Chapter 334 Brothel Woman
After punishing Princess Ningjia and Jiang Lin, the Emperor planned to let Li Dequan draft an imperial decree to grant marriage to the Crown Prince and Qianhuan.
At this time, the Crown Princess walked to the center of the hall with the help of her maid, "Father, your daughter-in-law has something to report to you."
"Yanran, you are pregnant with the heir of the dragon, so you can't have any mistakes. Go back to your seat and sit down. If there is anything, just sit down and report to your father."
"Thank you, Father."
Zhao Yanran returned to her seat with the help of her maid and said, "Father, this matter is also about Princess Jingrou. The prince is so protective of Princess Jingrou, and I am afraid that if I tell it, the prince will blame me for it. But if I don't tell it, I will feel uneasy."
"Yanran, if you have anything to say, just tell me. Don't worry, with me here, no one can do anything to you."
With the emperor's words, Zhao Yanran felt fearless.
Qianhuan knew that the Crown Princess had once admired the Young Master, and had always targeted her before. She didn't expect that now that she had become the Crown Princess and was pregnant with the dragon heir, she still hated her so much. She wanted to see what tricks she was up to.
"Father, this is what happened. My daughter-in-law accidentally saved a woman a few days ago. The woman's name is Hongyu."
When Qianhuan heard the name Hongyu, the expression on her face froze for a moment. Her heart skipped a beat: It's all over. She was afraid that the fact that she had gone to Xunfang Pavilion to dance to earn money could no longer be concealed. Zhao Yanran would definitely make a big fuss about this to ruin her engagement with Ziyu.
She didn't feel ashamed to make money by performing, but these ancient people were very pedantic. Even if she was innocent, she would probably be slandered. Zhao Yanran was indeed ruthless.
After Zhao Yanran said that, she deliberately glanced at Qianhuan who was in the center of the hall. She saw that the expression on Qianhuan's face was not as calm as before, and she felt more confident.
It seems that the king of Canglang Kingdom did not lie to her. Princess Jingrou had indeed stayed in a brothel. The prince didn't mind breaking off the engagement, but she didn't believe that he wouldn't mind marrying a woman who had stayed in a brothel.
The Crown Princess continued, "This Hongyu comes from Princess Jingrou's hometown. She used to be the top prostitute in Xunfang Pavilion in Qingxi County. Hongyu told my daughter-in-law that Princess Jingrou also stayed in Xunfang Pavilion for a period of time. My daughter-in-law didn't want to meddle in other people's business, but the prince is a royal child after all. My daughter-in-law really didn't want him to be deceived and marry a dirty woman home, so she couldn't help but stand up and tell the truth."
When the Crown Princess said this, the whole audience was in an uproar.
There was a girl in the boudoir who didn't know much and asked curiously, "What is Xunfang Pavilion?"
The young man replied, "You don't even know this. Just by listening to the name, you know that Xunfang Pavilion is a brothel."
The young lady covered her mouth with her hands and said in surprise, "What? Princess Jingrou is actually a prostitute?"
The other young ladies from the noble families also discussed it at once, "Oh my god, this news is too explosive, how could the prince marry a prostitute?"
When the Crown Prince saw the Crown Princess slandering Qianhuan, his face became extremely ugly.
He glared at the Crown Princess as if he wanted to kill someone.
Ever since he was punished for disaster relief last time, the Crown Prince has been living very cautiously. He doesn't want to offend the Crown Prince who holds a large military force.
Seeing that the prince was angry, he quickly opened his mouth to reprimand the Crown Princess, "Yanran, this matter concerns the reputation of Princess Jingrou, it is of great importance, you can't just talk nonsense in the hall based on hearsay."
Zhao Yanran said calmly, "Yanran is not talking nonsense. If you don't believe me, you can call Hongyu to ask her. She is outside the palace right now."
So the emperor summoned Hongyu to the palace for an audience.
The moment Qianhuan saw Hongyu, she began to feel uneasy. She was thinking about how she should respond. Should she simply admit that she had performed in Xunfang Pavilion, or deny it outright?
Hongyu has been missing for such a long time, but now she appears here. I'm afraid this is not a coincidence. They must have made all the necessary preparations. If I refuse to admit it later, will I fall into their trap?
Just when Qianhuan was struggling over whether to acknowledge or not, the prince beside her immediately took her hand and said with a firm face, "Huan'er, don't worry, no matter what they say, I won't believe it. I only believe you."
Qianhuan felt complicated when she heard this. She didn't know if the prince was as conservative as the others and would think that she was a dirty person because she went to the brothel to dance to earn money. Now that things had come to this, she could only face it bravely. If he minded, then she would not marry him.
At this time, Hongyu had already started telling the story of Qianhuan's trip to Xunfang Pavilion. Hongyu did not add any exaggeration but just told the truth.
"Before Princess Jingrou came to the capital, her family was very poor. She took the pseudonym Zhao Feiyan and took the initiative to come to our Xunfang Pavilion to recommend herself. She asked Madam Yang to let her take my place in the Oiran dance competition. Madam Yang agreed when she saw that she danced well. She won the first place in the Oiran competition by dancing for me. Madam Yang gave her a hundred taels of silver as a reward. Later, when Madam Yang saw that she was an excellent dancer, she paid her to keep her in the pavilion to perform dances for me."
The emperor looked at Qianhuan, "Princess Jingrou, is what the woman named Hongyu just said true? If you have been slandered, just speak out, and I will definitely make the decision for you."
When the prince heard the name Zhao Feiyan, he suddenly remembered that when their people arrested Qi Beiming in Qingxi County, it was a woman named Zhao Feiyan who had sex with Qi Beiming in the room and hid it from their people, which helped Qi Beiming escape.
If what Hongyu just said is true, and Huan'er is Zhao Feiyan, then the woman who was making love with Qi Beiming in the room at that time must be Huan'er?
This analysis instantly made the prince jealous. He stared at Qianhuan, wanting to hear a negative answer from her.
However, the answer is the opposite of what we expected.
"Your Majesty, Hongyu is right. I did go to Xunfang Pavilion to dance under the pseudonym Zhao Feiyan and earn money."
When Qianhuan said this, her face was full of frankness. In her heart, she never thought that there was anything shameful about making money by dancing. She knew that the ancients would definitely not think so. But if she didn't admit it, and it was eventually confirmed that she had indeed been to Xunfang Pavilion, she would never be able to clear herself even if she jumped into the Yellow River. It was better for her to admit it openly.
The Crown Princess and Hongyu were both stunned for a moment. They didn't expect Qianhuan to admit it so quickly.
Especially Hongyu, she felt that Qianhuan had always been dancing with a veil on her face under her own name. Only she and Mother Yang had seen her true face, and other guests had never seen it. Even if she refused to admit it, it would be difficult for ordinary people to prove this.
It’s good that she admitted it so quickly. If she refused to admit it, I would have to follow the king’s instructions and tell him about the plum blossom birthmark on her hand.
Although Hongyu didn't know how Qi Beiming knew that Qianhuan had a birthmark on her arm, she believed that since the king dared her to say that, it must be true. Once it was verified, Qianhuan would never be able to clear herself even if she jumped into the Yellow River.
At this time, the hall was in an uproar, and everyone began to talk at once, all saying unpleasant things.
The prince also had a shocked expression on his face at this time.