Chapter 741: Prince Lie's Fondness for the Crown Princess
He wasn't acting out of suspicion or to harm Shen Yungan. On the contrary, he was operating covertly to prove Shen Yungan's innocence.
Of course, if Shen Yungan's unauthorized departure from his post and secret infiltration of the Min River were exposed and confirmed, the emperor would be seen as wise and discerning—a ruler who captured treacherous officials.
Advance and he could attack; retreat and he could defend.
No matter how the situation unfolded, the emperor remained flawless and impeccable in his actions.
His methods were so masterful that one could only applaud in admiration.
"On His Majesty's side, there should be no concerns before the Eighth Prince arrives at the Min River." Xiao Huayong's gaze fell upon the Eucommia Leaf bonsai on the desk, his eyes growing distant. "But Worldly Son Bu is in trouble now."
Bu Shulin in trouble? What kind of trouble?
For her sake, Xiao Changying had led Yinshan to divert Xiao Changmin's men, who in turn led Xiao Changyan and the emperor's forces astray. Now that news of Shen Yungan's arrival at the Min River had surfaced, the emperor had lost interest in pursuing Bu Shulin.
In the emperor's eyes, ten Bu Shulins weren't worth one Shen Yungan. Though the emperor regretted not seizing the opportunity to reclaim military authority over Shu Nan when Bu Shulin returned there unscathed, he didn't mind letting her remain active for a few more years.
But if Shen Yungan came to the Min River and returned to the Northwest unscathed, that would be a profound humiliation to the emperor—one that would make him beat his chest in frustration!
The emperor had stopped pursuing Bu Shulin. The reason he still wanted to send Xiao Changying to the Min River, aside from the pros and cons Shen Xihe and Xiao Huayong had previously analyzed, was that he knew Xiao Changyan viewed Bu Shulin as a threat and would continue chasing her.
However, Xiao Huayong had disrupted the emperor's plan regarding Xiao Changying. With the urgency at the Min River, the emperor had no choice but to send Xiao Changyan there.
So, was Bu Shulin to be let off so easily?
Of course not. Wasn't there still Xiao Changmin, who had been persistently pursuing her?
While he might not be formidable enough to deal with Shen Yungan, handling Bu Shulin was within his capabilities. Moreover, along this journey, Xiao Changmin was truly the one who could track down Bu Shulin.
On the very day Xiao Changyan left the capital with his troops, the emperor summoned Xiao Changmin. Xiao Huayong didn't need to investigate to guess the purpose: it was to hint to Xiao Changmin to continue targeting Bu Shulin, with promises of rewards from the emperor upon success.
The emperor, with his illustrious achievements and status as their imperial father, was deeply revered by all the princes. Except for Xiao Huayong, even Xiao Changqing had once held profound admiration for him. To earn even a slight acknowledgment or important assignment from the emperor, Xiao Changmin was eager and ready to prove himself.
Just as the ambitious Xiao Changmin was enthusiastically discussing plans with his subordinates, Yu Sangning—who had always been prudent—burst in despite attempts to stop her.
Multiple gazes in the room instantly focused on Yu Sangning. Xiao Changmin's face darkened with displeasure.
Without even glancing at the others present, Yu Sangning looked directly at the fuming Xiao Changmin. Before he could raise his voice to rebuke her, she spoke first: "I have words for you, Your Highness. I request that you dismiss your attendants."
With a sharp "smack," Xiao Changmin slammed his palm heavily on the table. The veins on his temples bulged, yet Yu Sangning stood her ground without flinching.
Seeing the situation, the leading subordinate quickly attempted to mediate: "Your Highness and your consort must have important matters to discuss. We will return later to report to you."
Imperial family affairs were not for them to interfere in, and they withdrew swiftly."You'd better have something truly urgent!" Once the door closed and only the two of them remained, Xiao Changmin gritted his teeth in warning.
"Your Highness, do you know how Prince Lie was injured?" Yu Sangning asked.
