Chapter 89 Orphan
Ming Huashang stood behind the wooden door for a long time, until the night wind made her shiver, then she rubbed her hands and walked towards the main room.
She somehow felt that Ming Huazhang was looking forward to piercing the window paper, and for a moment he did so, but then reason stopped him. But in Ming Huazhang's view, they should be siblings. If the elders found out that the siblings were too close, what good would it do except for one of them to get married and the other to marry far away?
What was he expecting? Did he already know that Ming Huashang was a fake and not his biological sister?
This realization made her dizzy and her steps unsteady. Even when Ming Huashang lay down on the bed, her mind was still confused.
If Ming Huazhang knew, did the Duke of Zhenguo know? Ming Huachang thought of the scene in her precognitive dream where her father's attitude changed drastically just because of Su Yuji's one-sided words, and he threatened to kick her out of the house. She suddenly felt a chill.
Who is she? What is the relationship between her, Su Yuji, and Ming Huazhang?
Ming Huachang was thinking about something for half the night, and finally fell asleep in the second half of the night. The next day, Zhaocai came in to serve him, and found that his wife was panting and listless. He said angrily: "Madam, why do you always look like you can't wake up? Your husband's future is uncertain, and the families who originally intended to marry into the Duke's Mansion are hesitant. In the past two days, the second and third houses have been surrounding the old lady, trying to rush in for a good marriage. You are the legitimate daughter of the Duke's Mansion, how can they make trouble? Madam, you should change your clothes quickly and go to the old lady, don't let them grab you first."
Ming Huashang nodded solemnly upon hearing this and said, "You are right. Zhaocai, go get that white Hu clothing."
Zhaocai responded subconsciously, then froze: "Madam, you are going to pay your respects to the old lady, why are you wearing Hu clothing?"
"Because I'm going out." Ming Huashang said, "Ruyi, tell the doorman to prepare the car. I'm going to Qingshan Temple. No, Pudu Temple."
The maids were shocked when they heard the name, and they came over and said, "Madam, you can't do that. Someone just died in Pudu Temple recently. People say that the murderer is looking for his next prey outside Pudu Temple. You can't go!"
Ming Huashang didn't care: "I'm not going to burn incense, I'm going to look for my second brother. He came back so late last night, I will go to Pudu Temple to wait for him today and remind him to come home early."
This was an excuse Ming Huashang had thought of long ago. Her brother was the Junior Magistrate of Jingzhao. Everyone knew that this case was difficult. As a clingy sister, it was reasonable for her to go to her brother out of worry. The murderer chose Pudu Temple for all three crimes. She wanted to see what was so unusual about this temple.
But after she finished speaking, Ming Huashang frowned, instinctively sensing something was wrong: "How do you know the murderer is looking for his next target near Pudu Temple?"
Ming Huashang, based on the records in the files, vaguely felt that the murderer killed people not for money or revenge, but just to satisfy his own fantasy, so once he started, he often couldn't stop. However, even Jingzhao Prefecture didn't know where the murderer lived, so how did the people know that the murderer would look for prey near Pudu Temple?
Zhaocai and the others didn't take it seriously and said casually: "That's what people outside say. It has spread all over Chang'an a long time ago."
Prince Wei's Palace.
As soon as the King of Wei got up, he received the only good news in recent days. He didn't care that he was only wearing a single shirt, and asked with shining eyes: "Did Shen Xing really say that?"
"Reporting to the King of Wei, the secret report from the star Canopus just came last night, this mission has been assigned to Shuangbi, there is absolutely no falsehood."
"Good!" King Wei said three good words in a row, and said excitedly, "The fish has been hooked, and now we just need to collect the net. You must keep a close eye on Pudu Temple, I will make sure he never comes back!"
The subordinate clasped his fists in response. The King of Wei's depression for many days was swept away, and he felt refreshed for a rare time.
During this time, the aunt kept bringing the Wu family and the Li family together. Not only did she arrange marriages for his children, she also called the two families together. The Li family members knelt in a row and the Wu family members knelt in front of each other. They swore in front of the empress that they would be as close as one family and live in harmony, and would no longer be entangled in previous grievances. If they disobeyed the oath, they would be punished by heaven and earth. The empress even engraved the oath on a red iron ticket and placed it high in the Daming Palace as a proof.
Everything the empress said and did seemed to prove that she really wanted to pass the throne to the prince. The King of Wei was dissatisfied. What about marriage? What about signing a contract? When the Li family came to power, it would only take a word to break the oath. No matter how many guarantees were made, how could it compare to a family member ascending the throne?
The King of Wei was unwilling, but he did not dare to openly oppose his aunt. He needed to find something big to prove that the Li family had always been rebellious, so as to shake his aunt's determination to pass the throne to Li.
The descendants of Prince Zhang Huai are the best breakthrough point.
If my aunt knew that Li Xian's child had been growing up under her nose all these years, and that there were even ministers who helped Li Xian to conceal it, what would she think? Would she believe that Prince Xiang and Princess Taiping knew nothing about it?
It doesn't really matter whether you believe it or not, because no one in power would tolerate such a thing. When Emperor Gaozong was still alive, he was unable to govern because of a headache, so he could only divide power between Empress Wu and the crown prince. However, the eldest son Li Hong was weak and died before Emperor Gaozong. In grief, Emperor Gaozong appointed his second son Li Xian as the crown prince.
Li Xian was handsome and dignified, and he had a reputation for talent and virtue since he was young. After becoming the crown prince, he paid attention to government affairs, treated the wise and humble with courtesy, and cared for the people. He also carefully examined the implementation of criminal laws and settled many long-standing cases of injustice. He was deeply supported by his ministers, and even Emperor Gaozong was satisfied and issued an edict to publicly praise Li Xian for being "kind and upright, the hope of the country, and deeply in line with my wishes."
