Niao Ni
Chapter 470: Those... Petty Matters in the Palace
Consort Yi was not a cunning and calculating noblewoman. On the contrary, within the sinister walls of the imperial palace, she had managed to retain the openheartedness and cheerfulness of her youth. It was her purity and sincerity that had won the Emperor's favor and led to the birth of the Third Prince.
Given the Qing Emperor's general indifference to matters of the flesh, it was likely that he had no intention of having more children after the Empress gave birth to the Crown Prince. This only served to highlight that Consort Yi's temperament was indeed in tune with the Emperor's.
Others in the palace shared this sentiment, always finding the Consort, who came from the Liu clan, full of energy, charmingly vibrant, and pleasing to the eye. Like the Talent Ning in her courtyard, she was an anomaly in the imperial palace, only she was more well-liked.
Therefore, even though the Empress Dowager was not particularly fond of the Third Prince due to the influence of the Liu family and Fan clan as external relatives, she had never spoken ill of Consort Yi. It was a well-known fact that Consort Yi was exceptionally lenient with her servants and exceedingly generous to others, harboring no harmful intentions whatsoever – a conclusion quietly reached over the past decade within the palace.
However, a lack of scheming and harmful intentions did not mean that Consort Yi was without her own designs. Otherwise, she would not have seized the opportunity of Fan Xian saving the Third Prince to have him become his teacher, opening up all the resources of the Shufang Palace to Fan Xian.
She understood the importance of Fan Xian to the Shufang Palace. Thus, in private, she always made a point of winning him over. The Imperial Family was always wary of external relatives, but Fan Xian possessed a complex identity that straddled the lines between external relatives, court officials, and the Imperial Family. The Shufang Palace's interactions with Fan Xian were therefore beyond much criticism from within the palace.
-- The more secure Fan Xian's position in court, the more secure the Shufang Palace's position in the Emperor's heart.
Yet, occasionally, when Consort Yi thought of Fan Xian's power and the Emperor's favor, she couldn't help but feel a sense of surprise. The Emperor was simply too fond of this illegitimate son of his.
Because of Fan Xian's immense favor, Consort Yi could not help but be wary of a certain danger, though such wariness could never be expressed. Therefore, she remained silent, maintaining her cheerful and charming demeanor. It was not until Fan Xian's recognition as a member of the family that she truly confirmed his intentions and felt boundless gratitude from the depths of her heart.
Therefore, at this moment, she felt immeasurably comforted as she watched Fan Xian and her son sitting side by side at the desk.
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"I heard you encountered someone in the corridor behind the hall earlier."
Xing'er, Consort Yi's personal maid, received a whisper from within the palace and hurriedly informed her mistress. Consort Yi's heart fluttered slightly. She gently beckoned Fan Xian into a side room, her eyes wide and earnest as she asked.
Fan Xian rubbed his sore fingers and said with a smile, "That servant Hong Zhu is becoming more and more audacious. He didn't even salute me when he saw me, walking as if he was looking down his nose at everything. I taught him a lesson on behalf of His Majesty."
Looking down his nose – the description was amusing and witty. Consort Yi couldn't help but laugh, but she quickly composed herself and said softly, "Little Eunuch Hong is now a favorite in the palace, the head eunuch of the Eastern Palace. Moreover, His Majesty seems quite fond of him and is planning to have him return to the Imperial Study."
She glanced at Fan Xian. Everyone in the palace had, through their own channels, thoroughly investigated Hong Zhu's rise to power. They all knew that Hong Zhu had been working in the Imperial Study, and just as he was about to climb higher, an anonymous memorial from Fan Xian had caused Hong Zhu to lose his position and be sent to the Eastern Palace.
Consort Yi knew that Fan Xian and Hong Zhu did not get along. However, Hong Zhu had now risen again in the Eastern Palace, and His Majesty seemed to regret his actions from that year. She had to remind Fan Xian, as he wasn't afraid of such grand eunuchs, but as an external official, he should always be wary of these eunuchs whispering malicious things in the palace.
Fan Xian shook his head and said coldly, "Such a lackey who condones his elder brother's forceful seizure of farmland from the common people wants to return to the Imperial Study? It's not that simple."
