ji Weixian, and then said, “Your Majesty, Cheng An suffered multiple serious injuries, so I had someone investigate and found that the person who wanted to kill him to silence him was Ji Bingbi’s man.”
"Lan Huaien, don't you dare make false accusations!"
Ji Weixian tried his best to calm himself down, but his face had already turned from deathly pale to bluish. He was old and could not hold back as well as he had when he was young; he would feel cold all over when he got emotional.
“But those people are dead and there’s no way to verify it,” Lan Huaien said, pursing his lips.
Ji Weixian seized the opportunity without regard for the consequences: "It's a frame-up! Cheng'an has been with me for decades. I raised him like a son. How could I possibly harm him..."
"Then we'll have to ask Cheng'an about Ji Bingbi. He's served his benefactor like a slave for most of his life, so why is he so determined to kill him? Don't worry, I've already taken care of his uncle. As for anything else, I'd be happy to hear the truth from him. Of course, the tea we serve him can't be poisoned."
His words were sharp and incisive, leaving Deji Weixian feeling suffocated and breaking out in a cold sweat.
However, these words were meant for the emperor. Although they seemed like a lighthearted joke, the underlying meaning was quite clear, and a little thought would reveal their deeper significance.
The emperor hated betrayal more than anything, especially from those close to him who could deceive him right under his nose. And coincidentally, he was in a very bad mood at that moment.
Yan Chao silently turned around and lit the lamp on the candlestick next to him.
Her movements were slow and gentle, but as if it were an unintentional mistake, the light in the hall dimmed for a moment before brightening again.
The emperor's gaze also darkened. Seeing Ji Weixian's terrified face, he knew that Lan Huaien's words were true. He shifted his body, and his tone finally turned cold and stern.
"Ji Weixian deceived the emperor and should be executed."
The prince, who had just put down the candle scissors and tucked his sleeves in, paused slightly as he turned around, but his expression remained unchanged.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
