The emperor ordered his men to take Zhang Yun away and then summoned the imperial physician to tend to him. Then he looked at Shen Baozhu and asked, "Baozhu, was that paper just now a treasure bestowed by the immortals?"
"Yes, yes. It's a Truth Talisman! A treasure that can make people tell the truth."
As Shen Baozhu answered the emperor, her eyes were fixed on Yan Mingli.
After Zhang Yun left, Yan Mingli, who was kneeling beside her, became extremely noticeable.
Seeing that Yan Mingli had been lying prone on the ground, Shen Baozhu was curious. She imitated his posture and whispered, "Brother Mingli, why are you lying prone? Is there something delicious on the ground?"
Dragon King: [The cute one only has food on her mind.]
Although Yan Mingli was the youngest son of the Minister of Revenue, he was not good at his studies and was rather undisciplined. His father was afraid that he would cause trouble, so he hadn't taken him to palace banquets for many years. Therefore, he was extremely afraid of the emperor. Even after Zhang Yun left, he didn't dare to get up.
He whispered back to Shen Baozhu, "His Majesty hasn't allowed me to get up yet, so I have to keep kneeling."
Shen Baozhu nodded half - understandingly and asked, "But you're not kneeling. We're lying prone."
Yan Mingli simply told Shen Baozhu the truth, "I'm afraid of His Majesty, so I'm lying prone."
"Why are you afraid of Uncle Emperor? Uncle Emperor is very kind."
"Because he is His Majesty. I'm scared."
"Uncle Emperor is very kind. There's no need to be afraid of him."
"Hey, why doesn't Baozhu understand? He's His Majesty!"
Yan Mingli and Shen Baozhu talked at cross - purposes for several sentences, which made the Dragon King laugh uncontrollably.
Lin Yu: [The emperor holds the power of life and death. It's normal for Mingli to be afraid.]
Immortal Qingyun: [The emperor could also be unhappy and make it so that Yan Mingli can never eat pastries for the rest of his life. That's why he doesn't dare to speak, for fear of upsetting the emperor.]
Shen Baozhu was frightened by Immortal Qingyun's analogy. She asked timidly, "Uncle Emperor, are you happy?"
After getting the news about the corruption case, thinking of the common people who hadn't received the relief food and clothes, as well as the unborn Eldest Princess, the emperor was in a rather heavy mood. He told the truth, "Not very happy at the moment."
"Uncle Emperor is not happy!" Shen Baozhu was shocked. She immediately got up from the ground and asked, "Then how can you become happy?"
The emperor was just about to say that clearing up the corruption case would make him happy, but he stopped short.
Looking at Shen Baozhu in front of him with a serious face, he thought of the Third Prince, who had a feud with Shen Baozhu, and his heart stirred slightly.
Although the Third Prince was currently bewitched by the Cui family, he was still the only child of the queen. The emperor still hoped that the relationship between him and Shen Baozhu would improve. So he said, "Baozhu, does Auntie treat you well?"
Since childhood, Shen Baozhu had been brought into the palace by the Countess Jingning. Although it wasn't very often, she could be said to have been brought up in the queen's arms. So she replied without hesitation, "Very well!"
The emperor let out a sigh of relief and began to coax her gently, "I'm very good to Baozhu, and the queen is also very good to Baozhu. The Third Prince is the child of the queen and me. Can Baozhu give the Third Prince a chance to apologize?"
Shen Baozhu didn't like the Third Prince, nor did she want to lie to the emperor. Just as she didn't know how to answer, the sound of a woman's voice came from the Hall of Mental Cultivation. She said happily, "Uncle Emperor, someone is looking for you!"
The emperor saw what Shen Baozhu meant. He could only curse the Third Prince for being useless in his heart. Then he frowned and told Ping Hai to go out and see which thoughtless concubine was making a ruckus outside.
After a while, Ping Hai ran back with a terrified look on his face. "Your Majesty, it's Concubine Hui. She said that the Fourth Prince is not in the Cloud - Ruffled Palace. He's suspected to have been missing for several days!"
Concubine Hui was the foster mother that the queen had found for the Fourth Prince. After Concubine Li was sent to the Cold Palace today, Concubine Hui first prepared all the things the Fourth Prince needed. When she went to pick up the Fourth Prince at noon, she found that the Fourth Prince had been missing for several days, and the maids and eunuchs in the Cloud - Ruffled Palace knew nothing about it.
Although the Fourth Prince was a fool, he was still a prince. After failing to find him, Concubine Hui didn't dare to hide it. She went straight to the Palace of Gathered Elegance to report to the queen. However, the queen had a headache and had already fallen asleep. So Concubine Hui had no choice but to take the risk of being disrespectful and report to the emperor.
