The war god prince climbs the wall every night, and the princess is angry

Chapter 212 Guilty Conscience

But why did King Rui never tell him about this?

She had always thought that the Fifth Prince was on good terms with Xiyao and Prince Rui, so at the banquet hosted by Princess Yongle in the palace, the Fifth Prince spoke up to help Xiyao.

But it turned out that he was here to help her at the beginning because of King Rui's request?

Shen Qionghua lowered her eyelashes, feeling a little complicated.

She whispered to Luo Xiyao, "Why didn't you tell me? I always thought the Fifth Prince happened to be passing by and helped me out of your kindness."

Luo Xiyao's mouth twitched, "I didn't know my cousin had such feelings for you at that time."

At that time, I only knew that the two were in a cooperative relationship. I thought it was my cousin's duty to help Qionghua, so I didn't say anything more.

If I had known what my cousin was thinking earlier, I should have said something that would allow me to take credit in front of my sweetheart.

If you pursue the woman you like by doing things without saying anything, how long will it take to win her heart? That's something only fools do.

No... In her opinion, her cousin was a fool when it came to love, otherwise how could he have put himself in such a passive situation.

Shen Qionghua listened to Luo Xiyao's words, and a hint of unnaturalness flashed in her eyes. She quickly changed the subject, her voice soft as a mosquito's hum, "You said the Queen treats the Fifth Prince..."

Luo Xiyao glanced around and said, "The Empress has no legitimate son, so she has indeed taken good care of Xie Xiaowu in recent years. Even the usually hot-tempered Princess Yongle has been very kind to Xie Xiaowu."

"Why do you think my cousin asked Xie Xiaowu to come forward? It's because Princess Yongle listens to Xie Xiaowu, and no one else can control Princess Yongle's temper."

Shen Qionghua was stunned for a moment, recalling what happened in the palace that day.

It is true that Princess Yongle was very angry that day, and even Xiyao's plea for mercy was rejected. However, the Fifth Prince only said two words to make Princess Yongle change her mind and let her go.

The Queen and her daughter did treat the Fifth Prince in a special way.

But this is also true. The emperor has only five princes. The eldest prince is ill and cannot inherit the throne. The fourth prince is extremely licentious and is obviously not capable of doing anything important.

Prince An has Concubine Zhou as his biological mother, so it is not the Queen's turn to care about him. Moreover, Concubine Zhou and the Queen have been at odds with each other for many years, and the Queen is not crazy enough to support her rival's son.

In the future, when Prince An ascends the throne and the Empress has a conflict with Concubine Zhou, will Prince An abandon his biological mother and make decisions for the Empress, his nominal mother?

This is probably a more beautiful dream.

After eliminating several princes, only Prince Rui and the fifth prince were left. Prince Rui was the legitimate son of Empress Yuan and had a powerful family. He had a noble status and did not look like he needed the Empress's help.

What's more, in recent years, the emperor has been wary of Prince Rui's military achievements. The queen has been favored for many years, and she may have been able to see the emperor's thoughts while sleeping in the same bed with him.

In this way, only the fifth prince is left.

The fifth prince's mother, Shun Guipin, was timid and born into a palace maiden family. Her mother's family was not prominent. Even if the queen took the fifth prince away and raised him in her care, Shun Guipin would not dare to say anything.

And it may be that the Fourth Prince was raised in a wrong way, so the Emperor was very strict with the Fifth Prince, the youngest son.

This strictness can also be understood as appreciation. If the emperor turned a blind eye to the Fourth Prince's behavior, that would be really bad.

If the fifth prince also had his eyes on that position, he might even be grateful to the queen for giving him the status of a legitimate son.

But the Fifth Prince is close to Prince Rui, so it seems unlikely that he has any interest in that position.

Shen Qionghua's eyes flashed, and she asked, "Does His Highness the Fifth Prince have..."

Shen Qionghua raised her index finger and pointed it upwards.

