Chapter 218: The Late Emperor

Before Anjiu finished worshipping the Buddha, the emperor said he was leaving.

"Where are you going?" An Jiu regretted asking. She even asked the emperor...

The emperor said, "Go to Jingshui Temple."

This is a nunnery, not far from Baohua Temple, and it is easy to get there on foot. They had already received the news, and the emperor was led in as soon as he arrived.

In a small courtyard, An Jiu saw a woman who was dressed simply but had a beautiful face. She was the mother of the eighth prince, and the late emperor's Concubine Yu.

Concubine Yu looks very young, and her temperament is similar to that of the Eighth Prince. She is very cold and seems to be uninterested in anything.

"Is there anything the emperor needs?" Concubine Yu asked as a matter of routine, without any politeness or enthusiasm.

The emperor said, "I have a few questions for the concubine."

Concubine Yu: "You say."

It was like two strangers doing their business, one asking and the other answering.

"Does the Concubine still remember my mother?"

Concubine Yu lowered her eyes and nodded: "Of course I remember, but... I entered the palace late, so I didn't have much contact with Concubine Chun."

Moreover, the palace is so big that many concubines are just nodding acquaintances throughout their lives.

"Can you tell me what happened back then?"

Concubine Yu told everything.

According to her account, she entered the palace two years before Concubine Chun fell out of favor. At that time, there were already many princes in the palace and even more concubines. She was young, and the late emperor would occasionally visit her. However, Concubine Yu had a cold personality, and the late emperor did not like her very much.

"His favorite is still Concubine Chun." Concubine Yu said without disguising, "Men's love is really too hypocritical. Not long after, I heard that he banished Concubine Chun to the cold palace."

"Why was she banished to the cold palace?" the emperor asked.

Concubine Yu looked up into the emperor's eyes: "He suspects Concubine Chun is a spy from the State of Chu."

This is the same news they got.

Concubine Yu continued, "This is what the late emperor said when he was drunk. After Concubine Chun was banished to the cold palace, he found it hard to accept it. He kept looking for evidence to prove that she was not the one, but before he could find the evidence, Concubine Chun died in the cold palace."

An Jiu thought to herself, Concubine Yu was really direct in her words.

"What makes you so sure that mother is a spy from the State of Chu?" the emperor continued to ask.

Concubine Yu shook her head: "I don't know, it seems that some letters were found in her room."

The emperor narrowed his eyes.

[If Nanny Chang is a traitor, it is entirely possible that she hid the letter in my mother's room and framed her.]

"What happened next? After my mother died, why didn't he let me investigate the cause of her death?"

An Jiu felt that if it were someone else, they probably wouldn't answer this kind of question, but Concubine Yu answered it.

"Firstly, the late emperor took a liking to you and was worried that having a mother who was a spy from another country would affect you, so he didn't want the matter to get any bigger."

The late emperor had finally found a qualified heir, and for the sake of the heir, it is very likely that this matter was concealed.

But...it doesn't make sense...

An Jiu didn’t understand. Wouldn’t it be better to just find out the real murderer?

Unless...he checks again and again and the result is still the same, or in other words, the result is even worse.

The emperor also had this question.

However, Concubine Yu's next words left them dumbfounded.

"Secondly, the person who testified that Concubine Chun was a spy for the State of Chu was Concubine Xian."

An Jiu didn't react for a moment.

But the emperor just stood there in a daze.

[Xian Mother Consort... Third Brother's Mother Consort? ]

An Jiu frowned. Isn’t the emperor’s third brother King Jing?

How is this related to Prince Jing's mother?

An Jiu heard that King Jing's mother died of illness, and she died before Concubine Chun.

In other words, after she pointed out that Concubine Chun was a spy for the State of Chu, she died.

And there was someone else responsible for Concubine Chun's death...

Well, then...

An Jiu felt dizzy.

She didn't dare to think further.

Concubine Yu exhaled: "I have said everything I can and cannot say. Jingchen knows nothing. He will accompany me in my practice in the mountains in the future and will not ask about worldly affairs. He poses no threat to you."

An Jiu couldn't help but glance at Concubine Yu. Only then did she realize that although Concubine Yu spoke lightly, her back was straight and her fingers were tightly holding the Buddhist beads. It was obvious that she was also nervous.

What is she nervous about?

An Jiu glanced at the emperor.

After the Eighth Prince went down the mountain, he never came up again. Could it be that Concubine Yu thought that the Emperor had detained him and was blackmailing him, so she told everything she knew?

The emperor held the teacup, but did not drink at all. Instead, he said, "Jingchen is also a mortal. I only let him stay for a few days. If the concubine misses him, he can come back at any time."

Concubine Yu finally breathed a sigh of relief.

The emperor stood up and said, "Excuse me, Concubine."

After leaving Jingshui Temple, the emperor rested in a pavilion. He looked at the mountains in the distance, and after a while, he let out a breath.

[So, this is the reason why my father did not allow me to investigate the cause of my mother's death. ]

An Jiu paused.

She felt that the emperor and she shared the same thoughts.

Because Concubine Xian testified that Concubine Chun was a spy for the State of Chu.

When the late emperor was investigating the case, he might have found her...

So……

So……

An Jiu was so overwhelmed by the thoughts in his heart that he couldn't recover.

The emperor even more so.

[Third brother said that the virtuous mother's health had shown signs of improvement, but she suddenly died.]

[He suspected that the Queen Mother had killed the virtuous mother.]

[Maybe... maybe she's not the Queen Mother...]

[But…]

[Is it the father? ? ? ]

The emperor exhaled.

In the evening, the wind blew on the mountain, and the setting sun hung in the sky, dyeing the clouds in the sky red.

The emperor's originally tall figure now looked so thin.

An Jiu took a piece of clothing and put it on him.

She felt that the emperor's guess was correct.

It is very likely that Prince Jing's mother was used by someone to accuse Concubine Chun of being a spy, and the late emperor also noticed something when he was investigating the case, so he... killed Prince Jing's mother.

But not long after that, Concubine Chun died again.

This proves that Concubine Xian was probably wrongly accused, and the murderer was someone else...

There is someone else...

He actually played a trick on the king of a country like this.

The late emperor might have been upset and regretful. The successive loss of his two beloved concubines had dealt him a heavy blow.

He also wanted to continue the investigation, but the person behind the scenes was too cunning, and he could not find out anything. He was also afraid that his favorite son would rashly investigate the murderer and meet with an accident, so he did not allow anyone to enter the Jinxiu Palace and did not allow the emperor to investigate the murderer.

Knowing all this, it doesn't seem worth being happy.

At least the emperor was unhappy.

His mother died because of King Jing's mother, and King Jing's mother might have been killed by his father...

The so-called brotherhood, father-son love, and husband-wife love in this royal family suddenly became hypocritical, and the emperor felt uncomfortable even thinking about it.

Another gust of wind blew.

The emperor wondered, why is it still so cold when it is already spring?

As soon as King Jing returned home, he received a letter.

"Your Highness, this was sent by a beggar..." Normally, such things would not be given to Prince Jing, but the butler remembered what the beggar said and still gave it to the prince.

King Jing was amused: "Why are you still hesitating?"

He opened the letter, and after reading its contents, his face instantly darkened.

"Where's the messenger?"

The housekeeper said, "It's a beggar. I'll send someone to find him right away."

After the butler left, King Jing held the letter in his hand and slammed his fist on the table.

The letter was not long, but it clearly stated the cause of his mother's death.

Poisoning.

The letter also said that the poison was given by the late emperor, and if Prince Jing did not believe it, he could go and ask Liu Chen, the servant who served his mother.