But the palace maid breathed a sigh of relief when she heard this, thinking that Yuwen Ran had believed her testimony and was going to bring Gu Yanyue to justice. She bowed and thanked him, "Your Majesty, I thank you."
Not long after, news came from the palace that Gu Yanyue had poisoned the Queen Mother and was trapped in the cold palace for life and was not allowed to go out.
After hearing the news, the person who was most proud was Shangguan Yi. Although she did not achieve her goal, she did cause Gu Yanyue to suffer a great loss.
Now that Gu Yanyue has been sent to the cold palace, it will not be so easy for her to make a comeback.
Taking advantage of the moment when Yuwen Ran was punishing Gu Yanyue and his guard was down, the palace maid came to the door herself. Shangguan Yi said nothing and signaled to the personal maid next to her. The maid turned around and brought a plate covered with gold ingots.
The maid swallowed her saliva and knelt down to express her gratitude. "Thank you, Princess!"
Gu Yanyue was imprisoned in the cold palace. Shangguan Yi was in a good mood, so she kept her promise and sent someone to secretly send the palace maid out of the palace.
Just when the palace maid was about to leave the palace, several people suddenly came out from the dark and surrounded them. The palace maid shrank her body and tried to escape to the side, but was caught back.
"Where are you going?" Yu Wenran walked out from behind the guards and looked at them with a knowing look on his face.
Shangguan Yi's heart skipped a beat, and she had a bad feeling. "I just wanted to go out for a walk. What is the emperor doing?"
"Go out for a walk? Why did the princess bring the maid from Lady Zhenguo's palace?" Yuwen Ran recognized the maid who had given the confession before at a glance. The maid's face suddenly turned pale and she hid behind Shangguan Yi.
Shangguan Yi cursed inwardly for being so unworthy, but she still defended the maid. "She came to my palace the day before yesterday and said that she had exposed Madam Zhenguo's crimes and was afraid of retaliation from her, so she wanted my protection. I felt sorry for her and agreed!"
Yuwen Ran glanced at the palace maid meaningfully. "So that's how it is. Didn't I tell you that Madam Zhenguo wouldn't do anything to you? Why do you really not trust me?"
"Your Majesty, please calm down. I am just scared!" The palace maid knelt on the ground all of a sudden, and the bundle in her hand fell to the ground with a dull sound.
Yuwen Ran gave a look to the guard next to him, and the guard quickly snatched the bundle from the palace maid's hand. The gold ingots inside scattered out, and the palace maid suddenly collapsed on the ground.
"What else do you have to say now? Do you really think I am blind? What is the truth? Tell the truth. If I find that there is even a trace of falsehood in you, I will take your head!" As he said that, Yuwen Ran drew the long sword from the guard's hand and stroked it carefully.
The maid quickly knelt down and begged for mercy, "This slave did not do this voluntarily. Please understand, Your Majesty. This slave was forced!"
Before she could finish her words, Shangguan Yi kicked the maid, "You bold bitch, how dare you frame Madam Zhenguo? You've wasted my sympathy for you!"
However, Yu Wenran was watching and naturally would not let Shangguan Yi kill the witness. "This is a key witness. The princess is angry. Let's talk about it later!"
After saying this, Shangguan Yi secretly glared at the palace maid. She shouldn't have been soft-hearted at the beginning. She should have killed her with a knife. But now that things have come to this, what's the use of regretting it?
After a while, Gu Yanyue was released from the cold palace and the empress dowager was also called in. It seemed that Yuwen Ran was planning to try the case in front of everyone.
The Queen Mother saw Shangguan Yi there, and she felt uneasy. She frowned, "Is the Emperor going to tell me that Yi'er did this? I don't believe it. How could Yi'er do such a thing?"
Yuwen Ran snorted inwardly and slammed the table hard, startling the maid. "Why don't you tell us the truth about what happened?"
As expected, when the palace maid saw this scene, she dared not talk nonsense anymore. She honestly told the truth about all the threats Shangguan Yi had made to her, and also confirmed that it was Shangguan Yi who poisoned and framed Gu Yanyue.
Gu Yanyue just sat there indifferently, as if this matter had nothing to do with her.
Originally, Shangguan Yi was still planning how to kill the palace maid without anyone knowing, but she didn't expect that the palace maid would betray her so quickly, catching her off guard.
"Shangguan Yi, do you plead guilty?" There was nothing but coldness in Yuwen Ran's eyes as he looked at Shangguan Yi.
Shangguan Yi felt a chill in her heart as she took a step back and laughed bitterly, "Yes, it was me, so what? If it weren't for the Emperor's excessive favor for that bitch Gu Yanyue, why would this princess have poisoned her to death? All this is because of the Emperor!"
After hearing Shangguan Yi's words, the Queen Mother cursed in her heart, what a fool! If Shangguan Yi had denied it outright and said that it was a palace maid who framed her, she could have gotten away with it. But now Shangguan Yi had admitted the crime in front of everyone, how could she take sides?
But she suddenly remembered something. The poison was hers, and she was the one who gave Shangguan Yi the idea to poison her. If Shangguan Yi gave her away, wouldn't she lose both her wife and her army?
The Queen Mother then changed her mind and hurriedly made the final decision, "Yier, you are foolish! Even if you like the Emperor, you can't do such a thing. But luckily nothing happened, otherwise I would never forgive you!"
Shangguan Yi's eyes reddened when she heard the Queen Mother say this, and she became more sober. "Mother, Yi'er was wrong in this matter. The Emperor can punish her if he wants!"
The two of them sang the same tune and performed a good show, but the Queen Mother said this not to save Shangguan Yi. After all, Shangguan Yi was a fool and was beyond help. As long as she could not enter Yuwen Ran's harem, Shangguan Yi would be a useless pawn, and she would not keep idle people in her hands.
The Queen Mother had no choice but to appease Shangguan Yi temporarily. Shangguan Yi fell into the trap and didn't think about it that way at all. He was still moved by the Queen Mother.
Yuwen Ran's lips curled up into an intriguing smile. "The emperor is guilty of the same crime as the common people. Since the eldest princess has the intention to kill, according to the laws of the dynasty, her title should be stripped and she should be demoted to a commoner!"
"Your Majesty, Yi'er grew up under my care. Are you really going to be so heartless?" The Queen Mother spoke in time, tears already welling up in her eyes, and she looked tearful.
Yuwen Ran frowned slightly. "My Queen, do you mean for me to bend the law for the sake of the Princess? Who will obey my instructions in the future?"
"I request that the eldest princess be sent out of the palace and never be allowed to enter the palace again. Does Your Majesty think this punishment is acceptable?" The empress dowager suppressed her anger and discussed with Yuwen Ran.
Yuwen Ran's face was full of embarrassment, but he could not bear the pressure of the Queen Mother's status on him, so he nodded and agreed. "Since the Queen Mother has said so, I can't refuse. I will do as the Queen Mother says!"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
