binnovel Chapter 380 The Prince's Mystery: The Cannon Fodder Bride Forced into a Substitute Marquis'
Chapter 380 The Prince's Mystery: The Cannon Fodder Bride Forced into a Substitute Marquis'
But just as Emperor Xinghe was about to ask Xia Yuzhong about the details of his meeting with Shen Huaizhi, he noticed that Xia Yuzhong seemed hesitant to speak.
Emperor Xinghe frowned. What's wrong with Xia Yuzhong?
"Yuzhong, is there anything else you haven't said?"
Upon hearing Emperor Xinghe's question, Xia Yuzhong immediately knelt down, his head touching the ground.
"Your Majesty, this servant has some treasonous suspicions, but I cannot rest easy without informing Your Majesty. I beg Your Majesty to forgive this servant's treasonous crime!"
Emperor Xinghe waved his hand: "Get up. Speak your mind. I will forgive you."
"Yes, Your Majesty," Xia Yuzhong carefully got up, observing Emperor Xinghe's expression closely. Seeing that he was unaffected, he cautiously and tactfully spoke.
"When this servant arrived at Young Master Shen's estate, Young Master Qin Guannan of the Qin family was already there."
This servant met with Young Master Qin Guannan, and then with Young Master Shen Huaizhi, and then discovered that...
It was discovered that Young Master Shen and Young Master Qin Guannan share a striking resemblance, with about 70% similarity.
After Xia Yuzhong finished speaking, he didn't dare to look up, and the palace was quiet for a moment.
After hearing this, Emperor Xinghe was momentarily bewildered. What did it mean that Qin Guannan and Shen Huaizhi were seven parts alike?
When Emperor Xinghe finally understood the meaning behind Xia Yuzhong's words, he choked up and his breathing became heavy.
Then, Emperor Xinghe grew increasingly angry, and unable to control his temper, he suddenly stood up and kicked over the shelf next to him.
The entire palace was silent with fear; no one dared to provoke the emperor's wrath.
Emperor Xinghe was still upset. He paced back and forth in his palace several times before he seemed to finally calm down.
He sat down again and said to Xia Yuzhong, "Get up. Go to the Censorate immediately and investigate the cause and effect of Consort Xian and Consort De giving birth to their child 18 years ago. Allow them to act as they see fit. I want them to find out the results as quickly as possible!"
Emperor Xinghe spoke calmly, but Xia Yuzhong sensed from his words the impending bloodshed in the imperial court and harem.
"Yes, Your Majesty, this servant will take care of it immediately." Xia Yuzhong kowtowed once, then stood up and quietly withdrew.
The efficiency of the Censorate was extremely fast; in just three days, the investigation results were presented to Emperor Xinghe.
Emperor Xinghe opened the memorial with a serious expression. He hoped that things were not as bad as he had imagined, but in the end, things did not go as planned.
Consort Xian, Qin Lanxi, and Consort De, Song Zhihua, were both summoned to the palace by imperial decree after Emperor Xinghe ascended the throne.
Song Zhihua was framed by Emperor Xinghe, but the Song family held military power, and Emperor Xinghe did not want Song Zhihua to become too powerful in the palace. Therefore, Consort Qin Lanxi was brought into the palace.
However, because the Empress was not favored by Emperor Xinghe, and Song Zhihua was someone Emperor Xinghe had schemed against, Emperor Xinghe preferred to go to Consort Xian's place the most.
Relying on her family background, Song Zhihua disregarded the Empress and acted arrogantly and domineeringly in the palace, always trying to monopolize Emperor Xinghe. However, Emperor Xinghe genuinely disliked Song Zhihua's personality. Although he didn't completely ignore her, he still punished her severely.
When Song Zhihua and Consort Qin Lanxi were diagnosed with pregnancy, Emperor Xinghe breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that Song Zhihua could finally stop.
Throughout her pregnancy, Song Zhihua didn't cause any trouble, but who knew that she would have such a big problem at the end!
