Chapter 57 The Real Murderer
Xiao Heng paused as he stroked the jade ring and said quickly, "It seems Su Yu-nu knows the truth?"
Su Yunv nodded. "When the eldest prince fell, I was picking flowers by the rockery opposite. Although we were far away, I clearly saw that the eldest prince fell on his own and then accidentally bumped into Concubine Liu. During this collision, the eldest prince grabbed Concubine Liu's skirt and saved himself."
Liu Yuetang turned her head in surprise, and an indescribable tenderness surged in her heart.
She never expected that in such a desperate situation, Su Nanqing would stand up to help her.
The only way for her to return to the palace was to pass through the rockery opposite, but she always walked slowly and gently. At her usual pace, it was impossible for her to arrive when the eldest prince fell.
So, Sister Su made up this lie to save herself.
Concubine Mi never expected that Su Yunv would suddenly appear. She stared at Su Nanqing sharply and asked, "Su Yunv, if you wanted to speak for Lady Liu, you wouldn't have lied like that. Do you know what deceiving the emperor is?"
Su Yu Nu's frail figure now revealed a strong determination. "I know that deceiving the emperor is a capital crime, so I dare not deceive him, nor will I deceive the emperor."
As she spoke, she stared deeply at Xiao Heng with a sincere look on her face.
Concubine Mi narrowed her eyes slightly and sneered, "The rockery in the Hundred Flowers Garden is very rugged. Is Su Yu-nu a clairvoyant? You saw such a coincidence?"
Su Yunu picked up a few white double-petaled jasmine flowers from her sleeves and spread them out in her hands to show everyone.
"I have always had the habit of putting fragrant flowers in my sleeves. Today, as I passed by Ruixin Pavilion, I noticed a few plump jasmine plants next to the rockery, so I thought of picking some to take back to the palace. Then I happened to see the eldest prince under the rockery opposite. I was wondering why Concubine Mi was not with the eldest prince, so I stood there for a moment and happened to see the eldest prince fall..."
As she spoke, she bowed and said, "If Your Majesty and the other ladies do not believe what I say, you can check to see if the jasmine in my hand is as fresh as if it had just been picked. You can also send someone to check near the Ruixin Pavilion to see if there are a few top-quality jasmine plants."
Xiao Heng lowered his eyes and glanced at the jade-white Jasmine in Su Nanqing's hand: "No need."
If she could say that, she must be telling the truth.
The Queen also said: "Your Majesty, Su Yunu has always been gentle and calm, and she does not fight with the world. She will definitely not deceive Your Majesty. So..."
She glanced sharply at the two trembling eunuchs and said, "One of Su Yu-nu and these two eunuchs must be lying."
The two eunuchs' faces turned pale, beads of sweat covering their foreheads. They kowtowed repeatedly, saying, "Your servants dare not lie, your servants dare not lie. Your servants really saw Young Lady Liu push the Crown Prince."
Seeing the time had come, Liu Yuetang slowly raised her fan-like eyelashes and said, "Your Majesty, I have a way to know who is lying, and I can also help Concubine Mi find the real culprit who hurt the eldest prince."
She deliberately dragged out the last two words, which made Mi Fei's heart tighten.
"You are the real murderer of An'er! Don't confuse right and wrong here."
Liu Yuetang curled her lips coldly: "Does Concubine Mi want to deal with me, or does she want to deal with the person who hurt the eldest prince?"
Mi Fei looked at her with disgust: "What's the difference?"
“It’s a huge difference.”
Liu Yuetang leaned over to Xiao Heng and the Queen and pleaded, "Your Majesty and Your Majesty, please give me a chance and don't let the real murderer go unpunished."
Xiao Heng agreed immediately: "Sure!"
In the inner hall, the eldest prince was not as uneasy and sad as everyone imagined.
Instead, he was playing with the Luban Lock with a smile on his face.
The palace maids and nannies who served him personally had already left at Xiao Heng's signal, and were replaced by two unfamiliar palace maids.
