Her guards

Chapter 191 Ji Ying's Frankness
"It was this disgraced official who found the Grand Secretary and asked him to take me into the Imperial City."

"The disgraced official feigned death to survive because he was being hunted down."

"This guilty subject dared not show his face and hid everywhere until the case of Baima Town became known to the world, only then did he dare to find an opportunity to see Your Majesty."

Ji Ying's voice continued to echo in the hall.

The emperor's face darkened. He did not ask Ji Ying any further questions, but instead demanded, "Is the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review present?"

The Minister of the Court of Judicial Review hurriedly stood up from his seat. Whether he was stunned or too nervous, he was still holding a wine cup in his hand. He was reminded by the person next to him and hurriedly put it down, replying, "Your Majesty."

"This is a case under your Dali Temple. Take Ji Ying and the Grand Secretary away for questioning," the Emperor said.

The Minister of the Court of Judicial Review hurriedly responded, and not only him, but the other officials of the Court of Judicial Review present also stepped forward. The guards stepped forward to drag away Ji Ying and the Grand Secretary Xia An.

"Your Majesty, please wait." Marquis Yichun stood up. "Now that Ji Ying has come out, I have something to ask him."

The emperor looked at him and said, "My lord, today is your birthday. Don't let this man spoil the celebration."

Marquis Yichun shook his head and said, "Your Majesty, this is not a disappointment, but the best birthday gift I have ever received."

He sighed as he spoke, looking at Ji Ying.

"I really thought you were dead, which was frustrating."

"Now you're alright, you're still alive."

His smile vanished, and he stepped forward.

"Ji Ying, did I order you to attack Baima Town?"

Although the testimony of Ji Ying's servants was suppressed, it had actually spread far and wide, and almost everyone present knew about it.

The emperor ordered the Dali Temple to take Ji Ying away immediately. The guests knew that His Majesty was conducting a private investigation to avoid an awkward situation, and to cover up if the truth was indeed detrimental to Marquis Yichun.

Unexpectedly, the Marquis of Yichun took the initiative to ask.

There was silence in the hall.

Ji Ying looked at Marquis Yichun: "No."

A commotion arose inside the hall.

Sure enough, it wasn't. I told you, it's ridiculous and inexplicable.

The guests present began to discuss it.

Marquis Yichun sneered inwardly. Of course, he wanted Ji Ying to make things clear here. If the emperor dragged things out like this, wouldn't he be able to frame him at will?

"...The Marquis only told me about the identity and background of Madam Yang from Baima Town, and instructed me to conceal it when necessary, so as not to alarm His Majesty or the people of the world."

Ji Ying continued.

"Therefore, the guilty official knew that there were many suspicious points in the White Horse Town murder case, but he hastily closed the case by pretending that a death row inmate was the murderer."

The noise in the hall subsided, but before any further discussion could arise, the emperor spoke up to stop it.

"Alright, save your words for the interrogation!"

The Minister of the Court of Judicial Review also realized what was happening and hurriedly urged, "Take them away!"

……

.......
This time, Ji Ying was stopped and dragged away, and Marquis Yichun did not stop him again, but the banquet could not continue.

The emperor said a few polite words, and everyone toasted the Marquis of Yichun with a cup of wine before the banquet ended.

The Marquis of Yichun and his family were kept by the Empress.

The others left the main hall, and a commotion arose among them.

"To conceal Madam Yang's identity..."

"Isn't she the sister of the Duke of Ding'an?"

"If she is merely the sister of the Duke of Ding'an, what is there to hide about her identity? What is there that cannot alarm His Majesty?"

"Indeed, that Madam Yang is the same Miss Yang who was betrothed to His Majesty back then..."

"That's not important, that's not what's important!"

"Didn't you hear what Ji Ying said first?"

"That child!"

"That Miss Yang is the daughter of Madam Yang! Doesn't that mean...!"

As the discussion unfolded, countless people turned to look at the imperial city.

Qin Ying looked dazed, her eyes sparkling.

"I knew it! I knew my eyes wouldn't be wrong! That Miss Yang, that Miss Yang is actually..."

……

……

"Father, Mother, why did you abandon me!"

Yang Hui climbed onto the car, fuming and complaining.

While the Marquis of Yichun and his family followed the Empress and the Emperor into the palace, the Duke of Ding'an and his wife had already rushed out of the main hall and out of the imperial city.

The others who were quick enough to ask questions couldn't be stopped, and Yang Hui was almost left behind as well.

Fortunately, when Yang Hui heard the Baima Town case being mentioned, she knew that it would affect her family again, so she kept an eye on her parents and hurriedly followed, calling out to them before the car sped away.

Otherwise, she would have had to walk back by herself! How embarrassing!

The Duke and Duchess of Ding'an did not try to comfort their daughter, but urged her again to hurry up. The carriage sped forward, and Yang Hui almost fell over.

