Chapter 208 - Disclosure

Cailuo had been stunned. While awaking her, Daiguo Grand Princess and her family came inside. When she heard of the farce, she was startled and immediately said, “Jinguo, you are so muddle-headed! How can you believe a concubine’s nonsense? Especially on such a day!”

“I’m not saying that I believe her, but as she shouted outside, I must ask about it.” Jinguo Grand Princess slightly frowned. She knew that Daiguo Grand Princess said so not to defend for Princess Consort of Yi but to prevent others from taking the blame because Prince of Wei and Prince of Zhao were both hoping to blame the Crown Prince for the death of Prince of Yi.

“If it is not the case, your inquiry will ruin our sister-in-law’s reputation,” Daiguo Grand Princess said querulously, “It has been known to us what kind of life she has lived over the past years! Now that she not only lost her husband and but also gets slandered by a concubine, we don’t show understanding for her and even suspect her for the concubine. We are all women. Why can’t you think in her shoes?”

Jinguo Grand Princess, became embarrassed and felt like saying something when Princess Consort of Yi, who had been quiet, said indifferently, “Thank you, Daiguo. However, the Prince was your younger brother anyway. He died so suddenly that there are a lot of rumors spread around. Since Cailuo said that, it is reasonable enough that Jinguo wants to ask her about it. As to my reputation, now that my husband is gone, what others think of me doesn’t matter anymore.”

Daiguo Grand Princess glanced at her sister with a sneer, saying, “Jinguo, if you are so eager to be a judge, you may as well ask the officer of the Yamen of the Jingzhao Municipality to assign a few cases to you. Why do you have to bully our own family?”

Jinguo Grand Princess pursed her lips and looked at Princess Consort of Yi with an apologetic glint in her eyes, but she still didn’t mention not inquiring of Cailuo in the end. After a while, Cailuo, who was awoken by the icy water, staggered over tremblingly in wet clothes, and knelt down, “I’m Cailuo…”

“No talking nonsense!” Before Cailuo paid her respects, Daiguo Grand Princess waved her hand impatiently, “You claimed that our sister-in-law had plotted to murder her husband. Do you have any evidence? If not, not only will you be punished by law for conspiring against the legal wife but also I won’t spare such an evil woman as you!”

Cailuo was shocked and hastened to say, “Your Highness Daiguo Grand Princess, I saw with my own eyes that after His Highness Prince of Liang left, the Princess Consort entered the study alone and then left. After a while, when the steward went in there, he found that the Prince had been… His Highness Prince of Liang has no grudge against the Prince and he is the Prince’s nephew. How can he hurt the Prince? It must be the Princess Consort, who hates the Prince for being cold-shouldered for many years…”

“Slap her in the face!” Daiguo Grand Princess’s face turned even more ghastly pale. In the end, she finally yelled at Cailuo impatiently, “Who do you think you are? How dare you judge my brother on his love affairs? In my opinion, you must have been instigated by someone to purposely slander the Princess Consort and thus exonerate Prince of Liang!”

Then she hedged and stared at Song Yixiao with a sharp look, “Yixiao, am I right?”

Song Yixiao twitched the corner of her mouth and slightly lowered her head without meeting the gloating eyes of Princess Changxing who was sitting in the seat of honor, saying, “I was on the way back home after paying a visit to Grandaunt with Xubai when we heard the death of Uncle! By now I still have no idea what actually happened so I don’t dare to comment on whether Aunt or His Highness Prince of Liang is guilty.”

“You don’t dare to comment?” Daiguo Grand Princess snorted and turned to Cailuo who was being slapped by her trusted maid, saying, “Here is only one question. According to your testimonial, it was after Prince of Liang left that the Princess Consort went to meet my brother! If she wanted to plot against her husband’s life, how could she not clear off the site? How could you see that scene?”

