Dugu Jingyao is reborn as Li Chu's beloved

Chapter 248 Entering the Palace and Farewell 2

The Crown Prince and Li Chu, one in front and one behind, walked slowly and leisurely into the hall. Their tall and straight figures and extraordinary demeanor captured the attention of everyone present. Everyone stood up and bowed respectfully, saying, "Greetings to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and His Royal Highness the Prince of Guangping (my brother)!" Their voices echoed in unison and loudly, resonating throughout the hall.

The prince walked steadily inside with a smile on his face, raising his hand and gently waving, indicating that everyone should not be polite. His movements were graceful and natural, showing the royal demeanor.

When everyone saw the Crown Prince's gesture, they waited quietly for the Crown Prince and the Crown Princess to take their seats before they said in unison again, "Thank you, Your Highness the Crown Prince and Your Highness the Crown Princess!" Then, everyone carefully thanked him, stood up, and sat down again.

Li Chu first bowed to the Crown Princess and said respectfully, "Your son greets you, mother." After the Crown Princess nodded slightly in response, Li Chu finally sat down completely.

Speaking of this cumbersome ritual, Liu Jingyue had found it quite acceptable when she first arrived. After all, by then, Dugu Jingyue and her sister, Dugu Jingyao, had already gotten along quite well, and their exchanges of greetings were not frequent. Furthermore, back in Yunnan, she was considered a person of high status, and it was always others who greeted her.

However, everything changed after arriving in Chang'an. The etiquette and regulations here were numerous and strict, and at first she felt a little uncomfortable. She couldn't help but feel uneasy every time she performed a ritual. But as the days passed in Chang'an, she gradually became accustomed to this lifestyle...

At this moment, a soft and pleasant voice suddenly rang out, bringing Liu Jingyue back to reality from her deep thoughts. The voice belonged to none other than the Crown Princess, who sat above. The Crown Princess turned slightly to look at Li Chu and asked softly, "Chu'er, do you know that Jingyao and Jingyue are going back to Yunnan?"

Li Chu nodded slightly and said calmly: "I know about this matter, but I only found out about it yesterday." His voice was neither high nor low, but it carried a calm temperament.

Upon hearing this news, the Crown Prince showed a hint of surprise. He then turned his gaze towards Dugu Jingyao and Liu Jingyue and asked, "Oh? I see. So, are you planning to return? When do you plan to leave?"

Dugu Jingyao replied calmly: "Your Highness, we plan to return to Yunnan in two days." Her tone was firm but polite.

The Crown Princess, hearing this, smiled and interrupted, "I was just muttering about your lack of return. I was thinking of conveying this to His Highness or Chu'er so they could arrange for some capable people to escort you back to Yunnan."

After hearing this, the Crown Prince also responded loudly, "What the Crown Princess said is absolutely right. You two young ladies will have a long journey ahead of you, and there will inevitably be many unsafe places. I will personally send some highly skilled and reliable men to escort you safely all the way to Yunnan."

Dugu Jingyao and Liu Jingyue looked at each other, then stood up together, gave a standard salute to the Crown Prince, and said in unison: "Thank you, Your Highness, for your concern and care!"

The prince smiled and gently waved his hand at them, motioning them to sit down. He then said gently, "You are very polite. Please take a seat! There is no need to be so formal."

After the two of them sat down again as instructed, Li Chu, who had been relaxed at first, suddenly became extremely serious. He straightened his body and said solemnly to the Crown Princess, "Mother, I have something to ask and I hope to receive your guidance and instruction."

Seeing her son's serious expression, the Crown Princess felt a sense of foreboding. She stared at Li Chu and asked cautiously, "I wonder what's the reason for your seriousness?"

Li Chu took a deep breath and slowly began to recount what had happened yesterday. "Yesterday, Jingyao came to visit me at my residence. However, I had not yet returned from court, so Jingyao waited patiently in the main hall. Who would have thought that Qiuyu, who was usually taciturn and quiet, would suddenly run to the front hall and, right in front of Jingyao, make a series of demands, demanding that Jingyao raise her rank after she married into the palace. Jingyao naturally refused to agree to such an unreasonable request, and Qiuyu ended up crying and making a scene in the main hall, attracting many servants to gather and watch."

Hearing this, the Crown Princess couldn't help but frown, a hint of dissatisfaction flashing across her beautiful face. She whispered, "How could such a thing happen? The reason I gave Qiuyu to you was because I thought she was steady and reliable. But I never expected that she was actually such an ambitious person!"

Liu Jingyue's eyes widened in disbelief as she listened to the others recounting her sister's experiences yesterday at Prince Guangping's mansion. An uncontrollable anger welled up in her heart. Subconsciously, she reached out and gently tugged at Dugu Jingyao's sleeve, lowering her voice anxiously and asking, "Sister, why didn't you tell me about this bullying?"

Dugu Jingyao lowered her eyes slightly and responded softly, "What good will it do to tell you? It will only make you more worried. It's better not to tell you, so as not to add to your troubles. Besides, don't we still have His Highness here now?"

Liu Jingyue was stunned at first, then suddenly realized. That's right, the Dugu Jingyao here is different from the one in the TV series. With Li Chu by her side and the protection of the Crown Prince and Crown Princess, she really doesn't need to rely on a young child like herself to help her in her past life.

Yet, despite this, Liu Jingyue couldn't calm down deep down. She felt she needed to do something to ease the resentment within her. Thinking of this, she suddenly stood up, bowed respectfully to the Crown Prince and Crown Princess, and then solemnly said, "I beg you, Crown Prince and Crown Princess, to seek justice for my sister!" Without hesitation, she knelt and kowtowed deeply.

The Crown Princess hurriedly asked Aunt Xu to come forward and help Liu Jingyue up. The Crown Princess said, "Don't worry, Jingyue, I will give your sister an explanation." Liu Jingyue knew that this was enough when she heard it, so she let Aunt Xu help her up and then sat back in her seat.

Then the Crown Princess thought for a moment and asked, "Chu'er, is there anyone who instigated her to do this?" After all, Qiuyu was a calm person in the palace before. She had been doing her job for more than a year in Prince Guangping's Mansion. It was unlikely that she would suddenly do such a thing.

Li Chu's lips curled up slightly as he said, "My mother is wise. After investigation, it was confirmed that someone instigated her. Their purpose was to make Jingyao disappointed in me and destroy my relationship with Jingyao."

The prince asked, "Can you find out who is behind this?"

Li Chu shook his head and said, "No, that person was very cautious and no one saw his true face. Even Qiuyu was abducted. That person spoke to her through a screen, so Qiuyu never saw him. That person threatened her family, so she did this."

The Crown Prince's face was filled with anger. "How dare you! How dare you reach into the inner courtyard of Prince Guangping's Palace! How despicable!"

Although the Crown Princess was also angry, she still had to find this person as the crux of the matter, so she asked Dugu Jingyao: "Jingyao, do you have any enemies?"

Dugu Jingyao pondered for a moment and had a rough idea of who she was, so she said, "Your Majesty, I can't say they have any enemies, but I have certainly offended someone. But it's probably because the Emperor granted me a marriage."

The prince softened his tone and asked, "Tell me about it?"

Dugu Jingyao said methodically, "One is Cui Caiping, and the other is the daughter of the Dali Temple's Junior Official. However, the Junior Official's daughter is a concubine, and she's been imprisoned under family rules, so it's unlikely to be her. Cui Caiping is the most likely culprit, and she's been released from house arrest, but we have no evidence to prove she did it."

An idea suddenly occurred to Li Chu, so he said, "Then lure the snake out of its hole."