Chapter 48： Harm oneself

The prince only heard the first sentence: "The killing of the fourth son of Zhenbeihou was not done..." He slapped the case and shouted angrily: "A child of one and a half years old can't kill a child! A bunch of rubbish! I asked you to do it. Didn't you arrange several people how to do it!"

One person said tremblingly: "A woman took the child to the lake, and one person led the others away. There were five people on the lake looking around, not letting anyone come over or letting the child. Run away, very thoughtful arrangements..."

The prince cursed: "Fart! Thoughtful! You can't do it with ‘Thoughtful’! Just know what went wrong with the big talk!" He didn’t notice that the way and tone of his speech was very similar to that of a queen.

The explainer stammered: "The second lady, sitting behind the rocks by the lake, may be asleep, no one saw her, it happened..."

The prince frowned: "What a coincidence!"

The staff member read the report carefully, and hesitated: "Several roads to that place were all blocked. No one saw her walking to the lake. She must have been there before."

The prince was angry: "A big living person is sitting there, but he didn't even see it! A bunch of trash! Idiots!"

The staff accompanied him carefully and said: "She said she wanted to rest there, so the maid left to get things. She probably fell asleep. She stayed in the house for two months and was out of the house not long ago. Just one trip out of the house. I was so tired that I lay down for a few days. I heard that I was out of the yard that day..."

The prince gritted his teeth: "Such a weak girl who has no power to bind a chicken has rested for such a long time. There are a few people over there, six, or seven can not clean up together! So the younger brother fell into the water, and the older sister went to rescue. All drowned! Such a simple thing, can it be taught by others!"

The staff read the document again and said: "It seems that those people wanted to do this. A woman passed by and wanted to strangle her to death. But after raising her hand, she regretted it again, because the young lady looked like she was crying. It was probably that woman. I can't bear it in my heart..."

The prince slapped the table hard: "Fart! Fart! What can't bear it!"

The head of the staff did not dare to lift up: "The old lady just didn't do anything. The second lady's maid, Su Wanniang, came back to look for the lady. The guardian saw her. Before she came to kill her, she yelled. See you. No, I surrounded them and wanted to throw them all into the lake..."

The prince was anxious: "Why don't you do it! Why don't you do it!"

The staff member continued: "The woman who took the lead was about to do it, but she was choked by something, she kept rolling her eyes and couldn't do it. She was a cook, and she was the most ruthless. She didn't move. Others hesitated... …"

The prince widened his eyes in disbelief: "What did you say! She choked at a critical moment! She didn't do it! She did it on purpose! This lady must have betrayed us!"

The staff hurriedly nodded-this is better than being scolded as an "idiot" for improper arrangements, and hurriedly said: "Then the second son, Shen Jian, arrived, and then Shen Zhuo and his guards arrived, and they **** everyone. Things...it didn't happen."

The prince gritted his teeth and asked, "That second lady is really unintentional."

The staff member said: "As soon as she showed up, she kept crying. From beginning to end, she didn't listen to what she said. The main reason was that her maid was yelling."

The prince took a deep breath: "How many people were arrested in the Hou Mansion?"

The staff member said: "There are seven people in total, and the second son of Shen sent them all off, and he also said that their families should be connected to the mansion for protection, so that they can confess..."

The prince asked in disbelief: "No people tortured them, ask for details."

The staff shook his head and said: "The Yang family is also puzzled. Shen Jian said that these people must have done such a thing. It must be unwilling. Someone behind must have instructed them. Let them confess in the government, and the Houfu will release their deeds. , No longer be held accountable! Moreover, Shen Jian said that as long as one person confessed, the Hou Mansion could have evidence and let Zhenbei Hou report to the emperor...

The prince's heart jumped, go and tell the emperor! I couldn't help but shoot the case again: "Those people must have betrayed the East Palace long ago!"

The staff hurriedly echoed: "Yes, when it was time to start, he was still reluctant to start. After being caught, the Hou Mansion did not punish him at all, and he gave such a good way out..."

Another person hurriedly said, "Oh! No! If those people tell the officials that they are the main envoys of the Eastern Palace, they will file a case in the government. Even if there is insufficient evidence in the future, they will remain suspected. Maybe these people have already followed suit. The Hou Mansion conspired to get the crown prince unrighteous!"

