Chapter 85 Recognize the Facts

Qi Sian sat in the carriage, lifted the curtain and looked back at the main viewing stand. Only the Empress Dowager and Pan Yueqing were left there. He frowned slightly. Lai Changya's carriage blocked his view. The pink lotus root - colored curtain of the window in front of him was slowly drawn open. Lai Changya sat upright in the middle of the carriage. Her maid, Shichao, opened her mouth and said respectfully to Qi Sian, "May I ask where Your Highness is going?"

Qi Sian raised his eyes and looked at Lai Changya, who had a normal expression behind Shichao. His eyes narrowed slightly, and he slowly sat back on the main seat of the carriage. Shiguang, who was sitting beside him, leaned over and replied to Shichao, "Where His Highness is going is not something you should inquire about."

Shichao sneered and looked at Shiguang, "It doesn't matter."

Shiguang slowly lowered the curtain. He saw Qi Sian close his eyes. He reached out and gently placed a heating stove on Qi Sian's leg. He said with some concern, "Your Highness, you're not paying attention to your legs again. Didn't Doctor Bian tell you to be careful when playing polo and other such sports?"

Qi Sian clicked his tongue and opened his eyes unhappily. He glanced at Shiguang, "Talk too much."

Shiguang smiled silently and wasn't annoyed at all. He raised his hand and gently squeezed Qi Sian's calf. With a calm expression and a meaningful look, he said, "Your Highness, what do you think the Empress Dowager will say to Pan Yueqing?" He unconsciously emphasized the words "Empress Dowager".

As everyone knew, there were two empress dowagers in the Northern Qi Dynasty now. This current one was the late Emperor's legitimate wife, and it was she who had chosen the young Emperor and supported him all the way. However, the current Emperor had a mother with a not - very - high status. For various reasons, this Empress Dowager had acquiesced in the existence of the Emperor's biological mother. The relationships within the royal family had always been very complicated. Not only were there two empress dowagers, but also most of the concubines in the Emperor's harem were not easy to deal with.

Qi Sian raised his hand and rubbed the center of his eyebrows, "Let's go."

Shiguang responded with an "Yes". The carriage moved slowly, and the sound of Lai Changya's carriage moving followed. Shiguang's eyes narrowed slightly. He was about to throw an iron dart to break the axle of that carriage's wheel, but Qi Sian raised his eyes and stopped him. Shiguang said in a trance, "Your Highness has changed a lot recently. Inappropriate softness of heart may... ruin Your Highness's plans over the years."

Qi Sian closed his eyes and didn't reply to him. But Shiguang tried his best to fulfill the admonition that a close minister should give, "Your Highness, why do you have to worry? Since one stone stirs up a thousand waves, let the waves swallow up that 'overreaching' small stone. Why bother to fish the small stone back?"

"She's useful," Qi Sian said involuntarily, and subconsciously explained, "At least more useful than the one outside."

"But Miss Lai can bring the support of the noble families to you," Shiguang said in confusion. In his opinion, successive monarchs had all married into noble families. No one really knew how much wealth and power the noble families had. Although the current Emperor was tough, he was also restricted by the noble families in many ways. If one wanted to ascend to the throne, they needed the strong support of the noble families. This had long been an unwritten rule.

Shiguang hesitated for a moment, then said to Qi Sian in a low voice, a bit impatiently, "According to what Mantianxing knows, His Highness the Second Prince has been having frequent contacts with Miss Lai recently."

"Shiguang," Qi Sian said in a deep voice, stopping Shiguang's endless preaching. He opened his eyes with a cold expression, completely different from his previous kind look. Shiguang looked at Qi Sian's appearance, responded with an "Yes" with some helplessness and grievance. He opened a small gap in the curtain and looked at the carriage that was still following behind, "Are we going back to the palace?"

Qi Sian originally planned to respond softly, but at the moment when the words were about to come out, he swallowed them back. He took a deep breath and changed his mind, "No, turn around. I'm going to take a look."

"Your Highness..." Shiguang opened his mouth but didn't dare to disobey Qi Sian's words. He raised his eyes and frowned, then gritted his teeth. The carriage quickly turned around and slowly headed towards the viewing stand.

The Empress Dowager took a deep breath. Looking at Pan Yueqing, who was standing in front of her, neither humble nor haughty but like a hedgehog, she didn't know what she wanted to exchange, nor did she know if it was worth such an exchange. It wasn't that the royal family was always heartless, but that her wholehearted kindness seemed to have never received a good reward. But people's hearts were made of flesh. She said slowly, "Hong Qiqiao has always been unable to let go of your mother. The age difference between them was too big, but their feelings were not false. He is a person who has been walking in the dark all year round, so everything he thinks about has a bit of a scheming flavor. He has always suspected that your mother's death was not an accident."

"Yes, I have also always believed that my mother's death was not an accident. In this regard, it seems that I have the same view as Grandpa Hong," Pan Yueqing said with a smile, her eyes calm without any ripples. She had long guessed that there must be some connection between Grandpa Hong and her mother, but she didn't dare to imagine it so boldly.

"I agree with your views. In fact, Su Lan had seemed abnormal for a long time. She often came to the palace when she was pregnant with you, but when she was pregnant with that child, she didn't come to visit me even once. That's all I know. Hong Qiqiao should know more," the Empress Dowager's nose twitched slightly. Looking at Pan Yueqing's still calm appearance, she let out a helpless sigh, "An innocent man is guilty only because he possesses something coveted. You are a smart child. Why don't you understand?"

"What Your Majesty said is right," Pan Yueqing replied quietly, but there was a sense of being invulnerable to both hard and soft tactics. If the Empress Dowager hadn't mentioned her mother to her a cup of tea ago and hadn't tried to use the matter of her mother as a bargaining chip to trade with her, then she might really have been moved.

Sometimes, her understanding of people was really shallow. Just like before, she had always been confident that the Empress Dowager would protect her to some extent for her mother's sake. But in fact, it wasn't the case. She had forgotten to consider that a woman who could survive the most turbulent times of the Northern Qi Dynasty wouldn't be too bound by emotions.

The strange things during her mother's pregnancy, she could verify with her grandmother again. And today she knew that relying on the Empress Dowager as a smooth path was definitely not going to work. What happened in the Pan family was just a minor matter. When she extended her hand to Shangbei Fang and the court, and was about to break Qi Sicheng's wings step by step, she found that this was much more difficult than waging a war.

"Imperial Grandmother," Before the Empress Dowager could speak, Qi Sian leaped onto the viewing stand from below. He bowed respectfully to the Empress Dowager and smiled, "Grandson was just about to enter the palace. I wonder if you would like to go with me?"

The Empress Dowager had already been a bit angry because of Pan Yueqing's appearance. But seeing Qi Sian come in a hurry, she relented. She raised her hand to signal Qi Sian to help her up. The next moment, she said meaningfully to Pan Yueqing, "Take care of yourself."

Pan Yueqing chuckled twice and responded with an "Yes". She curtsied and said loudly to the departing Empress Dowager and Qi Sian, "I respectfully send off Your Majesty the Empress Dowager and His Highness the Prince of Xiangyang."