When Queen Gu made up her mind, in Taichu Palace, Yun Fenghuang was frowning slightly and bowing down.
Before she came, she specially asked the Qing people to put on some more powder, but did not use rouge. Even when she looked under the blue gauze palace lamp, she could not hide her pale face.
Against the backdrop of the bulging lower abdomen, she looked even more haggard and frail.
Chunjia couldn't help but soften her voice when he asked her to sit down, and then offered her a seat.
Yun Fenghuang had not yet thanked her and sat down. Not far away, the lady of a middle-aged couple could not help but said: "Your Majesty, Concubine Min is extremely ambitious. She is pregnant for the first time and has not yet given birth, yet she brazenly treats the two empress dowagers. The twelfth prince committed a murderous attack, how can such a vicious woman sit in front of the emperor?"
"This matter is serious and has not yet been implemented." Chunjia said lightly, "If it is serious, it will not be too late to punish the imperial concubine; if it is a misunderstanding, the imperial concubine's status is second only to the queen, and the children in her belly, regardless of gender, are my flesh and blood. If it is because of today The accident has its pros and cons, can my aunt endure it?"
Before Mrs. Xing Ningbo could speak, the emperor continued, "Even if my aunt doesn't take my blood seriously, the two queen mothers have always valued blood. The twin princes born to our daughters in the past are now being raised well." Yes, why does my aunt mean that she will implicate innocent children regardless of the facts?"
"... I know my guilt." Mrs. Xingningbo sighed in her heart and lowered her head to admit her mistake.
She didn't expect to do anything to the favored Concubine Min when she just spoke. She just wanted to test the emperor's attitude.
Now it seems that Chunjia is really protective of the imperial concubine.
"Your Majesty, when the two Queen Mothers and the Twelve Princes left, I was not on the ship at all. I was even waiting on the island, hoping to see Your Majesty in peace as soon as possible... How could you murder the two Queen Mothers and the Twelve Princes? Prince?" Yun Fenghuang looked at it indifferently, turned to Chunjia, and said softly, "Moreover, I just got up from a nap, and I'm still asking the servants for news. Xingning's residence is outside the palace, but I know everything? "
She deliberately emphasized the word "outside the palace". After all, according to the rules, foreign ministers were not allowed to peek into the inner palace.
Taiye Pond is a body of water within the Imperial City.
Even though Xingningbo Mansion is the mother-in-law of the empress dowager, they cannot and should not know what happened on Taiye Pond.
Especially when the imperial concubine who lives deep in the harem and is so beloved still knows nothing about it, the Yuan family knows everything first. What does this mean
It shows how far Yuan’s hands have been extended!
Xing Ningbo and his wife looked at Yun Fenghuang with fear. They watched and listened to the rise of this noble concubine. Of course they knew that she was not easy to mess with. They were not surprised that Yun Fenghuang would bite back now, but since they dared to come When he said this, he was naturally confident: "Your Majesty, do you still remember? When the imperial concubine first entered the palace, she danced for your Majesty in the Green Sha Pavilion. Later, she was scolded by your majesty for disobeying the emperor. Instead of repenting, she threw herself into the water and died. Go... The imperial concubine may look delicate, but she is actually very good at water! Back then, she could go from Green Sha Pavilion to Xiao Penglai, and now she can naturally go elsewhere from Xiao Penglai!"
"What do you mean by uncle and auntie, the imperial concubine left Xiao Penglai by boat with her two queens and Twelve, and immediately followed her in the water, eventually overturning the boat on the water near Taichu Palace?" Chunjia glanced at them, He said lightly, "Did the two elders forget? Although the imperial concubine is not old yet, she is pregnant. These days, she is often sleepy... but how can she do such a thing?"
Yun Fenghuang thought to himself, does this mean that the emperor is a fool? Even if she really went to the water to lift the boat, why did she have to wait until Taichu Palace was near? They should have drowned when the boat was in the middle of the journey. The two empress dowagers and the direct prince, one of them, could not even think about it.
