Chapter 27: Summon again?
The next morning was bright and beautiful, the hen crowing as the day opened. "Princess," Chen Xui knocked gently on the door. Princess Hua, still half-asleep, yawned and replied, "What is it, Chen Xui? Is it early?" She rose and checked beside her, but her husband was not there. The morning sun streamed into the room, and she moved closer to the door to let her maid in.
"Princess, the palace eunuch is here," Chen Xui said, her voice tinged with urgency. Without taking the time for her bath, Princess Hua hurried to meet the eunuch, who was waiting for her at the front of Wang Hall, accompanied by four palace guards.
"Princess, the emperor wants to see you in the palace," the eunuch announced.
"Palace again?" Princess Hua asked, her heart sinking. "What's wrong this time?"
"I'm sorry, Princess. His Majesty didn't send me to explain," the eunuch replied.
"Okay, I will come over after my bath," Princess Hua said, turning to go back inside.
"Princess, I'm sorry, but His Majesty said we should bring you along with us," the eunuch insisted. With no choice but to comply, she followed them, Chen Xui at her side.
As they approached the palace gates, she dismounted from the cart, her mind swirling with doubts about what awaited her. Each step felt heavy, as if the weight of the world pressed down on her. Upon entering the palace room, she was met with a sea of her families faces: her stepsister, her mother, Consort Han, King Li Chen, and a cute scholar kneeling before the emperor.
"Your Majesty," Princess Hua bowed, but the emperor's expression was stern, and the atmosphere was thick with tension.
"Can you explain this to me?" the emperor pointed at the kneeling scholar.
"Explain what? Wasn't your order to come to the palace? What do you mean by explain?" Princess Hua thought, confusion swirling in her mind.
"Father, I'm sorry, I don't understand," she said, her voice trembling.
"This young man claims to have had an affair with you. He also claims to be the father of your late child," the emperor stated, his face devoid of warmth.
Princess Hua felt her heart drop. She couldn't tell her father she had never been pregnant; it would be seen as deceiving the emperor. "Father, I don't understand. He says he is my lover," she replied, turning to the scholar, pointing at herself in disbelief. "Me?"
"Yes, Hua, let's not deny our relationship. Why do you have to deny that we are in love?" the scholar said boldly, as if lying in front of everyone was a trivial matter.
"I've never seen you before! How could you be the father of my child?" Princess Hua exclaimed, anger and confusion flooding her voice.
"Your Majesty, this is the hairpin she gave me as a token of love," the scholar said, producing a hairpin. The eunuch stepped forward to collect it and present it to the emperor.
"Hua, what do you have to say about this?" the emperor asked, his tone sharp.
"Father, this is mine! I lost it the day you summoned all the newly married princesses to the palace. I don't know how it got to him, and I don't know him!" Princess Hua insisted, desperation creeping into her voice.
"Your Majesty, I can testify to that," Li Chen interjected. "Recently, I saw Princess Hua with this scholar, and she begged me to keep it a secret. That was why she kissed me the day you invited the princess."
Tears rolled down Princess Hua's cheeks as disbelief washed over her. "You mean you saw me?" she asked, her voice breaking. "How much did your wife pay you? Have you forgotten the love we shared before you married Li? You think that just because you're married to her, you can speak ill of me!"
"Your Majesty, I have some maids who saw Princess Hua with this scholar," Princess Li chimed in, a smirk on her face.
A maid entered, wearing a pink dress, and knelt before the emperor. "Your Majesty," she said, her head bowed.
"What did you see?" the emperor asked, his voice commanding.
"Before Princess Hua got married, I saw her many times with this scholar," the maid reported, her words sealing Princess Hua's fate.
Princess Hua felt the walls closing in around her. "Isn't that one of your maids from when you were in the palace?" the emperor asked, his gaze piercing.
"How much did they pay you to lie against Hua?" Consort Ai interjected, sadness lacing her voice as she defended her daughter.
"Consort Ai, do you wish to cover up this huge crime?" Consort Han retorted.
"Crime? Framing my daughter is the biggest crime!" Consort Ai shot back.
"I don't want both Consort Ai and Han here," the emperor commanded, and the two women left, exchanging hostile glances.
Chen Xui quickly knelt on the ground. "Your Majesty, I have been Princess Hua's maid since I was little. Someone is trying to frame her," she pleaded.
"Father, don't believe this maid. She is lying because she is closest to her," Princess Li said, her voice dripping with malice.
"Since you are Princess Hua's personal maid and you support her, I have no choice," the emperor paused, his expression hardening. "Someone take her to the prison until I order her release." The guards seized Chen Xui, dragging her away.
"Xui!" Princess Hua reached out, her hand stretching toward her maid, but the guards pulled Chen Xui further away.
"I'm fine, Princess," Chen Xui called back, her voice steady despite the situation.
"Everyone can go and give this scholar some silver," the emperor commanded, his tone final.
"Father," Princess Li said, jealousy dripping from her words, "surely, we cannot reward someone who has brought such disgrace upon our family. This man and Princess Hua should be punished."
The emperor's gaze hardened as he turned to Princess Li. "You dare question my judgment?"
"I'm sorry, Father," Princess Li replied, her voice faltering as they began to leave.
"Hua, come back," the emperor called, his voice echoing in the tense silence.