青春期撞上更年期第1部

“Of course, I will tell our father. At that time…” Chu Liuzhou said complacently, feeling he had the upper hand.

Chu Liuyue interrupted him rudely and said, “Second Brother, please do as you wish.”

After that, he ignored him and sat aside to rest with his eyes closed.

Chu Liuzhou gnashed his teeth in a towering rage. When he was about to provoke Chu Liuyue again, several officials looked toward them. He knew he might place himself at a disadvantage if he went on forcing Chu Liuyue to submit. He might as well deal with Chu Liuyue when their father came later.

They had been waiting in the room for a long time. Perhaps because the two Princes had a quarrel, the others remained silent. This waiting room was very quiet.

Chu Qing also sat there and stole a glance at Chu Liuyue and Chu Liuzhou. He didn’t feel at ease and had a headache. Recently, there had been a lot of rumors about him, and he was having a hard time. Though the Emperor had never asked him about it aboveboard, it didn’t mean that he wouldn’t inquire about it. Thinking of what his mother had said, Chu Qing felt anxious and fearful.

Finally, the Emperor summoned these high-ranking officers and Princes to the Imperial Study.

The Emperor looked terrible. His pale face was a little blue with sickness, and he was in low spirits. He looked at them weakly and let the eunuch lead them to seats.

“Father, something happened in my mansion last night. My consort had an affair with my Eldest Brother and sent messages to him through her brother.” Chu Liuzhou took a step forward and knelt.

Hearing this, several officials looked at each other in astonishment. So, Prince Zhou’s woman had cuckolded him. Besides, the man she had an affair with was Prince Yue, Prince Zhou’s Eldest Brother. Of course, it was not just a matter of an affair. Anything related to the royal family could not be that simple. Some people turned their eyes to Prime Minister Zhang, Princess Yue’s father.

Prime Minister Zhang sat there with a poker face, listening quietly as if this matter had nothing to do with him.

“Prince Yue, is that true?” the Emperor asked.

Chu Liuyue also stepped forward and knelt. “Father, it has nothing to do with me. I stayed in my mansion last night and didn’t see anyone. I don’t even know who his consort was.”

He looked calm and replied with composure. Therefore, his words sounded quite convincing.

“Nonsense. You and Qi Rongzhi have been together for a long time. You let Qi Rongzhi marry into my mansion with bad intentions. Qi Tianyu secretly met Qi Rongzhi at night and wanted Qi Rongzhi to give you the recent information she had collected.” Chu Liuzhou said with hatred, “Eldest Brother, why would you send your woman to my mansion? What did I do that made you hate me so much? You keep your eye on my mansion and press so hard upon me.”

Why would they bear a grudge against each other? Of course, all of this was for the throne. Everyone present knew it.

After hearing Chu Liuzhou’s words with righteous indignation, everyone looked toward Chu Liuyue.

“Second Brother, what are you talking about? Our father bestowed the few consorts on you. What happened to Infanta Yuan’an has nothing to do with me too. Besides, even if your consort is unfaithful to you, you can’t blame it on me, right?”

Chu Liuyue did not panic at all, though his scheme was exposed. He just looked confused. Looking at Chu Liuzhou and the silent Emperor, Chu Liuyue seemed to have suddenly understood the situation. “Second Brother, do you really think it is related to me? Since your consort cheated on you, you should investigate it carefully. You can ask our father for help if you can’t get to the bottom of it.”

He looked at ease and calm.

Such a shameless reply choked Chu Liuzhou, whose eyes widened in anger. The trouble caused by Infanta Yuan’an seemed to have nothing to do with Chu Liuyue. After all, the Emperor selected a few women for Chu Liuzhou to displease and punish Infanta Yuan’an.

A little displeased, the Emperor looked toward Chu Liuzhou in silence. “Could it be that Yuan’an instigated Chu Liuzhou for some ulterior purposes? Did she criticize me for giving Chu Liuzhou a few consorts and concubines?”

“Eldest Brother, she is not chosen by my father. She is the consort sent to me during the Pageant,” Chu Liuzhou explained in a huff.

“Then, it is even less likely to be my business. The Empress selected her for you.” Chu Liuyue shook his head. “I don’t know anything about it.”

Chu Liuzhou was stunned again. It was true. The Empress picked up Qi Rongzhi and sent her to him. Back then, she even praised Qi Tianyu before Chu Liuzhou, saying he was smart and could significantly help Chu Liuzhou. She also said that although Qi Rongzhi seemed to have a weak background, she was the best candidate to be a consort. In the future, his legal wife could well manage such a woman. She was inconspicuous now, but once her two elder brothers, one in civil and the other in military, made some achievements, they would greatly help him.

“Well, Qi Tianyu is an official working for our father. I suppose you wouldn’t arrest him at will, would you?” Chu Liuyue taught Chu Liuzhou a lesson as an elder brother and didn’t give him a chance to speak. “He is working for our father and also an official in the imperial court. Even if he made a mistake, you should report it to our father and ask him to deal with Qi Tianyu!”

In the beginning, Chu Liuzhou wanted to launch a sudden attack and catch Chu Liuyue off guard, but he didn’t expect Chu Liuyue to convert defeat into victory. When Chu Liuyue criticized him with fervor and assurance, Chu Liuzhou burst into a fury. Raised his hand, he punched Chu Liuyue. “You have an affair with my consort. How could you appear so justified and confident? Chu Liuyue, shame on you. You had the cheek to have an affair with your sister-in-law.”