The prince repeatedly said: "So cruel! So cruel!" He got up all of a sudden, walked back and forth in the room, muttering: "These people... these people, if they have confessions..." If the emperor knew... …The prince's cold sweat came out again.

One of the staff members immediately said: "We must not wait until the church opens tomorrow, we have to start tonight!"

The prince nodded repeatedly and waved his fingers in the air: "Not only do you want to start, the improper woman, didn't drown the child, strangled the second lady, and pretended to be the one who was coughing..."

The staff nodded and said: "The subordinates must urge people to punish them well, and kill a hundred!"

Another staff member flipped through the letter: "Second Young Master Shen also said that tomorrow, his family will be connected to the Hou Mansion, saying that maybe one or two people's family members know the details..."

The prince waved his hand: "Since they have the guts to betray me, they must pay the price! Except it all!"

A person said cautiously: "In case, this is the Hou Mansion's plan to kill people with a knife."

Another staff member said: "But if you don't kill, if any of those people confide in the family, it is really as the second son of Shen said, as long as one person confessed, then the consequences would be disastrous!"

Another person said: "It's just the person who made the intermediary contact, it might not be able to get us involved."

A person sighed: "There are too many people going to move this time. There are more than a dozen people involved inside and outside. The person arranged in the middle is indeed Donggong's subordinates. The most feared thing is that someone inside has ventilated with the Hou Mansion, whether or not Knowing that the person in the middle is the East Palace, they insisted that it was the East Palace or the Queen. After all, during that winter hunt, the second son of the Hou Mansion, Shen Jian, turned their faces with His Royal Highness because of the Fourth Princess...

The prince weighed the pros and cons: Anyway, he was going to kill the seven people who had been sent to the office. If any of them had revealed something to the family, if those people died, the family would feel wronged, so what should they do if they jumped out to appeal? It's over, in case, what if the emperor finds out! Kill all those who might know, and in the end there is no evidence, even if the emperor has noticed it, there is still something to shirk!

The prince categorically said: "Kill them all! Those few people and their families. It's better to kill by mistake than to make mistakes! It can be regarded as a warning to those who do things for us! If we can't do things, be careful of our lives!"

Everyone at the scene felt that their hair was terrifying, but the prince still didn't know it. He was immersed in anxiety about what would happen if the emperor discovered this, and said impatiently: "Hurry up! It's going to be dark! The palace gate is going to be dark. It's locked!"

Everyone retired, and all of them looked like earth.

Shen Wen was also so afraid that her heart was pounding-she did not foresee that someone would harm Shen Qiang! Why on earth Shen Wen went to the East Palace overnight, but she didn't hear anything other than presumptuous. The prince's staff have already left, and the prince is under pressure and wants to seek relief through the woman's body. Shen Wen returned in disappointment, making Su Wanniang worry all night.

In fact, Shen Wen just heard the conversation between the prince and his staff, and he would not understand the prince's intention: the prince did not even tell his staff why he wanted to kill Shen Qiang, and his own staff did so aggressively to the prince to kill a child inexplicably.

That night, the seven servants of the Hou Mansion who had been sent to the Yamen hanged themselves and "self-destructed". Among them, the woman who was about to drown Shen Qiang's face was all scratched, her nostrils opened, and her eyes were broken. The Yamen replied to the Hou Mansion the next day that these people had guilt in their hearts and used this to atone for the sin of treason.

When the news came, the old lady Yang was in the lobby with Shen Jian and Shen Zhuo and Shen Xiang to arrange shift protection for Shen Qiang. Liu's birth date is approaching, so she will not be allowed to come. Shen Wen was "not in good health", so he was naturally raised in his yard, so he didn't have to worry about such things.

Shen Jian took the official letter from the next person, read it, frowned and handed it to the old lady. The old lady read it, sighed deeply, and gave it to the Yang family, who read it, staring wide. Only with eyes, Shen Jian said loudly: "Quick! Go pick up their family members, in case someone kills their mouths!"

The letter paper fell from Yang's hand, Shen Zhuo took it, and read it with Shen Xiang. Shen Zhuo immediately jumped up and said, "I will lead the people!"

The old lady said, "Erlang, Saburo."

The two turned to look at the old lady. The old lady had tears in her eyes, and said with difficulty: "Those are women, children, old and young, really, go and save!" There was a begging in her tone.

