good season

Chapter 166 Confinement (Two chapters combined)

Two days later, a waiter at an inn in Tong'an City recognized one of the portraits as a guest who had stayed there before. However, when the waiter saw Eunuch Jin in person, he kept shaking his head: "No, no, although he looks a bit like him, that man has a straight back and walks with his head held high."

Jin Gonggong had been a eunuch for decades, and hunching over had become a habit. Not only him, but all the eunuchs in the palace walked with their chests hunched and backs bent, always ready to bow in greeting.

In the imperial court, when Emperor Yongjia inquired about this matter, the Third Prince replied calmly, "Although Eunuch Jin has served by my side for many years, if he harbors malicious intentions and violates the law, I will certainly not protect him. The Ministry of Justice has always been fair in its investigations, and if my cooperation is needed, I will not shirk my duty."

I won't defend myself, won't cry foul, and won't prove my innocence. You can investigate if you want.

Emperor Yongjia was very pleased with these words, as the Third Prince was his favorite son.

The pressure was put on the Ministry of Justice, and the Ministry of Justice naturally put pressure on Yan Xia. Even though he wasn't receiving a salary from the Ministry of Justice, since he was the one investigating the case, he had to find out the results in the shortest possible time.

Yang Shengqiu had already persuaded the two old eunuchs. They had been castrated and entered the palace in the same batch as Eunuch Jin, but they were not very lucky. They had been working at the bottom for decades and had never had the chance to serve the nobles.

Meanwhile, Eunuch Jin had a smooth career in the palace. He first served Consort Qiao, and later followed the Third Prince to establish his own residence. He also had more than a dozen adopted sons and grandsons. It is said that as early as ten years ago, he had acquired a estate of several hundred acres, so that he would have a place to live out his retirement in peace.

Although they entered the palace at the same time, these two old eunuchs are not even qualified to serve tea and water to Eunuch Jin. Suddenly, someone came to them and, after just a few words, they were granted a small courtyard. Such a good thing is something they could never dream of.

The two readily agreed, and sure enough, the Ministry of Justice investigated them. After all, although there were more than a dozen eunuchs who entered the palace in the same batch, only three of them, including Eunuch Jin, have survived to this day.

They both remembered that back then, Xiao Jinzi always talked about having a brother who had been sold when he was young, and that the brother looked almost identical to him, so that he could recognize him at a glance if they met again in the future.

Two days later, the Ministry of Justice determined that Eunuch Jin had never been to Tong'an County, and he was released that afternoon.

Although the truth of the case has not yet been found, Eunuch Jin has been cleared of suspicion. Regardless of who the mastermind is, he has nothing to do with the Third Prince's residence.

In a room somewhere in the capital, even during the day, heavy curtains were drawn. Upon learning that Eunuch Jin had been released, the Fourth Prince smashed all the porcelain within his reach on the ground. Amidst the clattering sounds, the Third Prince slumped onto the daybed in despair.

He had been planning this for months, thinking that he could at least bring down either the Crown Prince or the Third Prince. Even if he couldn't bring them down, he could at least make his father despise him. Unfortunately, the Ministry of Justice didn't even investigate the Crown Prince, and the Third Prince's residence only arrested an old eunuch and released him after a few days. It was a light and insignificant matter!

The Fourth Prince was trembling with anger. Wasn't Yan Xia supposed to be skilled in criminal law? Why hadn't they found out that the Third Prince had framed the Crown Prince?

Even a fool could see it, so why couldn't Yan Xia see it? And those censors of the Censorate, don't they usually love to stir up trouble and meddle in other people's business? Now that such a big case has occurred, why haven't they submitted a memorial impeaching the Crown Prince and the Third Prince?

They're all a bunch of sycophants!
Petty people, they're all petty people!

Not a single one of them is good!

The eldest son was the crown prince, so they had to curry favor with him; the third son was favored, so they also had to curry favor with him; but he, the fourth prince, had long been forgotten.

He was only eighteen years old, and his wonderful life had just begun. He was born with a silver spoon in his mouth, and he was once dashing and spirited.

But now, although he has thrown away his crutches, he is now disabled. He asked the eunuch to pull hard, but his two legs are still different lengths. He has put a thick layer of padding in his shoes, but he still walks with a limp. During the palace banquet, almost everyone is looking at his legs. Although no one said anything, he knows that they are all laughing at him, laughing at him for being a cripple.

He could have had a completely different life!
He was clearly the one chosen by his father. He did what his father asked him to do. Xiao Zhen was already dead, but he still survived by the skin of his teeth and was left with a disability.

