A middle-aged emperor, childless, was blessed with a beautiful and pregnant concubine who entered th

Chapter 181 Keeping them around will only get in the way.

The secluded courtyard where Xiao was imprisoned was located in a quiet corner of the northwest part of the palace.

The courtyard was not large, with two sections, one in front and one in back, and guards standing at the entrance.

The furnishings inside the courtyard were simple, unlike the magnificent and luxurious Eastern Palace.

Xiao Weirou has been locked up for three days. In those three days, apart from the palace maids who bring her food, no one else has come to visit.

She sat by the window, gazing at the sunlight outside, her face expressionless.

The clothes he was wearing were the same ones he had been wearing when he was taken away; they were wrinkled and covered in dust.

Her hair had long since come undone, and she had no interest in combing it.

The mirror was taken away, and she didn't know what she looked like now, nor did she want to know.

After being detained for three days, from initial fear and anxiety to current quiet numbness, Xiao Weirou's last thought was still about her two sons.

Her Ah Heng and Ah Yan.

The two children are still young and cannot be without their mother.

Xiao Weirou knew even better that there were so many women in the Eastern Palace, and they all had their own children.

She has now lost because of a trumped-up charge. What will happen to her Heng'er and Yan'er?

How will Xie Jing treat them?

Xiao Weirou suddenly dared not think about it anymore.

Because they were husband and wife, Xiao Weirou understood Xie Jing best.

She instinctively clenched her sleeves.

He's their father, he should... he should protect them, right?

But she also knew that Xie Jing only had himself in his heart.

She closed her eyes, and tears slid down her cheeks.

Just then, a slight noise came from outside the door.

Xiao Weirou suddenly opened her eyes and looked towards the door.

The door was gently pushed open a crack, and a figure slipped in.

It's Aoyuki.

Xiao Weirou was stunned.

Qingliu was a concubine in the Eastern Palace, and she was the one she couldn't tolerate the most in the past.

A lowly maidservant in the palace became a concubine in the Eastern Palace and became the Crown Prince's woman.

Why did she come?

Aoyu walked up to her, knelt down, and kowtowed.

"Your Highness, the Crown Princess."

Xiao Weirou stared at her, her voice hoarse:

"What are you doing here? Did the Crown Prince send you?"

Qingliu raised her head and glanced at her without making a sound.

"Your Majesty," Qingliu lowered her voice, "this servant has come to tell you some news."

Xiao Weirou's pupils contracted slightly.

"What news?"

Aoyagi glanced around to make sure no one was watching before moving closer and lowering her voice even further:

"His Highness the Crown Prince said that the bloodlines of the two young princes... are in doubt."

Xiao Weirou's face turned deathly pale instantly.

"What...what nonsense are you talking about? Those two children are his! Doesn't he know that himself?"

Qingliu looked at her and said, slowly and deliberately:

"His Highness knows. But His Highness said that Your Majesty has been having an affair, and those two children... will only bring trouble if kept alive. He plans to send the two young princes out of the capital to... the border."

Xiao Weirou suddenly stood up, trembling all over.

Border region?

That's suicide!

How old are those two children? Sending them to the border is no different from sending them to their deaths.

"He's gone mad...he's gone mad..."

Xiao Weirou murmured, tears welling up in her eyes.

Aoyagi didn't speak, he just looked at her.

Xiao Weirou slumped back into her chair, as if all her strength had been drained away.

Her mind went blank, with only that one sentence echoing in her head: he was going to kill her son.

Xie Jing, that's your own flesh and blood!

How could you...

She thought of everything she had done for him over the years.

She loved him and gave him her whole heart from the day she married him.

She tolerated his pretense and his flirting with those women.

She thought that she was the only one who was different. All those women were after his status, but she was different; she was his wife.

She thought that even if she was wronged, Xie Jing would definitely know that the child was his and that he should care about it.

But he...

Xiao Weirou's tears flowed down her cheeks.

"Your Majesty," Qingliu's voice rang out again, "you cannot sit idly by and wait for your death."

Xiao Weirou suddenly raised her head and stared at her.

"Who sent you? Who are you?"

"you……"

Her gaze was filled with suspicion and uncertainty.

Aoyagi's gaze remained perfectly calm.

"This servant is in the Eastern Palace, and my voice carries little weight. But I know that if Your Majesty wishes to save the two young princes, there is only one way."

Xiao Weirou clenched her fists.

"What method?"

Qingliu lowered his voice and whispered a few words in her ear.

Xiao Weirou's eyes widened further.

"You...you are..."

Qingliu knelt down and kowtowed.

"Your Highness, this servant is from Consort Zhen. The Consort said that if you wish to save the two young princes, she can help you."

Xiao Weirou stood there, speechless for a long time.

Consort Zhen.

Zhou Mingyi.

That woman she hated to the core.

She was Xie Jing's bedmate and the wife who cared deeply for him, so she could naturally see the way Xie Jing looked at Zhou Shi.

At the time, Xiao Weirou thought she had misread it.

She thought she was wrong many times.

Based on her understanding of Xie Jing, he was like a venomous snake lurking in the shadows; it was not impossible that he would covet the Imperial Concubine.

That beast is capable of doing such a thing!

But she never expected that now, the husband she had devoted herself to would kill the child she had given birth to with such difficulty, and that Zhou Shi had become her only hope.

Xiao Weirou closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

When she opened her eyes again, the confusion she had felt before was gone.

There was only one resolute determination.

"Tell Consort Zhen that I... am willing."

……

Three days later.

The Eastern Palace.

Xie Jing sat in his study, holding a memorial in his hand, his brows slightly furrowed.

Mr. Cheng stood to the side, seemingly wanting to say something but then stopping himself.

