At this time, Concubine Zhu was already in a coma...

Her maidservant was guarding outside the palace and was not affected. She knelt on the ground and cried, "Your Majesty, please be careful. Our master's prayer lamps all use lamp oil sent by the Ministry of Internal Affairs. I don't know who replaced it with this harmful kerosene! Please help my master!"

Concubine Shu asked, "Has anyone touched this lamp?"

The palace maid shook her head, at a loss.

"Did you meet anyone today?" Concubine Shu asked again.

The maid recalled and looked at Ning Wanyin in fear, "Ning Jieyu, it's you who harmed my master..."

"Don't talk nonsense! My master didn't do anything." Lian Rui immediately retorted.

The palace maid hurriedly recounted what happened when she met Ning Wanyin this morning.

After Xue Jinyan heard this, she understood immediately.

Ning Wanyin changed the lamp oil!

But the secret kerosene looks exactly the same as ordinary lamp oil, and it is impossible to tell the difference by simply looking at the appearance.

Of course, it is impossible to light the blessing lanterns in advance.

How did Ning Wanyin find out?

"Your Majesty, please understand. Although I asked Concubine Zhu to find earrings for me, she was just looking for earrings... I really don't know what's going on with this kerosene." Ning Wanyin looked innocent.

Concubine Shu looked at Ning Wanyin and said, "Except for you, no one has ever touched this blessing lamp."

"What are you saying, Concubine Shu? Did you see me touching Concubine Zhu's blessing lamp with your own eyes?" Ning Wanyin glanced at her calmly and said calmly:

"I really haven't touched her lamp, and... it took several days from the preparation to bringing it out today. During this period, I don't know how many palace servants could have taken advantage of the opportunity to steal it..."

"How can you blame me for this? I just happened to run into her this morning. Your Majesty, please don't wrongly accuse me of my innocence!"

Concubine Shu's face froze, and she asked again, "Concubine Zhu was pushed down by someone. Who was near Concubine Zhu just now?"

After these words were spoken, everyone looked at each other in surprise.

No one answered.

In fact, there was a concubine standing behind Concubine Zhu just now.

But she didn't know who pushed her and she bumped into Concubine Zhu...

If she stood up, she would be held accountable.

So keep silent.

It was a cold day now, and everyone was standing around the charcoal brazier. There were many concubines and palace maids nearby.

Four concubines were injured, including Xue's daughter.

Only a fool would speak out.

Helian Qi had a clear understanding of this situation and said calmly:

"Concubine Zhu acted carelessly and secretly stored kerosene, harming others and herself, and was banished to the cold palace."

"Concubine Lü, Lady Shi, and Lady Xue are injured. The imperial physician must take good care of them. I will give each of them a box of cream."

"During the Empress Dowager's sacrifice ceremony, there were many accidents. As the person in charge, Concubine Shu failed to discover the disaster in time. She will be fined for half a year."

The emperor directly blamed Concubine Zhu for this matter.

Even though everyone suspected that Ning Wanyin had something to do with this matter.

But there is no evidence and no way to investigate.

For this bright game...

Lian Rui had asked beforehand, "Master, if we go directly to pick a fight with Concubine Zhu, everyone will guess that it was you who did it. Should we be more secretive?"

“If this was our plan, then the more secretive it is, the better, so that the enemy won’t know who made the move. But now, we are the ones who broke the game. No matter how secretive and careful we are, Xue Jinyan will know that it was me who broke the game, and she will only think that I am difficult to deal with.” Ning Wanyin said calmly.

No matter how careful she was, she did not leave any trace of having met Concubine Zhu.

It's no use.

The kerosene was what Xue Jinyan used to deal with Ning Wanyin. How could she not know that it was Ning Wanyin who replaced it?

The more secretive and sophisticated it is, the more Xue Jinyan will think highly of him.

It is better to be simple and direct and let the other person think that she is nothing special.

…

That night.

Wei Yingya quietly went to Qionghua Garden to pay a visit.

"Master Xue, please save me! Ning Wanyin's prayer lamp is fine, but Concubine Zhu's lamp is broken! It is obvious that she found out that someone had tampered with it and replaced the lamp oil. Has she guessed that it was me who did it? Please save me!" Wei Yingya looked anxious.

Lu Zhaoyi originally wanted to question her a few more times, asking if she had betrayed Xue Jinyan.

But seeing her cowardly look...

"Why are you panicking? If you panic, you'll just be incriminating yourself! The more you pretend nothing happened in front of her, the less she will suspect you." Lu Zhaoyi scolded.

Wei Yingya looked panicked, "Of course I'm scared. She just sent Concubine Zhu away today. If she knew it was me who did it, would I still be able to survive?"

"She shouldn't doubt you." Xue Jinyan pondered:

"Concubine Zhu just pushed Tang Miaoling once, and she was harmed like this. She has a vengeful personality. If she knew that you changed the lamp oil, she would not be indifferent to you."

Wei Yingya was terrified. "Master Xue, I am doing this for you. You can't just ignore my life or death... I'm so scared..."

"Don't worry, I will naturally protect your life. When you go to visit her tomorrow, try to find out indirectly how she discovered that there was a problem with the lamp oil." Xue Jinyan looked at Wei Yingya.

Wei Yingya nodded timidly, "Okay - well, did she really not realize that I was a traitor?"

"With your stupidity, she couldn't guess that you were a traitor." Lu Zhaoyi wanted to roll her eyes.

Wei Yingya and Xue Jinyan talked for a long time, and finally, she hugged the pair of jade bracelets that Xue Jinyan had given her as a reward and left with many thanks.

Xue Jinyan was annoyed by her noise and rubbed her brows, "Wei Yingya is so timid..."

"My lord, could it be that she betrayed you..." Another Zhaoyi hesitated to speak.

Concubine Lu sneered, "The Cen family won't let her live. If she offends the master again, won't she die? What benefit can Ning Wanyin give her that is worth her risking her life like this?"

My dear, there is more to this chapter. Please click on the next page to continue reading. It’s even more exciting later!