Chapter 29 The scent of trickery was so strong that it made Yu Qing dizzy.
Many of the emperor's princes and princesses have reached adulthood. After leaving the palace, they each have their own residences. They usually go to the palace to pay their respects on time.
Some mothers and concubines only saw their children once every few days, which was indeed lonely. The emperor thought for a moment and felt that the empress's words made sense, so he granted her permission.
After the palace banquet, the emperor went back to his bedroom first, and the others saw him off respectfully.
Yu Qing asked Qing Jia in a low voice, "Which palace are you staying in tonight?"
Xie Jing said, "The etiquette officer will make the arrangements."
Yu Qing: "Oh, so you and I live together?"
Xie Jing: “…”
Good question, he was speechless for a moment.
If two people are husband and wife, they are usually arranged to sleep in the same bedroom.
The last time I slept with Yu Qing was on our wedding night, and we didn't sleep in the same bed that time.
Yu Qing felt a little guilty as he had not thought of staying overnight before.
I wonder if there's a small couch in the palace that she can make do with. If she really sleeps with the princess... she's afraid her underwear will be exposed. Sleeping with her clothes on? Add a few more layers?
The two men each had their own thoughts. As they were walking out of the hall, a young eunuch in charge of clearing the banquet and sweeping the floor tripped over the steps, and the bucket in his hand tipped over towards the two men.
Yu Qing quickly grabbed the princess and took her back half a step, avoiding most of the water. Qingjia was fine, but a corner of her clothes was still wet.
Xie Jing frowned.
The young eunuch cried out, "I deserve to die, I deserve to die!"
The noise attracted the attention of others, and the prince came from behind and asked, "What's going on?"
Yu Qing looked down and saw that there was a stain on his clothes.
A leading eunuch came over and scolded him, "How are you doing your job? I'll punish you by making you sweep the streets for ten days! My Lord, please forgive me. Oh, your clothes..."
Yu Qing had no intention of blaming the servants, but it was against etiquette to be uncleanly dressed in the palace. It would also be disrespectful to be with other members of the royal family.
"Let me take you to change clothes." The chief eunuch nodded and bowed, and hurriedly asked Yu Qing to follow him.
Xie Jing wanted to follow, but the Crown Princess called out, "Seventh Sister."
He said, "Empress Sister-in-law."
Cui smiled and said, "The Queen Mother just asked us to go to her palace to talk."
Xie Jing looked back and saw the eunuch holding a lantern, leading Yu Qing away. He paused, wanting to say he would come later, but the Crown Princess said, "Don't keep your mother waiting. The Prince Consort shouldn't be delayed for too long either."
The Queen's palace and Yu Qing were going in two different directions. Although Xie Jing was a little worried, he thought that Yu Qing was not one of those three or four-year-old little emperor grandchildren, so he would not get lost in the palace.
The Crown Prince was with her, so she thought it would be inappropriate to cause trouble for Yu Qing, so she followed the other princes and princesses to the central palace.
Yu Qing followed the chief eunuch for about an incense stick of time. They didn't know where they came to outside the palace wall. It seemed that the further they walked, the quieter it became.
She had been feeling inexplicably heavy eyelids since a while ago, probably because she drank a few glasses of wine and was a little tipsy.
"Where is this?"
The eunuch said, "Sir, this is the palace specially used to accommodate foreign guests. You will stay here tonight."
Yu Qing asked, "What about the Seventh Princess?"
"The Seventh Prince's previous residence is still vacant. You can stay there, but it's close to the Empress in the harem, so it's inconvenient for you to stay there." said the eunuch.
Yu Qing said: "Is that so."
As a male outsider, staying in the palace, it would be difficult for her to live too close to the concubines. This was not a big deal, as she didn't have to worry about getting into trouble with Qing Jia.
The eunuch said, "These palaces are constantly cleaned and tended by staff, and there are also attendants at night. Please take a short rest. I will go to the Imperial Household Department and fetch you a clean new robe."
