Mountains and rivers pray for peace

Chapter 14: Sword, Light, Sword and Shadow

The minister's wife behind her had already exploded in her heart, but she didn't dare to show her anger on her face, she just wanted to bury herself in the soil.

Who doesn't have any dirty things that can't be seen, let alone this royal family?It's just that they never thought that such a big scandal could be brought to light by a good Qiuju Banquet.

Now it was Eunuch Li's turn to be restless. He wiped the sweat from his forehead, bowed to the emperor and said, "Your Majesty, the person has been brought here. It's just people from Xiaozhu, not some eunuchs and maids..."

But he didn't continue talking.

Concubine Shu had already clearly seen the face of the person coming from behind. For a moment, her face looked a little ugly, her brows were furrowed, and she looked like she hated the iron.

Although the world is always more tolerant towards men, Yuan Shao is the successor of the entire Zhenyuan Hou Mansion, and he did such an absurd thing, which not only shamed the entire Hou Mansion, but also slapped her aunt in the face.

Huo Rushan, who was caught in the crowd, had already been stunned and never thought that his daughter would appear here.

The Qi family next to him couldn't believe it either, and murmured: "Master, is that Qing Lan?"

Huo Rushan was originally a cowardly person, and he couldn't bear anything.Glaring at Qi Shi, he covered her mouth so as not to make things worse.

In fact, Huo Rushan was overly worried. Although the Qi family was fierce, they only dared to show off their power in the inner house.She would never dare to be presumptuous under the Emperor's feet, so it would be good if her hands and feet would not become weak from fear.

Mrs. Liu next to her took a critical look at the kneeling woman, feeling a little disdainful in her heart: At first, she wanted to marry Miss Huo Er, although her family background was a bit low, but it would be okay if she was obedient.Unexpectedly, such a thing would happen today, it really is shameless.

Everyone looked at each other, and the atmosphere was a little awkward.

It was the queen who broke the deadlock first, and said softly: "Your Majesty, why don't you bring the two children up first, ask the whole story and the reason of the matter before making a judgment."

Hearing this, Eunuch Li stepped aside and several guards carried Yuan Shao to the emperor's feet. However, Huo Qinglan, with her hair in a messy bun and a robe wrapped around her, followed behind with her head lowered and not daring to speak.The two of them exuded an intriguing smell that made people frown.

Before the emperor could speak, Concubine Shu took the initiative and pointed at the kneeling Huo Qinglan: "You are so brave, you actually seduced the Prince of Zhenyuan in full view of the public. What crime should you deserve?"

Huo Qinglan's stiff body instantly trembled like sifting chaff, and she burst into tears: "Your Majesty, empress, my servant is Ning Guogong's niece, an innocent family, how could she do such a shameless thing to seduce the prince! Your Majesty, I hope you will see clearly!"

Concubine Shu was so angry that she choked. She originally wanted to pin all the charges on Huo Qinglan, but she didn't expect that this person was also difficult to deal with and dared to push Ning Guogong's mansion out as security.

She laughed back in anger, staring at Huo Qinglan with her beautiful eyes and said, "You mean that Prince Zhenyuan Hou seduced you instead?"

Princess De'an next to her was already flushed with anger. Seeing what her mother and concubine said, she hurriedly chimed in: "You act like a woman in the dust, and you dare to move out of Ningguo's mansion to shirk and deny. Is it a small door? Those who come out of the house really don’t want face!"

De'an has always regarded Huo Qi as a serious problem in his confidant, and he has calculated everything, but he doesn't want to be taken advantage of by Huo Qinglan in the end, and he longs to strangle the woman in front of him to death.

At this time, he hurriedly moved Ningguo's mansion out, but he forgot how he gave humiliation to Huo Qi at the banquet just now.

Before Huo Qinglan could argue, the silent emperor turned his head to look at Huo Ruhai, and said, "Ai Qing, what do you think of this matter?"

Huo Ruhai couldn't help frowning, momentarily uncertain about the emperor's attitude.After all, this matter can be big or small, it all depends on how the Holy Majesty decides.

He stood out from the crowd and said: "Your Majesty, I also watched Qing Lan grow up. He is very well-behaved on weekdays. I'm afraid there is some misunderstanding about today's matter. Why don't you ask Zhenyuan Hou Shizi?"

Everyone's attention shifted to Yuan Shao.

Yuan Shao's face was still flushed abnormally at this moment, his eyes were confused, and he seemed to have not yet fully woken up, and his mouth was full of gibberish.

Seeing this, Eunuch Li bowed and said, "Your Majesty, the prince seems to have drunk too much and has not yet fully recovered. According to this old slave, why don't you wait for the prince to wake up, and then investigate carefully?"

Concubine Shu next to her quickly helped: "Your Majesty, I think Eunuch Li's words are quite reasonable. The prince has not yet awakened, and I am afraid that the second lady's words alone may not be enough to convince everyone."

