For the entire morning, Yan Jingshu thought for a moment about Xie Huan, wanting to tell him that he supported all his decisions, and then thought about Mu Chongyan, wondering under what circumstances would be suitable to acknowledge him as father.
As he thought, Xie Huan arrived.
Although Yan Jingshu had already made up his mind, he was, after all, the junior. For him to say to his father, "Your son hopes you will find someone," was somewhat difficult to say outright for a moment. He wanted to wait for Xie Huan to speak first, but unexpectedly, Xie Huan also seemed to want to say something but seemed unable to get it out.
Fortunately, he finally mustered his courage and said what he needed to say. However, he did not mention the matter of acknowledging Mu Chongyan as a father. After all, Xie Huan wasn't truly together with Mu Chongyan yet, so the matter of acknowledgment wasn't urgent.
Xie Huan usually lived at the Commandery Prince of Rui's residence, and Mu Chongyan mostly went there to find Xie Huan, so he and Yan Jingshu hardly ever met. Thus, Yan Jingshu had no way of knowing how far things had progressed between Xie Huan and Mu Chongyan. But if there were any major developments, Xie Huan would always be the first to tell him, so he wasn't particularly anxious about it.
The days passed uneventfully like this, and in the blink of an eye, winter arrived.
As time passed, the waves of turmoil caused by Xiao Yanchu's appearance in the capital gradually subsided and settled down. Everything seemed to return to its former calm, but Jiang Chenghan knew that beneath the calm surface, undercurrents never ceased to surge. And now, there were two more ripples stirred up by him and the Prince of Chuxiang.
The matter of the Prince of Chuxiang seeking revenge on the Marquis of Yongchang and Consort Li for Yan Jingshu's sake had also been relayed by Xie Huan to Jiang Chenghan and Yan Jingshu. Yan Jingshu originally didn't want to make trouble, but after all, he and the Prince of Chuxiang hadn't acknowledged each other yet and had no relationship, so he had no standing to make demands of the Prince of Chuxiang. As for Jiang Chenghan, he didn't mind—there was no need for him to stop the child's father from venting his anger.
Being swift and decisive was the Prince of Chuxiang's consistent style. So, just a few days after Jiang Chenghan and Yan Jingshu learned of this matter, he had already taken action.
First, a censor submitted a formal impeachment against the Marquis of Yongchang in court for allowing his son to engage in violent and unlawful acts, the Marquis of Yongchang and the Minister of Justice forming cliques for personal gain, and several other charges. As the investigation into the Marquis of Yongchang and the Minister of Justice deepened, evidence of Consort Li's illicit private correspondence with the Minister of Justice—exchanged between the palace and the outside world in previous years—was also brought to light.
The Emperor strictly forbade and most despised any private communication between the inner palace and the outer court. He was immediately furious beyond measure. The Marquis of Yongchang was stripped of his title, his home was confiscated, and his son was exiled. The Minister of Justice was also thrown into prison. Consort Li, because she had borne a prince, managed to keep her life but was demoted to a Cairen and confined to her quarters.
[The ranking of major concubine titles from highest to lowest: Imperial Noble Consort (皇贵妃, Huángguìfēi) - Noble Consort (贵妃, Guìfēi) - Consort (妃, Fēi) - Imperial Concubine (嫔, Pín) - Noble Lady (贵人, Guìrén) - Talented Lady (才人, Cáirén) - Attendant (选侍, Xuǎnshì) - Court Lady (采女, Cǎinǚ)]
Having violated the Emperor's greatest taboo, her situation became practically indistinguishable from being consigned to the cold palace. And until everything was settled, they could never have imagined that all of this was merely because of a single greedy act they had committed many years ago.
When the sentences for the Marquis of Yongchang, the Minister of Justice, and Consort Li were handed down, the Prince of Chuxiang immediately took the news to curry favor with Xie Huan. But when he arrived at the Commandery Prince of Rui's residence, he found that Yan Jingshu was also there.
"Greetings, Your Highness." To be precise, this was only Yan Jingshu's third time meeting Mu Chongyan, yet with each encounter, his state of mind had been distinctly different.
"Please rise, there's no need for such courtesy." If he hadn't known that Yan Jingshu still felt some resistance towards him, Mu Chongyan would have wanted to step forward and help Yan Jingshu up himself.
The previous two times, once he didn't know Yan Jingshu was his child, and the other was at a banquet with many outsiders present, so Mu Chongyan had never had a proper chance to look at Yan Jingshu. Now, at the Commandery Prince of Rui's residence, surrounded by his own people, Mu Chongyan had no more reservations.
Although Yan Jingshu's appearance was six or seven parts similar to Xie Huan's, especially the eyes, which were as if carved from the same mold, upon closer inspection, one could also see some traces of Mu Chongyan, such as the straight bridge of the nose and the distinct jawline.
However, compared to Mu Chongyan's ruggedness, Yan Jingshu, being a shuang'er, appeared much softer.
The thought that the young man before him was his and Xie Huan's child made the corners of Mu Chongyan's mouth turn up uncontrollably, radiating joy from his heart and eyes. He looked at Yan Jingshu, then at Xie Huan, his gaze shifting back and forth between the father and son as if he couldn't get enough, feeling more satisfied than he had ever been in his life.
Finally, Xie Huan couldn't stand Mu Chongyan's silly smiling anymore and asked, "What exactly did you come here for?"
Mu Chongyan then came back to his senses and hurriedly told Yan Jingshu and Xie Huan about the matters concerning the Marquis of Yongchang and Consort Li.
These people had schemed against Yan Jingshu back then and ruined his marriage prospects. Hearing now that they all met bad ends, Xie Huan also felt some vindication, saying, "Those who commit many unrighteous acts will inevitably bring about their own downfall. They can't be considered wronged."
Although Mu Chongyan wanted to take revenge for Yan Jingshu, he wouldn't fabricate false charges to frame them. The Marquis of Yongchang and Consort Li, having dared to do such things back then, were undoubtedly involved in other shady dealings, making it easy for Mu Chongyan to find evidence against them and ultimately wipe them out completely.
Mu Chongyan's considerable efforts were, after all, undertaken solely for Yan Jingshu's benefit—a fact of which Yan Jingshu was aware. If he hadn't seen Mu Chongyan, it would be one thing, but now that the man was right in front of him, he couldn't remain unmoved.
He stood up, bowed to Mu Chongyan, and said solemnly, "Thank you for your trouble, Your Highness."
Mu Chongyan very much wanted to tell Yan Jingshu not to address him so formally, but seeing Yan Jingshu's expression, he didn't want to pressure him. He just smiled and said, "It's nothing, it's what I should do."
Hearing this, Yan Jingshu felt even more uncomfortable. One should not accept rewards without merit—he hadn't acknowledged Mu Chongyan yet, but Mu Chongyan already held the heart of a loving father towards him, which he found somewhat hard to bear.
Fortunately, Xie Huan knew Yan Jingshu felt awkward around Mu Chongyan and soon took Mu Chongyan away.
No comments:
Post a Comment