How could he possibly be content with that?
Upon hearing this, the fourth prince burst into tears, like a child abandoned by his parents!
That evening, two eunuchs died in the Fourth Prince's residence; one fell into the water, and the other fell down the stone steps.

Liu Meimei and the waiter finally recanted their testimonies. Someone had shown them a portrait and asked them to identify the person in the portrait. Based on their testimonies, Yan Xia redrawn a portrait and eventually discovered that the person had been a eunuch in the Fourth Prince's residence.

A few months ago, the Fourth Prince's residence released a group of people. Among them were the elderly and the sick. This eunuch was one of the sick. Being sick meant he couldn't stay in the residence, lest he pass on his illness to the nobleman.

Not long after leaving the palace, the eunuch fell ill and died.

Yan Xia found the man's grave, dug up the body, and after the coroner examined the body, it was determined that the man had died by poisoning, and the time frame was no more than one month.

Now that the case has been investigated to this point, anyone with eyes to see knows what really happened.

Since the matter concerned the prince, Yan Xia could not make a decision and reported the case to Emperor Yongjia again.

Emperor Yongjia remained silent for a long time, then waved his hand, dismissing Yan Xia. As Yan Xia reached the door, he heard a breaking sound coming from inside. He raised an eyebrow slightly, thinking, "The emperor's stupid son."

That evening, the fourth prince was summoned to the palace. As he watched the prince limp towards him and then kneel down with difficulty, Emperor Yongjia closed his eyes. If it weren't for this incident, he would have forgotten that he had a lame son.

"You filthy creature, worse than a pig or a dog, who gave you the audacity to frame your own brother?"

The fourth prince knelt on the ground, crying uncontrollably. His crying made Emperor Yongjia even more irritable. He walked out from behind his desk and kicked the fourth prince!
The Yong Dynasty was founded on military strength, and all the princes learned martial arts when they were young. Although Emperor Yongjia was over forty years old, he was in good health. However, the fourth prince had not fully recovered after being seriously injured. Although he was young, his physical condition was far inferior to that of Emperor Yongjia.

When Emperor Yongjia kicked out, the fourth prince's broken body flew up like a kite with a broken string and crashed heavily to the ground. The eunuchs standing by were shocked, but none of them dared to come forward to help him up.

The fourth prince had bumped his forehead on something, and was bleeding profusely.

Gazing at the gushing blood, Emperor Yongjia's face was ashen: "I'm asking you, tell me, why did you frame your brother?"

The fourth prince weakly raised his head and looked up at his father: "Father, you have finally remembered your son. I did all this just to see you one last time. If you can remember your son, I can die in peace..."

Emperor Yongjia was taken aback. He never expected that the Fourth Prince would have such a reason. Thinking about it, it made sense. Among my sons, in terms of talent, the Fourth Prince was far inferior to the Third and Fifth Princes, but he was the most obedient. No matter what I asked him to do, as long as it was my order, the Fourth Prince would do it even at the cost of his life. Just like the incident at Shiji Mountain last time, although I did not give any orders, with a little guidance, the Fourth Prince did it. Xiao Zhen was long dead, but unfortunately, the Fourth Prince was not capable enough and almost lost his life.

Thinking of all this, Emperor Yongjia's cold and hard heart finally softened, and he ordered, "Summon the imperial physician."

The eunuchs, observing the emperor's expression, knew that the emperor had not completely abandoned the fourth prince, and dared not delay, so they rushed to fetch the imperial physician.

Listening to the receding, disordered footsteps, the Fourth Prince silently breathed a sigh of relief. He knew he wouldn't die this time. As long as he lived, he still had hope. He dared not covet that chair, but he also didn't want the eldest and third princes to sit on it. They were all sons of the emperor, so why were they the jade vase while he was just a rough porcelain bowl?

He's not having an easy time either, and he'll definitely make those two bastards suffer.

The fourth prince's fainting was not an act; he was physically weak and had lost a lot of blood, so he could no longer hold on.

The news quickly reached Zhao Shiqing's ears through Sister Ping's mouth, and she was immediately stunned.

The emperor also had a fourth prince?

Yes, since there are a third and fifth princes, there must be a fourth prince in between, someone even the emperor can barely remember, let alone Zhao Shiqing who only came to the capital last year.

However, he soon found out what was going on with this fourth prince.

Xiao Zhen: "I survived by the skin of my teeth, all thanks to him. And I can still stand here perfectly fine, while he is already crippled."

