Chapter 137: Careful Planning
The Crown Prince received a report from the palace servants and hurried over: "What happened to Grandfather?"
Tang Ying looked innocent and pretended that this matter had nothing to do with her: "Your Majesty must know the results of the interrogation of Zhang Wenhua and Xuan Zhen..."
I knew it but couldn't bear it. It's not my fault.
Gan Jun and eunuch Liu San can testify that she did not do it on purpose.
The imperial physician was busy giving acupuncture and had no time to answer the Crown Prince's questions.
The Emperor of Southern Qi was stripped down to his underwear, with needles sticking out of his head from head down. At first glance, he looked like a hedgehog with loose skin, completely lacking the dignity of an emperor.
Gan Jun reminded Tang Ying in his capacity as "master": "Why don't you stay away, Tang Zhangshi?"
You are an unmarried little girl, staring at a naked old man with your eyes wide open. Aren't you afraid of getting stye?
Unfortunately, the little girl didn't understand his good intentions and stayed in the bedroom, refusing to move: "Your Majesty is ill, how can I leave without any reason?"
Gan Jun: “…” You’re just like your bohemian master. I don’t know whose son you’ll cause trouble in the future.
The Crown Prince stayed there until the Southern Qi Emperor woke up again, and then he quickly leaned in and whispered, "Grandfather, are you feeling unwell?"
The Emperor of Southern Qi temporarily forgot what happened before he fainted, and his eyes were still confused: "Yi... Yier..." When he opened his mouth, he found that there was something wrong with his speech, his words were unclear, and half of his cheek seemed a little stiff. The previous events suddenly emerged in his mind, and his eyes gradually turned scarlet with anger.
The imperial physician was beside him and was so frightened that he hurriedly stopped him: "Your Majesty, calm down! Your Majesty, calm down! If your Majesty gets angry again, the symptoms will get worse. Your Majesty must stay calm and not get too emotional!"
The Crown Prince was also shocked: "Grandfather, please don't be angry. If there is anything, just let your grandson handle it!"
Gan Jun and Tang Ying also joined in the persuasion, and finally the Emperor of Southern Qi gradually calmed down.
Once he calmed down, it meant that he had accepted the fact that he was old. He was sad and desperate, but he still wanted to struggle to punish the Prince of Xiang and the eldest princess. He used all the skills he had practiced in the years of being an emperor to control his emotions, and finally expressed his demands word by word: "Call the Prince of Xiang to the capital, he is a rebellious son! I will sentence him to death! The Imperial Concubine will be banished to the cold palace!"
The Crown Prince Yuan Yi quickly advised him, "Grandfather, the decree to summon the Prince of Xiang to the capital has been sent out for many days. He may be on his way. As for the Imperial Noble Consort, it is not appropriate to banish her to the cold palace now, otherwise it will alert the enemy. The Prince of Xiang has plotted against Grandfather, so even I cannot forgive him. It is better to arrest him after he arrives in the capital."
The Emperor of Southern Qi was also overwhelmed by anger. After calming down a little, he realized that the Crown Prince's plan was the correct one.
His eyes swept over Tang Ying, and she immediately understood his intention and expressed her loyalty like a servile servant: "Your Majesty, you want me to assist His Royal Highness the Crown Prince in capturing the Prince of Xiang, right? I will do my best and obey His Royal Highness the Crown Prince's orders!"
The Emperor of Southern Qi finally breathed a sigh of relief.
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On May 28th of the 16th year of Jiazheng, spies reported that the Prince of Xiang and the Prince of Qing were only three to five days away from the capital, while the Prince of Liao had a longer journey and would need nearly half a month.
The Emperor of Southern Qi was worthy of being a man who had been an emperor for half his life. His willpower was unexpectedly strong. With the daily acupuncture, external compresses and internal medicines prescribed by the imperial physician, he was able to sit up again and even spoke much more clearly. Although half of his body was still not very flexible, at least he had no problem communicating in daily life.
Tang Ying would visit him in the palace every two or three days, and would often show off her image as a "loyal subject" in front of him. But in fact, she had ulterior motives and wanted to see how he was recovering. She thought: If you don't recover soon, how will you be able to withstand the next sadness and anger?
After she came out of the palace, she went back to the Imperial Cavalry Division and summoned her subordinates for a lecture. During this sensitive period, it was necessary for everyone under her to perform their duties and not slack off. Finally, she held a secret meeting.
Lei Xiao and Liu Chong of the Feng Division of the Forbidden Cavalry both follow her leader, while Chun Niang of the Huang Division has always been in charge of the inner prison, and Bao Yi under her command is handed over to Tang Ying for deployment. Wan Yuhongxiang of the An Division stays by her side and stays with her in the office, while the rest of the An Division personnel stay at houses around the city and obey deployment orders.
