0p0 Chapter 313 The Cannon Fodder Who Suffered the Massacre of His Family (20)
Chapter 313 The Cannon Fodder Who Suffered the Massacre of His Family (20)
Unexpectedly, a few days later, a drought struck Peiyuan County, which was not far from the capital.
As luck would have it, something he saw in the records came in handy.
Gao Yan could sense that his father was quite satisfied with him after he expressed his views yesterday, and logically he should have been sent to provide disaster relief.
Unexpectedly, overnight, his father changed his mind and announced that Gao Yun would be sent to provide disaster relief.
“Your Highness, it must have been Consort Qi who whispered something in His Majesty’s ear that made him change his mind,” said Chen Song, Gao Yan’s confidant.
"This king knows."
Gao Yan naturally guessed that this matter was probably related to Qi Ning.
I never imagined that even her father's political decisions would be influenced by her.
"With Consort Qi as an ally on the Fourth Prince's side, it's like adding wings to a tiger. This can't go on," Chen Song said worriedly.
Gao Yan sensed a deeper meaning in Chen Song's words.
"what do you mean?"
Chen Song no longer concealed his intentions and said directly, "Your Highness, in my humble opinion, this Consort Qi must not be allowed to live. She is a major threat to us!"
"You want to get rid of her?" Gao Yan asked.
"That's right, that's exactly what I meant. What does Your Highness think?"
Gao Yan chuckled.
He glanced at Chen Song, his eyes seemingly mocking Chen Song's foolishness.
"Now that Consort Qi is in the Emperor's favor, do you think Father Emperor won't investigate if you try to harm her?"
Chen Song gave an awkward smile: "That's true."
Gao Yan withdrew his gaze and looked at the bow and arrow hanging on the wall.
"Consort Qi has indeed helped Gao Yun and his group a lot, but she is just a pawn in Gao Yun's and the Jiang family's game. Even if we get rid of one Consort Qi, there will be a second one. My real opponent is Gao Yun, not a woman."
As the two were talking, a voice suddenly came from the doorway: "Yan'er".
Gao Yan and Chen Song immediately looked in the direction of the sound and saw Consort Shu standing at the door, looking at them.
Consort Shu was Gao Yan's biological mother and had always been able to freely enter and leave Gao Yan's residence without anyone stopping her.
"Mother, what brings you here?" Gao Yan asked.
Chen Song hurriedly greeted Consort Shu: "Your humble servant greets Your Highness, Consort Shu."
Consort Shu first said "No need for formalities" to Chen Song, and then said to Gao Yan, "I made some pastries by myself today and thought I would send some over for you to try. Did I disturb your conversation?"
"No, how could that be?" Gao Yan denied it outright.
He glanced at Chen Song, who immediately understood and said, "Since Consort Shu has arrived, this humble subject will take his leave."
After Chen Song left, Consort Shu stepped in.
She had her personal maid put down the snacks and then sent her out.
Only when the mother and son were alone in the room did Consort Shu ask, "Yan'er, what were you and Chen Song talking about just now? I think I heard the name Consort Qi?"
Gao Yan had nothing to hide from his mother, so he told her the whole story.
"So that's how it is." Consort Shu nodded slightly. "It seems that this Consort Qi is indeed not simple. Although His Majesty has always been fond of women, he has never allowed the harem to participate in politics. Now, he actually listens to Consort Qi's words on political matters."
"However, Chen Song's suggestion to get rid of Consort Qi seems to be too risky."
Gao Yan glanced at the pastries on the table. He didn't like sweets, so he didn't touch them, but instead picked up his teacup and drank tea.
"Your subject understands, and of course I will not do such a thing," he replied calmly.
Consort Shu added, "However, what Chen Song said is not entirely unreasonable. This Consort Qi is indeed a major threat to us. Even if we cannot get rid of her, we should find a way to deal with her. We cannot just sit and wait to die."
She thought for a moment and said, "Why don't we find a beauty and send her to His Majesty's side, or choose one from the harem to be his assistant?"
Gao Yan shook his head: "Now the Emperor is showing great favor to Consort Qi, and has neglected all the other concubines in the harem. Consort Qi is quite shrewd, and I don't know what method she used to win over the Emperor."
"Even if we send a few more women to Father's side, or pick a few from the harem, I'm afraid we still won't be able to attract Father's attention."
That's true. Consort Shu has never seen the Emperor show such favor to any woman before. She shouldn't be so easily replaced.
"But, are we just going to let Consort Qi continue to serve His Majesty, doing things for the Fourth Prince and the Jiang family..."
Before Consort Shu could finish speaking, Gao Yan suddenly heard a slight noise and looked sharply towards the doorway.
"Who's outside?" he shouted sternly.
Just as Gao Yan was about to grab the sword beside him, a small head peeked out from the doorway: "Brother, Mother, it's me."
Upon seeing that it was Gao Xi, Gao Yan instantly suppressed the murderous intent in his eyes.
"Xi'er, what brings you here?"
He withdrew his hand from his sword and beckoned Gao Xi to come in.
"Yes, Xi'er, didn't you take the palace maids out to play?" Consort Shu asked as well.
Gao Xi skipped over to Gao Yan's side and replied, "Xi'er was tired from playing just now. After returning to the palace, I didn't see Mother Consort. I heard from the palace servants that Mother Consort came to my brother's place, so I came with her."
Gao Xi was still a seven-year-old child, and as she was talking, her attention was drawn to the snacks on the table, and she reached out to take some to eat.
Gao Yan patted his younger sister's head.
He didn't know how much of their conversation Gao Xi had overheard, so he asked again, "Xi'er, your brother is asking you, did you hear anything outside just now?"
While eating snacks, Gao Xi mumbled, "I heard my mother and brother talking about Consort Qi. Consort Qi is one of my fourth brother's people. She helps my fourth brother to deal with my brother. You want to get rid of her and are even thinking of arranging for someone to compete with her for the emperor's favor."
Not long after Consort Shu arrived, Gao Xi followed, and no one outside stopped her.
Children walk lightly and are not easily noticed.
In addition, the mother and son were so engrossed in their conversation that they didn't pay much attention to what was happening outside.
Therefore, when Gao Yan discovered Gao Xi, she had already been eavesdropping outside for quite some time.
After hearing Gao Xi's answer, Gao Yan and Consort Shu exchanged a glance, their expressions both somewhat solemn.
Gao Xi overheard their entire conversation.
Consort Shu quickly reached out and pulled Gao Xi over, instructing her, "Xi'er, you must not tell anyone about what you just heard, especially not your father, understand?"
Gao Xi looked at Consort Shu, then at Gao Yan. Seeing that they were both staring at her, she nodded: "Xi'er understands."
Gao Yan and Consort Shu finally breathed a sigh of relief.
That afternoon, Jiang Weilan came to Mingyue Pavilion again to see Qi Ning.
When she came last time, she seemed to be there to interrogate me, but this time the situation was quite the opposite.
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