Chapter 318 The Desperate Decision within the Imperial Study
Fifth Princess regained composure from her previous wrath. Her two eyes fall on Bai Yichen like two poisonous snakes, and she became as mad and stubborn. From her reaction, Bai Yichen affirmed his belief that there was an affair between Fifth Princess and his fifth brother. He secretly commended Bai Yihao’s plan of stealing his most worthy asset.
If not for her high value, he would not have taken any interest in her. He would naturally not be interested in Bai Yihao’s used woman if not for the great value that she would bring to him. When she entered just now, Fifth Princess’ seductive act of taking off her coat, and the natural act of putting it on the hanger all signified the familiarity of such scandalous acts.
He smirked and scorned, “How did Fifth Princess know that I left my manor? It is truly unusual for Fifth Princess to be so acutely aware of my whereabouts in the middle of the night! Even if I did leave the manor just now, I can still return! Fifth Princess, I promise you that I will take responsibility, please believe in me.”
His words were with a slight mockery as if he were just talking about a casual affair with an ordinary woman, with not a slight tinge of guilt. Fifth Princess had to resist her urge to pounce forth and slap her.
“Come.” Xie Qing waved his hand and a man was forced in by his soldiers. It was the gatekeeper, who now kneeled on the ground with fright and panic written all over his face.
“Are you the gatekeeper of Yan First Prince’s manor?” Xie Qing did not care about the menacing face of Fifth Princess and asked in a matter-of-fact way.
Bai Yichen’s expression changed slightly but he soon regained composure.
Fifth Princess’ expression changed drastically. When she entered just now, she signaled her coachman to ask if Sir Bai was at home.
Father locked her in the palace for Mother to look after her. If she did have an affair with her cousin today, she could avoid punishment due to her Grandmother’s doting of her cousin. Father would naturally listen to Grandmother. However, she did not expect the situation to go drastically wrong. Since her cousin saw her entangled with Yan First Prince, he would naturally not speak in her favor.
She was convinced that Bai Yichen lured her in but she then discovered that it was impossible to explain her situation clearly, especially the reason she appeared here and the questions she asked the gatekeeper, which all signified that she planned this encounter.
“Sir, I am the gatekeeper here. Tonight, this lady came and asked me if Sir Bai is here. His Majesty had just entered Qin Kingdom and thus concealed his identity as an average gentleman. I heard that he had recently known a beautiful lady from the brothel, who is rumored to be extremely enchanting, and that she would visit us tonight.”
“Since this lady asked me, I replied affirmatively and told her that Sir Bai is waiting for her inside. She followed me in and signaled me to retreat. I figured that those from the brothels are so bold and liked such things, so I…”
Before the gatekeeper could finish his sentence, he glanced at the Fifth Princess. Everyone immediately understood what she meant, which was that Fifth Princess knew that a man was in this room when she came in. She did everything willingly, without anyone forcing her.
“Rubbish!” Fifth Princess was raging as she stared at the shivering gatekeeper with rage, grinding her silver teeth in the process. She did not expect things to turn out this way. She came to meet Bai Yihao and had no idea why Bai Yichen was here. Turning to Xie Qing, she ordered, “They are all Bai Yihao’s minions, and they listened to his orders to frame me! Drag him down and beat him to death!”
“Fifth Princess, if all these are untrue, then why did Fifth Princess come forth to my manor? Who do you want to meet? Could it be that you are having an affair with another man in my manor?” Bai Yichen stood up and looked around with a cold and disdainful gaze. In Bai Yichen’s manor, the only prestigious individual was Bai Yichen, and the rest were either servants or guards.
Bai Yichen betted that Fifth Princess dared not admit her affair with Bai Yihao.
He was mocking the provocative nature of Fifth Princess, and implied that she chose to have an affair with his servants!
Fifth Princess naturally understood his meaning and was so mad that she bent her willow brows downward. “Mind your language, Bai Yichen!”
