Chapter 198: The Queen's Back-up Plan

As soon as Yu Shengsheng had this thought, she subconsciously looked at Fu Qingyin.

Fu Qingyin's expression remained unchanged and he was not alarmed.

He cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, from what the Queen said..."

He paused and looked at the prince: "The fetus in Xing'er's belly belongs to your highness the prince?"

The prince was startled, his brows frowned and then relaxed quickly.

Yu Shengsheng caught his subconscious reaction - from the prince's expression, it seemed that he didn't know that Xing'er was pregnant at all?

On second thought, that was true. Given the prince's character, he would never take Xing'er seriously just because he favored her. Maybe, after that night, he forgot about Xing'er and never thought of her again.

Therefore, Xing'er did not dare to tell anyone that she was pregnant with the prince's child and could not keep the child.

This does make sense, but Yu Shengsheng always feels that something is missing.

When the emperor heard that Xing'er was pregnant, he frowned and looked at the prince: "You did a good thing!"

The prince bowed his head and said, "I know I was wrong."

That's an admission.

A palace maid, she was dead, so what even if she was pregnant? Her mother, who was of lowly status, was destined to have no good ending, so it would be cleaner for her to die.

Her death can explain why the prince went to Concubine Yu's palace, so it can be considered of some use.

The Queen kowtowed: "Your Majesty, Imperial Concubine Shu framed the Crown Prince, and the Crown Prince was wronged. Now the truth is revealed, please..."

Imperial Concubine Shu chuckled and parted her red lips: "The truth is revealed?"

"Your Majesty, if you really do what the Empress said and sentence me, it will snow in June!"

The Queen straightened up, and the dignity of a mother of the Central Palace suddenly appeared: "You treated the palace maids harshly, and forced Xing'er to have an abortion. Not only that, you also forced her to death. The suicide note is proof. What injustice have you suffered?"

"You already knew that Concubine Yu was pregnant. I'm afraid you never wanted to let her go from the beginning. You used coercion and bribery to make her work for you, right?"

Concubine Shu frowned: "What do you mean? What evidence do you have?"

Yu Shengsheng stood closest to the door, and from her angle, she could see the figure outside the door.

From the corner of my eye, I saw someone being brought in, a woman.

She thought to herself: Could it be that the Queen has some other tricks up her sleeve? One Xing'er is not enough to bring down the Imperial Concubine. With such a rare opportunity, the Queen will definitely not stop here.

Sure enough, the queen said, "Your Majesty, I have a witness. Please allow the witness to come forward to testify."

The emperor could not hide the anger on his face, and he waved his hands silently, using some force.

The eunuch outside the door brought someone in. Yu Shengsheng quickly looked at this person and found that it was an old woman, more than fifty years old, wearing a silk dress, with dirt on her shoes and skirt. It was obvious that she was in a hurry.

She looked at Fu Qingyin. Fu Qingyin was unmoved, and her heart inexplicably calmed down.

This drama is rarely seen.

The old woman stepped forward and knelt down: "I, a humble woman... pay my respects to His Majesty. Long live the Emperor."

She spoke in a trembling voice with a slight accent, and her greetings were not standard.

"Who are you?"

"Your Majesty, I am a neighbor of Concubine Yu from the same hometown. She is very beautiful and has always said that she wants to marry a rich and powerful man. I have also been a matchmaker and have tried to find a partner for her, but she rejected it every time."

"Later, she got engaged to a wealthy businessman who had married two wives, but she didn't mind. She just wanted the wealth."

"She was about to get married, and I heard..." The old woman paused, "I heard that she had a great opportunity, but suddenly disappeared. The rich businessman even went to make a fuss, but then there was no news for some reason."

Yu Shengsheng was horrified. Did this old woman come to the palace to expose Concubine Yu's shortcomings? The person was dead, and she still wanted to do this! The queen had such a vicious mind.

