jdhmnovel Chapter 110 Spring
Chapter 110 Spring
"The Seventh Prince left the palace with Xie Jinghan?"
Consort Zhang frowned, carefully considering the meaning behind this news.
"Where are our spies planted in the Taiji Hall?" she asked in a deep voice. "Such a big matter, why haven't we received any news?"
Just then, a palace maid rushed in, looking panicked: "Your Majesty, something terrible has happened! A female corpse was just dragged out of the Taiji Hall, and it was...our informant!"
Upon hearing this, Consort Zhang's heart skipped a beat: "Did you see it clearly?"
"Absolutely true!" The palace maid nodded quickly. "It really is Xiaoqing!"
Consort Zhang felt a throbbing sensation in her temples, which made her heart race with panic: "It seems that His Majesty and Xie Jinghan must have said something unspeakable, which is why he had to resort to such ruthless measures to prevent the news from leaking out."
"Could it be..." she murmured, "...about the matter of choosing an heir?"
The old nanny standing nearby looked alarmed: "Your Highness! You can't say things like that!"
However, Consort Zhang waved her hand and said, "I have no children. Even if I say a few words, they can't do anything to me. Even His Majesty won't take my words to heart."
In front of the wet nurse who had taken care of her since childhood, Consort Zhang did not care about such things. She only said, "I just did not expect that His Majesty would trust Xie Jinghan so much that he would even consult with him on the matter of establishing an heir."
"Could it be that those rumors are all false?" The rumors Consort Zhang was referring to were the gossip that the Emperor was at odds with Xie Jinghan and that he was intentionally trying to suppress Xie Jinghan.
In particular, the incident of sending Xie Jinghan to lead troops against the Northern Di on the day of the wedding had caused quite a stir in the capital. Anyone who mentioned it looked very confident, as if the emperor himself had said it.
After hearing this so many times, Consort Zhang naturally began to have her own thoughts.
Upon hearing this, the old woman frowned.
After a moment, she shook her head and said, "This old servant thinks these rumors are unbelievable."
"As you know, His Majesty is twenty years younger than Prince Jing. He raised Prince Jing as his son." The old woman carefully told the rumors she had heard. "According to the elders in the palace, when His Majesty first ascended the throne, he carried Prince Jing around the palace on his back and even let Prince Jing ride on his shoulders."
“Have you ever seen His Majesty do these things to any of his other princes? Even the most favored and youngest of them, the Seventh Prince, doesn’t receive this kind of favor.” The nanny secretly analyzed, “His Majesty’s feelings for Prince Jing are probably unique.”
Consort Zhang frowned and waved her hand: "Never mind, I know he is favored. Even the Empress treats him like a son."
“But…” Consort Zhang lowered her voice, “His Majesty values him so much, so the matter of choosing an heir… will probably require his opinion. I think… His Majesty will probably entrust the Seventh Prince to him.”
The old woman's heart skipped a beat; what Consort Zhang said made a lot of sense.
"What should we do?" she asked anxiously, clenching her fists.
If Consort Zhang was just an ordinary consort, then it wouldn't have anything to do with her.
But Consort Zhang...
Thinking about the things Consort Zhang had done in secret, the old woman felt a headache coming on.
Consort Zhang glanced at the old woman's unpleasant expression and snorted coldly, "Old woman, there's no need to worry. I already have ways to deal with these things."
"Didn't Your Majesty want to use Xie Jinghan to protect the Seventh Prince?" she sneered. "If Xie Jinghan can't even protect himself, who will the Seventh Prince rely on? Will he rely on his unambitious mother?"
Consort Zhang let out a cold laugh as she said this.
The old woman frowned, feeling that Consort Zhang's plan would not unfold as she had anticipated.
However, as a servant, she dared not question her master's words, even though she had doubts.
……
The seventh prince, held by his wet nurse's hand, held his chubby little face high as he watched Xie Jinghan walk towards him step by step, his face flushed with excitement.
"Uncle Emperor!"
After calling out in his childish voice, he opened his arms on his own, waiting for Xie Jinghan to pick him up.
Xie Jinghan lowered his head and saw that the man, who was only three-headed, was looking at him with adoration in his eyes. After pausing for a moment, he picked him up and held him in his arms.
Held in Xie Jinghan's arms, the Seventh Prince was extremely excited and kept waving his hands.
"Uncle, where shall we go for fun today?"
"I'll take you to see your imperial aunt."
Xie Jinghan's words made the three-year-old Seventh Prince hesitate for a moment: "Royal Aunt?"
His large eyes were filled with confusion: "What is an imperial aunt?"
Xie Jinghan smiled slightly at his question, a rare occurrence in his eyes: "You'll find out soon enough."
The Seventh Prince nodded seriously: "I will listen to my uncle!"
For a child who grew up in the deep palace, being able to step out of those tall and imposing palace gates was already an exciting thing, let alone meeting such a novel "thing" as "Imperial Aunt".
The two children leaving the palace attracted the attention of many people.
Those who coveted the position of crown prince and those who coveted the seventh prince, the legitimate son of the empress, were naturally tossing and turning, pondering Xie Jinghan's intentions.
The person involved was unaware that their actions had stirred up a storm in the hearts of many.
……
When the news of the chief examiner for the imperial examinations came out, the most nervous person was Wen Yitong.
After learning the news, she locked herself in her room for a whole day, holding her head and racking her brains, trying to recall everything from her dream.
However, she discovered that she knew very little about what Xie Jinghan had done. All she could remember were the major events Xie Jinghan had been involved in, and she had no recollection of whether he had presided over the imperial examinations, which was a trivial matter.
“Miss,” Ruyi said softly, “no matter who the examiner is, it won’t affect the young master’s future.”
"Think about it, His Majesty appointed Prince Jing as the chief examiner precisely for the sake of fairness in the imperial examinations," Ruyi said in a low voice. "In the end, whether the young master makes it onto the list depends on him."
Seeing that Wen Yitong was still frowning, Ruyi advised again, "And haven't you noticed? The young master has been working much harder these past few days."
Upon hearing this, Wen Yitong's attention was indeed diverted.
Wen Yitong's face glowed with anticipation: "Mother still loves me after all. She actually managed to persuade Liu Hanlin to come. My husband has been in his study these past few days, and even at midnight, the light in his study is still on."
Ruyi nodded quickly: "With the son-in-law being so attentive, he's sure to be on the list of successful candidates in the imperial examinations."
Wen Yitong never doubted Chen Che's future career.
This was a scene she had dreamed about countless times.
She smiled, her lips curving upwards, unable to suppress her pride: "My husband will surely achieve the third-highest rank in the imperial examination this time!"