Chapter 230: Winds Rise and Clouds Fall
In the twelfth month of the ninth year of Chengde, it was deep winter.
After the heavy snow comes endless damp cold. Even with the warm sunshine, it cannot withstand the biting cold wind.
After Concubine Chen, the Second Prince, and Zheng Pingxi were imprisoned, news of Emperor Ren De's serious illness also spread out of the palace.
All the civil and military officials in the court were concerned about the safety of Emperor Ren De, and they went to the palace to visit him after the afternoon. However, Emperor Ren De was so angry with Concubine Chen that he fell ill and lay in bed.
Although the court officials knew that Chen Fei, her son, and Zheng Pingxi were imprisoned, they still did not know why they were imprisoned.
Zou Xingzhen, the head of the Privy Council, stood at the front, wearing an official hat, with gray hair on his temples, staring at the gate of Yanhe Palace with a slightly gloomy expression.
Thinking about the King of Wei's instructions, his slightly cloudy eyes darkened an inch.
Just as the court officials behind him were discussing this sudden change, Doctor Wu walked out from the gate with an anxious look on his face.
Seeing this, everyone came forward and surrounded them.
Doctor Wu immediately bowed and said, "My dear colleagues, please don't be anxious."
"Doctor Wu, what's going on? What happened to the emperor? Why is the Concubine Chen so angry?" asked one of the ministers.
Doctor Wu said, "Doctor Liu is still inside. I've been ordered by the Crown Prince to come out and give you a general overview of the situation."
"How is the emperor now?" Zou Xingzhen walked over and asked in a deep voice.
When everyone saw Lord Zou coming, they all took a step back. As a veteran of two dynasties, everyone had to show respect.
"In reply to Lord Zou, the emperor's family is truly filled with anger, and with the accumulated resentment over the years, this incident has dealt a heavy blow to the emperor, leading to his current coma." Lord Wu glanced at the faces of the surrounding courtiers as he spoke, then continued, "Imperial Physician Liu is giving the emperor acupuncture. As for when he will wake up, it's unclear."
"What could have made the emperor so angry?" another minister asked.
Lord Zou also asked, "Did Doctor Wu learn anything from His Royal Highness the Crown Prince?"
"I heard about it." Doctor Wu looked at Zou Xingzhen with some discomfort.
Seeing Doctor Wu's expression, everyone started to assume the worst.
"Could it be that the Empress Chenfei and Lord Zheng have that kind of relationship, and the Emperor knows about it?" This was their biggest guess.
After all, Zheng Pingxi was very close to the second prince, and Zheng Pingxi went to the palace every day to spend every day with Concubine Chen.
The court officials knew even better how Emperor Ren De felt about Concubine Chen.
But they couldn't imagine how Concubine Chen could be so bold.
Imperial Physician Wu shook his head. "Don't speculate. The situation is very complicated. I can only tell you that Concubine Chen's imprisonment is related to the attack on the eldest daughter of the Marquis of Yongyi and the Xie family."
“Is that so!?”
"It also involves the attack on the eldest daughter of the Yongyi Marquis Mansion and the Xie family?"
"Could it be that Concubine Chen has also had ambitions over the years?"
Zou Xingzhen continued to question Imperial Physician Wu, "I think His Royal Highness asked you to come out and explain things to everyone because he wanted you to explain everything clearly so that we can understand what the Emperor has been through and what has led to his current situation."
Doctor Wu sighed heavily and said, "You all know about the uproar that's been going on lately. It's about how Xie Jing's eldest daughter was nearly killed by the Crown Prince."
"Hasn't the emperor been saying that he is not the crown prince?" said one of the court officials.
Doctor Wu: "The emperor has always said that it is not the crown prince, but he has not been able to find out who is impersonating the crown prince. I think the emperor is also secretly investigating this matter, otherwise what happened today would not have happened."
When everyone heard what Doctor Wu said, their expressions became a little gloomy.
Doctor Wu continued, "You all know that the man who pretended to be the Crown Prince that day went to Kaifeng Prefecture with the Empress Chen."
When Qi Zhan, who was standing at the end, heard these words, he was also thinking about the scene in Kaifeng Prefecture at that time.
"The Emperor and the Crown Prince are also searching for the person impersonating the Crown Prince. Guess what? The person impersonating the Crown Prince has been hidden by the Consort Chen. The letters between the two of them were exchanged by Zheng Pingxi, who was the middleman to deliver the letters."
"Who is the one pretending to be the prince?"
Doctor Wu replied, "Shangguan Yan's eldest son, Shangguan Jing, is the brother of the concubine that Qin Shiyuan's eldest son married."
There was another uproar.
Zou Xingzhen and Doctor Wu looked at each other, but then looked away after a moment.
Doctor Wu continued, "You probably didn't know the identity of Consort Chen until now. You only knew that she was a concubine taken in by the Emperor when he was still a prince. Later, when the Emperor ascended the throne, he directly conferred the title of Consort Chen on her. However, the Emperor and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince knew of Consort Chen's identity."
"The Concubine Chen previously told the Emperor that she was Shangguan Yan's cousin. Shangguan Yan had a close relationship with the Emperor, who was still a prince. The court officials of the early years should have known this." Imperial Physician Wu looked at Zou Xingzhen as he spoke. "Lord Zou, you should know this. When the late Emperor was still alive, Shangguan Yan, as the Grand General of the Cavalry, had a very close relationship with the Emperor, who was still a prince."
