HomeThe Brocaded Tale of the Girl SiChapter 817: Applying Pressure

Chapter 817: Applying Pressure

The Crown Princess was a matter of royal face and crucial to the heir apparent. Emperor Jingming paid close attention to the rumors circulating outside the palace.

To quell these rumors, he had initially planned to have Han Ran, the Commander of the Jinlin Guard, escort Lu Chuchu back safely. Whether she was a real princess or not, at least claiming it was a case of mistaken identity would silence the public’s gossip for now.

Scandals in the capital were endless, and the Emperor believed the people would soon forget about this incident.

Unexpectedly, the Northern Qi envoys residing in the embassy caught wind of the situation. They rushed over to identify Lu Chuchu, weeping before her and confirming her identity as the Northern Qi princess.

This turn of events forced Emperor Jingming to not only grudgingly acknowledge her but also agree to the Northern Qi envoys’ request: to have Zhou soldiers escort Princess Qiluo back to Northern Qi.

In terms of overall national strength, Great Zhou was naturally superior. However, the Northern Qi people were warlike, and actual conflicts often resulted in Great Zhou suffering significant losses and expenses.

Fortunately, despite constant minor frictions over the years, no large-scale war had broken out between the two nations. This allowed Great Zhou to focus its efforts on dealing with Southern Lan.

Under these circumstances, Emperor Jingming certainly didn’t want to offend Northern Qi. After brief consideration, he appointed Jiang Zhan to escort Princess Qiluo back to Northern Qi, eager to get rid of this hot potato.

The escort team for Princess Qiluo departed without fanfare, but sharp-eyed citizens of the capital still noticed. This only fueled the rumors further.

Unnoticed by most, Madam Xiu, the proprietress of the now-closed Lushengxiang, had filed a complaint with the Shuntian Prefecture. The complaint was peculiar, accusing the instigators of the rumors of malicious intent, damaging the reputation of Lushengxiang’s owner, and causing the establishment to close. However, the complaint didn’t name any specific defendants.

Surprisingly, Prefect Zhen Shicheng of Shuntian Prefecture accepted this vague complaint and began investigating the case in earnest.

Another month passed, and it was now the third month of spring. The triennial spring imperial examinations had concluded.

Ordinarily, the capital’s citizens would be most interested in the top scholars’ parade, the Flower-Pinning Banquet, or gossiping about how the eldest son of the Earl of Dongping got drunk after the Qionglin Banquet, fell off his horse on the way home, broke his leg, and thus ended his official career.

However, the controversy surrounding the Crown Princess not only persisted but seemed to be escalating.

The first accusation against the Crown Princess was collusion with Northern Qi spies. The second was her tarnished reputation due to a previous broken engagement. Now, a third charge emerged: since last year, many regions have been experiencing drought, and even the capital has not seen a drop of rain. This was interpreted as heaven’s displeasure and a warning against the Crown Princess.

Jiang Si couldn’t help but laugh when she heard this rumor.

Aman stomped her foot in anger. “How can you laugh, My Lady? If we weren’t confined to the palace, I would tear the mouths of those gossipers!”

Jiang Si glanced at her and said calmly, “Do you think your two hands can silence everyone in the world?”

“Then what should we do? Should we just let them slander your reputation? I’ve heard that some censors have already impeached you during court sessions…”

“You’re well-informed. Enough, these matters are not for you to worry about. Stay calm.”

Seeing Jiang Si’s composure, Aman had no choice but to let it go.

Emperor Jingming was indeed starting to get a headache from the increasingly vocal censors and the restless officials and nobles.

He knew this was partly due to the lingering issues from his sudden appointment as the Crown Prince.

When the imperial edict was first issued, the officials dared to be angry but not to speak out. Later, when the Crown Prince avoided the solar eclipse, it was seen as a sign of heaven’s will, and even fewer dared to voice their opinions.

But silence didn’t mean acceptance. Now that the Crown Princess was in trouble, they were all sharpening their knives.

