sjar Chapter 377 The Prince's Mystery: The Cannon Fodder Bride Forced into a Substitute Marquis'
Chapter 377 The Prince's Mystery: The Cannon Fodder Bride Forced into a Substitute Marquis'
Who knew that Song Zhihua would stage a self-immolation and fake his death!
At first, Emperor Xinghe did believe that Song Zhihua had committed suicide out of despair, and he even felt guilty.
But later, the old Marquis of Xuanping secretly entered the palace, knelt down and begged for forgiveness, and told Shen Mingze about keeping a mistress, who brought her child to his door, making the whole capital know about it.
Emperor Xinghe then realized that Song Zhihua had faked his death and taken his son with him!
Emperor Xinghe then realized how deep the Song family's influence was in the capital, and that there were even spies within the palace.
He then secretly conducted another thorough inspection of the palace and the capital, and cleaned the palace thoroughly before he could finally relax a little.
However, the Fourth Prince had already announced to the public that he and Song Zhihua had died in the fire when Song Zhihua set herself on fire.
Announcing now that the fourth prince is not dead would be too late; the best opportunity has already passed.
Moreover, the reason why the Fourth Prince did not die is related to Song Zhihua's faked death. Emperor Xinghe did not want to make public the fact that the Song family was of the previous dynasty's bloodline.
There's also the issue of the Fourth Prince's bloodline. With his identity, he has no chance of inheriting the throne. Since his biological mother has already chosen the path of leaving the palace for him, let him live a good life outside the palace.
Although Emperor Xinghe had not visited Shen Huaizhi in recent years, he still paid some attention to him. The physician from the Xuanping Marquis's residence who treated Shen Huaizhi was secretly sent by Emperor Xinghe.
Emperor Xinghe knew that Shen Huaizhi had been poisoned since childhood. He believed that Song Zhihua had poisoned Shen Huaizhi and that Song Zhihua had tormented Shen Huaizhi in order to take revenge on him.
Seeing Shen Huaizhi suffering terribly from poisoning and confined to his sickbed, Emperor Xinghe felt guilty and couldn't bear it, yet he dared not go to see him.
Previously, the imperial physician had diagnosed Shen Huai with a condition where he was on his last legs and wouldn't last much longer.
Emperor Xinghe did not want Shen Huaizhi to spend the last part of his life alone, so he asked Shen Mingze to arrange Shen Huaizhi's marriage. Even the wedding date was chosen by the Imperial Observatory.
But to everyone's surprise, Shen Mingze turned Shen Huaizhi's wedding into such a mess that Emperor Xinghe was somewhat dissatisfied with Shen Mingze.
These days, Emperor Xinghe has also been giving Shen Mingze the cold shoulder, not wanting to see him.
However, Shen Mingze's urgent request to see him today gave him such a big 'surprise'!
Since the Song family wants to cause trouble at the birthday banquet, he'll let them have their way. He'll see just how much trouble the Song family can cause!
Emperor Xinghe's expression was fierce, but when he thought of the child Shen Huaizhi, his heart softened.
Emperor Xinghe never expected that Shen Huaizhi could guess his background from the slightest clues, and that he could cleverly deal with the Song family and obtain so much information about the Song family in the capital on his own.
Having obtained this evidence, without any resentment, he handed it over to Shen Mingze without hesitation. Handing it over to Shen Mingze was equivalent to handing it over to him.
This child truly has a sincere heart for his father!
Shen Huaizhi left the Xuanping Marquis's residence a few months ago, and the family physician hadn't examined him for several months. According to Shen Mingze, Shen Huaizhi seemed to be in much better health when he saw him this time.
Emperor Xinghe recalled the incident where his third son, Tang Ruiqian, was tricked into going to the outskirts of the city. He suddenly looked up and asked Xia Yuzhong.
"Yu Zhong, what did Consort Xian just say about Rui Qian staying at a place in the suburbs tonight?"
Xia Yuzhong thought for a moment, then lowered his head and replied, "The Consort Xian said that His Highness the Third Prince was rescued by the illegitimate son of the Marquis of Xuanping and is now staying at the illegitimate son's estate."
Xia Yuzhong was a close associate of Emperor Xinghe, and he knew about Shen Huaizhi's affairs. As far as he knew, there was only one illegitimate son of the Marquis of Xuanping who still lived in the suburbs.
Emperor Xinghe actually remembered what Consort Xian had said, but he was afraid he might have misremembered, so he asked Xia Yuzhong to confirm it again.
Shen Huaizhi reported the news about the Song family, and then, by a twist of fate, he saved the Third Prince Tang Ruiqian. Emperor Xinghe felt that this was their destiny, an unbreakable blood bond between them, father and son, brothers.
Emperor Xinghe suddenly wanted to see his fourth son, whom he hadn't seen for eighteen years, but he had no reason to see him now.
"Yu Zhong, go and see him for me, and bring Qian'er back while you're at it..."
On Su Jinyue's estate in the suburbs
It was past midnight, and Shen Huaizhi was lying in bed with Su Jinyue in his arms, but he couldn't fall asleep.
Meeting Qin Guannan at the manor today was a huge shock to Shen Huaizhi!
Shen Huaizhi had already accepted that he was a child who was not loved by his parents and was abandoned.
But now it seems there's another possibility.
He wasn't without his parents' love; it's just that his life was deliberately altered.
Looking at Tang Ruiqian's innocent and scholarly appearance, completely untouched by the dark side of the palace, he was clearly a child who had been pampered since childhood.
If his life hadn't been stolen, would he have ended up like Tang Ruiqian?
Su Jinyue was also awake. She hugged Shen Huaizhi tightly, unsure how to comfort him.
Su Jinyue wasn't just relying on guesswork; Qin Guannan and Tang Ruiqian were both at the estate, making it convenient to obtain blood using high technology.
She has already conducted gene comparisons on each of the three of them.
Shen Huaizhi and Tang Ruiqian are brothers, Shen Huaizhi and Qin Guannan are related by blood, but Tang Ruiqian and Qin Guannan are not related by blood.
Therefore, the result is already obvious: Shen Huaizhi and Tang Ruiqian were switched, and Shen Huaizhi should be the child of Consort Xian.
Su Jinyue felt sorry for Shen Huaizhi. He should have been a child who was pampered and loved by everyone, but his life was switched at birth, and he suffered all kinds of torment, yet he still couldn't get everything he should have.
Su Jinyue hugged Shen Huaizhi tightly, rested her head on his shoulder, and snuggled close to his neck.
Shen Huaizhi seemed to sense Su Jinyue's unease. He turned to the side and hugged Su Jinyue tightly, whispering something to her.
"My wife, it's good that you're here with me."
Su Jinyue looked up, but in the darkness, she couldn't see Shen Huaizhi's expression.
"Husband, do you feel this is unfair?"
Shen Huai rested his chin on Su Jinyue's head and smiled lightly, "No, I'm just glad I didn't miss you."
Shen Huaizhi thought that if he had grown up in the palace, he probably would never have been able to marry Su Jinyue.
However, thinking about the complexity of his background, Shen Huaizhi only felt guilty.
"Now that my background is so complicated, no matter what the future holds, I want to find out the truth."
However, it will drag you down and put you in danger as well.
Su Jinyue shook her head, nestled back into Shen Huaizhi's arms, and said, "I'm not afraid! Whatever decision you make, I'll be with you!"
Shen Huaizhi embraced Su Jinyue, feeling content. No matter how many difficulties and obstacles lay ahead, it seemed that with Su Jinyue's support, he had the strength to move forward!