RPAGF Chapter 528: The Secret Letter Hints at the Crown Prince's Plot?
Chapter 528: The Secret Letter Hints at the Crown Prince's Plot?
Lu Shuyan grabbed his sleeve, her eyes a little red: "Zhou'er, when you get to the Hall of Mental Cultivation, speak less, listen to your father, don't argue with him, and remember, no matter what happens, your mother will always be behind you."
Shen Yanzhou nodded, turned around and followed the eunuch from Yangxin Hall out.
As he walked through the corridor of Kunning Palace, he caught a glimpse of the pomegranate trees under the corridor, their tender green leaves swaying in the wind, much like the anxious heart he was in at that moment.
The atmosphere in the Hall of Mental Cultivation was much colder than that in the Jinghe Palace. There was no incense burning inside, only a faint smell of ink.
Shen Yuxi sat on the dragon throne, holding a memorial in his hand. Without raising his head, he simply said, "Kneel down."
Shen Yanzhou knelt down as instructed, his knees touching the cold gold bricks, but he didn't dare to move.
The hall was so quiet that one could hear the wind outside the window and the rustling sound of Shen Yuxi turning the pages of memorials; each sound seemed to strike his heart.
"How's your investigation going with the disaster relief funds in Jiangnan?"
Shen Yuxi finally spoke, his voice revealing neither joy nor anger.
"Your Majesty, I have received a report from the Governor of Jiangnan. The disaster relief funds have been distributed to various prefectures and counties in succession, but the issue of salt merchants hoarding grain has not yet been resolved. I am planning to send someone to Jiangnan to supervise the matter." Shen Yanzhou tried his best to keep his voice steady.
Shen Yuxi threw the memorial in front of him. The memorial landed on the gold brick with a "thud," and the words "Wen Yanbo" on the cover were particularly glaring.
"Supervision?"
Shen Yuxi's voice suddenly rose, "Tell me, how are you going to oversee this? Are you going to talk to your 'old friend' Gu Wancheng and ask him to return the 200,000 taels of disaster relief money he embezzled? Or are you going to the secret vaults in Suzhou and Hangzhou to transport the stolen money back?"
Shen Yanzhou's heart sank to the bottom. His father did indeed know the contents of the secret letter, and judging from his attitude, he clearly believed most of it.
He raised his head and looked directly into Shen Yuxi's eyes: "Father, I did not embezzle the disaster relief funds, nor did I collude with Gu Wancheng! Someone deliberately framed me. I have intercepted the anonymous letter and detained the messenger. I am investigating the mastermind behind it!"
"Investigate the mastermind?"
Shen Yuxi sneered, stood up from the dragon throne, walked up to him, and looked down at him.
"You've been investigating and investigating, are you trying to trace it back to me? Shen Yanzhou, let me tell you, you are the Crown Prince, the future emperor, but as long as I sit on this throne, you cannot have the slightest selfishness! The people of Jiangnan are starving, yet you're here telling me 'someone is framing me,' how can I believe you?"
Shen Yanzhou's knees were already numb, but he still persisted: "Father, I guarantee with my position as Crown Prince that I have not uttered a single falsehood! Please give me three days, and I will definitely find out the truth and clear my name!"
Shen Yuxi stared at him for a long time, her eyes filled with complex emotions: anger, doubt, and a weariness that Shen Yanzhou couldn't understand.
He suddenly turned around and sat back down on the dragon throne: "Three days? I'll give you five days."
He paused, then added, "But during these five days, you are not allowed to leave Jinghe Palace, nor are you allowed to have contact with anyone, including your mother."
Shen Yanzhou was stunned. His father… had placed him under house arrest?
He was about to argue when Shen Yuxi waved his hand and said, "Go down, I'm tired."
Shen Yanzhou could only stand up, bow, and leave the Hall of Mental Cultivation.
As soon as I stepped out of the palace gate, I saw Wen Yanbo standing under the corridor, holding a jade thumb ring in his hand, stroking it with his head down.
Upon seeing him emerge, Wen Yanbo looked up, cupped his hands in greeting, and said in a very low voice, "Your Highness, please think carefully before you act, and do not fall into other people's traps."
