What Bad Intentions can the Yandere Crown Prince have?-Chapter 324 - 320: The Crown Prince Asked Me to Relay a Message
"Recently, the Prime Minister was assassinated, and His Majesty has ordered the Zuo Jinwu to assist the Three Ministries in capturing the murderer—"
"Is there any evidence?" Tang Xiaobai’s face looked a bit grim.
"There is always evidence." Gu Wei said.
Tao Fen’s arrest was very sudden.
A group of students from the academy had just left the Duke Yan Mansion and were planning to stroll through the East Market.
As soon as they reached the entrance of the East Market, they were taken away by a squad of the Imperial Guard, without even giving a reason.
Of course, Tang Xiaobai could not ignore Tao Fen, so she immediately sent someone to find her third cousin Gu Wei, who was serving in the Imperial Guard.
The news that Gu Wei brought was similar to what she had guessed.
This incident, although sudden, had traces if one thought carefully.
Pursuing Wang Maozhao’s death was a good opportunity to eliminate dissidents.
The Emperor was going to take action against Huntian Academy.
"Brother Tao is a student at Huntian Academy. Mr. Lin will definitely try to rescue him. It’s just that being detained for a few days, he might suffer a bit. I hope third cousin can take care of him," Tang Xiaobai said.
Gu Wei was about to nod when someone outside suddenly spoke up: "We shouldn’t get involved in this!"
It was Tang Ziqian.
He seemed to have just returned from outside and hadn’t changed out of his official attire.
His steps were hurried, and his expression was stern.
Tang Xiaobai explained, "I don’t mean to interfere; I’m just worried Brother Tao might suffer in prison."
Tang Ziqian responded coldly, "What’s a little suffering for a man?" Then he said to Gu Wei, "At this critical moment, neither our Tang Family nor the Gu Family should associate with Huntian Academy. The Eastern Palace will protect Tao Fen, so we must not interfere."
Tang Xiaobai felt a bit puzzled hearing the two "should not"
After Gu Wei left, Tang Ziqian was about to leave too, but was stopped by Tang Xiaobai.
"Brother, tell me honestly, does Wang Maozhao’s death have anything to do with us?" Tang Xiaobai asked in a low voice.
She had been wondering who killed Wang Maozhao.
The timing of Wang Maozhao’s death easily reminded people of the real and fake Crown Prince incident.
So, she had been suspecting that it was the Emperor or Prince Jin or someone who didn’t want Wang Maozhao to testify to the Crown Prince’s identity.
Until now, she suddenly thought of another possibility.
While asking, Tang Xiaobai stared at Tang Ziqian’s expression without blinking.
Tang Ziqian smiled lightly, "It has nothing to do with us—"
Tang Xiaobai was just about to relax when she heard his next half-sentence: "It’s only related to me."
This half-sentence, he said so softly, with such indifferent eyes, that there was no hatred visible or audible.
But Tang Xiaobai immediately recalled that night when clothes were stained with blood.
"I said before, I would seek revenge for her while I’m clear-headed," he quietly looked at her, "Our Tang Family never speaks empty words."
Tang Xiaobai suddenly choked, opened her mouth, then nodded and closed it again.
Tang Ziqian added, "The matter with Tao Fen targets Huntian Academy; the Eastern Palace will handle it. We at the Duke Yan Mansion and the Gu Family should not interfere to avoid getting ourselves burned."
After speaking, he looked steadily at Tang Xiaobai, waiting for her reply.
Tang Xiaobai pursed her lips and nodded softly, "I understand."
Tao Fen was falsely accused of assassinating Wang Maozhao, but the real murderer was at the Duke Yan Mansion.
Therefore, they indeed should not interfere, lest they inadvertently drag Tang Ziqian into it.
Yet, Tang Xiaobai still worried about Tao Fen.
The Emperor used Wang Maozhao’s death as an opportunity to make several subtle moves.
He held some people accountable and promoted others.
