The princess regretted it.

Chapter 330 Jinan, timely rain

The emperor looked at Jiaoyu's pale face, plain clothes, and no makeup. She had lost all her former charm and lovely appearance, and a wave of pity surged in his heart. He sighed deeply, his tone softening slightly as he said, "Alright! Father doesn't blame you. Get up, all of you, and go back and think carefully about what Father has said."

After saying this, he seemed to have thought of something and added, "As for your mother, although she has been banished to the cold palace, I will instruct them to pay more attention to her and will not deliberately torture her. Don't worry!"

Upon hearing this, the brother and sister felt a little relieved. They kowtowed in thanks and then slowly stood up and walked out of the imperial study with light steps.

Only after Jiaoyu and the Second Prince had completely vanished from view did Jin'an slowly emerge from the side hall. Upon seeing her, the Emperor raised his hand and gently beckoned her to come to him, a gesture that held a certain intimacy.

Jin An slowly walked to the emperor's side, a perfectly placed smile on his lips, and said softly, "Father, you should be able to relax now, right?"

It turned out that when Jin An understood the emperor's intentions, she thought for a moment and then took the initiative to speak: "Father, it's freezing outside. My second brother and sister must be kneeling like this for a long time. I'm afraid their bodies can't bear it. As children, they plead for their mother. This is human nature and shows their filial piety. Father, considering their sincerity, why not meet with them? Furthermore, you can take this opportunity to teach them a lesson to prevent them from misunderstanding and hurting the father-son relationship between you and them."

Jin'an's words were like a timely rain, cleverly giving the emperor a way out. After weighing the pros and cons, the emperor felt they made sense, so he ordered Eunuch Fuquan to invite Jiaoyu and the Second Prince into the imperial study, which led to the earlier conversation between father and son.

By this point, the emperor's anger had largely subsided. However, the fire case remained shrouded in mystery, unsolved. The palace maid, Yundou, readily confessed her guilt, but she insisted that the Second Prince had ordered her to do so. However, an in-depth investigation by the Imperial Guards revealed that Yundou had recently been in close contact with Xiao Xizi, the eunuch who served as the Third Prince's personal advisor, and her behavior was suspicious.

Therefore, when the emperor heard the report from the imperial guards, his suspicions towards the third prince grew stronger. Just as the emperor was about to take action and question the third prince, Jin An intervened.

She looked determined and spoke earnestly, "Father, there are still many doubts in this matter, and we cannot rush to a conclusion. I earnestly implore you to have the Imperial Guards delve deeper into Yundou's background. Perhaps they can uncover a completely different clue."

The emperor was torn between two things. He didn't want his beloved second son, nor did he want his third son to be the culprit. After all, if the matter were confirmed, the emperor's brutal murder of a child of unknown origin would bring disgrace upon the imperial family, turning them into a laughingstock. After much deliberation, the emperor felt Jin'an's suggestion was reasonable and readily agreed. He immediately ordered the Imperial Guards and his own Golden Armored Guards to investigate, both covertly and openly, to get to the bottom of the matter.

In fact, it was Jin'an's spy who discovered that Concubine Zhang had gone out without permission. After noticing something unusual, Jin'an quickly sent a letter to inform the emperor to go to Wuqiu Palace.

In response to the emperor's inquiry, Jin An explained, "I have been sending people to monitor Concubine Zhang's every move because Concubine Cen's maid Mingyue is still missing. Concubine Cen has some suspicions, and I am only following her suspicions, secretly sending people to keep a close eye on Concubine Zhang, just in case."

Of course, Jin An had other plans in mind. She deliberately concealed the fact that she had sent people to monitor Jiao Yu, and did not reveal a single word to the Emperor. She even did not mention the fact that the Zhang family had raised private soldiers, which she had learned about. Although her father was the Emperor, he was also the Son of Heaven, and even the Emperor had his fears.

So she knew exactly what to say and what not to say. However, she knew that her father might not think much of her actions now, but who knew if he would become suspicious once he calmed down? When she saw the Second Prince and Jiaoyu, she had a plan in mind. First, she obeyed her father's wishes and offered the advice he wanted. Then...

The Emperor's lips curled upwards, a gentle smile playing across his face. He spoke to Jin An with all his heart, "I had originally thought there might be some rift between you and Jiaoyu. After all, within the palace, sisterhood is bound to be strained by trivial matters. But I never expected you to plead for her. Such generosity is truly rare. You truly resemble your mother, forgiving and kind-hearted. You truly are Father's good daughter."

Upon hearing this, Jin An's cheeks instantly flushed, like the gorgeous sunset glow on the horizon. She tugged shyly at the emperor's sleeve, her voice soft and tender, a hint of coquettishness in her voice, "Father, are you teasing me? I'm not as good as you say I am!"

After she finished speaking, her tone suddenly changed, and a trace of subtle loneliness flashed in her eyes. "Actually, I envy the deep affection between my sister and my second brother from the bottom of my heart. They support each other and care about each other. This friendship is so precious. If my brother were still alive, I would also..."

Halfway through her words, she seemed to suddenly realize something and stopped talking abruptly. A look of panic flashed across her face and she quickly said, "I'm sorry, father, I spoke out of turn." As she spoke, she was about to kneel down and apologize.

The moment the Emperor heard her mention the Crown Prince, his normally gentle expression suddenly darkened. Memories of the past flooded back like a tide, the deepest, most untouchable pain in his heart.

At this moment, seeing Jin'an's panic-stricken and self-blaming expression, a wave of pity surged in his heart, even stronger than when he had seen Jiaoyu before. The prince's death had dealt a heavy blow to Jin'an, but for him, wasn't it also a scar that could never heal?

Almost subconsciously, he quickly reached out his hand and firmly stopped Jin An from kneeling. His voice was soft and full of warmth: "Alright, alright! Father understands, you are not wrong. You have always been Father's good child. It was Father who failed to take good care of your brother and your mother. So many years have passed, but they have never appeared in my dreams. I don't know how they are doing over there..."

The emperor's voice gradually became low, his eyes filled with endless longing and melancholy, as if his thoughts had drifted far away, drifting to the distant past that carried many memories of him, the prince, and the queen.

Jin An looked at the emperor's face, which was filled with vicissitudes and sorrow. Her eyes could not help but turn red, tears welling up in them. She bit her lower lip and whispered, "Father, my brother and mother are definitely watching us from heaven. They definitely hope that you are well. I will always be with you."

The emperor nodded slightly and patted Jin'an's hand. "With you by my side, I feel at ease. Okay, let's not talk about these sad things. If you have any ideas in the future, feel free to tell me."

Jin An nodded obediently, lowered his eyes, and replied softly with a gentle and respectful look, "Your son will remember this, father." The moment she lowered her eyes, a barely perceptible cunning flashed in her eyes.