CHAPTER 583: CHAPTER 583 PLEASE SEAL

The prince left for a short while, then returned to the room.

Listening to Lady Chi’s hoarse voice, he said, "Her throat hasn’t fully recovered, whatever needs to be said, can be said later. Please leave for now."

Reminding Lady Chi to take the anti-abortion pills, Su Jin bid farewell to Xie Jingchen.

That night, no one slept peacefully.

Lady Chi was Xie Jingchen’s birth mother and had almost been burned to death.

Everyone thought the prince would take leave to accompany her during her pregnancy, never leaving her bedside.

Unexpectedly, the prince went to the morning court as usual.

It hadn’t rained for over two months. Once the Qingqiu Garden caught fire, the blaze was so strong that it couldn’t be extinguished.

The entire Capital City saw the towering flames above the Zhenbei Royal Mansion.

The next morning at court, the Emperor asked the prince, "Was everything alright with the fire at Zhenbei Mansion yesterday?"

"Worry not, Your Majesty. The only regret was that the fire burned too late," the prince replied.

"... ."

This statement left both the Emperor and the officials in a daze.

Since when did a fire become a good thing?

The prince presented the memorial he had prepared the night before and said, "Had it not been for last night’s fire, I would not have known that I was deceived all those years ago, and that Chenchen’s mother was still alive and right by my side."

"She is my first wife; I earnestly request Your Majesty to confer her the title of my Princess Consort."

His statement created a storm of chaos among the officials.

Yesterday, there were suspicions that the birth mother of the Heir of Prince Zhenbei was Princess Hengyang of the Donglin Prince Mansion of Nanliang.

Today, the prince has found his loved one?

Moreover, she was right by his side?

How could they not be bewildered?

Eunuch Fu stepped down the stairs to receive the memorial and handed it to the Emperor for review.

After reading it, the Emperor’s brows furrowed deeply.

"What exactly is going on?" the Emperor inquired.

The prince looked at the Emperor and said, "My wife, due to her disfigurement, was ashamed to face me, hence she falsely claimed to have died in childbirth. She wanted to see Chenchen, so she entered Zhenbei Mansion disguised as a singer from Nanliang in the palanquin that Nanliang presented to me."

"In last night’s fire, when I saved her, I inadvertently saw the token of love I gave her back then, and she confessed everything."

For the sake of his beloved, the prince refused to marry Princess Nanzhang back then.

Only because his beloved died in childbirth under pressure from the late Emperor and the Empress Dowager did he have to marry.

Now that she has returned, establishing her as the Princess Consort leaves no room for objections.

The Emperor was about to agree when Duke Chong stepped forward and said, "Lady Chi is actually Princess Hengyang of Nanliang!"

"Is it appropriate to confer the title of Princess Consort of Zhenbei to the daughter of a criminal from Nanliang?!"

The prince had anticipated Duke Chong’s opposition.

Not just him, but also the Empress Dowager.

"Is Duke Chong so certain, do you have solid evidence to prove that Lady Chi is Princess Hengyang of Nanliang?" the prince retorted.

His question left Duke Chong speechless.

Yesterday, he had already sent Princess Hengyang’s portrait to Princess Nanzhang for review.

If Lady Chi looked exactly like the person in the painting, she would have caused a commotion.

The prince’s request to confer a title suggested that her appearance had changed.

Duke Chong looked at the Emperor and said, "Your Majesty, while Lady Chi’s appearance is different from Princess Hengyang of Nanliang, different appearances don’t necessarily mean they are not the same person."

"Even Marquis Dongxiang’s appearance differs from fifteen years ago!"

"He is the perfect example!"

Unexpectedly using him as a scapegoat.

Marquis Dongxiang glanced at Duke Chong.

He chuckled, "Back then, I took the Disguise Pill, a life and death situation, to change my appearance."

"Lady Chi, a woman who cannot even bind a chicken, to say that she also changed her appearance through the Disguise Pill, I simply cannot believe."

"Of course, if Duke Chong chooses to be skeptical, no one can stop you."

"However, if your suspicions prevent Prince Zhenbei from establishing his Princess Consort, isn’t that too domineering?"

"Everything requires evidence, Duke Chong. Since you have such suspicions, please investigate who gave Princess Hengyang of Nanliang the Disguise Pill, which helped her evade the death penalty for the nine familial exterminations in Nanliang."

"With solid evidence, not only would Lady Chi not become Princess Consort, but Duke Chong would find it easy to replace the Heir of Zhenbei Mansion."

Duke Chong’s expression became stiff, "How could I investigate matters of Nanliang?"