If they couldn’t target the Crown Prince, why not go after the Crown Princess?

Moreover, the Crown Prince was young and handsome, and with the Emperor having dealt with most of the other princes, the Crown Prince’s position seemed secure. If they could remove the Crown Princess, wouldn’t their daughters (granddaughters, nieces) have a chance?

With this in mind, the officials were even more motivated.

Emperor Jingming sat on the dragon throne, listening to a censor vehemently impeach the Crown Princess, feeling drowsy.

It wasn’t that he didn’t care; he had simply heard too much of this lately and had become numb to it.

The Emperor wasn’t without anger.

The Crown Princess colluding with Northern Qi spies?

Reportedly, Princess Qiluo could barely drink cold water without choking. If Northern Qi sent such people as spies, they would have perished long ago.

And now they were dredging up the old story of the Crown Princess’s broken engagement to vex him. Had these fools forgotten that he had approved the marriage when the Seventh Prince was still the Prince of Yan?

Didn’t he know about the Crown Princess’s past engagement then?

Bringing up a match he had approved wasn’t just an attack on the Crown Princess; it was a slap in his face!

As for the drought, that was even more ridiculous. It’s not as if every year had perfect weather. This was a case of “If you want to condemn someone, you can always find a pretext.”

When the third censor stood up to list similar charges against the Crown Princess, Emperor Jingming couldn’t bear it anymore and interjected, “The Crown Princess is but a weak woman, how could she collude with Northern Qi? You’re overthinking my loyal subject—”

Unexpectedly, the censor was hot-tempered and didn’t even wait for the Emperor to finish before running into a pillar.

Even more surprising was that no one in the group standing near the censor reacted quickly enough to stop him. The censor immediately suffered a head injury, bleeding profusely, and died on the spot.

With such an incident, it became much harder for Emperor Jingming to brush off the matter of the Crown Princess.

At this point, whether the Crown Princess had colluded with Northern Qi was no longer important.

Many mouths melt gold, and public opinion is formidable. If everyone says you’re guilty, then you’re guilty. If they say you’ve caused a nationwide drought, then you’re the culprit behind the drought.

Emperor Jingming glanced at the bloodstain on the golden brick floor, his face dark as he stormed out.

News of the censor’s death by running into a pillar while impeaching the Crown Princess quickly spread.

Someone from Cining Palace came to summon Emperor Jingming.

Upon seeing the Empress Dowager, Emperor Jingming suppressed his frustration and forced a smile. “Mother, why have you summoned me?”

A cup of tea sat before the Empress Dowager, still steaming.

She picked up the cup and said in a low voice, “I heard that a censor died from hitting a pillar while impeaching the Crown Princess—”

“Mother has heard about it too?” Emperor Jingming felt a heaviness in his chest at the mention of this.

Don’t think he didn’t know that these censors’ dramatic actions weren’t truly out of unyielding integrity.

Hah, it was nothing more than stepping on him as the monarch to gain a good reputation for themselves.

The thought angered him, but the man was already dead. What could he do? If he were to punish the censor’s family, he’d immediately be labeled a tyrant.

The Empress Dowager’s eyes flickered. “The matter of the Crown Princess has caused such an uproar. I’m not deaf; how could I not have heard anything about it?”

Emperor Jingming sighed. “I’ve worried you again, Mother.”

The Empress Dowager took a sip of tea and said calmly, “Whether I’m worried or not is unimportant. What matters is how you plan to handle this, Your Majesty?”

Seeing Emperor Jingming’s silence, the Empress Dowager set down her teacup and said earnestly, “Your Majesty has just recently chosen the Crown Prince, and now the Crown Princess has caused such a disturbance. ‘It is more difficult to silence the people than to dam a river.’ Quelling the discussions of the people will not be an easy task. You should think carefully about how to resolve this matter.”

“I understand,” Emperor Jingming replied, leaving Cining Palace with a heavy heart.

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