There was a trace of looseness in Shen Jian's cold eyes. After a while, he looked at Shen Zhuo and said gravely, "Just listen to my grandmother's words, and go quickly."

Shen Zhuo twisted the corner of his mouth and said, "Just to save, maybe it can't be so fast. We checked yesterday, and these people's homes are in the Zhuangzi outside our mansion. Maybe it's because it's easy to contact them over there. From there. It will take a long time to walk here. Besides, if something like this happens in the prison, I have to go to the Yamen and ask a few government officials to go with us. When they get to the place where they live, I have to lead some neighbours to walk together, so as not to get there. , Was planted!"

The old lady waved helplessly, and Shen Zhuo left.

Yang said in horror: "How could they die so miserably? Is this just killing their mouths?"

Shen Jian sighed: "I told them to confess yesterday that they never repented, and this was the result of course."

Shen Xiangbao said: "Our Hou Mansion has always treated people kindly. These people have not suffered any harm, and they have tried to murder the fourth brother. They have no conscience. Do you still want to have a good end!"

Yang's usual housekeeper, the most common is yelling, but rarely hits. Her own natal family is just a middle-class military commander, not a few servants. When I arrived at the Hou Mansion, after taking over things from the mansion, there were nearly three hundred people under his staff. They were very satisfied and felt very prestigious, so there was no need to use clubs or other things. In addition, in the past, the old lady often frustrated and chattered differently about the things she ordered. Things in the Hou Mansion were always handled amidst the clamor. Even if others didn’t listen to her, she blamed the old lady in her heart. . Since you can't hit the old lady, you naturally can't hit the person who listened to the old lady.

This time, for the first time in her life, she knew that seven servants in her mansion had died in one night! Although the day before, she had the heart to beat them up, but after a sleep, they all died! Yang took out the veil, blocked his trembling lips, and looked at the old lady.

The old lady didn't dare to look at Yang, she turned to look at Shen Jian and said, "You must protect your fourth brother. He is so young, he can't even speak..."

Yang's comprehension said, "Mother, what are you saying, those people deliberately killed Qiang'er and now so many people have died, but they will come again" she finished, her lips stopped trembling, and she closed tightly.

The old lady sighed: "This matter...it's hard to tell..."

Yang held the silk tightly, bowed slightly forward, and suddenly said, "When I was a child, I also learned martial arts."

Shen Xiang was taken aback, and said hurriedly: "Mother, then you always say that I am not like a girl or something"

Yang said slowly: "Yesterday, I ran to the lake and almost died. My father always told me that people must move all the time if they are alive. I have forgotten my roots for these years. From today onwards, I have to Move around often, not to weaken your legs and feet..."

Shen Jian's eyes suddenly got wet, "Mother, the child is not filial, let me worry about it!"

Shen Xiang said carelessly: "Mother, look at your waist, you really need to walk more. I ran back and forth with my mother. Within a month, if my mother runs away, she won't die..."

With a smile on his face, Yang said to Shen Xiang, "Okay, I will run with Xianger every day."

Shen Jian showed a muscle in his cheeks and saluted: "The elder sister is here to accompany my mother. I will go to see the little sister."

Shen Jian held his breath and walked to Shen Wen's yard, where Shen Wen was lying "weakly" in the sun, little black-skinned Shen Qiang squatting beside Shen Wen, pouting his **** and playing with the sand in a big tub. The embarrassment of yesterday is completely gone.

Shen Jian stopped Shen Wen's fake salute. Su Wanniang moved her chair over, and Shen Jian casually sat beside Shen Wen, seeming to look down at Xiao Hei Pi's play, and whispered: "We have to do something."

Shen Wen covered his open mouth with the back of his hand sleepily, and replied in a low voice, "The family of those people can't survive. If you get the specific information, you can report to the Beijing government. Others, we don't need to do anything."

Shen Jian frowned: "Why?"

Shen Wen closed his eyes and said: "If the emperor's hands were handed down, there is no need to silence it, it is to find out that it is related to the palace, what can we do"

Shen Jian nodded: Yes, when the queen "poisoned" Shen Wen in public, as long as Shen Wen did not die, Zhenbeihou Mansion would not be able to do anything, and the queen would not be punished. This time Shen Qiang did not die. If it was the emperor's hand, Zhenbei Houfu would also have to swallow his anger.