The emperor's face turned pale and blue. He knew very well how Concubine Yu entered the palace. It was that time when he had nothing to do outside the palace and met her by chance. On a whim, he summoned her into the palace.

At that time, the palace servants checked and found that she was indeed a virgin. So they didn't think anything else about it. After all, she was a commoner and had no family background, so they just kept her and didn't investigate her past.

Who would have thought that even though he was dead, he could still be slapped in the face! Bitch!

The Queen took over and said, "Your Majesty, the past events, Concubine Yu has passed away, and it should not be mentioned. However, because of this, she became pregnant, and Concubine Shu found out. Concubine Shu used this matter to threaten her, making her uneasy day and night."

"Since entering the palace, Concubine Shu has not been able to get pregnant. When she saw Concubine Yu was pregnant, she wanted to use her. Concubine Yu never agreed, which led to her death. The crime of murder was put on the prince."

The prince took over the conversation at the right time, knelt down and took two steps forward: "Father, I am innocent!"

The emperor's face was as gloomy as water. He grabbed the teacup and threw it in front of Concubine Shu: "You say!"

The teacup shattered, and the tea in the cup wet her dress. The splashing porcelain pieces cut the back of her hand, and blood rolled out.

Yu Shengsheng's heart almost stopped beating as she looked at Concubine Shu quietly.

Concubine Shu looked calm, as if she didn't feel any pain, and tilted her head to look at the Queen.

"Your Majesty, you really put a lot of thought into this."

Imperial Concubine Shu still held the suicide note in her hand: "Princess Ruiyang."

Yu Shengsheng was suddenly called and was stunned for a moment. Fu Qingyin turned his head and nodded slightly.

Yu Shengsheng stepped out of the line and saluted: "Your Majesty, Your Majesty the Imperial Concubine."

Imperial Concubine Shu handed the suicide note to her and said, "Although I know calligraphy and painting, I am afraid that the Queen will be unhappy. Why don't you take a look at this suicide note for me? Is there anything wrong with it?"

There was a flash of sarcasm in the queen's eyes. What could this reveal? The suicide note itself was real.

Yu Shengsheng took it with both hands and examined it carefully.

After a while, she said in a deep voice: "Your Majesty, Royal Concubine, this suicide note is authentic."

The queen's lips curled slightly, then quickly disappeared.

Concubine Shu stared at Yu Shengsheng with a sharp look.

Yu Shengsheng lowered her eyes and continued slowly, "However, as far as I know, all the items used in the palace are subject to restrictions such as grade and quantity, and the same applies to paper."

"Your Highness, I want to ask you, is this kind of paper used in your palace?" Yu Shengsheng handed the paper back with both hands. "This paper is flexible, delicate, and has a light fragrance and dark patterns. It is of the best quality."

"If I am not mistaken, this is Luoyun paper produced in Jiangnan, and each piece is worth a thousand gold coins."

Before Yu Shengsheng finished speaking, the Queen's expression changed slightly.

Fu Qingyin said nonchalantly: "Your Majesty, this year's Luoyun Paper was taken over by the Red Dragon Guards and brought to the capital. As far as I remember, there didn't seem to be much in total."

The emperor narrowed his eyes slightly, and glanced at the queen and the prince: "Queen, I remember that the day when the Luoyun Paper was delivered was your birthday. I kept some for myself, and the rest are given to you and the prince."

"There is not even a single one in Concubine Shu's palace."

"What are you going to say about this?"

The queen clasped her hands together and said in a low voice: "Your Majesty, I have also..."

Before he finished speaking, Yu Shengsheng said, "Your Majesty, the ink used in the suicide note is also of extraordinary quality. The ink has a light and elegant fragrance. It is mixed with mother of pearl powder. Mother of pearl powder is cold, and pregnant women should not touch it."

"Madam Yu is pregnant, so she shouldn't use this ink. I also followed the commander to search Madam Yu's residence, but we didn't find any ink or Luoyun paper."

Yu Shengsheng's every word was powerful.

The same tone as when the Queen ordered her to be punished.