At that time, he had been spoiled since childhood to the point of lawlessness. Except for the words of his parents, the Emperor and Empress, almost no one could control him. Everyone in the capital city secretly called him a little demon king, yet Prince Jing did not find this shameful; instead, he took pride in it.
At that time, he had just begun to develop an interest in the affairs of men and women, and since the Princess Consort was not available, the only other woman in the backyard, the side consort, inevitably received some favor.
However, as more people gradually filled his court, and as he aged beyond the years of play, being of legitimate birth, he naturally upheld orthodoxy. So, he slowly grew close to the Princess Consort.
Nevertheless, regardless of whether the complaints of Consort Jing were genuine, they could not justify her exchanging the babies.
Dismissing the muddled thoughts in his head, Prince Jing looked directly at Consort Jing, "I did not come here today to hear you recount those old matters. I only have one question for you, did your idea to switch the babies have anything to do with the Crown Princess Consort or someone from the Crown Prince Residence? Or perhaps, did someone deliberately incite you to do so?"
Consort Jing shook her head, "No, it was my own initiative."
"Are you truly certain?" Prince Jing still could not suppress the doubts in his heart.
"It was all my own idea..." Halfway through her sentence, Consort Jing suddenly realized that Prince Jing’s words implied something more, "What do you mean, my Lord? Could it be... you have found something?"
Suddenly, Consort Jing remembered that since the side consort had entered the residence, the Crown Princess Consort had always been publicly and secretly exploiting her. Unfortunately, as the elder sister-in-law, she was inferior in status, so she had to swallow these losses time and again.
"Could it be the Crown Princess Consort..." Consort Jing muttered to herself.
Although she spoke softly, Prince Jing heard her very clearly.
Leaving the place, Prince Jing felt very heavy-hearted.
Even though his suspicions were clear internally, reality still felt unbelievable to him.
All signs pointed toward the Crown Princess Consort, but, peculiarly, someone from the Crown Prince’s camp was also involved. They were brothers; why would he do this?
Mo Residence in Qingzhou.
In the backyard storeroom, the formerly dignified Madame Mo lay on the cold ground, a man and a woman standing before her.
Lifting her eyes, physically and emotionally wounded, Madame Mo looked at the couple in front of her, pain wrenching her heart, "Why? Why?
Mo Yuan, ever since we married, I have been devoted and diligent, never once wronging you. Why would you do this to me?"
She did not understand; she had only returned to the capital city for a visit, and though her original plans were unmet, on her return, she found her husband entangled with another woman.
Now, he even wanted her to make room, thereby accusing her of infidelity, discarding even his own flesh and blood!
Mo Yuan looked on with a cold expression at the miserable Madame Mo on the ground, but only addressed the woman beside him, "I have governmental duties to attend to. Take care of this woman."
"Mo Yuan... Mo Yuan... Ziqiao is your own dear daughter, you know this..." As Madame Mo cried out heartbreakingly, there was no pause in the man’s departure; instead, his steps quickened even more.
No sooner had Mo Yuan left than the woman kicked Madame Mo in the face without mercy, splitting almost her lips.
The woman crouched down, grabbing Madame Mo’s tangled hair, "Cousin, do you remember? It was you who falsely accused my sister of adultery, which led to her being beaten to death while she was pregnant?