The Lucky Farmgirl
Chapter 1056 - 1035: Give Up

Chapter 1056: Chapter 1035: Give Up

The Crown Prince was silent for a moment before asking, "Do you still remember how you fell from your horse?"

"Of course, I remember, that boy ambushed me from behind!" Although he couldn’t remember the chaos that followed, the memory of being struck by Du Yu with a polo mallet was still there.

The Crown Prince coughed lightly and said, "Your horse was injured, it had a gash on its belly, and that’s why it went mad."

Su Jian was taken aback, and his memory started to come back a bit, "That explains it, I was about to get back on the horse when it suddenly kicked up. Who plotted against my horse?"

The Crown Prince glanced at his already fractured foot and said, "Your foot, there was a nail embedded under your boot."

Su Jian’s face turned pale after a slight shock, "Was I set up? By whom? Your Third?"

Old Madam Su couldn’t help but cough heavily, and Su Jian immediately stopped talking, only then noticing that the room seemed a bit crowded.

The Crown Prince also reached out and patted his hand, saying, "Just focus on your recovery, leave these matters to us. The emperor has already ordered Minister Feng to investigate."

Su Jian murmured, "To think that Minister Feng has been alerted, could it be..."

Could it be that their clashes with the Third Prince would be exposed too?

He kept making eye contact with the Crown Prince.

The Crown Prince, however, didn’t seem too concerned and waved his hand, "Just focus on healing. Next month is the Empress Dowager’s thousandth autumn celebration, you should visit the palace, right?"

Old Madam Su nodded repeatedly, "Yes, yes, this injury is not light, you need to recover well."

Su Jian agreed, and said to the Crown Prince, "Your Highness, please tell my little sister that I’m fine, so she won’t worry."

The Crown Prince nodded his assent, then stood up to leave, giving him time to rest.

Then Old Madam Su also stood up, leading people out, while Third Madam hesitated for a moment and did not leave.

Manbao and Imperial Doctor Zheng then rolled up their sleeves and prepared to give him a thorough examination.

Manbao said to Xiaosi, "Bring two basins of warm water, and one basin of boiling water."

Xiaosi complied, quickly arranging for the water to be brought in before bowing and exiting.

Manbao then washed her hands and began to undress him.

Su Jian widened his eyes, staring at Manbao’s face, and couldn’t recall who she was; mainly because she didn’t look like a maid at all.

Feeling uncomfortable yet unable to move, he asked, "Who are you?"

Third Madam hurriedly explained, "Husband, she is a doctor, here to treat you."

"Isn’t there already an imperial doctor? Why does a girl need to treat me?"

Although he was a grown man, having a female doctor examine him was quite awkward.

Manbao had already unfastened his clothes and was inspecting the bandage on his belly, "There’s still some bleeding, we need to clean it and apply new medicine," she told Imperial Doctor Zheng after a careful examination.

Imperial Doctor Zheng examined the wound as well and agreed.

After deciding on the medicine to apply, Manbao then soaked some cloth strips and gently wiped his wound, replying, "Don’t be shy, I’ve already seen everything inside your stomach yesterday, everything that should and shouldn’t be seen."

Su Jian’s face turned pale.

Third Madam quickly took his hand to comfort him.

As Manbao took care of Su Jian inside the house, Bai Shan outside was privy to a whole bunch of gossip.

Unable to hide his presence at all, he sat honestly writing something on a stone bench; the newly arrived State Duke Pi and Old Madam Su, just out from the room, discussed matters right near him as if they couldn’t see him at all.

For example, how should the matter with Du Yu’s family be handled?

Whose scheme is this after all, is it the Third Prince’s or someone else’s they don’t know?

What are the emperor’s feelings towards this matter, and most importantly, what exactly have the crown prince and his people done to the Third Prince in the past few days? If Minister Feng investigates, will those matters be revealed?

What to do after they are uncovered?

What should be done?

The crown prince isn’t worried at all; he sneered and said, "I had people impeach him, and I had his people taken down. What can he do? Let State Duke investigate those who harmed Sanlang all he wants; there’s no need to worry about this matter."

Seeing the prince so adamant, State Duke Pi couldn’t help but speak earnestly, "Your Highness, both His Majesty and Her Highness have high hopes for you. The Third Prince is your own brother, even if you are dissatisfied, don’t show it outwardly."

The crown prince was furious, "I treat him as my brother, but has he ever treated me as his? I finally had a child, and then..."

"He wants to be the crown prince? Why doesn’t he just say so, come and fight me for it? Killing my offspring, how dare he kill my offspring..."

Bai Shan saw the crown prince’s face flushed red, his eyes almost bulging out, pacing irritably on the spot. State Duke Pi hurriedly tried to soothe him, but the crown prince, waving his sleeve to brush him off, angrily said, "There’s no room to turn around on this matter. I don’t care who else is behind this, but the child was definitely targeted by him without a shadow of a doubt!"

The crown prince’s voice choked up; his eyes reddened as he gritted his teeth, "My own brother, my own brother... This might be my only offspring..."

Had it been someone else who harmed the child, he might not have hated them so much!

State Duke Pi and Old Madam Su both fell silent.

Although the child was not growing in their daughter’s womb, they had been looking forward to it for a long time. As long as it was born, the crown princess would be able to hold and raise it near her, be it a son or a daughter—it would still be a child.

But despite their extreme caution, someone still found a loophole.

Both elders sighed.

The crown prince left with a flick of his sleeve.

State Duke and Old Madam surveyed each other for a long time and finally sighed deeply. Just as they were about to leave together, they turned and noticed Bai Shanzheng sitting on a stone stool, innocently looking at them with a pen in hand.

State Duke Pi and his wife: ...Is it still possible to clear the scene now?

It was obviously too late, but after thinking it over, what they had discussed was confidential yet not confidential.

Since Minister Feng would most likely discover everything in the end, hiding it seemed pointless.

Thus, they nodded to Bai Shan and left supporting each other.

Bai Shan pondered for a moment and then shaking his head, he said to Manbao who had just finished treating the injured, "I think the crown prince’s path is no longer viable."

Manbao asked, "Why?"

Bai Shan didn’t answer until they got back home, "The crown prince has already given up the position of heir apparent from the bottom of his heart; he deserted it first, naturally, he cannot win."

"Does that mean the Third Prince will win?" Manbao asked. "Is it still possible to defect to his side, and establish a connection with the Third Prince now?"

After thinking it over, Bai Shan said, "If the child of the crown prince’s concubine was indeed harmed by the Third Prince, I don’t think the emperor will favor the Third Prince either. We are to seek justice, not to participate in the succession battle."

Manbao thought it over and then asked, "Then what should we do?"

Bai Shan said, "I think it’s much easier for you to build a reputation than for me right now. Here, give me ten silver taels."

Manbao covered his pocket and asked, "Why?"

Bai Shan: "...They are for your reputation-building capital. Don’t worry, once you become a famous doctor in the capital, you will earn the money back quickly. Think about how many gifts the Su Family sent you last night."