Shen Jian whispered: "So, this time it was not the emperor's hand, it was the prince..."

Shen Wen said: "Moreover, it was done without the emperor..."

Shen Jian nodded again: If he ventilates with the emperor, and the prince fails to do it, he doesn't need to stop talking.

Shen Jian asked in a low voice: "You knew it yesterday"

Shen Wen whispered: "The emperor has nothing to kill a child under two years old, why if he doesn't understand us, he has to condemn his father or elder brother, which is a warning. Only the prince can do this kind of thing. Maybe. It’s really like what Sister Wanniang said, to avenge the failure of the assassin on Dongshou, maybe it is the disfigurement of the four princesses."

Shen Jian sneered and whispered: "Then let's wait."

Shen Wen didn't smile, she was actually very nervous. This incident gave her a warning: She did not protect her family so well. If not by coincidence, Shen Qiang might have been drowned!

Thinking of this consequence, Shen Wen felt that his whole body was hot and it was difficult to control himself.

In the previous life, Shen Qiang did not exist at all. In this life, Shen Wen really did not expect that the prince would do something with a child. She reflected on her arrangements and actions over and over again, and she couldn't see that the prince had noticed her true face. But even if the prince had seen through all his disguise, he shouldn't kill Shen Qiang directly.

For the first time since rebirth, Shen Wen was puzzled. She had to warn herself: Don't think that she knows everything. An oversight almost killed Shen Qiang. What's more terrifying is that she still doesn't know where the oversight is!

The situation has gradually exceeded her control, and Shen Wen began to give up his confidence in mastering the overall situation. The problem now is to find a reliable alliance. Several of his elder brothers have been brought in. Zhang Yunzheng has agreed to it, but his temper is really impossible. Now I only hope that Zhang Yunming will take the burden of Zhang Yunzheng's sake and get things done.

Shen Wen meditated all night amidst various worries, desperately wanting to open his own heavenly eyes. But in the dark, she felt nothing except the void.

The same old Taoist who was sleeping in the wilderness was also meditating with her, but he only meditated until midnight and then looked up at the starry sky. In his distant eyes, he murmured: "The disaster of blood and light, I said, as soon as the evil star starts, it will inevitably be a **** disaster. What kind of child is such a deep red light, so many lives!"

Although Shen Wen didn’t understand the prince’s intentions, she guessed what happened during the day: Shen Zhuo brought forty or fifty guards and three officials from the capital to a Zhuangzi outside the city, just catching up with the local one. The Ya Ya was cleaning up the scene of the murder in Diemen. Two families were slaughtered overnight, and no one was spared. Shen Zhuo didn't take a closer look, and when he went to the next Zhuangzi, it was the same. The person he was looking for was dead. After going through all the seven houses, I didn't find a living person.

Counting it all, there are seven families with more than one hundred and sixty men, women and children! The death of so many people was still related to the Zhenbei Hou Mansion. This matter was serious, and Jingcheng Mansion Yin had to sue all the truth. The Zhenbei Hou Mansion also issued a testimony in time, demanding a strict investigation of the murderer who killed many servants and family members in his mansion.

The emperor naturally got the **** report and the narration of the incident before and after the incident from the inside line of the Hou Mansion. When he was alone in the study, he frowned and looked at the memorial back and forth, wondering why the prince did it.

The only person who can mobilize so many people is the prince. The other princes, the third princes and Zhenbeihou mansion close, it is impossible to do so, the four princes are lame, naturally without these forces, the fifth princes are not much bigger than the fourth sons of Zhenbeihou... other generals, none of them The power of Zhenbeihou does not need to take such an enemy for himself...

The emperor called Grandpa Gu to come in and said, "Go and inquire about the fourth son of Zhenbeihou, and see what is unusual, and this second young lady." There were only these two people by the lake at the time. Why did the prince kill them?

After Grandpa Gu left, the emperor asked Grandpa Grandpa who was standing aside: "This second young lady, is it the same as the fourth princess who caught the assassin during the winter hunting"

Grandpa Sun nodded and whispered: "Exactly."

