MCSCPM -Chapter 326 Rumors

The physician had still not arrived, and Chu Yifeng had already lost his patience. If the doctor didn’t come soon, he feared he would itch himself to death.

When he saw the wall in front of him, he didn’t think twice and rushed forward, slamming his head straight into it.

With a loud thud, Chu Yifeng collapsed to the ground, blood immediately flowing from his forehead.

The guard was terrified and hurriedly squatted down to check on him. Seeing his prince’s forehead covered in blood, he was completely stunned, his heart trembling with fear. If anything happened to the prince, he himself would surely die.

“Your Highness! Your Highness! Please don’t scare this servant!”

The guard called out to him again and again, but Chu Yifeng had already fainted. The pain had been so intense that only by losing consciousness could he stop feeling the itch.

The guard placed his hand beneath Chu Yifeng’s nose and finally realized that the prince had merely fainted, not died. Only then did he let out a long sigh of relief.

However, since Chu Yifeng was injured, the guard thought it best to inform the Emperor. Perhaps the Emperor might come to see Prince Yi, and then his master would no longer feel resentful.

Thus, someone was quickly sent into the palace to report Chu Yifeng’s collapse to the Emperor.

At that moment, Chu Helian had just returned to the palace. Hearing the news, he sighed, but there was no worry on his face—only helplessness and disappointment.

“Someone, immediately send the imperial physicians to Prince Yi’s residence.”

Unexpectedly, Chu Helian only ordered the imperial physicians to go and check on Chu Yifeng. After that, he paid no further attention to the matter and returned to the Imperial Study, forbidding anyone from disturbing him.

Prince Yi’s personal guard naturally felt wronged on his master’s behalf. The prince was already in such a state, yet the Emperor did not even come to see him, only sending physicians. Wasn’t that far too heartless?

Worried that Consort Shu would be distressed, the guard also arranged for a letter to be sent into the palace for her. After all, it was her own son—if something had happened, a mother deserved to know.

When the letter arrived at Consort Shu’s palace, He Ningxiang read it and clenched it tightly in her hand before angrily throwing it aside.

Learning of her son’s condition made her extremely anxious. She desperately wanted to leave the palace at once, but without the Emperor’s order—and since she was currently under house arrest—she simply could not go.

At that moment, a palace maid stepped forward and said, “Your Ladyship, news has just come in—the Emperor has returned from outside the palace.”

“What?” He Ningxiang was startled, a sudden look of hope appearing on her face. “Did His Majesty go to visit Prince Yi?”

The maid looked awkward and stammered, “Your Ladyship, His Majesty did not go to Prince Yi’s residence… but to Prince Jing’s residence.”

That tiny shred of hope vanished completely in an instant. She sat down in her chair, her entire face turning icy cold. She shook her head slightly, her eyes filled with fury that she kept tightly suppressed.

Like Prince Yi, she was unwilling to accept this. Just as she herself had said, her son was the eldest—why did the Emperor always favor Chu Jingcheng instead? This was something she absolutely could not accept.

Prince Jing had merely been flogged—and it was his own fault for abandoning an entire prefecture of people to return to the capital. Didn’t he deserve the punishment? Yet the Emperor forgave him and even went to visit him. Meanwhile, her son was in such a condition, and the Emperor neither asked nor cared.

At that moment, He Ningxiang’s heart turned cold. She spoke each word slowly through clenched teeth, “Your Majesty, since it is so, do not blame this concubine for being ruthless.”

Her words seemed to rise from some deep, dark place, carrying despair and chilling disappointment. Her gaze grew ever darker and more sunken.

Meanwhile, on the other side, Yin Qingyue was busy in the wine house. Almost all the news she heard came from this place.

The Emperor valued Prince Jing and had gone to his residence, while Prince Yi, gravely ill, had crashed into a wall and fainted—yet the Emperor paid him no heed.

She showed no emotion, thinking to herself that this was exactly what Prince Yi deserved—serves him right!

But this matter absolutely could not end there. Yin Qingyue thought that since Prince Yi had harmed people again and again, he deserved an even harsher lesson—not only physically, but mentally as well.

Her thoughts turned to Shangguan Jiaoran. That woman had whipped Mei’er. Whether or not she was the real culprit, Yin Qingyue was determined to punish her regardless.

Didn’t she like Prince Jing? Then Yin Qingyue would make sure she never got what she wanted. As for Prince Yi—he liked Hai Qingshuang, and the woman he married was Hai Qingshuang—she would make sure he didn’t get his wish either.

That day, Yin Qingyue avoided everyone’s attention and returned to her room, removing her makeup. Her originally delicate features were revealed. She had been deliberately making herself look ugly for some time, and now, seeing her true appearance again, she actually felt a little unaccustomed to it.

Without wasting time, she slipped out of the inn unnoticed and went onto the streets.

She was thinking of how to punish Shangguan Jiaoran and that beastly Prince Yi when she suddenly saw several children running through the street, chasing and laughing.

