The Eldest Princess simply had no way to swallow this grievance.
So this matter wasn’t over, it was still escalating!
First they forced a Zeng Wenxiu onto them, making them feel sick to the point that it was still like a fishbone stuck in their throat.
Now they even wanted revenge, were they planning to kill their entire family?!
If it had been them staying at the Eldest Princess’s villa today, wouldn’t they also have been in great danger?
The Eldest Princess gritted her teeth and asked, “Who exactly made the move? Has it been found out?”
Lu Mingan immediately thought of Qi Yuan. “Is Miss Qi alright?”
Although he knew Qi Yuan must be fine, with so many bandits it was still extremely dangerous.
The steward shook his head. “Miss Qi is fine. Most of those bandits died; only a handful escaped…”
Since Qi Yuan was safe, both the Eldest Princess and Lu Mingan let out a sigh of relief.
She gave a soft acknowledgment and said to Lu Mingan, “Then let’s enter the palace!”
Lu Mingan understood her meaning immediately.
Such a major matter naturally had to be reported to the Emperor, and he must investigate it thoroughly and clearly!
Were those bandits really bandits?
If they were bandits, then what had the Tongzhou prefect been doing?
What had the garrison troops in Tongzhou been doing?
If they were not, then things would be even more interesting.
Qi Yuan already knew in her heart what reaction the Eldest Princess and her husband would have.
She watched Liu Zhong lead the servants in cleaning the filth outside.
Basin after basin of water was poured down, yet the foul smell still could not be covered.
The neighboring households no longer dared remain in the villa area and all fled quickly.
After a while, Liu Zhong came running toward Qi Yuan with a worried expression. “Miss, this… I’m afraid it won’t be cleaned up for several days. You…”
Qi Yuan had never truly intended to stay there anyway. Seeing the situation, she raised her brows. “I’ll return to the capital first. I’ll leave this place to you. As for the tenant farmers, pay more attention, don’t let them lose heart.”
She had already promised to waive their previous rent arrears.
Liu Zhong knew this and hurriedly agreed.
Qi Yuan then said in a deeper tone, “The weather is turning cold. Open the warehouse and distribute the stored cloth to the tenants so they can keep warm.”
Liu Zhong hurriedly agreed again. “Miss truly cares for the poor and weak.”
Qi Yuan went straight to the carriage and headed directly back to Yongping Marquis Manor in the capital.
Old Madam Qi and Old Marquis Qi had already been waiting for a long time. When Qi Yuan returned, Old Madam Qi quickly sat up.
Seeing her lying on the bed, Qi Yuan walked quickly to the bedside and sat down. “Grandmother, what’s wrong?”
Old Madam Qi patted her hand. “Nothing, just my old stomach trouble. How are you? What exactly happened?”
“It’s nothing. County Lady Luochuan is dead now.” Qi Yuan’s expression did not change, as if she were speaking of something insignificant.
Old Madam Qi had already known, but hearing it again still made her worried. “Yuan Jie’er, was this too ruthless? Zhou Wang…”
Even a dying camel is bigger than a horse. Zhou Wang’s long-standing relationship with the Emperor was real. If he truly decided to fight desperately, Qi Yuan might face trouble.
“What does Zhou Wang have to do with me?” Qi Yuan curled her lips slightly. “The person he should hate now is not me.”
She also told Old Madam Qi about the eunuch.
Old Madam Qi had never expected such twists and turns in the matter.
She asked in disbelief, “So that means someone very likely used County Lady Luochuan as a blade against you?”
The key point was that Qi Yuan truly overlooked no detail.
She could even discover something like this!
Exactly!
If someone had indeed incited County Lady Luochuan to commit such a major mistake, and they had been caught red-handed, then Zhou Wang would have no time to hate Qi Yuan at all.
Really…
Old Madam Qi sneered slightly. “This is going to become dogs biting dogs.”
Qi Yuan truly, no one knew why, but whenever matters reached her, countless troubles seemed to disappear.
She always struck straight at the core.
Although her methods were fierce, it had to be admitted that this approach was extremely satisfying.
She took a deep breath and patted Qi Yuan’s hand. “You haven’t rested since coming back. Now you can finally rest properly for a while.”
First Wang Chan’s matter, then falling into the ice hole, and now setting Zhou Wang and County Prince Nanan against each other.
Since returning to the capital from Hongdu, Qi Yuan had taken quite a few heads along the way.
Qi Yuan was indeed somewhat tired and nodded.
But many others could not rest.
For example, at this moment, the Emperor leaned back in his chair, narrowing his eyes in shock. “What? What did you say?”
The Eldest Princess’s villa had been stormed by bandits?
What a shocking piece of news.
The Eldest Princess’s eyes were red. “Imperial Brother, first it was Zeng Wenxiu, and now my villa… who exactly hates me so much?”
Her lips trembled. “How will I dare to go out in the future? Perhaps next time I step out, someone will directly kill me. Even bandits have appeared, wouldn’t assassins be even more normal?”
Lu Mingan sighed from the side. “Your Majesty, it’s no wonder the Eldest Princess is frightened. I heard there were as many as two or three hundred people last night. How dangerous was that? Two or three hundred people, if they rushed a city gate, they might not even fail!”
He continued, “What exactly has the Tongzhou prefect been doing? And what have the garrison soldiers been doing? In a peaceful era, how could such a thing happen?”
The Emperor’s expression darkened.
At this moment, Feng Ze and the others requested an audience.
The Emperor calmly ordered them to enter.
Previously he had known that a bandit case had occurred, but he did not know it had involved the Eldest Princess’s residence.
Feng Ze entered and immediately knelt to salute.
The Emperor raised his hand to stop him. “Enough. What have you found? Speak quickly.”
Feng Ze respectfully presented a memorial.
Eunuch Xia stepped forward, received it, and handed it to the Emperor.
The Emperor opened it. The more he read, the darker his expression became.
Then he said calmly, “Go. Summon the Crown Prince.”
Eunuch Xia did not dare delay. He quickly went out, beckoned to his apprentice, and instructed him to invite the Crown Prince.
The Crown Prince still did not know what had happened. Hearing that he was being summoned, he quickly changed clothes and came over.
But as soon as he entered, the Emperor sternly shouted, “Kneel!”
The Crown Prince subconsciously glanced at the Eldest Princess and Princess Consort Lu beside him, not knowing what mistake he had made to anger the Emperor.
Still, he immediately knelt.
Right after that, the Emperor flung the memorial at his face. “Look carefully! What is this? Who gave you the courage to secretly retaliate against the Eldest Princess and even have people pretend to be bandits?!”
The Crown Prince was stunned.
He could not even understand what the Emperor was talking about.
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