Her guards

Chapter 108 Post-Event Appeasement

Not long after they waited outside the National Academy, Lady Ding'an came out with Yang Hui, Liu Chan, and Mo Zheng.

After this fright, Yang Hui wanted to sit with the Lady of Ding'an.

Knowing that the two women, mistress and servant, had been quite frightened by what had happened and had a lot to say, Liu Chan pretended to be very scared as well, and followed Yang Hui to squeeze into the carriage of the Lady of Ding'an.

Lady Ding'an was too exhausted to care who got into her carriage; she just wanted to get home as soon as possible.

Mo Zheng then used the excuse of thanking Yang Luo for caring about her to offer to take her home, and got into Yang Luo's car.

When Mo Zheng learned that Ling Yu was invited by Sister Peach Blossom through Yang Luo, she was both surprised and unsurprised.

She knew, of course, that Miss Yang had asked her to take her place so that she could shield herself from both open and covert attacks.

But Ms. Yang is ultimately a kind-hearted girl. It's just that she was hurt before, which made her hard-hearted. But when the time came, she couldn't bear to see others suffer...

The Empress's malice was already palpable, so there was no need to mention it again. Mo Zheng thought of the others: "I didn't expect Consort Li to protect me and actually take a beating for me."

Consort Li, another palace woman he had never seen in his previous life, appeared before him today. Judging from her voice, she seemed gentle yet timid, Yang Luo thought, but…

“The palace maid who gave you the paintbrush is Princess Wuyang’s servant, and you are Princess Wuyang’s tutor,” she said. “If you are convicted, she and Princess Wuyang will both be finished. She probably wants to move you so that you won’t make baseless accusations against Princess Wuyang in an attempt to exonerate yourself.”

Mo Zheng raised an eyebrow and smiled: "Impressive, Miss Yang, you are not fooled by appearances of kindness."

Yang Luo was amused by her and shook his head: "There is no love or hate in this world without a reason. My family can watch me die, so how could Consort Li, a stranger, risk her life to protect me? She must have something to ask for."

Speaking of strangers protecting each other, Yang Luo thought of something and looked at Mo Zheng, asking, "Dr. Ling didn't say anything, did he?"

Mo Zheng shook her head: "He didn't say anything. Dr. Ling praised me for doing a good job, being adaptable, bold and meticulous."

Yang Luo breathed a sigh of relief: "Dr. Ling's disciples at the National Protection Academy are truly dedicated and responsible; this is the demeanor of a scholar."

Well, there's a reason for this, Mo Zheng thought to herself, but she wouldn't tell anyone that she and Ling Yu were old acquaintances.

Yang Luo, in particular, is even less suitable.

After all, Yang Luo is the daughter of the current emperor. The father and daughter have not yet recognized each other and are still wary of each other. It is unknown how they will treat her, a remnant of the previous dynasty, once they resolve their enmity and become of one mind.

Let's try to involve as few people as possible.

A soft cough came from outside the car.

"Miss," he raised his voice, "we've entered the city. Which way to go? Shall we take Miss Yang first?"

He reached out and lifted the carriage curtain under the pretext of asking a question, and said in a low voice.

"The emperor also came to the National Academy earlier."

Mo Zheng and Yang Luo both looked surprised.

The emperor has arrived too?
"We went out in plain clothes, but turned back when we were almost at the National Academy," Zhang Shengyou said quickly in a low voice.

Mo Zheng nodded and raised her voice, saying, "Let's go back to Miss Liu's house first, and then I'll take a car back myself when we get there."

Zhang Shengyou responded and lowered the carriage curtain.

The car was dimly lit in the twilight, and Yang Luo and Mo Zheng exchanged a glance.

“It’s not surprising that the emperor came,” Mo Zheng said in a low voice. “After all, the princess has been through such a big incident.”

Yang Luo nodded: "Yes, upon hearing that he was not injured, he went back, after all, the emperor's travels are a major event."

However, I almost met the emperor.

Yang Luo clenched her hands tightly on her knees, then suddenly smiled.

"It's a good thing he didn't come." She looked at Mo Zheng and said softly, "Otherwise, even Dr. Ling wouldn't have been able to stop you from getting beaten up."

Mo Zheng didn't speak, but gently patted her arm to comfort her.

……

.......
The Empress's Palace was brightly lit, but the Emperor still felt the view was not good enough, so he personally held up a lamp and carefully shone it on Princess Heisei's face.

"Father, I'm really not injured," Princess Heicheng said with a smile, snatching the lamp away. "If I were really injured, how could Mother possibly eat?"

The emperor glanced at the empress who was drinking soup beside him.

"Your mother was so composed..." he snorted, "She didn't even tell me about such a big thing, and went on her own first."