"What's the rush?" she complained again, then hurriedly asked, "What did Ji Ying mean by that?"

Ji Ying's appearance was sudden, and the emperor did not dismiss the people in the hall. These young ladies who accompanied the emperor listened to the whole thing.

She was confused by what she heard. She already knew that the White Horse Town case was related to her family, but she didn't take it seriously, since she had never met that aunt since she was a child.

Why does this sound like it's related to Yang Luo?
"Yang Luo is actually the daughter of the aunt who died in Baima Town? Not the daughter of some second great-uncle's aunt?"

Lady Ding'an made a soft "uh-huh" sound, which could be considered an admission.

Yang Hui became even angrier.

"Why are you hiding this! It's so dangerous!"

"Ji Ying said that someone is still chasing her! She's been living in our house, what if those thugs come and kill us!"

"I even went to school with her!"

"Fortunately, she was being hunted down in the palace, and there are many guards in the imperial city."

After saying this, he looked at the Duke of Ding'an and his wife.

"Whatever you do, don't bring her back! Otherwise, if the thugs come to our house, we're all finished!"

Hearing this, the Duke of Ding'an, who had been staring blankly into space, looked at her and said, "Don't worry, we probably don't need to bring him back."

Yang Hui was taken aback. What did you mean by "we don't need to bring him back"?

……

……

Inside the Empress's Palace, Marquis Yichun, Chai Yuan, and Chai Du sat together.

The emperor summoned officials to say that he was not present during the investigation, which made it easier for the Marquis of Yichun's family to speak.

"In short..." Chai Yuan explained the whole story, and finally made a guess, "It should have been arranged by His Majesty."

Ji Ying's sudden disappearance and reappearance are too strange. Who else but the emperor could do such a thing?

"So, Your Majesty's ultimate goal in doing this is to reclaim this daughter?" Chai Du asked after listening.

Chai Yuan sneered: "First, she was a disciple of the Imperial Academy, then she moved into the palace to create a stir. Now that Ji Ying has revealed Yang Luo's true identity, everyone naturally guesses that she is the emperor's daughter."

Chai Du smiled and said, "As I said in my reply earlier, there's no need to worry about such a trivial matter."

After saying this, he looked at the Empress.

"Sister, don't argue with His Majesty. She's just a princess; don't let a small matter cause you to lose sight of the bigger picture."

The Empress smiled and said, "Don't worry, Second Brother."

Before Chai Du could say anything more, Marquis Yichun interrupted him: "Alright, you don't need to worry about things here. Don't delay, hurry up and leave."

Chai Yuan couldn't help but say, "Let Second Brother go home for a meal, and then he can leave..."

Chai Du stood up with a smile and replied, "Yes."

"Father, rest assured, I will return to the border region immediately," he said, then said to Chai Yuan, "Please kowtow to Mother for me."

Chai Yuan responded, "Yes."

As Chai Du's figure disappeared into the hall, Marquis Yichun's expression softened slightly.

“Second Brother, you’ve really passed by your own home without going in,” Chai Yuan sighed, then pursed his lips, “So, that assassin was arranged by His Majesty, right?”

The Queen chuckled, "He really went to great lengths."

Marquis Yichun looked at her and said, "Don't argue with His Majesty about this. I have my own plan."

Chai Yuan hurriedly said, "Father plans to arrange a good marriage for this maid."

After saying that, he explained the arrangements for Zhu Yunxiao.

“That way, even if His Majesty acknowledges her, we can make her disappear from the world’s sight,” Chai Yuan said smugly, then regretfully. “Unfortunately, an assassin appeared and beat us to it, disrupting our plans.”

The Empress said, "There will be plenty of opportunities in the future, and even more families for Father to choose from."

After all, from today onwards, many families will know that Yang Luo is a princess, and there will be many people who want to marry into that family, as well as many families who can be taken advantage of.

"Yes, so from now on, you must not concern yourself with anything related to Yang Luo," said Marquis Yichun. "Leave it to me to arrange, lest..."

Before the words "lest the emperor be angry with you" could even be spoken, the empress smiled and said, "It's fine as Father arranges everything."

Marquis Yichun said no more and nodded.

"Keep Heisei calm." He stood up to take his leave, then remembered something and added, "Don't let the rumors hurt her."

The Empress responded with a "yes," and watched as Marquis Yichun and Chai Yuan walked out. As their figures disappeared from sight, the smile on the Empress's face vanished instantly.

She even knew that her Heisei era would be affected.

She looked at the palace gate, her hands clenched tightly in front of her.

The best way to appease him is to kill Yang Luo, not with your cowardly methods!

The emperor arranged a fake assassin, so she'll arrange a real one.

Just as the Empress was about to summon someone, a trusted palace maid rushed in from outside, looking flustered.

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, something terrible has happened!" she said urgently. "General Chai has been taken away by the Dali Temple at the palace gate."

(End of this chapter)