Zhao Shiqing's lips twitched: "This fourth prince is not only crippled, but also not very bright. This case is full of loopholes. For example, I could tell at a glance that the two constables in charge of digging the pit were suspicious."

Xiao Zhen: "I also overlooked the Fourth Prince. He is quite talented to think of this method to make the Crown Prince and the Third Prince fight each other. I underestimated him."

……

In the Fourth Prince's residence, the Fourth Prince woke up already in his own bed. He stared blankly at Cheng Chen above his head.

At this moment, a eunuch entered: "Fourth Master, when Eunuch Liu escorted you back, he read out the Emperor's edict, punishing you by confining you to your quarters for a year."

The fourth prince hummed in agreement, a surge of joy welling up within him.

He framed the Crown Prince and pinned the blame on the Third Prince. This was a heinous crime that could have resulted in the confiscation of his property and the extermination of his entire family. Yet, the Emperor only punished him with a year of confinement. What does this show? It shows that the Emperor felt guilty!

The fourth prince reached up and touched his forehead, gasping in pain, but then felt an overwhelming sense of relief.

It's easy to imagine that the eldest and third brothers must be furious by now.

You all looked down on me, calling me a cripple, but now you know, this cripple of mine almost played you to death!
The fourth prince grew increasingly pleased with himself. His father should be able to see from this incident that he was the most outstanding among all the princes. He was brave, resourceful, exceptionally intelligent, and possessed extraordinary talent.

The fourth prince looked around. All he could see were bed curtains, cabinets, and small tables, but he seemed to see the nation and the world in his mind. He was a prince, no, he was the most outstanding prince.

Who says a cripple can't fight for the throne? Once all his brothers are dead, the dragon throne will be his, and it can only be his!
At this moment, the Fourth Prince was full of ambition. Even though his head was still throbbing, he struggled to get up and said, "Someone, help me go outside for a walk."

Starting today, he will continue to practice walking. What does it matter if one leg is longer than the other?

He firmly believed that as long as he persisted in practicing, he would be able to walk with a steady and firm gait, just like everyone else.

……

When news of the Fourth Prince's confinement reached the Eastern Palace, the Crown Prince was furious. He grabbed a concubine's hand and bit down hard. The taste of blood instantly filled his mouth, and the pent-up anger in his heart finally dissipated somewhat.

The Crown Prince released his concubine's hand, which was already covered in blood. Another concubine immediately brought him a bowl of water. The Crown Prince rinsed his mouth, spitting the blood-stained water into the bowl. Only then did he remember the concubine he had just bitten. Meeting her tearful eyes, his heart softened, and a doting smile appeared on his face: "Someone, bring me that set of jewelry that the Silverworks just delivered the other day..."

An hour later, after comforting the injured beauty, the Crown Prince got out of bed to change his clothes. His trusted eunuch came in from outside and said, "Your Highness, I have investigated thoroughly. It was all thanks to Scholar Yang that Eunuch Jin was able to be released from the Ministry of Justice. After the incident that day, Scholar Yang went to the Feng residence. An hour later, he left the Feng residence and secretly went to the Third Prince's residence. In addition, a few days ago, his attendant bought a small courtyard house in the city. The house has been empty ever since it was bought, and no one has lived there."

As the Crown Prince changed his clothes, he sneered, "This Yang Shengqiu is truly ungrateful. I wanted to recruit him, but he didn't know what was good for him and secretly sided with that old dog Feng Ke."

The confidant said, "Before coming to the capital, Yang Shengqiu was a tutor in Lang Jing's household. Lang Jing's father-in-law and Feng Ke were old friends. Yang Shengqiu probably already considered himself one of Feng Ke's men."

The Crown Prince sneered, "He's just a newly arrived scholar. I'd like to see what kind of trouble you can stir up."

At the same time, the Third Prince also heard the news. He was stunned for a moment: "Is the information you found out wrong? The Fourth Prince did such a thing, and Father Emperor only punished him by confining him to his quarters?"

After confirming with his subordinates several times, the Third Prince could no longer contain his anger and slammed his fist on the table.

"Hand over the token, I want to go to the palace tomorrow!"

He certainly wasn't going to argue with his father; he was going to see Consort Qiao. If there was anyone in the world who could understand his father's thoughts, it would definitely be his birth mother, Consort Qiao.

"By the way, are there any rare items in the new batch of goods that Young Master Zhen just received? Pick a few and send them to Mother tomorrow."

(End of this chapter)