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Chapter 608: Heartfelt
Chapter 608: Heartfelt
This was indeed something Gongsun Yanming had not anticipated.
When His Majesty and the Miao King fell into the dry well, and the Crown Prince's manor was unjustly accused, the immediate priority should have been to send people to search for them.
However, that did not happen.
Was it because after Lu Yuan and the others left, there was no one left to use around the Crown Prince?
Not at all.
After all, His Majesty had previously given Lu Zhaoyan several palace guards.
There was only one possibility: Lu Zhaoyan had ordered no one to go and fall into the trap.
To make such a bold decision in such a critical moment, Lu Zhaoyan truly had nerves of steel.
If it weren't for the fact that he and Lu Yuan were mortal enemies, Lu Zhaoyan would indeed be a more suitable ruler to support.
Gongsun Yanming said solemnly, "Your Highness, I have no reason to do such a thing. Lu Qi is my son-in-law; why would I harm him?"
Prince Jin was unmoved. "The son-in-law you favored is the Guardian Kylin, isn't it? On the day of the wedding, your daughter wanted to elope with Lu Yuan. Do you think I didn't know?"
Gongsun Yanming responded earnestly, "Your Highness, I and Lu Yuan are sworn enemies, and I have a deep-seated grudge against his wife, Meng Qianqian. He won't let me go, and I won't let them go either."
Prince Jin found this increasingly absurd. "Meng Qianqian is just a merchant's daughter, and you claim to have a deep-seated grudge against her? Tutor, do you think I'm that easy to fool?"
Gongsun Yanming knew that further argument would be futile.
He turned to Hu Lie, who had been observing from the sidelines. "General Hu, do you truly believe I have betrayed Your Highness, Prince Jin?"
He didn't say "also believe."
Prince Jin had never doubted his loyalty; the only one who could make Prince Jin suspicious of him was this maternal uncle.
Hu Lie said nothing, merely scrutinizing him without reservation.
Gongsun Yanming asked calmly, "I heard that General Hu broke into the Cold Palace tonight. What was the reason?"
Hu Lie narrowed his eyes and said coldly, "I captured the Elder Princess's favored concubine and learned of Qi'er's whereabouts from him. I rushed to the Cold Palace to save her, but I was too late."
He was not explaining himself to Gongsun Yanming but speaking for Prince Jin to hear.
Gongsun Yanming continued, "Where is that person now?"
Hu Lie clenched his massive fists. "He escaped."
Despite having so many secret guards watching him, a mere nobody had slipped out of his grasp.
It was a bitter humiliation!
Once a person was emotional, they had a weakness to exploit.
Gongsun Yanming spoke seriously, "General Hu, haven't you realized that ever since the Elder Princess returned to the capital, she has been manipulating Your Highness, the general, and the Thousand Mechanism Pavilion. We are completely at her mercy. If we start infighting now, we will fall into her trap, disintegrate, and be abandoned by all!"
Hu Lie, having suffered a setback tonight, needed to vent his anger and thus lashed out at Gongsun Yanming.
However, when Gongsun Yanming brought up the favored concubine, he successfully redirected the hatred back to the Elder Princess.
In the end, they were united in their enmity.
Hu Lie was not stupid; he could see through Gongsun Yanming's intentions.
But he had calmed down.
And through his observations, Gongsun Yanming had not lied.
At least for now, he had no reason to have a second heart toward Prince Jin.
The Rui King was dead, and while the Qi King was alive, he had likely lost his eligibility to compete.
That left only Fu Wang and Lu Zhaoyan.
Fu Wang dared to collude with him, and Jiang Huiyi would kill her own child.
Lu Zhaoyan was an archenemy.
After some deliberation, Hu Lie decided to dismiss his suspicions of Gong Sun Yanming.
"The matter with Gong Sun Yu was likely orchestrated by the Elder Princess", he said, furrowing his brow with a sigh. "The Imperial Tutor is right. We must not fall into her trap."
Prince Jin said to Gong Sun Yanming, "Since your uncle vouches for you, I will trust you once more."
"Thank you, Prince Jin."
Gong Sun Yanming bowed in gratitude.
Prince Jin continued, "Since you are here, would you like to see Liuying?"
Gong Sun Yanming declined, "Liuying is in the manor, well taken care of by Your Highness and the Princess. I don’t need to worry as her father."
After a few more pleasantries, he took his leave.
Back at the Thousand Mechanism Pavilion, he sought out Elder You.
An hour later, he sent a box of blood-nourishing pills to Gong Sun Liuying.
During these few days when Lu Qi was away, Gong Sun Liuying had been quite content.
How wonderful it would be if Lu Qi never returned.
A maid entered with the pills, "Miss, the Pavilion Master has sent these pills."
Gong Sun Liuying's face lit up, "Father still cares for me."
No matter how many disagreements she had with her father before her marriage, now all that remained was longing and reliance.
"Bring me some water."
She instructed.
"Yes, Miss."
The maid brought Gong Sun Liuying a cup of warm water and was about to hand it to her when she suddenly fainted and collapsed on the ground.
Gong Sun Liuying was startled and raised her head in alarm.
Meng Qianqian entered her room calmly, closing the door behind her and locking it.
Gong Sun Liuying's face darkened, "It's you? How dare you break into Prince Jin's manor in broad daylight! Come—"
Meng Qianqian interrupted her, pointing to the brown pill in her delicate fingers, "If I were you, I would throw away that pill."
Gong Sun Liuying frowned.
Meng Qianqian said lightly, "It's a sterility pill, very harmful to your body."
Gong Sun Liuying replied coldly, "What sterility pill? This is clearly a blood-nourishing pill my father sent me!"
Meng Qianqian sighed, "It is a sterility pill."
Gong Sun Liuying said icily, "I am a physician! Do you think I can’t tell the difference between a blood-nourishing pill and a sterility pill?"
Meng Qianqian shook her head, reached out, and used her inner strength to grab the brocade box. She then put on a silver-threaded glove and took out a pill, crushing it on the table in front of Gong Sun Liuying.
Amidst the dark brown powder, a small black pill was revealed.
Meng Qianqian tsked, "Don’t let its size fool you. It’s highly toxic. One is not enough; your father sent you a whole box. How afraid is he of you becoming a mother?"
Seeing this, Gong Sun Liuying used a handkerchief to wrap her hand and crushed the blood-nourishing pill she held.
When she saw the black sterility pill, she felt as if she had fallen into an ice cellar.
"Impossible... It must be a mistake..."
She crushed the remaining pills one by one.
When the last pill also revealed a sterility pill, she fell into a daze, sitting down on a stool.
"Why... Why is this happening... Why would my father harm me?"
Her eyes red, she glared at Meng Qianqian, "It's you! It must be you! You can sneak into the manor undetected and switch the pills my father gave me!"
Meng Qianqian scoffed, "I’m not that bored. I’ll tell you the truth. Because of your elopement, Prince Jin has become suspicious of your father. Now, Lu Qi is locked in a secret passage by your father’s mechanisms. If you were to become pregnant now, Prince Jin would surely think your father is trying to make your unborn child the emperor, getting rid of them in the process!"
"To protect himself, your father had to sacrifice you."
(End of Chapter)
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