Chapter 105

Huang Pei hurriedly responded and, as he left the Funing Palace, couldn’t help but wipe the beads of sweat from his forehead.

Today’s affair couldn’t be smoothed over!

The Empress came with great momentum, seeming to have regained some of her former temperament. It’s likely she won’t allow the Emperor to continue shielding the Second Prince anymore.

If today the Emperor continues to act stubbornly, it might lead to discord between husband and wife, and even turn father and son against each other!

Thinking of this, Huang Pei shuddered with fright, and his steps quickened even more.

He took a shortcut from the Chunhua Garden  to rush to the Chonghua Palace. Unexpectedly, just as he reached the Yuhua Lake, he saw the figure of the Second Prince from afar.

He stood alone in front of the statue of Yuliu Niangniang, his face as beautiful as jade filled with melancholy, which made people unable to bear it.

Huang Pei’s steps suddenly halted.

Was the Second Prince reminiscing about Yuliu Niangniang here out of genuine emotion, or did he know about the earlier events and was preparing to play the emotional card?

He didn’t dare to ponder deeply, hurriedly approached, and whispered, “Your Highness, urgent summons from His Majesty!”

The Second Prince trembled slightly all over, as if he had been too engrossed in looking at the statue and was startled by Huang Pei’s sudden appearance.

Seeing this, Huang Pei quickly apologized, but the Second Prince waved his hand.

“Minister Huang, what does Father Emperor seek from me?”

“This… Your Highness, you should hurry to the Funing Palace and see for yourself.”

Huang Pei hesitated for a moment, then respectfully replied.

The Second Prince’s eyes flashed slightly. This old eunuch was truly slippery!

In an instant, he put on a pitiful and guilty look, and said in a low voice, “Actually, I also have something to report to Father Emperor.”

After saying this, the Second Prince strode away, leaving Huang Pei slightly stunned, and quickly followed.

At the entrance of the Funing Palace, before he could push open the door, the Second Prince suddenly knelt down on both knees and loudly proclaimed:

“Father Emperor, your son is guilty, please punish me!”

Huang Pei’s hand that was about to push the door suddenly stopped. He was indeed a shrewd person and instantly understood the Second Prince’s intentions.

Thinking of this, he quickly gestured to the eunuchs and palace maids of the Western Zhou: “Withdraw! All of you, withdraw!”

The other palace members, seeing the Second Prince kneeling in public, turned pale with fear and trembled.

They didn’t want to hear it!

If it was some secret matter, all those present might lose their heads!

Now that Huang Pei had called out, the palace members retreated as if granted amnesty, standing far away.

At this moment, the Second Prince knocked his forehead on the ground, and solemnly said, “Father Emperor, today Consort Yu Zhao used Miss Xiuran as bait to lure me to the Yuhua Lake.”

“Your son knows that this act was improper, but out of concern for Miss Xiuran, he still went beyond propriety to attend the meeting, which is the first offense.”

“After seeing me, Consort Yu Zhao unexpectedly revealed inappropriate thoughts. Your son was too shocked and didn’t leave in time, so I was alone with the palace maid. This is the second offense.”

“Later, Consort Yu Zhao begged me to take her out of the palace. In order to understand her true intentions, I pretended to agree. She then spoke treasonous words, intending to harm you, Father Emperor, and my elder brother, the Crown Prince!”

“Your son reprimanded her on the spot, but considering her resemblance to Mother Consort, I felt pity. Seeing that she promised not to speak out of turn anymore, I decided not to pursue it further and helped her conceal it. This is the third offense!”

“However, just now, I stood in front of Mother Consort’s statue for a long time, and I realized that Mother Consort admired and worshipped you, Father Emperor, and would never want any harm to come to you.”

“And Mother Consort’s beauty is unparalleled in the world. I should not compare anyone to Mother Consort. This is a blasphemy against Mother Consort. If Mother Consort were aware of it in the afterlife, I don’t know how devastated she would be.”

“Therefore, your son decided to expose Consort Yu Zhao’s disloyalty and sincerely confesses the three offenses to Father Emperor, asking for severe punishment to repent for the guilt in my heart.”

“But I am willing to swear to the heavens that your son is innocent of any collusion with Consort Yu Zhao. Please investigate it, Father Emperor!”

As the Second Prince’s words fell, there was silence both inside and outside the Funing Palace.

The Empress sat upright behind the desk, her right hand grasping its surface, the fair skin of her hand showing prominent blue veins at this moment!

Just look!

Just look at how cunning this Second Prince is!

He took the initiative, every word and sentence was a plea for forgiveness, but in just a few words, he cleared himself completely, shifting all blame onto Consort Yu Zhao.

He even brought up the Concubine Yu, insinuating that His Majesty regarded Consort Yu Zhao as the Concubine Yu, which was a blasphemy against the Concubine Yu.

He also distorted the affection the Concubine Yu held for His Majesty, attempting to evoke guilt in His Majesty’s heart.

As for how the Concubine Yu truly felt about His Majesty, how could the Empress, as the Queen, not know?

For the Second Prince to extricate himself from this matter, he even used his own mother as a shield. Truly, he’s such a filial son!

At just thirteen years of age, to possess such intellect and reactions, it truly sends shivers down one’s spine!

The Empress’s expression was incredibly cold, she slowly turned her head to look at the Emperor Yong in the hall, only to see him looking dazed, as if he truly heard what was in his heart.

Seeing this, the Empress slowly curled her lips, but her smile was filled with mockery and scorn.

Men are truly despicable, and the Emperor is especially so!

She had nothing to fear or hold back now. The Second Prince’s words were eloquent, but upon closer examination, terms like “compassionate heart” and “admiration” don’t hold up!

A prince having private meetings with a palace consort, and the consort developing feelings for the prince in return, that itself violates ethics.

According to tradition, the palace consort must be executed, while the prince could face lifelong imprisonment or demotion to commoner status!

Thinking of this, the Empress slowly stood up.

In this palace, the Emperor Yong is the absolute master, and no one can interfere with his decisions, not even her, the Empress.

But she hoped the Emperor Yong would think carefully.

Because this is no longer just about handling the affair between the prince and the palace consort; it’s about him making a choice among his three sons!

If today, His Majesty would rather sacrifice her son for the Second Prince’s sake.

Then in the future, would he depose the Crown Prince from his position as heir apparent and hand over the Great Yong Dynasty to the Second Prince?

The Crown Prince stood quietly by the Empress’s side, from the moment the Emperor Yong appeared until now, he hadn’t uttered a word.

He too was waiting, waiting for the Emperor Yong to make a decision.

Consort Yu Zhao heard the Second Prince’s voice, her eyes couldn’t help but moisten slightly.

She could tell that the Second Prince shifted all blame onto her.

But she didn’t blame him.

Back then, she was deeply trapped in the world of sensuality, enduring humiliation and scorn, it was he who sent people to rescue her from there.

Even though she knew he had ulterior motives, that pure and clean youth truly brought joy to her heart at first sight, and she willingly served him.

If not for Sheng Xiuran’s appearance, she wouldn’t have dared to harbor any hope.

Because deep down, she felt that a youth as pure as the Second Prince had no woman in this world who could match him!

This incident started because of her, so now, let this worthless life of hers pave the way for him one last time!

Hopefully, he will remember her for a lifetime…

With that in mind, Consort Yu Zhao suddenly spoke up, her voice coquettish yet filled with sorrow.

“Second Prince, do you truly look down on me so much?”