In the afternoon of the same day, Mrs. Su sent someone to the palace with a request for an audience with the Queen. Moments before the palace door closed, Queen Gu's permission came out.
The next day, the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law dressed up, took their maid, and boarded the car.
When they arrived at Weiyang Palace, after bowing politely, Queen Gu smiled and asked them to stand up, and then allowed them to sit down. It's just that although Wei Changying is not thorough in many things due to his young age, he still understands this truth - today is not a banquet like last time. The queen is in front of the mother-in-law. Where can I have a place for my daughter-in-law to sit? Therefore, she refused to sit down and was willing to stand behind her mother-in-law. The queen smiled and told her to be polite and no longer forced.
Because today is neither a New Year nor a holiday, and it is not a banquet, the queen is dressed very casually, with a family bun with three red gold hairpins inserted sideways. The style of the hairpins is very simple. She is wearing an 80% new lotus-colored double-breasted jacket, with a tooth-colored koi embroidered myrobalan tied inside, a gold belt with jade, and a tulip skirt underneath.
It's just that the queen is beautiful and well-maintained. Sitting on the phoenix throne, she still looks very elegant.
When Captain Ying waited for Mrs. Su to sit down, Empress Gu held up her tea bowl and asked with a smile, "Mrs. Su came to see me yesterday, but I don't know what happened?"
Mrs. Su looked solemn and said: "I dare not hide it from your Majesty. The day before yesterday, my son Shen Zangfeng and my daughter-in-law went to Chuncao Lake to play, but they encountered something extremely ridiculous in Furong Island... It can even be said to be extremely shameless. !”
She said in a deep voice, "Since this matter involves His Highness the Crown Prince, I dare not not come and report it!"
Queen Gu was startled, with a look of surprise in her eyes, and said, "Prince?"
The body that had been lying lazily on the phoenix seat suddenly sat upright, leaned forward slightly, and said attentively: "Speak more carefully!"
Mrs. Su looked at Wei Changying and sighed: "This is your personal experience, so you can tell me."
Wei Changying said: "Yes!" Before he said anything, his face turned red, and he paused before saying, "Yesterday, a husband took his wife to the bank of Chuncao Lake. Because of the hot weather, he wanted to take a small boat to Furong Island to open a restaurant. Drink and eat…”
"Wait a minute!" Empress Gu raised her eyebrows and interrupted, "On this midsummer day, where is the wine shop on Furong Island?"
"Back to the queen, my husband sent someone to tell the husband of the Jie family that he specially brought his son and daughter-in-law to open the business." Wei Changying said respectfully.
Queen Gu sighed and ordered her: "Keep talking."
Wei Changying continued: "This is my first time to Chuncao Lake, and I don't know what to say about Furong Island. Anyway, I passed a piece of reeds and saw lotus flowers. Then I saw a lotus pod in the dense place of lotus leaves. I The wife's husband asked the boat girl to row the boat closer to pick the lotus. Unexpectedly, the lotus picking girl picked it first! Originally, this matter could be forgotten here. There are so many flowers and leaves, and the lotus pods are indispensable... Unexpectedly, the lotus picking girl picked them first! When Lian Nu saw my wife’s husband... she said that he was handsome and outstanding, but in front of my wife, she blatantly... blatantly spoke of her love for him! "
At this point, Wei Changying's face was already red.
Queen Gu frowned and said, "What then?"
"Then the husband asked her to respect herself, and said that my wife is a wife. But the lotus picking girl... was still a little entangled, and she threw the lotus pods on the boat and said something to express her feelings. My wife was really angry with her ugly words. , I just threw it away again and again." Wei Changying bit his lower lip.
Mrs. Su took advantage of this pause and said to the queen: "If we were here, I would not dare to disturb the empress. However, the two children did not go far when they were surrounded by a group of lotus picking girls!"
Queen Gu couldn't help but ask: "Could it be that these lotus pickers gathered together and wanted to rob Guard Shen?" She looked a little bit amused.
Wei Changying said awkwardly: "Empress Shengming."
"..." Queen Gu almost didn't laugh out loud. She didn't even care to ask how this matter had anything to do with the prince. She leaned forward a little more and said with a smile, "It's really... This is really... If you rob other people's handsome young masters, it's really... That's all. Guard Shen is the best in martial arts every year, and if I remember correctly, you are also a martial artist? How dare these people steal your husband? This is really..."
The palace people on both sides secretly covered their sleeves and snickered.
Mrs. Su and Wei Changying couldn't laugh. Wei Changying blushed and lowered his head in silence. Mrs. Su sighed: "My wife is young and tender-faced, and she was embarrassed to talk about many things at that time. I don't know what happened at that time." The group of lotus pickers surrounded the boat of my wife and my daughter-in-law, and they were talking obscenely. My wife was so ashamed of them! This child was also young and energetic, so she really couldn't bear to listen to those words. , in a rage, they used the lotus seeds they threw onto the boat and broke one of their teeth to make him shut up! "
Empress Gu tried her best to hold back her laughter and said sternly: "These women are so unbearable, even if they are hookers, they will not be allowed to be so debauched in broad daylight! What's more, Guard Shen is traveling with his wife, and he has no intention of them. They persisted in entangled, and they deserved their own fault for being injured.”
"Thank you for your understanding, Your Majesty." Wei Changying said softly, and then said awkwardly, "However, after I injured the woman, the woman's companions said that they were... the crown prince!"
Queen Gu was extremely shocked!
