Chapter 952 Dark under the lamp
Although there were discussions outside, the situation was relatively calm. However, the palace was almost turned upside down.
The Yongzhao Palace was searched inside and out several times. Except for Yue Jian and Hua Wu, even those who were transferred from the secret guard camp to become palace maids were all checked once. In addition, other places outside the Yongzhao Palace were also searched by Yu Yanfeng and the imperial guards.
There were indeed some restless people, and a few with shady backgrounds were caught, but none of them had anything to do with the Queen's poisoning and subsequent shock delivery.
The palace could not find any clues about the person who poisoned the people. In addition, Xiao Yan was attacked and fell off a cliff. They were afraid that there would be changes in the court and someone would need to be outside to pacify and suppress them. After consultation with Rong Yue and Concubine Zhao Gui, Xue Ru invited Cao Dejiang into the palace. Cao Dejiang was shocked to see Tang Ning unconscious.
Fortunately, he had experienced many storms and was able to calm himself down in just a moment.
"Has the palace been searched?" Cao Dejiang asked in a deep voice.
"It's already been searched."
Yu Yanfeng said, "Among the people we captured, there were spies from Southern Qi, some spies placed in the palace by others, and two remnants from the previous aristocratic families. However, most of these people were hiding in the dark as pawns for future actions, or had been abandoned and were of no use. At least this time, they did nothing."
Catching these people was an unexpected gain, but they were definitely not the ones who poisoned the Queen.
Cao Dejiang frowned. There were too many servants in the palace. Even the lowest-ranking sweepers and laundrymen numbered in the thousands. With so many people, it was impossible to completely eliminate those with ulterior motives. Even though Yu Yanfeng had captured all of them, he still hadn't found the source of the poison...
Cao Dejiang asked, "Where is the palace maid we captured earlier?"
Concubine Zhao Gui quickly said, "The maid's name is Liu Qin. She entered the palace long before the deposed emperor took office. She has been well behaved and has never committed any wrongdoing. After His Majesty ascended the throne, some people were released from the palace. Because Liu Qin acted cautiously and had a clean background, she was transferred to Yongzhao Palace as a third-class maid."
There are dozens of palace maids in Yongzhao Palace. In addition to Yuejian and Huawu who serve the queen personally, there are several other second-class palace maids who occasionally come to serve her. Others rarely enter the main hall of Yongzhao Palace.
Liu Qin's status in Yongzhao Palace was the lowest. She usually did cleaning chores. After being transferred here, she had been well-behaved and had not moved. So when the queen became pregnant and the palace staff in Yongzhao Palace were changed, the secret guards outside the palace were transferred in to serve as palace maids and the others were transferred away. However, she stayed because she was not important.
But who could have imagined that such an insignificant and low-status third-class palace maid would almost take the lives of the queen and her son.
Concubine Zhao Gui's eyes were somewhat cold. "I ordered the torture, but Liu Qin refused to confess, and nothing related to the Queen's poisoning was found on her."
"I've also had people investigate her background. Liu Qin entered the palace at the age of eight, and it's been nearly ten years now. During this time, she's been to many places and served many masters, but she hasn't made any particularly close friends or had close interactions with anyone."
"Ever since the Empress became pregnant, Yongzhao Palace has been under strict surveillance. To prevent mischief, third-class maids are all kept in rooms of six. I've interrogated the maids who shared a room with Liu Qin. They all went in and out with her, and they said she was a solitary person who rarely left Yongzhao Palace. There's no record of her leaving the palace in the past year."
Rong Yue asked: "Does she have any relatives?"
Concubine Zhao Gui shook her head. "The palace records say that both parents are dead and there is an uncle, but after sending people to check, there is no such person at all."
Cao Dejiang frowned even more tightly after hearing this. She had concealed her identity and entered the palace ten years ago, and had not made any moves for so many years. It was impossible that she was sent into the palace in the first place just for Xiao Yan and Tang Ning. Moreover, ten years ago, the former crown prince had just gotten into trouble, and the deposed emperor had not yet secured his seat on the throne, so the palace was in chaos.
At that time, the deposed emperor was busy killing all the supporters of the Eastern Palace and had no time to care about the harem. Important officials in the court, royal relatives, and powerful families had all sent people to the palace, and even Cao Dejiang himself was no exception. Therefore, it was almost impossible for someone to guess who the palace maid was based on this.
Cao Dejiang pondered for a moment and said, "This palace maid hasn't moved in ten years. There's a 90% chance that she's from another country."
"Before, during the turmoil in the court, the imperial power was changing hands, the noble families and the empress fought to the death, and His Majesty faked his own death. When the court was in turmoil, the Wei Dynasty was on the verge of collapse. If it were someone from another country, they would definitely not miss such a good opportunity. Putting aside this possibility, the person behind the palace maid is most likely a member of the Wei Dynasty, and even more likely someone in the court."
He tapped his fingers on his knee, his eyes deep and thoughtful.
"The court has been purged several times, and among those who remain, only a few have the courage and ability to do this."
Xue Ru said, "Liang Guangyi and the Shi family?"
"Not them."
Cao Dejiang said bluntly, "The Shi family has been severely punished before, and their vitality has been greatly damaged. They are unable to plot against Your Majesty and the Empress. As for Liang Guangyi, although he has the ability, he knows very well that if something happens to the Emperor and Empress, he will not be able to stabilize the court and suppress others."
Liang Guangyi might be unwilling to give up. If he could really control the court to find someone to replace His Majesty, he might do it.
But now His Majesty has the support of the people, and the Great Wei is on the verge of revival. It is impossible for him to use the peace he gained by abandoning other families and the hundreds of people in the Liang family to vent his anger.
Rong Yue said: "Apart from them, who else could it be?"
Cao Dejiang sat aside, and something suddenly flashed through his mind, but it disappeared before he could grasp it. He pressed his brows, which were twitching slightly, and said in a deep voice, "It's hard to find out who it was for the time being, but the poison in the queen should not have been administered by Liu Qin."
"Imperial Physician Jiang said the poison required close contact with the Queen. No poisonous substances were found in Yongzhao Palace. Yet, you just said the poison in the Queen's body flared up after giving birth. Imperial Physician Jiang said something triggered it to flare up suddenly. Liu Qin had already been captured by then, so the substance that could have exacerbated the poison in the Queen's body must have been in someone else's possession."
Rong Yue heard this and said, "But the midwife and several secret guards who were in the room at the time have all been interrogated and searched, and there's nothing unusual about them."
"What about the others?"
"Others?"
Rong Yue was stunned. Apart from those people, who else was there in the delivery room at that time...
wrong!
Rong Yue stood up suddenly: "Me, Yue Jian, and Hua Wu?"
Xue Ru also had an ugly expression on her face: "And me and Concubine Zhao Gui."
Everyone inside and outside the Yongzhao Palace was checked, except for these few people, who were not checked because it was impossible for them to harm Tang Ning, and no one suspected that the problem might be with them.
But if it really is dark under the lamp...
Concubine Zhao Gui raised her head and said sternly, "Come here, get Imperial Physician Jiang here immediately!"
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