zChapter 1008 - One Plan at a Time (2/2)
Ge shi was a bit dazed, and Lu Ping had no desire to speak with her, turning around and leaving. Right before leaving, she spat out: “Even if I wanted to accompany Princess Yu for a meal, she would not want to. As the head mother, you need to cover your nose when getting even slightly close to me, much less Princess Yu!”
Returning from the Lu manor, Xuan Tianming had also returned. She told him about the information that she had gained from Lu Ping regarding the gu, and after she finished speaking, the two simply sighed. The information from Lu Ping was not of too much value. In order to save the Emperor, in the end, they would need to rely on themselves.
Feng Yuheng said to Xuan Tianming about her own plan: “I will go into the palace tonight. I will go on my own. The most important thing is to go into Imperial Concubine Li’s Zhang Ning Palace to investigate. Of course, Imperial Concubine Yuan Shu’s side also needs to be investigated. If there is enough time, I will go and check it out at the same time. These two are the most suspicious. Sooner or later, they will need to be investigated.”
“I will go with you.” Xuan Tianming was uneasy with her entering on her own.
Feng Yuheng, however, shook her head: “It’s fine. At worst, I will just hide in my space. There’s nobody who can find me. As for what you said yesterday about Father Emperor changing his personal eunuch, did you find out where Zhang Yuan is?”
Xuan Tianming nodded, “There’s no need to find out. It’s been spread all over the palace. Zhang Yuan was framed by Imperial Concubine Yuan Shu, and the old man punished him with 30 strikes from a board. In two days, he will be brought to the department of guilty servants. I figure that little eunuch’s body won’t be able to endure this sort of thing. If you can find him while in the palace, give him a bit of medicine! In any case, don’t let him suffer.”
“Father Emperor even hit Zhang Yuan?” She could hardly believe it. This entire time, Zhang Yuan got along so well with the Emperor that there were people who found it hard to believe that the two did not get along in that way. She never thought that there would come a day when the Emperor would actually be willing to punish Zhang Yuan, and it was actually for Imperial Concubine Yuan Shu. She could not help but feel a bit angry, saying: “Not only is Imperial Concubine Yuan Shu monopolizing the inner palace, but it seems that she has begun paving the way for her son’s future. Just watch, a large-scale problem will appear quite shortly. Almost all of the people whom Imperial Concubine Yuan Shu and the eighth prince think of as eyesores or dislike will be removed.”
“That’s right.” Xuan Tianming said: “That’s why we need to move quickly and act before they do. If we can save one, we should save one. Also…” A look of worry appeared on his face, “Saving others is not the end goal. The end goal is to temporarily slow down the rate at which old eighth and Imperial Concubine Yuan Shu progress to prevent them from getting rid of everyone and moving on to dealing with the old man. After all, old eighth wants to claim the throne. With the old man still alive, that’s not possible.”
The two realized this threat, and it was not just the two. Nearly everyone understood what the eighth prince’s next plan was. It could be said that the faction loyal to the Emperor and the ninth prince’s faction were fighting against time. They were desperately going back and forth with the eighth prince and doing everything possible to have this change come a little later. This would allow them to find some time to come up with a way to reverse the tides.
Xuan Tianming said to Feng Yuheng: “We could not get your grandfather into the palace. The palace gave the order to restrict entrance. Aside from officials attending morning court, nobody else is allowed to enter the Imperial Palace on their own. This includes you.” He said: “Now, even if it’s you, I fear that you will no longer be able to enter the Imperial Palace openly.”
“Has nobody voiced their objections?” She was puzzled, “What about Tiange? Can Tiange no longer enter the palace? Also Feiyu, he returned from Xiao Zhou a little earlier. Can he go in to see his grandfather?”
Xuan Tianming shook his head, “No, it’s not that nobody voiced their objections. It’s just that it was pointless. This restriction was decided upon by the old man. On the surface, it looks to be unrelated to old eighth. The Emperor spoke up, and the officials below could not oppose him. Also, it’s just restricting people without any official duties from entering the palace. What could they possibly say to oppose it? As for Tiange and Feiyu, they cannot enter the palace. This is even more of a matter for the imperial family, and outsiders cannot say anything about it.”
“If things continue like this, Father Emperor’s situation will truly be too dangerous.” Feng Yuheng was very worried, “Imperial Concubine Yuan Shu is monopolizing Father Emperor at all times. Even going in to check his pulse is difficult for me. If things truly don’t work out, I can only stay outside and listen for when they fall asleep.” She rolled her eyes at her own idea. Where was there any daughter-in-law that would sit around and listen to her father-in-law in the bedroom? “Forget it, forget it.” She waved her hand, “We’ll see after we go into the palace tonight. I just hope that something can be found out.”
They were also out of ideas. Xuan Tianming also placed his hopes in Feng Yuheng’s covert movements. Regardless of whether it was Imperial Concubine Li or Imperial Concubine Yuan Shu, once the situation was found out, it would be better than not having a single clue.
Finally, the night was dark and cloudy. A delicate and small figure in black clothes flickered in and out of view, heading in the direction of the Imperial Palace. However, on this night, nobody could have expected what Feng Yuheng would see in the palace…