Song Zhihua and Consort Qin Lanxi gave birth on the day they attended a palace banquet, which was not yet the day they were supposed to give birth.
But just as the palace banquet was about to end, the two of them made their move!
Left with no other choice, and with the birth imminent, the two had to find a nearby palace to serve as a temporary birthing place.
It must have been around that time that Song Zhihua switched the two children.
Moreover, Song Zhihua must have tampered with things at the banquet, causing both of them to start their relationship prematurely.
Although Song Zhihua had faked his death by self-immolation and disappeared from the palace.
However, there were still a few maids and nannies from the palace where Song Zhihua had been. The Shenxing Division found these people and interrogated them one by one, and that's how they learned the secret that had been kept hidden from the past.
There were also spies planted by Song Zhihua around Consort Xian. Over the years, they had even risen to the position of head maid in Consort Xian's entourage. The Censorate arrested these people without hesitation. After interrogation, they learned about many of the palace's spies, and the Censorate arrested them all as well.
Suddenly, a tense atmosphere filled the palace, and the court fell silent.
But what outsiders knew was that the Third Prince had been attacked, Emperor Xinghe was furious, and then arrested and interrogated people in the palace.
Everyone was speculating whether there was some shady dealing behind the attack on the Third Prince, and they all guessed it was related to the power struggle among the princes. They were also busy clearing themselves of any involvement and didn't think about anything else.
Emperor Xinghe looked at the investigation results. The Censorate had confirmed that the Third Prince Tang Ruiqian and Shen Huaizhi had indeed been switched, and that Song Zhihua had orchestrated the whole thing.
The reason Song Zhihua switched the two princes was that Emperor Xinghe loved Consort Xian, Qin Lanxi, more than Song Zhihua. Song Zhihua hated her out of love and wanted to switch their children to cause pain to Consort Xian and Emperor Xinghe, and also to torment Consort Xian's child.
At that time, the Song family's plot to rebel had not yet been exposed, so Emperor Xinghe naturally did not expect that Song Zhihua would be so bold as to do such a thing simply because the emperor did not like her.
Sure enough, there was a reason why Emperor Xinghe disliked Song Zhihua: the entire Song family were lunatics!
The investigation results made Emperor Xinghe's blood boil. He remained silent for a long time before suddenly spitting out a mouthful of blood.
Xia Yuzhong was shocked and quickly sent someone to fetch the imperial physician. His Majesty must not be harmed!
The next day, as expected, Emperor Xinghe dismissed the court.
The court officials had gotten used to it. Starting this year, Emperor Xinghe was frequently ill and would often have to cancel court sessions.
The ministers were also worried about Emperor Xinghe's health. Some of them secretly submitted a memorial mentioning the establishment of a crown prince, but after the memorial was submitted, there was no follow-up.
Even high-ranking ministers haven't chosen sides, and lower-ranking officials don't dare to step forward.
This time, Emperor Xinghe's decision to suspend court proceedings is likely related to the attack on his third son, Tang Ruiqian.
Several princes have already taken charge of their respective departments, and the conflicts between them are becoming increasingly intense. The attack on the third prince was a sign of this.
A curious courtier approached Grand Secretary Qin Wenzhong: "Grand Secretary Qin, I heard that the Third Prince was attacked in the suburbs. Do you know the details?"
Qin Wenzhong waved his hand: "His Majesty will investigate thoroughly regarding the safety of the Third Prince. We will simply await the results."
After saying this, Qin Wenzhong strode away from the palace without waiting for anyone else's reply.
As they boarded the carriage to return to the mansion, Grand Secretary Qin's expression was solemn. Qin Guannan had already explained to Grand Secretary Qin the cause and effect of the attack on the Third Prince Tang Ruiqian, and even mentioned the resemblance between Shen Huaizhi and Qin Guannan.
Although Qin Guannan had already handed over the three thieves who harmed the Third Prince to the palace by the time Xia Yuzhong and his men arrived at the manor, the three thieves had already been handed over to the palace.