Shen Yanzhou looked at him, her heart filled with mixed feelings.
Wen Yanbo is an old minister of the Emperor and has always been neutral. Why did he take the initiative to remind him today? Is he genuinely trying to help him, or does he have ulterior motives?
He didn't speak, but simply nodded and turned to walk towards Jinghe Palace.
When they returned to Jinghe Palace, Qin Feng was already waiting inside, his face grim.
"Your Highness, Li Er has disappeared!"
"what?"
Shen Yanzhou turned around abruptly, "How could he be missing? Didn't I tell you to keep an eye on him?"
"I arranged for two men to guard the side courtyard, but when I went back just now, the gate was open, the guards were knocked unconscious, and Li Er was nowhere to be found!"
Qin Feng's voice carried a hint of self-reproach, "I checked the footprints around the courtyard and found several people. It's as if they were lying in ambush, specifically there to rob Li Er."
Shen Yanzhou leaned against the desk and closed his eyes.
Li Er was the only lead, but now that lead has been cut off and someone else has gotten there first. This shows that the mastermind behind it is quite powerful and acts extremely quickly.
Just as he was about to ask Qin Feng to investigate Li Er's whereabouts again, Su Xin's voice suddenly came from outside the hall. This time, her voice was choked with sobs: "Your Highness! Something terrible has happened! The Empress... The Empress has been taken to Yong'an Palace by the Imperial Concubine! It is said that the Imperial Concubine found out that the Empress sent someone to deliver a message to you, and she wants to go to Yong'an Palace for a confrontation!"
Shen Yanzhou suddenly opened his eyes, his heart clenching as if gripped by a hand.
Mother has always been cautious and prudent, how could the Imperial Concubine have caught her doing something wrong? Yong'an Palace is the Imperial Concubine's territory, Mother will definitely suffer if she goes there!
He was about to rush out when he remembered Shen Yuxi's words—"You are not allowed to leave Jinghe Palace for five days."
"Your Highness, you cannot go out!"
Qin Feng quickly grabbed him, "His Majesty has decreed that if you leave, it will be considered disobeying the imperial decree, and then things will become even more complicated!"
Shen Yanzhou stopped, his fists clenched so tightly his knuckles turned white. He could hear the wind outside the hall and Su Xin's cries, but he couldn't go out.
He looked at the crumpled secret letter on the table, and recalled Shen Yuxi's cold gaze in the Hall of Mental Cultivation, and Lu Shuyan's red eyes in the Kunning Palace. Suddenly, he felt a chill creep up from the soles of his feet.
Someone was plotting something, and the person behind it was more ruthless than he imagined—they not only wanted to ruin him, the crown prince, but also drag his mother down with them.
Just then, hurried footsteps sounded outside the hall, and a young eunuch scrambled in, his face pale: "Your Highness! Something terrible has happened! The Third Prince... the Third Prince has arrived with the Imperial Guards, saying that His Majesty has ordered a search of Jinghe Palace, saying that he wants to find... find evidence of collusion with salt merchants!"
Shen Yanzhou's back broke out in a cold sweat.
The Third Prince, Shen Yanlin? Why is he here? Didn't Father Emperor only confine him to his quarters?
Why was Shen Yanlin allowed to bring the Imperial Guards to search the area?
He walked to the palace gate, lifted the curtain, and saw Shen Yanlin wearing a suit of armor, standing in the courtyard of Jinghe Palace, followed by more than a dozen imperial guards, each holding a knife.
When Shen Yanlin saw him, he smiled, his smile full of smugness: "Crown Prince, Father has decreed that you are suspected of embezzling disaster relief funds and colluding with salt merchants. He has ordered me to search Jinghe Palace for evidence. I ask for your cooperation, Crown Prince."
Shen Yanzhou looked at him and suddenly understood.
This was not a simple frame-up; it was a palace coup that had been planned long ago—from the secret letter to Wen Yanbo's memorial, and then to Li Er's kidnapping and his mother being taken to Yong'an Palace.