Chapter 268 Falling into Yao Qingling's Trap!

"Qing, Qingling, are you making me bear all the blame?" Concubine Zhao clutched her handkerchief, sobbing. "I was never a wealthy person, I was just a lowly life. If it can bring peace to the entire Marquis's mansion, it would be worth it even if I had to give my life."

"But even if I were to admit it, someone would have to believe me."

Marquis Zhongyong finally broke free from the pile of clothes. He hastily straightened his clothes, stood beside Concubine Zhao, and said to Yao Qingling, "What nonsense are you spouting? Hasn't it already been proven that the Golden Feather Silk is Cicada Cloud Silk? What does it have to do with Concubine Zhao?"

Yao Qingling curled her lips into a cold smile.

That's the problem.

She had already replaced the gold feather silk with cicada cloud silk, and those children's clothes made from it had long since turned to ashes.

Concubine Zhao tugged at Marquis Zhongyong's sleeve and hid behind him, as if she had placed all her hopes on this man.

Yao Qingling looked at him coldly: "Does the Marquis not know? Or is he pretending not to know?"

The two questions left Marquis Zhongyong completely bewildered.

He glanced down at Concubine Zhao, his brows furrowed in confusion: "What nonsense are you talking about? You instructed the embroidery workshop to sew clothes for the child a long time ago. If there really was gold-feathered silk, it was before you gave birth. At that time, Madam Ma was in charge of the Marquis's mansion. How could Concubine Zhao have come into contact with such a thing?"

"Even if it was a frame-up, it should have been Ma. But she's already dead."

Yao Qingling looked at the stupid man and thought it was no wonder he was poisoned and didn't even know how he died.

Qing Ling sneered: "Oh, so that's why the Lady Hou had to die."

The Marquis of Zhongyong and Concubine Zhao's expressions changed. Concubine Zhao immediately seized the opportunity and sobbed, "Qingling, since you've figured out that it was the Marquis's wife who wanted to harm you, you shouldn't be accusing me anymore."

"It was Lady Hou who wanted your Hui Ba Fang; it was her wicked scheme to harm you. But she never expected that before she could succeed, she would be defeated by you first."

"I thought the matter was over, but a major corruption case broke out in the palace. The Marquis learned of what the Lady had done and, fearing that the incident would implicate the Marquis's mansion, that's why... that's why..."

She suddenly realized what she had said, but it was too late to regret it.

She fell into Yao Qingling's trap!

Marquis Zhongyong had no idea that Jin Yuchou was related to Ma Shi, let alone to her.

But at this moment she said that the Marquis of Zhongyong knew what Ma had done, and that the Marquis had killed Ma to silence her.

Once words are spoken, they are like water spilled; Zhao's concubine could neither take them back nor smooth things over.

She stood there awkwardly, unable to cry, and dared not look at the Marquis of Zhongyong.

Marquis Zhongyong was confused and looked at Aunt Zhao in disbelief: "What?"

Shouldn't Ma's death be attributed to silencing him for embezzling so much silver by using rare and exotic animals as a means?

How did it turn into...golden feather silk?

Yao Qingling looked at the two faces of the Marquis of Zhongyong and Concubine Zhao, which were quite different.

Clearly, Aunt Zhao and Marquis Zhongyong are not of one mind, but Aunt Zhao knows how to use methods to make Marquis Zhongyong believe that they are of one mind.

Yao Qingling then administered another strong dose of medicine.

"My lord, you wouldn't happen to be taking some kind of longevity elixir made by a high monk, would you?"

Zhao's eyes trembled, widened as if someone had grabbed her by the neck, and her face quickly turned purple.

Yao Qingling looked at her expression with satisfaction, read out the names of several medicinal herbs, and then said, "These herbs can quickly improve a person's physical strength in a short period of time, but they will overdraw the body. It's like drawing water from a dry well to another, even more depleted well. In the end, both wells will run dry."

Marquis Zhongyong was terrified, as it concerned his own life.

He thought about his symptoms carefully. Wasn't it just like what Yao Qingling said, like water being pumped from one dry well to another?

