Help! The innocent prince always tries to seduce me clumsily

Two months had passed since the letter arrived in Xu Zhanqing's hands after traveling from Qinglian East Palace.

He looked at the letter and his hands shook with excitement.

He originally thought that Chu Shitong was dead.

On the day Si Jingli forcibly left Beijing, Chu Shiyu ordered to stop investigating the disappearance of Chu Shitong, and directly announced to the public that Prince Qi was dead.

This incident had a huge impact, even Xu Zhanqing who was at the border knew about it. Not long after the news of Chu Shitong's death came, Chu Shiyu fell seriously ill and was unable to attend court.

The situation in the court was in chaos, and Chu Shihan had no status among the civil and military officials.

All the people had their own ulterior motives. In order to prevent internal strife and external enemies, Chu Shiyu had no choice but to release Chu Shixuan to temporarily take charge of the government. This was how he managed to maintain a minimum situation.

People in Beijing were in a panic.

There were constant rumors among the people.

Some people said that Prince Qi was not dead at all, and he faked his death in order to secretly rebel and seize the throne.

Some people say that the current emperor has passed away a long time ago, and it was King Yuan who secretly controlled the situation, and the death was kept secret because King Qi faked his death.

Some people also say that the death of Prince Qi was the joint work of Prince Yuan and Prince Duan.

The most unignorable rumor among these is that the Marquis of Zhenguo took the initiative to lead his troops to visit the capital.

The Marquis of Zhenguo, under the pretext of caring about the emperor's health, took the initiative to lead a large army to the capital without any recall order.

This time, the troops were led into the capital by Prince Rongwang himself. It was of no use for King Yuan to refuse the Marquis of Zhenguo to come to the capital. Prince Rongwang led his troops all the way from Quanzhou to the capital, and it could be said that he rode on horseback all the way. Anyone who dared to stop him would be attacked without asking the reason.

There were no other troops in the capital except for the fixed imperial guards. After all, there were wars going on on both sides of the border. Chu Shixuan thought about asking Xu Zhanqing to bring people back, but the border would be easily lost in this way, so he chose to lead his troops alone to meet the 40,000 cavalry of the Marquis of Zhenguo.

It is better to change the dynasty internally than to protect the entire country from interference from external enemies.

This is Chu Shixuan’s principle.

Xu Zhanqing was extremely anxious, but in the midst of war, he could not return to the capital without being summoned, and he could not leave here at all. He could only secretly send someone to inform Prince Qi's Mansion of Prince Qi's presence in Qinglian, hoping that Chu Shitong's old subordinates could take action.

But the Seventh Prince's Mansion had long been deserted. In order to find Chu Shitong, Ji Shu led everyone to start an underground investigation. They searched along the river for several months and almost turned the entire river upside down.

The news was eventually heard by Qin Wei, who happened to return home.

When he learned about this, he immediately set off for Qinglian.

But Beiqing has been in the midst of countless wars, internal and external troubles, the capital is closed, and even leaving the capital is difficult...

When Si Jingli heard that Chu Shixuan wanted to recall Xu Zhanqing, he remembered the friendship between Chu Shitong and Xu Zhanqing, so he wrote a letter to contact him.

After reading the letter, Xu Zhanqing thought of the friendship between Si Jingli and Chu Shitong, so he wrote Chu Shitong's whereabouts in the letter and wanted to send someone to deliver it.

But before the letter could be sent out of the border city, foreign enemies invaded.

The world was in chaos and had lost its shape.

The border city fell, Xu Zhanqing was captured, and the letter was burned along with the tent, never having the chance to be delivered to Si Jingli.

After months of continuous bombardment, Beiqing fell into complete chaos and turmoil.

……

As spring goes and autumn comes, the leaves on the trees turn yellow before they even grow bigger.

In the past few months, Qinglian has been following a rumor that there is a new woman in the East Palace recently, and the Crown Prince Song Huaijin treats her like an eyeball.