After pondering for a moment, she said softly, "Why bother with a servant? If he really returns to the Imperial Study, and the enmity between you two deepens, I'm afraid it will be inconvenient... Besides, the palace is saying that this Little Eunuch Hong is related to Old Eunuch Hong somehow. After all, you are an official of the court."
The eunuchs of Qing Kingdom never had much status. Since the founding of the nation, eunuchs had been strictly prohibited from interfering in politics, with those who did being banished from the palace at best, and beaten to death on the spot at worst. However, over the decades, there had always been one or two exceptions, and the old eunuch Hong, who always rested outside the Hanguang Palace, was naturally such an exceptional figure.
No one knew how long this old eunuch had been in the palace. He had the deep trust of the Empress Dowager and His Majesty, and he was also an extremely mysterious expert. If Hong Zhu really was related to Old Eunuch Hong, Fan Xian would have to be wary. However, Fan Xian, of course, knew the reason behind this. He couldn't help but laugh, though he couldn't tell Consort Yi the truth. He could only say with a smile, "Aunt, don't worry, I know what I'm doing."
Consort Yi saw that he didn't care and couldn't help but persuade him a few more times. Seeing that it was of no use, she reluctantly entered the inner chamber, too lazy to argue with this stubborn child from her family.
Fan Xian went over to the Third Prince's table and said a few more words to him before leaving the Shufang Palace under the Third Prince's reluctant gaze.
Wan'er was to stay overnight in the Empress Dowager's Hanguang Palace today. He didn't know if this stay would last for days. The Fan Xian couple entered the palace, but only one of them was able to return. Walking through the long, gloomy gate of the Imperial Palace's Shenwu Gate, he felt lonely. Looking at the blurred shadows behind him, he felt extremely unhappy. On the one hand, he felt that Wan'er was indeed extremely favored in the Imperial Family, and on the other hand, he was secretly cursing the old woman for only knowing how to enjoy the pleasures of kinship and completely forgetting that he and his wife were also reunited after a long separation.
He left the palace with a look of displeasure on his face, only to see the Eldest Prince looking at him with a smile that was not a smile. He couldn't help but say in an annoyed tone, "Since the founding of the nation, there haven't been many Commander of the Imperial Guards and Minister of the Guards who, like you, stand guard at the palace gate every day... This isn't a time for military expeditions. This is a time of peace and prosperity. Standing guard at the palace gate, are you planning to watch someone make a fool of themselves?"
The Eldest Prince suppressed his smile, snorted coldly, and said, "What jokes are there to see about you? Do you feel that Chen girl losing face by not returning to the mansion with you? Don't forget, my sister grew up in the palace since she was a child. You seem to have forgotten all of this."
Fan Xian had met the Eldest Prince two or three times since returning to the capital, but there had always been outsiders present, making it difficult to speak privately. Although, under the kind care of Chen Pingping and Talent Ning, these two brothers had already formed an unspoken alliance, the Eldest Prince's position was different after all. He was the elder brother of all the princes and did not want to see the Crown Prince and the Second Prince be gradually played into depression by Fan Xian. Therefore, there was still some distance between the two.
"I won't say much to you today. I'm in a hurry to return to the mansion to handle some matters." Fan Xian looked at the Eldest Prince's expression and knew that this military general, this political virgin, was preparing to say something to him. He waved his hands repeatedly.
The Eldest Prince said in a deep voice, "I don't plan to lecture you about Chen girl's matter today. I only want to ask you how you plan to deal with that woman of yours from the north."
Fan Xian was stunned. Only then did he realize that another domestic matter had come up. He couldn't help but smile bitterly and say, "Eldest Prince, this is a matter for this subject's family. Now that Wan'er has married me, you don't need to worry about it anymore."
Initially, he had felt a little bit of jealousy towards the Eldest Prince and Wan'er's closeness. Now that he had the opportunity, he coldly struck back.
The Eldest Prince was furious, but he forcibly suppressed his anger and said, "Who cares about you? It's just that the Princess said that you haven't visited my mansion since the New Year and asked me to ask you if you don't plan to come."
The Princess was naturally the Great Princess of Northern Qi, whom Fan Xian had personally escorted south. Fan Xian scratched his head and said, "I will naturally visit His Highness's mansion. Probably the day after tomorrow."
