The next day, Lu Qianning took Xi Qingyue and her younger sister to the palace. They went straight to Xuantian Hall. At this time, the hall was full of court officials, and it was the time for the morning court session.
Xi Weilan was being carried in someone's arms. She hadn't woken up yet, and even her clothes were put on by Lu Qianning.
Lu Qianning didn't enter Xuantian Hall directly. Instead, she waited outside the hall and sent someone to announce her arrival. After all, this was the place for morning court discussions, and women were not allowed to interfere in politics. If she went in on her own initiative, it would be an unauthorized intrusion. But if the emperor summoned them, it would be different. She was sure that her father, the emperor, would not be able to resist inviting them in.
The court officials who were attending the morning court outside the hall saw Lu Qianning carrying a sleeping child and bringing another child to the morning court hall. Their expressions varied, and some of the officials even frowned.
Lu Qianning didn't care about these people at all. They didn't even have the qualification to enter the hall, yet they were worried about whether a woman could attend the court. They were really idle. They might as well think about how to benefit the people and get promoted and make a fortune.
Xi Qingyue stood aside, trying to hold back her laughter. She knew this would be the case. Lu Qianning must have done it on purpose, choosing to enter the palace during the morning court session. It was the emperor's fault for not specifying the time and place.
Inside the hall, the objections of the Imperial Censor, Lin Yongzhi, continued. "Your Majesty, women are not allowed to interfere in politics. How can the princess come to the morning court? If Your Majesty wants to summon her, you can do it separately later."
He didn't belong to anyone's faction, but he believed that women shouldn't come to the morning court and there shouldn't be any exceptions.
However, Wang Jin, the Minister of Revenue, spoke up at this time. "Lord Lin, you're wrong. The Ninth Princess was specially permitted by the emperor to bring the Little Miracle Doctor into the palace. Just now, the princess said that she had something important to report. How can it be considered interfering in politics just to come in and see the emperor? Lord Lin, don't make a fuss."
Su Xingchen, the Assistant Minister of Justice, glanced at the opposing officials and sneered. "When the Ninth Princess went on a marriage alliance, why didn't you say that women are not allowed to interfere in politics? At that time, you said that as a Princess of Dajing, she should do her part for the country. When you need her, you talk about her status and national righteousness. When you don't need her, it's 'women are not allowed to interfere in politics'. You're really ridiculous."
As soon as he finished speaking, the court fell into complete silence. He had directly called them shameless.
After the two of them started, after a moment of silence, many ministers began to speak out one after another, asking the Ninth Princess to enter the hall. But there were still some who continued to oppose.
The emperor sat high on the dragon throne. Seeing this scene, a satisfied smile appeared on his face instead. This was the way it should be. It would be abnormal if everyone opposed or everyone agreed.
He spoke out to stop the quarrel among the crowd. "Dear ministers, please calm down. It was I who issued the imperial edict to summon Little Nine into the palace. I just forgot to mention the time. Since she's here, let them in."
Actually, what the emperor wanted to see was the Little Miracle Doctor who had cured the dying Lu Qianning. He had asked the imperial physicians in the Imperial Medical Office, and they all said that the Ninth Princess was only hanging on by a thread and wouldn't live long. But now, not only was she alive, but she was also in good condition. Such a miracle doctor, he definitely had to make good use of.
Once he spoke, the others didn't dare to say anything more. Otherwise, they would anger the emperor.
Just like this, Lu Qianning, in her capacity as a princess, led Xi Qingyue and her sister into the court.
Xi Weilan had already been woken up by Xi Qingyue. She thought it would be impolite to carry a sleeping child into the morning court hall, so she should give the emperor a little face.
When the three of them stepped into the hall, the eyes of all the ministers and the emperor fell on them.
Lu Qianning walked in front, with elegant deportment, outstanding temperament, a rosy complexion, and steady steps. There was no sign that she had just recovered from a serious illness.
Xi Qingyue pulled Xi Weilan and walked behind her. The two of them looked around the familiar hall. This was the place where they had taken pictures sitting on the dragon throne. It was just that there were many more ministers than last time.
"Your son/daughter pays respects to Father Emperor!"