Concubine Shu's implication is not difficult to hear, it is nothing more than feeling that Huo Qinglan is flattering and coquettish, climbing the dragon and the phoenix.It was an attitude of denial to expose the matter only after the turmoil subsided.

Huo Qinglan is not stupid. She knows it well. She has long nights and many dreams, and she has no bargaining power in her hand.

If she didn't get a guarantee in front of Emperor Xiaowen today, her marriage to Yuan Shao would probably be short-changed.But if she can't marry Yuan Shao, and today's incident has caused such a big fuss, how can any official disciple marry her in the future?

Thinking of this, she also took out some acting skills, and kowtowed three times to Emperor Xiaowen, tears rolling down: "Your Majesty, why should I suffer such humiliation because of my innocence? Today's incident is all caused by my ministers." For the daughter's fault, the minister can only apologize with death and prove her innocence!"

After saying that, Huo Qinglan straightened up, stumbled towards the pillar of the pavilion, and made a look like she was about to hit the pillar and die.

Eunuch Li had sharp eyes, and he caught Huo Qinglan in two or three strokes, stopping the woman from moving.At this moment, Huo Qinglan was kneeling on the ground, tottering, her originally beautiful face had no trace of blood, and she was about to faint at any moment.

The queen has always been soft-hearted. Seeing Huo Qinglan's appearance, she couldn't bear it, and pleaded with Emperor Xiaowen: "Your Majesty, I don't think the second young lady of the Huo family is that cunning. What's more, if this matter The son is not happy, so how can the Second Miss of the Huo family force her?"

Perhaps it was the Queen's words that gave Qi a bit of courage. She squeezed out from the crowd, knelt down with a plop, and said with tears in her eyes: "Your Majesty, I have watched Qinglan grow up, and she would never dare. She did something to deceive the emperor. Although Qing Lan is too high up in the family to reach the throne, she will not be humiliated so much."

For a while, the mother and daughter cried together, which was moving.

Seeing this scene, some soft-hearted ministers behind couldn't help but said: "Second Miss Huo also suffered a crime today, and she should be given justice."

These words slipped into Concubine Shu's ears, making her extremely unhappy.

She was a little dissatisfied, and said indiscriminately: "It turns out that Mrs. Huo also has a bit of self-knowledge, knowing that her family status is not high. If it is Miss Huo today, I will not say anything. But this Miss Huo , to even want to cling to Zhenyuanhou's Mansion, it's too overwhelming..."

Before she could finish speaking, Emperor Xiaowen glanced at her lightly.

Concubine Shu has been with Emperor Xiaowen for more than 20 years. Although she acts arrogantly on weekdays, she has always carefully controlled it within the range that the emperor can bear.The look in Emperor Xiaowen's eyes just now reminded her that she was suspected of overstepping.

She secretly thought it was bad, so she could only say angrily: "I made a mistake."

He does not mean that.

Concubine Shu's words were like a pebble thrown into a calm lake, causing thousands of ripples, and everyone below was alarmed.

Listening to Concubine Shu's words, the princess in the Yuan family's favor is actually the daughter of Duke Ning Guo?

The Yuan and Huo families are both the emperor's ministers, with a great reputation and a deep foundation.If they can get married, it will not only help Zhenyuanhou Shizi, but also the fifth prince will be even more powerful. Wouldn't it be a step closer to the throne?
Could it be that His Majesty's favorite candidate is really the Fifth Prince?

But now, Zhenyuan Hou Shizi shared the same couch with the second young lady again, this relationship is really confusing, and people can't understand it.

Suddenly, Princess De'an's sharp voice interrupted everyone's thoughts.

"Where did Huo Qi go?"

At such a juncture, it is unusual for anyone to suddenly disappear out of thin air.What's more, what happened tonight is weird, and any disturbance will bring people an indelible suspicion.

Emperor Xiaowen seemed to be reminded. He glanced around with sharp eyes and asked, "Where is the eldest lady of the Huo family?"

Ting Yu, who had been huddled at the end of the crowd, had long been stunned by the series of events ahead.

She thought of the last time she went to Yixiangyuan to buy love silk, and vaguely felt that this matter had something to do with her girl, but she didn't know the connection.It's like catching a glimpse of the tip of the iceberg, but not knowing what storm lurks beneath the iceberg.

At this time, she suddenly heard Emperor Xiaowen's call. She gathered herself together, walked quickly to Emperor Xiaowen, knelt down and saluted: "Your Majesty, this servant is Miss Huo's maidservant. Before burning incense, Miss said she was a little drunk and wanted to go Take a breath, and you should be back soon."

"Get some air?" Emperor Xiaowen was silent for a moment and asked word by word.

Facing Emperor Xiaowen's questioning, Tingyu felt a little guilty.

At the feet of the Emperor, even though she had seen a lot of the world with her own girl, she could not help but feel panicked.

Just when she wanted to say something, a pleasant female voice came from not far away on the other side of the pavilion:

"Your Majesty makes atonement. My daughter is late."

(End of this chapter)