"Go and tell Cao Bin's messenger that I have asked him to meet at Pan Lou tomorrow to discuss important matters."
Princess Zhaoyang said with a blushing face.
She clutched the silk handkerchief tightly, her heart pounding and she was extremely nervous.
At this time, the female officer beside her hesitated and asked:
"Princess, what are you doing?"
If you want to discuss things, just invite Cao Bin to the princess mansion. Where do you need to go to Pan Tower?
Princess Zhaoyang glared at her and said angrily:
"Don't ask if you shouldn't. Do you want to be whipped again?"
When the female officer heard this, she was so frightened that she didn't dare to say anything more and had to go out to deliver the letter.
In the princess' uneasy mood, the next day, she quietly took the female officer to Pan Tower.
When she arrived downstairs, she asked, "Has Cao Bin arrived?"
The female officer said bitterly: "Back to the princess, Uncle Zhongjing has arrived."
After saying that, she reluctantly persuaded:
"Princess, if outsiders find out about this, your reputation will be ruined."
If the palace knew about it, she, the female official who supervises the princess' etiquette, would also be punished, so she was very reluctant.
Princess Zhaoyang hesitated for a moment and said bitterly:
"Didn't Chen Shimei say that I had an affair with Cao Bin? I can't bear the charge in vain."
"Besides, as long as you don't tell anyone, who will know?"
When the female officer saw that the princess finally revealed her plan, she was so frightened that she quickly advised:
"There is no airtight wall in the world. If Uncle Zhongjing gets a taste of the sweetness and refuses to let go, what will the princess do?"
"Besides, the prince-in-law is a very talented person. Do we really want to be separated from him? When the time comes, I'm afraid the Queen Mother will not allow it."
Princess Zhaoyang was stunned for a moment and hesitated:
"Then...go back?"
She suddenly thought that Cao Bin had always been lawless and courageous, and she would definitely not be able to control him, and it would be over if he got involved with her.
Seeing that the princess relented, the female officer was overjoyed and quickly ordered the carriage:
"Hurry, go back home quickly."
Just after returning to the palace, Princess Zhaoyang saw from a distance that the housekeeper was instructing the servants to drive away a woman.
The woman was in her thirties and had two children about ten years old.
She opened the curtain and asked, "What's going on?"
The housekeeper said: "Princess, that is a crazy woman. She insists on saying anything about acknowledging her marriage. The Prince Consort asked us to drive her away."
Seeing that the woman had gone away, Princess Zhaoyang didn't ask any more questions.
She felt a little guilty now, for fear of bumping into Chen Shimei, she just wanted to go back to her room to calm down.
Cao Bin was let go for no reason and was very depressed, but he didn't pay too much attention and went back to his house to accompany his wife and concubines.
The woman raising the child is Chen Shimei's first wife, Qin Xianglian.
Now that her parents-in-law are dead and her life is unsustainable, she has no choice but to take her two children to Beijing to find her relatives.
Because she had no savings, she took her two children to beg for a living along the way, and it took a lot of hard work to get to the capital.
What made her feel like she was falling into an ice cave was that Chen Shimei turned her back and refused to recognize anyone.
In the large city of Bianjing, she was unfamiliar with the place, had no relatives, and had two children waiting to be fed. She didn't know what to do.
If this continues, the three of them, mother and son, will starve to death in the capital.
At this moment, two passers-by suddenly discussed:
"Master Bao is fair and strict, and he has never been unjust, false or wrongly convicted..."
Her eyes suddenly lit up, and she immediately asked passers-by about the location of Kaifeng Mansion...
Three nights later, there was a ruined temple outside the city.
Qin Xianglian was resting here temporarily with three hundred taels of silver in her arms.
She plans to return to her hometown with her children.
Bao Zheng has made it clear to her that if she continues to complain, Chen Shimei will only die.
After all, she couldn't bear to see Chen Shimei die, so she could only accept the money personally donated by Bao Zheng and withdraw the lawsuit.
"Mom, I'm afraid!"
Looking at the heavy wind and rain outside the window, which rattled the broken temple door, the girl shivered.
Qin Xianglian's face was full of bitterness, she held her children in her arms and said:
"Don't be afraid, Chunmei, my mother is here!"
Chunmei whimpered and said, "Mom, dad doesn't want us anymore?"