The Eldest Prince nodded when he heard that he had agreed and stopped bothering him. Fan Xian suddenly thought of something and said, "I'll bring Hong Cheng with me."
The Eldest Prince was slightly surprised and looked at him twice, thinking, wasn't that kid Hong Cheng grounded because of you?
Fan Xian did not explain, only frowned and said, "Speaking of which, do you still want that mansion in Yangcong Lane? After all, she's a dignified Hu princess, can't just leave her to rot in that courtyard, right?"
The Eldest Prince was choked and couldn't say anything for a long while.
Fan Xian saw this and confirmed it. During the journey back to the capital with the Western Expeditionary Army, this Eldest Prince must have had countless nights of illicit affairs with that Hu princess, Masuosuo. However, he did not want to prick the other party any further. He cupped his hands and got into the black carriage.
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After returning to the Fan Residence, he entered the most secluded study in the triangular area of the garden. After confirming that there were no eavesdroppers around, and that even the Tiger Guards and the servant woman that the Emperor had planted in the Fan Residence were far away from this study, Fan Xian spread his legs apart and lay comfortably on the low couch. He pointed his feet, wearing pure wool socks produced by the Internal Treasury, towards the door of the study, enjoying the steam rising and making his sore feet happy.
The pair of boots were placed under the couch.
The piece of paper was already in his hands.
No one knew about the relationship between him and Hong Zhu, not even Chen Pingping and his father. Even Su Wenmao, who had personally handled the Yingzhou affairs, did not know that he was avenging Hong Zhu and could not guess in that direction. Hong Zhu could be said to be the deepest nail that Fan Xian had planted in the Imperial Palace.
It was precisely because of this that the two sides did not dare to risk establishing a regular intelligence system. It was very difficult for Hong Zhu to transmit any news out of the palace.
Of course, the general news from the Imperial Palace was handled by Consort Yi and the several grand eunuchs who were on good terms with Fan Xian, so there was no fear of being uninformed. Since Hong Zhu had risked sending him a message, then this message was worth taking seriously, not to mention the hint of fear that Fan Xian had seen in Hong Zhu's eyes when he entered the palace before the New Year, which made Fan Xian even more curious about the contents of this piece of paper.
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...
Fan Xian looked at the piece of paper and couldn't help but narrow his eyes slightly. When he saw the end, he couldn't suppress the shock in his heart and immediately sat up from the couch!
When he first started reading the piece of paper, he didn't take it too seriously and felt that Hong Zhu was taking too much of a risk. However, when he saw the end, he finally understood the hidden meaning in Hong Zhu's words, and he was so frightened that he couldn't lie down anymore.
The piece of paper was written very simply. The specific characters were referred to by some secret language that Fan Xian had agreed upon with Hong Zhu from the beginning. Fan Xian understood it very clearly.
The first paragraph described a strange habit of the Crown Prince during intimate moments: he always liked to lift the clothes of the palace maids and concubines, covering their heads and only exposing their naked lower bodies.
The second paragraph was written with a trembling hand, obviously because Hong Zhu was afraid when he was writing it.
It wrote that in the year that Fan Xian was away from Kyoto, the Crown Prince's body had gradually recovered, and his venereal disease seemed to have been cured. However, his habit during intimate moments remained unchanged, and on several occasions when the Crown Prince was a little drunk, he faintly heard him shout the word "Aunt" at the moment of ecstasy.
Aunt?
Aunt!
If it was limited to these two paragraphs, Fan Xian could only confirm through this intelligence that the Crown Prince had infinite fantasies about the beautiful face and perfect body of the Eldest Princess. Although it was a bit perverted, it was not worth mentioning to Fan Xian, who had experienced countless "fertile water" articles in his previous life.
What really frightened Fan Xian and made him jump up from the couch was the third paragraph written in Hong Zhu's message, which was only one sentence.
It said that in the past few months, the Crown Prince had rarely been intimate with the palace maids and concubines in the Eastern Palace, and his spirit was very good.
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The last sentence, which was very simple and even seemed meaningless to ordinary people, frightened Fan Xian a lot. Although this piece of paper was written vaguely, discerning people would still know who it was talking about. Hong Zhu must have seen something or heard something, but he didn't dare to write it on the paper...
