Chapter 03
Dealing with a Longtime Rival
Book: The War Godās Consort Stops PretendingāShe Is a Cultivation Master
Author: Lin Yilei
Qin Ziguang carefully observed Xiahou Ying for a while and suddenly noticed something astonishing.
The Second Prince had no True Dragon Aura.
As a member of the imperial bloodline, he should possess the True Dragon Aura. The Emperor had it, although his aura was somewhat weak.
The other princes had it as well.
But Xiahou Ying had none.
At that moment, Qin Ziguang became certain of one thing.
Xiahou Ying was not of the imperial bloodline.
Wonderful!
If she could completely deny his identity as a prince and then expose everything he had done, he would be utterly finished.
Qin Ziguang quickly came up with a plan to deal with the Second Prince.
She began laying the groundwork.
“Your Majesty, since you insist on granting me a marriage, and since you declared that whichever prince marries me will become the Crown Prince of Dongxia, then I cannot disappoint your kindness. I must help choose a worthy Crown Prince for Dongxia.”
The Emperor brightened the moment he heard Qin Ziguang was willing to marry into the imperial family.
“Princess Jun, tell me. Which prince has caught your eye? Who do you think deserves to be Crown Prince?”
In truth, the Emperor wanted to find out whom Prince Qin favored, or whether one of the princes had already formed an alliance with Prince Qin to threaten his throne.
Qin Ziguang replied,
“Your Majesty, forgive my bluntness. Whether he is my future husband or the Crown Prince of Dongxia, there is one condition he absolutely must meet.
“He must possess noble character.
“Only then can he bring blessings to the people. And a man of noble character would surely treat his wife well.
“I do not yet know the princes well enough to comment on all of them, but from what I have seen, the Second Prince is unqualified to become Dongxia’s Crown Prince.”
The Second Prince immediately became anxious.
“Princess Jun, have you misunderstood something about me?”
He, Xiahou Ying, was handsome, talented, and enjoyed the support of many officials. What right did Qin Ziguang have to say he was unfit to become Crown Prince?
He had just been trying so hard to show her his affection. What a complete waste of effort.
Qin Ziguang spoke with unwavering conviction.
“There is no misunderstanding. Second Prince, not only is your character lacking, but you are not even of the imperial bloodline. In that case, how could you possibly be worthy of becoming Dongxia’s Crown Prince?”
The Second Prince wasn’t of the imperial bloodline?
Her words shocked everyone present.
The entire hall fell silent.
Even Prince Qin was stunned.
He sighed inwardly.
His daughter truly was fearless.
But that was exactly like his daughter.
How could she quietly accept being manipulated? Just because the Emperor wanted to grant her in marriage didn’t mean she had to obey.
He was no longer worried.
Since she dared to say Xiahou Ying wasn’t of the imperial bloodline, she must already have prepared a way out.
The most alarmed people were the Emperor, Consort Lan, and Xiahou Ying himself.
The Emperor glared furiously at Qin Ziguang.
“Princess Jun, mind your words.”
To claim Xiahou Ying was not of the imperial bloodline was the same as telling everyone that the Emperor had been cuckolded.
Having his parentage questioned, Xiahou Ying trembled with rage.
“Qin Ziguang! Do you know what you’re saying? How dare you slander my birth?”
He wanted nothing more than to rush over and strangle her.
Consort Lan was equally frantic.
Questioning her son’s birth was the same as questioning her chastity.
If she did not refute Qin Ziguang and punish her, how could she continue to hold her position in the palace?
“Princess Jun, don’t become arrogant simply because you’re favored. You claim my son isn’t of the imperial bloodline. What evidence do you have?
“If you have no proof and are merely slandering my son, then even if you are Prince Qin’s daughter, I will ask His Majesty to punish you.
“And the punishment should be death.”
Qin Ziguang answered calmly,
“I am only telling the truth. I am revealing the truth. His Majesty has been kept in the dark. Once he learns the truth, he’ll thank me instead of punishing me.”
The Emperor stared at her.
“Qin Ziguang, are you certain you just claimed the Second Prince is not of the imperial bloodline? That he is not my biological son?”