After all, it was the Queen. After Queen Gu was stunned, she immediately concealed her expression, looked around with majestic eyes, and asked: "Do you know about this?"
All the palace servants knelt down and complained: "To tell you the truth, I really don't know that such a thing has happened."
Empress Gu said in a deep voice: "Mrs. Yipin came in person with her daughter-in-law. How can there be any lie? Those lotus pickers must have said something like this - Lin De, go to the East Palace to inquire about this matter and report it!"
A fair-skinned chambermaid in his thirties came out in response, holding a whisk in hand, bowing and saying: "I obey my orders!"
After he left, Queen Gu rubbed her eyebrows and said to herself, "How could the prince do such a thing?"
Mrs. Su immediately answered the conversation and said: "Your Majesty, my wife and my wife's daughter-in-law don't believe it either. How could the Crown Prince be so wild? So..."
"Huh?" Queen Gu realized that there was something behind her, so she couldn't help frowning and looking down.
The guard chief Ying lowered his eyes and said: "My husband thinks they are pretending to be the prince's concubines - those women are arrogant and domineering and don't care about the fact that the ministers are right next to their husbands. Since they are the prince's concubines, they should serve the prince loyally." Why are they still pestering the men next to them? Besides, the clothes they wore while gathering lotus on the lake were too... too unruly! The husband was very angry when he heard that they called themselves Prince Concubine. Not listening to the good advice, my husband got angry and drew his sword to teach them a lesson! "
"Good lesson!" Queen Gu said with a sinking face, "I don't believe there is such a woman in the East Palace! Let's not talk about the fact that the prince's concubine is now in the East Palace, how could she appear on Chuncao Lake? Not just one or two, but a group! Let’s just say that these women’s behavior is even worse than that of the Goulan girls! Let’s talk about the prince, even ordinary kabuki people have absolutely no reason to be so indulgent!
The queen said to Mrs. Su kindly, "Thank you for meeting Guard Shen! After all, he is the one before you who can distinguish right from wrong and not be deceived by others!"
Then he got angry and said, "I don't know who is behind the plot to frame the prince! He is so shameless and uses such despicable methods! If I find out, I will definitely punish him heavily and never give him mercy!"
Mrs. Su responded: "What the Empress said is true! So when I learned about this matter yesterday, I didn't dare to be negligent. I immediately sent someone to ask for a meeting. I came here to report it today! I also hope that the Empress will find out the truth as soon as possible to prevent the Crown Prince from suffering any consequences." unredressed injustice!"
Wei Changying promptly reminded: "Madam, yesterday in Furong Island, my wife and husband met Mr. Gu Zilie and the two young masters of the Huo family. They were also chosen by the group because of the handsomeness of the eldest son of the Huo family. The Lotus Girl stopped them. They said that it was Mr. Gu who chased away the lotus-picking girls, but when they left after having a meal together at the Jiejia Restaurant, the three boats belonging to Mr. Gu and his party disappeared! People from the Jie family wine shop helped search for it, but they couldn't find it... I guess it was stolen by the lotus pickers as revenge."
Queen Gu's face became more and more ugly: "How unreasonable! How unreasonable! Although the prince is not amazingly talented, he has always been filial and respectful, and has never disobeyed the emperor and the palace. Is it because of his pure character that these people have lost their respect? Are you so bold and dare to slander the crown prince of Qi?"
Mrs. Su, Chief Wei Ying, and many other palace officials persuaded her: "Please calm down the queen!"
Mrs. Su said: "My Majesty, please do not get angry because of these despicable people. Your anger will harm your body! How can these people deserve the loss of your body for them?" She added, "Eunuch Lin has gone to the East Palace to confront His Highness the Crown Prince. I want to The truth will be revealed soon. When the empress sends people to investigate, it is expected that there are many women picking lotuses. Even if they are hiding, there must be clues that can be traced!"
Queen Gu said in a deep voice: "Not bad..."
Just as he was talking, Lin De came back sweating from outside - probably due to the hot weather and hurried walking - Empress Gu did not bother to ask him to salute, and asked first: "What did the prince say?"
Lin De replied loudly: "In response to the Queen's words, I will go to the East Palace to ask His Highness the Crown Prince about this matter. His Highness said that last year, because he read a book about the scene of girls from the south of the Yangtze River picking lotus leaves among the lotus leaves, he longed for it and indeed mentioned it many times. I wanted to see the beauty of the lotus picker. However, His Majesty occasionally suffered from a cough after winter, and His Highness was waiting in front of the bed, so he had no intention of mentioning it again. As for the current lotus picker in Chuncao Lake, His Highness knew nothing about it. "
He added, "His Royal Highness was very angry when he learned what Mrs. Su and Mrs. Wei said. Now he has gone to court to seek an audience with His Majesty."
"That's how it should be!" Queen Gu's eyes showed a trace of approval for the prince, "How can the reputation of the prince be ruined by villains?"
Mrs. Su also said: "His Royal Highness is filial and has a noble character, which is well known to both the government and the public."
The queen said happily: "Mrs. Su's fair words make me feel very relieved."
Wei Changying stood respectfully and looked gentle. He secretly bit his lower lip to hold back his laughter: "Prince...that prince who is known to both the government and the public to be dissolute and immoral can also be described as "noble". I'm afraid no one in this world is unclean or noble. !
Listening to Mrs. Su and Queen Gu singing in a serious manner, Wei Changying was amused and seemed to have some enlightenment... (To be continued)