"Your Majesty, of course you are not the imperial concubine. After all, the imperial concubine is pregnant after many years in the palace. How can you not take her very seriously?" The servants who serve you must be willing to give in too much!"
Chunjia raised her eyebrows and looked at Yun Fenghuang.
Yun Fenghuang's eyes darkened, and he quickly thought about his attendants one by one, but for a moment he couldn't think of any problem... If she found that there was a problem, how could she stay with him
The imperial concubine realized that she might have been tricked without knowing it. Her thoughts were racing, and she lowered her eyes and said, "Uncle, if you have anything to say, please speak up! I am very heavy now, but I can't bear to sit for a long time."
"There are four calyxes in front of the imperial concubine. They are all the sons of the family who served the imperial concubine's biological mother in the north." Uncle Xingning did not look at her, but looked at the emperor and said softly, "As far as I know, these four calyxes are all good at... Water. Among them, Zhu E is the most proficient in water... Last night when the imperial concubine set foot on Xiao Penglai, she was the only one who didn't bring Zhu E with her? "
Yun Fenghuang concealed his emotions and explained to Chunjia: "I got up in a hurry at that time, and I left Zhu E behind to take care of King Qin and Zhao Qing..."
"This is just the one-sided statement of the empress." Xing Ningbo interrupted her and said lightly, "In fact, Zhu E didn't pay attention to the two highnesses, but after the empress left the Xuanqing Palace, he immediately went to Qi in disguise. In the apricot blossom forest in front of the palace! Your Majesty doesn’t enter the palace for only a day or two, so you don’t know where that place is?!”
Of course the imperial concubine knows!
Qibao Palace is now vacant. It is the palace closest to the former harem. Standing at the entrance of the palace, you can see the inner city wall that separates the former harem.
The apricot blossom forest in front of it occupies a small area. It is said to be a forest, but in fact there are only a dozen or twenty apricot blossom trees in total, planted beside Taiye Pond.
It is said that it was specially used to cover the water surface because there was a concubine in the previous dynasty who did not like water.
This place is very close to the Taichu Palace. If you take the land route and pass through a city wall, you will find the back entrance of the Taichu Palace. If you take the waterway, enter the apricot blossom forest, enter the water by the pool, and insert it diagonally, it will be more than ten or twenty feet at most. The revetment in front of Taichu Palace.
Even going to the small pier outside Taichu Palace is not very far.
At least ordinary water-based people can fight back and forth.
Like Yun Fenghuang, it was so easy to get into the water and go back home.
Everyone in the palace knows that the imperial concubine is very good at water. As for Zhu E, no one knows much about it. Even before Xing Ningbo spoke, Chunjia didn't know that the palace maid was good at water. But just like Xing Ningbo said, it is something that all masters are good at. Is it possible for the attendant not to be more attentive
"Of course I know about that apricot blossom forest, but I haven't heard of Zhu E's move!" Yun Fenghuang sighed in his heart. He already had a rough idea of what was going on. The only thing to blame was that he was still young. It’s also true that my energy is not as good as usual when I’m pregnant, and I don’t think carefully when something unexpected happens.
At this moment, he was thinking and said, "When I went back to Xuanqing Palace, I asked about King Qin and Zhaoqing. Everyone said that they were in danger. Zhu E took them out for a while and put them in place after they returned."
This was said while looking at Chunjia. Chunjia had so many things going on today that she naturally had no time to pay attention to the two eldest sons and daughters who were abandoned at the critical moment. Hearing this, he glanced at Yan Yin beside him, who nodded slightly. , he said to Mr. and Mrs. Xing Ningbo: "The imperial concubine had a broken foundation in her early years, so there has been no news for several years. Even if she is pregnant now, it is inevitable that she is unable to do what she wants. The palace change happened suddenly, and the imperial concubine took advantage of the situation in her haste, and she also It’s not impossible…”
What Yun Fenghuang can think of, Chunjia can also think of.
When he said this, he obviously thought that the imperial concubine had fallen into a trap and had difficulty getting out, so he was planning to give up his carriage to protect his commander-in-chief.