"good."
There were two or three palace maids on standby in the palace. Yu Qing walked into the palace. There was no one else in the room, the lights were dim, and there was the smell of incense.
The incense was so strong that it made Yu Qing dizzy. He ordered, "Come here, open the doors and windows first to let in some fresh air."
A palace maid outside said softly, "Yes, Prince."
This voice seems familiar. Where have you heard it before?
Yu Qing frowned, and a sudden doubt flashed through his mind.
Something is wrong.
She knew her alcohol tolerance. In the northern part of the country, she would drink half a jar of strong liquor at a time. Even if she mixed several kinds of imperial liquor, she would not feel dizzy after just a few glasses of wine.
The sleepiness also comes abnormally.
His eyelids felt heavier, and Yu Qing stood up immediately.
Not knowing what this damn fragrance was, she strode towards the door and bumped into a palace maid who was about to enter.
"Where are you going, Prince?"
With the help of the light, Yu Qing could see her face clearly.
"Why is it you?"
*
Xie Jing just felt that the time he spent in the Queen's Palace this time was particularly long.
The Queen acted like a loving mother, asking about everyone's well-being and showing great concern, as if she wanted to ask everyone about their well-being. Since no one else had left, Xie Jing naturally couldn't leave either, so he patiently sat with them.
Yu Qing hadn't arrived yet, and he couldn't help feeling a little uneasy.
After half an hour, the queen said it was getting late and asked everyone to go see her mother again.
Xie Jing originally planned to go look for Yu Qing after leaving, but was stopped by the Queen.
"Qingjia, Danyang Palace has been empty since you left the palace. It's so deserted that I'm not used to it. Now that you're finally back, I can stay for one night," the Queen said. "Let Lanyun go with you to clean up."
Lan Yun said, "Yes."
Xie Jing had no choice but to follow Lan Yun back to Danyang Palace, where all the furnishings were the same as before.
He asked about Yu Qing, but Lan Yun said, "This place is adjacent to the harem. According to the rules, outsiders are not allowed to approach. The Empress misses you so much that she lets you stay here to be closer to her. As for the Prince Consort, he has been arranged to rest in another palace."
"I see," Xie Jing said, "Thank you very much for your kindness, mother. I will go to pay my respects to you tomorrow morning. I will rest now. Thank you for your hard work, aunt."
Lan Yun walked to the palace gate and looked back. After a while, she saw the lights in the room dimmed, so she returned to the palace to report.
In the dark bedroom, Xie Jing was lying on the edge of the bed, not wanting to sleep at all.
"Go ask someone."
It has been so long since the palace banquet ended, Yu Qing should have ended it long ago.
According to his personality, even if he rested somewhere else, he would send a eunuch or a palace maid to tell me, but now no one knows where he is.
He was a little careless. He shouldn't have let Yu Qing go somewhere alone. Is there really something fishy going on?
It was Qiu Lian and Dong Li who accompanied him into the palace. They were as familiar with the palace as they were with their own family. Half an incense stick later, Qiu Lian led in a young eunuch.
"Your Highness!"
This is Xiao Weizi, who served Xie Jing in the past and is also one of his confidants.
When Qing Jia got married, she only brought her maids with her. Eunuchs were not allowed to serve in the Marquis's residence, so they continued to work in the palace. He was very clever and had been a good informant in the past.
"Do you know where the Xuanbei Marquis's son went?"
Xiao Weizi knew that Xie Jing was attending the banquet in the palace, so he changed shifts and was on duty there tonight as well.
He said, "I knew he was the prince consort, so I paid special attention. It seems that he was taken to the Tong Terrace by Wu, the chief steward."
"Tong Terrace?" Xie Jing frowned.
Normally, Yu Qing would be arranged to stay overnight near the Prince's Garden like other princes and dukes.
Even if it wasn't there, it should be in the Beiyuan where the imperial guards, tutors, etc. lived, and occasionally the ministers would stay overnight there.