He shook off Zhao Qie's hand that was clutching her clothes and walked up to Yao Qingling: "You know?" He paused, "Was it that mute female doctor who told you?"

When Madam Ma was still the lady of the house, she had that female physician treat everyone in the household.

Did she find out then?

But you didn't tell him?

Marquis Zhongyong was furious and wanted to vent his anger by hitting someone, but he didn't know who to hit.

He stared at Zhao Qie as if he had been hit hard on the head with a club.

This was his most trusted and beloved concubine. He promoted her to the rank of concubine and even wanted to make her his official wife!

She actually wants him dead?

Qing Ling nodded expressionlessly: "Yes."

"If she knew all along, why didn't she tell me sooner?!" Marquis Zhongyong tried to find fault with Yao Qingling, but she was only struggling for herself.

But he no longer dared to trust Concubine Zhao.

Yao Qingling said calmly, "The ingredients in that pill are complex, and it will take my female healer time to distinguish the medicinal components."

With a few words, she deflected the Marquis's question, then pressed further: "So, Your Excellency still wants to protect Consort Zhao? Do you think she's on your side?"

Marquis Zhongyong's eyes turned red as he glared at Concubine Zhao, whose face had turned pale with fright.

Zhao's concubine had schemed for so long, but it all came to naught. Now, all she wanted was to live.

She knelt down with a thud, crying with snot and tears streaming down her face, her crying much more real than her previous fake crying.

"My lord, my lord, don't listen to her nonsense! It's not true! I'm only doing this for your own good!"

Her response was the word "poisonous woman" that the Marquis of Loyalty and Bravery squeezed out of his throat in anger, along with a hard kick to her chest.

Zhao's concubine was kicked to the ground and couldn't get up for a long time.

Marquis Zhongyong wanted to vent his anger and kick and beat the man again. But he was too weak and could only sit down slumped down.

He instinctively reached for the pill, but remembering that it was poisonous, he dared not eat it and withdrew his outstretched hand.

Concubine Zhao lay on the ground, watching the man clutching his chest and panting heavily, and she suddenly giggled.

"My lord, you should take this medicine. If you don't, you'll die even faster."

"Didn't Yao Qingling say that you're like pumping water from one dry well to another, even drier well? You are that drier well..."

The Marquis of Zhongyong's expression changed repeatedly as he struggled between eating and not eating.

Yao Qingling watched coldly before finally speaking: "My lord, my female physician can concoct an antidote, so you don't need to worry about your life for the time being."

“But my female physician only obeys my orders…” She looked at the Marquis of Loyalty and Courage with a sneer. At this moment, could he still insist that she bear everything and force her to her death?

Marquis Zhongyong looked like a defeated rooster, its glossy feathers scattered on the ground, revealing ugly patches of baldness on its body. He lowered his head and said in a low voice, "Tell me, what do you want to do? I will do whatever you say."

Yao Qingling raised her hand and pointed at Zhao Qie: "Interrogate her."

As she spoke, she turned to look at Concubine Zhao: "Who gave you the golden feather silk? And who told you to send that thing into the embroidery room to harm me? What benefits did she promise you?"

Zhao's concubine knew she couldn't escape her fate, and only hoped she wouldn't end up like Madam Ma.

I had no choice but to tell the whole story.

"...She gave me a hundred taels of silver notes, saying...after the matter is done, Hui Ba will be my private property. That's a hundred taels of silver notes! When did I ever have so much silver when the Marquis's wife was in charge of the Marquis's mansion?"

Concubine Zhao started crying again.

Yao Qingling managed to get the name out of Zhao's concubine, gave a slight smile, and didn't linger any longer.

She turned and bowed to Yao Laosan and his wife: "Thank you for speaking up for Qingling tonight, Uncle and Aunt. I will remember it. It's just too late for me to speak now. I will thank you both again when I have the chance."

"Hey, we didn't do anything." Yao Laosan waved his hand blankly, still in shock.

He watched as Yao Qingling, who had been suppressed and coerced, suddenly reversed the situation and became someone who stood above the Marquis of Zhongyong.

How did she do it?