Concubine Zhang was silent for a moment. Then she stood up, knelt down in front of Shen Mingzhu, and said, "Your Highness, although this concubine knows this is really asking too much. But this concubine only hopes that in the future, if anything happens, you can protect Lianlian. If there's anything you need this concubine to do, this concubine will surely do her best." Xie Fanglian also knelt down beside her mother. She knelt there quietly with her head down, not looking up at Shen Mingzhu.
Shen Mingzhu looked at Concubine Zhang and couldn't help sighing. She said, "Why do you beg this princess? Looking at what happened to the Liu family, you should know that this princess is not soft - hearted."
Concubine Zhang looked at Shen Mingzhu, and a faint smile appeared in her eyes. She said gently, "Your Highness is more kind than you think. The moment you showed mercy to Xie Fangfei, this concubine knew that you are much better than those who seem kind on the surface. There's still a bit of kindness in your heart."
"Then aren't you worried that this princess is just acting?"
"It's easy to act, but hard to cover up lies." Seeing the expression on Shen Mingzhu's face, the smile in Concubine Zhang's eyes deepened. She said respectfully, "Although this concubine lives in the inner courtyard, she can still tell a person's character to some extent."
Shen Mingzhu stared at her.
At this time, Xie Fanglian also looked up at her. Her expression was somewhat unfathomably deep, which was in contrast to her usual fragility and made Shen Mingzhu a little surprised.
It seemed that Xie Fanglian was not just a simple innocent girl. But at least she was a bit smarter than the former Xie Fangfei. Staying quietly in the inner courtyard with her mother, she finally became the winner in the Xie Mansion.
But was there really a true winner?
Xie Fanglian's health was really poor. It was hard to fake such a thing. Moreover, Shen Mingzhu was not completely defenseless against her. Due to congenital deficiencies and the schemes of the Liu family later, her health was so weak that even a cold breeze might make her seriously ill.
That was also the reason why Concubine Zhang kept her away from the public.
"Your Highness."
Xie Fanglian spoke. Her voice was weak, but her eyes were firm. She paused for a moment looking at Shen Mingzhu and then continued, "Regarding the matters in the Xie Mansion, if you want to know, what my mother and I know may not be less than others. For example..."
Xie Fanglian paused, hesitated for a moment looking at Shen Mingzhu, and finally gritted her teeth and continued, "For example, the matter of the princess consort's mother."
Shen Mingzhu's heart skipped a beat. She turned to look at Xie Lang and saw that his expression remained unchanged, but there was a bit of contempt in his eyes.
No, did Xie Lang know everything!
Sure enough, the next moment, Shen Mingzhu heard Xie Lang say calmly, "Let the past be the past. If you want to blackmail the princess with this, it will be my fault. I'm sure you're a smart person and understand what I mean."
Xie Fanglian looked at Xie Lang, and there was a bit of undisguised surprise in her eyes. She stared at him for a few moments and then softly replied yes.
Shen Mingzhu put her hand on the back of Xie Lang's hand and patted it comfortingly.
[Xie Fanglian really miscalculated. How could I not know? It's just that the time is not right yet.]
[She should be lucky that neither she nor her mother was involved in the past events. Otherwise, I would have dealt with them long ago.]
Shen Mingzhu was silent for a moment. Looking at Xie Fanglian, she said, "You two may go back. Let this princess think about it."
Xie Fanglian's expression remained calm, but Concubine Zhang beside her almost failed to hide her panic on her face. She subconsciously wanted to speak but was pulled by her daughter's sleeve. So they stood up, saluted, and left.
After watching them leave, Shen Mingzhu looked at Xie Lang in disbelief and said, "What exactly happened before? Could it be..."
Xie Lang paused, looked up at Shen Mingzhu. His expression remained unchanged. He sighed and said, "Actually, there's not much to it."
"Just..."
Xie Lang closed his eyes. "When my mother passed away, there were actually the hands of the Liu family and Concubine Wang behind it."
Shen Mingzhu looked at Xie Lang in disbelief. There was a look of shock in her eyes. She took a sharp breath.
"Actually, the Liu family took a fancy to General Xie. So she joined hands with Concubine Wang, who was then a maid - concubine, and took advantage of my mother's serious illness to deal a blow."
Xie Lang sighed as he spoke. "Actually, my mother was not that indulged in love. After realizing her husband's heartlessness, she gradually withdrew. But she really hurt her body when she gave birth to me. So when Concubine Wang came to provoke her again, she still..."
As Xie Lang talked about these past events, his expression remained unchanged, but the other hand that was not held by Shen Mingzhu tightly clenched into a fist, with his knuckles turning white.
Shen Mingzhu heard Xie Lang's calm thoughts, and an indescribable emotion gradually welled up in her heart.
But wasn't it said that Xie Lang's mother had a close relationship with the queen mother? Why didn't she ask the queen mother for help?
No.
Suddenly, Shen Mingzhu froze and realized a problem.
When Xie Lang's mother passed away, he was five years old and she was one year old. But before her birth, a concubine entered the harem. She was extremely favored and even frequently provoked the queen mother.
So her queen mother and Xie Lang's mother were facing the same dilemma at about the same time.
Shen Mingzhu couldn't describe her mood at this moment, but an incredible guess gradually emerged in her heart.
That concubine indulged her family, and finally became a thorn in the emperor's side. Her whole family was executed. Shen Mingzhu remembered that she was about four or five years old at that time. She had no impression of that person at all. People in the harem were quite taboo about mentioning these things, so she only heard about it a few times and didn't have a deep impression.
Maybe... maybe the relationship between the emperor and the queen mother was not as harmonious as she thought?
This bold thought popped up in Shen Mingzhu's mind, and she subconsciously took a deep breath.
Xie Lang thought she had thought of something, so he explained, "The empress dowager also intervened, but it was a bit late. My mother's health was really too weak. She was not much better than Xie Fanglian is now. There was nothing we could do."
Shen Mingzhu nodded.
She had never thought about it before, or rather, she didn't have the heart to pierce the calm surface that covered the surging undercurrents. But the emperor was the ruler, the most noble person in the world.
The heart of an emperor must not be limited to petty love. How much weighing was there in it?
So, regarding the truth behind the death of the crown prince brother, did the emperor really hide something?
Shen Mingzhu's face turned a little pale. She subconsciously took a sip of hot tea, then came back to her senses and looked at Xie Lang. She said hoarsely, "Do you think that this princess's father and mother are really as harmonious as they seem?"
Hearing this, Xie Lang subconsciously wanted to nod, but when he saw the seriousness in Shen Mingzhu's eyes, he sighed deeply.
"What do you think, Your Highness?" Xie Lang was silent for a moment and said, "Maybe you were still young at that time, but there was a noble concubine in the palace who was extremely favored. Even her family could act arrogantly in the court."
Shen Mingzhu's heart sank gradually.
So Xie Lang knew!