“I am speaking human language, could Fifth Princess not understand? Fifth Princess was found half-naked in my bed and on my arms, with all reputations lost. Could it be that you still want to marry someone else?” Bai Yichen was frustrated by this drama and asked directly.
In such a situation, he believed that it would be impossible for Emperor Zongwen to deny the marriage of him and Fifth Princess.
Tonight, he did want to check on Bai Yihao’s manor, which was set on fire, so as to satisfy the superficial brotherhood between the two. However, his guard received a letter addressed to Bai Yihao by Fifth Princess, using the name of Princess Anping. If not for the fact that Bai Yichen’s servants confirmed the woman as Fifth Princess, he would believe it to be Princess Anping.
The letter explained that Fifth Princess wanted Bai Yihao to come to Bai Yichen’s manor since his one was on fire, and she would visit him tonight.
Bai Yichen, who had always seen Fifth Princess as his wife since he had an interest in her, was all mad. He could not understand why Fifth Princess needed to use Princess Anping’s name but decided to use this plan instead to leave his manor and then return via the backdoor. He then told the gatekeeper that a prostitute from the brothel would visit tonight, and asked him to lead her to his room.
Indeed, Fifth Princess was tricked and slowly entered his room, going straight to his arms without hesitation. Immediately, he did not spare any politeness and started touching her, warming up the atmosphere.
He had arranged the arrow himself to draw Bai Yihao here. He wanted Bai Yihao to give up on Fifth Princess, as well as to blow up the matter.
He mentioned that Fifth Princess came to meet him so as to cover up Fifth Princess’ true intention. He originally thought that Fifth Princess would thank him for such an act, but she did not return the favor. Hence, he decided to be impolite instead. Indeed, only Fifth Princess’ reputation would be severely damaged by this matter.
“Shut up.” Fifth Princess was angry and annoyed at Bai Yichen’s harsh words. She was releasing all her anger on Bai Yichen, refusing to hear what he had to say. Her two eyes were staring intensely at Bai Yichen with hatred and resentment, making Bai Yichen turn his head away.
The matter was already clear. Xie Qing believed that Fifth Princess came to the manor to meet Bai Yihao since it was no secret that she liked him. However, she mysteriously turned up in the room of the First Prince and was tangled up in his arms. He would never forget what he saw when he entered the room, where Fifth Princess sat on Bai Yichen’s lap, her cheeks blushing from lust. Bai Yichen’s hand retracted from under her clothes, bringing out a corner of her undergarments. The two already had done a scandalous act that no amount of talking would remove them from.
However, as a small Assistant Commander, he had no right in interfering in such an affair.
One party was the prestigious royalty Fifth Princess, while the other was the First Prince of the Yan Kingdom. Any mishandling with such a matter could result in war between the two nations. Xie Qing was already at a loss of what to do and had sent a letter to the palace. He did not know how the palace would react but a reply should be coming soon.
While he was thinking, the door to the courtyard opened, and a few eunuchs and guards came in.
“Sir Xie, His Majesty wants Fifth Princess and Yan Kingdom’s First Prince to enter the palace at once!”
Fifth Princess was stunned. She had to support herself using the corner of the table as her body softened due to fear. She looked at Xie Qing with hatred. It’s no wonder that he dared to ask her questions so confidently since he had already reported the matter to Father. If Father knew that she left the palace to meet her cousin, her mother would be implicated. Last time, she had already implicated her mother and had to kneel down and beg for forgiveness in the Imperial Study, now…
Furthermore, she committed more mistakes than just that!
Bai Yihao’s manor was gifted by Father, and naturally had a lot of Father’s spies around. Fifth Princess dared not meet Bai Yihao here and could only set fire to Bai Yihao’s manor, passing a letter to Bai Yihao using Mo Xuetong’s name, asking him to meet her in Bai Yichen’s manor.
