Translator:
Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor:
Nyoi-Bo Studio
Although it had been raining heavily at the time, a fire started up in the Royal Palace. This fire started rather mysteriously. Afterward, unintentionally, the Crown Prince’s royal tutors all saw he was shocked and unwilling to speak.
In the following days, the Crown Prince had a very good reason for not listening in during the meetings in the royal study. Not too many people would be suspicious that there was something fishy going on.
In a side courtyard by the Royal Palace was the place Lin Wan’er had once prepared to move into after she married and moved out of the Palace. It was also where Fan Xian had climbed the wall countless times. However, if he wanted to climb it again, he would definitely be turned into a hedgehog by countless arrows.
The courtyard was surrounded and tightly guarded. The four streets that ran alongside had long been sealed so that the area looked like a square inside a square. The smaller, inner square was the courtyard, while the outside one was the Overwatch Council’s tight seal.
Nominally, the Eldest Princess was in the little square recovering from her illness. However, the officials in court knew that Her Highness had been imprisoned there by the Emperor. The Overwatch Council kept a tight watch. Even a mosquito probably wouldn’t be able to get in so, naturally, news also couldn’t get out.
How long would she be imprisoned for?
A carriage escorted by guards drove over slowly from the east. The owner of the carriage had entered the Palace earlier but had not received any information. They were taking a great risk in coming to the royal courtyard in the west of the city.
The person driving the carriage was Teng Zijing. The carriage, imprinted with the Fan family’s square and circle emblem, was coldly stopped half a street away from the courtyard.
The carriage curtain lifted and revealed Lin Wan’er tired and mournful face. She had entered the Palace to visit the empress dowager and had not seen the empress. Although the empress dowager did not say anything, the atmosphere inside the palace and some strange details confirmed the guess in her heart.
Regardless of whether it was from Fan Xian’s perspective or that of the royal family’s, she shouldn’t have come to the courtyard, even though the person shut inside was her mother.
But, she couldn’t resist it. She had an inauspicious feeling that if she didn’t see that woman, she would never have the opportunity in this life to see her again.
How long would she be imprisoned?
…
…
Ma’am, the orders are clear. No one is to disturb Her Highness’ rest,
a member of the Overwatch Council calmly said.
Why don’t you go ask for an edict?
After some back and forth, the Fan family’s carriage still could not move forward another step. Lin Wan’er sighed and returned to the carriage. She knew that she shouldn’t have come. She shook her head and said,
I understand.
The Overwatch Council member let out a big breath and quickly bowed to show his thanks. If it had been any other official or noble who had come to the courtyard to see the Eldest Princess, the Overwatch Council people would probably have long brought out sticks to chase them away. However, the woman in the carriage was the Eldest Princess’ own daughter and, most importantly, she was the wife of Commissioner Fan Xian of the Overwatch Council.
This last identity made it so that none of the Overwatch Council people dared to be lax in their etiquette.
Lin Wan’er seemed not to hear what he was saying. She gazed at the familiar garden in a daze and slowly lowered her head. Tears slid out involuntarily, and she silently prayed for her mother in her heart.
…
…
The reality of the Eldest Princess being imprisoned caused a great shock everywhere in the court. No one would underestimate the secret influence this woman had these dozen years on Qing court politics, as well as the control that she and her people had over the court.
Since the Eldest Princess did not die, no one knew what would happen. Fortunately, the Emperor had swiftly and decisively swept clean the Eldest Princess’ faction and perfectly demonstrated an Emperor’s terrifying control and power to kill. Not many people worried that there would be any more major changes to court politics.
Some factions felt happy from the depths of their hearts, such as the Overwatch Council, Hall of Governmental affairs, and Taichang Temple. Some people felt fear. They didn’t know when they would be invited to the Overwatch Council to have tea. Many people felt excited to be able to, in their lifetime, see such a performance as an Emperor and Princess, a brother and sister, turn against each other; their life had truly not been lived in vain.
Some people felt hurt and sad, but for different reasons. For example, Lin Wan’er was hurt and sad because of the relationship between mothers and daughters, while others felt so because they had lost an opportunity to advance upward.
However, everyone had a common understanding. Of all the factions, it should be the Second Prince who felt the most fear and unhappiness.
Fan Xian had used two years to make public the connection between the Eldest Princess and Second Prince. After beating the Second Prince’s faction into a chaotic mess, everyone knew that the Second Prince’s true support was the Eldest Princess. Now that she had lost power and been imprisoned, what would the Second Prince do?
