Ask the Nine Ministers

Chapter 65 Bamboo Forest Pavilion
Bamboo Forest Pavilion.

Pingle saw that Empress Xie's face on the steps was getting worse and worse, and the smile on the corners of his lips widened.

She understood from a young age that her father's words were imperial decrees, and where her father's heart was, there was power and wealth.

Therefore, when she was a child, she hated her very much and had to respectfully call the woman in front of her "Mother" and bow her head and kneel before her.

Obviously, her father's heart and eyes were full of her mother, and he loved her and her brother the most. But this woman usurped the throne and took away her mother's position as the empress, causing them to become "bastards". Even though her brother was talented in both civil and military affairs, he was only a prince and could not be the crown prince.

Therefore, she knew from a young age where to put her strength and where to step her feet...

"Mother."

Pingle called out softly, his eyes challenging.

"Isn't it tiring to stand on the steps? Why don't you come down and sit down with Yushu and have some tea?"

Empress Xie had an unpleasant expression on her face, but the nobility engraved in her bones prevented her from lowering her neck.

"The princess has difficulty walking, but I am in good health. It is very comfortable to stand on the high steps and watch the princess."

Ping Le raised his eyebrows, "Mother is really... hehe..."

She said with a hint of sarcasm, "If you ask me, if the Queen Mother opens the door now, only Yu Shu and a few old maids will see it. When the Royal Father comes, I'm afraid it will not end well..."

At this moment, there was a shout from outside.

"His Royal Highness Prince Duan has arrived!"

Pingle raised the corner of his mouth and gave a determined smile. He glanced at Queen Xie, stood up, handed the little daughter beside him to the wet nurse, and gave instructions in a light tone.

"Take the little princess back to Changchun Pavilion and have something to eat. Don't let her stay and pollute your eyes."

The nurse responded with a fake smile, "I obey your command."

The little princess walked away, Pingle became more unscrupulous than before, she glanced at the palace maid beside her.

"Please take away all the tables and chairs. I have sat there long enough..."

Before she finished her words, Li Huan's voice came from the other end of the flower path.

"Pingle, how can you be so rude to our mother?"

Pingle saw that Li Huan came alone and raised his eyebrows slightly in dissatisfaction.

"Brother, why didn't the emperor come? Didn't I send someone to ask the emperor to come and administer justice?"

Without the emperor, the play would be less lively.

Pingle wanted the emperor to come in person, and with so many ladies present, the scandal would surely spread throughout the court and the country.

This way they could strike the prince down with one blow.

Li Huan frowned and gave her a warning look.

"The emperor is having a feast with the other gentlemen in Lingyan Pavilion, so how can he have the time to watch you fooling around? Take him away quickly, the wine and food in Changchun Pavilion are all cold."

Ping Le said: "Brother, the prince is drunk here and has not come out for a long time. I am afraid something has happened..."

She winked at Li Huan desperately.

I want him to understand that this is a good time to take action against the Eastern Palace.

Li Huan seemed not to see it, ignored it and turned to look at everyone.

"My mother has arranged a banquet in Changchun Pavilion. Why don't you all enjoy the feast in the pavilion, but come to this remote place? Are you all drunk?"

He never mentioned the prince, and every word he spoke was gentle and ordinary, but it was like a heavy hammer, full of intimidation.

The ladies exchanged glances, smiled silently, said some polite words, and then left.

How could Li Huan just break up the situation that Pingle had worked so hard to put together with just a few words?

She shouted, "No!"

"Royal brother!" She walked forward and stared coldly into Li Huan's eyes, like a hedgehog with its sharp spines erected, very arrogant.

"The prince's safety is of great importance. If I don't go in and find out what's going on today, how can I, as the emperor's sister, feel at ease? Besides, the maids just saw with their own eyes that a woman broke in and tried to tarnish the prince's reputation. We can't just watch this seductive woman..."

"How dare you!" Li Huan interrupted her with a stern voice.

"Father has also had a few extra drinks in Lingyan Pavilion. Do you want to go and show your filial duty?"

He was trying to wake Pingle up.

This was an absurd thing to do, and it did not please the emperor. No matter how unpopular the prince was, he was still the emperor's biological son, the crown prince appointed by the emperor himself. The prince's reputation was the dignity of the Li royal family.

This despicable method may not necessarily bring down the prince, but it will definitely bring down the emperor's wrath.

Everything has its limits, and excessive behavior will surely bring disaster.

However, Pingle could no longer listen.

She had risked everything on such a big project, how could she just admit defeat and give up?

Pingle frowned, glanced at Li Huan, looked at the palace maids around her, and suddenly picked up her skirt and strode towards the stairs.

Empress Xie and the palace maids came forward to stop them, but Pingle had a sullen look on his face.

"Please move, mother—"

Before she finished her words, she hugged Empress Xie tightly and pulled her to the side.

The other palace servants took the opportunity to rush forward and forcefully pushed the door open...

There was a squeak.

The world suddenly became quiet.

Queen Xie turned her head in surprise.

Pingle also widened his eyes.

The crowd watching the excitement held their breath.

