When Tian Rui was trying to curry favor with King Zhuang, she had never had that kind of thought.
Although they also frequently visited the Cining Palace, her horizons were much broader than her sister's. She could see that Prince Zhuang was not a trustworthy person. Who among the trustworthy people would be like Prince Zhuang, who, upon seeing a woman of some value, would want to use all means to get her back
Such a person, even if he really gets to that position, will not be reliable.
So she remained indifferent. Even if Empress Dowager Tian had that idea, she just pretended not to understand Empress Dowager Tian's hint.
But now it’s different.
She liked Song Heng very much when she was very young.
It was not because of Song Heng's identity. No matter how prominent Song Heng was at that time, he was just a concubine's son. Although everyone was afraid of him and revered him, the wives of the main houses all felt disgusted when they mentioned him, and no one was willing to marry their daughter to him.
She thought Song Heng was a good person because Song Heng kicked Xu Ying into the Jinshui River.
That day was the Lantern Festival night, and every family set up a tent to watch the fireworks. In order to provoke the Su family, Xu Ying deliberately mentioned the fact that Su Rong had been rejected for engagement, and used this to show off.
Song Heng kicked him into the water without hesitation, and sneered from his horseback, "It is said that women love to gossip. In my opinion, you should not be here. You should go to those sheds and sit with the women!"
Under the moonlight, Song Heng's profile was as handsome as a god. She still remembers the shock everyone felt at that moment.
Tian Xun held his face in his hands and sat for a long time before turning around and continuing to look for his mother with the bottle in his hand as if nothing had happened.
Compared to everyone who has cut ties with King Zhuang and is preparing to bet on Xiao Heng instead, the one who cares about King Zhuang the most at this moment should be the cabinet minister Xu Shun.
After lowering the curtains to block out the cold air and sight, Xu Chong personally poured tea for the guests and then sat aside.
Looking at the steaming hot tea, Xu Shun let out a long sigh: "It's such a pity that I failed at the last minute." He looked at the person sitting opposite him, his expression was not very good.
The mentality of the person on the other side was much better than his: "Why do you have to be like this, Mr. Xu? Victory and defeat are common in the military. Where in the world is there a business that is guaranteed to make a profit? Besides, Your Highness Prince Zhuang fell so badly and fell so hard, but in the end you are still fine and not affected at all. This shows your ability. With such ability, why worry about not being able to think of a way in the future?"
He smiled meaningfully: "Besides, Mr. Xu and this prince have a grudge for killing his father, and then there is a grudge for scheming. This prince is not a good person. For his own sake, Mr. Xu has to take care of himself, don't you think?"
Even though there was a curtain covering the air and a brazier burning in the pavilion, the surroundings suddenly became cold.
Xu Shun looked at the other party with a gloomy look and snorted, "What am I afraid of? It's you rats who are afraid of the light. If you are exposed to the world because of this boy, it will be a disaster, isn't it?"
The other party was not moved at all. He was silent for a moment before he said, "We are all one family. Why do we have to do this? Why do we have to do this? Mr. Xu, let's get back to the point. If we don't want to be held accountable by him, we have to think of a way. What do you think we should do?"
Xu Shun didn't say anything.
The other party did not feel embarrassed: "You are a magnanimous man, why do you have to bother with us? Speaking of which, you have received a lot of benefits from the northwest over the years, right? You covered up the Xu family incident, but now King Zhuang is dead. This eldest grandson of the emperor is not one to tolerate any injustice. If he investigates the matter to the end, the new and old grudges will add up to a lot, which will be enough to make you suffer. You should think of a way for me. Don't make it difficult for me to get rid of the money and official position, don't you think?"
Xu Shun had followed Emperor Yuanfeng for so many years, and he could understand Emperor Yuanfeng's thoughts very well. He stared at him sinisterly, and did not speak for a long time: "Wait a moment."
Emperor Yuanfeng went to Kunning Palace. When Eunuch Xia pushed open the door, he walked in and saw Xiao Heng kneeling on a cushion looking at the portrait of Queen Hu. He paused.
He also heard from Eunuch Xia privately that since the day Song Che left the palace, Xiao Heng had been staring blankly in front of Queen Hu's portrait except for eating, drinking and sleeping.
Now that he had seen this scene with his own eyes, he couldn't tell what he felt. He stared at Xiao Heng's back for a while, then he stepped forward and put his hand on Xiao Heng's shoulder: "What are you thinking about?"
Xiao Heng turned around, his eyes were bloodshot, and he looked horrible. When he heard Emperor Yuanfeng's question, he did not hesitate and said calmly, "I was wondering, why is it that the person I respected and admired the most since I was a child is the one who killed my parents?"
Eunuch Xia opened his eyes wide and almost screamed out loud.
Really, how could this prince be so bold! He was simply pointing his finger at Emperor Yuanfeng and saying that he had killed the former crown prince and his wife.
Emperor Yuanfeng did not get angry in the end. He waved his hand and waited until Eunuch Xia and others had all left before he sat next to Xiao Heng and spoke calmly, "You are wrong. I have never thought of killing your parents. Even when your father was suspected of treason and used his father's army, I only banished him to Shandong. He is my first son and was raised by your grandmother. Even your mother is loved by me and your grandmother. I regretted it a long time ago, otherwise I would not have sent someone to summon your father back to the capital."
Xiao Heng refused to give in: "But my father still died! He was fine in Shandong for two years, nothing happened to him, but you summoned him back to Beijing, and then he got into trouble!"
Emperor Yuanfeng was silent for a long time before he said, "It's a done deal. I didn't know you well enough. I admit it. Ah Heng, you are my grandson after all. Your parents' affairs were not what I wanted. Do you want to resent me for this and refuse to let it go? Your grandmother and your parents, don't you want to see you wandering around?"
He said: "I am very happy that you are my grandson."
Xiao Heng lowered his eyes, and after a while, he suddenly said, "I want to go see King Zhuang."
Prince Zhuang is now under house arrest, and Gao Ping's case closing documents have not yet been delivered, but a high wall has been built outside Prince Zhuang's mansion, surrounding it.
As if he had expected Xiao Heng to make this request, Emperor Yuanfeng hummed and did not stop him: "Okay, go if you want."
Xiao Heng asked again: "What about my grandfather and his family..."
"Why is he your grandfather?" Emperor Yuanfeng frowned and corrected: "The generation is wrong. Although our royal family does not pay attention to the generation, this is too improper. I call him uncle, and you should call him uncle."
Xiao Heng held back his anger: "What about my uncle and the others?"