“Yes, Your Majesty. Because Your Majesty has shown me such favor, I could not bear to watch certain people deceive you and deliberately confuse the imperial bloodline.”
“Qin Ziguang, stop speaking such nonsense!”
Consort Lan was trembling with fury.
Xiahou Ying wanted nothing more than to rush over and skin Qin Ziguang alive.
A hand suddenly restrained him.
It was Xuanyuan Yu.
“Xuanyuan Yu, let go! I’m going to tear that woman’s mouth apart!”
Xiahou Ying struggled against Xuanyuan Yu, but his martial strength was completely suppressed. He couldn’t move at all.
Xuanyuan Yu looked toward Qin Ziguang.
“Princess Jun, you should be more careful with your words.”
If she attacked Xiahou Ying’s lineage without absolute certainty, she would suffer disastrous consequences.
Qin Ziguang winked at him.
“You’re worried about me?”
Watching from the side, the Emperor grew even angrier.
Had Qin Ziguang taken a liking to Xuanyuan Yu?
Was Prince Qin trying to unite the civil and military officials to strip him of his imperial authority?
The Emperor shouted angrily,
“Qin Ziguang! Present your evidence.”
Qin Ziguang slowly turned toward Consort Lan.
“Whether the Second Prince is of the imperial bloodline or not, Your Highness the Consort knows better than anyone.
“Consort Lan, you’ve deceived His Majesty for so many years.
“I’ll give you one chance to confess.”
Only a fool would confess.
Consort Lan stood up, her imposing aura filling the hall as she pointed accusingly at Qin Ziguang.
“Qin Ziguang, how ridiculous! You have slandered my chastity. If you cannot produce evidence, then according to the law, anyone who slanders an imperial prince and an imperial consort deserves to be beaten to death.
“Even if you are Prince Qin’s daughter, you will not escape death.
“Prince Qin, are you simply going to stand by while your daughter speaks such nonsense?”
Prince Qin acted as though he hadn’t heard a thing.
Calm and composed, he allowed Qin Ziguang to continue.
Qin Ziguang looked directly at Consort Lan.
“Stop dragging my father into this. He never claimed the Second Prince wasn’t of the imperial bloodline. I did.
“I alone will bear the responsibility.
“Since I dared to make this accusation, no matter how much Your Highness tries to deny it, you won’t be able to hide the truth.
“Because I have evidence.
“Your Majesty, I know a little about physiognomy. Judging from Your Majesty’s features and the Second Prince’s features, it is impossible that the two of you are father and son.
“That is why I concluded that the Second Prince is not Your Majesty’s biological son and not of the imperial bloodline.
“If Your Majesty believes I am talking nonsense, then summon the Imperial Physicians. They naturally have a way to determine whether the two of you are truly father and son.”
Summon the Imperial Physicians…
The Emperor’s expression immediately became difficult to describe.
He suddenly remembered something.
Consort Lan had given birth to Xiahou Ying only eight months after entering the palace.
Back then, shortly before giving birth, she had supposedly fallen and gone into premature labor.
He had never questioned it before.
But now…
The Second Prince’s birth was no longer entirely beyond suspicion.
Still, asking the Imperial Physicians to verify their blood relationship in front of everyone present…
He couldn’t bring himself to make that decision.
The Empress glanced at the Emperor.
For her, having Consort Lan’s chastity questioned was exactly what she had hoped for.
Naturally, she was eager to push the matter further.
“Your Majesty, the imperial bloodline is no trivial matter. It concerns our ancestors, the foundation of the dynasty, and the inheritance of the empire.
“The Imperial Physicians should be summoned to verify the truth.
“We must not wrong Consort Lan, but neither should we allow scheming individuals to contaminate the imperial bloodline.”
The Emperor’s expression grew uglier than ever.
If the examination proved Xiahou Ying wasn’t his son…
Then every official in the court would witness that their Emperor had been cuckolded.
He would lose all dignity.
But if the examination proved Xiahou Ying really was his biological son…
Then he would have no choice but to execute Qin Ziguang for spreading such outrageous lies.
And by doing so, he would deeply offend Prince Qin.
Prince Qin would almost certainly rebel.
No matter which choice he made, it was an impossible dilemma.