A flash of inspiration struck her, and she came up with a brilliant idea. She bought several sugar figurines and walked over to the children, waving the treats in her hand as she asked, “Who wants some?”

The children were already greedy. Seeing the sugar figurines, they licked their lips and stared eagerly at them, jumping up and down.

“Big sister, I want one! I want one!”
“I want one too! Big sister, give me one!”

They all rushed forward, leaping up to grab the sugar figurines, but they weren’t tall enough.

“If you all want to eat them, sister can give them to you,” Yin Qingyue said with a smile. “But you have to help sister with something first. If you help me, I’ll give you the sugar figurines. How about that?”

“Okay~!”

Yin Qingyue crouched down and said kindly, “Sister only wants you to say a few sentences.”

“Say what?”

“I want you to go around the streets and alleys and say: ‘Prince Yi has not married until now because he is waiting for General Shangguan’s daughter, Shangguan Jiaoran.’”

The children didn’t understand much. For the sake of the sugar figurines, they all agreed, nodding eagerly.

Worried they might forget, Yin Qingyue taught them repeatedly until they could recite it by heart. Only then did she distribute the sugar figurines one by one.

“All right, go quickly. But remember—don’t tell anyone that sister told you to say it, understand?”

“Got it, pretty sister!”

The children ran off at once.

Watching them leave, Yin Qingyue smiled and murmured, “Shangguan Jiaoran, Chu Yifeng—if the two of you end up as a pair, then I, Yin Qingyue, will be your matchmaker. Maybe I’ll even come ask you for a cup of wedding wine someday.”

The children ran through the streets and alleys, eating the sugar figurines Yin Qingyue had given them, shouting nonstop:

“Prince Yi hasn’t married yet because he’s waiting for General Shangguan’s daughter, Shangguan Jiaoran!”
“Prince Yi hasn’t married yet because he’s waiting for General Shangguan’s daughter, Shangguan Jiaoran!”
“Prince Yi hasn’t married yet because he’s waiting for General Shangguan’s daughter, Shangguan Jiaoran!”

…

Children’s voices were naturally loud, and soon the entire city knew of it. From teahouses to wine houses—even the brothels—everyone was talking about it.

One person told ten, ten told a hundred. As the rumor spread, it naturally became accepted as truth.

People believed it all the more because children wouldn’t lie casually. If it weren’t true, how could children know about it?

When the news reached the palace, even Chu Helian was shocked. His son liked Shangguan Jiaoran? Why had he heard nothing of this before? He was doubtful, yet half-believed it.

In his view, Prince Yi was steady and reserved—such matters had never occurred before.

Thus, Chu Helian ordered people to investigate the source thoroughly, determined to find out who had started it.

The guards were dispatched, but to avoid disturbing the common people, they conducted secret inquiries. That was how they found those children.

The sugar figurines had long since been eaten, yet the children were still chanting the same lines, as if they had become a habit—so uncomfortable not to say them.

To prevent the rumor from spreading further, the guards secretly brought the children in, strictly ordering that no harm be done to them.

Taken to a secluded place, the children were not afraid at all. They curiously stared at the guards, occasionally tugging at them or touching the swords at their waists.

The leading guard stepped forward with a stern expression. Perhaps due to his profession, his tone was severe as he asked, “I’m asking you—who taught you to talk about Prince Yi?”

His harsh tone and serious expression frightened the children. Their eyes filled with tears as they retreated again and again, none daring to speak.

“Hurry up and say it! Who taught you?”

“I won’t say,” said one slightly stubborn child.

“If you don’t say it, believe it or not, we’ll lock all of you up!”

“I want to tell my mother!”

“Even if your mother comes, she’ll be locked up too. Now speak—who taught you to say those words? If you tell me, I’ll let you go.”

Terrified at the thought of being locked up, the children blinked nervously. A little girl finally spoke tremblingly, “It was a fairy sister.”

The guard was stunned. Fairy sister? There were no immortals in this world! He shouted angrily, “Nonsense! What fairy sister? Are you really not going to tell the truth? This is your last chance—if you don’t speak now, you’ll all be locked up!”

“It really was a fairy sister. She was very pretty. She really was a fairy—like a fairy descending to the mortal world. We don’t know who she was. She told us not to tell anyone it was her who said it.”

The little girl spoke honestly, revealing everything.

Only then did the guard understand—it wasn’t a fairy at all, but a beautiful woman. Seeing how frightened the children were, nearly in tears, he figured they weren’t lying and didn’t want to scare them further.

“All right. If you had said it earlier, it wouldn’t have come to this. You may all go home.”

He waved his hand, and the other guards led the children away.

The leading guard still didn’t know who this “fairy sister” was. There were countless beautiful women in the world—he couldn’t possibly arrest them all. Who knew how long that would take? If he caught the wrong person, not only would he cause trouble, he himself would be punished.

For now, the only option was to report the matter back to the palace as quickly as possible and let the Emperor decide what to do.