Aunt? Fan Xian paced around the study several times, his lips a little dry. Finally, he stopped in front of the low couch, rubbed his hands together, and shredded the piece of paper into pieces. His face was extremely strange. After a long while, he cursed in a low voice, "What the hell do you think you are, Yang Guo!"
Fan Xian was dumbfounded. He was completely dumbfounded. Although Mr. Jin and Mr. Dumas had taught him that the two dirtiest places in this world were the Imperial Palace and the brothel, and the history of his previous life had also given him some psychological preparation with the words "dirty Tang and smelly Han," when he truly learned about the affairs in the palace, he, the biggest brothel owner of Qing Kingdom, still couldn't help but stare blankly and feel shocked!
He went to the table, picked up a cup of cold tea, and drank it to extinguish the shock and absurdity in his heart. It took him a long time to calm down. He finally understood where Hong Zhu's fear came from. Anyone who knew about such an incestuous story that was intolerable to the world, the first reaction would be fear of being killed to silence them.
At the same time, he also knew why the Crown Prince had been so calm recently, so confident. It turned out that... he was confident that he could make the Eldest Princess truly abandon the Second Prince and support himself instead.
But... what if the Eldest Princess was just playing with the Crown Prince's feelings?
Fan Xian suddenly thought of this and immediately shook his head, giving himself a light slap in the face. What was he thinking about such a big thing? Did he still have to consider for the Second Prince? He had to get the most benefit from this news.
But the image of Guangxin Palace still couldn't help but appear in his mind, and he couldn't help but shudder.
He really felt uncomfortable in his heart. On the one hand, he inexplicably felt sorry for the Eldest Princess. This most beautiful woman in Qing Kingdom, this peerless beauty who showed no signs of aging, how could she use her body as a weapon? Even though rumors had always circulated that the Eldest Princess kept many male concubines, Fan Xian still subconsciously didn't want to believe it.
The second reason for his unhappiness was that, no matter what, the Eldest Princess was his mother-in-law. This little bastard of a Crown Prince actually had an affair with his mother-in-law, so what about his father-in-law in Wuzhou? What... the hell did he count as!
Fan Xian stood by the table, his fist clenched slightly, and a wave of unreasonable anger rose in his heart. It was clearly a piece of news that he could use to make a big fuss and directly bring down the Crown Prince, but it didn't make him happy at all. He always felt that he had been taken advantage of by the Crown Prince.
At the same time, he was also annoyed by Hong Zhu's boldness. He didn't know if the scraps of paper under his boots had been seen by the little eunuchs kneeling on the ground. If this matter spread, it would be difficult for Fan Xian to protect him.
He was silent at the table for a long time before he finally got rid of the absurd sense of failure and anger. He took two deep breaths and decided to make good use of this shocking news.
But...
If he couldn't talk to Hong Zhu face to face and start from the inside of the Imperial Palace, there was no way to maximize the impact of this matter. He couldn't possibly let the Eighth Bureau of the Supervisory Council spread rumors in the market again.
The Eldest Princess and the Crown Prince were having an affair? Fan Xian didn't want to risk the Emperor's anger, the Empress Dowager's rage, and the Supervisory Council being investigated by throwing out these rumors. He had to let the Emperor or the Empress Dowager personally discover this scandal within the palace!
He made up his mind to make a good plan. At the same time, before leaving the capital, he would agree with Hong Zhu on all the details of the plan's implementation.
As for words like plans and conspiracies, Fan Xian, who was good at sniping and small tricks, didn't have much confidence. He immediately thought of his most capable assistant, that young man in white. So, he immediately walked out of the study, went directly through the back garden, got on the carriage, and didn't even hear the sound of the imperial edict being announced from the front of the Fan Residence.
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The carriage arrived at the Supervisory Council's square, gray building. Fan Xian jumped out of the carriage in a hurry, his leather boots stepping on the remaining snow piled on both sides of Tianhe Avenue, making a "whoosh" sound.
As he walked into the courtyard, officials of the Supervisory Council greeted him with shock and made way for him. These officials, seeing the Deputy Director's gloomy face and hurried steps, were thinking, "I wonder which big shot in the capital is going to be unlucky again."