Luo Xiyao instantly understood what Shen Qionghua meant. She shook her head gently and said with a smile, "Xie Xiaowu is not interested in that position. He is currently being oppressed by the emperor. In order to make Shun Guipin's life easier, he has to follow the emperor's wishes."

"Xie Xiaowu has been imprisoned in the imperial palace since he was young. He has never been anywhere except the capital. Every time his cousin comes home, he pesters him to tell him about the outside world, hoping to travel far and wide when he grows up."

"I think the Queen's plan is going to fail."

Did you hit it empty?

Shen Qionghua pursed her lips.

In her previous life, she was devoted to gathering forces and raising money for Xie Qian'an, and all her thoughts were on business. In addition, Concubine Zhou did not like her, so she rarely entered the palace. If there was a palace banquet, she would be told directly to claim illness and not to come.

She was not very clear about the struggle between Concubine Zhou and the Queen, let alone the Fifth Prince who was involved.

No one dared to speak out until the unspoken secret of the Queen's wish to raise the fifth prince was actually realized.

But in her previous life, until her death, she never heard that the fifth prince was adopted by the queen.

Moreover, the queen had died of illness long before Princess Yongle's marriage, so she had no chance to fight against Concubine Zhou through the fifth prince.

As for this life, I wonder if the queen will still die early.

The two of them were so close to each other that they whispered in each other's ears. Their lips were dry from talking, and they each picked up their teacups and took a sip.

As soon as they put down the teacup, a palace maid came in and said she would take them to the palace banquet.

Standing up and tidying their clothes, Shen Qionghua and Luo Xiyao walked out together.

There are many palaces in the palace, and the paths are even more complicated. The closer to the palace banquet hall, the quieter the crowd becomes. They all lower their heads slightly, staring at the bluestone brick road, without saying a word, and walking with a little restraint.

Only after they sat down did they feel a little more relaxed. Because the emperor, empress, concubines, princesses and princes had not arrived yet, the atmosphere at the banquet was not very serious.

Although Shen Qionghua was the daughter of a merchant, she was also a veritable county lord. The seat given to her was not particularly far back, only a few seats away from Luo Xiyao.

She was staring at the pattern on the tablecloth with boredom, her brows furrowed, when she was suddenly patted on the shoulder. When she looked up, she saw Luo Xiyao sitting next to her.

Shen Qionghua was a little surprised, "Why are you sitting here?"

Luo Xiyao chuckled and said, "I switched seats with the person next to you. Anyway, no one will notice us at a banquet like this."

"It's boring for me to sit there alone. It would be nice to sit with you and talk."

"What were you thinking about just now? You were so engrossed that you didn't come back to your senses even after I called you several times."

Shen Qionghua: “…”

But this is a really good question. Can she say that she has been hiding from Prince Rui for such a long time, and now she is suddenly going to meet Prince Rui today, so does she feel uneasy?

To avoid appearing too cowardly, Shen Qionghua forced herself to say, "Nothing, I'm just a little nervous."

"There's nothing to be nervous about. In a situation like this, everyone's attention is on that person. Let's just focus on eating our own food." Luo Xiyao whispered to comfort him. She thought that Shen Qionghua was a little uncomfortable because it was his first time attending the Wanshou Festival.

Shen Qionghua curled the corners of his lips and nodded expressionlessly.

As the two were talking, they heard the eunuchs' voices singing in unison from outside, "The Emperor has arrived! The Empress has arrived!"

The emperor and empress came together, followed by a group of concubines, as well as princes and princesses. Everyone knelt to welcome them.

Until the footsteps faded away, a majestic voice came from above: "Stand up!"

There was another sound of rustling clothes as someone stood up.

Shen Qionghua stood up and subconsciously looked at the figure in black robe above him.

The distance was too far, and although she couldn't see the eyes clearly, Shen Qionghua inexplicably felt that the other person was looking at her.

Her heart trembled and she subconsciously shrank behind Luo Xiyao.