"What a great way to cut off contact! Her nephew actually dared to poison An Junyuan! Tell me, wasn't it Li Mingfu who ordered him to do this?" Emperor Wen was furious and roared at the top of his lungs, as if he wanted to shake the entire palace down.
Upon hearing this, the Queen's face instantly turned pale as paper, and her body began to tremble uncontrollably. She fell to her knees, tears welling up in her eyes. "Your Majesty, this is an unfounded slander! My brother would never do such a thing! I hope Your Majesty will see clearly!"
Matron Liu, standing by, quickly knelt down, kowtowed, and said, "Your Majesty! I was sold to the Li Mansion by my parents when I was ten years old. For all these years, I have served you faithfully and have never had any contact with your maternal family! I beg Your Majesty to understand! I truly don't know who else is in my maternal family!"
Her forehead hit the ground with a crisp sound, and soon blood came out, but she had no intention of stopping.
The Empress's eyes flashed, and she suddenly rushed over like a gust of wind, tightly grasping Madam Liu's hand. Her dark eyes, filled with anger, stared at Emperor Wen, and she shouted sharply, "If Your Majesty truly has irrefutable evidence to prove that all this was instigated by the Prime Minister, then I will naturally have nothing to say! However, if Your Majesty falsely accuses my family without any basis, then I will absolutely not accept it!"
The corner of Emperor Wen's eye twitched slightly, his eyes became gloomy and cold, and he said coldly: "Empress, don't think that I dare not depose the prince!"
The Queen stood tall and unflinching, responding without flinching, "The royal family's ancestral etiquette is right there! The people of the world are watching! If Your Majesty wishes to depose the crown prince, you must see if the civil and military officials in the court agree!"
When Emperor Wen heard this, his face instantly turned livid. He snorted coldly, waved his sleeves vigorously, turned around and strode away...
When Emperor Wen reached the door of the hall, he stopped, turned around and said viciously: "The Queen and the Prime Minister had better not have any evil ideas! Otherwise, if the prince is implicated, don't blame me for disregarding the relationship between father and son!" After that, he left without looking back, leaving the Queen and everyone there, the atmosphere was extremely tense.
After Emperor Wen and the imperial guards left, the Empress collapsed to the ground, seemingly without support. Matron Liu quickly waved the surrounding maids and eunuchs away, then quickly stepped forward and gently helped the Empress to her feet. Her face was filled with sorrow, tears streaming down her face as she choked back tears, saying, "Empress, why do you have to embarrass yourself so much? If I, an old servant, could bear the blame, perhaps it would be better than the current rift between you and Your Majesty!"
The Queen seemed utterly exhausted. Matron Liu supported her feebly as she sat down on a chair. With a deep sigh, the Queen slowly spoke, "If you confess, everything will be irreversible! Not only the Prime Minister, but I, too, will be in dire straits! Fortunately, Liu Lin is dead, and all the evidence will disappear with him!"
Aunt Liu nodded repeatedly, respectfully expressing her understanding: "I understand! Your Majesty, please rest assured! Leave everything to me!"
The Queen gently rubbed her aching temple and continued in a serious tone, "The Prime Minister has made proper arrangements regarding the Liu family. However, you must be extra careful when moving around the palace during this period! Don't take it lightly!"
Madam Liu frowned and lowered her voice, saying, "Your Majesty truly dotes on that vixen! He even stood up for her family! This is truly unfair!"
A cold light flashed in the queen's eyes, and she responded coldly: "Your Majesty just thinks that the prince has taken away his military power! He doesn't really care about that woman and her family. Your Majesty only has Xiao Jinghan's short-lived mother in his heart, and the bitch An Guifei is just a substitute!" When she said this, the queen's tone was full of disdain and resentment.
Matron Liu looked at the Empress solemnly, her hands trembling slightly, her voice tinged with fear. "Empress, now that His Majesty intends to replace the Crown Prince, how should we proceed? Do we need to discuss this with the Prime Minister?"
The Queen frowned slightly, a resolute light gleaming in her eyes, but her tone was unusually calm: "Hold still for now, and do not act rashly in the near future. Follow me to the Buddhist temple."
Upon hearing this, Aunt Liu's face suddenly changed, and she shouted in astonishment: "Empress, that Buddhist temple is a very ominous place..."
However, the queen raised the corner of her mouth slightly, revealing a disdainful sneer: "Hmph! When she was alive, I was not afraid of her at all. Could it be that I am afraid of her ghost now? No need to say more, just follow me quickly!" After that, the queen turned around resolutely and walked towards the direction of the Buddhist hall.
The next morning, sunlight streamed down upon the court, casting a solemn and dignified atmosphere. A sharp voice rang out, "If you have something to say, please report it! If not, please dismiss the court!" The court suddenly fell silent.
At this moment, Song Zhen, Junior Secretary of the Dali Temple, stepped out and declared, "Your Majesty! I have an important matter to report!" His voice echoed throughout the court, startling everyone. The Prime Minister and the Crown Prince bowed their heads in silence, but the Third Prince frowned slightly, his gaze fixed on Song Zhen.
Emperor Wen slowly raised his head and gazed at Song Zhen calmly, his face expressionless. Time seemed to freeze. After a long moment, Emperor Wen finally spoke and asked, "Lord Song, what is it that you are reporting?"
Song Zhen respectfully handed over a case file. Eunuch Gao hurried forward to take it and presented it to Emperor Wen. As Emperor Wen flipped through the file, he suddenly snorted, "A missing girl? Such a minor case, the Dali Temple can handle it on its own. Why bring it to the palace?"
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