Chapter 325: There is no greater sorrow than death.

Chapter 325: There is no greater sorrow than death.

When the Fourth Prince learned that Xiaolian had escaped, he felt that something was wrong. He immediately sent out secret guards to look for Xiaolian and ordered his men to kill her if they found her.

The people sent by the Crown Prince to capture Xiaolian also came back empty-handed. After some investigation, they found out that Xiaolian disappeared after leaving the house during the day. They also found out that the Fourth Prince's people were also looking for Xiaolian.

The prince sensed something unusual from these messages, and he became more and more convinced that his previous judgment was correct. This matter must be related to the Fourth Prince, Aunt Tong and others, and now Xiaolian is the most critical person.

If the people from the Fourth Prince's Mansion find Xiaolian first, they will definitely take action. Thinking of this, the prince ordered, "Chiying, send our secret guards to search for Xiaolian's whereabouts. We must find her before the people from the Fourth Prince."

"Yes, master."

After searching for three days in a row, the Fourth Prince's men and the Crown Prince's men were unable to find Xiaolian's whereabouts. Xiaolian was raised by her grandmother, who passed away years ago, so she had no relatives in this world.

Seeing that the five-day deadline was about to expire, Qianhuan was also very worried after knowing this situation, "Zi Yu, I think we should go to the prison again and ask those servants who usually get along well with Xiaolian. Maybe they know if Xiaolian usually goes to other places outside."

The prince immediately nodded in agreement, and the two of them went to the prison again, and this time they finally got some results.

They learned from a servant who was on good terms with Xiaolian that Xiaolian had a lover outside. After asking for the lover's approximate address, the prince immediately sent someone to look for her.

The Fourth Prince was extremely anxious as he had not been able to find anyone for days. Aunt Tong suddenly remembered that Xiaolian had told her that she had someone she liked outside and hoped to let her go and get married in a few years.

Aunt Tong quickly told the Fourth Prince about this, and the Fourth Prince also sent a group of people to look for him.

When Chi Ying and his men found the man's house, they saw the door was open. Chi Ying thought to himself that this was not good, fearing that the Fourth Prince's men had already got there first and sent people to kill Xiao Lian.

When they entered the room, they saw a woman running away frantically with her bleeding arm in her arms, and several men in black were chasing her relentlessly. Just as the sharp knife was about to stab the woman's chest from the back, Chi Ying dodged and knocked away the black-clad man's knife, saving the woman.

The people Chi Ying brought over dealt with all the men in black. He looked at the frightened woman and said, "You are Xiaolian beside Aunt Tong, right? I am the one sent by Prince An to protect you. You must leave here with us immediately, or your life will be in danger."

Unexpectedly, Xiaolian ran wildly into the yard. She ran to a male corpse, squatted down, hugged the corpse and began to cry, "Brother Wang, wake up, didn't you say you would marry me? How can you break your promise?"

Chi Ying was afraid that the Fourth Prince would send someone to assassinate him again, so he could only persuade her, "Miss Xiaolian, it's not safe here anymore. You should come with us as soon as possible. Only if you stay alive and testify against the murderer can you avenge the innocent people who died."

Xiaolian raised her tear-stained face and said in sorrow, "Yes, I must live. I want to avenge Brother Wang. I can go with you and tell you everything I know, but you have to help me bury Brother Wang properly."

Chi Ying nodded, "No problem, I will leave two people to clean up the scene and will help you bury the person properly."

Xiaolian got Chiying's promise and followed Chiying reluctantly.

The Fourth Prince knew that the Crown Prince's men had rescued Xiaolian, and he was immediately in a state of panic. He said to the Fourth Prince's wife in a panic, "Yuying, what should we do? Xiaolian has fallen into the hands of the Crown Prince. If she reveals the truth that we forged the letter of treason and framed the Qian Mansion, our father will definitely not let us off easily. By then, I'm afraid that everyone in the Fourth Prince's Mansion will not escape the fate of being beheaded."