These people were the attendees of the secret meeting.
Tang Ying revealed the secret order of the Crown Prince to several people: "The King of Xiang sent Xuan Zhen to lure Your Majesty to swallow a large amount of elixirs. This matter has been reported to Your Majesty and the Crown Prince. The Crown Prince has ordered that the King of Xiang must be arrested when he enters the capital. You must be prepared. It will probably be in the next few days."
Zhang Wenhua and Xuan Zhen were tried in secret. Tang Ying brought Liu Zhong and Lei Xiao to do this. Not only did Chunniang and others in the inner prison not participate, but even Wanyu and Hongxiang who were beside her were blocked outside the imperial prison. When they heard about this, Baoyi and Wanyu looked solemn, but Hongxiang's heart was beating like a drum and her eyes went dark. She felt that the bright future she had been looking forward to was blocked by Tang Ying.
She calmed herself down and asked in a trembling voice, "Sir, is this true?"
Liu Zhong was the most impatient to deal with her, so his attitude was a little bad: "This matter is the result of our joint interrogation with the head of the department. It has been reported to Your Majesty. The criminal has signed and sealed the confession. Is it possible that it is false? You don't believe it, so are you interested in the King of Xiang?"
He was a rough man, and he started talking about love affairs between men and women. Unexpectedly, he hit the bull's eye with his arrow. Hongxiang was so shocked that she almost jumped up. She barely managed to maintain a smile: "Master Liu, you are joking."
After Tang Ying finished the deployment, everyone dispersed, leaving Baoyi alone to accompany Tang Ying.
She said, "Sir, don't you think Hongxiang's attitude is a little strange?"
Tang Ying: "What's so strange about that?"
"She seems to be interested in King Xiang..."
Tang Ying: "Prince Xiang is handsome and gentle, Hongxiang probably has some sympathy for him, it's nothing serious, you don't have to worry."
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At midnight, Hongxiang, wearing a black cloak, hurriedly knocked on the corner door of the Grand Princess's mansion.
Soon, a servant led her to see the Grand Princess.
She entered the Grand Princess's bedroom, fell to her knees with a plop, and said in panic, "Master, please save His Highness the Prince of Xiang! His Highness is in trouble!"
The eldest princess had already taken off her hairpins and jewelry, but when she heard that Hongxiang was coming, she put on her clothes and got up to meet her.
"Is the Prince of Xiang in trouble?" She and the Prince of Xiang did not have a falling out. On the contrary, they maintained a seemingly good and close relationship. Moreover, since the Prince of Xiang went to the fiefdom, she often received letters of safety from him in Xiang. The sincere filial piety in the letters really "touched" her.
Hong Xiang didn't care about the rift between the two masters. She wanted to help the King of Xiang with all her heart. She knelt down to the bedside of the eldest princess and raised her frightened face. She was extremely helpless. "Today, the headmaster called everyone to discuss. His Majesty has learned that His Majesty the King of Xiang sent Xuan Zhen to lure His Majesty to take an overdose of elixirs. The Crown Prince has ordered that His Majesty the King of Xiang be arrested when he comes to the capital to meet the emperor. Please, Master, save His Majesty the King of Xiang!"
Yuan Heng's hands trembled slightly in her sleeves. It was the trembling caused by the long wait and repression, and the excitement of revenge. But her face was full of worry: "Good boy, thanks to you, get up quickly. The King of Xiang is like my son, and I must save him. Don't worry, pay attention to the movements of the girl named Tang after you return to the Forbidden Cavalry Division."
Hongxiang has full faith in the Grand Princess's ability. As long as she takes action, what does it matter if he is the Crown Prince?
It is still uncertain who will win by then.
Yunniang personally sent Hongxiang out, and when she came back she was full of joy: "Master, the opportunity has finally come."
Yuan Heng couldn't sit still and paced back and forth in the hall. Suddenly she looked up and said, "Huan'er, mother has finally waited for this day. The heaven has eyes! The heaven has eyes!" Her eyes were wet, but they were tears of joy.
Yunniang: "Master, what should we do next?"
Yuan Heng smiled sinisterly: "My good brother has taken the throne very seriously since he ascended it. Since the throne is more important than family affection, let him watch a big show. What would he think if his most beloved grandson and the King of Xiang killed each other and blood splattered on the throne?"
Yunniang: "I guess... it must be very painful, right?"
Yuan Heng laughed: "It's time to let him taste the pain of fratricide, so that he will never understand my pain and force my Huan'er to leave the capital." She smiled, but tears rolled down her face: "If my Huan'er was in the capital, how could such a disaster happen to him?"
Yunniang cried with her: "Master, don't be sad. We will definitely not fail this time."
Yuan Heng perked up: "Come on, come on, hurry up and grind the ink. Since someone sent a letter, I have to make some painstaking plans for my good nephew."
