NCCnovel Chapter 205: Prince Shun is Imprisoned
Chapter 205: Prince Shun is Imprisoned
After hearing Qingwu's words, the queen sighed slightly.
"You are right. We still have the crown prince, but the queen mother is my aunt after all. How can I sit idly by when she begs so hard? But as for His Majesty..."
Qingwu gently massaged the Queen's shoulders and said,
"Your Majesty, you have done your best. If Prince Shun is really guilty, it is his own fault. Your Majesty is a wise ruler and will be able to distinguish right from wrong. You just need to do your duty and don't let Your Majesty think that you are biased towards Prince Shun."
The queen frowned, her worry evident.
"Qingwu, how do you think I should persuade His Majesty? I can't let His Majesty think that I am pleading for Prince Shun, but I also want His Majesty to promise to investigate the matter thoroughly. Will His Majesty be unhappy?"
Qing Wu shook his head slightly and said softly,
"My lady, once you bring up this matter, His Majesty will not be pleased."
The queen was stunned. Yes, she was confused.
She has been in the palace for many years, but still cannot see through His Majesty's mind.
His Majesty has no preference among the concubines in the harem. It seems that in his eyes, there is no difference between her, the queen, the concubine, or even the other concubines.
However, what His Majesty hates most is people from the harem interfering in state affairs, especially when it comes to such a major matter.
But she couldn't bear the Queen Mother's pleading, and she was caught in a dilemma.
The next day, the Queen specially stewed the soup herself and walked slowly towards His Majesty's Palace of Tranquil Longevity.
Along the way, she felt uneasy and didn't know how to start.
When she stepped into the Palace of Tranquil Longevity, she saw Emperor Jingxuan sitting on the dragon throne reviewing memorials. His focused expression moved her heart slightly.
Emperor Jingxuan heard footsteps, looked up, and saw the empress at the palace door, his eyes flashed slightly.
"How come the Queen has time today to come to my place?"
The queen smiled slightly, walked forward and put the soup on the table.
"Your Majesty has been working hard day and night, so I specially cooked this soup to nourish your body."
Emperor Jingxuan looked at the bowl of soup and spoke slowly.
"The Queen is interested."
The Queen looked at Emperor Jingxuan, seeming to want to say something but stopping herself.
Emperor Jingxuan noticed her strangeness and asked,
"The Queen has something to say?"
The queen hesitated for a moment, but finally mustered up the courage to say,
"Your Majesty, I am guilty, but the Queen Mother has begged me to give Prince Shun a chance to investigate thoroughly. If I was really wronged, please show mercy."
Emperor Jingxuan's face darkened slightly. He looked at the queen with a hint of displeasure in his eyes.
"Queen, do you know what a serious crime Prince Shun has committed?"
The Queen lowered her head, knowing that His Majesty was angry, but since things had come to this point, she had no choice but to continue.
"I know that the matter of Prince Shun is serious, but the Queen Mother loves her son very much. I beg Your Majesty to investigate thoroughly and not to wrongly accuse Prince Shun. I am not someone who cannot tell the truth, but I just ask Your Majesty to investigate thoroughly."
Emperor Jingxuan was silent for a moment and said,
"Queen, I have sent people to investigate, and the evidence is conclusive. Prince Shun's crime is unforgivable, and I cannot ignore the country's laws because of personal feelings. The reason why I did not make it public is that I did not want the Rongdi people to know that their plan had failed because of Prince Shun's incident. The Queen Mother's love for her son is true, but you seem confused!"
"Your Majesty, I, your concubine..."
Emperor Jingxuan didn't want to hear her explanation, his voice was extremely cold.
"Queen, I have said this a long time ago. If you want to be a good queen, then be my queen, the queen of Wei, not the queen of the Shen family."
The queen's heart tightened, she knew that she had angered His Majesty this time.
She knelt down quickly and said,
"Your Majesty, please calm down. I know I was wrong. I will be careful with my words and actions in the future and will not disappoint Your Majesty again."
Emperor Jingxuan looked at the empress kneeling on the ground and said nothing else.
"Get up, Queen. I hope you will remember what I said today and don't do it again. My patience is limited. You are my Queen, not just the Queen Mother's niece. Do you understand?"
The queen stood up, feeling full of guilt.
She knew that she had disappointed His Majesty this time.
"Your Majesty, I know I was wrong and I will never do it again. I will definitely work hard to fulfill my duties as the queen and help your majesty solve problems."
Emperor Jingxuan nodded slightly and said,
"Go back! Prince Shun's matter won't have a result so soon. He won't die for the time being. You don't have to make things difficult for the Queen Mother."
"Yes, the concubine is retiring."
The queen bowed and took her leave, slowly walking out of the Yangxin Palace.
She knew that His Majesty finally gave in, perhaps because he was afraid of putting her in a difficult position, or perhaps because His Majesty really did not have the heart to kill Prince Shun.
As she left the Yangxin Palace, Qingwu hurried to meet her.
"My lady, what does His Majesty say?"
The Queen shook her head slightly and sighed softly.
"Although His Majesty did not blame me, he also warned me not to interfere in Prince Shun's affairs again. Prince Shun's life is temporarily safe, but this is only temporary."
Qingwu looked at the queen worriedly and said,
"My queen, it's good for now. We can finally deal with the queen dowager. I have asked around and heard that Prince Shun went to the Cining Palace that night. I'm afraid he was very scared, and that's why the queen dowager panicked."
The Queen was silent for a moment, then said,
"Let's wait and see what happens. I can no longer disobey your Majesty's order. I have done my best as far as the Queen Mother is concerned."
In the Cining Palace, after the Empress Dowager learned that the Queen had gone to see His Majesty, she waited for the result with great anticipation.
However, a few days passed without any news. The Queen Mother was anxious and sent for the Queen again.
The queen had no choice but to bite the bullet and go to the Cining Palace.
When the Queen Mother saw the Queen, she asked anxiously,
"Si'er, what does His Majesty say? Is there any hope for Prince Shun?"
The queen hesitated for a moment, but still told the truth.
"Aunt, His Majesty has not agreed to thoroughly investigate the matter of Prince Shun, but he also said that Prince Shun will not die for the time being. His Majesty warned me not to interfere in this matter again."
After hearing this, the Queen Mother's face turned very ugly.
"How can your majesty be so cruel? Prince Shun is his elder brother!"
The queen comforted him softly.
"Aunt, your majesty is also thinking about the country. Prince Shun's crime is indeed serious, and your majesty cannot forgive it easily. But your majesty also considers your feelings, the queen mother, so he temporarily spared Prince Shun's life."
The Queen Mother burst into tears and said,
"Then what should we do with Prince Shun? Is he going to be locked up forever? Even if we send him back to Prince Shun's mansion, that would be fine."
"Immortalled?"
The queen was slightly startled. She really didn't know this. But looking at the queen mother, she knew that she had lied to her. Since His Majesty could order the imprisonment of Prince Shun, wasn't it a done deal?
Forget it. Didn’t she already know about the Queen Mother’s partiality?
She then sighed and said,
"Aunt, since His Majesty said that Prince Shun will not die for the time being, then he will surely not be kept in prison forever. But now that His Majesty has made up his mind, we can only wait for the right time to make plans."
The Queen Mother held the Queen's hand tightly, her eyes full of anxiety.
"Si'er, you must find a way to save Prince Shun. He is my son, and I cannot watch him suffer."
The queen looked embarrassed.
"Aunt, I have tried my best. I dare not disobey your majesty's warning. Now I can only take one step at a time. Queen Mother, you are a mother, but I am also the mother of the prince. I have to listen to your majesty's words."