Chapter 115
King Jing pulled open the curtain of the tent. Wang Xi hadn’t rested yet, so he hurriedly said, “Your Highness, please be at ease. This old servant will go out and take a look …”
King Jing nodded and motioned for Wang Xi to be careful. Wang Xi flashed out of the tent. King Jing lowered his eyes and glanced at the children. Even though he had changed his resting place, it didn’t affect the children. Their faces were all red from sleeping.
King Jing carried the four children to Li Yu’s room and wrapped the bed full of fish with a brocade quilt.
King Jing unsheathed his sword and silently guarded the bed.
Li Yu was a little nervous and kept encouraging himself. Although he didn’t know what the Sixth Prince was going to do, it shouldn’t cause any big waves.
He and King Jing were waiting for Wang Xi’s news.
Not long after, Wang Xi hurried back. He took a deep breath and said in a low voice, “Your Highness, it’s terrible. The guards outside found a man sneaking into Concubine Lu’s tent when they were patrolling outside. The guards thought he was an assassin and arrested him. Who knew, who knew that this man was an old acquaintance of Concubine Lu’s …”
Li Yu, “What??”
King Jing, “…”
Wang Xi’s words were full of profound meanings, but they were also full of mysteries. Lu Pin was the Emperor’s youngest son. She was also the Eighth Prince’s birth mother. This time, she was also in the entourage. Why would such an imperial concubine, who had no worries about her future, suddenly have an old acquaintance right under the Emperor’s nose?
Moreover, the concubines who followed the Emperor to the hunting ground all rested in their respective tents at night. However, most of the tents were concentrated in one place. Concubine Lu’s tent was the innermost one. The inner layer was guarded by eunuchs and palace servants in shifts. The outer layer was guarded by several teams of guards. Even a peerless master would find it difficult to sneak in. However, this old acquaintance did it and did it secretly. This was also suspicious.
What kind of old acquaintance would have to sneak into someone’s tent in the middle of the night on the hunting ground during the Hunting Festival?
Li Yu thought of a melodramatic possibility and thought, “It can’t be, right?”
Could it be that this so-called old acquaintance was actually Concubine Lu’s lover? Could it be that the two of them had a secret meeting in the middle of the night? And the reason why this person was able to sneak in so smoothly was because Concubine Lu acted as a spy? Otherwise, how could it be explained that there were so many Imperial Bodyguards and it was only later that they discovered him?
In ancient times, it was a taboo for a man and a woman to be alone together. If the emperor’s concubine was discovered to be in the same room with a strange man, she would either be sentenced to death or thrown into the cold palace. What’s more, Concubine Lu and this man were “old acquaintances.” Wouldn’t it be confirmed that Concubine Lu had an affair and made the emperor wear a green hat?
When people outside said that there was an ‘assassin’, he really thought that there was an assassin, and that the assassin was sent by the Sixth Prince. Or, no matter what, it was related to the Sixth Prince. But … it turned out that Concubine Lu had made the Emperor a cuckold?
Wang Xi gave the Emperor a lot of face. He said that he was an old acquaintance and didn’t directly say that he had an affair. He also didn’t mention what happened when he was discovered. This made Li Yu, like Si Bao, slow down a beat.
It turned out that it wasn’t to catch the assassin, but to catch the adulterer.
There was no such thing in the book. Given that this was a commonly used plot in palace novels, Li Yu couldn’t be sure whether Concubine Lu was having an affair or if she was framed.
But whether it was true or not, the man was still found in Concubine Lu’s tent. The Emperor would definitely be very angry.
“Tianchi, do you want to go over and take a look?” Li Yu couldn’t make up his mind.
King Jing slowly shook his head. At this time, the Emperor would definitely want as few people to be present as possible. He was a prince. If he rushed over at this time, not only would he not make the Emperor feel comforted, but he would also embarrass the Emperor.
But King Jing didn’t seem right if he didn’t go over to greet him.
What should he do?
… Got it! Li Yu’s gaze fell on Da Bao.
Da Bao was sleeping soundly and dreaming of fish food and big chicken drumsticks. Suddenly, he felt something scratching his face. Da Bao opened his eyes and found that his father was smiling at him.
Da Bao rubbed his eyes and sat up. Li Yu smiled and said, “Da Bao, I’m sorry. Daddy woke you up. But Daddy has an urgent matter. Can you help Daddy with something?”
