Chapter 58 Seizing the Opportunity
Yinqiao's back was covered in cold sweat, and she replied with a stiff upper lip, "My young master, such a big thing happened, I was so confused that I forgot about it."
"I forgot, the important things, but you remember the details clearly."
Meng Yan sneered and asked, "The Imperial Noble Consort just asked you, what were you going to say? Were you going to accuse me of that jar of facial cream coming from Changchun Palace? But I heard clearly from outside that you said you begged for the facial cream from a medical officer in the Imperial Hospital. I don't even know the name of this medical officer, and you just happened to meet him, so how could you have any connection with me?"
Although Yinqiao was clever, the incident happened suddenly, and the Imperial Noble Concubine impulsively forced her to frame Meng Yan. How could her plan be perfect? It was full of loopholes.
She froze on the ground, unable to utter a word, just watching beads of sweat the size of beans hit the ground.
"That being said, there are many gossips in the palace, and it's possible that Concubine Lin heard some gossip about the cream from other places."
Liang Chengbi couldn't help but interrupt, causing Lu Haozhi to stare at her coldly. She quickly retracted her tongue and dared not say anything more.
Meng Yan smiled and said bluntly, "Well, I'll just say it myself, so there's no need for the Imperial Noble Consort to lecture this maid. I guess what I'm going to say next is that Concubine Lin heard from others in the palace that the facial cream I use is excellent, so she sent someone to the Imperial Hospital to ask for it. I deliberately spread the rumor, and I also planted people in the Imperial Hospital and prepared a jar of tampered facial cream beforehand. When Concubine Lin came to ask for it, she fell into my trap. I set up this vicious plan because I was jealous of Lin's favor with the Emperor, and I wanted to murder her to keep her favor. Imperial Noble Consort, is this story still true?"
Without waiting for Liang Chengbi's reply, she continued, "Next, of course, we have to ask the Emperor to make the decision. Send people to Changchun Palace for a thorough search, digging three feet underground to find evidence. It doesn't matter if there's nothing, we can just send someone to slip some in during the search."
After a few words, everyone's expression changed.
Concubine Xuanhe scolded her in a deep voice, "This is ridiculous. How can such nonsense happen in the imperial palace?"
"This is indeed absurd, but isn't it absurd to accuse me based on nothing at all?!"
Meng Yan raised her eyebrows and looked straight at Concubine Xuanhe.
These words were not something she came up with on the spur of the moment.
In fact, in her previous life, such farces had been staged countless times in the palace, and she was already familiar with these tricks.
Now that it was happening again, although she was not afraid, she still felt a little disgusted.
She looked at Yinqiao again. "Your accusation against me is completely groundless. But I do have solid evidence for one thing. Yinqiao, I remember you. You were a maid who entered the palace seven years ago. Your family lived in Tianshui Lane in the capital. Your parents and brothers are all dead, leaving you with only your nephew, whom you dote on. Recently, your nephew got a lucrative job as a personal attendant in the Prime Minister's residence. Your family also acquired several acres of fertile land in the countryside and built three new tiled houses. With such good things happening to you, of course you'd be loyal like a lapdog."
Yinqiao's legs and feet suddenly went limp and she collapsed to the ground.
Liang Chengbi's face turned pale, he bit his lower lip and took a step back.
This matter was kept extremely secret by her mother's family, how could Meng Yan know about it?!
Lin Yanrong had the Nanping Prince's Mansion as her backer, and she had also won the emperor's favor before entering the palace. If she wanted to support her, she naturally had to place someone around her. Yinqiao was the person she had chosen.
But these things happened outside the palace, and Yinqiao's nephew was just an insignificant commoner. How could Meng Yan know so much about it?!
"Sister, what you said really surprised me. How could you know what's going on outside after living in the palace for so long? Maybe you heard some gossip and caused another misunderstanding."
"Whether it exists or not, we can just send someone out of the palace to find out. Anyway, everyone here knows everything, and those lands are not going to disappear."
Meng Yan glanced at Liang Chengbi and said something lightly, which immediately choked her and made her speechless.
In fact, this incident can be regarded as her advantage in being reborn.
Liang Chengbi had indeed bribed Yinqiao's family early on, using this as a threat to force Yinqiao to be her spy.
However, in her previous life, Yinqiao had been with Lin Yanrong for some time and was completely devoted to her, so she told all these things to her. Lin Yanrong was indeed magnanimous and forgave Yinqiao, and even had a secret talk with Liang Chengbi.
From then on, Yinqiao became her right-hand man, and Lin Yanrong and Liang Chengbi became sworn sisters.
In this life, she has seized the initiative.
“That’s enough!”
Lu Haozhi's cold voice interrupted the argument, and his cold eyes swept across everyone's faces one by one.
The drama has played out to this point. If he still doesn't understand it, he would be unworthy of being a king.
However, Meng Yan once again surprised him and broke the chaos cleanly and neatly.
Just like the time with Jiang Tang, she did not rely on him.
From beginning to end, she never even looked at him to find out what he meant.
Is he really not worthy of her reliance?
Suppressing his unhappiness, Lu Haozhi ordered everyone to be punished.
"Ms. Lin is seriously ill, so I want her to take good care of herself. When she recovers, I will assign someone in the palace to teach my aunt and teach her the rules and etiquette in detail."
Although this statement did not severely punish Lin Yanrong, it did temporarily eliminate her possibility. The fact that they had to learn the rules and regulations from scratch showed what kind of impression she held in the emperor's mind.
Concubine Xuanhe was almost mad with anger, but she managed to maintain her dignity as a concubine because she was in front of so many people.
Liang Chengbi's face also looked a little unhappy. She knew that since the emperor didn't like Lin Yanrong, she would naturally not have a good time either.
As expected, Lu Haozhi's cold gaze fell on her, with a hint of undisguised disgust.
"The Imperial Palace is a place of peace and tranquility, but now it has become such a mess. You, the Imperial Concubine, seem quite incompetent. It is best to put aside your palace authority for now and return to your Yikun Palace to cultivate your character and focus your thoughts."
Liang Chengbi's face was filled with sorrow, and two tears instantly rolled down from the corners of her eyes. She covered her mouth and nose with a handkerchief and thanked the emperor for his grace.
"This servant is dishonest and unfit to serve the masters. How can she pretend to be the head aunt? It's really ridiculous. She will be punished to be a slave in the laundry department and will never be used by the masters again."
Seeing Yinqiao being picked up and dragged away by the eunuchs, Meng Yan raised her eyebrows.
In her previous life, this maidservant had followed her master and was considered a prominent figure in the harem of the Great Zhou Dynasty. After Lin Yanrong gained power, she also wanted to have her way, and wherever she went, she was followed by a group of young maids and eunuchs.
She had been instrumental in helping Lin Yanrong gain favor, and even after he fell into poverty, she had shown off in front of him.
In this life, an important character in the book ended up in such a miserable way.
Meng Yan was lamenting the impermanence of life in her heart, when she suddenly felt an ambiguous gaze falling on her.
She raised her head and saw Lu Haozhi looking at her.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