For example, the one tasked with assisting in capturing the murderer was the Zuo Jinwu, not Gu Wei’s division of the Right Jinwu.
These were all intentional nuances.
Tang Xiaobai felt uneasy at the thought of Tao Fen falling into the hands of the Zuo Jinwu. Her mind was elsewhere while walking until two shouts brought her back to reality.
Following the voice, she saw a not very noticeable figure among the treetops not far away.
Tang Xiaobai lifted her skirt and ran over, looking up to ask, "Why have you come? Did the Crown Prince send you? Is there any matter?"
A head popped out from between the branches and leaves, smiling brightly, it was Mo Huan.
"Second Miss, your foot injury healed? You run quite swiftly now!" he said with a laugh.
Tang Xiaobai pursed her lips and smiled, "It was just a sprain, and it’s been days, it’s naturally better now—what did the Crown Prince send you here for?"
Mo Huan grinned, "Oh, nothing much. His Highness just asked me to convey a message: regarding Master Tao’s matter, they’ve already had him taken out of prison. There will be an inquiry later, and His Highness will also arrange someone to oversee it, so you needn’t worry."
Tang Xiaobai opened her mouth, momentarily at a loss for words.
"Is there anything Second Miss wants me to convey to His Highness?" Mo Huan asked considerately.
Tang Xiaobai’s face reddened slightly as she asked, "How... how has His Highness been lately?"
"Apart from being busy, nothing else has been amiss," Mo Huan replied.
"Very busy?" Tang Xiaobai felt she was asking a silly question.
The young master had just taken charge of the Eastern Palace, of course, he would be very busy.
But she just wanted to know more specifically.
"Yes, very busy. He has to attend numerous rituals before dawn every day, then visit the Empress Dowager, meet lots of important and unimportant officials. The rest of the time, he stands before the Emperor for hours, and in the evening, he still needs to handle many documents,"
Tang Xiaobai felt a pang of distress: "What time does he rest at night? Is he well taken care of with food and clothing?"
Seeing her anxiety, Mo Huan smiled and comforted her, "His provisions are managed by reliable palace attendants. There’s absolutely no opportunity for mischief like there once was in the former Crown Prince Mansion—"
"Mischief?" Tang Xiaobai astutely caught the keyword, "What mischief? What happened at the former Crown Prince Mansion?"
Mo Huan was a little surprised: "Second Miss doesn’t know?" He looked around cautiously.
Tang Xiaobai hurriedly ordered the servants farther away.
Only then did Mo Huan come down from the tree.
He hadn’t even begun to speak when Tang Xiaobai urgently asked, "Could it be true that the Crown Prince was weak and sick before? Was someone secretly harming him?"
Since learning the young master was the Crown Prince, she assumed the former rumors of the Crown Prince’s frailty were smoke and mirrors, since the young master was in great health.
"Initially, it was true. When the two of us brothers first arrived at His Highness’s side, he was indeed bedridden with illness. Later, Duke Yan, your father, brought Doctor Feng, who detoxified His Highness—"
"Poison!" Tang Xiaobai cried out in shock.
"When Second Miss first saw our His Highness, the poison hadn’t even been completely cleared! It was only clear in April of the twelfth year of Taixing," Mo Huan explained thoroughly.
His Highness was indeed a tad too young, not even informing the Second Miss of such an important matter.
Look at how distressed the Second Miss is, her eyes are already red!
The young lady sniffed, spoke in a muffled voice, "Is he going to worship at the Confucius Temple tomorrow?"
"Yes!" Mo Huan replied quickly, "He even fasted today! Tomorrow, at the hour of the rabbit he will leave the Palace and should arrive at the Imperial College at about a quarter past the hour of the rabbit!" He gave Tang Xiaobai a wink.
Tang Xiaobai blushed: "I was just asking casually..."
"Understood, understood!" Mo Huan nodded with a chuckle.
Tang Xiaobai blushed even more.
She really was just asking casually, why did he have to be so clear, making it seem like she must attend...
(Happy 2022~)
