The Command to Pamper the Husband - Chapter 176

“If he’s upset, he resorts to violence? And right at the palace gate? I think he did it for my benefit,” the Emperor said, still filled with anger.

The Chief Eunuch remained silent, his expression confident: Yes, that’s right, trust your judgment.

The Emperor continued, “Why would he beat someone up for my benefit? He’s the Minister of Justice. With such a case, isn’t it normal for the Ministry of Justice to handle it? If not them, should the Ministry of Works, Ministry of Rites, or Ministry of War take over? Nonsense! I think he’s getting bolder!”

The Chief Eunuch bowed his head. “Compared to being bold, the Minister of Justice is rather innocent. The truly bold one is the Capital Magistrate Prefecture.”

The Emperor chuckled but then felt a bit awkward. Given the arson and massacre at the Fourth Prince’s place, anyone else would have reported it to the Imperial Study first before handling it. But Zhao Jide had a head as hard as a diamond.

He didn’t inform the Emperor in advance and directly announced it in the Imperial Hall. Not only that, he declared in front of everyone that he didn’t recognize the Third Prince.

That was just asking for trouble! It was fortunate that the Third Prince was imprisoned and interrogated the same day. If the Third Prince had any chance, Zhao Jide would have been lucky to survive.

Now, thinking about it, the Emperor’s mood improved a bit. “What are the Third Prince’s people up to now?”

The Chief Eunuch quickly responded, “Your Majesty, it’s hard for this servant to know.”

This was something the Second Prince would know best. When the Third Prince got into trouble, the Second Prince was the happiest. The Second Prince, upon hearing that the Third Prince was carried back, immediately brought the best physician from his residence and went to the Third Prince’s mansion, feigning concern but unable to hide his smile.

The people in the Third Prince’s mansion were too busy to pay attention to his expressions. Knowing his ill intentions was enough.

When the Second Prince wanted his physician to examine the Third Prince, the Third Prince’s own physicians stared at him and the Second Prince’s physician, fearing they might kill the Third Prince while he was unconscious.

Fortunately, the physician only assessed the injuries. The Third Prince remained unconscious, and his mother immediately appointed a trusted steward to manage everything. This steward, loyal to the Third Prince, stuck to the Second Prince, fearing any foul play. After respectfully sending the Second Prince away, they moved the Third Prince to a different room for safety.

At the Third Prince’s residence, the atmosphere was tense. Meanwhile, at the Fourth Prince’s residence, Zhen Side Concubine’s father was pacing in his study, his head splitting from worry. Ever since the Third Prince’s incident, he hadn’t left his study after returning from court.

Others might think the Fourth Prince was uninvolved, but he thought differently. If the Fourth Prince were truly uninvolved, why would he forcibly drag his daughter out of the room during the fire and yet allow someone to return with a message?

This was too abnormal. The Fourth Prince’s residence had been attacked by assassins and arsonists. How could the Fourth Prince calmly move his concubines to safety? It suggested the Fourth Prince had control over the situation when the Crown Prince arrived.

Why did the Crown Prince go there? Why did he speak that way in court? Was the Crown Prince truly not involved in factional strife?

Minister Zhen’s head felt like it was splitting. If only he had gone there that night. Now, the Third Prince was so severely burned that even if he woke up, he would never ascend the throne. How could an Emperor be covered in scars?

He had followed the Third Prince for so many years and had long offended the Second Prince’s people. If the Third Prince hadn’t been injured, switching allegiance to the Second Prince might have been possible. But now, with the Third Prince’s fall, they would be purged if they tried to join the Second Prince.

Even if the Second Prince temporarily accepted them for the sake of unity, he would settle accounts later. Minister Zhen knew the Second Prince’s vengeful nature. But not following the Second Prince meant awaiting death. If the Third Prince remained unconscious for more than half a month, his followers would be purged one by one and replaced.

Thinking of the potential consequences, Minister Zhen grew more anxious. Who should he turn to? His options were limited to the Crown Prince, the Fourth Prince, and the Fifth Prince.

The Fourth Prince had never been favored by the Emperor. However, suddenly, Minister Zhen had an epiphany.

Wait.

The Fourth Prince was not favored because of his fate, which supposedly clashed with the Emperor’s. But what if the astrologers were wrong? Previously, an astrologer had conspired with a palace concubine to falsely claim celestial omens to implicate the Fourth Prince. Could the fate issue also be a lie?

With this realization, Minister Zhen felt like he had discovered a new world. He hurriedly left his study.

Nearby, Wang Liu, who was monitoring Minister Zhen, saw the carriage leave and followed from a distance. Seeing Minister Zhen go to the residence of Minister Zhao of the Imperial Astronomical Bureau, Wang Liu smiled and left.

At Shen Yue’s residence, Song Jin sat drinking tea while Wan Xi gnawed on a chicken leg across from him. “Master, has Lu Zhan gone missing? I haven’t seen him for a while.”

“Someone has been sent to find him.”

Since the fire that night, Lu Zhan had disappeared. Shen Yue’s personal guards were more anxious than Song Jin. Upon hearing that Lu Zhan might be in danger, they immediately sent four men to search.

Just then, Wang Liu entered. “Master, Minister Zhen went to the residence of Minister Zhao from the Imperial Astronomical Bureau.”

As Wang Liu finished speaking, applause was heard from outside.

“Fourth Brother, you are truly impressive!”