The Fourth Prince's wife was also frightened when she heard this. She said in a trembling voice, "My husband, is there no other way? I don't want to die yet."

The Fourth Prince said with a gloomy look, "For now, there is only one way to save our entire Fourth Prince's Mansion."

"What method?" Qian Yuying asked anxiously. Right now she just wanted to save her life.

"If you can convince your mother to plead guilty and say that she instructed Xiaolian to do all this, then the emperor will not be able to convict us. However, this method requires sacrificing your mother."

When Qian Yuying heard this, she was immediately embarrassed, "Husband, besides this method, is there no other way?"

"There is no other way, Yuying. I don't want to do this either, but if we don't sacrifice your mother, we will all die. By sacrificing her alone, we can all be saved. If you really can't bear it, then I will have to accompany you to the grave. It's a pity that I promised to make you the queen when I ascend the throne, but I'm afraid I have to break my promise this time."

Qian Yuying was actually very afraid of death. Thinking that she would be beheaded before she became the queen, she suddenly became cruel. She gritted her teeth and said with tears in her eyes, "No, my husband, for your great cause, sacrifice is inevitable. I will go and persuade my mother to plead guilty."

The fourth prince realized his goal, so he hugged Qian Yuying and said affectionately, "Yuying, thank you so much. You have sacrificed so much for me. I will definitely treat you well in the future."

After being coaxed by the Fourth Prince, Qian Yuying felt even more that her decision was right.

In the evening, Qian Yuying had dinner alone with Aunt Tong and was very caring towards her. Aunt Tong was very happy and felt that her daughter was really thoughtful.

Who would have thought that when Qian Yuying finished speaking, Aunt Tong's eyes widened in disbelief, "Yuying, you want me to admit everything in front of the emperor, isn't that just to send your mother to death? I went through ten months of pregnancy and gave birth to you with great difficulty, and you really have the heart to let your own mother die?"

Qian Yuying knelt down and cried, "Mother, I have no choice. If you don't plead guilty, we will all die. Rather than letting so many people die, it is better for you to plead guilty to all the crimes. Don't worry, as long as you plead guilty, when your husband ascends to that position, he will make me the queen, and you will be posthumously named a first-rank lady. I will definitely have people offer you the best incense and offerings."

“Hahahaha…” Aunt Tong suddenly laughed like a madman. Her tone was sad and full of sarcasm. “First-rank lady, the best incense offering? Hahaha, the person is dead, what’s the point of me wanting those empty names?”

Qian Yuying was afraid that Aunt Tong would not agree, so she kept kowtowing and said, "Mother, I beg you, please save me and the Fourth Prince's Mansion. Can you really bear to watch us being beheaded by the Emperor together?"

Aunt Tong sat there motionless, with mixed feelings in her heart. She really couldn't bear to see her daughter being beheaded at such a young age. A mother's instinct is to protect her children, even at the cost of her own life.

However, when the daughter she had raised with great effort begged her to die for them, she felt extremely heartbroken and sad.

Aunt Tong didn't look at Qian Yuying, but stared blankly ahead, then said as if talking to herself, "Go now, I promise you I will admit all the crimes."

Qian Yuying heaved a sigh of relief, having finally convinced her mother. The Fourth Prince's mansion was finally saved, and they wouldn't have to die.

She stood up and hugged Aunt Tong, and said with gratitude, "Mother, I am sorry for you. Don't worry, I will never forget your kindness in my life."

Aunt Tong let Qian Yuying hold her with her body stiff, and she refused to say another word.

Seeing this, Qian Yuying could only excuse herself awkwardly, "Mom, you should have a good rest. I will take my leave now."

Before she walked out the door, she said, "Mom, you must remember what I just taught you. When you get to the throne room, you must not say the wrong thing."

The only response to her was still Aunt Tong's dazed eyes. It is said that there is no greater sorrow than a dead heart, and this was probably Aunt Tong's state at the moment.