Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 734 Accident
"Father."

When the King of Qin arrived at the palace, he dismounted and saw his eldest son who was just about to enter.

The Prince of Huai hurried over and moved the umbrella over the Prince of Qin's head.

"Father, did you come out of the palace?" Prince Huai asked. "Why are you..."

The King of Qin had no intention of talking much with his eldest son, and walked straight into the palace, eager to see Jiang Zhenru.

However, things didn't go as planned. As soon as they stepped into the corridor, they bumped into the manager.

The steward, accompanied by two servants, was carrying a box when they spotted the prince and the county prince. He first deliberately blocked the box before bowing in respect.

"what is that?"

Noticing that the steward was avoiding eye contact, the King of Qin asked him a question.

The manager said, "The books that were drying in the backyard were taken in as soon as it rained."

The King of Qin frowned as he looked at the box. Every year, the palace would check the condition of the books and then approve their drying and tidying. How could the books suddenly be dried out again?
The thought of Jiang Zhenru's insolent words to the Empress not only caused him to be disliked by the Emperor, but also implicated the Empress herself. With this lingering resentment in his heart, everything seemed wrong.

"Open the box."

At the King of Qin's command, the steward froze, and after a long pause, a humble expression appeared on his face: "This...it's still raining, I'm afraid..."

"I hereby authorize you to open it."

The King of Qin roared, and the steward's back immediately bent. The two servants carrying the boxes were so frightened that their faces changed, and they immediately put the boxes on the ground.

The steward turned around and opened the lid of the box. King Qin looked down and saw that the box was indeed full of books.

The anger that had been building up in the King of Qin subsided somewhat; perhaps he really had been overthinking things…

The steward dared not utter a sound, his eyes secretly glancing at the King of Qin.

Just as the King of Qin was about to take another step forward, he heard someone beside him gasp. The sound was so soft that it would have been inaudible if they hadn't been so close. The sound came from his eldest son.

This was like the sudden sound of a zither in the dark, abruptly rousing a drowsy person to alertness. The King of Qin's gaze sharpened as he looked at the book—a collection of inscriptions on metal and stone. He wasn't particularly fond of inscriptions on metal and stone, especially since this book was clearly an ancient manuscript.

The King of Qin bent down and reached for it, while the steward beside him dared not move, his hand trembling slightly inside his sleeve.

Holding the book in my hands and flipping through it, a Tibetan seal immediately caught my eye. Turning to another page, the handwriting on it came into view; it was the annotation of Zheng Fu, the prime minister of the previous dynasty. Clearly, this book was exceptionally precious.

The King of Qin's barely suppressed anger suddenly flared up again.

This is not a book from his residence.

Furthermore, how could such books be casually taken out to air out?
The person in charge is clearly lying.

"What exactly is going on?"

The steward knelt on the ground with his head down, only admitting his mistake: "Your Highness, please calm down... this... this..." but he couldn't say anything.

The King of Qin clenched his fist, causing the pages of the book to wrinkle instantly, and a fierce glint appeared in his eyes: "I see, you don't want to stay in the King of Qin's residence anymore."

These words immediately caused the steward to collapse to the ground, but even so, he still did not speak.

The King of Qin ordered: "This wicked servant stole valuables from the royal palace; take him to the backyard..."

They were taken to the backyard for interrogation, where they were tortured so severely that they felt like they were being skinned alive. The steward knew he couldn't endure such torture and said in a trembling voice, "Your Highness, this is what the Princess Consort ordered. She told us to send it to... to the Wang family later. We were just following orders and would never dare to do it on our own."

Where such books are sent is certainly not up to a single person in charge.

"Which Wang family?" The King of Qin already had the answer in his mind. Now he just needed to confirm whether it matched his guess, so as not to let this wicked servant change his story in the blink of an eye.

"Yes, Wang Hanlin." The steward knew he couldn't fool anyone, so he had no choice but to tell the truth.

Sure enough it was him.

