Chapter 35: Get rid of two thorns in your side!

Xue Qingyao's chess play in this game was indeed ingenious.

She used the fact that Concubine Li summoned Xue Youli yesterday to make Xue Youli the biggest suspect in the murder of the little princess.

Once Murong Che believed their words, punished Xue Youli and angered Concubine Li, Xue Qingyao would be able to kill two birds with one stone and get rid of two thorns in her eyes.

But she had missed one point.

The relationship between Concubine Li and Murong Che was not that of an emperor and his favorite concubine, but that of a superior and a subordinate.

Concubine Li would not be jealous because Murong Che favored Xue Youli. In her eyes, Xue Youli was just like her...

No, she felt that Xue Youli was not as good as her. She had already been a mature chess piece, and Xue Youli would need her guidance in the future so that he could grow into a handy knife.

At this moment, everyone was waiting for Concubine Li to speak.

Concubine Li did not keep everyone waiting for long. She curled her red lips and said slowly, "I can prove that Lady Xue did not come into contact with Lan Zhuhua in Yongchun Palace yesterday."

All the concubines present were shocked.

Shen Ruolan was very angry and couldn't understand why Concubine Li wanted to protect Xue Youli. "Madam Concubine Li, Xue Youli is extremely cunning. Maybe she didn't do it herself, but asked the palace maids around her to collect pollen!"

Seeing that everyone was waiting for her to change her words, Concubine Li's lips curved even deeper. "I don't care which of you has a grudge against Concubine Xue, but you can't use me as a pawn just because I'm beautiful and good-tempered! I said Concubine Xue had never come into contact with blue hibiscus flowers because I sent all the blue hibiscus flowers in Yongchun Palace to Concubine Chun three days ago. There is not a single blue hibiscus flower in Yongchun Palace, so how could Concubine Xue steal pollen from Yongchun Palace yesterday?"

Xue Qingyao originally thought that this round was a sure win, but once Concubine Li's testimony came out, the situation instantly turned around.

Yes, since there is no Lan Zhuhua in Yongchun Palace, isn’t this a blatant frame-up?

Xue Youli exchanged glances with Concubine Li in tacit understanding, with an aggrieved expression on her pretty face, "I just happened to read some medical books and happened to save the little princess, but I was framed like this. Please, Your Majesty, help me!"

[Xue Qingyao probably never dreamed that Concubine Li and I were already half allies. With Concubine Li's protection, I will have someone to back me up in the harem. This is a great feeling!]

Murong Che glanced at Xue Youli, then turned to the others and his eyes suddenly became much colder, "Wang Defa, check!"

"yes!"

When Xue Qingyao saw Wang Defa leading people to Concubine Chun's Yongfu Palace, a flash of panic appeared in his eyes.

Her pollen was indeed obtained from Yongfu Palace.

Concubine Chun was a sickly woman with limited energy, so that person planted a hidden stake in Yongfu Palace.

If Xue Youli had not opposed her time and again, blocking her chance to contact the emperor, she would not have used this chess piece in advance.

Wang Defa also had some tricks up his sleeve. He went to Yongfu Palace, isolated the palace maids, and began to screen them one by one.

As for Yu Garden, since something like this happened during the flower viewing party, it was naturally impossible to continue viewing the flowers.

Concubine Ning said a few words to keep the situation in mind, and then asked all the concubines to go back and rest.

Xue Youli was about to leave, but Rong Qingyue stopped her, "Lady Xue, please stay."

Xue Youli paused, turned around and looked at Rong Qingyue, "Empress Rong, is there anything else you want to say?"

Rong Qingyue's eyes fell on her right hand.

I saw a large red area on her right hand from the fingers to the palm.

It was because he had been holding the cup of hot water when he was rescuing Murong Xi just now, and it got scalded red.

Rong Qingyue handed her the small white jade porcelain bottle in her hand and said, "This is the burn ointment I asked Imperial Physician Cheng for just now. Lady Xue, remember to rub the burn on your hands."

