Chapter 249 The Emperor Wants Her Dead

"I was in a good mood tonight and drank a little too much. I walked unsteadily. I stumbled and nearly fell just after leaving the hall. It was General Xiao who helped me up and saved me from falling flat on my face."

"He told me that he also wanted to go to the toilet, and then he helped me walk to the toilet."

"After entering the toilet, I felt dizzy and nearly fell into the toilet when I was taking off my clothes. It was General Xiao who grabbed my clothes and held me back in time, so I didn't get dirty."

"After seeing me stand firm, the general turned around and went to the compartment next to him."

"The general is kind-hearted. He was afraid that I would pass out in the cubicle, so he called me from the side every once in a while. It was not until I finished relieving myself and walked out of the cubicle that the general helped me back to the banquet."

Lord Wei saluted again.

"So, Your Majesty, I can prove that General Xiao has been in the toilet since he left the table. He was squatting in the cubicle and kept calling my name. How could he have gone to the Imperial Garden?"

The officials all believed what Lord Wei said.

They believed that Xiao Lingzhao was innocent, and that the Queen Mother's murder tonight had nothing to do with Xiao Lingzhao.

But Xie Junlin still had some doubts.

He stared at Xiao Lingzhao and then at Lord Wei.

These two men, one a civil official and the other a military general, usually don't have much interaction with each other, but the relationship between them is special.

The eldest prince now being raised by Queen Wei is the biological son of Xiao Lingzhao’s wife Shen Yuanwei!

Queen Wei and Shen Yuanwei are as close as sisters, and the Wei family obeys Queen Wei's words. Is it possible that the Queen's brother, Lord Wei, is helping Shen Yuanwei and Xiao Lingzhao to cover up their lies?

Xie Junlin was questioning the authenticity of the witness, Lord Wei. At this time, Xie Chengyun, who was lying on Longlinwei, received Shen Yuanwei's gaze.

He saw his mother turn her head to look at him and wink at him implicitly.

He also blinked, then slowly got off the Dragon Scale Guard.

He ran to Xie Junlin with his short legs, and asked carefully while pointing his finger, "Father, you said to swap the teacups, what's going on? Did you put the teacups in the wrong place?"

He bit his little lip and asked nervously, "Well, if the teacup is put in the wrong place, will it be a big disaster?"

Xie Chengyun's words made everyone's eyes fall on him.

Xie Junlin narrowed his eyes and stared at his eldest son.

Suddenly, Xie Junlin had a bad feeling in his heart.

He bent down and held Xie Chengyun's shoulders tightly, and said in a deep voice, "Yun'er, did you really switch the teacups?"

Xie Chengyun looked at his serious father and was so scared that he burst into tears.

He rubbed his eyes and said in fear and bewilderment, "I, I, I didn't mean it..."

He wiped his tears and choked.

"I didn't eat or drink tonight. I played with my brother in the garden for a while. I was hungry and my mouth was dry. When Aunt Cui helped my brother get up and take off his shoes and socks, I walked around them twice. When I saw the cups next to them, I couldn't help but picked up the two cups and took a few sips. Then...then the tea was too hot. I took a few sips and put the cups down with my tongue sticking out..."

He looked at Xie Junlin with tears in his eyes.

"Father, I, I, I really didn't know that I put the cup in the wrong place. I... I clearly remember that I did not make any mistakes. I picked it up exactly like that and put it down exactly like that..."

Xie Chengyun's tearful words shocked everyone.

So everything that happened tonight was just an accident, and no one tried to murder the Empress Dowager from the beginning to the end. It was God's will that the Empress Dowager had the misfortune of falling into the hands of her own grandson. Was it God's will that the Empress Dowager suffered the consequences of her own actions?

Wow.

God really has eyes, this is what we call evildoers will be punished by God!

Xie Junlin was also shocked.

He never imagined that his biological mother was killed by his own son by accident!

It was his four-year-old son who was thirsty and wanted to drink water, and accidentally mixed up the two cups, which caused his queen mother to be poisoned without knowing it, and she was humiliated by the beast Zhao Er.

For a moment, the word "retribution" appeared in Xie Junlin's mind.

After slowly calming down, Xie Junlin frowned again.

No, how could it be such a coincidence?

It was such a coincidence that it seemed someone had deliberately planned it.

He couldn't help but wonder if his eldest son was instructed by someone.

But his eldest son was so young that he felt that he was too suspicious. Many four-year-old children could not understand complicated instructions. Could it be that his son could not only understand them but also cooperate with adults to carry out the conspiracy?

Xie Junlin stared at his eldest son, the doubt in his heart could not be dispelled.

He suddenly asked the Dragon Scale Guard to bring Xie Congyuan over.

Xie Congyuan blinked and asked, "Father, what are you doing?"

Xie Junlin turned around and looked at the imperial physician.

"Come and see whether the Second Prince fell down naturally or was he tricked by someone."

As he spoke, he looked at Shen Yuanwei and Xiao Lingzhao.

"It's all too coincidental, isn't it? Nanny Cui was passing by with the drugged tea, and Yuan'er happened to fall down, neither too early nor too late, just in time for Nanny Cui to see her. When Nanny Cui put down the lacquer tray, Yun'er happened to be thirsty and wanted to drink water, and she just happened to swap the two cups -"

He sneered, "Does anyone among you really think this is too much of a coincidence?"

All the officials looked at each other, and no one spoke.

Xiao Lingzhao and Shen Yuanwei didn't say anything either. They looked at Xie Junlin calmly, waiting for the imperial physician to check.

Soon, the imperial physician came forward, held up Xie Congyuan's little feet, and took off her shoes and socks.

The imperial physician looked left and right, pressed a few times, and examined for a long time before he looked up and reported to Xie Junlin.

"Your Majesty, there is nothing wrong with the Second Prince's feet. There are no bruises on his legs or feet. Only his ankle is a little red and swollen. This swelling should be caused by a sprained ankle, not a conspiracy."

The imperial physician said cautiously, "It may be that it was too dark, and the Second Prince was young, so he accidentally fell down."

The imperial physician's words proved Xie Junlin's suspicion.

Xie Junlin didn't believe it, so he walked up to Xie Congyuan and grabbed his ankle to examine it carefully. After examining one foot, he went to check the other foot.

But no matter how hard he looked, he could not find any bruises or signs of being ambushed.

Xie Junlin narrowed his eyes and looked at Xiao Lingzhao.

Xiao Lingzhao looked back calmly.

He did not throw the stone hard, so naturally no mark would be left on the Second Prince's foot.

Adults have strong balance, and a light stone hit will not make them fall. Naturally, you need to use force to deal with adults.

But a four-year-old child would often fall down when walking on flat ground, so why would he need to use too much force? Just a small stone would trip him and he would stumble and fall.

Xie Junlin's suspicions were dispelled time and time again, but he was still unwilling to give up.

He pulled Xie Chengyun and asked, "Yun'er, look into your father's eyes and tell him the truth - did anyone instruct you to secretly change the teacup tonight, huh?"

Shen Yuanwei's heart skipped a beat.

She tried to look at Xie Chengyun calmly, hoping that this intelligent eldest son could stay calm and not be like the noisy younger son who couldn't keep secrets.