vstars Chapter 572: Encirclement, collusion with King Jing to rebel?
Chapter 572: Encirclement, collusion with King Jing to rebel?
Yao Qingnian walked forward and asked calmly, "Where did this guy riding the cow come from? Is our capital short of horses?!"
As soon as Yao Qingnian said this, everyone burst into laughter.
"You little girl with limited knowledge! This is the Golden Bull, the mount of our prince. It is extremely powerful and can stomp a person to death with just a stretch of its legs. How can an ordinary horse compare to it?!" The guards beside Prince Hong stepped forward and shouted angrily.
"Oh, Taurus, isn't that still a cow? In the countryside, only poor people use cows to plow the fields or pull things, but they are also good and much more practical than horses." Yao Qingnian said indifferently.
After hearing what Yao Qingnian said, Prince Hong suppressed his anger. Seeing that it was Yao Qingnian and Chen Nianran who came out, he mocked them, "Haha, is there no one in the Duke's Mansion? Let the two little girls come out to take care of things."
"If you have something to say, say it now. Are you being polite by blocking our gate?" Yao Qingnian glanced at him with disdain.
"Evil girl! This is Prince Hong, you must not be rude! Can you afford to offend him?" Shen Wenting scolded from the side.
"I don't care what king he is! This is at the gate of the Duke's Mansion, not the fief of Prince Hong! Also, what evil woman, has Lord Shen healed his wound and forgotten the pain?"
"You! Prince! This girl grew up in the countryside. She has always been so arrogant and unruly that even I, her father, can't do anything about her. After she came back, she instigated her mother to divorce me and did many unorthodox things. That's why I broke off my relationship with her."
"How dare you! You are such a sharp-tongued maid. I wonder if you can still be as arrogant as you are now. Someone, come! Surround the Duke's Mansion. Someone reported that Duke Chen is colluding with King Jing and intends to rebel. The emperor has specially sent this prince to investigate." After Prince Hong finished speaking, he took out the imperial edict and ordered people to surround the Duke's Mansion.
"What a joke! The Duke's Mansion has been loyal to the court for generations and has made great contributions. What they have done is witnessed by the people of the world. How can you accuse them of treason? Prince Hong has come back to pay his respects for so many days. Is he reluctant to leave?" Yao Qingnian laughed in anger. How could her grandfather be accused of treason, and with Prince Jing? As far as she knew, her grandfather had no contact with Prince Jing at all. The Duke's Mansion has always been neutral and has not taken sides with any party. That's why he has been in the court for many years and is highly regarded by the retired emperor and the late emperor.
"I am following orders, so how can a little girl like you have the right to interfere? Come, arrest her!" Prince Hong was immediately annoyed and angry when he heard her words.
"I was only discussing the facts in front of the common people. Prince Hong wants to arrest me. Could it be that he feels guilty because I hit the nail on the head?" If they were really put in jail on the charge of treason and framed, who could withstand it?
"If Duke Chen had not colluded with King Jing, why would he be afraid of us going in to search? You are obstructing our investigation. Are you trying to disobey the imperial edict or hide evidence?" Prince Hong raised his voice.
"Treason? How is that possible? The Duke is a founding hero!"
"Yes! I think they are the ones who did it. The old Duke is already old, who would believe him if I tell others about it?"
The people all thought it was impossible, and pointed at Shen Wenting and Prince Hong and discussed in low voices.
"Prince Hong, if you have anything to say, just tell me. Why are you making things difficult for our girl?!" At this time, Old Madam Chen and Chen Shuhua walked out of the mansion.
"Madam Chen, how are you? I am only following orders. Your daughter wanted to disobey the imperial decree. If it weren't for the Duke's face, I would have sent someone to arrest her long ago."
"Our Duke's Mansion's century-old reputation is known to all the world. If you want to investigate, then go ahead!"
"Grandma." Yao Qingnian frowned.
"Nothing." Old Madam Chen patted her hands. Didn't she know whether Old Duke Chen had colluded with King Jing?
"Search!" Prince Hong and Shen Wenting looked at each other and smiled triumphantly.
Their gaze did not escape Yao Qingnian's eyes. It seemed that the two of them had planned it in advance.
The officers and soldiers rushed into the Duke's Mansion and began to search it. However, after searching for half a day, they found nothing in the huge Duke's Mansion.
"Prince, no!"
"Prince, we don't have any here!"
How could there not be?! They clearly...
Prince Hong's face darkened: "Have you found it clearly?"
"I found it clearly."
"They must have hidden the evidence!" Shen Wenting said in disbelief.
"Why is Lord Shen so sure?" Old Madam Chen glanced at him.
"Alright! Even if we haven't found any evidence, it doesn't mean that Duke Chen has not colluded with King Jing! You continue to guard the Duke's Mansion, and don't come out with anyone until the matter is clarified! Let's go!" Prince Hong left people to surround the Duke's Mansion.
Shen Wenting glanced at them and followed them.
After everyone left, Old Madam Chen finally breathed a sigh of relief and returned to the backyard with the help of Chen Shuhua and others.
"Shuhua, I'm afraid something big is about to happen in our Duke's Mansion!" Old Madam Chen calmed herself down and said seriously.
"Mom, could it be Shen Wenting's doing?" Chen Shuhua also became nervous.
"It's hard to say now. We don't know how your father is doing now!" The old lady is now worried that something might have happened to Duke Chen. She is very nervous and has a bad premonition.
"Grandma, what happened? How could you be charged with treason?!" Yao Qingnian was a little confused. She was fine yesterday.
"I'm afraid this was caused by Prince Hong." Old Madam Chen sighed, and then said to the outside: "Bring the people in!"
As soon as she finished speaking, a man with his mouth gagged was brought up and thrown to the ground.
"he is?"
"His name is Shitou, and I rescued him from the street a few years ago. Your grandfather and I noticed something was wrong with him these past two days, so we sent people to keep a close eye on him. Your grandfather went to the palace this morning, and we didn't think much of it.
Just this morning, the people who were watching him came back and said that Shitou had entered the study after your grandfather left. Coincidentally, at this time, I heard that Prince Hong had brought people here. I realized that something was wrong, so I had him arrested. Then I hurried to the study and found something wrong. We found that he had put several letters in the study. The situation was urgent, so I put the letters in my arms and went out. Although I didn't open them, I knew they were definitely not good things. "Old Madam Chen said, trembling as she took out the letters from her arms...