Lu Qianning stood in the central position in the front and saluted the emperor. Xi Qingyue and Xi Weilan stood behind her, looking like ignorant children. They didn't even know how to bow in salute.
The emperor smiled and raised his hand. "Be excused! Is your wound healed, Little Nine?"
As he was speaking, he also glanced at Xi Qingyue and her sister. He noticed that the little one was also looking at him, and there was no trace of fear in her eyes.
What he didn't know was that Xi Weilan was looking at the dragon throne with her head held high, probably still thinking about sitting on the dragon throne to play.
Some of the ministers started whispering to each other when they saw that the sisters didn't bow in salute. Some of them even prepared to make an issue out of it.
Just then, Lu Qianning suddenly knelt down in the hall without warning. She also took out several letters from her sleeve and held them in her hands. "Father Emperor, please seek justice for your son/daughter! These are the letters of collusion between the Fourth Imperial Brother and Beiyue. He had long colluded with the Great Prince of Beiyue and even used the territory of our Dajing as a bargaining chip. In the end, he blamed the war between the two countries on your son/daughter. Your son/daughter can't bear this unjust accusation for no reason. Please clear your son/daughter's name, Father Emperor."
She spoke very quickly and loudly, so that even the ministers outside the hall could hear what she said.
The emperor's brows immediately frowned, and his face turned dark. So there really were letters?
If before, everyone only suspected the Fourth Prince without any substantial evidence, but today, Lu Qianning presented the evidence of the Fourth Prince's collusion with Beiyue in front of all the civil and military officials. Even as the emperor, he couldn't exonerate his son. This was going to make the Fourth Prince restless even after death.
Although he also hated what the Fourth Prince had done, was it really necessary to make such a disgraceful thing for the royal family known to everyone? Moreover, the person was already dead.
Lu Qianning knelt there, holding the letters, and stared firmly at the emperor with a determined look in her eyes, as if she wouldn't give up until the emperor took the letters.
The court was completely silent at this moment. It was Xi Weilan's soft and childish voice that broke the silence. "Sister, isn't it a good thing to have evidence? Why aren't they saying anything?"
Xi Qingyue let out a soft laugh. Her laughter sounded extremely sarcastic in the hall. "Maybe they don't want to admit this evidence. Big Sister Lu is a princess. In their eyes, it doesn't matter if a princess suffers a little grievance. The reputation of a prince is more important. The princes of Dajing are quite delicate."
The sisters' conversation as if there was no one else around made the emperor so angry that his face turned ashen. He really regretted letting these people come in during the morning court session. If it had been at another time, he might have been able to save a little face for the royal family.
This was forcing him to issue an imperial edict to admit that the Fourth Prince had colluded with the enemy and brought shame to the entire royal family.
Suddenly, Xi Qingyue stared at the Imperial Censor and asked, "Old man, why aren't you talking anymore? Why don't you say anything about such a serious crime of colluding with foreign enemies? Are you only targeting Big Sister Lu?"
The Imperial Censor was so angry that his beard and eyebrows were standing on end. He just hadn't reacted yet, but he was actually ridiculed by a child. He let out a cold snort and immediately stepped forward and said loudly, "Your Majesty, since the Ninth Princess has presented the evidence, I think this matter should be thoroughly investigated to clear the princess's good name."
Su Xingchen also spoke up at this time. "Your Majesty, I think this matter is of great importance. We should first check the authenticity of the letters. Maybe they're fake."
"Right, let's check the letters first." Some ministers echoed.
Only then did the emperor speak in a deep voice. "What Minister Su said is right. First, compare the handwriting."
After that, Su Xingchen walked up to Lu Qianning, took the letters, and looked at them together with the others.
Lu Qianning stood up straight away. A cold sneer curled up in her heart. Her reputation didn't matter to her. Even if people spread the rumor that she had killed the Northern Yue Emperor, it wouldn't make much of a difference.
After all, she had really stabbed the Northern Yue Emperor again just to make sure he was dead. And she had also killed the Great Prince of Beiyue. It didn't bother her to be gossiped about. What she wanted was for the imperial court to issue an edict acknowledging that the Fourth Prince had colluded with the enemy. She wanted him to be stripped of his imperial title even after death.
