Lan Shuang swayed, saying in disbelief:

"What are you saying! How could it be in my courtyard? Who framed me! Someone must have framed me! Your Majesty, please investigate!"

The emperor smiled slightly, a smile that was hard to decipher, but he uttered words that sent chills down Lan Shuang's spine.

"Little Princess? That servant called you Little Princess? I don't remember when I conferred the title of Princess."

Lan Shuang was stunned for a long time. After she came to her senses, she kowtowed several times on the ground, "Your Majesty, please forgive me! Those were just the servants shouting nonsense!"

She raised her head slightly and glared fiercely at the servant. "Who told you to shout like that!"

The servant shrank back, not daring to speak.

The emperor continued, "But you didn't deny it immediately. It seems that everyone in this mansion is used to calling you Little Princess."

The emperor's calm words were more terrifying than his anger.

Lan Shuang burst into tears almost instantly, sobbing and begging for mercy before the emperor.

The emperor's lips curled slightly, revealing no trace of anger, and he simply said:

"To call oneself a princess without being granted an official title is a capital offense."

Lan Shuang dared not refute, and could only keep kowtowing on the ground.

"Let's put that aside for now, but how do you explain this letter?"

The emperor threw the letter at Lan Shuang's feet. Lan Shuang trembled and kept repeating:

"I don't know... I really don't know... Your Majesty, someone framed me..."

The emperor circled her body, as if scrutinizing her carefully from head to toe, leaving no detail unexamined.

"You don't know, but I already know."

His eyes were sharp, and his gaze fell on Gu Jiangli.

Just as Gu Jiangli was feeling uncomfortable, the emperor suddenly shifted his gaze and began to speak:

"Zhao Lanshuang, in order to frame the princess for having an affair, wrote a letter to Xu Zhuo using the princess's tastes, hoping to rekindle Xu Zhuo's feelings for the princess by using their past relationship."

"Xu Zhuo was also fooled, thinking that the person he was corresponding with was Gu Jiangli, so he felt that his old feelings had been rekindled and invited the princess to meet him several times."

He paced back and forth to Gu Jiangli's side. "Zhao Lanshuang found an opportunity and arranged for the two of them to meet at the Prince's residence. Xu Zhuo was bold enough to actually come."

"Before coming, I was worried that the princess might change her mind in the palace, which would be unfavorable to me, so I brought sleeping pills with me as a backup plan."

"This room is the most secluded room in the Prince's mansion. If you want to meet in secret, almost no one will be able to find you."

"You two each have your own ulterior motives. Zhao Lanshuang knew that Xu Zhuo was coming to the Prince's mansion, so she found a maid and told the Princess that the Prince was injured, and she intended to lead the Princess to the side room."

"The princess was unable to come because of a sudden stomachache, so she sent one of her maids over."

"Xu Zhuo, after arriving at the side room, mistakenly believed that the princess was in the room, so he wanted to use sleeping gas to make the princess obey him."

"Unexpectedly, the person in the room was not the princess, but me. Coincidentally, this action was also seen by the maid sent by the princess."

After he finished speaking, the room became unusually quiet.

Only Gu Jiangli silently applauded the emperor in her heart.

The emperor may not be a good person, but his conclusions were exactly what she wanted to hear!

"As for why Zhao Lanshuang did this, I guess it's because of the incident some time ago when the Princess Consort and a child fell into the water. I remember that at that time, Zhao Lanshuang, you harbored quite a bit of hatred towards the Princess Consort."

Gu Jiangli's eyes flashed.

So the person who was with Prince Yu on the day he fell into the water was the emperor.

I was so focused on pretending to faint that I didn't pay attention to these things.

Back then, Lan Shuang was arrogant and domineering, and even boasted that she would punish me properly. But now, she can only kneel on the ground and beg for mercy.

"Your Majesty...it's not like that. I didn't mean to harm the Princess; she's the one trying to harm me..."

Gu Jiangli interrupted, "What have I done to harm you? The letter was found in your courtyard, and you were the one who accused me of having an affair with a man. You were also the one who brought the mistress and others here, and saw His Majesty and Xu Zhuo lying together. Again, you accused me of having an affair with His Majesty and Xu Zhuo."

"What did I do? I only arrived slowly after it happened. I wasn't involved in the letter at all. You say I harmed you? How could I harm you?"

Lan Shuang shook her head, feeling that whatever she said would be pale and powerless.

Now all the evidence points to her, and she doesn't even know where to begin her defense.

Even though she knew that Gu Jiangli was behind it all, she couldn't bring herself to pin the blame on her.

At that moment, she felt that the harder she tried, the more miserable she became.

The emperor knew she had nothing more to say, so he looked at Prince Yu.

“Prince Yu, your sister is trying to frame your princess for being impure. This is your family matter, and you should be able to handle it yourself.”

Prince Yu's eyes were as dark as ink. He bent down slightly, already knowing what the emperor wanted to say.

Lan Shuang has framed Gu Jiangli time and time again; she is truly beyond redemption.

He had promised the princess to protect her, and he would never break his promise.

“Your Majesty, Zhao Lanshuang’s unauthorized self-proclaimed title of Princess is already a serious crime. She has also been disrespectful to Your Majesty and almost falsely accused you of having an affair with the Princess Consort. These are all Zhao Lanshuang’s real crimes. I will leave the matter to Your Majesty to decide.”

The emperor nodded, seemingly very satisfied with Prince Yu's explanation.

"Alright, I understand."

Lan Shuang felt as if the sky had fallen, as if she had been abandoned by her brother. She crawled on her knees and hugged Prince Yu's leg, crying out repeatedly:

"Brother! Please beg His Majesty for mercy! I beg you, brother!" She knew she had committed a capital offense; just the fact that she had proclaimed herself a princess was enough to condemn her to death.

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