"Yes, I remember this incident." Zou Xingzhen said in a deep voice.
"Shangguan Yan entrusted Concubine Chen to the emperor before he went to war against the Liao people. Later, she became his concubine." Doctor Wu's face darkened as he spoke. "But who would have known that Concubine Chen was not Shangguan Yan's cousin, but his concubine?"
The crowd was in an uproar again. How could a woman dare to play with the king in the palm of her hand?
"As for the Second Prince, he's not the Emperor's either." Doctor Wu sighed after he finished speaking. "As for the details, and how the Emperor found out about this, I'm not entirely clear, but His Royal Highness the Crown Prince knows it all."
Doctor Wu finished speaking and bowed to everyone. "I will go in first. His Highness said it's getting dark and colder. You should all go back. When the Emperor wakes up, he will send someone to inform you one by one."
Zou Xingzhen said, "I'd better go in and see the emperor."
Imperial Physician Wu looked at Zou Xingzhen with some embarrassment. Everyone knew that the emperor had been targeting Zou Xingzhen a while ago, and they also knew why Emperor Ren De targeted Zou Xingzhen. Now that Zou Xingzhen wanted to see the emperor, no one knew what the prince would think.
"I'll go in first." After saying that, Zou Xingzhen walked towards the gate of Yanhe Palace.
Doctor Wu uttered a sigh and waved to the court officials, "Everyone, go back first."
Zou Xingzhen didn't care about Doctor Wu's expression and walked straight into the gate, while the prince stood outside the pearl curtain.
When the prince saw Zou Xingzhen walk in, his expression changed slightly.
Zou Xingzhen bowed to the Crown Prince and said, "This old minister greets His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."
The prince hummed and said, "Master Zou, there is no sign that the emperor has woken up yet. You should go back and wait."
Zou Xingzhen frowned, walked forward and whispered to the Crown Prince, "Your Highness, may I have a moment with you?"
Seeing Zou Xingzhen's cautious attitude, the Crown Prince also looked at the busy Doctor Liu behind the beaded curtain. He nodded and said, "Then please wait for me in the side hall, Master Zou."
Zou Xingzhen said, "Yes."
As Zou Xingzhen walked out of the door, she saw Doctor Wu walking in. Their eyes met in the air again, and they quickly looked away.
The Crown Prince walked behind the beaded curtain and looked at the needles on both sides of Emperor Rende's solar plexus. He raised an eyebrow and asked, "Doctor Liu, when will my father wake up?"
Just as Lord Liu was about to insert the silver needle into the acupuncture point on Emperor Rende's exposed arm, he froze and said, "Your Highness, I can only do my best to wake the emperor up sooner. As for when, I cannot be sure."
The prince sighed and said, "I must cure my father."
"Yes." Doctor Liu heard worry and anxiety in the prince's tone. With the sudden accident of the emperor, all the affairs in the court fell on the prince's shoulders.
After the prince walked out, he went straight to the side hall.
The court officials who had just gathered also left one after another.
"Lord Zou." The prince saw Zou Xingzhen's back after walking into the side hall and shouted.
Zou Xingzhen turned around and bowed again.
"I wonder what Lord Zou wants to say to me?" The prince was actually unsure. After he knew what Emperor Ren De was thinking, he couldn't look at him directly. Fortunately, Emperor Ren De was in a coma now, but he was caught off guard when he thought about what was happening in the court.
After all, not all people in the court are loyal to Emperor Ren De. For example, the person in front of him is an extremely difficult person in the eyes of the prince.
Zou Xingzhen said solemnly, "Your Highness, is what Imperial Physician Wu just said true?"
"Could it be fake?" The Crown Prince knew that Zou Xingzhen was questioning him. "Master Zou, you don't think this is all staged by me, do you?"
The prince looked at Zou Xingtai's expression, his face turned cold, and he said, "Let me tell you, I'm not the only one who knows how my father fainted from anger!"
Seeing that the Crown Prince was about to reveal everything that happened today, including the time and place, in order to prove himself, Zou Xingzhen quickly said, "Your Highness, Your Highness, this old minister has no such intention."
"Then what do you mean?" the prince said impatiently.
Zou Xingzhen said, "Your Highness, what I just said is that if the Concubine Chen and the Second Prince are playing the emperor's tricks, even though it is a royal scandal, Your Highness should still resolve it as soon as possible."
"Solve it as soon as possible?" The prince frowned.
Zou Xingzhen continued, "Your Highness, it's enough for you to know this. You really shouldn't tell the court officials about the Concubine Chen's affairs. The emperor's face is also face. He has been toyed with by women for these years. This..."
The prince then realized what Zou Xingzhen meant. The royal scandal should be resolved secretly. Why should it be publicized?
The Crown Prince's face became tense, thinking about how Emperor Ren De finally refused to admit that Concubine Chen and the Second Prince were as Xie Rongying said, he must be thinking about preserving the dignity of the royal family.
Now, in order to let people know why Emperor Ren De was ill and bedridden, he told everyone about the matter of Concubine Chen.
If Emperor Ren De woke up, he would call him a fool again.
"Lord Zou, but, but I have already said it now." The prince said with a slightly complicated tone.
Zou Xingzhen sighed and said, "So Your Highness should have dealt with the mother and son immediately. Why keep them around?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