"Why harbor doubts if you can’t investigate?" Marquis Dongxiang asked with a frown.

"You doubt others as you please, yet you choose to suspect Princess Hengyang of the Donglin Prince Mansion of Nanliang."

"The Donglin Prince Mansion was executed with their nine familial ties, personally overseen by the Emperor of Nanliang, and none from the mansion escaped execution, yet Princess Hengyang, without the strength to bind a chicken, supposedly escaped right under his nose and fled all the way to Daqi."

"Does Duke Chong believe this is possible?"

The questions hurled by Marquis Dongxiang struck Duke Chong’s face.

They left Duke Chong utterly embarrassed.

He had no proof that Lady Chi was indeed Princess Hengyang of Nanliang.

Nor would he be able to find proof.

Since her appearance was altered, Princess Hengyang would never reveal herself to be Princess Hengyang.

Anyone in the know would surely be her accomplice.

Sheltering a criminal leads to capital punishment.

Who would risk their life to trample on the face of the Emperor of Nanliang?

The person who administered the pill was none other than the powerful figure in Nanliang.

Would the Emperor of Nanliang admit to coveting Princess Hengyang’s beauty for personal gain?

Would the Nanliang Empress admit to feeding Princess Hengyang the Disguise Pill, and in jealousy of her beauty, scarred her face?

Doing despicable deeds in secret doesn’t mean one would disregard their public reputation.

Without evidence, Duke Chong was left speechless, forced to watch helplessly as the Emperor approved the prince’s request.

After court, the Empress Dowager summoned the prince to Yongning Palace once more.

This time, the Empress Dowager’s face turned even more ashen.

Princess Nanzhang being conferred the title of concubine was already enough of a slap to her face as the Empress Dowager.

However, since there was no main wife above, and the prince agreed to establish Princess Nanzhang as his Princess Consort in half a year, she managed to save face.

Now that the prince intended to establish Lady Chi as the main wife, the Empress Dowager’s previous coercion to make the prince marry Princess Nanzhang would certainly be revisited.

She could only imagine how many people would mock her from behind for oppressing others with power only for her to face humiliation.

The Empress Dowager would not allow such events to transpire!

Using Lady Chi’s disfigurement and muteness to argue that she was unfit as the main wife was dismissed by the prince.

The Empress Dowager was infuriated.

"You promised me that you would make Princess Nanzhang your Princess Consort in half a year! Do you dare to break your word?!" the Empress Dowager coldly asked.

Back then, the prince, not yet in power, was forced to break his word, but today he wields military power as Prince Zhenbei, and pressure from the Empress Dowager would only provoke his fury.

The prince laughed angrily, "Back then, I promised to only marry Hengheng, yet due to the Empress Dowager’s pressure, I broke my word, and today you want me to honor a promise."

"Even if a promise needs to be honored, there is a sequence to things."

"The affairs of my household do not warrant the Empress Dowager’s concern. I have other matters to attend to at the mansion, I shall take my leave now."

The prince respectfully performed the farewell ritual, then turned and strode away.

Observing the prince’s tall and upright figure, the Empress Dowager’s hands shook with fury as they gripped the Phoenix Chair.

"Summon the Old Madam of Zhenbei Royal Mansion to the palace!"

The prince had just arrived back at the mansion when Eunuch Fu arrived to deliver the imperial decree.

Lady Chi, kneeling on the ground, stared blankly at the bright yellow decree.

After residing at the Zhenbei Royal Mansion for fifteen years, she had never dared to dream of such a day.

On the day the prince conferred the side consort title to Princess Nanzhang, she understood her standing in the prince’s heart and was satisfied.

"Princess Consort, please accept the decree," said Eunuch Fu with a smile.

Lady Chi reached out and accepted the decree.

The prince helped her to her feet.

Princess Nanzhang did not come.

Eunuch Fu, relieved of constraints, said, "Congratulations to the prince on your double happiness."

"What double happiness?" the prince laughed.

Eunuch Fu’s gaze drifted to Lady Chi’s belly.

"The return of the Princess Consort and the prospect of a legitimate heir. If this isn’t double happiness, then what is?" Eunuch Fu said.

The prince nodded, "Eunuch Fu is right, it is indeed double happiness."

Mrs. Wang supported the Old Madam to stand.

The Old Madam’s eyes glanced at the decree in Lady Chi’s hands, an inscrutable light flickering in her eyes.

As soon as Eunuch Fu left, the Empress Dowager’s messenger arrived.

Mrs. Wang supported the Old Madam to the palace to meet the Empress Dowager.