Chapter 127 Piecing Together the Truth

The Queen Mother's expression changed slightly, worry and panic flashed across her face, and finally she calmed down and closed her eyes.

After a long pause, he said solemnly, "Emperor, just remember to promise me. I don't want to discuss the interests involved.

If I offend the Emperor, he can depose me as the Empress Dowager and imprison me in this Cining Palace. I do not blame the Emperor."

Not long after the queen was deposed, the crown prince was deposed. If the queen mother was deposed as well, the Wei royal family would truly become the biggest joke in the world.

The Empress Dowager obviously understood this. The Emperor's shoulders drooped and his whole body was filled with a sense of powerlessness.

After a moment, he said, "Perhaps, the Shi family should not sit in this position."

Whether they should or not, they have already sat down.

The mother and son were in a stalemate. A quarter of an hour later, the emperor walked out of the Cining Palace with a cold look on his face.

After returning to the imperial study, the emperor issued several imperial edicts, demoting Xie Shen to the position of Vice Minister of War, and the former Vice Minister of War Du Xueyi took over the position of Minister of Justice.

The officials who had originally planned to see how the emperor would deal with Du Xueyi were all dumbfounded.

He threatened the emperor, but instead of getting attacked, he got promoted?

It is really hard to predict your heart!

Du Xueyi was also stunned for a moment, then he went to Wei Qingyan's yard with the imperial edict in his arms, "Boss, you are really amazing."

Wei Qingyan looked at his joyful expression and said with a smile, "This is not my credit."

She always suspected that the death of Du Xueyi's grandfather was a coincidence. Even if his death was normal, considering Du's grandfather's achievements and Du Xueyi's contributions to the National Protection Army over the years, he could also be the Minister of Justice.

Du Xueyi hurriedly bowed to Lan Shu and said, "Xueyi thanks you, Auntie."

"It has nothing to do with me. Maybe the emperor just dislikes the Xie family." Lan Shu denied.

The emperor didn't even want to care about the affairs of his own two children, so how could he promote Du Xueyi just because of her words?

As several people were blaming each other for not having any credit, Ah Lu rushed in again, "Miss, Lord Marquis, the Emperor has made the judgment."

"What was the verdict?" Seeing A Lu pause, Du Xueyi hurriedly asked, without noticing that A Lu had habitually put Wei Qingyan in front of him.

Ah Lu ran so fast that he took a quick breath before saying, "Princess Yu, Liu Huan and his wife, and the witch doctor have been sentenced to death by slicing. They will be publicly executed at the West Market Street entrance three days later.

The rest of the criminals were beheaded in public at noon three days later at Caishikou. The children of the Liu family were exiled three thousand miles away. Prince Yu did not participate in the crime and was released.

However, his incompetence in managing the household led to Princess Yu committing such a serious crime. He has requested to guard the Imperial Ancestral Temple, and His Majesty has granted his approval, and the imperial decree has been issued."

Wei Qingyan and Lan Shu looked at each other.

The emperor wanted to use the matter of Princess Yu to divert people's attention from the matter of the crown prince.

Wang Gangzheng then interrogated Princess Yu. Her statements were the same as before. Under various tortures, Princess Yu was on her last legs and it was difficult to get anything out of her.

The emperor's judgment at this time is not a bad thing.

Both of them thought so.

Ah Lu slapped his forehead, remembering that he had something to report. "Oh, that Lord Xu who reported the Crown Prince has been exiled to Prince Rong's fiefdom by the Emperor."

"What does the emperor mean?" Du Xueyi looked at Wei Qingyan and Lan Shu in confusion.

Lan Shu also looked at Wei Qingyan.

Wei Qingyan thought for a moment and said, "The emperor should also be able to guess that there is someone behind Lord Xu.

Lord Xu asked to go to the wasteland, but the Emperor could not let him do so and sent him to Shi Yu's fiefdom, where Shi Yu would keep an eye on him.

"Your Majesty, don't you suspect that Prince Rong is behind Lord Xu?" Du Xueyi asked.

Wei Qingyan shook his head. "Given Shi Yu's relationship with the Protector General, if he had the letter, why would he wait until now to report it?"

Du Xueyi thought about it and agreed.

