Chapter 757 Provoked

"You think I did everything?"

"You think I'm the real mastermind behind this??"

"Do you even have a brain??"

"You believe everything others say?"

"Am I, Qiao Qinghe, the kind of person who dares to do something but doesn't dare to take responsibility?"

"After knowing me for so many years, don't you know what kind of person I am?"

"Don't you have even the slightest bit of trust in me?"

Qiao Qinghe was truly furious.

I never expected those people to be so vicious, turning black into white and blaming me for the whole thing.

What surprised her even more was that Zheng Yao didn't believe her!

The more I think about it, the angrier I get!

Madam Zheng was stunned by Qiao Qinghe's slap and before she could react, she was met with a furious and angry outburst from Qiao Qinghe. She was completely bewildered.

After a long while, she finally regained her senses and stammered, "You really didn't do it?"

"Can I trust you?"

Qiao Qinghe pointed at Madam Zheng, her fingers trembling. After a long while, she managed to calm herself down a little and asked through gritted teeth, "Tell me, what exactly happened?"

"Weren't you perfectly fine when you left my house that day?"

"Why did you get sick after you came back? And why have you been sick until now?"

"If I hadn't noticed the unusual situation in your household, would you have just stayed silent and remained angry with me for the rest of your life after coming to see you today?"

Madam Zheng looked somewhat embarrassed, but still asked again to confirm, "Is the Empress Dowager's matter really none of your business?"

Qiao Qinghe really wanted to pounce on her and bite her twice. But she held back in the end.

She patiently and solemnly pointed to the sky and swore, "I swear, the Empress Dowager's affairs have nothing to do with me. I knew nothing about it before it happened. It was only after some time that I noticed something was wrong and slowly found out the truth."

Zheng Yao nodded. "If you say it has nothing to do with you, I'll believe you."

Seeing that Qiao Qinghe was about to lose her temper, she quickly said, "You can't blame me for doubting you!"

"That person spoke so convincingly, it seemed so true, I couldn't help but doubt you!"

Madam Zheng herself felt somewhat wronged.

"Then tell me, what did those people say to you?" Qiao Qinghe asked irritably.

Madam Zheng glanced at Qiao Qinghe before whispering, "The day I left your house, before I even reached the East City, my carriage was stopped and I was taken to a private room in a nearby teahouse."

"The person who approached me was a strange young scholar. His face was completely unfamiliar; I had never seen him before."

"Once we entered the private room, the scholar didn't exchange pleasantries with me. He went straight to the point and talked about you and the death of the Empress Dowager."

"The scholar asked me if I knew what kind of person you were, and said that you were an old lady of unparalleled wisdom and courage."

"In short, that scholar praised you to the skies."

Qiao Qinghe frowned slightly and glared at Madam Zheng. "Get to the point."

“These are all important points!” Madam Zheng retorted without backing down.

"Later, the scholar said, 'If you hadn't instigated him, how could Li Sanqi have attacked the Empress Dowager?'"

"If it weren't for your instructions, why would Mu Jin have obeyed Li Sanqi's orders to drug the Empress Dowager?"

"That scholar said that you were able to shake off the Min family and the Xuanping Marquis's mansion, survive, and even retain your title as a second-rank lady. This clearly shows that you are a shrewd and resourceful person."

"Moreover, you now have the powerful forces of the Marquis of Enping's Mansion, the Duke of Jin's Mansion, and the Marquis of Yongning's Mansion gathered around you, so you'll only want more!"

He also said that you supported Li Sanqi because Li Sanqi was simple-minded and easy to control, and because Li Sanqi was a woman, even if she succeeded in ascending the throne in the future, she would have to obey you in everything if she wanted to secure the throne.

"To put it simply, you didn't choose Li Sanqi; you chose an easily controlled puppet to take power!"

As Madam Zheng spoke, she became more and more excited, and her words sounded more and more convincing.

When they realized what had happened, they found that Qiao Qinghe's face had turned as black as the bottom of a pot.

She felt a little guilty, but still pretended to be tough and said, "Tell me yourself, is what they said reasonable or not?"

“Li Sanqi has been close to the Empress Dowager since childhood. Isn’t it more convincing to say that you instigated her to murder the Empress Dowager than that she herself would murder the Empress Dowager for some inexplicable trivial matter?”

"And Mu Jin, do I even need to explain your relationship with her?"

"What's more, Mu Jin died in your mansion."

"Isn't this murder to silence a witness?"

"besides……"

Seeing that Madam Zheng was about to launch into another tirade, Qiao Qinghe finally lost her temper and yelled, "What else? What else?!"

"How many times do I have to say it? The Empress Dowager's death has nothing to do with me!"

Seeing that Qiao Qinghe was truly angry, Madam Zheng awkwardly shut her mouth, then glared at her, looking like she was waiting for her to explain.

Qiao Qinghe was so angry she laughed. "You, you really are...you're going to drive me crazy!"

Qiao Qinghe took a deep breath and then slowly exhaled.

She gathered her thoughts before saying, "First of all, I did not kill the Empress Dowager."

"Secondly, Li Sanqi was indeed used by someone. But that person wasn't me."

"Third, Mu Jin was indeed instructed by someone to help Li Sanqi. However, I was not the one who instructed Mu Jin."

After hesitating for a moment, Qiao Qinghe still briefly told Madam Zheng about Min Ji's matter.

"Therefore, I suspect that Min Ji is now impersonating Zhong Hao."

"The person who instigated Li Sanqi to do all sorts of wrong things, the one who pushed her down a path of no return, is very likely him!"

Madam Zheng stared at Qiao Qinghe, speechless. After a long while, she swallowed hard and said in a hoarse voice, "So you mean you suspect that your husband, the old Marquis Min Ji of the Xuanping Marquis's Mansion, who has been dead for almost twenty years, is still alive?"

"And you suspect that he is the one who orchestrated all of this?"

Qiao Qinghe nodded, "That's right."

After thinking for a moment, Qiao Qinghe made another startling statement: "Not only that, the Imperial Son-in-Law Fu Wenqing is actually Lu Ming in disguise!"

"He and Min Ji are in cahoots."

"He also acted as a bridge between Li Sanqi and Min Ji."

"Min Ji was the mastermind behind everything, while Lu Ming, disguised as Fu Wenqing, stayed by Li Sanqi's side, subtly guiding, encouraging, and changing her!"

Madam Zheng gasped, "This, this, this..."

She struggled for a long time without managing to utter a single complete sentence.

All of this was too shocking, too shocking, too unbelievable to her!

After a long while, Madam Zheng slowly regained her voice and said with difficulty, "So, that scholar must be one of their people too?"

Qiao Qinghe nodded: "If nothing unexpected happens, it should be."

"Then, what did they want to do by coming to me and saying those things?" Madam Zheng's voice was somewhat hesitant.

Qiao Qinghe rolled her eyes at her, "Isn't it obvious? It's obviously meant to sow discord between us and make you distance yourself from me."

As soon as she finished speaking, Qiao Qinghe suddenly froze.

Is it really that simple?