The Mingde Emperor fixed his sharp eyes on the Grand Princess.
In the heat of the moment, he suddenly realized a terrifying truth. The rumors about the Grand Princess being indulged in lust and pleasure might well be a ruse to deceive the world.
The truth was that his royal sister had other ambitions.
The Grand Princess lowered her eyes, avoiding the Mingde Emperor's inquisitive gaze. Her heart fluttered with unease, but she quickly composed herself and smoothly shifted the topic.
"Your Majesty, do you know who framed Concubine Fu back then?"
The Mingde Emperor's heart skipped a beat. He stared at her intently.
The Grand Princess looked at the Emperor's shadow on the ground. Her lips curled into a cold sneer as she recalled indifferently, "Concubine Yin and Concubine Fu entered the palace together. Relying on the power of the Yin family, Concubine Yin became a noble concubine. Yet, it was difficult for her to even catch a glimpse of Your Majesty.
Concubine Fu, on the other hand, became pregnant with an imperial heir within a year of entering the palace and enjoyed your continuous favor.
Fearing that Concubine Fu would give birth to a prince who would outshine her, Concubine Yin secretly spread rumors that a disaster star was about to be born.
It was not until the Queen saw through her scheme that the matter was put to rest.
At the palace banquet, she devised another plot and finally drove Concubine Fu to her death. I was fortunate enough to overhear the whole story by chance.
I knew everything but never told Your Majesty or Yuanyang. I watched as you and your daughter searched the palace from top to bottom for the culprit.
Am I really that hateful for doing this?
But now, I'm glad I kept my mouth shut. Let Your Majesty experience the pain of losing a wife, just as I'm about to experience the pain of losing a son."
"Only then will it be fair!" She gritted her teeth secretly, stared at the Emperor's shadow on the ground, and decided to abandon her son from this moment on.
She had pleaded with the Emperor for so long, but he remained unmoved.
So she chose this desperate measure.
The Mingde Emperor was so shocked that his eyes trembled. Thinking of this woman in front of him, who had known the truth for so many years and now said such crazy words to provoke him, he couldn't help but tremble with anger. His face turned as pale as paper.
He could no longer contain his anger. He grabbed the Grand Princess by the collar and slapped her across the face. "Why! What have I done wrong to you!"
The Grand Princess slumped on the steps. Blood oozed from the corner of her mouth, but she still managed to smile maniacally. Her eyes were filled with hatred as she said, "Thank you, Your Majesty, for the reward!"
Then she got up clumsily from the ground, slowly walked down the steps, and left the palace.
The Mingde Emperor stood there, still unable to get a clear answer.
After much thought, he could only attribute it to the fact that they were not born of the same mother and thus could not share the same bond.
After the Grand Princess gave up, the voices pleading for the life of the Prince of An did not stop.
Some officials pleaded that the Prince of An should be spared because his father, the Grand Consort, had made great contributions to the Yan Dynasty. And there were quite a few officials who agreed with this view.
However, in the end, the number of opponents exceeded that of the supporters, and the original verdict was upheld. To avoid any complications, the Prince of An was sentenced to immediate execution.
As for the person in charge of the execution, the Mingde Emperor initially appointed the Minister of the Supreme Court.
It was this minister who had secretly presented the case to him. It was also he who had secretly protected the victims' family who had beaten the Drum of Justice back then.
The Mingde Emperor was no longer sure how many people were secretly colluding with the Grand Princess. The only person he could be sure was innocent was the Minister of the Supreme Court, so he had to entrust him with this important task.
Of course, if Chu Junyi were here, he wouldn't have to worry so much.
The Minister of the Supreme Court also missed the Consort Chu. After all, he was a fearless man with the powerful support of Princess Yuanyang. Who else but him would take on such a task?
The Minister of the Supreme Court didn't want to do it, and he couldn't do it either.
That night, he ate something bad and was bedridden. The imperial doctor said that he wouldn't be able to get out of bed for three to five days.
Inspired by this, other court officials also fell ill one after another.
The only officials who remained on duty were those of high rank. But at this point, the Mingde Emperor had given up on choosing and directly appointed the Crown Prince as the person in charge of the execution.
The prisoner's cart carrying the Prince of An was pushed to the Execution Ground. The people who had been waiting there for a long time and knew about his heinous crimes all angrily threw rotten vegetables at him.
Wei Jinchen, who had refused to admit his guilt and remained silent, finally realized that things were irreversible. He kicked the prisoner's cart in fear and cried out, "Mother, save me!"
The Grand Princess sat in the armchair with one hand on her forehead, her eyes closed. Her heart was bleeding.
At this moment, she remembered her late consort.
He had once been the most outstanding young man in the Yan Dynasty, the ideal husband in the hearts of countless young girls.
He had once ridden his horse with a heroic air, his appearance unparalleled.
She had once been like those young girls, standing under the corridor, looking at him with infatuation.
But somehow, she had gradually lost herself and neglected the upbringing of their son.
At this moment, thinking of her late consort, she felt a little sorry for him.
She had shattered the only treasure he had left behind.
If he were in heaven, would he be heartbroken?
His heartbreak must be very poignant.
A face that was very handsome and a little sad flashed through her mind. Her eyebrows furrowed slightly, and her chest felt stuffy.
Thinking deeper, perhaps it was after the Crown Prince was murdered, perhaps after she was exiled to Nanxun, or perhaps after her consort died...
In any case, the struggle for the throne that year had changed the fates of many people, including hers.
A voice came from the window. "Do you want to rescue the prisoner?"
The Grand Princess shook her head slightly. "The Execution Ground is heavily guarded. It's not that easy to rescue a prisoner. If we expose our plan because of this, it will be a great loss.
Tell him to act quickly. As long as he can ascend the throne, why worry about not being able to avenge our grievances?"
"Okay."
"Also, look for another Concubine Fu in this world."
"Understood."
A gust of wind blew, and the voice disappeared.
The Grand Princess opened her eyes and looked out of the window. The sky was blue, the clouds were white, the flowers were red, and the willows were green. Everything seemed so peaceful, as if it could smooth out all the pain in her heart, including the heartache that had haunted her for many years.
After the Prince of An was executed, Li Xinyue and Chu Junyi began to pack their things and prepare to return to the capital.
In the carriage, Li Xinyue heard someone faintly talking about the "Grand Consort" and the "Prince of An". She lifted the curtain and saw that many people on both sides of the road were wearing mourning clothes and holding the portrait of the Grand Consort. They were crying and praying for the Grand Consort to protect the Prince of An.
They were also releasing lanterns to pray for the Prince of An.
A gust of wind blew, and some mourning paper from someone's basket flew into the carriage, landed on the window lattice, and fell on Li Xinyue's lap.
Li Xinyue stared at the mourning paper in a daze.
"Putting aside the conspiracy and schemes behind it, this scene is quite touching."
But precisely because they knew about the conspiracy and schemes behind it, they knew that this scene was all staged by the Grand Princess's minions.
It was obvious that the Grand Princess was not an easy opponent.
Chu Junyi might be in great danger.
A long and slender hand reached out, tore up the mourning paper, and threw it out. Chu Junyi didn't like this kind of omen, especially when it fell on his Xinyue. It made him feel uneasy.
"Xinyue, do you want to take a nap?"
He put his arm around her shoulder and gently pulled her into his arms.