Wang Hanlin was fond of metal and stone, so this item was naturally given to him.

King Qin took a deep breath, recalling how Wang Hanlin had recently recommended several officials to the emperor for positions in Fujian, which had quietly caused Prime Minister Wang to suffer a great loss. At the time, he had thought Wang Hanlin's actions might stem from his disdain for the new policies, but seeing Xie Yizhi fall, he had no choice but to step in and restrain Wang Bingchen. Wang Hanlin, who usually preferred to remain in the background, had somehow taken on a newfound sense of responsibility this time.

Now... he realized that it was he who had delivered the medicine to Wang Hanlin.

He was naturally implicated in what the princess did, and he was already plotting for himself in the Emperor's court.

A thunderclap exploded overhead, seemingly illuminating the entire palace grounds. The Prince of Qin said coldly, "Bring the box over here."

The wind and rain intensified, causing the King of Qin's robes to flutter wildly. The long corridor he walked through every day felt completely unfamiliar to him.

It was as if this was not the palace where he had lived for many years.

All that I have seen before is not true.

Thinking this, his steps grew heavier and heavier, as if he were about to crush the bricks and stones beneath his feet.

After a moment of distraction, the King of Qin raised his eyes again, and a figure appeared at the end of the corridor at some unknown time.

A hint of surprise and panic appeared on her gentle face, but not because of the impending interrogation and blame.

Jiang Zhenru said, "Your Highness is soaked... Quick... get an umbrella... get a handkerchief."

"Go get some more hot water and have the kitchen make ginger soup, hurry up..."

Jiang Zhenru gave the instructions familiarly, taking care of the King of Qin as meticulously as she did every day. She didn't care about anything else and quickly walked a few steps towards the King of Qin.

"Your Majesty."

The King of Qin's anger did not dissipate because of Jiang Zhenru's actions; instead, his lips tightened even more.

Jiang Zhenru seemed to have noticed something amiss as well. She slowed her pace, her gaze passing over the King of Qin and landing on the boxes carried by the two servants. Instantly, she seemed to understand everything.

The King of Qin stopped and prepared to give her a chance to explain.

"Your Highness, that..."

In her eagerness to speak, Jiang Zhenru didn't pay attention to her footing and stepped into a puddle of water, then stumbled and fell forward.

The sudden turn of events startled everyone. The King of Qin reached out to catch her, but there was still some distance between them. By the time he rushed forward, Jiang Zhenru had already fallen heavily to the ground, and he only managed to grab a piece of her clothing.

The surroundings fell silent for a moment, but as Jiang Zhenru let out a painful groan, the noise suddenly erupted like a boiling pot.

"Princess, princess..."

"Go quickly and fetch a doctor."

"Aru, where did you fall? Are you alright?"

The King of Qin reached out to help Jiang Zhenru up, but his hand first touched her high, protruding belly.

"Your Highness, the child... the child..."

Jiang Zhenru was pale, her face covered in what looked like sweat or rain. The pain made her curl up, her hands tightly clutching her stomach.

King Qin, who usually practiced martial arts, was extremely anxious at the moment, so he picked up Jiang Zhenru and quickly walked towards the main house.

The head maid sent someone out to fetch a doctor, and to be on the safe side, she also arranged for a midwife to be brought in. The orderly royal residence was disrupted by this unexpected turn of events, leaving everyone suddenly overwhelmed with a thousand and one thoughts.

The Prince of Huai watched all of this.

Before coming to greet her father, Jiang Zhenru must have heard that the books had been stopped. Then she put on such a big show. He guessed that Jiang Zhenru would try to appease her father's anger, but he did not expect that she would dare to risk the child in her womb.

It seems that Jiang Zhenru had already planned how to deal with things before doing those things.

When a woman becomes ruthless, she can use anything, and she knew her father's weaknesses. But that was limited to methods used within the household. This time, she risked her own life and that of her unborn child; what methods would she have next?
This tactic only works in front of the father.

The Prince of Huai frowned.

(End of this chapter)