Hearing the news of the Fourth Prince's disappearance, Yan Mingli, who was lying prone on the ground, silently raised his hand.
The emperor didn't have much affection for his foolish son, the Fourth Prince, but he wouldn't let him disappear either. Just as he was about to order someone to look for him, he saw Yan Mingli raise his hand. "You're Yan Mingli? Get up first."
Yan Mingli got up nervously and looked at Shen Baozhu.
Shen Baozhu was puzzled and tilted her head to look at him.
Suddenly, Yan Mingli got anxious and made small gestures.
Dragon King: [Four?]
Lin Yu: [Baozhu, the Fourth Prince wasn't missing. You took him home.]
Shen Baozhu didn't forget about this. Instead, she was thinking about a question.
The Third Prince was the queen's child, and the Fourth Prince was also the queen's child. They were both seven years old. Did Auntie Queen give birth to two children at once?
The Dragon King was amused and replied mischievously, "That's right. They're twins."
Lin Yu: [Why does Baozhu have such a question? The Third Prince isn't the queen's child.]
Shen Baozhu recalled what the emperor had just said. "But Uncle Emperor just said that the Third Prince is Auntie Queen's child."
"He's the Third Prince's father. He must know who the Third Prince's mother is."
Hearing Shen Baozhu's words, the Dragon King rolled on the ground laughing.
Lin Yu: [It does make sense, but the situation is a bit different.]
Immortal Qingyun: [Baozhu, tell the emperor that the Fourth Prince is the queen's child, and then ask him whose child the Third Prince is.]
Shen Baozhu looked up at the emperor seriously and said, "Uncle Emperor, the Fourth Prince is Auntie Queen's child. Then whose child is the Third Prince?"
The emperor looked at Shen Baozhu in disbelief. "What? Whose child is who?"
"The Fourth Prince is Auntie Queen's child!" Shen Baozhu repeated again and asked the question that had been bothering her. "Then whose child is the Third Prince? Is he also Auntie Queen's child? Did Auntie Queen give birth to two children at once?"
The hall fell into complete silence. No one dared to make a sound.
The emperor didn't even hesitate. He directly believed Shen Baozhu's words. The things that had puzzled him before suddenly became clear to him.
If the Fourth Prince was born to the queen, then the Third Prince must be the child of Concubine Li. That's why the Cui family protected the Third Prince and suppressed the Yan family's memorial.
The emperor staggered a few steps. His eyes were filled with grief. He hadn't managed the Great Yong well. He had caused the queen to take a knife for him, and the Eldest Princess had died in the womb. Now he hadn't protected the Fourth Prince well either, making him a fool. And now he was even missing.
Suddenly, the emperor had a terrifying thought. Could it be that Concubine Li had killed the Fourth Prince before she was sent to the Cold Palace?
He shouted sternly, "Someone, bring out the former Concubine Li (née Cui) from the Cold Palace. I will interrogate her myself."
Under the emperor's murderous gaze, Ping Hai rushed out of the Hall of Mental Cultivation at full speed and passed the message to the guards in the palace, telling them to quickly go to the Cold Palace to arrest Concubine Li, who was formerly the Consort Li.
When it came to arresting people, the guards were physically stronger and had martial arts skills, which made them much better than the eunuchs.
Urged on by Ping Hai, two guards even ran to the Cold Palace as if they were flying. They grabbed Concubine Li, who had just entered the Cold Palace, and dragged her out.
The guards threw her on the ground, gasping for breath. "M, Master Ping Hai, we've b, brought the person."
Ping Hai didn't dare to stop for a moment. He dragged Concubine Li into the Hall of Mental Cultivation.
Concubine Li instinctively knelt and crawled forward, speaking up for the Third Prince. "Your Majesty, the Third Prince just made some mistakes because he's young. He's not a bad person at heart..."
"What Third Prince! Cui, I'm asking you where the Fourth Prince is now!" Hearing Concubine Li defending the Third Prince, the emperor felt even more stupid. Concubine Li's intentions had been so obvious, but he hadn't noticed.
Concubine Li looked at the emperor in disbelief and said with a plaintive tone, "Your Majesty! The Fourth Prince is just a fool. Does it matter where he is?"
Dragon King: [Other people's children don't matter. Only her own child matters. How selfish.]
Shen Baozhu clenched her fists, regretting that the Treasure - Hunting Rat wasn't with her. Otherwise, it could have avenged the Fourth Prince.