Chapter 11: Prince, Please Hear My Explanation

“Is his stomach hurting again?”

Yan Bei did not let the three wet nurses lined up step forward; instead, he personally lifted the child onto his left leg, gently patting his back to soothe him. Only when the sobbing subsided did he turn his face. “The weather has turned cold lately. A-Li caught a chill and is being a bit delicate.”

“Lower your voice.”

The Marquis of Guangling let out a dazed “oh,” his standing posture becoming increasingly like a shrinking quail.

*Damn it, he clearly gave birth to a boy, yet he’s raised him to be as soft as a piece of tofu!* The Marquis was so frightened he almost thought he was about to be kicked out to go bathe again.

Suddenly remembering the purpose of his visit, he pulled his composure back together and said softly, “Does His Highness have any instructions?”

Yan Bei continued to cradle the child while feeding him. “I ran into Du Yu earlier...”

The Marquis of Guangling dropped to his knees with a thud. “Your Highness, please hear my explanation!”

Yan Bei paused, his eyes fixed on the man's face.

“Explanation for what?”

The Marquis looked up. “Ah, this...”

Yan Bei gave a mocking smile. “It seems you have done something wicked.”

“No! This official would never dare!”

Yan Bei patted A-Li rhythmically. Only after seeing the sweat beading on the child's forehead did he speak slowly, “Your Du family has used your influence to bully others and been caught more than once or twice. The censors have reported this to the Emperor, and the Emperor sought me out again yesterday.

“I am merely sending you here as a warning. If you offend again, do not bother keeping your position as the Commander of the Imperial City Division.”

“This official obeys!”

Yan Bei glanced at the floor again. “The Emperor has one year before he can officially take personal control of the government upon receiving the Imperial Jade Seal. You are not blind to the situation within the palace.

“If you cause trouble at a time like this, what do you think your end will be?”

The Marquis of Guangling dared not utter another word.

Yan Bei proceeded to scrape the bottom of the bowl clean of the yam puree. “I will count to three. Confess what you have been hiding from me.”

A gust of wind blew, nearly making the Marquis of Guangling collapse from exhaustion.

*So after all that beating around the bush, he still hasn't forgotten about that!*

He braced himself and said, “No, no, how would this official dare? This official is just... just a bit tired lately...”

He raised a hand to wipe his sweat and stood up.

Yan Bei stared at him intently for a moment, then drew out a silk handkerchief to wipe the infant's mouth. “Tired, eh? If you're tired, go back and rest.”

Feeling as though his head were hanging by a thread, the Marquis of Guangling could hardly believe his ears. He looked up and saw that Yan Bei’s expression remained unchanged as he attended to the baby, showing no sign of a trap. He hurriedly agreed and stood up.

Yan Bei wiped the child's face clean and applied a thin layer of fragrant balm to the small face that had been dried by the autumn wind. Turning his head to see the man was still there, he frowned. “Why haven't you cleared out yet?”

Relieved, the Marquis of Guangling retreated quickly.

Once he left the garden and reached the corridor, Gao An was waiting there with a slight smile to lead the way.

Wiping his sweat, the Marquis grabbed him and asked, “Mr. Gao, regarding the matter I entrusted to you last time, is there any result? My mother's grand birthday is in about ten days. If His Highness could find the time to grace us with his presence...”

Gao An smiled. “His Highness has been busy lately, and the young Heir is unwell; I fear he cannot find the time to attend the banquet. However, His Highness remembers the friendship between our two families and will certainly prepare a congratulatory gift for the Dowager's birthday.”

The Marquis of Guangling let out a disappointed “oh.” He walked a few steps before snapping back to his senses, cupping his hands toward Gao An in thanks.

After seeing the man out, Gao An returned to Yangrong Hall.

Yan Bei was currently cradling A-Li, coaxing him to sleep. “Du Minghuan is acting strange. Send someone to Shun Tian Prefecture to ask what Du Yu was actually up to.”