Rumors were rife across the country.

Song Huaijin is already nineteen years old and still hasn't married. He doesn't even have a concubine. Who could be the person who could treat her like a treasure and hide her in the Eastern Palace?

Everyone is curious.

The Emperor and Queen of Qinglian were naturally curious as well.

So one day when Song Huaijin was attending court, a group of people came to the East Palace in a mighty manner from the harem.

……

Nanny Zhou, who was in the lead, forced her way into the yard and looked up to see a white figure in the corridor.

I guess that's the woman the prince has been hiding.

Nanny Zhou led her people forward and acted like someone from the emperor's and empress's palace.

"You must be Miss Blue."

Lan Qi slowly turned his head, his indifferent amber eyes quietly looking at the person in front of him.

"Yes."

It seems the visitor is ill-intentioned.

When Nanny Zhou saw that stunningly beautiful face, she was secretly shocked. No wonder Song Huaijin kept her like a treasure.

She came back to her senses, bowed, and said, "I am here on behalf of the Emperor and Empress to invite you into the palace."

Lan Qi lowered his eyes and said in a calm voice, "Does His Royal Highness know about this?"

Song Huaijin had always kept her hidden very well. Not only did he not allow servants to enter and leave her yard at will, he also refused all visitors, not even Song Mingzhu, under the pretext of allowing her to recuperate in peace.

Madam Zhou said, "The Empress does not need the Crown Prince's approval to do anything. Miss Lan, please get up immediately and follow us into the palace."

Lan Qi had a vague feeling that there was nothing good about entering the palace, but she was surrounded by Nanny Zhou's people and had no way to retreat. She could only bite the bullet and follow the group into the palace.

The Qinglian royal family has a thousand-year history.

The palace is majestic and solemn, and looks extremely luxurious at first glance.

Lan Qi was brought into the Emperor's and Empress's palace by Nanny Zhou. Along the way, Nanny Zhou kept telling her the etiquette of paying homage to the Emperor and Empress. Lan Qi always felt that this feeling of entering the palace for an audience was familiar, but her mind was blank and she could not remember anything.

In the past few months, Song Huaijin had been busy asking imperial doctors to treat her. She had to drink several pots of herbal medicine every day, but she never felt that those herbs had any effect.

As I walked into the hall, the feeling of being stared at from above immediately came over me from all directions.

The emperor and empress sat on the Phoenix Throne, majestic and noble.

Lan Qi walked forward slowly, glanced briefly at the person in the upper position, and saluted with his eyes lowered.

"I, Lan Qi, greet the Queen."

Even though the Qinglian Empress is only forty years old now, she has maintained herself extremely well and looks like she is no more than thirty years old. She has an absolutely beautiful appearance and a gentle yet dignified temperament.

"Get up," the empress said softly, "raise your head."

Lan Qi did as he was told, his eyes still humbly fixed on the ground.

When the emperor and empress saw her face, they were surprised and their brows were furrowed.

Song Mingzhu was sitting nearby. Seeing the emperor and empress like this, she smiled and said, "Mother, I'll tell you. I guarantee you'll be shocked when you see it."

Hearing Song Mingzhu's voice, Lan Qi took a look subconsciously. Song Mingzhu took the initiative to greet her. After all, they had been together for a while, and she liked Lan Qi very much.

"Xiaobai, long time no see, how is your injury?"

Lan Qi's mind went blank, but inexplicably... her body's subconscious reaction made her show a humble expression that seemed to be a smile, and she responded calmly: "Thank you for your concern, Princess. I have recovered a lot."

"That's good." Song Mingzhu looked at the Phoenix Throne, "Does the Queen Mother like it?"

The emperor and empress's expressions turned serious, and their eyes were as cold as ice as they stared at that face.

"Lan Qi, who are you? Why did you suddenly appear beside the prince?"