Tonglu Terrace is remote and he himself has rarely been there, so why would he bring Yu Qing there?
Little Weizi said, "How about I go look for the Prince Consort now? Once I find him, I'll come back to see you immediately."
Xie Jing stood up and said, "Lan Yun, please leave. I'll go there by myself."
In the palace, it was easy to quietly kill a minor figure. Yu Qing's status did not fall into this category, but if there was a conspiracy, he would probably not be able to escape it.
Little Weizi was also a little surprised when he heard this. He exchanged glances with Dong Li from behind. Dong Li whispered, "Your Highness thinks highly of that prince."
Fortunately, there were not many guards on duty outside the palace, so people could come and go freely.
Perhaps the Queen didn't think Qing Jia would cause much trouble, so she didn't keep a close watch on her.
However, halfway to Tong Terrace, Xie Jing was stopped by the guards.
"It's late at night. Where are you going, Your Highness?"
"...I'm here to look for Prince Yu Qing, but I don't know where he is." Xie Jing said.
"No one has lived here for a long time, and the prince hasn't come here," the guard said, "Your Highness, please go somewhere else."
Xie Jing's face darkened. After all, the status of "Qing Jia" was a bit low, and he couldn't control these guards or eunuchs who were ordered around.
He changed his mind and walked towards the Prince's Garden.
"Fifth Brother!"
Xie Tingchen returned from the Imperial Concubine's visit. Outside his own residence, he saw several halos of palace lanterns, with a woman standing in the middle. He asked in surprise, "You..."
"Royal brother, I am Qingjia."
Xie Tingchen recognized his sister and saw that she looked a little anxious. He asked, "Why are you here?"
"I'm here to look for the Prince Consort. Has your Majesty met him?"
"...Yu Qing?" Xie Tingchen asked, "Why, he's not with you?"
Xie Jing said, "He accidentally soiled his clothes earlier and went to change, but he hasn't been seen since. I'm afraid he might drink too much and make mistakes, breaking palace rules."
The Fifth Prince didn't take it too seriously: "Yu Qing, he's always been a safe man, he won't get into trouble, don't worry. I think he's probably resting in one of the palaces here, I'll have someone ask for you."
A nearby eunuch heard the voice and said, "Your Highnesses, I am Xiao Weizi, who is on duty here tonight. I seem to have seen the Prince Consort just now. He has been assigned elsewhere by His Highness the Crown Prince, and he must have gone with Chief Steward Wu."
When the Fifth Prince heard the word "Crown Prince", he paused and rolled his eyes.
Xie Tingchen was born to a noble concubine. Although his political talents were mediocre, he was still very much intimidated by his mother's family, and the two of them were secretly competing against each other. He was also closer to Yu Qing.
As expected, the Fifth Prince decided to intervene in this seemingly plausible statement and ordered his guards, "Bring the man surnamed Wu here."
The guards following behind him took the order and left. After a while, the eunuch Wu came running over.
As a result, the fifth prince asked where his son-in-law Yu Qing was. When he looked up, he saw the seventh princess standing behind him. Eunuch Wu was shocked.
"this……"
Chief Steward Wu received bribes from the Queen's Palace and was responsible for leading the son-in-law to Tong Terrace. Then, according to the instructions, he took people to patrol Tong Terrace at night and reported the situation to the prince afterwards.
Although I haven't been involved in the specific details, I can tell that it is something that cannot be made public.
"Didn't you arrange this? Why are you hesitating?" Xie Tingchen scolded, "Can't you see the princess is anxiously looking for it?"
The Fifth Prince was not someone to be trifled with. Steward Wu had no other choice but to say, "Over at the Tong Terrace."
"Tong Terrace?" The Fifth Prince pondered for a moment where it was, "How did it end up there?"
Supervisor Wu: "Well, I happened to be changing clothes over there, and the Prince Consort was drunk, so I thought, let him rest nearby..."
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