He pushed open the door and entered the secret room. As expected, he saw a young official wearing plain thick clothes sitting behind the table next to the black cloth by the window. In the entire Supervisory Council, the only one who didn't like to wear official uniforms and had the right not to wear them was the current head of the Fourth Bureau, the plenipotentiary of the Supervisory Council, Yan Bingyun, Young Master Yan.
Fan Xian threw the lotus-colored coat he was wearing onto the chair, closed the door, frowned as he looked at the black cloth on the window, walked directly to the window, and tore off the black cloth.
The light from the outside and the reflection of the remaining snow poured into the gloomy room all at once, making it bright. The sudden increase in light stung Yan Bingyun's eyes, and he subconsciously raised his hand to block it.
"You're not Director Chen." Fan Xian frowned and said, "You don't have to always hide yourself in the dark."
Yan Bingyun put down his hand and shook his head helplessly. This piece of black cloth had been on the window of this secret room for many years and had become the most unique scenery of the Supervisory Council. Who would dare to move it easily? Only the Deputy Director would be so unconcerned about Director Chen's intentions.
Fan Xian looked at Yan Bingyun's pale face and haggard expression and couldn't help but shake his head. Now, Chen Pingping didn't care much about the Supervisory Council, and he was too lazy to care. Everything was piled on Yan Bingyun alone. Looking at his appearance, he probably hadn't slept well for many days. Fan Xian felt a faint apology in his heart.
He walked to the window, squinted his eyes, looked at the Imperial City in the distance, and said, "What does the Director mean by covering it with such a piece of black cloth?"
Yan Bingyun did not speak.
Fan Xian looked at the majestic palace city in the distance and suddenly began to doubt his decision to come to the Supervisory Council to find Yan Bingyun. That matter involved the Imperial Family's dignity and the future of Qing Kingdom, and Young Master Yan had always regarded the interests of the court as the highest principle.
He turned his head and glanced at Yan Bingyun, not daring to take the risk.
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(There are two flaws. I wrote two casual things wrong before. Chen Pingping should be older than the Emperor. Also, Prince Jing is slightly older than Yunrui. I apologize with a thick face.
Regarding the issue of the Crown Prince not being in the Prince sequence, I set it up like this before. As for whether this setting is good or not, reasonable or not, that's another matter. I just like to play like this. There is no problem of writing about the Third Prince and forgetting about the Crown Prince. There are only four numbers in total. I have five fingers and can count them... Maybe it's unreasonable, but I don't care.
Speaking of Li Yunrui, I said before that Yunrui gave birth to Wan'er at fifteen... When the Kyoto incident happened, Yunrui was only twelve or thirteen years old. I think all little girls are pure pearls.
As for Prince Jing saying hide-and-seek, this is a casual remark. Of course, such a big thing could not have been overheard by playing hide-and-seek in the Imperial Palace. As a Prince of the Imperial Family, Prince Jing's difficulty is that he is the most helpless person. He is just reminding Fan Xian about the Qin family, but it is impossible to tell Fan Xian everything.
...Prince Jing just needs a reason to tell Fan Xian, and Fan Xian knowingly accepts this reason. Smart people should not ask too much. I wrote this very carefully and should be fine.
Prince Jing is not very old this year. Some friends said that it doesn't match the impression of the old farmer at the beginning and feels wrong. That's another problem I set up. At the beginning, I wanted to write such a decadent prince, whose first love died early, so he indulged in pleasure, had children early, grew gray hair early, and aged early.
...From this, it can be seen that men should cherish their feelings and essence. Don't fall in love early.
There must be many flaws in the book. I certainly admit this, but I admit it... I'm afraid I won't have time to change it, after all, I'm not writing a paper. I don't have that ability and energy. I have to write every day, which is very hard. Please be considerate and thank you very much for your reading, corrections, and understanding all along.
I've written so much nonsense, it would be stupid not to ask for votes. Extend your right hand, love China, love monthly tickets, please vote for monthly tickets!
ps: This paragraph does not count towards the word count.
Another ps: I originally wanted to call this chapter "Shocking Secret News", but then I felt it was too tabloid, although I was already very tabloid.
One more ps: The Philips color TV in my living room that accompanied the whole family for fourteen years is finally broken. Am I habitually crying poor?)
Have a great weekend everyone.)