readsfreenovel Chapter 562 The crisis is coming
Chapter 562 The crisis is coming
The Crown Prince received a secret letter in distant Floating Cloud City. Braving the sea breeze, he unfolded the letter with one hand and read it quickly. A trace of worry crossed his brows: "The remote message disappeared so quickly. Could there be some hidden trick?"
It seems that I have to rush back as soon as possible after some time.
The battle at sea has gradually been under the control of Dasheng and Haiguo, and there are no major hidden dangers. The prince thought a lot and turned around to give orders.
A few days later, the seventh prince's letter of advice reached the crown prince again, and the crown prince immediately decided to return to the imperial city.
At this time, Lan Qingwu did not know that an unprecedented crisis was quietly approaching her.
The Dragon Boat Festival had just passed. Because of the war against pirates, the palace did not celebrate the festival too extravagantly. Eating rice dumplings, hanging mugwort, inserting calamus, wearing sachets, drinking cattail wine, realgar wine, cinnabar wine... these were all indispensable.
Emperor Shenwu naturally did not give up secretly investigating the person behind the rumors, but he did not find any useful clues.
In Fengqi Palace, Lan Qingwu was frowning slightly, holding a letter from the border. "Where is His Majesty?"
Ru Ping replied, "His Majesty is meeting with ministers in the Qianzheng Hall. Your Majesty, you..."
"I received a letter from the border saying that my family is hiding something from me. This is a letter from Qingtong saying that my mother is seriously ill and is terminally ill!"
Ru Ping was horrified. "Empress, could it be that the Second Young Lady is just talking nonsense? You know, she and you have always been at odds, and after what happened that year..."
Lan Qingwu's face was filled with worry. "It doesn't look like that. She described the symptoms and the prescription in great detail."
He was afraid that his family would insist on keeping it a secret from him, but unfortunately the border was thousands of miles away and Lan Qingwu couldn't go back in person.
Lan Qingwu thought for a moment and said, "Let Furong go to Qianzheng Palace to report to His Majesty. I'm going back to the Lan Mansion to ask about Third Uncle. You and I will go together, and Lianqiu will stay at Fengqi Palace! Ruhan hasn't been feeling well these past few days and looks like she might be pregnant again. Let her rest at home!"
"Yes!"
Ruping immediately went to make arrangements.
Lan Qingwu took the palace card, arranged Fengqi Palace and the Seventh Princess, and returned to the Lan Mansion.
After summoning the ministers to the Qianzheng Hall, Emperor Shenwu rubbed his brows and asked, "Li Xiang, what happened just now?"
Just as Li Xiang was about to speak, Li Zhong, the deputy chief eunuch of the imperial palace, bowed and walked in quickly. His face was more solemn and serious than ever before. "Your Majesty, I have received this and dare not act on my own!"
Li Xiang quietly raised his eyes, only to find that the white slip of paper was tightly held in Li Zhong's hand. He couldn't even catch a glimpse of a single word. Li Xiang lowered his head again.
The Shenwu Emperor's heart sank. As if he had a premonition, he didn't reach out to take it immediately. After a few moments, he reached out to take the note and unfolded it. The Shenwu Emperor stood up suddenly, his brows extremely gloomy and cold: "Nonsense!"
Emperor Shenwu unfolded the note again, and the few words on it hurt his eyes: "The Queen is pregnant with another man's child!"
The Emperor's expression had never been so grim. He clenched the note tightly in his fist, veins bulging in his veins. He flicked the teacup on the imperial desk to the ground, shattering it into pieces. "Where did this note come from?"
The emperor was furious. Li Xiang and Li Zhong had already fallen to their knees and said together, "Your Majesty, please calm down!"
Li Zhong didn't dare to look up. "Your Majesty, I've searched and searched for this note, and I don't know who left it in my room! But this is a matter of great importance, and I dare not act on my own!"
