Surveying the room, Emperor Jingming noticed that all his sons were present except for Prince Qin. The Fourth Prince and his wife, the Fifth Prince and his wife, the Sixth Prince, the Seventh Prince and his wife, and the Eighth Prince – none were missing. He let out a cold snort, “What are you all doing here?”
On the Lantern Festival, these good-for-nothings could roam around freely, unlike him who could only view the lanterns from a tower. Now that something had happened at Xuande Tower, they had all rushed over to gawk.
Just as Emperor Jingming was about to send them all away, the Empress called out softly, “Your Majesty—”
Emperor Jingming turned to look at her.
The Empress leaned in and whispered a few words in his ear. Emperor Jingming nodded slightly, then addressed Yu Jin and Jiang Sidao, “You two will return to the palace with me. The rest of you, disperse.”
With that, Emperor Jingming extended his hand to support the Empress Dowager, “Mother, please watch your step.”
Soon, Emperor Jingming and his entourage grandly left Xuande Tower, leaving Prince Qi and the others to exchange bewildered glances.
Prince Shu was the first to speak, “I didn’t expect Fourth Brother to come out to view the lanterns today. I thought you’d be accompanying your wife at your residence.”
Prince Qi smiled faintly, “My wife is feeling unwell and couldn’t come out. I promised to enjoy this beautiful scene on her behalf. Why is Sixth Brother alone as well?”
Prince Shu hadn’t expected Prince Qi to come up with such a dignified explanation and was momentarily at a loss for words.
He had come out alone tonight because he had quarreled with his wife. Before their marriage, the Princess Consort of Shu had been one of the most talented and beautiful ladies in the capital. Who knew she would turn out to be so aloof and stubborn? He had merely mentioned the matter of having children, and she had immediately given him the cold shoulder.
It was worth noting that he had married a month earlier than Seventh Brother, yet Seventh Brother’s daughter was already nearly old enough to speak, while he still had no news. How could he not be anxious?
In normal times, this might not have mattered much. But now? Having an heir would undoubtedly add weight to one’s position in the Emperor’s heart. Who knew if that extra advantage might determine whether he or Fourth Brother would emerge victorious?
Prince Shu suppressed his discontent and said casually, “I wonder what happened. Father Emperor only asked Seventh Brother and his wife to enter the palace when he saw us all here.”
Given the order of seniority, it wasn’t embarrassing for him and Fifth Brother to be overlooked by Father Emperor. But for Fourth Brother to be passed over in favor of Seventh Brother was indeed a loss of face.
Prince Qi had realized this as well, and could only feel frustrated.
The Emperor’s mind was difficult to fathom. What else could he do about the embarrassment Father Emperor had caused him except endure it? Unless he sat on that throne himself, no one would dare embarrass him again.
Although he was displeased with Father Emperor’s favoritism towards Seventh Brother, he felt somewhat reassured.
At this crucial moment, if Father Emperor truly intended to choose Seventh Brother, he wouldn’t display it so obviously given his shrewdness. Father Emperor’s behavior indicated that he had never seriously considered Seventh Brother.
Thinking this way, Prince Qi felt a bit better. The main threat was undoubtedly still Prince Shu standing before him.
Prince Lu, listening to their subtly hostile exchange, found it utterly uninteresting. He frowned and said, “Aren’t you curious about what just happened?”
Why all this useless talk?
Prince Qi and Prince Shu both turned to look at Prince Lu, thinking to themselves that of course they were curious, but it was clear that Father Emperor had no intention of letting them know.
Prince Lu twisted his mouth and suddenly grabbed a guard who was about to leave. “What exactly happened just now?”
The guard dared not refuse to answer, “While viewing the lanterns, a palace maid attending Princess Fuqing fell…”
“That’s as good as saying nothing,” Prince Lu knew he couldn’t find out much more. He turned to his wife and asked, “Shall we continue viewing the lanterns or return to our residence?”
After such an incident, the Princess Consort of Lu naturally had no more interest in viewing lanterns. She replied, “Let’s go back.”
Prince Lu was delighted and hurriedly instructed the maids and elderly servants to escort his wife back.
