Chapter 734: Chapter 734: Shu Yu’s Idea Chapter 734: Chapter 734: Shu Yu’s Idea “The Fifth Prince in the book always sought to pit the highly popular Second Prince and Third Prince against each other,” trying to weaken their forces, much like the affair with the Shu family this time.
However, once, the protagonists of the book were deep in crisis and hurriedly hid in a secret passage, only to discover it was the meeting place of the Noble Princess Consort and a certain external official. They were greatly shocked and were unfortunately discovered.
They had no escape and were forced to fight their way out, and the scandal broke.
The Emperor learned of the incident swiftly and, shocked, he knocked over his most cherished inkstone. Then, before the situation could escalate, he locked down the news to control the rumors. Such a royal scandal absolutely could not be leaked.
Following that, he summoned all related personnel to the great hall for interrogation and uncovered a shocking revelation–the Second Prince was actually the son of that external official.
Already gravely ill, the Emperor spat out blood and fainted.
When he awoke, he charged the Noble Princess Consort and the external official with crimes and secretly executed them.
As for the Second Prince, probably for the sake of saving face, the Emperor spared his life at the time and first demoted him to a commoner. Later, he was banished to the Northwest and was killed on the road.
Who did it, everyone knew well.
If the matter had ended there, it would have been fine, but the Emperor was extremely vain. Since the scandal had been exposed by the protagonists, he planned not to spare them either.
Finding a reason, the Emperor imprisoned both.
At that time, they were of the Fifth Prince’s camp, greatly aiding him, being his right and left arms.
The Fifth Prince naturally could not just watch them die and was forced to come forward to rescue them.
This rescue made him appear in public, and the Third Prince, who had not previously cared much for him, quickly learned of his fifth brother’s disguise and directed his attacks towards him.
Even the Emperor began to suspect this son and started suppressing him.
Fortunately, by that time the Fifth Prince’s forces were substantial, the Third Prince’s power had been severely weakened through years of conflict, and with the Emperor gravely ill, they simply could not prevent the Fifth Prince from ascending the throne.
However, the Fifth Prince could have had an easier time but, due to this incident, he faced many more complications and suffered a lot. Moreover, after ascending the throne, there would always be some rumors questioning his legitimacy.
That’s why previously, when Meng Yunzheng mentioned that Gong Qiu and some imperial concubines were involved, the phrase “Noble Princess Consort” flashed through her mind.
After all, there weren’t many with such audacity.
Shu Yu said to Meng Yunzheng, “I heard you mention the assassination attempt at Liu Mansion years ago, and I figured, among those concubines in the palace, only Noble Princess Consort Liu’s family would have such an experience.”
“That was twenty years ago, I’m surprised you even know about it.”
Shu Yu forced a laugh, if you knew what she knew from twenty years later, would you believe it?
She changed the subject, “Have you ever considered that the Second Prince might also be that man’s son?”
Meng Yunzheng suddenly looked at her, “What did you say?”
“Um… I’m just speculating. We need to speculate boldly and verify carefully, right? Think about it, the Noble Princess Consort and Gong Qiu were involved so early on with such strong emotions; it’s not impossible that the Second Prince is his son.” She paused and then lowered her voice mysteriously, “Even if he’s not really his son, we could still make it look like he is.”
Meng Yunzheng slightly narrowed his eyes, lost in thought.