The Emperor Shenwu was naturally aware of Li Zhong's unwavering loyalty. He and Li Xiang, one overtly and one covertly, managed the affairs of the palace, and for so many years, there had never been a single mistake. Li Zhong handled most of the palace's secrets, and few knew that the Emperor trusted Li Zhong as much as he trusted Li Xiang.
Emperor Shenwu held the note in his hand and took a deep breath. This lie was easy to refute. As long as Lan Qingwu was diagnosed, the truth would be known. But why would the person behind the scenes tell such a lie that could be refuted so easily!
Emperor Shenwu asked in a deep voice, "Where is the queen?"
Li Xiang was still confused. "Your Majesty, Furong from Fengqi Palace just reported that the Empress received a letter from home and has an urgent matter, so she has returned to the Lan Mansion!"
Emperor Shenwu's eyes sharpened: "Back to Lan Mansion?" Lan Qingwu promised him that he would not return to Lan Mansion without permission!
Li Xiang asked cautiously, "Your Majesty, do you need to go and fetch the Empress back to the palace?"
Emperor Shenwu was silent for a moment before he said, "Li Zhong, go to the Lan Mansion and personally bring the Empress back to the palace!"
Li Zhong took the order and left, but Li Xiang had already heard from the emperor's different tone that something big was about to happen, and he was afraid that something unexpected would happen.
When Lan Qingwu returned to Fengqi Palace, she was also worried. The Lan family had indeed concealed her mother's illness. Although her third uncle assured her that her mother's illness was not as serious as Lan Qingtong said, she could no longer trust her third uncle.
She was preoccupied with something and didn't realize at first that it was a bit unreasonable for Li Zhong, who rarely appeared in the palace, to come and take her back to the palace.
Emperor Shenwu was not in a hurry to return to Fengqi Palace. He sat alone in Qianzheng Hall for a long time before summoning Li Zhong. Li Zhong knelt on the ground without saying a word.
"Tell me, what was it like when you went to the Lan Mansion to pick up the Queen?"
Li Zhong then spoke slowly, "When I went to fetch the Empress back to the palace, I didn't see her immediately. According to the servants in the Lan residence, the Empress went to the backyard to stroll around the phoenix blossom trees, with Lord Wang accompanying her. Miss Ruping wasn't by her side at the time. It was almost a quarter of an hour before I saw the Empress and Lord Wang emerge from the phoenix blossom trees, one after the other!"
Emperor Shenwu's expression grew even darker. He rubbed his fingers and unconsciously turned the flawless emerald green ring.
"Are there any others following? Where is Madam Wang?"
"A maid was left far behind. I didn't see Madam Wang in the phoenix tree forest. Only when the Queen left did Madam Wang appear. She said she was making snacks in the kitchen!"
Emperor Shenwu closed his eyes, stood up, and walked towards Fengqi Palace. As he walked, he ordered, "Go and summon the chief and deputy chief ministers to Fengqi Palace! Also summon Nie Wushuang!"
Li Zhong didn't dare to look up. "Your Majesty, you've forgotten that Imperial Physician Nie Wushuang has requested your permission to go to the outskirts of the Imperial City to provide free medical services! He won't be back for a month!"
Emperor Shenwu paused, his eyes dark and gloomy. "Send someone to the outskirts of the Imperial City to recall him!"
"Yes! Your Majesty!"
Li Xiang, who was guarding the palace gate, did not say a word, but lowered his head and followed the footsteps of Emperor Shenwu closely.
In Fengqi Palace, Lan Qingwu took off all her hairpins and clothes and was reclining on the bed to rest. Thinking of her mother Lan and the prince in Liuyun City, a faint melancholy arose in her heart.
At this moment, the Divine Martial Emperor walked in. Although his face was expressionless, his eyes were extremely cold and heavy, and his whole body exuded an extremely heavy pressure. Lan Qingwu immediately sensed it. She stood up and said, "Your Majesty, is there a problem in Liuyun City?"
His son is still in Liuyun City. Lan Qingwu is worried day and night and has not slept well for more than two months.