Bai Yihao was a hostage. Even though Emperor Zongwen did not directly spy on him, he did have many secret agents spying in Bai Yihao’s manor. If Father knew that his efforts were burnt down by a fire set by her… Thinking about that made Fifth Princess shiver as if she were placed in immense coldness!
No, Father could not know about this!
Inside the Imperial Study!
Emperor Zongwen glanced coldly at the kneeling Fifth Princess, with dark pupils that hid all emotions.
Turning around, his glance swept from Fifth Princess to Bai Yihao and Bai Yichen.
“What exactly happened?” Emperor Zongwen asked harshly.
“Your Majesty, you have to ask Fifth Princess about this. I am staying in my room all by myself before Fifth Princess came into my arms, hugging me tightly… When Sir Xie came in, he saw what happened. No one is to blame for this. Since this matter has already ended up like this, I will admit responsibility. Furthermore, I have a romantic interest in Fifth Princess. Please marry Fifth Princess to me, and I will treat her like a treasure.” Bai Yichen came out to speak, staring gently at Fifth Princess, while clasping one hand over the other. He did seem to look at Fifth Princess with love and concern.
Emperor Zongwen’s glance fell on Fifth Princess. He saw that her collar was messy and loose, which was apparently tidied up in a hurry. Had the two really done some scandalous act! For a royal princess to do such an act would mean disgrace for the imperial family, and that made Emperor Zongwen’s eyes flare up in anger.
“First Prince, why did you return from the back door after going out?” Xie Qing asked expressionlessly for Emperor Zongwen. Emperor Zongwen was mad then and Xie Qing dared not ask useless questions, going straight to the point.
It was a true disgrace for such a matter to happen in the imperial family! As a subordinate, he dared not ask much.
“I heard that a fire erupted from my fifth brother’s manor and thus brought my men to take a look at the situation. When I reached, I was informed that my fifth brother had gone to my place, and thus I returned. I chose the backdoor since I was closer to that. Then, I returned to my manor.” Since Bai Yichen designed this entire scheme, he had prepared an excuse for his actions. He explained calmly, confident that he had no flaws in his argument.
Beside him, a slight smirk seemed to creep up on Bai Yihao’s face before it disappeared. He frowned at the drama as if he were completely detached from the situation as if he had not purposefully revealed the letter to his brother. Only astonishment was written on his handsome face.
“Fifth Princess, why did you go to the Prince’s manor?” Xie Qing questioned Fifth Princess.
Fifth Princess was at a loss for words. She dared not reveal that she went there to meet Bai Yihao as that secret would bring more trouble for everyone. Even though everyone knew Fifth Princess liked Bai Yihao, people in the imperial family were not idiots and would not neglect the doubt on how she knew that Bai Yihao would be going to Bai Yichen’s mansion.
If they knew that she set fire to Bai Yihao’s manor, they would question her on where she obtained her manpower. She got her manpower from her Mother’s family. If that was known, Ding General Manor would be charged not only with burning Bai Yihao’s manor. They might even be charged with rebellion.
That would mean exterminating her entire family!
Of course, the Emperor would not exterminate her family. But Ding General Manor would be eliminated.
Fifth Princess was shivering uncontrollably. She was at a loss for words. Raising her head, she noticed the anger hidden behind Emperor Zongwen’s peaceful eyes. She suddenly remembered secrets she had heard in the secret documents of the imperial family, which mentioned that even the Empress’s family could be eliminated if they were found to have personal troops. Even the Empress was executed.
She dared not, and could not say anything!
Fifth Princess was desperate. For the safety of herself, her mother, and the entire Ding General Manor, she dared not gamble.
Behind the study table, Emperor Zongwen squeezed the pitch-black teacup with golden curving on his hand tight, staring intensely at the people below. He released his hand and the teacup rolled on the carpet, accompanied by a string of muffled sounds as the teacup tumbled. The string of noise seemed to hit Fifth Princess’ heart like thunder. Her body softened as she fell paralyzed onto the ground.