Not many people knew of the connection between the Eldest Princess and Crown Prince, including the Second Prince.
Within his manor, the Second Prince was just as others guessed. He was shocked, unhappy, disappointed, hurt, and scared. He crouched on a chair and unconsciously held a piece of pastry in his hand but did not bring it to his mouth. His fingers tightened and crumbed the pastry a little. Unconsciously, his eyes watched the manor’s great doors as if at any moment, eunuchs from the palace and members of Taichang Temple would charge in and capture and imprison him.
No matter what, the Second Prince could not understand why his father had suddenly acted against his aunt. Furthermore, he was more shocked at his father’s silent attack with lightning-like power. It was not until this moment that he realized that because the Emperor did not make a move, it did not mean he didn’t have the power to do so. It was only that he was too lazy to do so before.
When the Emperor acted, the world changed. Silently, after a storm, the situation in Jingdou had changed completely.
The Second Prince had no idea what he was going to face. The Emperor knew everything about the relationship between him and the Eldest Princess. Perhaps he would never have an opportunity to make something of himself again.
He sighed and placed the pastry on a plate beside him. He smiled bitterly and accepted a hand towel with which to wipe his hands. Gazing at his wangfei Ye Ling’er, he said,
If there is a problem, presumably father would not make things difficult for you, for the sake of your grand-uncle.
Ye Ling’er bright eyes were covered with a faint layer of worry. She knew why these few days her husband had stayed at home and was ready to be captured at any moment. However, she could not comfort him. There was nothing she could do to help him.
The only power that the Second Prince could depend on was the Ye family. In the days after the Eldest Princess had been imprisoned, he didn’t dare have any kind of communication, open or secret, with the Ye family because he knew that every one of his actions was being watched by the Palace.
He hadn’t been prepared. Or, more accurately, after his aunt had suddenly been brought down, he didn’t have the courage to do anything at all. He was worried that any unusual movement on his side would make his father even angrier.
For the sake of his life, it was better to be quiet. Imprisonment was, at least, not death.
The Second Prince waited in his manor for his end to arrive. Everyone in the Jingdou court also waited for the day the Second Prince was done for. However, the people waited for a long time, and there was still no edict from the Royal Palace. This reality inevitably made people confused. They guessed at the reason in secret.
At this moment, an edict came out of the Palace.
Everyone was shocked speechless. When the news reached the manor, the Second Prince fell out of his chair in shock. Boundless unexpected surprise and endless confusion melded in his brain to become endless shock. Why was it like this?
It was written very clearly in the edict. The ruler of Nanzhao Kingdom had recently passed away. The Emperor ordered the Crown Prince, Li Chengqian, to go out on behalf of the Emperor to confer the title.
Nanzhao? This was a vassal state the Qing army had conquered seven years ago. It was isolated, with a great deal of poisonous miasma, and the road was very harsh. It was thousands of li away. The trip there and back would need at least four months.
Nanzhao had been very peaceful these years and viewed Qing Kingdom as master. Although the two countries were close, it was natural that Qing Kingdom should send a person of appropriate rank to offer their condolences and attend the ritual for the passing of the ruler of Nanzhao. Why was it the Crown Prince? This was completely inconsistent with common propriety.
Why was it not the Great Prince?
Why was it not Hu the Scholar?
Why was it not Fan Xian?
For the Crown Prince to be sent thousands of li away to Nanzhao at such a sensitive time, what did it mean? Was it a twisted kind of exile?
After the Eldest Princess was imprisoned, everyone thought the second person to be met with misfortune would certainly be the Second Prince. No one had expected that it would be the Crown Prince.
Did the Emperor finally have thoughts of deposing the Crown Prince?
Although the details of the present situation were not enough to support this deduction, the cunning officials in the court all felt there was something strange in the air. However, they could not understand it.
The Second Prince was the most confused person. He felt that his entire body was cold. His father’s way of doing things was always unexpected and made one feel chilled. His actions were like flowing clouds in the sky. It was impossible to see where they came from.
Thus, after the Second Prince recovered from his shock, he played his part even more dutifully.
Twenty days later, a deathly pale Crown Prince, under the triple protection of a group of imperial guards, a dozen Tiger Guards, and an Overwatch Council squad, left Jingdou through the south gate and slowly headed toward the distant, seemingly never to be reached, Nanzhao Kingdom.