“How dare you!” The Emperor said harshly.

“Father, he indeed has something to do with that bitch Qi Rongzhi. She admitted it herself.” Chu Liuzhou felt wronged.

“Second Brother, since there is something fishy with your consort, you must investigate it carefully. At this time, she may frame me deliberately and destroy our bond of brotherhood to protect the person behind the scenes.” Chu Liuyue advised in “earnest” words and with “good” intentions. Though Chu Liuzhou punched him, he didn’t lose his temper.

He appeared much more magnanimous and tolerant than Chu Liuzhou.

“Who else will plot against me except you?” Chu Liuzhou was furious and roared in a hoarse voice. In a towering rage, the blue veins on his forehead stood out.

“How could it be?” Chu Liuyue glanced around and finally fixed his eyes on Chu Qing. At this time, Chu Qing cowered in a corner for fear of being noticed. “A group of people in the capital city have been acting wildly recently. They stirred up trouble behind the scenes and deliberately exposed their action. Then, they shifted the blame onto us. Sure enough, they did that to lead others to watch us brothers make fools of ourselves.”

Recently, Chu Qing’s identity was a hot topic. It was rumored that he might be the descendant of an aristocratic family in the previous dynasty. That was to say, Chu Qing also was related to the royal family in the previous dynasty. If people thought about this matter more deeply, they might think that Chu Qing might not even be the deceased emperor’s son.

The ministers looked at Chu Qing more suspiciously.

Chu Liuyue meant Chu Qing’s people might have stirred up trouble behind the scenes and deliberately messed everything up…

Chu Liuzhou pursed his lips. Following Chu Liuyue’s gaze, he watched Chu Qing with a gloomy look and hesitated in his heart. “Perhaps, Chu Qing instead of Chu Liuyue is behind Qi Rongzhi and Qi Tianyu?”

“Second Brother, think about it. I stayed in my mansion and didn’t do anything. But all of a sudden, your consort accused me of scheming against you. When you heard that, you certainly would get angry and complain to our father about it. Then our father might reprimand and punish either of us or both of us. No matter what, we might fall into someone else’s trap and let go of the real troublemaker.”

Chu Liuyue analyzed, and his eyes were still fixed on Chu Qing.

Chu Liuzhou pursed his lips tightly and inexplicably felt that it made sense. Looking at Chu Qing and Chu Liuyue, he said, “Father, please use your penetrating judgment to distinguish between right and wrong. No matter who framed me, this person must harbor malicious intentions. More importantly, the person must have plotted against us for a long time. My mother indeed chose this consort for me during the Pageant.”

The Empress was Prince Zhou’s biological Mother. Of course, she couldn’t attack Prince Zhou secretly. It meant someone had even tricked the Empress into sending Qi Rongzhi into Prince Zhou’s Mansion. As such, this person must have other motives.

“Where are they?” The Emperor finally asked.

“They are still in my mansion. I didn’t do anything to Qi Tianyu but just scared Qi Rongzhi.” Chu Liuzhou said with a sullen face.

“Second Brother, didn’t you bring them here? Since your consort is a spy sent by other people, how could you keep her in your mansion? You should send her to our father as soon as possible.” Chu Liuyue said in surprise.

Chu Liuzhou was stunned, and his face changed. He said hurriedly, “Father, please send some people to take her away. I want you to help me find out the truth.”

He spoke the same way as Chu Liuyue to show that he had no selfish consideration and was not afraid of being investigated.

The Emperor waved his hand, and some guards hurried to take the people away from Prince Zhou’s Mansion. Since this matter was related to the two Princes, it couldn’t be trivial.

Chu Liuchen entered the Imperial Study at this time. He had recovered, but since everyone knew he had been in poor health, he could casually decide if he would go to court. Anyway, it was not too late for him to enter the Emperor’s Imperial Study. As soon as he entered the door, he saw his two elder brothers kneeling there. Without saying anything, he sat in the chair granted by the Emperor.

Lying on the spacious back of the chair, he casually glanced at the two of them. Then he listened lazily as several ministers and Prime Ministers reported to the Emperor about their routine tasks. Then he glanced at Chu Qing, who looked sullen and slowly closed his eyes to rest.

The guards returned quickly, but Qi Rongzhi, whom they brought back, had died.

“Your Majesty, Consort Qi is dead!” A guard came in and reported to the Emperor.

Chu Liuzhou suddenly sat up straight and asked, “How could she die? She was still alive before I left. Who poisoned her? Father, see? As soon as something happened to me, my consort died. This time, it was this woman. Next time, it might be my turn. Father, please uphold justice for me!”

Chu Liuzhou was not always insolent. At this moment, he felt wronged, and even his eyes turned red.

“How did she die?” The Emperor glanced at his son and asked in a deep voice.

“She hanged herself. I heard from the servants in the mansion that they heard no sound after Consort Qi was locked up. They thought she had fainted. Unexpectedly, she untied her waistband, hung it onto the crossbeam, and took her life in despair,” the guard reported.

Chu Liuzhou glared at the guard and said, “What nonsense are you talking about? I didn’t do anything to her! How could she hang herself?”

He just flogged her a few times. After all, he had wanted to keep this woman alive as the evidence to confront Chu Liuyue. No matter what, he couldn’t kill her.

The guard glanced at him and reported impartially, “She indeed hanged herself. There are many traces of injury on her body. It seems that she has been abused.”