si-mexico Chapter 376 The Prince's Mystery: The Cannon Fodder Bride Forced into a Substitute Marquis'
Chapter 376 The Prince's Mystery: The Cannon Fodder Bride Forced into a Substitute Marquis'
Su Jinyue figured Qin Guannan and Tang Ruiqian must still have something to say, so she arranged for their meals to be served together.
Worried about Shen Huaizhi's condition, Su Jinyue arranged the meal and hurriedly returned to her room.
Tang Ruiqian had been busy all day and hadn't realized that his unintentional words had caused much of a stir. When he saw the food, he felt incredibly hungry and immediately started eating.
Qin Guannan's suspicions were aroused by the reactions of Shen Huaizhi and Su Jinyue.
Qin Guannan hadn't noticed it before, but after Tang Ruiqian reminded him, he carefully examined Shen Huai and realized that the two really did look quite alike.
Qin Guannan was unaware of the inside story and naturally couldn't think of the virtuous concubine in the palace. He suspected that Shen Huaizhi was someone's illegitimate son in the mansion.
But Shen Huaizhi is a son of a concubine in the Xuanping Marquis's household, and he has no connection with the Qin family.
Could there be someone in the manor who would dare to cuckold Marquis Xuanping?
Thinking about Shen Huaizhi's background, he was born out of wedlock and was only taken back by the Xuanping Marquis's family after his birth. Could the problem lie with that Marquis Shen's mistress?
The reaction of Shen Huaizhi and his wife at the time was also a bit strange. Could there really be a problem here?
Qin Guannan was a little confused, but there was no rush. He kept it in mind and would definitely investigate it later.
The most important thing now is Tang Ruiqian's matter. His cousin is a real handful. He was perfectly fine staying in the palace, but instead of leaving, he insisted on going out incognito.
Now look what happened! He was tricked into going to the outskirts of the city and almost lost his life!
Fortunately, he was saved by Shen Huaizhi, and Qin Guannan also sent a message to the mansion and the palace in time, so it should not cause too much trouble.
The three people who cheated Tang Ruiqian have been taken into custody by Qin Guannan's men. It's not convenient to interrogate them today; we'll talk about it tomorrow when we get back to the city...
Imperial Palace, Imperial Study
As soon as Marquis Shen of Xuanping left, Emperor Xinghe looked at the things laid out on the table, his face expressionless and calm. Even Xia Yuzhong, the chief eunuch who had been by his side, couldn't guess what Emperor Xinghe was thinking.
Xia Yuzhong had just been guarding outside the palace, and he had no way of knowing what Lord Shen had said to His Majesty.
However, based on his experience serving Emperor Xinghe, it was best not to disturb him at this time.
Xia Yuzhong hoped that nothing else would happen today, but what he feared most came to pass. There was a sudden commotion outside the Imperial Study. Xia Yuzhong glanced at the indifferent Emperor Xinghe and quietly left the Imperial Study.
Once outside, a young eunuch reported that Consort Xian had arrived.
Xia Yuzhong looked at the Consort Xian who had rushed over and thought to himself that she must have something important to do to come so late.
He dared not delay and quickly stepped forward to bow to the Consort Xian.
The Consort Xian came for the Third Prince. The palace gates were about to close when news came from the manor that Tang Ruiqian had been tricked into going to the outskirts of the city.
She only had this one child, so she was naturally extremely anxious. However, it was too late today, and Tang Ruiqian was in the suburbs, so he couldn't make it back to the palace in time and had to spend the night outside the city.
The maidservant beside Consort Xian reassured her mistress that Young Master Guan Nan had already led men out of the city to protect the Third Prince. They would just stay outside for one night, and nothing would happen.
Knowing that Tang Ruiqian was safe and sound, Consort Xian was relieved, but if the prince left the palace without permission and it was found out by outsiders, people would talk about him.
After much deliberation, Consort Xian realized that this matter could not be kept secret, so she simply came over that very night to apologize on behalf of her son and His Majesty.
