"Let's not talk about whether I have such intention or not. When I was delivering the dishes, I met the Emperor. I knew that the Emperor would dine with the Imperial Concubine. I am not necessarily so bold as to murder the Emperor as well!"
Concubine Qi fought back vigorously, her eyes suddenly falling on the Third Prince in the crowd, and she immediately added.
"If the emperor and the imperial concubine are in trouble, then the Third Prince will be in the best interests of the prince. With the support of his father-in-law, the Third Prince, there is nothing he cannot do!"
Concubine Yi was stunned for a moment, and was about to say something when the Third Prince grabbed her sleeve.
Concubine Yi didn't know that he was really involved in this matter. If she said too much and made mistakes, it would only bring trouble to herself.
After stopping his mother, the Third Prince knelt down respectfully in front of Ning Chen.
"Father, I definitely don't have the thoughts that Concubine Qi said. Please understand me."
"Although I don't want to doubt my elders, if Concubine Qi takes a risky move today and succeeds, we will be like a pile of loose sand without my father. On the other hand, in Kyoto, the Qi family is the head of the civil officials and has great prestige in the court. It is not impossible for them to support my fifth brother to take the opportunity to ascend to the throne. We are far away in Zasak and cannot reach him. There are really many things we can do in the one month we are back in Beijing."
Looking at his son in front of him, a dark light flashed in Ning Chen's eyes.
Concubine Qi wanted to explain herself, but he raised his hand to stop her.
"I will investigate this matter to the end. I will not stop until the truth is revealed. The unhealthy trends in the palace should have been rectified long ago, and now is the time."
"Concubine Qi will be confined to her house until the case is fully investigated. The maid who brought the soup must be found and arrested. Everyone else, please disperse and do not disturb the concubine's rest."
Even though she felt a thousand grievances in her heart, the current situation was special and Concubine Qi had to swallow her anger and go back first.
After everyone else had left, the Fourth Prince pursed his lips and stood in front of Ning Chen.
Those phoenix eyes were filled with determination and a coldness that did not belong to that age.
"Father, I was supposed to have dinner with Mother today. If you hadn't come, I would have eaten these two dishes with Mother. Now, I'm afraid what you'll see are two cold corpses."
Ning Chen stared at him and whispered, "Why didn't you say it just now?"
"My son suspects my third brother." The fourth prince said without hesitation.
When he said this, he looked directly into Ning Chen's eyes.
This look is straightforward and easy to understand, expressing his thoughts nakedly.
Ning Chen's heart trembled slightly.
This kind of straightforwardness is something Ye Jun has also done before.
He turned his head and looked into the inner room. Although there was a screen between them, he could still feel the weakness of the woman on the couch.
In fact, even if the Fourth Prince didn't say this, he would still investigate the Third Prince. But now that the Fourth Prince said it, Ning Chen realized that there was no brotherly trust between the children anymore.
This was something he didn't want to see but had to face.
He took a deep breath, raised his hand and placed it on the Fourth Prince's shoulder, only to realize that his sons were no longer children.
"You should go back first. Don't do anything rash on your own. Dad will investigate everything and give you and your mother an explanation."
The Fourth Prince's eyes were red and tears fell as he nodded heavily.
After all, they are still children.
Ning Chen couldn't bear it, so he pulled him closer. The Fourth Prince then rested his forehead on his father's chest and cried softly for a long time.
He felt wronged, afraid, and even more worried that his mother would really leave him.
In the end, Yuan Jiu personally sent the fourth prince back.
This was also the signal Ning Chen sent to outsiders that he attached great importance to the Fourth Prince and the Imperial Concubine, and would not give up this time.
Soon, Ning Chen called the commander of the imperial guards, Lu Qingyun, and gave him direct orders.
"Find a few reliable people to keep an eye on the Third Prince, En, Jin and the others. I will find out the truth no matter what means are used."
"Yes, I will definitely see to it." Lu Qingyun bowed and then walked out.
After everyone left, Ning Chen dismissed the servants and sat beside Ye Jun's couch, thinking.
As a father, he himself was a prince, and he was not unaware of the Third Prince's ambition, but he understood this ambition. When you have the opportunity to be the master of the world, most people will still fight for it. This is common sense.
But what Nanqi needed was a wise ruler, a monarch with a kind and benevolent heart.
If the Third Prince were to do whatever it takes to gain the throne without regard for any brotherly feelings, he would definitely not be the candidate to inherit the throne.
Ning Chen would not doubt the Third Prince because of a word from the Fourth Prince. After all, he was indeed shaken in his heart.
Of course, he hoped that his son would not do such a dirty thing.
On the other side, the third prince was called into the tent by Concubine Yi.
No one knows a son better than his mother. Concubine Yi knew her son's ambition best, so she asked directly.
"Were you involved in the imperial concubine's poisoning?"
Looking into Concubine Yi's eyes, the Third Prince thought about it and decided to tell the truth.
Concubine Yi was shocked that her son had done all this behind her back.
After a while he came to his senses, and then he lowered his voice and scolded.
"Han'er, you are confused! Who is Enhe Jin? If your father knew that you have close contact with him, he would definitely be furious. It is too dangerous for you to do this. Isn't this courting disaster?"
"I know this is dangerous, but do I have any other choice, mother? Can my uncle, the Supreme Court Justice, help me? Or can my grandfather, the Imperial Censor, help me? Or can I use the less than 10,000 infantrymen in Jingzhao Yin's hands?"
The third prince asked back in a stern voice, and the coldness in his eyes made Concubine Yi shudder.
Finally, Concubine Yi fell into the chair and stopped talking.
She knew her son's situation, and this was indeed a choice without any alternative.
"But now the Imperial Concubine is alive and well, and the Fourth Prince is also fine. What if your father really finds out that he is you?" Concubine Yi was very worried.
The third prince was also upset about this.
He had clearly chosen the right moment, as the Imperial Concubine was having dinner with the Fourth Prince and his mother and son, so he made his move against Concubine Qi. However, he never expected that his father would suddenly come and disrupt his plan.
"Mother, don't worry about these things. Just take care of yourself. If something happens to me, En and Jin will not have a good time either. They will naturally not ignore me. I will think of a way today and then go see them to think of a countermeasure."
Concubine Yi was now in a state of confusion, so she could only listen to her son.
At this time, because he had not received any news from his mother for a long time, Angqin chased Hongger and asked him questions desperately.
At the moment, Hong Geer was upset about the failure of poisoning and had no time to pay attention to him.
In a rage, he pinned the man down and beat him up, "You bastard, if you make trouble again, I will send you to reunite with your bitch mother!"
"What do you mean? Is my mother dead? You promised me that you would find a doctor to treat him. How could you go back on your word? I did everything and listened to you!" Angqin roared with red eyes.
Honger shook off his hand and warned, "Don't talk nonsense outside. You did it voluntarily. Don't forget that you not only have a mother, but also a two-year-old sister."
After saying this, he left Angqin behind and left with his men.
And all of this fell into the eyes of the people who were monitoring them.