"Your Majesty, although there is no news about the imperial concubine who has been doting on her for several years, she is known to be in good health." Xing Ningbo said lightly, "This is known to everyone in the previous harem. After all, these are In the past few years, the empress, who has been skilled in bow and horse since childhood, has been sick for many years, so the imperial concubine is very ordinary... Moreover, if the imperial concubine is not in good health, how can she raise the four heirs and take care of the palace affairs at the same time? Are you still pregnant?"
"Originally, the Empress Dowager, the two Empress Dowagers and the Queen Mother make the final decision regarding the palace ban. Foreign ministers like me should not comment on it without permission. But the loving mother, the Empress Dowager, is my biological sister. She is old and still wants to be arrogant. Facing this disaster, I am really worried and uncontrollably worried!"
At this point, he glanced at the concubine with her eyebrows knitted together, and said happily, "Concubine, there is no need to ask how I know these forbidden things! Just now, Cai Chen and others have already told Your Majesty: This is because of the concubine. Although the empress acted decisively but not carefully enough, she was accidentally discovered by the waiter in front of the empress dowager. Because the empress dowager was still unconscious, the attendants were in a mess. The waiter was afraid that the empress would take advantage of the chaos to destroy traces, so he entrusted someone to help the minister. A message has been delivered to the government!"
Doing this is actually stepping on the line. After all, according to the rules, the news in the palace should not be spread out.
But in reality this is unlikely.
In addition, this is a life and death matter involving two queen mothers and a legitimate prince. With Bo Xingning and his wife coming here at this moment, Chunjia would not be able to pursue such side issues while the main matter is being resolved.
After all, in this case, it would be too much to protect the imperial concubine, and it would be difficult to convince the public.
"..." Yun Fenghuang had a serious face and thought rapidly.
Unless Queen Mother Yuan has anything to do with the rebels... this possibility is unlikely. The Queen Mother still values Chunjia very much.
Not only because Chunjia is the guarantee for her and the Yuan family's wealth, but also because of the long-term relationship between mother and son.
Therefore, the Queen Mother must have immediately decided to take advantage of the situation to kill Yun Fenghuang, a thorn in her side, after hearing the news of the palace change!
This point cannot but be said that ginger is still spicy when old.
At that time, Yun Fenghuang was too busy lamenting Chunjia's hard-heartedness and the arrangement of his children, instead of taking the opportunity to eliminate his enemies.
if not…
Empress Dowager Yuan dared to play a cruel trick. Could it be that she really couldn't wake up
Of course, what surprised Yun Fenghuang the most was Zhu E.
She really couldn't imagine what this waiter had to do with the Queen Mother
If Zhu E rebelled privately, the situation would actually be okay for Yun Fenghuang.
After all, judging from Chunjia's attitude, he was already ready to abandon Zhu E.
When the time comes, she will be disgraced, just like the Gu family, the emperor will personally clarify her relationship with the murder of the Queen Mother and the Prince, keep a low profile for a while, and then fight back.
The most fearful thing is that Zhu E is dead...
When the time comes and there is no proof, it will be completely unclear.
Even if there is favoritism from the emperor, such a big matter cannot be solved by just a confrontation between the imperial concubine and Xing Ningbo and his wife.
In fact, Xing Ningbo and his wife came here not so much to accuse the imperial concubine of being ruthless as to remind Chunjia to give up the imperial concubine.
It involves the life and death of two queens and a legitimate prince, and it happened the day after the palace incident, when the incident was barely settled. Can we not go to the temple and let the civil and military officials of the court discuss it together
In this way, even if Yun Fenghuang was eventually given a lighter sentence, she and her children would not be able to covet the position of the East Palace.
After all, even the emperor has to maintain filial piety. Why should a concubine who is suspected of murdering the queen mother and the prince set an example for the world by having her own children? !
"Your Majesty, what I have been thinking about all night and day has been the safety and health of Your Majesty and the emperor's heirs." Yun Fenghuang's heart became cold and he raised his head to look at Chunjia, "I really don't know anything about the rest! But I don't know anything about it! I absolutely don’t believe that Zhu E would murder the two empress dowagers and the twelfth prince! Not to mention other things, what is her purpose for doing this?!”