"Who is making such a noise and disturbing my sweet dream?"

Li Zhao was the only one in the room. He had a flushed face and looked a little drunk. He was leaning on a rosewood couch that was carved with dragons and painted with phoenixes. He was wearing loose clothes and a slightly loose belt. His hair was slightly messy and he looked tired.

Perhaps it was because of the lingering effects of the drug that still remained in his body, he looked like a drunken cheetah lying in the spring sunshine among the flowers, indescribably romantic, uninhibited, lazy and noble, and his handsome appearance stretched to the extreme at this moment...

Many girls blushed, their hearts pounded like thunder, and they all lowered their heads...

Especially Lu Xi, she subconsciously compared Su Jin, who was in Pingle's picture, with Li Zhao, and she felt as if she had swallowed a fly and felt extremely uncomfortable.

One is like the bright moon in the sky, the other is like the frost on the ground.

Su Jin, the third place winner in the imperial examination, was considered to be very elegant compared to ordinary people, but in front of Li Zhao, he would instantly become an ordinary mortal who was overshadowed by Li Zhao.

She suddenly felt a little regretful.

The East Palace is a tiger's den, and following Pingle is also a dragon's den...

She was really having a hard time right now, treading on thin ice, so she might as well just marry Li Zhao...

There was silence for a moment, and Li Zhao seemed to be awakened by the intruder. He slowly raised his drooping eyes, straightened his clothes, and slowly stood up, his tone filled with a bit of drunkenness and anger.

He glanced at Queen Xie.

He glanced at Pingle and Prince Duan again, and there seemed to be a faint light flashing in his dark eyes.

"So lively? Everyone is here. Are the flowers in the bamboo forest pavilion blooming so beautifully?"

Pingle glanced at the nanny beside him and stepped over the threshold with a solemn expression.

"Why is the prince sleeping here? Is there anyone else in the room?"

Li Zhao smiled: "Is the Imperial Sister questioning me?"

The crown prince is the "king", and even if the princess is favored by the emperor, she is still a subject.

The moral principles between the ruler and his subjects must not be disrupted. How could Pingle have the qualifications to question the crown prince?

She pursed her lips, her arrogance slightly weakened, and she bent slightly and bowed to Li Zhao.

"Please forgive me, Your Majesty. A palace servant said that the prince was drunk and did not come out. We were worried about his safety, so we acted rashly. But...with all the noise outside, Your Majesty did not notice it at all?"

Li Zhao remained calm and looked at her with seductive eyes.

"I was drunk and taking a short break. I couldn't hear anything. What do you think is wrong, my royal sister?"

Pingle looked into the room and smiled gently.

"The Sixth Miss of the Xue Mansion, the Lady of Prince Duan's Mansion who was personally appointed by my mother, has disappeared. Has the Crown Prince seen her?"

Li Zhao couldn't help laughing, a hint of coldness trickled down his eyes. "My sister was looking for someone, and she found me. Is she suspecting that I stole my brother's concubine? How ridiculous!"

"I dare not." Pingle spoke politely, but his eyes kept looking inside from time to time, as if he wanted to catch the adulterer in the act.

"But a palace servant came to report that Miss Xue Liu broke into the Crown Prince's elegant pavilion and behaved improperly and had some shameful behavior. My brother is also very worried..."

As she spoke, she looked at Li Huan.

Li Huan was very familiar with this character.

If one thing goes wrong, he will drag others down with him.

Xue Liu was his wife, but they had not yet married into his family.

Pingle put the blame on him, and he couldn't help but frowned, then he smiled faintly and looked at Xue Yuechen gently.

"Princess, you are worried about your sister. I feel the same way."

Xue Yuechen forced himself to smile and bowed to Li Zhao.

"My sixth sister had a stomachache at the banquet and she came out to change clothes and didn't come back for a long time. I went out to look for her, but I didn't expect to disturb His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."

Li Zhao raised one corner of his lips, glanced over with a hint of mockery.

"Which palace servant reported it?"

Wherever he looked, all the palace maids hung their heads, not daring to look him in the face.

Li Zhao smiled and said, "Take him down and give him the Frost Blade Whip."

The Frost Blade Whip is an extremely harsh punishment. The thorny and salty whip hits the vital parts of the human body, and few people can withstand it. This is one of the tortures that Li Huan specifically stated in his "Twenty-eight Memorials on Reforming Criminal Law" that he wanted to abolish...

After Li Zhao finished speaking, he flicked his sleeves, opened the door and sat down steadily.

This means that Pingle will be allowed to search to prove his innocence.

This Accord is this big, with one room inside and one room outside.

Pingle exchanged a panicked look with the nanny, who shook her head affirmatively, indicating that she had been guarding here all the time and no one had ever come out.

That means hiding.

Pingle made up his mind and rushed in, looking around...

This is not a residence, there are no boxes or cabinets, and the furnishings are so simple that everything can be seen at a glance.

Pingle looked everywhere inside and outside, even looking up and around, not even missing the beams.

There was silence.

Everyone held their breath and looked into the inner room.