Before Lan Qi could speak, Song Mingzhu said, "She is from Beiqing. I brought her back from the road. She was seriously injured and lost her memory. She couldn't remember anything when the Queen Mother asked."

Upon hearing this, the Emperor and Empress' cold expressions softened slightly.

"Take a seat."

"Thank you, Empress Dowager."

As soon as Lan Qi sat down, Song Mingzhu pulled her aside and asked her all sorts of questions.

"Xiaobai, does the emperor lock you up in the yard every day and not let you out?"

Lan Qi really wanted to say "yes", but out of some physical habit, she didn't do so. She just said it in a very polite tone.

"Your Highness is thinking about my health, so this doesn't count."

"I went to see him several times but he wouldn't let me see you. I think he did it on purpose. He wanted to monopolize you all by himself."

"..."

The Queen stared at Lan Qi for a long time and asked slowly, "Lan Qi, who is your mother? Do you still remember her?"

Lan Qi thought about it for a moment, and suddenly a hideous and terrifying face like a ghost appeared in her mind. She was stunned for a moment, lowered her eyes and said, "I can't remember it."

The emperor and empress looked at her, their brows still furrowed, and sighed softly.

"Forget it, if you can't remember it, forget it."

"The Emperor has arrived——"

The emperor, empress and Song Mingzhu stood up one after another, and Lan Qi also subconsciously stood up and saluted.

The emperor, dressed in a dragon robe, walked quickly into the hall. He glanced at Lan Qi strangely as he passed by, then walked to the empress and gently helped her up.

"You guys should get up too. No need to be so polite."

His eyes fell on Lan Qi, and he saw a look of surprise on that face. He exchanged glances with the Emperor and Empress, and they both seemed to understand the meaning in each other's eyes. They looked at Lan Qi again and again.

"Are you the woman Huai Jin hid in the East Palace?" asked the Emperor.

"Commoner Lan Qi."

Lan Qi saluted again.

The Emperor frowned and waved his hand.

"Get up."

He was about to ask something when the empress spoke up and told him about her amnesia.

The two of them fell into a strange silence.

It was as if they all knew the same thing, but tacitly didn't say it out loud.

Lan Qi noticed this, but he couldn't ask any questions at this time. He could only pretend to be clueless and continue talking to Song Mingzhu.

Not long after, the shouts of several eunuchs were heard coming from outside.

"Your Highness! How come you came in before I even informed you?"

As soon as he finished speaking, a red figure rushed into the hall.

Song Huaijin swept the hall with a panicked gaze, and finally breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that Lan Qi was safe and sound. He quickly walked forward, half-knelt in front of Lan Qi, took her hand and asked.

"Xiao Qi! Are you okay? Why did you come out?"

"presumptuous!"

The emperor and empress in high positions became angry when they saw Song Huaijin's worthless look.

The Emperor said angrily: "Who taught you to be so rude that you dare to break into the Empress' Palace?"

The emperor and empress looked like they were watching the fun.

Song Huaijin was forced to stand up and salute the high seat.

"Your son pays respects to your mother, your father."

Just after finishing the ceremony, he was in front of Lan Qi again in the blink of an eye.

"Xiao Qi." Song Huaijin held her hand carefully, as if he were treating a rare treasure, and his voice was the gentlest that Song Mingzhu had ever heard in her life. "Did they bully you?"

Lan Qi looked embarrassed and said, "No, the Queen was very kind to me and even gave me cakes and tea."

Song Mingzhu rolled her eyes silently.

"Brother, the Queen Mother only asked her to come over to ask questions. Look at you, what do you think the Queen Mother is?"

The emperor and empress snorted coldly and looked at their good-for-nothing son with a deathly gaze.

Song Huaijin stood up and asked, "Mother, didn't I tell you that she needs to rest and will be brought to you when she recovers? How could you bring her into the palace secretly?"

The emperor and empress felt a little guilty, but they were not at all lacking in momentum.