The maid stopped slapping for the moment. Cailuo covered her face and said with fear, “I was ordered to go away but I happened to leave something near the study. While I was looking for…”

“Did you hear her?” Daiguo Grand Princess interrupted her again and sneered, “She is only a concubine, as lowly as a maid! The Princess Consort asked her to go away and she still dared to look for her thing nearby! It is enough to show how ill-intentioned she is! How can her words be credible? If yes, I’m sure that the other inferior people will make bigger trouble in the future!”

Seriously flustered, Cailuo shouted, “Your Highness, I…”

“Stop shouting?” Daiguo Grand Princess yelled at her and the maid standing next to Cailuo just gave her two more slaps in the face without hesitation. She fell to the ground and couldn’t get up for the moment, let alone say anything more. Daiguo Grand Princess’s anger was finally slightly eased. She said to Jinguo Grand Princess, “The truth has been very clearly disclosed! Prince of Yi might adore this woman very much when he was still alive. Therefore, she is bold enough to have received some benefits or obtained some promise from others to slander the Princess Consort after Prince of Yi passed away.”

She snorted with disdain, “Such a woman who dares to offend the senior should be hacked into pieces as a warning to others for a better general mood!”

Regardless of Cailuo’s vague shouting for grievance, Jinguo Grand Princess only stared at Princess Consort of Yi and said in a soft voice, “Did you really go to meet Prince of Yi after Prince of Liang left?”

Princess Consort of Yi said calmly, “Yes.”

She said calmly but the whole hall just fell into dead silence!

Daiguo Grand Princess had a glint of dissatisfaction in her eyes and said coldly, “Jinguo, your question is so pointless! Even though our sister-in-law went to meet Prince of Yi after Prince of Liang left, it didn’t mean that she had something to do with his death! After all, it is pretty normal that a wife goes to have a talk with her husband!”

Jinguo Grand Prince ignored her and continued asking Princess Consort of Yi, “I don’t know why you met with Prince of Yi. How was Prince of Yi doing at that time?”

“My mother-in-law’s deathday is around the corner, so I went to discuss with the Prince about the sacrificial activity.” Princess Consort of Yi’s calm words reminded the two Grand Princesses of the birth mother of Prince of Yi, Dowager Consort An, who was beaten to death by Noble Consort Shentu in the Palace of Xifu on the 21st day of the second lunar month decades ago for being unwilling to slander Emperor Xianjia!

Today was the eighth day of the second lunar month. It was reasonable that Princess Consort of Yi went to discuss with Prince of Yi about it.

Princess Consort of Yi added, “The Prince seemed to be lost in thought. Upon seeing me, he appeared a bit impatient. After hearing me talk of his mother’s deathday, he only said the ritual activity should be implemented as usual. Then I just left.”

“He was only thinking about something?” Daiguo Grand Princess was not satisfied with her saying and then asked further, “But he just died shortly after you left! How could he simply be lost in thought? Didn’t you notice any abnormal things?”

She was clearly suggesting that if Princess Consort of Yi didn’t talk of any abnormal look of Prince of Yi, she would probably be convicted of murdering Prince of Yi! After all, Princess Consort of Yi was the last one who had seen Prince of Yi alive!

However, Princess Consort of Yi seemed unable to understand her hint and then said peacefully, “He was only thinking about something indeed. If I had noticed something wrong, how could I have left without doing anything?”

Daiguo Grand Princess frowned and was about to say something else when a maid rushed inside in a flurry, “Her Majesty the Empress Dowager has sent a senior maid here!”

It was Yuguo who came to deliver the order of the Empress Dowager that Princess Consort Yi, Cailuo and other relevant members of the Prince of Yi’s family should go into the imperial palace to meet Her Majesty!

“The news has been sent to Mother so quickly. Someone must be behind this!” Daiguo Grand Princess kept sneering and then glanced at Jinguo Grand Princess, saying sarcastically, “Jinguo, you are so unfair! Xubai is your son indeed. Isn’t Yiyou your son too?”

She suspected Jinguo Grand Princess of showing partiality for Cailuo for the sake of her youngest son, or this concubine would have been beaten to death by Daiguo Grand Princess! How could she have a chance to accuse Princess Consort of Yi of having met Prince of Yi after Prince of Liang left? Surely, she wouldn’t be able to confront in front of the Empress Dowager!

