Emperor Jingming’s hand trembled as he stroked the white cat.
The cat meowed in displeasure, escaping the restraining hand and running away.
However, the Emperor paid no attention to his beloved cat, instead staring intently at Pan Hai, asking, “Alive?”
Pan Hai nodded quickly, “Yes, Second Young Master Jiang didn’t die. He’s already returned to the Earl of Dongping’s mansion.”
Emperor Jingming’s expression changed several times before he finally asked, “And Prince Yan?”
“Prince Yan accompanied Second Young Master Jiang there.”
Emperor Jingming immediately snorted, “Upon returning to the capital, he goes to the Earl of Dongping’s mansion instead of immediately reporting to me—”
Was this son raised for someone else?
Pan Hai couldn’t respond to this, so he just laughed dryly without speaking.
Emperor Jingming glanced at him, “Summon Prince Yan and the heir apparent of the Earl of Dongping to the palace.”
Pan Hai hesitated for a moment.
Summoning Prince Yan was fine, but the heir apparent of the Earl of Dongping… Had the Emperor misspoken?
It was well known that noble families didn’t automatically receive titles for their offspring at birth. They needed to request an investiture, which only became official with the Emperor’s approval.
Generally, the Emperor wouldn’t reject such requests, but there were exceptions.
For instance, if he was displeased with a certain official, he might delay to make them more compliant. Or if a noble with no children from his principal wife wanted to name a son from a concubine as heir, an investigation would be conducted first to ensure there was no favoritism towards concubines at the expense of the principal wife.
Overall, Emperor Jingming was a considerate ruler, rarely making things difficult if requests followed the rules, and rarely agreeing to those that didn’t.
Seeing Pan Hai’s hesitation, Emperor Jingming raised an eyebrow, “Go on.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
As Pan Hai was about to leave, Emperor Jingming remembered something and instructed, “Invite the Empress here.”
The Empress arrived shortly. Observing the Emperor’s formal posture, and drawing on years of understanding her bedmate, she sensed that today he seemed somewhat excited, unlike his outward calm demeanor.
“Your Majesty called for me. May I ask what the matter is?”
Emperor Jingming opened his eyes, “Old Seven has returned.”
The Empress was quite surprised, “Prince Yan is back? Then—”
“He brought back the Earl of Dongping’s son.”
The Empress smiled, “Heaven has opened its eyes and not disappointed Prince Yan’s sincerity.”
Emperor Jingming knew the Empress had misunderstood something, but he didn’t explain, merely smiling meaningfully.
Not long after, Pan Hai returned, “Your Majesty, Prince Yan, and Second Young Master Jiang have arrived.”
“Bring them in.”
The Empress sensed something was amiss.
What did he mean by Prince Yan and Second Young Master Jiang had arrived?
As she pondered this, two young men walked in side by side and bowed in unison.
Even the usually composed Empress paled at this moment, her hand trembling and knocking the tea lid, causing a sound.
Emperor Jingming, having mentally prepared himself, showed little change in his expression, but his eyes kept examining Jiang Zhan.
He had returned alive and well.
“Grant them seats.”
Court attendants brought two small stools.
Yu Jin and Jiang Zhan sat down obediently.
Emperor Jingming looked from one to the other, countless questions swirling in his mind. Unable to decide where to start, he finally said, “It’s good that you’ve returned. Your father must be overjoyed.”
Jiang Zhan was quite moved.
Look at that, the Emperor was so kind, his gaze hadn’t left him since he entered. Unlike his father, who was excited for just a moment before his eyes were filled only with his good son-in-law.
“Tell me how you found him.”
Jiang Zhan glanced at Yu Jin.
Yu Jin began speaking, “We found him in Wu Miao.”
Emperor Jingming’s gaze deepened, “Wu Miao?”
The Empress, who was wiping tea from the back of her hand with a handkerchief, also paused at this.
Under the imperial couple’s gaze, Yu Jin remained composed, “Your son inquired of many people in the south, and finally got news from a silk-washing woman. She saw someone in foreign attire rescue a young nobleman by the river. I asked for details and roughly determined that the rescuers were Wu Miao people. Holding onto the slightest possibility, I went to the Wu Miao tribe, and unexpectedly, my brother-in-law had indeed been saved by them…”
Yu Jin knew well the principle of mixing truth into lies to make them less easily exposed.
He indeed hadn’t hidden anything when he went to Wu Miao, and Jiang Zhan had indeed stayed there for quite some time. If the Brocade Scale Guards left in the south investigated carefully, they could verify this. Rather than risk arousing Father Emperor’s suspicions later, it was better to close this avenue of inquiry now.
“If he was rescued by the Wu Miao then, why wasn’t a message sent?” Emperor Jingming looked at Jiang Zhan, his tone slightly reproachful, “News of your death in battle returned, causing great sorrow to your family.”
Jiang Zhan secretly admired Yu Jin’s foresight in coaching him on how to respond. He replied shamefacedly, “It was all due to my incompetence, Your Majesty. When I regained consciousness, I had lost my memory!”
Amnesia?
Hearing these two words, Emperor Jingming’s mouth twitched violently, immediately reminded of the deceased deposed Crown Prince.
That unfilial son had also “lost his memory” back then!
Returning to the present and looking at the handsome, innocent young man before him, Emperor Jingming pushed away the unpleasant memories.
This child looked honest and upright; his amnesia must be genuine.
Moreover, being among a foreign tribe, who wouldn’t want to contact their people as soon as possible if not for amnesia? Pretending to have amnesia made no sense at all.
Emperor Jingming believed this explanation and smiled, “In any case, it’s good that you’ve returned safely.”
Jiang Zhan quickly said, “It’s all thanks to His Highness. Otherwise, I don’t know when I could have returned.”
Emperor Jingming looked at Yu Jin and nodded with restraint, “You’ve done well this time.”
There was no need to praise his son too much, lest he become complacent.
With a stern fatherly attitude, Emperor Jingming’s expression became more serious, “Come to think of it, we should be most grateful to your wife.”
Yu Jin was momentarily stunned.
Although he wasn’t childish enough to seek praise from his father for doing good deeds, and he truly cared for his wife, wasn’t it a bit much for Father Emperor to say such things without knowing that Si had secretly gone south?
Jiang Zhan became nervous and couldn’t help asking, “What about Fourth Sister?”
Had the Emperor found out about Fourth Sister’s secret southern journey?
Glancing at Emperor Jingming’s expression, Jiang Zhan silently dismissed the thought.
Such a kind-hearted elder as the Emperor wouldn’t speak sarcastically to frighten people, would he?
Emperor Jingming smiled, “You may not know, but shortly after Old Seven left the capital, Princess Yan secluded herself to read scriptures and pray for blessings. To show her sincerity, she even stopped speaking. Who would have thought it would be so effective…”
Yu Jin and Jiang Zhan were dumbfounded after hearing this, both secretly marveling: Si (Fourth Sister) is truly capable, of fooling Father Emperor (His Majesty) to such an extent…
Having learned enough, Emperor Jingming waved his hand, dismissing the two.
As the hall quieted down, the imperial couple exchanged glances.
After a while, Emperor Jingming casually remarked, “We should ask Old Seven’s wife which Bodhisattva she prayed to, for it to be so effective.”
It was too extraordinary for someone presumed dead to return alive. If he had known, he would have set up a small Buddhist shrine for the Empress to pray at; perhaps it would have brought good fortune to the palace.
The Empress had an inexplicable sense of foreboding but responded vaguely in agreement.