Princess Heicheng laughed and said, "Father was in court at the time. Besides, Mother investigated the matter first before telling you. She knew that you would definitely make a scene without thinking, and that would not look good."

"My daughter has been murdered, what right do I have to care about anything else!" the emperor said angrily. He stood up, took a few steps, and demanded, "How is the investigation going in the Inner Palace? Is it taking this long?"

The head eunuch in the hall hurriedly replied, "This servant will go and see right away." He then strode out and quickly returned with two eunuchs.

"The granddaughter always said that the mistress of Wu instructed her, but she also confessed to one other thing." "The mistress of Wu actually had a nephew who survived. The mistress of Wu bought him a shop and he got married. When we went to search for him, the whole family had disappeared."

"The neighbors said he left seven days ago, saying he was going back to his hometown to visit relatives."

"None of the neighbors knew that he had an aunt who worked as a maid in the palace."

Upon hearing this, the emperor sneered: "What old grudges? It turns out you were instructed by someone. Either your family members were being blackmailed, or they accepted bribes."

He gave the order.

"Go and find Wu's nephew. I want to see him alive or dead!"

The palace eunuchs responded and withdrew.

The emperor paced back and forth in the hall, muttering, "Who would dare to plot against my son?!" He then demanded of the eunuch, "Has Wei Jiao returned?"

The eunuch hurriedly replied, "I received news the day before yesterday that we should be able to arrive in the capital in about two days."

The emperor waved his hand: "Have him come to see me immediately after he returns."

The eunuch responded that it was true, and the emperor paced back and forth again, this time being stopped by Princess Heicheng.

“Father,” she said sincerely, “please sit down and rest. The thieves have failed this time. Father should be happy, not angry.”

The emperor gazed at his daughter's fair face under the lamplight.

"Heisei must have been terrified too," he sighed. "It's all Father's fault for not protecting you..."

"Your Majesty, please don't blame yourself," the Empress said from the side. "It was the person I chose who harmed Heisei, and it's also due to the grudges our Chai family has accumulated..."

The emperor turned his head: "Ah Feng, don't listen to that poisonous woman's nonsense. This is clearly her way of making excuses to cover up what she's doing behind the scenes."

Princess Heisei helped the emperor sit down, then knelt down and served him a bowl of soup.

“Neither Father nor Mother need to blame themselves,” she said. “As I enjoy the privileges of being a princess, I inevitably have to endure the hatred and framing behind others’ backs.”

He smiled again as he spoke.

"Compared to the dangers my father and mother faced during their wars in those chaotic times, what I experienced was nothing."

The emperor reached out and patted his daughter on the shoulder: "Good, good, as expected of my daughter, Deng Shan! That's right, don't be afraid, these villains only dare to hide in the shadows, wait for your father to drag them out one by one!"

Princess Heicheng nodded with a smile: "With my father and mother here, I am not afraid at all."

After saying that, he thought of something else.

"Father, you should also reward Miss Yang Luo of the Yang family for tracking down the murderer."

A reward for Miss Yang?

The emperor paused slightly, and the empress, who had been looking down, also raised her eyes to look over.

“Miss Yang was quick-witted and didn’t expose me on the spot. Instead, she used a scheme to lure out Maid Wu. Otherwise, I would have escaped this time,” Princess Heicheng said. “Maid Wu could still stay by my side and continue to harm me.”

The emperor nodded, still shaken: "Yes, yes, that poisonous woman is truly hard to guard against. Thank goodness..."

Let's pause here.

"Miss Yang's actions were indeed clever. Should she be rewarded?"

He said this while looking at the Queen beside him.

Princess Heicheng already knows that her mother dislikes the Yang family's daughter, and it seems that her father also knows that her mother is not fond of her, otherwise the emperor would have asked the empress for the reward...

Noticing the emperor's gaze, the empress remained indifferent.

“Those who deserve punishment should be punished, and those who deserve reward should be rewarded, and…” she said, looking at the emperor, “the young ladies who were accompanying the emperor today were all frightened, and Your Majesty should comfort them.”

The emperor nodded hastily: "The empress's thoughts are absolutely right, that's exactly how it should be."

Princess Heisei said, "Father and Mother, this is my business. Let me choose the rewards for Miss Yang and her companions."

The Empress Dowager dislikes Miss Yang, so we cannot allow her to prepare a reward for Miss Yang on her behalf.

The Empress looked at her daughter and nodded gently, "Alright."

A palace attendant entered, looking hesitant, as if he wanted to say something but hesitated.

"Speak what you have to say," the emperor snapped impatiently.

The eunuch lowered his head and whispered, "Consort Li has fainted outside the palace."

(End of this chapter)