Xue Youli was stunned for a moment before she took the porcelain bottle and thanked him, "Thank you, Empress Rong."

Just now she saw Rong Qingyue asking Doctor Cheng for burn ointment, but she didn't expect that he was asking for it on her behalf.

Murong Xi was held in Caixia's arms, her face was still a little pale, but she was in good spirits.

The little guy waved to Xue Youli and was carried out of the pavilion by Caixia.

The concubines left one after another, and Xue Youli also led Banxia back to Lingyun Palace.

In the evening, news came that a young eunuch who was in charge of taking care of the flower beds in Yongfu Palace was the most likely suspect of stealing the blue hibiscus pollen.

Wang Defa was decisive in his handling of the matter and sent the man to the prison on the spot.

But this eunuch, though young, was a tough nut to crack.

Even after being tortured in the prison, he refused to reveal the person behind the crime and insisted that he did it alone.

After the young eunuch confessed, he could not bear the torture and died in the prison.

Wang Defa went to the young eunuch's residence again and carefully checked his personal belongings, but found nothing suspicious.

The clues stopped here.

The eunuch who took the pollen was dead. The case of Murong Xi being murdered and Xue Youli being wrongly accused ended with Concubine Chun being confined to her house for three months because she did not follow the rules strictly.

Poor Concubine Chun was just sitting at home when the pot fell from the sky and she was shot innocently.

Afterwards, Xue Youli, out of gratitude for the burn ointment Rong Fei gave him, wrote down ten tips for Murong Xi to prevent asthma attacks.

Rong Qingyue accepted all her suggestions without any hesitation.

She didn't know why, but after witnessing the entire process of Xue Youli treating her daughter in Yu Garden, she developed an inexplicable sense of trust in Xue Youli.

Time flies, and in the blink of an eye, half a month has passed.

Lingyun Palace.

"Master, Mr. Xue has gone to the garden!"

Xue Youli was practicing calligraphy at the table. When she saw Banxia rushing over to report Xue Qingyao's whereabouts, she paused and said, "It seems that she believed the rumors we deliberately spread."

Banxia nodded, "Yes, so she only brought Lianxin to Yu Garden today!"

Although Xue Youli escaped unscathed from the previous flower viewing party, Xue Qingyao, the mastermind behind the incident, was unharmed.

How could Xue Youli just let it go without venting her anger?

So, she deliberately asked Banxia to spread false news near Minghua Palace, saying that the young eunuch who was arrested and taken to the prison confessed before his death, and the evidence was thrown into the artificial lake of Yu Garden by the mastermind.

Xue Youli had the Book of Heaven in her hand and knew every detail of how Xue Qingyao framed her.

After reading in the Book of Heaven's Secret that Xue Qingyao threw the paper bag of pollen into the artificial lake in Yu Garden, he thought of using this method to fight back against Xue Qingyao.

She deliberately ordered people to bring up the evidence in front of the group of young palace maids in Minghua Palace in order to lay out the bait and lure the snake out of its hole.

Given Xue Qingyao's cautious style, he would definitely find an excuse to go to Yu Garden to check the situation.

Now hearing Banxia say that Xue Qingyao really went to Yu Garden, Xue Youli dropped his wolf-hair brush and stood up, "Let's go! Let's go to Yu Garden too!" as a return gift to Xue Qingyao.

In the Yu Garden, Xue Qingyao sat on the railing of the bridge in the middle of the lake and threw the fish food in his hand into the lake to feed the koi.

While feeding the koi, she quietly threw the rice paper hidden in her hand into the lake, wanting to see with her own eyes what changes would occur to the rice paper after being soaked in the lake water.

However, not long after, when she used tree paper to pick up the rice paper, it had become a mess.

The rice paper she used to hold the pollen had been soaked in the lake water for so long that it must have melted long ago.

Oh no!

Got fooled!

Xue Qingyao suddenly came to his senses and was about to tell Lian Xin to leave quickly.

At this moment, someone suddenly kicked her in the back!

Xue Qingyao was caught off guard and fell into the lake before he could react!