Rebirth: The Journey of an Heiress-Chapter 617 - 614: Outstanding_1

"Princess of Zhen, rest assured. I will guard him strictly," Lu Jin said solemnly. He then straightened up and added, "Now that we have obtained evidence from General Fu, I will send someone to invite Master Tan. Before everything is thoroughly investigated, I fear we will need the assistance of the Eldest Princess within the palace. After all, before the Emperor fell into a coma, he entrusted the harem to the Eldest Princess."

Fu Ruoxi, still kneeling in the prison, trembled slightly. He understood... Lu Jin’s words meant they were going to place the Empress under house arrest!

When Fu Ruoxi spoke out what was written in the Empress’s letter, he knew this would be the outcome. But deep down, he didn’t want to believe the Empress would send someone to silence him.

Bai Qingyan turned back and gave Fu Ruoxi a deep look, then walked out of the prison of the Court of Judicial Review. Quan Yu also bade farewell to Lu Jin and followed Bai Qingyan out of the prison.

By this time, the skies above Dadu City were already dark. The two lanterns hung high in front of the prison gates of the Court of Judicial Review swayed left and right in the wind.

During the day, no one dared approach the vicinity of the Court of Judicial Review, let alone at night. The gray high walls and the occasional screams and cries from interrogations within contributed to a truly haunting atmosphere.

Bai Qingyan looked into the depths of the darkness. Ever since she left the alley by the Crown Prince’s manor, someone had been following her. But that person only dared to follow from a distance and did not dare to approach.

"Princess of Zhen, would you allow me to escort you back to your residence?" Quan Yu asked Bai Qingyan respectfully.

"Eunuch Quan Yu, you should return to the Eastern Palace immediately and inform the Crown Prince that I will return to the Bai Mansion to bring my grandmother into the palace to take charge of the situation. With my grandmother in the palace, the Empress will not dare to act rashly."

After Bai Qingyan finished speaking, she turned to face Quan Yu and added, "Please convey to the Crown Prince that General Fu claimed the Empress mentioned in her letter that the Emperor’s life is nearing its end. It seems the Emperor’s fall from the horse is indeed related to the Empress! Now that Fu Ruoxi is imprisoned, the Empress and King Xin... they must be most afraid of the Emperor truly waking up. Perhaps her brother Zhong Shaozhong would contact old comrades to stage a coup. His Highness should send people to monitor them early to prevent unexpected events! For other matters, the Crown Prince can consult with Master Tan and issue orders together to win the support of the court officials." freeωebnovēl.c૦m

Master Tan was the person entrusted with state affairs by the Emperor before he fell into a coma. Together with the Crown Prince, such weight... would inspire more confidence among the court officials, preventing them from thinking that the Crown Prince intended to force a rebellion to ascend the throne early.

Quan Yu’s spine stiffened as he nodded continuously. "I will convey every word of the Princess of Zhen to the Crown Prince without omission!"

Seeing Quan Yu’s fearful demeanor, Bai Qingyan further added, "However, the Crown Prince need not worry too much. At least there are still twenty thousand soldiers brought back from the Anping Camp outside Dadu City. The Empress and her faction won’t resort to hard force. They will only use cunning strategies. As long as we ensure the safety of the Crown Prince and prepare in advance, there is nothing to fear!"

Hearing Bai Qingyan say this, Quan Yu breathed a sigh of relief and quickly bowed. "Rest assured, Princess. No matter what, I will protect the Crown Prince with my life."

"Thank you for your efforts! Go back early!" After Bai Qingyan finished speaking, she saw the prison guard had brought her horse, and she mounted the horse in one leap and left.

Quan Yu bowed deeply and respectfully, not raising his head until he could no longer hear the sound of hooves. Then he headed back to the Crown Prince’s manor with the guards, informing the Crown Prince of Bai Qingyan’s words.

Meanwhile, Fang Lao, with the covert assistance of Wei Zhong had found the old servant who had been sold off from the Fu Mansion and the Empress’s maternal Zhong Mansion. He confirmed that the Empress and Fu Ruoxi indeed had a betrothal, and the Empress had visited the Fu Mansion to force Fu Ruoxi to propose at the Zhong Mansion before the former Emperor’s marriage edict arrived.

Additionally, because Fang Lao intended to use King Xin’s background as leverage, he traced the palace maid who had served the Empress when she was newly married to the Emperor but was expelled from the Crown Prince’s manor after being beaten for a mistake.

This palace maid bore a deep grudge against the Empress and had been persuaded by Fang Lao to testify that King Xin was not the Emperor’s son and that the Empress framed Consort Yu, the biological mother of the Crown Prince, to conceal her pregnancy.

As fate would have it, when the Empress was still the Crown Princess and became pregnant, Imperial Physician Ji Bingfu of the Imperial Medical Bureau had diagnosed her. Ji Bingfu once reported Jian Congwen... leading to his entire clan being executed, and himself dying early, his descendants now missing.

Even if Ji Bingfu’s descendants were still in Dadu City, Fang Lao had no fear. After all, since Duke of Zhen Bai Weiting reversed the injustice against Jian Congwen, Ji Bingfu had become a criminal who framed loyalists. Would his descendants dare come forward to testify for the Empress? Even if they did... could the testimony of a criminal’s offspring be credible?

Therefore, Fang Lao was confident he could help the Crown Prince remove the Empress and King Xin, these two obstacles.

The Crown Prince planned to visit the prison of the Court of Judicial Review to discuss with Master Tan secretly detaining the commanders of the imperial guards with whom Zhong Shaozhong had contact. He also wanted to temporarily hand over the command of the imperial guards to Bai Qingyan to prevent any changes.

"Sir Fang, thank you for your hard work, and one more thing... Earlier, we only focused on monitoring the Prince Xin’s residence but neglected the Empress’s maternal Zhong family. Her brother, Zhong Shaozhong, was once the deputy commander of the imperial guards. Someone must keep a close watch on him to prevent him from contacting old comrades and planning a rebellion!"

The Crown Prince raised his neck, letting Quan Yu button his robes, his face solemn. He was already convinced in his heart that the Emperor’s fall from the horse was orchestrated by the Empress.

"Rest assured, Your Highness! I will immediately send someone to watch Zhong Shaozhong and the Zhong Mansion. However... we must also make early preparations!" Fang Lao said.

After the Crown Prince sat down, supported by the armrest of the chair, Quan Yu knelt at his feet to help him put on his boots.

The Crown Prince looked at Fang Lao and said, "With twenty thousand troops brought back from the Anping Camp outside the city, the matter of leading the soldiers... Princess of Zhen is much more capable than us. It was also Princess of Zhen who reminded Quan Yu to inform me. Princess of Zhen certainly knows what she’s doing. I will go to the prison of the Court of Judicial Review to see Master Tan personally... and issue joint orders with Master Tan, temporarily placing the imperial guards under Princess of Zhen’s command."

Hearing this, Fang Lao tightened his grip on his clothing and said solemnly, "Your Highness should not. In my opinion, if we hand over the imperial guards to Princess of Zhen, we might alert the enemy. Your Highness is worried about Consort Yu’s safety in the palace. Therefore... we can use the people Your Highness has planted in the imperial guards over the years to protect Consort Yu."

The Crown Prince frowned, adjusted his sleeves, and nodded. "Makes sense."

Seeing that the Crown Prince had accepted his suggestion, Fang Lao stepped forward to speak again. "Your Highness, it seems Princess of Zhen’s health has improved day by day. She is an excellent commander and a truly exceptional mind. Such a person... the Crown Prince must use her, but must also be wary. Do not relax your vigilance simply because she appears loyal now!"