A sudden thought flashed through her mind, her eyes darted around, and she said with a shy smile, "To be honest, I'm really embarrassed to say that I only found out after receiving so many letters from Prince Yu that His Highness Prince Yu and Princess Murong are in love and have already secretly pledged their lives to each other!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the expressions of the surrounding eunuchs and palace maids changed slightly.
This statement successfully diverted everyone's attention to their affair and also dispelled Murong Kui's idea of marrying Ye Lisheng. After all, with this revelation, her reputation would definitely be damaged if she continued to stay at the Anyang Prince's Mansion and pester Ye Lisheng.
As expected, Prince Yu's face turned pale and then red. Obtaining Murong Kui was something he had longed for day and night, but it wasn't the time for that.
Ye Lisheng gave me an approving look.
The child's soft, sweet voice cried out, "Father! Ball!"
I was shocked; even the child was so big!
I saw a hint of impatience in Prince Yu's eyes and said coldly, "Go pick it up yourself!"
At this moment, Ye Li spoke up: "I have other matters to attend to, so I will not disturb Your Highness Yu any longer!"
Watching us leave, a hint of resentment flickered in Prince Yu's eyes.
Seeing my genuine surprise, Ye Lisheng introduced as they walked: "That child is called Ye Linyi. His mother was arranged by the Emperor to be given to Prince Yu, so he is not well received by Prince Yu!"
I looked at him with a sudden sense of worry: "What if he arranges one for you too?"
He tapped my head: "I told you not to overthink things!"
The crunching sound of footsteps on the snow is like a melody that belongs to winter, so pleasant to the ear. This winter seems so gentle!
After the meal, Consort Mo summoned me to a side hall.
As Ye Lisheng was drinking tea, a gust of wind suddenly swept by, causing the curtains to flutter wildly.
A dangerous aura permeated the air. He sipped his tea casually, but was actually observing keenly.
"Meow……"
A cat meowed from the roof, followed by the sound of tiles shattering.
"Help!" Xiangye, who was guarding outside, shouted, and Ye Lisheng ran out without thinking.
Xiangye was seen sitting slumped in the snow, her hands clenched tightly, her eyes filled with terror.
"What did you see?" he asked Xiangye coldly.
She raised her hand, her fingers trembling, and pointed southwest: "Reporting to Your Highness... this servant saw a person dressed in black running in that direction!"
Ye Lisheng frowned slightly, thinking that someone might be plotting against Consort Mo, so he went after them.
As she watched his disappearing figure, something crystalline welled up in Xiangye's eyes.
Ye Lisheng chased after him, but the river was covered with a thick layer of ice, and high walls surrounded the area. He wondered where the person had come from.
A ball woven from bamboo rolled to his feet. Looking closer, he saw it was Prince Yu's child. There wasn't a single eunuch or maid following behind.
Lifting the beaded curtain, Consort Mo sat by the window, gazing at the snow outside. For some reason, I always felt there was a hint of sadness in her eyes.
"Consort Mo!" I called softly.
She slowly turned her head, a kind smile spreading across her face.
"Come sit here!" she said, pointing to the chair opposite her.
"The snow outside is really heavy!" she exclaimed.
I took off the bracelet and placed it in front of her, my eyes filled with apology.
She asked, puzzled, "What do you mean by that?"
"I am not Murong Kui, my name is Qiu Kui!"
"Okra!" She smiled faintly and put the bracelet back on my wrist. "Look how well it suits you!"
She then added, "What does it matter who it is? What matters is that you love each other. I can see that Ye'er likes you very much!"
His eyes, as large as copper bells, shimmered with excitement, and he was speechless.
At this moment, the head maid rushed over: "Greetings, Your Majesty! Something terrible has happened! The Prince of Anyang..."
Seeing her anxious expression, my heart skipped a beat, and I grabbed her hand, asking, "What's wrong with him?"
"The young heir of Prince Yu has fallen into the river and died. Someone saw that it was the prince who pushed him into the river! The prince has now been imprisoned in the imperial prison!"
With a "buzz..." sound, I felt my mind go completely blank.
Consort Mo staggered backward and couldn't fall, but fortunately a palace maid supported her from behind.
He kept muttering, "Impossible! Impossible!"
The wind stung my face, and I ran with all my might towards the river to investigate.
Before they even arrived, they heard a heart-wrenching cry. A woman dressed in plain clothes, her hair tied up with a jade hairpin, was crying her heart out while holding something wrapped in white cloth. She kept pleading with Imperial Physician Wang: "Imperial Physician, please take another look! An'er isn't dead, she's just asleep!"
Imperial Physician Wang remained silent, only shaking his head repeatedly.
I guessed that was Prince Yu's wife, and the child wrapped in the white cloth must be that child.
Prince Yu didn't shed a single tear from beginning to end, as if everything was irrelevant to him. Only occasionally would a trace of sorrow appear on his face. I couldn't help but wonder, wasn't that his own flesh and blood?
The snow that fell overnight had frozen the river into a thick layer of ice. Logically, if Ye Lisheng wanted to drown the child, he would have to break the ice, which would naturally make a sound and attract attention.
Even if the child's mother was not favored by the emperor, she would still have one or two palace maids and eunuchs by her side.
Just then, in an inconspicuous corner, a palace maid in a blue jacket quietly slipped out of the crowd, her eyes filled with panic and caution.
From the moment Ye Lisheng entered the prison, everyone there was on tenterhooks.
Despite carrying the weight of a murder charge, he wasn't chained; instead, he sat high on a chair inside the hall.
The constable Wang Wei stood beside him with his head bowed, afraid that he might accidentally lose his official position.
The flames leaped high in the brazier, the iron blocks glowed red-hot, and various instruments of torture were displayed.
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