"It's Eunuch Xia. I have something to discuss with His Majesty. Please inform him on my behalf."
Xia Yuzhong was the one who had served His Majesty the longest. Consort Xian knew that such a person should not be offended, so she spoke to him very politely and even gave her maid a wink, telling her to give Xia Yuzhong a purse.
Xia Yuzhong held the light purse in his hand. He could tell at a touch that it was more valuable than silver, and his eyes immediately lit up with a smile.
Having spent so much time by His Majesty's side, Xia Yuzhong knew exactly who could accept his things.
Xia Yuzhong bowed respectfully and replied, "Please wait a moment, Your Highness, I will inform you immediately."
Xia Yuzhong cautiously entered the imperial study and respectfully told Emperor Xinghe that Consort Xian was waiting outside the hall.
Emperor Xinghe raised his hand and pinched the bridge of his nose. He knew that if there was nothing wrong, Consort Xian would not have come so late.
"Please invite Consort Xian in."
"Yes, Your Majesty." Hearing Emperor Xinghe's approval, Xia Yuzhong secretly chuckled to himself, thinking, "See? I've already made my money."
Consort Xian stayed in the Imperial Study for half an hour, explaining Tang Ruiqian's situation and apologizing on behalf of her son. Only after learning that His Majesty was not angry did she return home reassured.
Emperor Xinghe sighed inwardly. Of his three sons, the eldest was spoiled, the second lacked talent, and the third was somewhat naive.
None of them are fit to be the crown prince!
Emperor Xinghe is now old and his health is deteriorating, and there are already signs of factions vying for the throne in the court.
However, Emperor Xinghe had not yet decided who would be the next successor of the Great Xia Dynasty.
Emperor Xinghe looked at the desk, where the information about the Song family that Lord Shen had investigated, brought by Lord Shen, was on it.
He sneered. The Song family was truly like a centipede that, though dead, still wouldn't fall. They had wiped out a wave eighteen years ago, and now they had reappeared.
The Song family had been operating in the Great Xia Dynasty for decades, and during the reign of the late emperor, they finally obtained military power.
Afterwards, the Song family actively supported Tang Jinxuan, the crown prince, and were not only staunch supporters of the crown prince, but also allowed their eldest daughter, Song Zhihua, to infiltrate the younger generation of the crown prince's circle.
Tang Jinxuan was ten years older than Song Zhihua, so they couldn't possibly hang out together. At that time, Song Zhihua played with Shen Mingze, the heir of the Marquis of Xuanping, and Prince Tang Jingfan.
At that time, Tang Jinxuan had already married the Crown Princess. He was busy with political affairs and did not pay any attention to Song Zhihua, a mere maid.
Who knew that after attending a banquet and drinking a glass of wine, he would faint and when he woke up, Song Zhihua was lying next to him, disheveled.
Tang Jinxuan knew he had been set up and planned to have someone investigate, but the late emperor suddenly passed away, interrupting all his plans.
By the time he finished dealing with the late emperor's funeral and ascended the throne to straighten out the political affairs, there would be no evidence left to prove that the Song family had plotted against him.
Left with no other choice, Tang Jinxuan had to issue an imperial edict summoning Song Zhihua to the palace to become a concubine.
Looking back now, everything was planned by the Song family. With military power, the Song family was far from the capital on the border. Even if the border troops all belonged to the Song family, no one would know.
Fortunately, heaven had eyes, and there were still loyal soldiers in the border army who risked their lives to collect evidence and send it to the capital, thus breaking the Song family's decades-long scheme.
However, Emperor Xinghe still harbored hatred, hating the Song family for harming his son!
After the Song family was destroyed, Emperor Xinghe did not intend to do anything to Song Zhihua, after all, Song Zhihua had already given birth to his fourth prince.
Moreover, Emperor Xinghe has already discovered that Song Zhihua was unaware that the Song family was descended from the previous dynasty. She was indeed deeply in love with Emperor Xinghe, so keeping Song Zhihua in the harem was not a big deal.