Xiao Zhen believed in Ling Hua, so he naturally did not investigate the lies she made up to cover up Yan Qing. What he was most concerned about was where the real Concubine Duan went? Is it dead or alive? His good father, there is no need to find someone to pretend to be her in the cold palace for twenty years in order to conceal his identity as a dead person? If she was alive, where did she go?

Since he heard about this from Madam Sun, he has been thinking about this issue.

He clenched his fists and asked Ling Hua, "What do you think?"

Ling Hua looked at Xiao Zhen, "Your Majesty's attitude towards you over the years is very strange. No princess has ever treated you as harsh as you do. Sometimes he ignores his concern, sometimes he is extremely harsh. This is very contradictory. If there is a concubine Duan in the cold palace, as rumors in the palace, it is the concubine Duan who harmed the queen back then. His Majesty loves the queen deeply and punishes the concubine Duan and is not happy with you, which is reasonable. But now the concubine Duan in the cold palace is not the concubine Duan, so this matter needs to be explored carefully."

Xiao Zhen nodded.

Ling Hua said, "After learning about this, I thought about it for a long time. It is hard to say whether Concubine Duan died or lived. It is only based on guessing. Therefore, if you want to investigate this matter, you must investigate it without disturbing Your Majesty."

"It's not easy to not disturb him." Xiao Zhen had wanted to investigate, but Ling Hua did not return to Beijing, so he did not discuss it with him and did not dare to act rashly. His ten-year plan with Ling Hua cannot be ruined to investigate this matter, so as not to cause his good father's thunder and let Xiao Ze have an opportunity to take advantage of it.

Ling Hua also knew that it would be difficult not to disturb His Majesty. "For so many years, not only no one in the palace dared to mention Concubine Duan, but no one in the court or the country dared to mention Concubine Duan. But some old ministers probably know something."

"You mean, start with the old ministers in the court?"

"Yeah." Ling Hua nodded, "This matter must not be investigated from the palace. The palace is His Majesty's territory. If you investigate from the outside of the palace, you must also secretly investigate the people who were released from the palace twenty years ago. I plan to tell Liuli about this matter and ask her to investigate. You know, Liuli is very talented in digging secrets."

Xiao Zhen nodded.

"But, Your Majesty has been keeping the cold palace for twenty years. I'm afraid that even if the people who released the palace could not find much useful information, even if Liuli found out, it would be better to start with the old ministers. There were no elders in the three dynasties in the court, but there were still several elders of the two dynasties who had not retired. With their foundation, they would know whenever there was any disturbance in the palace. Therefore, even if His Majesty buried it in the thunderous anger, he could sweep away the traces inside the palace wall, and he would probably not sweep away the wind outside the palace wall. Therefore, they would definitely know what happened."

Xiao Zhen thinks it makes sense.

"But..." Ling Hua changed his voice, "Actually, there is a simplest way, but I'm a little confused."

“What’s the easiest way?”

"Go and ask the Queen Mother." Ling Hua said, "The Queen Mother must know."

Xiao Zheng narrowed his eyes, thought for a moment, and laughed sarcastically, "In the past, the emperor's grandmother was not good to me, but now she treats me better than before, and she still has the light of your marriage to Yan Qing. The emperor's grandmother loves her son better than her grandson. She may not necessarily say anything to her."

"This is where I can't make up my mind." Ling Hua didn't say that because the news she got was said by Yan Qing, and the news she got was said by Madam Sun. If they went directly to ask the empress dowager, then the empress dowager asked them how they knew and what they should say? Yan Qing's martial arts skills reached the peak and even the empress dowager was hiding it. Madam Sun was a member of the empress dowager. Even if the empress dowager Cihe, she didn't want Madam Sun to betray her and mention Xiao Zhen, right?

"Let's check it slowly! It's been so many years, and it's not too long." Xiao Zhen used to be very persistent about rescuing his mother from the cold palace, but after Ling Hua beat Dengwengun and sued the emperor three years ago, he was not so persistent. He rescued his mother from each other, and he didn't want her to have anything to do.

If he investigated this matter, if the emperor and grandmother were displeased and the father was ignorant when he noticed it, he would rather not do it.

So, he quickly denied Ling Hua's idea and said to her, "Don't ask."

Ling Hua also felt that it was not appropriate to ask the Queen Mother about this matter. The Queen Mother’s kindness to her was based on Yan Qing and her kindness to Xiao Zhen was actually based on her support for Xiao Zhen. This indirect relationship was actually not solid. Especially, the Queen Mother was not confused and was not easy to fool.

So she gave up, "Since you said that, then don't ask."

