Not to mention Chunxi, even Li Tiao's heart was pounding. This was a serious crime that could lead to execution if spoken carelessly.

Moreover, nobody knows what Chunxi will say.

From the very beginning, both Li Tiao and the Fourth Prince believed that Chunxi would not reveal Li Tiao's identity, since it involved her own brother.

But... Chunxi really did uphold justice and even turned her own family away!

"Your Majesty, what I said is all true..." Chunxi stammered, only repeating that her words were true.

Although Emperor Kangxi had always maintained a dignified demeanor, his tone had generally been mild. Upon hearing Chunxi's words, he suddenly slammed his fist on the table in anger and roared:

"You audacious servant! You dare to deceive me? I will not pursue whether your own brother committed the crime of deceiving the emperor, but you... you dare to speak nonsense in front of me today, what is your punishment!"

"This servant has no such thing. Your Majesty, everything this servant has said is true..."

Chunxi kowtowed and cried as she defended herself.

"To speak nonsense before me is punishable by death according to the law! Guards!"

Is this an attempt to utterly kill Chunxi?!

Li Tiao's heart was pounding in her throat. She had transmigrated to this place, and this was the first time she had faced the emperor's wrath and his desire to kill.

Although Li Tiao did not sympathize with Chunxi, what Chunxi said was ultimately true, and Li Tiao inevitably thought of herself.

"Guards! Beat this babbling wretch to death with clubs!"

The words "beaten to death with sticks" sent a shiver down Li Tiao's spine, and she began to tremble undeniably. She seemed to have considered her possible fate; if she could return after death, Li Tiao was not afraid.

But beating someone to death like that... it's just too cruel. Li Tiao felt every capillary in her body start to hurt, a dense, throbbing pain.

Master Kang still hadn't let Li Tiao and the Fourth Prince stand up. Li Tiao, still kneeling, lowered her head and subconsciously looked at the Fourth Prince, "Your Highness..."

Her voice trembled with helplessness; Li Tiao had never felt death so close to her before.

Despite being incredibly timid and cowardly, he still has to face this situation.

The Fourth Prince's heart stirred slightly. He quietly moved his hand to Li Tiao's side, using the hem of their clothes as cover, and held Li Tiao's hand tightly.

Feeling that her hand was as cold as icicles under the eaves in winter, the Fourth Prince couldn't help but hold it even tighter.

But Li Tiao was not in the mood to appreciate the warmth and silent comfort that the Fourth Prince was giving her.

As Chunxi was about to be dragged away by the nannies, Li Tiao's fear reached its peak.

Chunxi's fear reached its peak, and she cried out, "Your Majesty, everything I said is true! The Crown Prince said that as long as I tell the truth, Your Majesty will not punish me."

"Wait!" Kangxi immediately stopped the maids who were pulling at Chunxi.

Although Li Tiao was nervous and uneasy, she also keenly realized from Chunxi's words that Chunxi's words were tantamount to adding fuel to the fire.

However, for Li Tiao and the Fourth Prince, Chunxi's words explained why she would "sacrifice her own family for the greater good."

That explains why the Crown Prince has been so quiet lately.

Just as Li Tiao had guessed, Master Kang's tone was extremely stern: "Chunxi, you servant have a lot of nerve. It's one thing to frame my fourth son and his princess, but now you even dare to frame the Crown Prince?"

"Your Majesty, I dare not. Your Majesty, a dying man's words are often kind. Even if I were stupid, I would know what the consequences of saying these words would be, but I still said them because everything I said was true."

Master Kang sneered: "I'd like to hear what else you have to say!"

“Your Majesty, everything I’m saying is true. The Crown Prince has long taken a liking to Consort Li. I’m not sure exactly when, but after the Fourth Prince took Consort Li to the Crown Prince’s Yuqing Palace for a banquet, the Crown Prince would always ask me about Consort Li whenever he came to the Princes’ Residence.”

But at that time, the servant did not realize that anything was wrong.

Later, when the Crown Prince asked the maid about Consort Li again, the maid inadvertently mentioned that she was making purses and braided ropes for the Fourth Prince. The Crown Prince then said he wanted to see how good Consort Li's craftsmanship was.

Only then did this servant realize that something was amiss, but because he was the Crown Prince, this servant dared not disobey him. So, I secretly stole the purse and braided rope that Consort Li had made, intending to give them to the Crown Prince.

"So you gave it to me?" Kangxi asked.

Li Tiao and the Fourth Prince exchanged a glance. Wasn't it given to the Eighth Prince back then?

If Chunxi wasn't lying, then the Crown Prince's thoughts are... truly not simple either. Thinking of this, Li Tiao felt a chill run down her spine.

"Your Majesty, I was initially authorized to give it to the Crown Prince, but when I was about to give it to him, I ran into Eunuch Su, who serves the Fourth Prince. I was afraid that Eunuch Su would find out that I had a connection with the Crown Prince, which would then let the Fourth Prince know."

Because at that time, the maid was still serving by Princess Li's side.

Later, to avoid trouble, I secretly threw it to the Eighth Prince's quarters.

"So the purse that Princess Li embroidered is with the Eighth Prince now?"

"Your Majesty, no, this servant is hungry from burning the purse." Li Tiao knew the answer to this question, so she answered it quickly. Having been schemed against by Chunxi to this extent, if she didn't quickly make her stance clear to Kangxi, she would be in danger.

"Burned?" Kangxi asked, squinting. "Didn't the purse go to the Eighth Prince's place? What? Consort Li, are you still in contact with the Eighth Prince?"

Li Tiao was terrified, and just as she was about to speak, the Fourth Prince spoke:

"Reporting to Father Emperor, the purse was returned to me by my eighth brother. Although my servant Su Peisheng did not see Chunxi and my second brother in contact, he did notice her acting suspiciously."

So I paid more attention to her. Later I found out that Chunxi had left the purse with the eighth brother. Originally, the servant Su Peisheng was going to secretly pick it up and let the matter pass by without anyone noticing. But the eighth brother heard the commotion outside and picked up the purse back.

Having no other choice, the son went to see his eighth brother himself, saying that it was Chunxi who did it, and was going to ask his eighth brother if he had accepted Chunxi's offer as a favor.

The eighth brother politely declined his son's offer, but instead gave the purse to his son, asking him to return it to Chunxi.

However, since the purse was hand-embroidered by Li Gege, she recognized it. Although she didn't know the details, she felt that since it had been taken from someone else, it was not appropriate to give it to her son, so she burned it.

Because of this incident, the son felt that the servant Chunxi had impure intentions, so he gave her to his fourteenth brother, since the fourteenth brother had previously asked the son about the servant Chunxi.

Upon hearing this, Li Tiao took a deep breath, but even her exhalation was trembling; it was truly a close call.

However, whether Kangxi would believe it is unknown, and he would definitely confront the Eighth Prince, the Crown Prince, and Su Peisheng, as any one of them would have a different story from what the Fourth Prince and Chunxi had just told him.

Then… Li Tiao nervously touched the back of her neck again…