The emperor shook his head: "Killing her, to vent his anger for the fourth princess, it's okay. But I have clearly warned him, why is he so disobedient? And, why kill this child under two years old is to teach Hou Ruozhen Zhenbei Killing that child angered Zhenbeihou and went to the court. There is no evidence for any benefit to him. It is no good to say it over there and let everyone point to his spine. Why is he so ignorant?"

Grandpa Sun didn't know anything about the black dragon, so he could only remain silent.

The next day, Father Gu came back and said flatly: "This second young lady has been dull since she was a child, and now she is weak and usually recuperating in the hospital. This fourth son is two years old in three months. He is strong and has dark skin... …"

The emperor interrupted: "What did you say! About the Fourth Young Master!"

Father Gu bowed and said: "It is two years old after three months. He is strong and has dark skin..."

The emperor squinted his eyes: "Did you see it with your own eyes?"

Grandpa Gu said: "After the slave and maidservant asked people about it, when it was dark, he went to their mansion and found the fourth son. He was playing with Zhenbeihou's mother Gu. He was indeed dark, and very strong, looking down. Like a three or four-year-old child..."

The emperor waved his hand and motioned to Father Gu to retreat.

Father Gu walked away slowly, naturally he would not say that he found the second lady's courtyard in the Hou Mansion that night. He wanted to hear whether the second lady's breathing was the sound of a sick person, but he was suddenly alert near the bedroom. He didn't see or hear anything, just a feeling of being discovered. In the breeze of the spring night, neither side acted any more, just like the man in black he met in the palace. He stood in the shadows for a long while, and there was only the breath of a person who obviously had no martial arts in the second lady's room, but the sense of danger was very strong. Grandpa Gu turned around and left the courtyard, and when he left the Hou Mansion, he found that there were other people patrolling outside the Hou Mansion.

The emperor waited until Grandpa Gu left before he hit the book case with a punch, cursing, "This bastard!"

Grandpa Sun hurriedly stepped forward and said, "The emperor calms down his anger."

The emperor realized in a moment that the prince must have known the appearance of the fourth son, and he was afraid that he would treat the Zhenbeihou Mansion graciously because of the legend of the black dragon guarding him... fearing that the third prince would replace him...

The emperor repeatedly hit the table with his fists: "This bastard! This beast! This wicked obstacle!"

The emperor was furious.

When the Emperor Xian told himself this secret, how carefully and proudly he maintained the secret. Telling the prince this secret is a kind of trust in him, which is tantamount to exposing part of his weakness to him. But how did he repay his betrayal, naked-naked betrayal! He wanted to kill the black dragon for the sake of his prince's seat! The black dragon born to **** himself!

Grandpa Sun beat the back for the emperor: "Please calm down your anger, calm down..." He actually wondered why the emperor was so angry when he heard that the fourth son of Zhenbeihou was so black.

The emperor gritted his teeth and said, "Go to Prince Xuan and see you immediately!"

The prince burst into tears into the queen's bedroom, knelt before the queen and said: "Mother, help me!"

The queen was leaning on the chaise longue, feeling as painful as a needle stick in her head. Recently, her headache was getting worse and her appetite was getting worse.

She cheered up and said, "The emperor is a prince, so I can speak slowly about any important things."

The prince cried and said: "Mother, the father said last time that he would abolish my canonization. This time, he will definitely withdraw my position as prince! The queen is really right. I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" He said aloud. Crying.

The prince hadn't revealed such a weak side for many, many years, and the queen was annoyed and anxious: "What are you talking about! You are the prince, how can you be dismissed quickly and tell the palace why for no reason."

The prince wiped his tears and winked at the surroundings, and the queen sternly said: "Go back!"

When everyone left, the prince cried and whispered the legend of the queen's black dragon escort. He knew the appearance of the four sons of Zhenbeihou. He was afraid that the emperor would think that this was the rebirth of the black dragon, so he would tolerate the family of Zhenbeihou... the son of Zhenbeihou We have become a tacit friendship with the three princes... Some people have also seen the three princes and Miss Shen meet and talk at the Lantern Festival Lantern Festival... If it is true that the black dragon is reborn, the driver of the guard is naturally not his own... So he arranged for someone Going to kill the youngest son of Zhenbeihou...failed, kills...there are many people killed, the father knows, he must understand his purpose...I heard that I was furious, and declared myself to meet...

The prince cried and said: "...The child asked the **** to excuse me that I was not in the East Palace to come here to see my mother! Mother! Mother! Save the child!"