The Princess Consort of Lu narrowed her eyes, “Is my lord not returning with me?”
“I’ll look around a bit more. There are still so many novel lanterns I haven’t seen yet.”
Hehe, he had finally managed to shake off this shrew. With so many young ladies at the lantern festival, who knew if he might encounter a beauty?
Just as he was indulging in these pleasant thoughts, he felt a sharp pain in his waist.
“My lord wishes to view the lanterns alone?” The Princess Consort of Lu emphasized the word “alone.”
Prince Lu gritted his teeth, not daring to cry out in pain in front of Prince Qi and the others. Suppressing his disappointment, he said, “Suddenly I find it not so interesting. Let’s return to our residence.”
If he didn’t leave now, this tigress might chase and beat him at the lantern festival. How could he bear to lose face in front of the common people of the capital?
Seeing the Prince and Princess Consort of Lu depart, the others gradually dispersed as well.
Back at the palace, Emperor Jingming’s mood had deteriorated to the extreme, and he even began to resent the Empress.
For the past two years, misfortunes had come one after another without cease. He had told the Empress to pray to the Buddha more often when she had nothing else to do, but this woman was unwilling.
Now look what had happened!
Although in a foul mood, Emperor Jingming still forced a smile when facing the Empress Dowager, “Mother, let me escort you back to Cining Palace first.”
“Your Majesty has matters to attend to, don’t worry about me. Fuqing, she—”
“Fuqing is fine. You should go back and rest first. I’ll explain everything to you once I’ve sorted out the situation.”
“Very well, I’ll return first then.” The Empress Dowager said, nodding slightly to the Empress, “Empress, please take good care of His Majesty and Fuqing.”
The Empress curtsied slightly, “Rest assured, Mother.”
After the Empress Dowager left, Emperor Jingming’s face immediately darkened.
The Empress patted Princess Fuqing’s hand, “Fuqing, you should go back too.”
Princess Fuqing shook her head, “Mother, today’s incident was aimed at me. I know best what happened at the time. Please let me stay.”
She wasn’t so fragile that she needed to hide behind her Fourteenth Sister at the first sign of trouble.
She was the legitimate princess, not some delicate vine.
Thinking of how the Fourteenth Princess had rushed to shield her at the moment of crisis, Princess Fuqing felt somewhat ashamed. She was unwilling to leave the Fourteenth Princess alone to be questioned at this time.
The Empress hesitated briefly, then met her daughter’s pleading gaze and had to nod.
“Very well, you two describe the situation at the time. Don’t omit any details,” Emperor Jingming said.
After listening to the two princesses’ accounts, Emperor Jingming looked at Yu Jin.
Earlier, when the Empress had mentioned that the Prince and Princess Consort of Yan were skilled at solving cases, he had summoned them to the palace.
Yu Jin pondered for a moment before asking, “When did Qingdai start serving the Thirteenth Princess?”
“Qingdai has been with me for several years and has never made a mistake.”
“Has she shown any unusual behavior recently?” Yu Jin asked again.
Princess Fuqing hesitated and shook her head, “I haven’t noticed anything unusual about her. Hongxiu, you interact with Qingdai the most. Have you observed anything?”
As Princess Fuqing’s other personal maid who had also ascended the tower today, Hongxiu was already terrified, her face ashen. When Princess Fuqing addressed her, she hurriedly replied, “A few days ago, this servant accidentally noticed that Qingdai’s eyes were swollen, as if she had been crying. When I asked her what was wrong, she said she had just rubbed her eyes carelessly. Thinking about it now, Qingdai must have had something troubling her… It’s all this stupid servant’s fault for not asking more carefully…”
Hongxiu began to slap herself hard.
The Empress ignored the crisp sound of slaps and murmured, “Qingdai was personally chosen by me to serve Fuqing. How could there be a problem?”
All the people serving Princess Fuqing had been carefully selected by the Empress, yet the one who caused trouble was Princess Fuqing’s maid. Overwhelming fear nearly engulfed the Empress, causing her to grab Jiang Si’s hand, “Princess Consort of Yan, who do you think wants to harm Fuqing?”