The person who brought the news was a confidant of Emperor Xuan, and naturally he would not lie to Emperor Xuan, so he told everything that happened in the second prince's house.
The second prince raped a maid, and after the maid threw herself into a well, not only the second prince was infected with smallpox, but also everyone in the mansion was infected, and no one survived.
After hearing his confidant explain the reason, Emperor Xuan's face was so gloomy that he could drop water.
"Have they entered the palace?"
The guard said truthfully, "No, the second prince did not dare to say anything. He only secretly sent a message to Concubine Duan for help, otherwise this servant would not know about it."
After Emperor Xuan was silent for a moment, he said in a deep voice, "Bring an imperial doctor out of the palace immediately to treat the second prince. Also, take someone to seal the second prince's mansion and don't let anyone come out."
The guard immediately responded, and when he was about to leave, Emperor Xuan stopped him again.
"Your Majesty, do you have any other orders?"
Emperor Xuan took a deep breath and spoke with determination, "There is no need to send news to the palace before the second prince recovers. If the treatment is ineffective, he will be burned on the spot and smallpox is not allowed to spread. Do you understand?"
The last sentence is full of murderous intent.
The guard lowered his head and responded, not daring to breathe.
"Go!"
Emperor Xuan waved his hand, and the guards withdrew.
Seeing the door of the imperial study room gradually closing, Emperor Xuan suddenly breathed a sigh of relief, his back bent, and his whole body seemed like a walking corpse that had been drained of its energy.
He knew the consequences of the decision he just made, but he also knew what the consequences would be if smallpox spread.
Nowadays, the capital city and outside are full of epidemics. So many doctors have gathered together but they have not worked out a solution. They only rely on a prescription to survive. If you can live, you can live. If you can't live, you can only wait to die.
If smallpox spreads again, no one inside or outside the capital will be spared.
Emperor Xuan sat dejectedly on the dragon chair, staring blankly at the dragon beam on the roof, and his mind unexpectedly recalled what happened to the second prince when he was a child.
The second prince has been cute and smart since he was a child. His love for his son has never been more than superficial.
But now, he wants to kill this son himself.
Now the imperial court was in trouble both internally and externally, but at this time, the second prince got smallpox, and he could not risk his life at the expense of the people in the capital to save his life.
Thinking of this, Emperor Xuan raised his hands to cover his eyes, but tears still fell unexpectedly from the corners of his eyes.
The news that the second prince's residence was besieged soon reached Yanhuai's ears. He was sitting in his study, playing with the pen in his hand, his eyes full of sneers.
In the face of interests and his biological son, Emperor Xuan chose the former without any hesitation.
The second prince was abandoned!
"Prince, the second prince is imprisoned, we can kill him!"
Hearing Qingfeng's words, Yanhuai looked very calm, "Don't worry, after all, he is the emperor's biological son. He has been pampered since he was a child, so he will have to struggle for a few more days."
Qingfeng whispered, "I'm just afraid that if he escapes from death, another accident will happen."
"This time, no one can protect him."
Yanhuai looked confident, "We can't kill him immediately. After all, there is Concubine Duan in the palace. We have to let him die without a trace, but we also have to leave some clues to Concubine Duan and the Chen family."
Hearing this, Qingfeng looked worried, "Prince, if you leave any evidence, Concubine Duan will not give up."
Yan Huai chuckled and said, "The prince of this county will not let her and the powerful people behind her give up, and will use them as a raft to climb up to the eldest prince."
Qingfeng said in surprise, "The county prince... wants to deal with the eldest prince?"
Yanhuai added, "And the Queen!"
As long as the queen is around, the eldest prince will not fall, and as long as the eldest prince is there, the queen will never fall. One is a queen with a distinguished status, and the other is a direct descendant of the East Palace. Unless a big mistake is made, it is impossible to depose him.
So, someone has to pull them down.
Concubine Duan and his mother's family are the best executioners.
All the concubines in the harem have complicated backgrounds. As long as the two giants fight, who doesn't want to get a piece of the pie?
Among those concubines who have princes, which one doesn’t want their son to become a prince?
There are only a handful of adult princes, but there are still many young princes.
As long as there is a slight crack in the queen, she will definitely be torn apart by those people.
The third prince is a cripple and has long been excluded from the ranks of princes. No one would think of dealing with him.
When river clams fight, the fisherman wins!
…
When Concubine Duan knew that the second prince's residence was besieged, two days had passed. The people she sent out were detained and neither left the palace nor returned to the palace to recover. Concubine Duan could only go to Emperor Xuan to ask for help.
But she didn't expect that she would be stopped before she reached the imperial study room.
Looking at the queen who was deliberately blocking her way, Concubine Duan suppressed her anxiety and respectfully said hello.
The queen raised her hand slightly and said in a sarcastic tone, "No need to bow, noble concubine. I am waiting for you here under the emperor's orders."
Hearing this, Concubine Duan looked surprised, "What imperial order?"
The Queen stared at Concubine Duan and said in a deep voice, "The Emperor has a decree that Concubine Duan is not allowed to enter the imperial study during this period. The Emperor does not want to see you."
"How can it be?"
Concubine Duan was shocked and said, "I have something very important to report to the emperor, so I have to see the emperor."
The queen's expression remained unchanged and she said calmly, "Your Majesty, the Emperor knows what you are asking for. Regarding the second prince, the Emperor already explained it to me when I announced that I and the eldest prince were going there."
"You lied to me!"
Concubine Duan didn't believe it at all, so she walked to the imperial study room.
The queen immediately shouted, "Stop her!"
As soon as she finished speaking, several older nuns stepped forward and surrounded Concubine Duan.
Concubine Duan raised her hand and hit one of them, her steps above her head swaying loudly, "How shameless, is this palace's identity something that you, a wretched maid, can touch with your dirty hands?"
As soon as the words fell, the Queen suddenly shouted, "I think you are so impudent that you dare to call yourself me in front of me! Palm!"
Concubine Duan was slapped twice with a horrified look on her face. The queen looked at her with pride in her eyes, "The second prince has smallpox. You knew about it but concealed it. The emperor is very angry. I advise you to go back now, otherwise If you have angered the emperor, you and your entire mother’s family won’t be able to chop off your heads!”
Concubine Duan could no longer control her emotions, collapsed and shouted, "That's the second prince, the emperor's most beloved son! How can the emperor just watch him die?"
The queen sarcastically said, "Your Majesty has sent an imperial doctor to treat the second prince. Whether he can survive or not depends on his own destiny!"
Concubine Duan looked shocked. The queen's words were tantamount to asking her son to die.
"I don't believe it, I want to see the emperor..."
Before she finished speaking, the queen quickly walked up to her, raised her hand and slapped her twice.
The sharp armor scratched several blood marks on Concubine Duan's beautiful face, adding a bit of tragic beauty to her.
The queen raised her hand to hold her chin, staring at her face with jealousy, and said in a gloomy tone, "Don't you know what's going on outside the palace? The epidemic has killed so many people. If smallpox spreads again, everyone will die. Empty."
"Besides, your son favored a palace maid who got smallpox. The emperor was extremely disappointed in him, so how could he save him? He and the damned smallpox deserve to be burned, so as not to add to the sin!"