Wei Qingyan looked at him and said, "Xueyi, now that you are the Minister of Justice, you must think more carefully and act with caution."

"Xueyi understands and will definitely not embarrass the boss." Du Xueyi said solemnly.

The moment he received the imperial edict, the thought that came to his mind was that the higher his official position, the more he could protect the general.

In the past, it was the general who protected him, but now, the general is a woman, his sister Du Xueyi, and he should be her support.

Wei Qingyan didn't know what he was thinking. He raised his hand and patted his shoulder, "I know you can do well."

In the past, Du Xueyi used to rely on her, but in these years without her, Du Xueyi has been making progress.

Moreover, he was kind and had a sense of justice, so Wei Qingyan was actually relieved and said nothing more.

In the evening, Shi Yu came again in person.

"After Auntie left, the Emperor went to the Empress Dowager's palace and dismissed all the palace servants. No one knows what they talked about.

But it wasn't long before the Emperor found a pretext to take Nanny Wang Chun away. However, Nanny Wang Chun was overly cautious and committed suicide by taking poison on the way to be taken for questioning. You probably can't imagine where she hid the poison."

"Where?" Wei Qingyan's eyes were cold and he felt a little uneasy.

Shi Yu lowered his eyes, held her hand, and uttered two words, "Collar."

The emperor took Nanny Wang Chun away suddenly. Nanny Wang Chun had no idea that the emperor would take her away, but she had prepared poison for suicide in advance.

The only possibility is that she has always kept this poison ready.

A personal nanny who served the empress dowager had poison hidden in her collar at any time. Wei Qingyan's expression suddenly became solemn.

She remembered that Shi Yu and the emperor often went to the Empress Dowager's palace for meals.

"How did the Queen Mother react?"

Shi Yu's expression also became solemn, "There was no response, and they didn't even let anyone from the Cining Palace to claim the body.

The Empress Dowager was a concubine's daughter of the Xie family. Her mother died early, and her life in the Xie family was not easy before she married the emperor. Nanny Wang Chun was her only child.

When my father's uprising had grown to a certain scale, the empress dowager had intended to arrange a marriage for her. The target was an advisor under my father's command, who now held a high official position. However, Nanny Wang Chun was reluctant to leave the empress dowager and remained unmarried.

When I was young, I often heard the Empress Dowager lament that Nanny Wang Chun had wasted her life for her, and asked me and the Emperor to treat Nanny Wang Chun well.

At that time, their relationship went beyond that of master and servant. In the past three years, I have had little contact with them and have not noticed when their relationship changed."

"Did the Queen Mother know about Nanny Wang Chun's betrayal?" Wei Qingyan continued, "But with such a deep bond between master and servant, what could have caused Nanny Wang Chun to betray her master?

What made the Queen Mother keep her by her side even though she knew there was something wrong with her?

Does the Queen Mother know about Princess Yu's affairs?"

After a pause, she frowned and said, "Shi Yu, do you still remember the Queen Mother's unusual reaction at Prince Rong's Mansion last time?"

Shi Yu nodded and said, "She even ordered someone to pull out the tongue of the prince's eunuch. I think this may be related to the prince's desire to snatch you from me.

The Queen Mother seemed very angry at the Crown Prince's behavior towards me, so she took her anger out on the eunuch.

Wei Qingyan pondered, "Shi Yu, I don't know why, but I always feel that the Queen Mother's attitude towards you is abnormal, and it is related to this matter.

Assuming that what we observe is true, does it mean that the Queen Mother actually cares about you?

When you were assassinated in Prince Rong's mansion that day, her first reaction was to protect you. It came from the heart, but her coldness and indifference towards you in the palace was just an act."

"Perform for Madam Wang Chun, or the people behind her?" Shi Yu followed her words.

Wei Qingyan nodded. "Perhaps we can make this assumption and give it a try?"

Shi Yu's eyes turned slightly and he nodded, "Then let's try it."

There are too many mysteries and strange things nowadays. If they want to piece together the truth, they need to find a clue. The Queen Mother may be a breakthrough.

However, that may lead to new confusions.

But both of them are people who have strong execution ability once they make a decision.

The next day, just as the Queen Mother got up, she heard the eunuch come to report, "Another assassin broke into Prince Rong's mansion last night. Prince Rong was injured and unconscious."