She said slowly, "Let me talk about the two empress dowagers first. These are your majesty's elders. According to law, it is a serious crime to implicate the nine clans! Although Zhu E is just a slave, he has followed me since he entered the palace, but he has not suffered much. ! Her family is even more favored by my biological mother, and their life is no worse than that of an ordinary squire. What reason does she have to give up such a stable life and do such a heinous act? Furthermore, the twelfth prince is certainly the legitimate son in the name of the queen. , but he is not the only legitimate son! At that time, the tenth prince stayed on the island and was taken care of by my concubine, but now my wife has returned to the queen's side peacefully!"
"And Zhu E has never had any contact with the Twelve Princes."
"What is her purpose in murdering the twelfth prince?"
"I can't figure it out either," Bo Xingning said calmly, "Perhaps Zhu E is the only one who knows it."
They came today not intending to argue with the imperial concubine about her ugly appearance. After all, they were shocked after receiving the news and came to the palace to ask the emperor for a clear explanation.
... After all, as an uncle, when you receive this kind of news, you go out without even saying hello to the emperor. Isn't this a deliberate attempt to embarrass the emperor
Now that I have come here to talk about it, I am not satisfied with the imperial concubine's explanation, and it is reasonable to argue with the court again.
Isn't it human nature for a younger brother to seek justice for his older sister
Now I put aside these words and got up to leave.
Chunjia didn't stay either. She watched the couple leave. Then she turned to Yun Fenghuang, sighed and asked, "Where is Zhu E now?"
Yun Fenghuang was also helpless: "I don't know... I returned to the palace earlier and was very tired. I didn't say a few words. I asked a few children if everything was okay, and then went to rest."
Normally she wouldn't be like this, but pregnant women are different.
Chunjia could also understand this. He thought for a moment and then asked her to go back and rest: "I'll take a look at this matter."
After a pause, he comforted, "Don't think too much, it's probably a misunderstanding."
The implication is that even if Xingningbo Mansion comes up with any evidence, the emperor will try to make it a misunderstanding.
Yun Fenghuang then forced a smile and said with red eyes: "I always seem to cause trouble for Your Majesty."
Now that the rebels have just retreated, something happened with the two queen mothers and the twelfth prince... Chunjia's mood could not get better.
But after hearing what the imperial concubine said, she still patiently comforted her, and then she was sent back to the harem.
Returning to the Huanhua Palace this time, the attendants could not relax. They looked at each other for a moment, and it was Chen Zhu who came forward to report the experience of going to the Queen's Palace before, and said anxiously: "I will follow your Majesty's instructions and leave after that..." I don’t know what the queen is thinking now.”
"She will agree." Yun Fenghuang said lightly, "After all, His Majesty is clearly protecting the Gu family this time, which shows the Sacred Heart... If she really stands idly by now, she would be extremely stupid!"
Empress Dowager Yuan was able to deal with her so boldly without taking action after lying dormant for several years, but how could she not be able to deal with Gu Zhen, who had poor palace fighting skills
To put it bluntly, Empress Dowager Yuan has not been able to do anything to Gu Zhen so far because of the presence of Yun Fenghuang in the palace.
Let the Queen Mother not be too blatant.
Otherwise, with Gu Zhen's little tricks, it wouldn't be enough to see Empress Dowager Yuan in front of her.
And she, Yun Fenghuang, is the kind of master who considers herself unlucky even though she knows she can't make it through
If she is really in trouble, she will definitely be dragged into the water for a few times!
Don't even think about running away, Gu Zhen!
... But this is the time when everything is gone. Yun Fenghuang has worked hard to this day, but she still hopes that everyone will exercise restraint and let her wife take the back seat peacefully, and Enze's heirs can take over the East Palace.
Right now I am thinking, how can I break this situation
The imperial concubine's thoughts changed one by one, and she suddenly asked Chen Jing: "Contact Gu Shao!"