Chapter 422: Perhaps, the Queen Mother is not the Queen Mother

What Yu Lingye didn't say was,

In that cannibalistic harem, the queen had been unable to give birth and had no royal heir. If she had been a little softer in character and used a little less lenient means, she would have been devoured to the bone.

The Queen's methods were far more sophisticated than they had imagined.

Xie Yingmian was surprised: "The Queen is from the Chu family?"

Yu Lingye: "Chu Xiao is her third brother."

Xie Yingmian: "No wonder."

"When the Grand Princess was plotted against by Fang Yilin and her life was hanging by a thread, the Empress was extremely anxious. Her anxiety and heartache were genuine. I wondered about the relationship between the Empress and the Grand Princess at that time."

"If the Queen is from the Chu family, then it makes sense."

The eldest princess almost became the third sister-in-law of the Queen, so the Queen was naturally close to the eldest princess.

Yu Lingye remembered a piece of gossip.

He himself has little interest in gossip.

But he thought Xie Yingmian might like to listen to it.

"Before the Empress got married, she had a childhood sweetheart. People once thought they would be married, but later the Empress married the Emperor instead."

"That childhood sweetheart is Mr. Fan Er, Fan Yue's second uncle."

Xie Yingmian was indeed very interested.

She pricked up her ears while eating lychees: "Tell me in detail."

Yu Lingye: "Second Master Fan and the Queen are of the same age and have similar family backgrounds. They grew up together and their bond is like no other."

"Master Fan is a flamboyant and high-spirited person. He has practiced martial arts for many years and has traveled extensively, carrying the spirit of a young man. He is a carefree and cheerful person who doesn't stick to any particular rules."

"The Queen is a lady from a prominent family, calm and composed, bright and generous, talented and beautiful, and well-known in the capital."

"Fan Er has made no secret of his feelings for the Queen. The Chu and Fan families have considered marrying each other before, but the Chu and Fan families are both more powerful than their master. If they marry again, it might arouse the suspicion of the royal family, so their marriage has been put on hold."

"Later, the emperor appeared and took the initiative to ask for the queen's hand in marriage."

"No matter how calm the queen was, she was still a young girl who had just begun to fall in love. Under the emperor's careful guidance, she gradually became attracted to his gentle and suave appearance."

"Compared to the emperor's calm and mature demeanor, Fan Er was too unconventional. Furthermore, the Fan and Chu families were intent on avoiding taboos. Therefore, the empress chose not Fan Er, but married the emperor instead."

"Fan Er was deeply shocked. After the Queen got married, he left home and became a knight-errant. He has not married to this day. Over the years, he only returns when something big happens to the Fan family."

Xie Yingmian ate lychees with gusto and listened to gossip with great interest.

She commented: "The emperor is indeed good at disguise."

"His eyes are very clear and serious, and even when he tells a lie he gives off a very sincere vibe."

If the emperor had been born in an era of great entertainment boom, he might have won an Oscar.

Yu Lingye peeled the last lychee and washed his hands. "The emperor has a deep mind, and his behavior has become increasingly eccentric in recent years."

"The trick you gave the Queen will draw all his attention to you."

Xie Yingmian narrowed her eyes: "I know."

"The more the emperor wants to learn how to use the Immortality Stone, the less likely he will act rashly."

"He has failed many times and for many years. I am his only chance. He won't do anything rashly. He will definitely wait for the right time."

"It also buys us time."

Xie Yingmian finished eating the last lychee, then stood up and looked at the perpetual calendar: "Having said that, we don't have much time left."

She saw the days Yu Lingye had marked as suitable for digging graves, and her forehead twitched. "Do we have to dig graves at this time?"

"Of course." Yu Lingye said, "This is my respect for my mother-in-law whom I have never met."

Xie Yingmian did not force it.

She actually had a premonition.

Perhaps no useful clues can be found in the original owner's mother's grave.

The real clues lie in Xie Jingyun, who is half-dead in the basement of the Lu family, and the wet nurse who faked her own death and left.

Xie Jingyun was under close surveillance by the emperor, so it was not a good time to wake him up.

As for the wet nurse who faked her death, she still doesn't have much clue except for the heart-shaped stone in Qinghuang's hand.

We can only wait for Qinghuang to repair the heart-shaped stone.

"Oh right," Xie Yingmian said, "The Queen Mother's attitude towards the Mu An and Mu Ning sisters is very strange. I want to investigate the Mu family."

During the Spring Festival, Xiao Houzi said before his death that the Queen Mother was the daughter of the Gu tribe.

During the two times she came into contact with the Queen Mother, she really couldn't see any relationship between the Queen Mother and the Gu Clan.

The Queen Mother's body was clean and there was no smell of poisonous insects.

Either the Queen Mother is hiding too deeply, or she is too incompetent.

She prefers the former.

The Queen Mother used some method to hide her true ability, hiding it from herself and everyone else.

The Queen Mother's special status makes investigation very difficult.

The best way is to start with the Mu family.

Yu Lingye said, "The Empress Dowager's maiden family is the Mu family."

"Speaking of the Mu family, I remembered a rumor about them. It happened so long ago, and the Mu family and the royal family have dealt with each other many times, so it's hard to tell whether it's true or not."

Xie Yingmian: "Oh, tell me about it."

Yu Lingye said, "About a month before the Empress Dowager married my father, there was news that she had been kidnapped by bandits."

"It was said that when the Queen Mother was rescued, she was unconscious, disheveled, and acting mad. The people were extremely curious about this kind of news, and it spread from one person to ten, and from ten to a hundred, until it soon became known to everyone."

"This news naturally reached the royal family."

"The wedding is imminent, and the royal family will not allow those who have lost their virginity to marry into the royal family. Therefore, the Empress Dowager ordered the nanny to check."

"The nanny in charge of the examination found nothing wrong. The Queen Mother is still a virgin. The rumors are self-defeating. The wedding will proceed as usual."

"But this rumor continued to spread like wildfire until the Empress Dowager intervened to save the royal family's reputation, and the news gradually died down."

Xie Yingmian pondered for a moment and said, "I think we can start our investigation from this matter."

Yu Lingye: "It's been too long since the incident took place, and the information has been purged multiple times. I'm afraid it will be difficult to find out anything."

Xie Yingmian: "We can investigate in a different direction."

"When there is empty talk and wind, there must be a reason."

"If it's a rumor, the Mu family or the royal family, with their power, they would not be able to find the source of the rumor, nor would they let the news spread like this."

"Unless, this really happens."

Seeing Yu Lingye's disapproving look, she chuckled and said, "Do you think you can tell the difference between Wen Juexia and Wen Zhiqing?"

Yu Lingye: "You mean..."

Xie Yingmian nodded: "In my family's opinion, the twin sisters have very different personalities, so it's not difficult to tell them apart."

"If it were an outsider, especially one who wasn't familiar with them, it would be difficult to tell them apart based on their appearance alone."

"Perhaps, the Queen Mother is not the Queen Mother."

This is a new idea.

A perspective that no one has ever considered.

Yu Lingye felt that this might become a new breakthrough.

"I'll send someone to investigate immediately."

The two were talking.

There was a rapid knocking sound outside the window.