Before Qin Xianglian could speak, the boy said angrily:
"He is not our father. When I grow up, I will definitely seek revenge from him!"
At this moment, a loud "crack" sound was heard, and the door of the ruined temple was kicked open.
A man holding a steel knife rushed in with a fierce look, his eyes full of murderous intent, staring closely at Qin Xianglian and her son.
Qin Xianglian quickly protected the two children behind her and said tremblingly:
"Master Jun, I will give you all the money, please don't hurt us."
The man asked: "Are you Qin Xianglian?"
Qin Xianglian was stunned for a moment and was about to speak.
The man said: "No need to talk nonsense. On the road to Huangquan, you three, mother and son, don't blame me!"
Saying that, if you advance and follow me, you will raise your sword to chop it off.
Qin Xianglian's mind raced. She suddenly thought of something and exclaimed:
"It was Chen Shimei who sent you here! I have already withdrawn the warrant, but he still wants to kill his wife and son?"
As she spoke, she burst into tears and kowtowed:
"Master Jun, it doesn't matter if you kill me, just spare the two children."
The man stopped immediately and said in shock: "Killing his wife and son? Are you actually the first wife of the Prince Consort?"
At this time, the boy suddenly rushed out, hugged his thigh and said: "Don't kill my mother..."
After hearing Qin Xianglian's explanation of the truth, the man sighed and said:
"I can't disobey the Prince Consort's orders, and I can't do such unscrupulous things for him, that's all!"
After saying that, he put the steel knife on his neck and committed suicide by cutting his neck!
At this moment, an angry female voice came in:
"Han Qi, who do you want to kill?"
When the man heard this, he was shocked. He quickly dropped the steel knife and knelt on the ground:
"Princess?"
The temple door opened wide, and Cao Bin and Princess Zhaoyang walked in surrounded by several followers.
Cao Bin smiled and said: "Princess, what I said is right, there is a good show here."
Princess Zhaoyang ignored him, looked at Han Qi with round eyes and said, "Tell me, what's going on?"
Seeing Han Qi's hesitation, Princess Zhaoyang said: "Are you loyal to Chen Shimei and not to me?"
Han Qi had no choice but to tell him that Chen Shimei sent him to kill his wife and son.
Princess Zhaoyang was so angry that she trembled all over, gritted her teeth and said angrily:
"This wolf-hearted thing not only deceived the queen mother and me, but also did such an unreasonable thing."
When Qin Xianglian heard this, she also understood the identity of the visitor. She quickly stepped forward to kowtow and said in fear:
"Princess...princess, spare your life!"
To her, an ordinary civilian woman, the princess was a figure in heaven.
Princess Zhaoyang's expression tightened and she said, "You..."
For a moment, she didn't know how to deal with it. At this time, the female officer beside her stepped forward and said:
"Woman, kill yourself!"
Princess Zhaoyang was about to speak when the female officer quickly said:
"Princess, it's about the royal family's reputation. You don't want this matter to be known to everyone. Keeping this person around will be a disaster."
"Let's talk about the consort. If one day she complains again, you will be completely embarrassed."
Hearing this, Princess Zhaoyang immediately hesitated.
When Qin Xianglian heard this, her face suddenly turned pale, and she was about to pick up the steel knife tremblingly.
Seeing this, her children hugged her and cried:
"Mother, mother, I don't want you to die."
Cao Bin was speechless. He snatched Qin Xianglian's steel knife and said angrily to the female officer:
"Shut up, you have no right to speak here, get out of here!"
The female officer glared angrily and was about to argue, but the princess said: "Cao Bin, she is right..."
Cao Bin covered her mouth, picked her up and walked out:
"I made a wrong decision by bringing you here!"
Princess Zhaoyang struggled in panic and shouted: "Cao Bin, you are brave, put me down quickly."
Cao Bin did not answer, but just ordered:
"Bring everyone back to the Marquis' Mansion."
Everyone was stunned. Han Qi's face was anxious. She was about to raise a knife to chase after him, but was knocked down by a halberd from the sedan chair and cursed:
"How dare you be so presumptuous?"
"Didn't you hear the young master's instructions? Come with me!"
Qin Xianglian was stunned. This man dared to offend the princess?
But she was filled with gratitude and quickly asked: "Who is this?"
Han Qi stood up in cold sweat and said with a wry smile:
"With Uncle Cao making the decision for you, the Prince Consort will be in trouble..."
