He cupped his hands again and reported: “Your Majesty, Little Pingzi indeed came from the Eastern Palace. In the Eastern Palace he served as a brush-and-ink eunuch. According to Song Liangdi, it was she who ordered Little Pingzi to contact County Princess Luochuan…”
Emperor Yongchang’s expression remained indifferent: “So she still died too early, such audacity!”
But did Song Liangdi think that by dying she could settle everything?
There was no such good thing in this world.
Emperor Yongchang ordered in a deep voice: “Pass down the order: Zhou Wang is to be confined in his residence starting today. All supplies for the residence will be handled by the Imperial Clan Court.”
Not to mention that it was only County Princess Luochuan who had done this, if Zhou Wang had not usually indulged this daughter too much, how could County Princess Luochuan have so easily obtained his command token?
Failing to safeguard such an important item meant he should pay the price.
Moreover, when children commit mistakes, the parents naturally bear responsibility as well.
It was not that once a person died, everything ended.
He then darkened his expression again: “The Song family, all adult males are to be exiled, and the female relatives are to be sent to the Jiaofang Division!”
Lai Chenglong responded in a deep voice.
The Crown Prince had been kneeling outside Taiji Hall the entire time. His health was not good, and he had long been swaying, almost fainting.
Seeing Lai Chenglong enter the hall with people to report, his whole body tensed.
Little Pingzi was from the Eastern Palace, but since he had not given the order, naturally it must have been someone else in the Eastern Palace.
Who was it?
The answer was almost ready to emerge.
The Crown Prince’s heartbeat quickened. He felt irritated, since the matter implicated him.
But at the same time, he also felt terrified.
After all, Xiao Jingzhao truly was the son he had doted on since childhood.
He struggled to breathe, until he heard the eunuch reading the imperial decree. His vision suddenly went dark, and he finally could not control himself and fainted.
Inside Taiji Hall, upon hearing that the Crown Prince had fainted, Emperor Yongchang slowly frowned.
He had never liked the Crown Prince, this dislike had begun long ago.
But after investigating this matter, it truly had nothing to do with the Crown Prince.
And now that Emperor Yongchang had calmed down, he thought of Xiao Yunting.
For Xiao Yunting’s sake, it was not appropriate to be overly harsh on the Crown Prince.
There was no logic in abolishing the son and passing over him to establish the grandson.
Thinking this, Emperor Yongchang calmly instructed Eunuch Xia: “Have the Crown Prince sent back! He failed to properly restrain his consorts, let him remain in seclusion and reflect!”
Eunuch Xia respectfully acknowledged and hurried out to have the Crown Prince carried back to the Eastern Palace.
What happened in the palace naturally spread fastest within the palace.
By evening, after Empress Dowager Tian came out from her small Buddhist hall, Liu Shanggong from her palace stepped forward and quietly reported the matter.
The prayer beads in Empress Dowager Tian’s hand turned quickly. After hearing the final result, she smiled meaningfully: “It’s truly lively.”
Emperor Yongchang was not her biological son, and the Eldest Princess was not her biological daughter.
Therefore, in many matters, this Empress Dowager could not interfere at all.
She merely held the title in name.
She was happy enough just watching the spectacle.
As she spoke, Tian Jinglan entered carrying a bowl of bird’s nest porridge and smilingly presented it to Empress Dowager Tian: “Your Majesty has been reciting scriptures all day, please have some dessert.”
She was gentle and obedient, always smiling three parts before speaking. Combined with being blood-related to Empress Dowager Tian, she was usually most favored by her.
Seeing her now, Empress Dowager Tian’s mood improved: “You child, you do everything personally. I brought you into the palace to accompany me, not to serve as a maid.”
Tian Jinglan widened her eyes: “Serving you is like showing filial piety to my own grandmother, isn’t that what a junior should do?”
Empress Dowager Tian was pleased and laughed to Liu Shanggong: “Look at her, such a glib little girl!”
Liu Shanggong naturally hurried to smile along.
Meanwhile, Tian Jinglan put away the basket of Buddhist beans beside her and brought up the matter of the Eldest Princess entering the palace: “Today the Eldest Princess looked hurried, I wonder what happened?”
At this, Empress Dowager Tian smiled faintly: “Nothing much, just matters related to that child Jintang’s marriage. By now one Zhou Wangfei and one County Princess Luochuan have already fallen.”
At the mention of County Princess Luochuan, Tian Jinglan’s brow suddenly twitched.
Of course she knew about the things County Princess Luochuan had done.
County Princess Luochuan was a fool.
She thought herself proud and aloof, but in reality she yielded to softness rather than force. With just a bit of coaxing and some instigation from the side, she would become self-righteous.
Hating Qi Yuan and helping link the Eldest Princess’s residence with the Song family, these were all things Tian Jinglan had instructed County Princess Luochuan and Zhou Wangfei to do.
It was not that Tian Jinglan truly wanted to help the Song family.
Rather, she needed the Eldest Princess’s residence and the Song family to prosper, in order to elevate Xiao Jingzhao’s status.
Of course it was not because she liked Xiao Jingzhao.
It was because she wanted to elevate Xiao Jingzhao and build momentum for him.
Xiao Yunting was too outstanding.
Capable and resourceful, deeply favored by Emperor Yongchang, with almost no flaws or weaknesses.
Such a person was good, but he would not belong to her.
She could only create a rival for Xiao Yunting through such methods.
Then appear at the right time to help Xiao Yunting overcome a crisis.
And it had to be an extremely serious crisis.
Unfortunately, after so much preparation, it had been easily seen through by Qi Yuan.
Even sweeping up Zeng Wenxiu and County Princess Luochuan in one net.
And now, County Princess Luochuan, already demoted to county lady, had directly died.
Truly capable.
She sighed: “With the matter stirred up this big, that eldest young lady of Yongping Marquis Residence really is quite capable…”
Hearing Tian Jinglan say this, Empress Dowager Tian curled her lips with faint sarcasm: “Yes, capable to an excessive degree. I heard that over three hundred people surrounded the Eldest Princess’s villa estate, yet they emerged completely unharmed, while those three hundred were almost entirely dead or wounded.”
Such ability was not something just anyone possessed.
Calling it luck, who would believe it?
Tian Jinglan placed the cleaned ornaments back in position and paused before saying: “No wonder His Highness the Imperial Grandson likes that young lady so much.”
Xiao Yunting?
Empress Dowager Tian suddenly said: “Right, if you hadn’t mentioned it, I would have forgotten. Yunting will soon return to the capital.”
Tian Jinglan lowered her head.
This time, Xiao Yunting’s return to the capital would be extremely glorious.
After all, during the Hongdu mission, he had killed countless corrupt officials, and now he had gained a nickname, the King-Slayer.
Meaning wherever he went, he killed.
Moreover, most rare of all, despite such a heavy reputation for killing, he was deeply supported by the people.
Tian Jinglan did not feel there was anything to be happy about.
No matter how good a man was, if he did not belong to her, what meaning did that have?
Only if he became hers would it truly be worth happiness.
Unfortunately, right now there was still an extremely annoying obstacle blocking the way.
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