“I’m not a fool. If I don’t enjoy the good fortune and instead curse this great swamp, what good will come of it?”
The emperor looked at the crown prince, his deep eyes unfathomable: "This thing was clearly found in the eldest prince's palace?"
The Crown Prince looked regretful: "Indeed, I believe that my elder brother would not do such a thing, but the appearance of this thing is still quite puzzling."
"What nonsense! It's obvious someone is framing me. Ha, the Crown Prince said he wanted to search the Prince's Palace, and then this thing appeared in my room. Isn't that too much of a coincidence?"
"Does the eldest prince mean that this was arranged by me? Your palace, not only mine, but all my servants and attendants have not been here for the past few years. To say that I framed you is too far-fetched."
“I never said that the Crown Prince framed me,” the eldest prince said coldly, then looked earnestly at the emperor: “I am innocent, I am truly innocent. I beg Father to give me justice. I would never do such a thing.”
As he spoke, he pointed to the sky and swore: "If I have told a single lie, if I have really done such a thing, may I be struck by lightning and never be reincarnated."
But the emperor's face remained cold and unmoved.
"This thing was found in your room. You never let outsiders in here, so what exactly happened?"
Qiao Lian'er listened from the side and felt that the emperor's words seemed to carry some kind of implication.
Moreover, judging from the emperor's expression, she must have guessed that this was an internal power struggle among the princes.
For the emperor, the most important thing was how the eldest prince could extricate himself from the situation legitimately.
"Your son is also full of confusion. Your son does not understand. Witchcraft is a great taboo in Father's heart. Your son loves and respects Father. Even if it costs your son's life, your son would never disobey or blaspheme Father."
The emperor slowly exhaled: "In that case, we have no choice but to initiate an investigation. Once the investigation is initiated, your freedom will be restricted until the facts are clear."
The eldest prince shuddered. Once someone is investigated, there's too much room for manipulation. Who knows what the crown prince might do then? He absolutely cannot go that far.
He kept his head down, his eyes darting around, and then suddenly turned his head away.
"Think carefully, all of you, about who has seen or touched this thing. Confess as soon as possible and you will be punished leniently. Otherwise, I cannot save you."
Seeing the prince's threatening and enticing gaze, the servants' expressions changed.
They knew that if no one stepped forward to take the blame, their entire family would be killed by the eldest prince.
After a moment of silent struggle and staring at each other, an old woman, trembling, crawled forward on her knees.
"Your Majesty, this straw doll was made by this old servant."
Why did you do that?
“Once, in the Imperial Garden, this old servant was in a hurry and bumped into the Emperor. I was fined my monthly salary and was beaten with a stick several times. I had a grudge against the Emperor and was also angry that the Crown Prince did not speak up for me. So I thought of cursing the Great Swamp Kingdom and framing the Crown Prince to vent my anger.”
The emperor thought about it and realized that there was indeed such a thing, which made sense.
He said, "Since you dare to do it and take responsibility, then there's no need to implicate your family. Go down and get a glass of poison."
The old woman turned pale, thanked him, and retreated, her legs trembling.
This time, Qiao Lian'er deeply experienced that emperors love their eldest sons while common people love their youngest sons.
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