"The great virtuous concubine has a pretty good reputation, but I didn't expect..."
Mrs. Cheng said calmly: "She knows people but doesn't know their hearts. She is used to pretending. If you look at the person from Taiyuan Palace, you will know the origin of the Liu family."
Another lady agreed: "This person in Taiyuan Palace was not visible in the early years. Later, Concubine Shu and Concubine De lost their power, and some traces were revealed. I heard that she is now devoted to worshiping Buddha. Hmm, she must have committed something, so she had to
Take refuge."
There is no airtight wall in the world. Although the affairs of Concubine Liu have not been announced to the public, there will be some rumors.
Mrs. Cheng said in a disdainful tone: "The skills of the Great Concubine are much better than those of Taiyuan Palace. Everyone praised her at first, but I'm afraid she still remembers her good deeds. My second sister also saw her accidentally.
I framed others and found out something was wrong, but unfortunately there is no evidence and there is no way to expose it. Alas, things have changed now, and I am probably the only one in the world who still remembers these things."
The lady said: "No matter how well she pretended, she would have died a long time ago? On the contrary, the Queen is extremely precious now. It can be seen that good and evil will be rewarded in the end."
"yes……"
The two of them sighed and got up and went back.
Mrs. Dong sat still for a long time. It was not until the maid came back with the plaster that she patted her cheek and pulled her mind back: "Put it on, I have to go back quickly."
Returning to the banquet, there was another commotion. It was not until the guests were sent away that Mrs. Dong could take a breath.
But as soon as she sat down, her mind was buzzing with what Mrs. Cheng had just said.
She had previously suspected that the prince was conceived by the queen before marriage and was actually born at full term, so her health was not compromised. The queen did not mention the circumstances of her pregnancy because the facts were inconsistent with public knowledge.
Later, I thought about it. The marriage between the emperor and the empress was hastily decided. How could they violate the rules before the marriage? Assuming that the prince was not born prematurely, at that time, Emperor Mingde was still discussing marriage with the eldest daughter of the Liu family? Mrs. Dong felt that it was her
Thinking too much.
But after hearing such secret news today, her thoughts flew all the way, heading in a direction that even she found terrifying.
"How is this possible? It's so ridiculous." Mrs. Dong couldn't help but slap her forehead, but her memory took the initiative to dig out various details to verify her conjecture. For example, today the Queen said that Cheng Suying sent a congratulatory gift to Yan Ling when she was one year old, and again
Missed Yan Cheng.
When Uncle Dong Guo came back from seeing off his guests, he saw Mrs. Dong with a pale face.
He was startled: "Why, are you tired? Look at your face, which is blue and white. Go and have a rest."
Mrs. Dong grabbed him and asked: "Let me ask you, when the prince was born, did the family send any congratulatory gifts?"
Uncle Dong Guo was stunned for a moment: "Why do you ask this?"
Mrs. Dong did not answer: "I am useful, just answer me."
Uncle Dong Guo thought for a while and replied: "It was quite chaotic at that time. When my sister's letter arrived, it was already in the second half of the year. We later made up for the congratulatory gifts. The hundred days would definitely not be in time, but it should be there for the first birthday.
"
When this happened, Mrs. Dong had not yet entered the door, so she was not aware of it.
"Is this the first letter my sister sent back after her wedding?"
"Of course not. My sister has sent two or three letters before."
"Didn't you mention pregnancy in your previous letter?"
"No." Uncle Dong Guo looked at her suspiciously, "Are you thinking about other things again? Let me tell you, the Queen is our sister, but it is the Heavenly Family after all. Don't overstep it."
"I know." Mrs. Dong answered him absentmindedly.
Uncle Dong Guo nodded helplessly, turned around and walked out: "You have a good rest, I'll ask someone to clean up."
After resting for a few days, Mrs. Dong still couldn't let go of the matter. She thought about it, and finally thought of someone, so she made a post.
The next day, Princess Jincheng took her daughter to the meeting as promised.
After some pleasantries, Mrs. Dong smiled and asked: "It has been more than a year since the princess and I have been divorced. I wonder if there is a husband I like?"
Princess Jincheng was having a headache. She naturally hoped that her daughter would marry a good man again, but after all the turmoil in her family, she couldn't find anyone suitable for her.
Upon hearing this, her eyes lit up: "Not yet. If Madam is willing to stretch out your hand, we would be grateful."
Mrs. Dong said: "I have a few candidates here, but I don't know if the princess likes them or not."
So several candidates were explained in detail, and Princess Jincheng nodded while listening. She was very satisfied with the candidates mentioned by Mrs. Dong. First of all, they were not very old. Although Princess Jiayi was remarrying, she was only eighteen years old after all.
Princess Jincheng really didn't want to be a widower who could be her father. Secondly, these people were either new nobles from the direct line of the Yan family, or they were related to the queen and could bring their family into the new dynasty.
She sincerely expressed her gratitude: "Madam, you are so kind and I will definitely repay you in the future."
Mrs. Dong smiled so brightly: "Eldest Princess, don't worry about these little things."
After a pause, he added: "There is no need to wait any longer. I have something going on here and I would like to ask the eldest princess for help."
Princess Jincheng suddenly understood and replied: "Madam, please tell me."
Mrs. Dong said: "The eldest princess knows that our family has been away from the capital for a long time. Now that we are back, many old things are unknown..."
Princess Jincheng understood: "What do you want to know, madam? I dare not say anything else. I have never left the capital in the past few decades, so I probably know a few things."
Mrs. Dong glanced left and right, and the maid stepped back knowingly. She asked softly: "I want to ask the eldest princess an old story. When Emperor Dezong was the crown prince, he was choosing a concubine. Why did he choose the Liu family?"
Princess Jincheng was stunned for a moment: "Madam..."
Mrs. Dong smiled slightly and did not explain to her.
Princess Jincheng thought about it in her mind and quickly contacted the gossip about Taiyuan Palace. Could it be that Concubine Liu did something and the Queen ordered Mrs. Dong to ask?
She cheered up and answered carefully: "What a coincidence, I happen to know something about this..."
Princess Jincheng whispered, and Mrs. Dong leaned over to listen carefully. The more she listened, the more solemn her face became.
"So, at that time, the palace only chose one concubine and two concubines, and Mrs. Liu was added later."
Princess Jincheng nodded: "I remember that the Queen was originally among the candidates, but my grandmother heard that the Queen had someone she liked, so she gave up the idea, and finally chose the Yang family as the crown princess, the Ye family, and the Meng family.
For Liangdi."
Mrs. Dong was secretly surprised. She had heard her husband talk about this, but she didn't know the reason for her final defeat. How could this be possible? The Queen had not fallen in love with him before she came out of the cabinet. Where did she get the news?
With this thought in her heart, Mrs. Dong remained calm and said, "I heard that Mrs. Liu had inappropriate behavior at the polo match before her marriage. Did the eldest princess hear about it?"
Princess Jincheng saw this with her own eyes, and immediately replied: "...Yes. I was still surprised at the time, because I heard that Mrs. Liu was discussing marriage with the Crown Prince of Zhaoguo, but she said no in front of my brother.
This is what happened."
"..." Mrs. Dong closed her eyes.
Well, there is the eyewitness testimony of Princess Jincheng, which proves that what Mrs. Cheng said is true. The reason why she had to enter the palace as a last resort was all the deliberate design of the empress. The queen was not selected for the East Palace at that time, and maybe it was also her handiwork.
So, now there is only one thing left. What happened to the child? Did Mrs. Liu really have a child? Does this have anything to do with the Yan family?