Pingle dared to come in such a high profile, he must be absolutely sure. The nanny just reported that she heard a woman's "babbling" sound inside, how could it be false?

But how could such a big living person disappear out of thin air?
"No way, absolutely impossible."

Pingle talked to himself, sweat forming on his forehead.

This is none other than the current crown prince.

If she couldn't find such a woman, she would definitely be punished even with the protection of her father.

What's more, she didn't want to miss such a great opportunity.

Where did Xue Liu go...

Where to hide?

Li Zhao looked at her lazily.

"What are you looking for, sister? Why don't you tell me and I'll help you find it?"

Pingle turned around, looked at his flushed cheeks, and smiled coldly.

"Your Highness knows what he did. If he had nothing to hide, why didn't you answer the door when you knocked? So many people were talking outside, but you stayed indoors? The palace maids heard it with their own ears, and obscene words were heard from time to time in the inner room..."

Li Huan frowned, "Pingle!"

Li Zhao seemed unaware of being offended, and smiled with a mouthful of white teeth, just like a lone wolf in the wilderness, his eyes flashing with a deep light as he stared at his prey, and sat calmly on a chair beside him.

"Wait until the Frost Blade Whip is over, and then I'll listen to the details, sister. What kind of obscene words are they?"

When Pingle saw that he wanted to kill someone to silence him, his face became extremely ugly.

"How can the prince abuse torture..."

Li Zhao smiled lazily and coolly.

"When my sister was six years old, she put cats and dogs in a bamboo cage and hung them high up for fun, then had someone cut the rope until they fell to death..."

"When I was ten years old, a maid pulled out a few of my sister's hair while combing her hair, so I chopped off the maid's fingers one by one. There was no medical treatment, and she died in agony."

"The twelve-year-old sister unfortunately fell ill. Just because the maid who served her made a slightly loud noise, she was ordered to have her tongue cut off and fed to the dogs..."

"When I was fourteen, several servants in the palace tied up a eunuch who had made a mistake and exposed him to the scorching sun in order to make the emperor's sister laugh, until he died of dehydration."

"My sister has become more restrained since her marriage, but I heard that last year a cook in the princess's mansion cooked dishes that were a little too salty, which was not to my sister's taste, so she was punished to kneel on the ice in the cold winter. Fortunately, the prince consort interceded for her and she was acquitted..."

"I heard that the cook was quite pretty, which made the imperial sister unhappy. Afterwards, she was sold to a brothel and tortured until she became insane... I wonder if the prince consort knows about this?"

His tone was so calm that it gave goosebumps to everyone watching.

Ping Le's face changed drastically, "Prince, please stop slandering me!"

Li Zhao didn't argue with her. He raised his eyelids and looked at Li Huan.

"I heard that my brother has made great achievements since he took charge of Jingzhao, and he attaches great importance to fairness and strictness. My brother, tell me, should this servant who committed treason, spread rumors, and slandered the crown prince be beaten or not?"

Li Huan looked at his smile and said calmly, "You deserve to be beaten!"

Li Zhao curled his lips, waved his hand and said no more.

The two maids were immediately pulled away by the guards.

In the huge garden, no one could say anything except screaming and calling for help.

One cry after another, one after another, until the two maids died in heart-wrenching cries.

The Bamboo Forest Pavilion was eerily quiet.

However, everyone felt a suffocating murderous aura in Li Zhao's eyes.

His Royal Highness the Crown Prince may seem to act in an absurd and cruel manner, but he is not an impulsive and reckless young man at all.

He easily resolved the crisis and cleverly turned the tables on Li Huan and Pingle, while also shocking everyone and establishing the prestige of the Eastern Palace.

It can be said that he is the big winner in this storm.
-
"Princess, Mother, why are you all here?"

A clear and pleasant voice suddenly came from behind the flower path.

Everyone was stunned.

Xue Liu! ?
Everyone turned their heads and quietly watched the woman walking slowly along the flower path. She looked like a fairy who had strayed into the mortal world and was strolling among the flowers without being tainted by the world.

Although she has a delicate figure but looks calm, elegant, gentle and generous.

The thing that is most in short supply in this imperial garden is beautiful women.

But at this moment, when she appeared in front of so many beauties, she had a kind of beauty that was unique from the world.

Blooming but not passionate, cool but not aloof. Among the women who are competing for beauty like blooming flowers, she quietly exudes a unique elegance.

but--

What surprised everyone was not her beauty, but the child she was holding in her hand.

That was not someone else, but Princess Pingle's daughter, whom she cherished and doted on to the very core of her heart—a little girl who was only four years old and was named a princess.

Pingle's body froze instantly, and his ears began to buzz.

Why is Tongtong in Xue Liu's hands?
She looked at Xue Liu's smile and thought of what they had done to Xue Liu in the past. She felt the blood in her body turn cold and rushed straight to her forehead. The hairs on her body stood up...

"Xue Liu, let go of my daughter!"

This chapter is a bit long, please read it slowly...

Li Zhao: Is it long? I haven’t even finished what I’m saying…

Xue Sui: Not very long.

Princess Pingle (angry): I just want to know what those babbling sounds are all about! ! Who can tell me?