An Eight-year-old Princess

Chapter 50 Adultery Exposed

The man on the roof jumped down. It was so dark that Yun Shang couldn't see his expression. All she

saw was his particularly bright but cold eyes. Nôvel(D)rama.Org's content.

"If I hadn't been here, how would I have seen such an interesting thing?" Prince Jing circled Yun

Shang. He stopped to face her. "I didn't expect you, a girl who has just had her Coming-of-age

Ceremony, to be so familiar with these kinds of affairs. You've just stood there and watched for such a

long time without being shy at all."

His words irritated her somewhat, but she laughed to cover up her annoyance. "I'm not a patch on you,

my uncle." Yun Shang stared into his eyes as she continued, "Please don't forget that we have a deal.

We are in the same boat now. So why should we be so tit-for-tat?"

Prince Jing nodded his approval. "Sounds reasonable, but I've been wondering how could there would

be a woman like you in the Imperial Household. You are intelligent and courageous, and not like a royal

child at all. Are you a fake one?"

"That's absurd. Show me how someone could masquerade as a Princess!" Yun Shang frowned and

her tone became more unfriendly.

Prince Jing laughed again. "Forget it. You are a wild cat. It's impossible to tease you. By the way, I've

heard that the Empress is going to coming after you during the winter solstice. Be careful."

His sudden change of tone made her a little uncomfortable. Yun Shang was stunned for a while. When

she regained her composure she said, "Well, I already know. But thank you for reminding me."

Prince Jing nodded his head and added, "If you always try to hog the limelight, you may find yourself

under attack from all sides. Learn to frame others when it's appropriate."

Yun Shang was stunned again. A dim figure flashed past; it was Prince Jing who had quickly

disappeared into the dark. She had no time to respond. Yun Shang frowned as she carefully

considered what Prince Jing had said. Finally she turned towards Qingxin Palace.

Qian Yin quickly stepped forward when she saw Princess Yun Shang return. "You are back, Your

Highness. Your plan for tomorrow morning has been arranged. The plan is foolproof."

Yun Shang nodded and turned to look at Qian Yin. "You have been in the Imperial Palace for three

years. What do you think of the Imperial concubines and their factions?"

Qian Yin pulled the Princess to the chair before replying, "You do ask the right person, Your Highness. I

have already studied the concubines. There are not many concubines at the Palace in total. Seventeen

of them enjoy high status. They are divided into three factions. The first is dominated by the Empress,

which includes Lady Lu, Lady Li, Lady Lan, Lady Hua, and Lady Qin. Another faction includes another

Lady Qin, Lady Xu, and Lady Wan. They pretend to be harmonious with the Empress. However, they

revere Lady Shu. There is also a concubine called Lady Ying who is not willing to be harmonious with

the Empress, even on a superficial level. She had been pregnant before. Once, she offended the

Empress and was punished by her. Lady Ying miscarried because of this. From then on, Lady Ying

started to hate the Empress. So much so that she has made it widely known that should anything

happened to her, the Empress would be responsible. The remaining concubines don't have any

obvious factions. Possibly because they are hardly in the Emperor's favor. I haven't paid much attention

to them."

Yun Shang nodded and murmured, "Lady Ying..."

"Make a clear investigation of this Lady Ying and report to me. You must be meticulous because I need

to know everything about her; what she likes, what she hates, what she usually does, which court maid

she trusts..."

Qian Yin responded quickly, "I will send someone to inquire as soon as possible. However, it's late now.

You should rest, Your Highness."

Yun Shang nodded and allowed Qian Yin to serve her as she freshened up before getting into bed.

The next day, Yun Shang's plan commenced at Qiwu Palace. It was the time for the Imperial

concubines to panegyrize the Empress. As usual, the Empress welcomed the concubines who came to

greet her.

"His Majesty has not been to Qiwu Palace in days. I heard that he finally visited you yesterday. Your

Majesty, how could you be so generous as to let him leave after staying for about two hours? I heard

that His Majesty did not return to Qinzheng Hall at all last night. God knows in which seductress' bed

His Majesty is in now." The woman was speaking with a touch of sarcasm, looking askance at the

Empress who was sitting on her throne.

The Empress smiled leisurely. "His Majesty has been quite busy with political affairs. As the owner of

the Imperial Household, I naturally think about what is best for His Majesty. Please also control yourself

a little bit. After all, the affairs of state are most important. Lady Ying, you also shouldn't mention

seductresses all the time. It won't benefit you if you were overheard by others."

"So gentle and virtuous of you, Your Majesty. You are indeed a paragon of virtue from amongst the

others in the Imperial Household. I admire you very much." Another concubine responded instantly.

Lady Ying smiled sarcastically. "You are really an excellent flatterer, Lady Lan."

As they began quarreling, Xiu Xin hurried rushed in and stood by the Empress. She whispered

something that made the Empress frown. "How can this happen? Show me the way right now."

"What happened, Your Majesty?" Lady Lan asked immediately.

The Empress stood up angrily. Despite the urgency of the situation, she still behaved in an impressive

and dignified manner. "A few days ago, a court maid of Princess Hui Guo offended Prince Jing, so he

broken her legs. One day, I saw that she wanted to jump into the lake and commit suicide when I was

taking a walk. I sympathized with her and took her from Princess Hui Guo. I placed her at the rear court

room, and even sent someone to take care of her. I never thought that she would sneak out on a

private date last night. She still hasn't returned. If there were other men coming into the Imperial

Household, it would be a serious matter. I am going to see who dares to do this!"

Suddenly, everyone was at a loss what to do. Lady Lan spoke up "Princess Hui Guo is too negligent

about her own court maid. It is really inappropriate for her to let her maid do such a thing."

The Empress nodded. "Send someone to bring the Princess here. All of you come with me to see what

happened. The Imperial Household has always been peaceful, and such ridiculous things have not

happened before. The culprits must be severely punished so as to clean up the Household."

Then the Empress stepped out of her throne room accompanied by the concubines. She intended to

follow the messenger to the Palace where the adulterers had been spotted. As soon as the women

wanted to enter the front door of the Palace, they saw Yun Chang coming in a hurry, escorted by two

court maids. "Good day, my mother. Good day, dear concubines."

The Empress glimpsed at Yun Shang and said, "You have just reached at the age of fifteen and don't

know much about the affairs between men and women. I shouldn't have told you to come, but Qin

Meng is your former court maid. Now that she has done such a thing, her behavior reflects on you. If it

is true, you must carry the blame for your negligence of discipline. Do you know the seriousness of the

matter, Shang'er?"

Yun Shang bowed her head. "I know."

The Empress nodded and turned to the eunuchs. "Break down the door."

These eunuchs nodded and rushed towards the door. With a loud sound, the door gave way. The

eunuchs retreated to both sides, and the Empress entered with her ladies.

Under the eaves of the Palace, lay a half-naked man and woman. The Empress said angrily, "Arrest

the adulterer and adulteress at once!"

The eunuchs quickly stepped forward and lifted the two people on the ground. As soon as they saw the

man's face the eunuchs turned to the Empress. They trembled as they spoke, "Your... Your Majesty, it

seems that... it is His Majesty..."