Jinguo Grand Princess was rather embarrassed and disgruntled at the moment. She questioned Cailuo only to find out whether her brother died of the conflict within his own backyard, but the Empress Dowager learnt about this so soon. By estimate, the servant of Prince of Yi’s mansion must have run into the imperial palace to report on this as soon as Cailuo made a fuss outside so that the Empress Dowager could be informed within such a short period of time.

Obviously, she had been used!

“In this way, let’s go to Mother’s palace and see what’s going on!” Jinguo Grand Princess, not as barbarian as her sister, did feel unhappy at the moment but she still didn’t lose temper. She only nodded her head and said to her daughter and daughters-in-law, “If you have nothing else to say, just go back home first!”

Certainly, her suggestion was to prevent the juniors from looking on the mess of the seniors.

Song Yixiao and the other juniors were curious but they were all frightened by her current look. Even Princess Changxing didn’t dare to say anything. The juniors saw the seniors off obediently before leaving. Of course, they didn’t leave right away. Commandery Princess Qingjiang decided to send Nie Wuying back to Jinguo Grand Princess’s mansion first and then go back home. Lady of Earl Shouchun, Princess Changxing and Song Yixiao had to send for their husbands respectively.

After a while, Jian Xubai and the others said goodbye to the people in the drawing room. They were all rather surprised to hear that Cailuo disclosed what Princess Consort of Yi had done, “It is said that Aunt is always virtuous. How come?”

Despite that, the three brothers all looked as if deep in thought. Obviously, whether they really thought so remained unknown.

“Anyway, now that the matter is attended to by Grandmother, we shouldn’t talk too much about it!” Commandery Princess Qingjiang was concerned about her son and didn’t want to stay in Prince of Yi’s mansion any longer, saying, “It is a matter among the seniors!”

Since the eldest sister said so, instead of saying anything further, they said goodbye to each other and left for their own destinations. On the way back home, Song Yixiao briefed her husband about what had happened and in the end, she said, “It is so strange! By reason, Cailuo is only a concubine. Even if she lived a well-off life before, she must rely on Uncle’s favor! However, now that Uncle is gone, how dare she speak ill of Aunt? Moreover, how could she deliberately make a fuss in the back hall while Mother and Aunt were talking?”

Prince of Yi didn’t engage in politics for more than 20 years, but Emperor Xianjia still treated this brother well enough in terms of benefits. Therefore, the Prince’s mansion was not short of servants. Even when Prince of Yi was alive, the servants might work for different people, but after Prince of Yi was gone, the Princess Consort became the person-in-charge naturally.

Under the circumstance, the servants must be eager to show their capability. How dare they neglectfully let a weak woman as Cailuo make a fuss in the back hall?

If it were not for the fact that Song Yixiao hadn’t met Princess Consort of Yi before and she couldn’t comment on the Princess Consort, Song Yixiao would suspect that Cailuo must have been connived or even instigated by Princess Consort of Yi!

Jian Xubai didn’t know much about Prince of Yi’s family and then said after pondering for a moment, “Since Grandmother has interfered, let’s wait and see!”

Then he added, “So many things happened today. I must go to the Eastern Palace again!”

He pinched the middle of his eyebrows and let out a sigh, “There must be a closure for Princess Consort of Liang’s matter!”

As they talked, the couple parted at the corner. To Song Yixiao’s surprise, after she returned to the mansion, before she changed into everyday clothes, a maid rushed inside hurriedly and reported, “Your Highness, the Young Mistress of the Sikong Family is waiting for you at the back door!”

“Madam Chang?” Song Yixiao was a bit stunned and then understood why Madam Chang came. Why else could it be but for the insensible Princess Consort of Liang?

She ruminated for a while and ordered, “Invite her to the drawing room for tea. Tell her that I’ve just come back and that I will go to meet her after getting changed!”