The most important thing is that Li Xian is in good health. He inherited his father's generous and kind temperament, but his body inherited the health and longevity of the military family. He is good at both literature and martial arts, and is proficient in horse riding, archery, literature, and music. He is undoubtedly a lover of the masses. Men, women, young and old all like him very much when they mention him.
Having such a person to share power with Wu Zetian was undoubtedly a great concern for Wu Zetian. It could even be predicted that after Li Xian ascended the throne, Wu Zetian would have no role to play in the political arena. Wu Zetian certainly did not allow it. In the last years of Yonghui, she exhausted all her energy and tried to label Li Xian as a traitor.
To prove his innocence, Li Xian committed suicide in the Eastern Palace, becoming the embarrassment of all the officials in the court. After so many years, there are still people who feel sad and indignant for Li Xian.
After Li Xian's death, Emperor Gaozong posthumously named him Crown Prince Zhanghuai. Emperor Gaozong appointed his third son, Li Xian, as Crown Prince, but Emperor Gaozong died soon after. Everyone knows what happened next. Li Xian had two outstanding elder brothers, and he never thought about competing for the throne. He was raised as a rich and idle prince since he was a child, and he had no political ability at all. He did not have time to show his talents after ascending the throne. He was deposed by Empress Wu just one month later and demoted to Prince of Luling. He was imprisoned for more than ten years. He was just recalled to the capital this year and was appointed Crown Prince for the second time.
Li Xian experienced great ups and downs in life, but the great change of fate did not improve his political quality. He was still a cowardly idle prince, not suitable to be a crown prince. Li Tang's old ministers and even ordinary people have imagined more than once that if Crown Prince Zhang Huai was still alive, there would be no Li Xian and Li Dan. In fact, the situation would not have come to this point today.
However, no matter how many times the assumption is made, Li Xian is dead. The King of Wei once did not take Li Xian seriously. He thought that no matter how high the reputation of the court and the public was, what could he compete with him for? But now it is different, especially since the King of Wei knows that Li Xian is likely to have children alive.
If it was a girl, it would be fine, but if it was a boy... it would be like a bolt of lightning falling into a pool of oil. Not only would the empress's throne be challenged, but the succession order of the crown prince and the prince of prime minister would all be put in question.
The King of Wei was extremely concerned about this matter. Whether the child was a boy or a girl, he would be a sharp weapon in his hand. If it was a girl, he could use it to alienate the relationship between the Queen and the Crown Prince and the Prince of Xiang; if it was a boy, he could use it to attack the Crown Prince's position.
Crown Prince Zhang Huai was the heir praised by Emperor Gaozong himself. Logically, his lineage was the main branch. Crown Prince Zhang Huai's son was still alive. Should the throne be passed on to his nephew or his uncle?
The King of Wei was in high spirits after a few days of depression. He was ready to fight. The two jades were in his grasp. This blind man had ruined his plans several times, and this case was the perfect opportunity to send him to death. The lineage of Prince Zhang Huai had been identified. As long as the real one was found among the three people, the initiative would be in the hands of the King of Wei.
The King of Wei gave his subordinates a direct order: "Keep a close eye on the Pudu Temple. If anyone suspicious approaches, arrest them all, regardless of gender, age or status. It is better to kill a thousand by mistake than to let one go."
The subordinate clasped his fists and said, "As you command."
"What about the Su and Ming families? How are you keeping an eye on them?"
The subordinate showed a difficult expression: "Reporting to the King of Wei, the girl of the Su family goes to the street every day to buy things and vegetables, and often goes to crowded places, so it is very difficult to follow them; the twins of the Ming family are much easier to follow, but the sister eats, drinks and has fun all day long. Apart from buying food and drinks, she has never been seen doing any serious work; the brother has just taken over as the Shao Yin of Jingzhao Prefecture. He runs around the wilderness every day and stays outside the city all day. The brothers who follow them are miserable, and they have not found any clues."
The King of Wei narrowed his eyes and said slowly, "I almost forgot that Ming Huazhang is the Shao Yin of Jingzhao, and he is responsible for the serial murder case. Sending more people to Pudu Temple can not only keep an eye on Ming Huazhang, but also wait for the two to fall into the net, killing two birds with one stone."
The subordinate bowed his head and clasped his fists: "Yes."
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The sun had just risen to the sky, and the air had just warmed up, but the yamen runners had already been here for an hour. The yamen runners complained bitterly, and they had been tortured since the new Shao Yin was appointed. A few days ago, they followed Shao Yin everywhere, and today was even worse, they were dragged out of the city early in the morning just to recreate the scene of a death four years ago.
The man had been dead for four years, what was the point of displaying him? The yamen runners were already unhappy about being called out so early in the morning and being frozen for an hour, so they had long been complaining and were not willing to help.
These officials may seem to be of low rank, but they have been in Jingzhao Prefecture for many years, and their relationships are intertwined, making them much more powerful than Ming Huazhang, the Shao Yin. Ming Huazhang cannot command these old hands, so he simply does not count on them and does it himself, bringing people to recreate the scene when Huang Caiwei and her servant were found four years ago.
He was busy and exhausted when he suddenly heard a commotion coming from outside. Ming Huazhang briefly pulled himself away from the case and said angrily, "The government is investigating a case and no one is allowed to enter. Didn't they say to block off this area? Why are there still people coming here?"
The bailiff ran over to inquire, and after a while he hurried back: "Shao Yin, they said your sister is here."
Ming Huazhang's eyebrows moved, and his eyes flickered: "My sister?"