The Crown Prince stayed for seven days. On the seventh day, after confirming the poison had been neutralized, he departed.
He took Liu An’s family and the commandery governor back to the capital with him. As for Ji Yingying’s family, they were forced to relocate to the capital three days after the Crown Prince’s departure.
The journey from Xinhé County in Qingcheng to the capital took over half a month, thoroughly exhausting Ji Yingying. Upon entering the capital’s territory, they encountered people sent by the Crown Prince to fetch her. When Ji Cailiang and Fang Yulan heard they had come for Ji Yingying, their hearts sank.
They hurriedly pulled Ji Yingying aside and warned, “Child, when you see the Crown Prince and the Emperor later, don’t let your thoughts run wild. It’s best if you don’t think about anything at all, understand?”
“Understood. Don’t worry, Mother. Don’t worry, Father.”
But they couldn’t help worrying. Ah! They might as well prepare for execution.
…………
Ji Yingying was taken directly to the Eastern Palace.
When she arrived, the Crown Prince had not yet returned from court. The Crown Princess greeted her at the entrance, as requested by the Crown Prince, despite her advanced pregnancy.
Seeing the doll-like young girl, the Crown Princess’s heart melted. What an adorable child!
“Ji Yingying pays respects to the Crown Princess.” After bowing, Ji Yingying inwardly exclaimed: [Oh my! Goodness gracious, this Crown Princess is absolutely stunning! How fortunate the Crown Prince is to have such a beauty! What should I do? I want the Crown Princess to dote on me too! Such a gorgeous beauty!]
The Crown Princess, about to speak, froze upon hearing this voice, then revealed a faint smile.
[Heavens, she’s too beautiful! Oh my, Crown Prince, beware—I’m going to compete with you for the Crown Princess!]
“Come, Third Miss Ji, come to my side.”
“Yes~”
[Wow, her voice is so lovely too! I want to hide her away! Otherwise, she might be implicated by the Crown Prince and lose her life, resulting in two deaths—mother and child! Such a fragrant jade perishing would be heartbreaking!]
The Crown Princess suddenly blinked. What had she just heard?
“Impudent!” The eunuchs and maids nearby trembled and knelt, while the maid who had spoken seemed as if her life were being squeezed away, struggling to breathe.
[Huh? What’s going on? Should I kneel too? What happened?]
Three question marks popped up in her mind, leaving her utterly bewildered.
“No matter. All of you, rise.”
“His Highness will send someone later to take you to the Imperial Study. Would you care to dine with me first?”
“Yes, yes!” Eating? Ji Yingying was thrilled.
Following the Crown Princess into the hall, she soon saw a table laden with delicacies.
[Oh my, I want to live here too! So much delicious food! Oh my, I suddenly realize how roughly my father raised me! Look at what the Crown Princess eats—exotic delicacies from land and sea! And then look at what I eat! Wuwu… This is too delicious! I can’t stop, I simply can’t stop~]
The Crown Princess was also astonished. How could this girl manage to multitask so well—eating while thinking so many thoughts?
“Burp~” So full!
“Are you full?”
“I’m full, thank you, Your Highness!”
【Oh heavens, isn’t the Crown Princess too gentle and kind? What a pity she’s married to the Crown Prince—that short-lived fellow. He’ll ultimately be killed by the Second Prince and Third Prince. The crux is, after the Third Prince ascends the throne, he’ll confine this gentle Crown Princess, forcing her family to serve him, only to have the entire family destroyed by that bone-devouring Third Prince. Worse still, all the women of the family are enslaved as government property, violated to death.】
【Tragic, the Crown Princess is tragic, and the Crown Prince is tragic too. During his stay at my home, he seemed like a good man—caring for the realm, loving his people as his own children, and chaste himself. Look at him, already this age with only one beauty by his side; anyone else would have a house full of wives and concubines. Yet they suffer the worst fate, doomed by a cuckold’s disgrace.】
After calmly listening to the fate of herself and her family, the Crown Princess said, “Since Third Miss Ji is full, shall we wait in the side hall for His Highness to send someone to fetch you?”
“Sure, hehe, thank you, Your Highness.”
This pure, innocent girl didn’t seem at all like someone who would harbor so many thoughts in her heart.
Before they could even sit down in the side hall, the Crown Prince’s men arrived to escort Ji Yingying to the Imperial Study.
By now, the morning court session had ended, leaving only a few officials discussing matters in the Imperial Study.
After returning from Xinhe County, Ning Qingran had reported everything about Ji Yingying to the Emperor.
The Emperor didn’t believe it at first and had been waiting for Ji Yingying’s arrival.
Soon, they reached the entrance of the Imperial Study. After someone announced her, a eunuch came out to escort her inside.
Upon entering, Ji Yingying saw several elderly ministers, the Crown Prince, and the Emperor seated in the main position.
Ji Yingying knelt properly to pay respects to the Emperor. After reciting the formal greetings, she couldn’t help but complain inwardly: 【Mother! I don’t want to enter the palace anymore. Our knees only bend before our ancestors—I’ve never even knelt to my own parents, wuwu…】
When she had met the Crown Prince before, she had secretly slacked off and never performed the full kneeling ceremony. The Crown Prince hadn’t minded, so he had never heard such inner thoughts.
The Emperor and all the ministers were astonished—it was just as the Crown Prince had said, they could hear Ji San’s inner thoughts.
And this Ji San was utterly unrestrained!
“Rise!”
“Hehe, thank you, Your Majesty!” Ji Yingying immediately stood up, casually dusting off her knees as she did.
“How dare you!” someone exclaimed. Ji Yingying turned to look but couldn’t identify who had spoken.
Because a group of people were busy pretending to choke themselves—
【Wow! Not only do people in Xinhe County love choking themselves, but folks in the capital do too?】
The ministers: …No, they weren’t, they just couldn’t catch their breath and nearly met their ancestors!
“Enough, my esteemed ministers, it’s fine!” The Emperor then turned his gaze to Ji Yingying and asked, “You are the daughter of the Magistrate of Xinhe County, Ji San?”
“Yes.”
【Nonsense, Ji San! My name is Ji Yingying. Hmph, since you’re about to be killed and hung on the city walls, I won’t bother arguing with you.】
The Emperor looked at Ji Yingying—her expression remained cheerful and smiling, giving no hint of what she was thinking inside.
“This…” He immediately glanced at Ning Qingran, who nodded. He had heard it before, but he didn’t understand why the Emperor would be hanged on the city walls.
Speaking of which, this Emperor was truly pitiful—not only was he cuckolded multiple times, but he was ultimately killed by those who cuckolded him. The adulterers loathed him so deeply that they hung his corpse on the city wall, leaving it exposed for ten days and nights. How tragic!
Although this Emperor wasn’t as formidable as the Crown Prince, he was still a wise ruler—just impoverished. The national treasury was so empty that even mice wouldn’t visit, and he even had to patch and mend his own undergarments. Alas! If not for the previous emperor’s obsession with warfare, which drained the treasury entirely, he wouldn’t have inherited such extreme poverty upon taking the throne.