Gao An nodded. “I already dispatched someone when I was seeing the guest out. There will be results soon.”

A-Li leaned against Yan Bei's shoulder and reached out weakly toward Gao An. “Grandpa Gao, hold me.”

Gao An hurried forward to take him.

With his hands free, Yan Bei lowered his head to wipe the food residue from his fingertips. “What about the search for the Hua family?”

“The Hua family resides deep in the mountains. Since the Princess Consort passed away on the fourteenth, no one has been able to find them. We have sent people to Luoyang several times, but they say the last of the Hua descendants left the mountains six or seven years ago. Their whereabouts are unknown.”

After speaking, Gao An stroked A-Li's back affectionately. “But we have not given up. The guards have even sworn to find the Hua family and nurse the young Heir back to health!”

...

Yue Tang only pulled her gaze away from the high walls of the Prince's mansion and the dense ranks of guards at the gates after the Marquis of Guangling had fled the premises as if riding a horse for his life.

“The Prince's mansion has guarded the borders for many years. Although they hold great power, they have had no opportunity to build connections in the capital. Now that he has been recalled and holds a vital position in assisting the state, the Du family is his ready-made faction.

“Regardless of whether they were the masterminds back then—if they were, he possesses such formidable power that we must be even more careful not to make a mistake. If they were not, once the Du family's crimes come to light, given his position, he will inevitably not stand idly by.

“The Prince of Jingyang reacted so quickly regarding the Marquis's estate; we must quickly figure out how deep his involvement with the Du family goes, otherwise, it will inevitably lead to complications in the future.”

Although their fathers had been close, Yue Tang had never met the current Prince of Jingyang. She had only heard that after the old Prince passed away four years ago, since the old Princess Consort had only given birth to three daughters and one son, the seventeen-year-old had taken the succession without question.

The first thing he did after ascending the throne was to kill his own master...

Subsequently, rumors of his brutality and unpredictable temperament naturally spread; even Yue Tang, who lived far from the capital, had heard them repeatedly.

Whether the late Emperor's summons for him to come to the capital to assist in governance was due to such concerns remained unknown. After all, the Prince's mansion guarded the borders; if this Prince of Jingyang acted erratically and defied tradition, the stability of the frontier might not be guaranteed.

Huo Yun was worried. “But both my master and I have tried; we simply cannot get in.”

In the three years since the Prince of Jingyang entered the capital, he had almost never accepted the formal greetings of subordinate officials. His only frequent contacts were the Marquis of Guangling's household, who were considered close kin. Combined with such heavy security, let alone attempting to enter and investigate his background.

Yue Tang poured herself a cup of tea. “Do not act rashly. Complete the task at hand first, and get what I want from He Jianzhong and Zhang Shaode before doing anything else.”

The true culprit had not yet surfaced, and Yue Tang and the others did not know the situation in the capital that night.

That day, she had only received an urgent notice from the Prince's mansion stating that the late Emperor was critically ill and his end was near. Her father had ordered her to return to the capital immediately.

That was on the morning of the incident, and half a month later, on the eighteenth of the seventh month, would be the sixteenth birthday of her and the Second Prince.

The old monk at Xiangguo Temple had said that the "Heavenly Calamity" they brought from the womb could be dispelled as long as they could smoothly pass their sixteenth year.

Therefore, the sixteenth year for her and the Second Prince was a day worth grand celebration for both the Palace and the Prince's mansion. The Palace had prepared to host a grand banquet for the siblings.

Had it not been for that notice, Yue Tang would have been prepared to officially return to the Prince's mansion in three days.

The night before, she had settled her affairs regarding her marriage to her husband; in the morning, she ordered her things to be packed; and by the afternoon, she received the tragic news. After a rushed preparation, she returned to the city overnight.

But they encountered assassins halfway. After Wei Zhang arranged for her to jump off a cliff and then led her away to find Hua Lin, they immediately fled the capital along with Lan Qin, Huo Yun, and the others who had remained in Bieye to clean up the aftermath.