Xiao Changmin grew even more furious: "Don't beat around the bush with me. If you continue being evasive, don't blame me for disregarding the flesh in your womb!"
The only reason he could tolerate Yu Sangning barging in during his important discussions was because she was pregnant. If anything happened to Yu Sangning's child because of him, his reputation for lacking virtue would be confirmed, hindering his advancement.
"Prince Lie left the military camp long ago. He secretly followed Worldly Son Bu since his departure from the capital, accompanying him along the way. Prince Lie was injured by Your Highness and others working together, then secretly brought back!" Yu Sangning showed no anger and stopped being indirect, concisely revealing everything she knew.
As for how Yu Sangning knew this—she had always been on good terms with Gu Qingshu. Although Prince Xin had no interest in Gu Qingshu, she still bore the Gu surname and hadn't done anything to harm Prince Xin's Residence. Prince Xin couldn't outright forbid the residence from receiving Gu Qingshu.
Everyone in the residence knew how much Xiao Changqing valued his deceased wife. With her status as the younger sister of the late princess consort, it wasn't difficult for Gu Qingshu to gather some information at Prince Xin's Residence. Based on what she knew and some deductions, carefully verifying the facts, it wasn't hard to piece together the truth.
Xiao Changmin paused, then firmly denied it: "Absolutely impossible!"
"Why couldn't it be?"
Glancing sideways at Yu Sangning, Xiao Changmin said, "The three of us ambushed them thousands of miles away three days ago. If that person was Xiao Jiu, severely injured, how could he return to the capital in two days?"
Xiao Changying had been "attacked" in the capital just one day prior.
"This is precisely the Crown Princess's capability." Yu Sangning didn't find it impossible—what others couldn't do didn't mean Shen Xihe couldn't. "Your Highness, if all of this is true, Prince Lie's injury was definitely not because the Crown Princess was powerless to save him. Instead, she intentionally let him be injured. Her purpose... was to allow Prince Lie to avoid leading troops to Minjiang!"
Seeing that Xiao Changmin was dismissive and didn't believe her, Yu Sangning delivered a heavy blow: "Only the Crown Princess could send the Northwest Prince Heir to Minjiang!"
His Majesty no longer cared about Worldly Son Bu, even going so far as to send Prince Jing to Minjiang. This showed that His Majesty had confirmed Shen Yungan was in Minjiang; otherwise, he would never have taken such a desperate gamble.
From this, it could be deduced that Shen Yungan went to Minjiang intentionally and deliberately leaked the information to lure His Majesty into a final battle. Therefore, the Crown Princess had long anticipated that His Majesty would certainly take the bait. His Majesty was also very likely to favor Prince Lie more, especially since Prince Jing was still pursuing another of His Majesty's major concerns!
Xiao Changmin didn't want to believe it, but he had no choice. According to Yu Sangning's words, it all seemed quite logical.
The premise of this logic was that Xiao Changying had indeed escorted Bu Shulin all the way, and the Crown Princess truly could transport the severely injured Xiao Changying back to the capital in two days!
But was this really possible?
Since when had his ninth brother gotten involved with Bu Shulin? Knowing that His Majesty wanted to eliminate Bu Shulin, would he still oppose His Majesty for Bu Shulin's sake?
Could it be to secretly win over Bu Shulin? Aiming for the Shunan Army?
But Bu Shulin was on good terms with the Eastern Palace. If Xiao Changying did this, it would be like snatching food from a tiger's mouth. If he really did this, how could the Crown Princess tolerate him returning alive? It wasn't her who killed anyone—Xiao Changying died at the hands of their factions, and Xiao Changqing wouldn't blame the Eastern Palace."Why would the Crown Princess save him?" This didn't make sense.
"Because Prince Lie is in love with the Crown Princess," Yu Sangning replied.
Xiao Changying usually maintained a proper distance from Shen Xihe in daily life. Without someone pointing it out, even careful observation might not reveal any clues.
(End of Chapter)
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