After talking about this, Ling Hua talked about the Yu family and the Ning family again. As soon as he started a conversation, before he could say a few words, Liuli's voice rang out, "Miss."

Ling Hua said "Hmm", "What's wrong?"

Liuli said, "Yunluo came from a message and said, "The little marquis asked, are you going to pick him up?"

Ling Hua quickly looked at the hourglass and found that it was already past midnight before she knew it. She immediately stood up and said to Liuli, "Go back to pass the message and say I'll pick him up now."

Liuli responded.

Ling Hua could only stop and said to Xiao Zhen, "There are still many things we have to discuss, and we can't finish it in a while. I'll come here again. It's getting late, and you've been very tired recently, right? You look very tired. If you don't want to stay up to the New Year, then take a break early. During the Chinese New Year, you can also maintain your spirits."

Xiao Zheng wanted to say that he would not leave? But he couldn't say that. Ling Hua could come to accompany him tonight, so he had to keep his word. He couldn't stop her from going back.

So he nodded and said to her, "You had already drunk wine at the palace banquet, and you just drank a lot of it. You went out carefully and blew the wind wine. After you went back, you had a headache. I asked someone to make a purple fox cloak for you this winter, which is considered a New Year gift for you. This will make people take it and you wear it back."

Ling Hua had no objection and thanked him with a smile, "Thank you, the Second Prince, for thinking about me with good things."

Xiao Zhen snorted coldly, "I don't like to hear you call the Second Highness."

Ling Hua said seriously, "You have to get used to it earlier. When Xiao Ze is pulled down, your Majesty is only you, a son who can pass the throne, one day I will call you Your Majesty. Don't you let me call me?"

Xiao Zheng's face was not very good, "Let's talk about it until that day. Anyway..."

"It's just a title." Ling Hua stopped him and urged him, "Where is the cloak? Let's take it quickly, I have to leave quickly. Otherwise, the ancestors in the family should lose their temper."

Xiao Zhen stared at him angrily, "Are you so afraid that he will lose his temper?"

"Yes, it's scary for him to lose his temper." Ling Hua was naturally a little scared, and she was not afraid that Xiao Zhen knew that Yan Qing was his weakness now, so she said to him, "He is now my ribs. I finally coaxed him to like me a little bit, so I can't waste all my previous efforts."

Xiao Zhen was so angry that he didn't want to speak.

"Hurry up, will you give me any more?" Ling Hua urged him bluntly.

Xiao Zheng twisted his face, took a deep breath, and ordered to the outside world in a deep voice, "Leng Yue, go and get that purple fox cloak."

Ling Hua added, "Hurry up."

Leng Yue should have gone immediately.

Leng Yue was moving very quickly. Soon after, he took the purple fox cloak. He held the box and handed it to Xiao Zheng. Xiao Zheng reached out to take it, opened the box, took out the cloak, and threw it to Ling Hua.

Ling Hua hurriedly reached out to take it. Zihu was rare, especially after making such a cloak. She held it and looked at it for a while and asked him, "Is this cloak difficult to make, right?"

"I wore the purple fox fur that is crowded all over the world. I spent three years to make such a cloak for you." Xiao Zheng said to her with a tense face, "So, you have to wear it a few more times."

Ling Hua nodded and liked it very much, "Okay, don't worry."

Of course, good things cannot be left to the shelves and waste their resources.

She smiled and put it on her body, saying to him, "I have brought you a New Year gift, and I will send it to you tomorrow. Cui Yanshu will be taken to me by me. From now on, he will go to the Second Prince's Mansion to help you, and I will leave."

She left as soon as she said she was walking, her movements were very neat and she went out in a blink of an eye.

Xiao Zheng raised his foot and wanted to see her off. When he walked to the door, he found that she didn't look back and hurriedly left with Liuli. Soon after, he left the yard. He stopped and stood under the eaves, watching her disappear.

There was no wind on New Year's Eve, there were stars, moons, and lights in the courtyard. Although it was already past midnight, the second prince's mansion was bright everywhere. For the good omen of the year, the lamps were endless all night.

It was originally a very warm night, but as Ling Hua left, it seemed to be very cold and quiet all of a sudden.

This year is different from previous years. In previous years, she came back from the palace banquet and came to his mansion. Although she had not been there for a long time and had to accompany him to eat some food and drink a few drinks, he knew in his heart that she had returned to the Ling family to reunite with his brother and nephew, so he didn't feel very uncomfortable. However, this year, he knew that she was going to pick up the banquet and returned to Duanjinghou Mansion and their home, so he felt very uncomfortable.

Nothing made him more clearer than tonight that she had married.
Chapter completed!