Xiao Cheng'an was so engrossed in playing when a plate of flower-shaped dim sum suddenly caught his eye.
Its eyes suddenly lit up.
Isn’t that the peach blossom pastry he has been thinking about day and night?
He raised his head and saw Liu Yuetang looking at him with a smile.
Xiao Cheng'an quickly lowered his head guiltily, but his tone was arrogant: "Shouldn't your father punish you by confining you to your room or banishing you to the cold palace?"
Liu Yuetang sighed softly, feeling quite melancholy. "Yes, thanks to the eldest prince, the emperor has demoted me. I will be sent to the cold palace soon."
Xiao Chengan pursed her lips.
"But you're just a kid. I don't blame you."
Upon hearing this, Xiao Cheng'an's mouth couldn't help but relax a little, and he slowly raised his head.
Liu Yuetang continued, "I know the eldest prince likes the cakes in my palace very much. Perhaps this is the last time you will eat them. I will be going to the cold palace soon."
The eldest prince pouted and said angrily: "Who told you to bully my mother? You deserve it."
Having said that, he still couldn't resist the temptation of the pastries and reached out to pick them up.
Liu Yuetang was not annoyed. Instead, she asked softly, "So you conspired with your mother to stage this drama and tell your father that I pushed you, right?"
"Yes..." Xiao Cheng'an was about to say, "So what?"
But he suddenly remembered that his mother had solemnly told him that this was a secret between them and he must not mention it to anyone, not even the nanny and his father.
So, he raised his head and said fiercely: "It was you who pushed me!"
Look at this little person and he is not fooled.
Liu Yuetang knew that he was a tough guy, so her face darkened slightly: "Prince, don't you know that children should not lie?"
Xiao Chengan put down the cake in his hand, his face puffed up and he said, "Who are you? How dare you control me?"
Liu Yuetang looked up at the moon outside the window.
The moon was crescent, like a golden sickle.
There was a hint of danger in her gentle voice: "If a child tells a lie, the moon will cut off his ears."
Xiao Chengan looked at the crescent moon and couldn't help but shrink his shoulders: "It's a lie! This is a lie for children."
"Oh? The eldest prince doesn't believe it?"
After saying that, Liu Yuetang waved to the two palace maids behind her.
"These two palace maids are the ones who lied and framed me just like the Crown Prince did today. Crown Prince, wait and see if they point their fingers at the moon and see if their ears will be cut off."
The two palace maids walked forward slowly, looking at the moon with fear on their faces, not daring to raise their hands.
Liu Yuetang's tone suddenly turned cold: "Raise your hands quickly."
The palace maid slowly raised her hand and pointed at the moon with a slight trembling sound.
The next moment, she screamed in pain and covered her ears tightly.
Xiao Cheng'an was so shocked that he stood up immediately. He stood on tiptoe and looked, only to see scarlet blood flowing out from between the palace maid's fingers.
Liu Yuetang looked at the trembling Xiao Chengan and said with a faint smile, "Since the eldest prince didn't lie, I think Sister Yueliang won't cut off your ears."
"How about the eldest prince give it a try?"
Xiao Chengan was so frightened that his whole body trembled, fear flashed in his eyes, and he shook his head vigorously: "No...don't...this prince will not try."
He was about to escape, but Liu Yuetang grabbed his wrist tightly.
She smiled and said, "Don't be afraid, Your Highness. Sister Yueyue is only punishing children who lie."
As she spoke, she took Xiao Cheng'an's hand and pointed at the moon.
Xiao Chengan tried his best to break free but couldn't. He was so frightened that he closed his eyes tightly and cried out loudly: "Don't cut off my ears! Don't cut off my ears. I will never tell lies or hurt anyone again."
"Mother...Mother, come and save me."
As the words fell, the door opened heavily with a "bang".
Liu Yuetang looked up and saw that Xiao Heng had kicked the door open in anger.
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