"I just asked her to come over to ask questions, and I didn't do anything else. What are you afraid of?"

Song Huaijin was naturally afraid that people would know Chu Shitong's identity, but he didn't dare to make it clear. He could only take a deep breath and said.

"She is weak and needs to rest. If you are done seeing me, please take her back."

The Emperor said coldly: "Wait, she can leave, you stay."

Song Huaijin vaguely sensed something, and first ordered someone to send Lan Qi back. Song Mingzhu took her hand and followed her out of the hall.

After everyone left, the palace became quiet, and the emperor and empress finally couldn't help but ask.

"Huai Jin, who is this Miss Lan?"

Song Huaijin still wanted to conceal it, "She is just the daughter of a merchant from Beiqing..."

"Heh." The Empress sneered, "Do you think it's possible with her face?"

Song Huaijin was a little puzzled. Chu Shitong's face was indeed pretty, but it was not necessary to doubt her identity just because of her face.

"Mother, I don't understand what you mean."

The Emperor said patiently, "Huai Jin, if you really want to keep that woman, you'd better tell the truth. Everyone knows what the situation is in Beiqing now. Don't let me go to great lengths to investigate."

Seeing that he could no longer hide it, Song Huaijin knelt on the ground and spoke proactively.

"To be honest, she is... one of my sworn brothers in Beiqing."

"Brother?" The Empress seemed to understand something. "No wonder she performed the male etiquette."

The etiquette between the important countries was somewhat different, but the movements of men and women performing etiquette were very different. Chu Shitong performed the men's etiquette, and the emperor and empress found it strange when they saw it, but thinking that she was from Beiqing after all and was deeply loved by the prince, they did not care.

Song Huaijin said, "She is the seventh prince of the Chu Shi imperial family, Chu Shitong, that is... the seventh prince who was announced to the public earlier. I think she was assassinated and seriously injured, and was saved by Mingzhu who happened to pass by."

Upon hearing this, the Emperor and the Empress' eyes flashed with understanding, but more of it was disgust.

The Emperor sneered: "Master Chu's clan is really not worthy of being on the stage. Back then, they announced to the public that Princess Tianxuan committed suicide, but I didn't expect it to be like this..."

"It's not easy for this child either." The Empress sighed, "It seems that this was Chu Shiyu's idea. If she didn't dress up as a man, she would not be able to grow up safely to this age."

Song Huaijin was confused by what he heard, but he realized that the Tianxuan poison in Chu Shitong's body might be related to Princess Tianxuan.

"Father, Mother, what are you talking about? What is the relationship between Xiao Qi and Princess Tian Xuan?"

The Emperor said, "Do you know that there was only one woman in the world who could be mentioned in the same breath as your mother?"

Song Huaijin knew about this.

The emperor and empress were extremely beautiful back then, and the only one who could be compared to them was Princess Tianxuan.

Unfortunately, there was war deep in Tianxuan, and Princess Tianxuan and Empress Qinglian were at two extremes.

The empress and the emperor were childhood sweethearts. As soon as she reached marriageable age, she was married as the Crown Princess and later became the empress, enjoying unparalleled glory.

Princess Tianxuan suffered greatly from the war because the Tianxuan Kingdom was weak, and she even committed suicide by drawing her sword in the Qun Yu Tower.

Thinking of Chu Shitong's face, Song Huaijin had a dark guess in his heart.

Could it be that Chu Shitong is Princess Tianxuan’s child?

If so, didn't the Chu family deceive the world? They rebelled in the name of destroying Xuan, claiming to slaughter all the Tianxuan royal family, but in fact they secretly hid Princess Tianxuan because of her face... and let her give birth to a child?

But... Chu Shiyu was not the first founding emperor. Could it be that Princess Tianxuan was regarded as a forbidden delicacy by two generations of Beiqing emperors?

Thinking of this, Song Huaijin's heart was filled with shock. He couldn't believe that Chu Shitong's life experience could be so miserable.