Not long after Prince Fenyang swore to the sky, Eunuch Xia knocked on the door very softly.
Normally, in this situation, if there is nothing particularly important, Eunuch Xia would never be so tactless. Emperor Yuanfeng calmly let Eunuch Xia in. Eunuch Xia glanced at Prince Fenyang and whispered to Emperor Yuanfeng, "Your Majesty, the Empress Dowager has suddenly fallen ill. Someone has been sent to invite the imperial physician. The Cining Palace is here to invite you over."
Prince Fenyang was a little surprised and wanted to ask something hurriedly, but after taking a look at Emperor Yuanfeng's expression, he finally stepped back and knelt on the ground dejectedly.
Emperor Yuanfeng glanced at him, and after a while he ordered Eunuch Xia: "Take the prince to the clan residence and ask him to rest there for a while."
Eunuch Xia agreed, and Prince Fenyang hurriedly called him, "Your Majesty, I also want to go see the Queen Mother."
"No need." Emperor Yuanfeng didn't even look at him again and walked out the door. Prince Fenyang kowtowed behind him, and when he raised his head, he could only see his back in the dragon robe.
The fear on his face disappeared when he lowered his head, and was replaced by fatigue after the wrestling.
If Emperor Yuanfeng continued to ask him questions for a while, his excuse would not be able to hold up for long.
And as long as we can get through this period, there will always be room for maneuver in the future.
Compared to setting a trap for the Su family, it is of course more in his interest to take the money without any insatiable greed. After all, I have never heard of a prince being beheaded for corruption and bribery.
He rubbed his knees and prayed silently in his heart that Princess Fenyang would react quickly enough.
The atmosphere in the Cining Palace was depressing. Concubine Pang had already arrived. When she saw Emperor Yuanfeng coming, she hurriedly led a group of people to pay their respects.
Emperor Yuanfeng helped her up with both hands, glanced behind her, and asked first: "How is mother? How come she was fine, but suddenly fell ill?"
Concubine Pang was in a dilemma.
Princess Fenyang suddenly knelt down with a plop, her eyes red as she sobbed and pleaded guilty: "Your Majesty, it's all my fault. It's all my fault... I said something I shouldn't have said, which made the Queen Mother angry and sick..."
Emperor Yuanfeng was more friendly to her than to Prince Fenyang. Hearing this, he just frowned and asked Princess Fenyang to get up.
Concubine Pang sighed slightly in her heart.
At that time, Emperor Yuanfeng successfully led his troops into the capital, but he fell into the trap of the deposed emperor in the palace and was injured, and almost lost his life. It was the Princess Fenyang in the palace at that time who secretly hid him, found medicine for him to treat his injuries, and saved his life from the deposed emperor's search.
It was precisely because Chun'an's parents had made great contributions that she was able to grow up like a princess.
What is rare is that Princess Fenyang is a very cautious person. She has never been seen bragging about this matter, but has always been careful in her words and actions.
It is also because of this that Emperor Yuanfeng respects his sister-in-law very much.
Doctor Hu came out soon, and Emperor Yuanfeng hurriedly asked him about the empress dowager's condition.
"The Empress Dowager is fine, she was just too emotional and fainted due to anger. She is awake now and will be fine after a while of rest." Doctor Hu shook his head: "But the Empress Dowager is already so old, she should take care of herself and not get angry."
The Empress Dowager is about to pass away. If she falls ill at this juncture, it will have a bad impact.
Emperor Yuanfeng dismissed Imperial Physician Hu and went to see Empress Dowager Tian first.
Empress Dowager Tian had not yet recovered. She said bitterly to Emperor Yuanfeng, "Your Majesty, your sister-in-law came to the palace today to beg me, saying that Fenyang had done something wrong and asking me to allow her to go back to Qinghe with Chun'an. She no longer wants to live with Fenyang. Tell me, what is this? How will outsiders view our royal family?"
Empress Dowager Tian was furious: "Ah Heng has not yet stepped into my door. I know he is holding a grudge against me for my dissatisfaction with the Crown Prince and Crown Princess. But so many years have passed, do I have to go to the underworld to apologize to them? Besides, if he doesn't come to me, will I lose a piece of meat? Your Majesty, will you no longer support me? Aren't you and I concerned about his reputation, so that he can be recognized by the royal family in the future?"
"Then there are Fenyang and his wife!" Empress Dowager Tian was furious: "These two people already have grandchildren, and you see, what kind of trouble have they caused? Are they a joke to others? I can't do anything about it..."
Emperor Yuanfeng couldn't help but comfort her: "It's not that serious, don't worry, mother, I know what's going on."
Empress Dowager Tian shed tears and said, "I am so old now, with one foot halfway into the coffin, I cannot bear to see these things. Emperor, you have always been kind to your brother's family. If Fenyang is not going too far, you must think of a way."
Emperor Yuanfeng told her not to worry, and then came out of the hall to see Princess Fenyang.
Chun'an was so frightened that he just kept crying.
Princess Fenyang was still very rational. When she saw Emperor Yuanfeng coming out, she wiped the tears from her face and knelt on the ground: "Your Majesty, I just came back from my mother's home a few days ago. I always felt that the prince was absent-minded and dazed these days. I asked him many times, but he refused to tell me the reason. Today, he was summoned and was so scared that he cried in front of me. I knew he must have made a big mistake..."
Her eyes were red, and she bit her lips tightly, then released them again, saying very tiredly: "The emperor has been so tolerant to us these years, letting him be the clan leader to handle clan affairs. It can be said that he trusts us, but he is still as unimproving and sloppy as before, fighting cocks and running dogs... I have kept it a secret from him for his sake these years, but he is soft-hearted and listened to other people's slander to open a brothel and cause a big trouble..."
Among his brothers, Prince Fenyang has always been the one who indulges in eating, drinking and having fun, but he has rarely been mentioned in recent years.
Emperor Yuanfeng thought of the time when Prince Fenyang was always reprimanded by the previous emperor, and his tone changed: "Why didn't you say so earlier?"
"I have to tell him, but he has to listen." Princess Fenyang smiled bitterly, "You also know that he loves face. The betrothal gifts and dowries for the children in the family are all huge expenses. Although I have my dowry to make up for it and your reward, it is still stretched to the limit. But he still spends money everywhere. You don't know how much our accounts have lost in these years. I really didn't expect that he would secretly accept so much money from others... He is so stubborn. If I don't get out of it, will I really accompany him in the quagmire and sacrifice the future and lives of my children? Speaking of which, I'm afraid he helped Jindong this time because of Chun'an."
Chun'an was suddenly called and fell to his knees with a look of fear on his face.