Da Bao was the older brother. He had to protect his younger brother and his father. He hurriedly said, “Okay!”
Li Yu and King Jing looked at each other. Then, they picked up Da Bao and walked towards the Emperor’s tent together.
Steward Luo was anxiously pacing around outside the tent. The Emperor was very angry because of Concubine Lu. He refused to even drink a mouthful of water for a long time. The Imperial Physician also refused to let him take a look. When Steward Luo saw that King Jing’s husband had brought the Little Heir over, his eyes lit up and he hurriedly went to report.
Li Yu and King Jing were waiting outside.
Not long after, the Sixth Prince also arrived.
Steward Luo soon let King Jing and the others in, but he didn’t mention the Sixth Prince.
Li Yu and King Jing entered the Emperor’s tent. The tent, which was bustling with noise during the day, was now empty. The floor was in a mess. Broken cups and cups could be seen everywhere.
The Emperor sat alone on the Dragon Throne. He looked dejected and seemed to have aged a few years compared to the day.
Concubine Lu had been personally interrogated by the Emperor and was locked up alone.
The appearance of a strange man in the young concubine’s tent was a heavy blow to the Emperor.
The Emperor was in a very bad mood. He said unhappily, “What are you doing here?”
The group of concubines just now had all been driven away. Was King Jing also here to watch the show?
Li Yu said on behalf of King Jing, “Imperial Father, Da Bao missed you in the middle of the night and insisted on coming to see you. I had no choice but to bring him to see you.”
Da Bao was warned by his father and knew that his grandfather was in a bad mood. He hurriedly reached out his chubby little hand to his grandfather.
The Emperor was speechless.
The Emperor had mixed feelings in his heart. Because of his love for Da Bao, he still let Luo Ruisheng carry Da Bao over.
Da Bao’s arms were wide open. When he was in front of the Emperor, he hugged the Emperor’s waist and patted him gently with one hand.
“Grandfather, hug,” Da Bao said in a soft voice.
The Emperor suddenly had the urge to cry.
Li Yu and King Jing looked at the Emperor nervously. They were afraid that Da Bao would make the Emperor even more unhappy when he was angry.
However, this was the only way to persuade the Emperor to pay attention to his health.
“You can all leave. Da Bao can stay. “The Emperor waved his hand. He didn’t want his son to see his depressed mood.
King Jing and Li Yu looked at each other and retreated out of the tent with Steward Luo.
Not long after, tea and snacks were served and Da Bao’s giggles could be heard. King Jing, Li Yu, and Steward Luo were all relieved.
The next day, the Emperor was full of energy. Although there was an unpleasant incident, it was still a matter of the imperial harem. The Emperor had already sent Concubine Lu back to the palace that very night. He didn’t plan to show too much concern in front of the ministers and princes, so the Hunting Horse Festival went on as usual.
However, before the second hunt started, Prince Li of the Imperial Clan Court rushed over and asked to see the Emperor. He said that he had something to discuss with the Emperor.
The Emperor glanced at the fluttering banners on the hunting ground and knew that the hunt would probably end here.
It turned out that Prince Li of the First Rank also knew about Concubine Lu’s incident last night and specially came to test the Emperor’s attitude.
Concubine Lu was the Eighth Prince’s birth mother. If a prince’s concubine did something like this, how could the Eighth Prince establish himself in the future?
Moreover, it was said that this man was someone Concubine Lu knew before she entered the palace. That was why it was said that they were old acquaintances. As for whether they still had contact after entering the palace, the two had stayed in the same tent. As for the Eighth Prince’s background … it was hard to say.
Prince Li of the First Rank tried his best to persuade the Emperor. “Your Majesty, the Imperial bloodline cannot be mixed up. Please make a decision.”
Not only did Prince Li of the First Rank come himself, he also brought along two elderly imperial physicians.
As the Emperor’s younger brother and the head of the Imperial Clan Court, Prince Li of the First Rank was in charge of the Imperial Clan’s affairs. He obviously wanted the Emperor’s permission to verify the Eighth Prince’s identity.
Although the Imperial Clan had secret methods, they were classified. Only when the Emperor’s identity was in doubt could they be tested with the Emperor’s permission. This caution was to protect the secret and prevent others from using it.
The Emperor hesitated for a moment. Concubine Lu had made him suspicious. If Prince Li of the First Rank didn’t come, he was afraid that he would find him after returning to the palace.
