The princess regretted it.

Chapter 25 The Lin Family Knows

Less than a quarter of an hour after Wang Zhengxing's carriage left, another carriage galloped towards the Dali Temple. As the carriage stopped, the curtains were raised, and a man dressed in the court robes of a third-rank minister hastily jumped out. This man was none other than the Minister of Revenue, Lin Song. His face was livid and filled with anger, and his steps were as fast as the wind as he strode towards the Dali Temple. As he walked, he shouted to the guards at the gate, "I want to see Wang Zhengxing. Have him come to see me!"

Seeing the aggressive approach of the newcomer, the guards did not dare to neglect him and quickly responded, "Master Lin, Master Wang has just gone out and is not in the temple at the moment."

Upon hearing this, Lin Song frowned and snorted angrily: "He hides quickly! Tell Wang Zhengxing that when he comes back, let him come to see me immediately. If he doesn't give me a satisfactory explanation for this matter, I will report him to His Majesty and report him for negligence." After that, Lin Song flicked his sleeves, turned around and got on the carriage again, leaving angrily.

It turned out that just as Minister Lin had returned to his residence after court dismissal, he received news of the same rumors as those reported by the Dali Temple. He and his wife were in their daughter Lin Qian's room, heartbroken as they watched her, her face haggard and lifeless, lying in bed. Just then, the person they had sent to gather information returned with a report. Upon hearing this news, Minister Lin and the other two were stunned, as if struck by lightning.

Minister Lin had never expected this to happen. He had originally planned to wait for Yan'er, the personal maid who had accompanied his daughter on the outing, to wake up before questioning her in detail. However, Yan'er had been injured in her head while trying to protect her daughter when she fell out of the carriage. Her injuries were even more serious than Lin Qian's, and she had not yet regained consciousness.

Furthermore, Lin Qian hadn't mentioned the flower viewing banquet since returning from the palace. Furthermore, after the incident, upon regaining consciousness and learning of her injuries, she collapsed, weeping and contemplating suicide. Minister Lin was therefore preoccupied with coaxing and comforting his daughter, and had no time to inquire about Lin Qian's situation.

After Minister Lin came to his senses, he was filled with fear and anger. He tried to calm himself down and asked Lin Qian, "Qian'er, did you offend Princess Jin'an by attending the Imperial Concubine's flower viewing banquet a few days ago?"

Lin Qian hadn't recovered from her shock yet, only crying miserably, murmuring, "Why? Why..." Mrs. Lin came to her senses, and seeing her daughter's appearance, she felt a mixture of hatred and pain. She hurried forward, tightly grasped Lin Qian's hand, and cried softly, "Qian'er, Qian'er, my poor child!"

Minister Lin, seeing this, was heartbroken, but even more worried that his daughter had done something inappropriate that would bring disaster to the entire mansion. He could only suppress his emotions and ask again, "Qian'er, now is not the time to be sad. Tell me quickly, what did you say and do at the banquet? What exactly happened at the flower viewing banquet?"

Lin Qian stared blankly at her father, stammering as she opened her mouth. Minister Lin growled anxiously, "Qian--er, if you don't explain clearly, I'm afraid something bad will happen to our whole family."

Seeing this, Madam Lin raised her head and yelled at Minister Lin, "Why are you yelling at Qian'er? She's already like this, if you don't feel bad for her, then I do!"

Minister Lin was so angry at his wife's shouting that his breath was choked in his chest. His face flushed red. He pointed at Madam Lin and said, "You, why are you so loud? Don't you know how favored Princess Jin'an is? If this really angers her and His Majesty finds out, our whole family will suffer. Do you understand?!"

Mrs. Lin turned her head away angrily and silently wiped the tears from her daughter's face with the handkerchief in her hand.

Lin Qian seemed to react at this moment. She looked at Minister Lin steadily and burst into tears: "Dad, Dad, your daughter doesn't understand either! I didn't offend Princess Jin'an. I just...just..."

Minister Lin was heartbroken as he watched his daughter sob, but he was also afraid. He could only swallow his grief and continue to ask, "Just what? Okay, stop crying. Tell me what happened first. That way, I'll know what to do next."

Lin Qian tried to calm herself down, sobbing as she told Minister Lin everything that had happened at the flower viewing banquet. Minister Lin was filled with anger, anxiety, and helplessness. It was truly a fight between the gods, and the mortals suffered! This was clearly a war between the Imperial Concubine and Princess Jin'an, yet it had spread to his own daughter, who was so innocent.

Minister Lin looked at his daughter and his wife and said nothing in front of them. He just asked his wife to spend more time with his daughter and told them not to think too much and to listen to the doctor's advice and take good care of their injuries. He would take care of the matter himself. Then, he turned and went to the study.

Back in his study, Minister Lin hadn't had time to gather his thoughts when the butler arrived to announce that Zhang Hengrui, the Left Commander of the Imperial Guard, had arrived with a visiting card and was standing at the gate. Minister Lin was puzzled by Zhang Hengrui's sudden arrival, but he didn't have time to dwell on it. He simply ordered the butler to quickly usher him into the main hall, straightened his clothes, and hurried forward.