Xie Jing raised his eyes and glanced at him.

"Speak your mind."

Mr. Cheng lowered his voice and said:

"Your Highness, the Xiao family... is still making moves. They want to rescue the Xiao family and also protect the positions of the two young princes."

Xie Jing gave a cold laugh.

"The Xiao family? Do they think I would still keep those two bastards alive?"

Mr. Cheng felt a chill run down his spine.

"Your Highness, that's your own flesh and blood..."

Xie Jing's gaze turned cold.

"My own flesh and blood? Lady Xiao has been having an affair. It's not even certain whether those two children are mine. Keeping them will only cause trouble in the future."

Mr. Cheng dared not speak again.

Xie Jing put down the memorial, stood up, and walked to the window.

Outside the window, the sunlight was just right.

He thought of the two children; the older one could already read, while the younger one could only play in the mud.

But so what?

They have the blood of the Xiao family in them.

With the Xiao family deposed, the Xiao clan will fall sooner or later. Keeping them around will only be a hindrance.

not to mention……

The one in Consort Zhen's belly is the Emperor's true love.

He needed to let his father know that Xie Jing was the best choice.

Those two bastards will only be truly clean if they die.

Xie Jing's lips curved into a smile.

"Please convey my message: the two young princes are unwell and need to be sent to a manor outside the city to recuperate. Have the Imperial Medical Bureau personnel accompany them and take good care of them."

Mr. Cheng felt a chill run down his spine.

Send him to the estate, and have the Imperial Medical Bureau personnel accompany him—this means they're about to take action.

He dared not say more and quickly agreed.

……

That very night, Xiao Weirou received the message.

"His Highness the Crown Prince has already sent someone to fetch the two young princes. He said he'll send them to a manor outside the city to recuperate, with the Imperial Medical Bureau accompanying them. They will depart early tomorrow morning."

Xiao Weirou's hand clenched tightly.

Send him to the estate? Have the Imperial Medical Bureau personnel accompany him?

That's not resting, that's sending someone to their death!

She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and her eyes were filled with hostility.

Xie Jing, you were the one who was ruthless first, so don't blame me for being unjust!

You can only blame yourself for being too selfish and heartless!

Xie Jing, I, Xiao Weirou, will never let you get away with this!

"Qingliu, tell Consort Zhen that I am ready."

……

The following morning at court, a letter written in blood was presented to Emperor Qianwu.

It was a letter written in blood by Xiao Weirou herself.

In the letter written in blood, she confessed to having an affair with a guard and admitted her wrongdoing to the Crown Prince. But she also wrote down something else…

Crown Prince Xie Jing had begun secretly befriending border generals two years prior, plotting treason.

She has evidence.

The evidence, hidden in her dowry chest, had not yet been destroyed.

In addition, she also knew that Xie Jing was secretly having someone sew a dragon robe!

After reading the blood-written letter, Emperor Qianwu's face was so dark it seemed as if water could drip from it.

He lowered his voice, "Someone, go to the Xiao family's villa and bring them that evidence."

……

An hour later, the evidence was presented to Emperor Qianwu.

These are letters exchanged between Xie Jing and the border generals. In the letters, he refers to those generals as "confidants" and promises to "share wealth and honor" in the future. There are also some account books that record the silver secretly sent from the Eastern Palace to the border.

The dragon robe has not yet been found, but this evidence is enough to condemn the crown prince to a thousand cuts.

This is a heinous crime of treason!

What angered Emperor Qianwu the most was that several portraits of Consort Zhen were found in Xie Jing's possession.

How did the portrait of the Imperial Concubine end up in the Crown Prince's possession?

The portrait even had two lines of lewd poetry inscribed on it; it was truly outrageous!

Emperor Qianwu was furious when he saw the letters, but then he calmed down.

"By imperial decree, Crown Prince Xie Jing has formed cliques for personal gain, plotted rebellion, acted disloyally and unjustly, and disregarded human ethics! He is hereby deposed as Crown Prince and imprisoned in a separate residence, never to be released."

……

When Xie Jing was taken away, he remained calm and even blatantly stared at Zhou Mingyi for a while.

Zhou Mingyi stood still, her hand gently placed on her lower abdomen.

Wax apple leaned closer and whispered:

"Your Majesty, what about the two young princes..."

Zhou Mingyi's gaze shifted slightly.

"Have they set off yet?"

Wax apples nodded.

"They left the city this morning. The Imperial Medical Bureau personnel followed them."

Zhou Mingyi remained silent for a while.

Then she nodded.

"Tell the Imperial Medical Bureau to be careful on the way. Don't let the two young princes suffer."

The wax apple agreed.

Zhou Mingyi gazed in the direction Xie Jing had gone, a slight smile curving her lips.

Xiao Weirou thought that by handing over the evidence, she could protect her son.

But she didn't know that she never intended to keep those two children.

Zhou Mingyi gently placed her hand on her lower abdomen.

The child in her womb doesn't need to have any cousins.

Cleanliness is the best.

Three days later, the news arrived.

The two young princes "suddenly fell ill" on their way to the estate and died. The imperial physicians returned to report that they had been properly buried.

Emperor Qianwu sighed and sent someone to inform Xiao Weirou.

Xiao Weirou went completely mad after hearing the news in the villa.

She lunged at the eunuch who delivered the message, scratching and biting him.

"Liars! You're all liars! My son is perfectly fine! They won't die!"

The eunuchs pinned her to the ground, and she struggled, calling out the names of her two children.

Later, she stopped shouting.

He just huddled in a corner, hugging his knees, muttering to himself.

"My son... my son..."

Later, she couldn't even speak anymore.

He just stared at the doorway with his eyes open, as if waiting for someone.

But the person she was waiting for would never come.

……