Since that was the case, he might as well allow it. If this dragged on, the Eighth Prince himself would become suspicious.
Just as the Emperor was about to agree, Prince Li of the First Rank knelt down and took out a secret scroll from his sleeve.
“Your Majesty, to be honest, I have another important matter. The night before I came, this scroll appeared on the desk in my study. I didn’t believe it at first, but when I heard that something happened at the hunting ground, I felt that it was very suspicious. ”
Prince Li of the First Rank presented the scroll. The Emperor took it and quickly skimmed through it.
It was actually a secret letter written to Prince Li of the First Rank. The letter reported two things to Prince Li of the First Rank. The first was that Concubine Lu had an affair with another man. The second was that King Jing’s son was not his biological son.
The letter included the name and place of origin of the man with whom Concubine Lu had an affair, as well as all sorts of suspicious things about King Jing’s son.
As the head of the Imperial Clan Court, Prince Li of the First Rank received at least eight hundred requests every day. There was no lack of such seemingly baseless rumors. If he believed them so easily, he wouldn’t have to do anything else every day. Originally, he didn’t care, but when Concubine Lu was caught having an affair with another man at the hunting ground, Prince Li of the First Rank spent a lot of effort to find out the identity of the man. His heart sank.
At least most of the information about Concubine Lu in the letter was true. What about King Jing?
Prince Li of the First Rank thought about the Emperor’s love for King Jing’s son and faintly sensed that the Emperor had high expectations for King Jing. If that was true, how could he sit still? He rushed over not only for the Eighth Prince, but also for the Emperor.
“Your Imperial Majesty, what do you think we should do?”
Prince Li of the First Rank felt that it would be better to kill the wrong person than to release the wrong person. In any case, testing one person didn’t make any difference, so he might as well test King Jing’s son as well.
According to the letter, King Jing had four sons at the western border. It was said that innate muteness could be passed on to the children. King Jing didn’t have any sons, which was extremely unusual in itself.
Prince Li of the First Rank also felt the same way about this point.
The Emperor’s face darkened as he read. Prince Li of the First Rank was afraid that the Emperor would suddenly become angry with him, but the Emperor didn’t do anything to him until he finished reading the letter.
“I understand. You can leave now. You must not speak of this to outsiders,” the Emperor said.
Prince Li of the First Rank left in fear. Only then did he remember that the Emperor hadn’t said what to do with the Eighth Prince.
The Emperor read the letter several times. Thinking about Dabao, who was so devoted to him, he already had a plan in mind. He ordered Luo Ruisheng to quickly summon King Jing to the Dragon Tent.
“Tian Chi, you must be careful …”
Li Yu looked around and secretly wrote the number six on King Jing’s palm.
From the time Concubine Lu’s accident to Prince Li of the First Rank rushing over, Li Yu felt that it was related to the Sixth Prince.
King Jing understood that he wanted Li Yu to wait for him in peace. He also felt the same way. Prince Li of the First Rank was the head of the Imperial Clan Court. If he rushed over from the Imperial Palace, it must be something important.
He had brushed shoulders with Prince Li of the First Rank before. When Prince Li of the First Rank saw him, his eyes avoided looking at him. King Jing was almost certain that Prince Li of the First Rank’s important matter had something to do with him.
As soon as he entered the Dragon Tent, a booklet was thrown at his head.
King Jing was alert. The booklet didn’t actually hit him. It fell to the ground when it was half a foot away from him.
King Jing felt the Emperor’s anger. He picked up the booklet and glanced at it.
With just a glance, he knew what the Sixth Prince was planning.
It turned out that Concubine Lu was the bait used to lead the Emperor’s suspicion to the children.
Because the Sixth Prince didn’t have many trusted subordinates left, it wasn’t easy for King Jing to send people to get close to and monitor the Sixth Prince. The Sixth Prince was cunning. He only trusted himself and didn’t trust others easily. Therefore, he didn’t know the Sixth Prince’s specific plan.
However, since Prince Li of the First Rank came with the Imperial Physician in the middle of the night, it should be to test the children.
If it wasn’t for Concubine Lu, the Emperor might not have believed the words in the letter. However, because Concubine Lu betrayed him first, the Emperor should be more sensitive to this kind of thing.
It was inevitable that the children would be tested. This was the purpose of the booklet.
King Jing was waiting for the Emperor to speak, but the Emperor said unhappily, “Tian Chi, someone wants to harm Dabao. Do you know who it is?”
