Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 566 Beloved Wife
In the study of the Prince of Qin's residence.

The King of Qin looked at his eldest son: "Is this all the Emperor has told you?"

The Prince of Huai said, "His Majesty inquired about the border markets, and I suggested that we increase the number of informants among the merchants to help the court transmit messages." As for what he said about Xie Yuyan, he naturally wouldn't tell his father at this time.

The King of Qin nodded: "Did His Majesty say anything else? Nor did he give you any new duties?"

“No,” said the Prince of Huai, “His Majesty just chatted with his son, who was a court official, for a few minutes.”

After a moment's thought, the King of Qin knew which court attendant his son was referring to.

“Recently, Wang Yan has gained the Emperor’s favor,” said the King of Qin. “Just now the Emperor mentioned that the heavy rain in Hebei Road has lasted for many days. It should be the memorial submitted by the Imperial Secretariat.”

Normally, such matters wouldn't be easily reported to the Emperor; after all, what summer doesn't bring heavy rain? The Emperor deliberately brought these things up at that time to tell him that the Imperial Secretariat was different now, managed by someone he trusted. This meant the Emperor had an extra pair of eyes watching over local affairs.

It was also a warning to him not to have any other thoughts, or he would be exposed.

They were subtly hinting at him, almost explicitly stating their suspicions.

Thinking of this, the King of Qin frowned. He always felt that his eldest son was not telling the truth. Would the Emperor have ordered his eldest son to keep an eye on him secretly?
The King of Qin looked at his eldest son, but in the end he did not ask any questions. Instead, he waved his hand and said, "Go and rest!"

After the Prince of Huai left, Princess Consort Jiang Zhenru of Qin came out.

Jiang Zhenru's belly was already quite large. As the months of pregnancy progressed, her face became rounder, and with her rosy complexion, she looked exceptionally healthy, as if she had become many years younger.

Jiang Zhenru reached out and poured tea for the Prince of Qin: "Your Highness has been traveling hard, please have some tea and rest."

The soft voice was like an invisible hand, soothing the King of Qin's spirit, and the King of Qin temporarily put aside the troubles weighing on his heart.

The King of Qin pulled Jiang Zhenru back, his gaze falling on her prominently protruding belly: "You're quite far along in your pregnancy, so don't overwork yourself like this."

Jiang Zhenru smiled and said, "This concubine also wants to talk more with Your Highness."

King Qin stood up and went into the inner room with Jiang Zhenru. The two sat on the soft couch, and King Qin said, "You've had a hard time these past few days."

“I am not tired,” Jiang Zhenru said. “I am at home with my children by my side, and my life is very peaceful. I just worry about Your Highness, especially… I heard that Xia Mengxian had an accident, and I am afraid that the Emperor will take his anger out on Your Highness like he did last time.”

The King of Qin took a deep breath.

More than a decade has passed since that incident, but whenever he thinks about it, he feels as if he can't breathe.

When the concubine's child died young, the emperor was heartbroken and selected three members of the imperial clan to enter the palace. After half a year, only he remained.

The King of Qin still remembered the resentful expressions on the faces of his kinsmen when they left the palace, and the hatred and resentment they showed when they looked at him.

At that time, he was glad that the emperor had chosen him.

Little did they know that the joy of that day would become the source of their future suffering.

When the newly entered concubine gave birth to a child, the emperor began to distance himself from her, and the attitudes of the eunuchs, female officials, and relatives around him all changed.

He began to live in constant fear, not daring to make the slightest mistake. Unexpectedly, a mutiny broke out in Guangnan East Road. After the traitor was captured, he confessed that the military supplies and weapons all came from his own support, and he was suddenly thrust into the spotlight.

The civil and military officials knew that this was a traitorous general making baseless accusations, but the emperor still found a reason to send him out of the palace.

If the emperor's child hadn't died at the age of two, he might have lost his life long ago. Even so, he waited many years before, with the help of the Jiang family, he was able to return to the palace.

Unfortunately, the Jiang family was implicated because of him. Jiang Zhenru's only brother died tragically, and the old lady of the Jiang family also passed away two years ago. His father-in-law is old and simply stayed away from the court. He did this partly because he was disheartened, and partly because the Jiang family came from a military background, and his father-in-law was afraid that someone would use this to attack the Prince of Qin's mansion.

The King of Qin felt deeply indebted to the Jiang family and Jiang Zhenru.

"How is Jing-ge'er? Has anything happened at home while I was away from the capital?"

Jiang Zhenru is already a mother of three, but she still retains a touch of youthful charm in her eyes, especially when she looks at the King of Qin, her joy is undisguised.

“Except for the one in my belly, all the children are fine,” Jiang Zhenru said. “Your Highness, please don’t worry.”

As she said this, her eyebrows furrowed slightly, but she pretended to cover it up as if nothing was wrong.

After years of marriage, a single glance is enough for the King of Qin to understand what the other is thinking. He looked at Jiang Zhenru and asked, "What are you hiding from me?"

Jiang Zhenru said, "No, they are all minor matters, I will handle them."

The King of Qin knew that Jiang Zhenru was still hiding something, but he couldn't bear to say anything harsh. He deliberately put on a stern face and said, "I have been having private dealings with Xia Mengxian. Your Majesty may have already planted spies in the mansion. Any disturbance in the mansion will be reported to Your Majesty. I don't want Your Majesty to know some things, but I will still be kept in the dark by you."

The smile on Jiang Zhenru's face vanished instantly, replaced by worry in her eyes.

The King of Qin said, "As long as we work together, we will surely overcome this difficulty, just like before."

Jiang Zhenru's eyes reddened, and she remained silent for a long time before saying, "But I only have one brother."

The King of Qin felt a pang in his chest. If Jiang Ruming hadn't relentlessly searched for evidence in Guangnan East Road and found the real collaborators with the rebels, he wouldn't have been cleared of his crimes.

However, Jiang Ruming was also retaliated against for this, and during the battle of Shaozhou, he was stabbed to death by his deputy.

“I have wronged you,” the King of Qin said gently. “If there is an opportunity in the future, I will definitely bestow a higher title upon Ruming and bring him back from Shaozhou.”

"Your Highness." Jiang Zhenru immediately reached out and hugged the Prince of Qin, leaning into his arms.

The King of Qin stroked Jiang Zhenru's back: "Now tell me."

Jiang Zhenru then said, "Your Highness, it's actually about Jun'er's matter. Right now... it hasn't been verified yet, which is why I didn't dare to say anything."

"What happened to him?" the King of Qin asked. "Did he talk back to you while I was away?"

The eldest son in the household was not born to Jiang Zhenru, yet it was through this title that he was granted the title of Prince by the Emperor. In the Prince of Qin's heart, the true eldest son was the second son born to Jiang Zhenru.

Of course, all of this can be changed after he inherits the throne.

Jiang Zhenru shook her head and said, "Jun-ge'er has always been very respectful to me. I only heard that Jun-ge'er stopped a woman on the street just now and chased after her carriage for a long time. If the steward hadn't gone to call him, he might have escorted the woman all the way home."

"No matter what, Jun'er is engaged to the second daughter of the Xie family. If the Xie family finds out, I'm afraid they will come after him."

"Even if the Xie family doesn't intervene, it will still damage the reputation of the Prince's Mansion."

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