The queen's body trembled sharply and her headache was splitting, but she clenched her teeth tightly, her eyes seemed to burst into flames, after listening to the prince's words, the queen raised her hand and gave the prince a slap in the face: "You useless thing I have told you how many times, the secretary must be clean and tidy! Do not leave the beginning and the end. A child can't get rid of it. You are a trash yourself, so you have a bunch of trash! How did this palace give birth to you such an idiot!"

The prince did not dodge, holding the queen’s legs and crying: “Mother! Please let the father stay with the baby! Let the baby stay with her mother! Do your filial piety for the mother!” It seems that the queen agreed to remove the four sons of Zhenbeihou by herself. What made the Queen's decision was that he didn't do it well, which made the queen so angry.

The queen clenched her sleeves tightly, frowned and thought, cold sweat leaked from her forehead. An **** outside shouted loudly: "The emperor proclaimed the prince to see you immediately!"

The prince wiped his tears and hugged the queen's leg and said: "The child has gone to see the father, the queen remembers to intercede for the child, the child cannot bear the mother and does not want to die."

The queen closed her eyes and said in a low voice, "Fine, that's it." She opened her eyes again, and she was still as harsh and harsh as before.

She stared at the prince and said: "Go to see your father, don't say a word! No matter what he says, beat you and scold you, you can only cry, you are not allowed to argue or admit, you understand!"

The prince looked up with some doubts. The queen looked at him stupidly and became angry, raised her hand and hit him on the head again, cursing bitterly: "Useless idiot! How many times have you said it, you never listen. This time." , You must listen to this palace, otherwise, you will die!"

The prince nodded hurriedly, hugged the queen’s knees and said: "I listen to the mother, I must listen to the mother!"

The **** outside the hall came to the door and said loudly: "Please move the prince."

The queen nodded, the prince stood up, wiped his face, saluted the queen, and walked out of the queen's bedroom with the **** in frustration. Leaving the palace where the queen lived, the prince let out a deep breath.

Seeing the prince leaving, the queen sat for a while, and said to herself: "If there is another emperor in this palace..." Then, she gritted her teeth again: "Bitch, don't think your son can become a prince. !"

She raised her voice: "Groom my palace and prepare a phoenix crown."

This was not a day of ceremonial celebrations, but when everyone saw the empress's gloomy face, no one dared to speak out. Filed inside, combed her hair again for the queen, and decorated her face. The queen's complexion was dark and yellow, she used a lot of bright powder and rouge, and drew the queen's somewhat pale eyebrows to be slender and thick, and the slightly blue lips were painted with Zhu Dan's mouth fat, but the whites of the cloudy and yellow eyes couldn't be put on makeup.

The queen chose the formal dress that she would only wear during the ceremony. It was cumbersome and gorgeous. The bright yellow and the red brocade shone in the dim light of the room.

Finally, the queen put on a phoenix crown with six dragons and three phoenixes.

At the top of the crown are six flying golden dragons, each with a long string of huge pearls, which seems to have the meaning of playing a phoenix. On the front are three phoenixes spreading their wings. The phoenix, the king of birds, is above all birds. There are three temples on the left and right under the crown, which look like colorful phoenix tails when unfolded. The rim of the phoenix crown was adorned with gems and beads and worn on the head, so heavy that the queen's headache was even more unbearable.

But that's it, she also had to wear it all. This is what she earned with a punch and kick, and she deserves the glory.

The queen finally checked her clothes, and first recruited a palace man to her side, and whispered: "That little one, let's deal with it now!"

The palace man was taken aback, and the queen nodded and said: "Immediately! There is no tomorrow!" When the palace man retreated, the queen said to the leading eunuch: "Let's go and see the emperor."

The **** hesitated and said: "Queen, Your Majesty has not called..."

The queen sneered: "The palace can't go to see him and start a ceremonial battle. Let's see who dares to stop it!"

Not long afterwards, the golden car outside the temple was ready, four yellow umbrellas were colorful, four huge yellow fans swayed, a group of eunuchs and court ladies lined up ceremonies, holding pots and incense burners, and there were drum bands, gongs, flutes, and sangban suona. The chief **** signaled, the drum music sounded, and the queen slowly stepped onto the gold car with grace, and walked to the emperor's study with the company of the brigade.