Chapter 33: The Person She Sacrificed
All night long, the lights in Yangrong Zhai did not go out. Yan Bei sat inside the room for the entire night, and Gao An also stood guard outside the door for the entire night.
When day broke, the attendants brought hot water for washing up, and only then did Gao An reach out to take it, personally carrying it into the room.
Yan Bei sat behind the desk with a grim face. In front of him was a marriage certificate, as well as a divorce letter. The edges of both documents were frayed, one could not tell how many times their owner had flipped through them in the past.
There were also several tattered scraps of paper, exactly the pieces that had been retrieved from the fire basin the night before.
However, after seeing Gao An, this once unruly youth quickly shed the gloom from his face and returned to normal.
Three years as a wet nurse had indeed worn away much of his ferocity.
Now he was a prince in power who could advance and retreat with ease.
“Prince, it’s time to wash up.” Gao An glanced at the stubble sprouting on his chin. Clearly only twenty-two, a flower-like youth, but after staying up all night, with stubble appearing, he looked several years older.
Yan Bei slowly picked up the tea beside him: “Tell me, who is this eulogy of hers mourning?”
What a ridiculous question!
Although the few egg-sized scraps of paper could only be identified as a eulogy, and the words were incoherent, completely unable to speculate on the specific object of the mourning.
In the context of holding a memorial for the He Family, it would only make sense if it was for a close relative of the He Family, right?
But after returning last night, the guards had also investigated overnight. The He Family had no relatives surnamed Wang, let alone any trace of Wang Huan among their friends and family.
Gao An was the head eunuch who had seen all kinds of storms. After standing for the entire night, he knew very well what this prince was thinking.
He was clearly asking a question he already knew the answer to!
He held the razor in one hand and a handkerchief in the other, walking over: “This old servant remembers that when the He Family incident broke out, their daughter-in-law Liu Shi was thrown into prison, which also brought out rumors of Princess Yongjia’s wrongful death.
“If there is truly something suspicious about Princess Yongjia’s cause of death, then the Du Family is highly suspect.
“And if the Du Family is suspected of murdering the princess, then the madam who also died that night at the hands of the bandit raiders could also be said to have died at the hands of the Du Family.
“What she was mourning could only be the lost young heir apparent.”
In that situation, no one would think an infant could still survive.
If A Li had died, wouldn’t the Du Family be the murderers?
After shaving his chin clean, he paused his hand and said slowly: “In the capital city, very few people have seen Princess Yongjia, and presumably the prince hasn’t either.”
In other words, no one could judge that Princess Yongjia wouldn’t look like Wang Huan.
And if Wang Huan was Princess Yongjia, then her appearance in the Du Family’s scheme, and burning a eulogy in the fire basin, would make sense.
Sure enough, Yan Bei paused for a moment and gave him a glance.
Then he leaned his head back against the chair and lightly closed his eyes: “I heard that Princess Yongjia was accomplished in both civil and martial arts. If she were alive, she should seek revenge. And she would certainly have the ability to do so.
“After the incident at Prince Duan’s Mansion, the position of Imperial City Department Envoy fell into Du Minghuan’s hands. From this point, it makes sense that the Du Family has dirty hands.
“But—the Du Family, in their bid for power, should have killed Prince Duan if they were to kill anyone. Why kill Yongjia? With the Du Family’s status and authority at the time, he didn’t have the capability to meddle in Prince Duan’s death.
“Moreover, I went to the scene that year.
“As I’ve told you, the place where Princess Yongjia died was more than ten li away from where Wang Huan met her accident.
“Around the place where she met her accident, besides that horse carriage and a pair of servants, there was no one else.
“Ten li is not a short distance.”
This was equivalent to the distance from the easternmost to the westernmost part of the entire capital city, nearly twice that.
If Wang Huan was Princess Yongjia, shouldn’t she have realized the danger when the nanny and maidservant died?
Yongjia had lived alone outside since childhood, following famous teachers to practice arts, so she should have insight. Then why, knowing there was danger, did she still risk traveling more than ten li forward to her death?
Furthermore, everyone said Princess Yongjia always kept her child with her, so by reason, mother and son should be inseparable. Then how could A Li end up in the hands of the bandit raiders who rushed out near the horse carriage?
Even with Prince Duan’s Mansion’s means, creating a fake identity was a piece of cake. Assuming Wang Huan truly was Princess Yongjia, why did she only have one horse carriage with her?
Where were the rest of the escorts?
Why, after leaving and returning to the capital city, was she still carrying the ordinary clothes she wore outside?
Yan Bei had imagined countless possibilities in his mind, but what he had seen with his own eyes were also facts that were hard to explain.
“Indeed,” Gao An exhaled, continuing to gently shave the remaining stubble for him, “To investigate the truth, we can’t rely on speculation.”
What if they guessed wrong?
It had to be based on logic, on evidence.
“Have them post more notices, inside the city and outside. If it really doesn’t work, checking house by house isn’t impossible either.”
Yan Bei wiped his face with a wet handkerchief, then looked at the face in the mirror, which was still quite proper.
His skin wasn’t as tender as three years ago, but with less sun exposure, it wasn’t as dark either.
In the past two years, his physique had taken shape, and muscles had grown on his body. Now his chest was much thicker than when they married; presumably, if she saw it, she wouldn’t be able to look away.
Once he found her, he would have to show off properly, make her regret abandoning her husband and child. Now facing such a mature and imposing man, it was a pity she could look but not touch.
Hmph hmph.
He steadily and slowly inserted the paper in his hand into the scroll, firmly refusing to let Gao An glimpse any hint of his inner thoughts.
Gao An wiped the razor with the handkerchief and asked puzzledly: “Why doesn’t the prince simply post a portrait?”
“She is after all A Li’s birth mother; how could she be exposed to the public like that?”
Yan Bei removed his outer robe and changed clothes, flexing his pectoral muscles and then his waist muscles in front of the mirror before putting on the clothes. “Moreover, this would easily alert the enemy, wouldn’t it?”
Gao An deeply agreed and handed over the outer robe.
That night, Yan Bei had searched by the riverbank to no avail. Afterward, the guards brought news of the palace coup: the former emperor had passed away, and then Prince Duan died in the palace. Empress Dowager Shen, who had previously managed affairs inside and outside with Prince Duan, now held sole power.
Yan Bei realized the situation in the court was off, so he decisively left the scene, entered the capital city holding the imperial edict, and took charge of the imperial court as the regent minister appointed by the former emperor.
He then took over the Bureau of Military Affairs overnight, suppressing the restless factions with thunderous speed.
He also quickly dispatched his confidant guards to escort the Second Prince, who still had some life left, back to the capital city.
He, who had been ordered to take over the Bureau of Military Affairs and held military power, immediately forced Empress Dowager Shen to push back the four-year-old Fourth Prince, whom she had already presented to the court officials, and sit him down again.
If Yan Bei had arrived even a bit later, he would now be ordered to serve as regent for the Fourth Prince, and the Shen Family would have become the undisputed top power holder.
And even if the Second Prince hadn’t died in that accident outside the capital city, he would certainly have been killed later by the now ascendant Shen Family.
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