Chapter 155 The Mastermind
"The person who added the medicine would smear musk on the lid. When the medicine boiled, it would touch the lid, and the musk would seep into the medicine without the person noticing. After boiling, the medicine pot would be washed, and naturally, no trace would be left."
However, I believe this is not the first time musk has been applied to the lid; it has likely been applied through multiple boiling processes. Therefore, the faint musk scent remaining on the lid cannot be washed off. As for the white powder in the crevices, I confirm it is made from ground musk. It seems that too much musk was applied this time, and due to carelessness, it was not thoroughly cleaned.”
After finding traces of musk on the lid of the medicine jar, Shen Meizhuang sent someone to report to the Emperor and Empress. Now, Yinzhen and Yixiu were sitting in Cunju Hall, listening to Wen Shichu, who was standing below, report the specific method of administering the medicine.
"How is Consort Hui's health?" Yinzhen frowned. Hearing Wen Shichu say that she had been drugged multiple times, he looked at Shen Meizhuang, who was clearly frightened, and felt worried.
"Your Majesty, we have examined Consort Hui's pulse again. The amount of musk she was given before was very small, so the impact was not significant. She can take a few more days of pregnancy-stabilizing medicine."
Upon hearing this, Yinzhen nodded in relief. "Where is the person who drugged me? Have they been caught?"
Upon hearing his question, Shen Meizhuang stood up, bowed to the two of them, and ordered someone to bring up Fuling.
"Your Majesty, when Imperial Physician Wen discovered the musk on the medicine pot, the palace maid Fuling, who was responsible for cleaning the pot, gave herself away and was imprisoned by the concubines."
"This servant...this servant greets Your Majesty and Your Majesty the Empress." Fuling was dragged to the Emperor and Empress, kneeling weakly on the ground, trembling. Anyone could tell at a glance that something was amiss.
"Fuling, I've always treated you well, so who instructed you to attack me?"
"I didn't, I didn't..."
"Even now, you still dare to argue. If it had nothing to do with you, why did your expression change so drastically and your eyes show such panic when Physician Wen pointed out the problem with the medicine lid? Besides you, who else could put medicine on the lid under the guise of cleaning? And how do you explain the musk found in your pillow?"
Faced with Shen Meizhuang's three angry questions, Fuling was speechless. This shouldn't be the case. She was very careful and always made it a little smaller. How could she have been discovered so suddenly?
"This servant, this servant..."
Sitting above, Yixiu understood everything. It was undoubtedly this palace maid who had drugged her, but the key question was: who had ordered her to do it? One problem after another arose. She naturally could not tolerate anyone daring to stir up trouble in the harem.
"To plot against the imperial heir is a capital offense punishable by the confiscation of property and the extermination of the entire clan. Who instructed you? Confess now!"
Faced with the Empress's questioning, Fuling trembled, realizing the enormity of her crime. She repeatedly kowtowed and begged for mercy: "Your Majesty, spare me! Your Majesty, spare me! I... I was coerced! It was Consort Liu! Consort Liu threatened me with my parents..."
"Liu Yingyi?"
Shen Meizhuang looked puzzled, having no recollection of the "Consort Liu" mentioned by Fuling. However, An Lingrong, who was observing from the side, noticed the Empress's expression change the instantaneously upon hearing the name.
"Yes, my lady, it really was Consort Liu who forced me..."
“Since this palace maid has testified against Liu, why not summon Liu to confront him?” Yixiu suggested, observing Yinzhen’s expression. Yinzhen nodded in agreement, seemingly unaffected.
Yixiu breathed a sigh of relief. Back in the manor, Liu Qingxue was considered one of her people. However, after Liu Qingxue's affair with Nian Shilan was discovered, Yixiu abandoned her and barely paid her any attention after entering the palace.
To her utter surprise, the incident involving Shen Meizhuang would implicate Liu Qingxue. Regardless of whether Liu Qingxue was truly the mastermind, Yixiu was worried that the Emperor would suspect her because of her past relationship with Liu Qingxue. Having her dignity as Empress challenged was already displeasing to Yixiu. Now, being unwittingly embroiled in unnecessary trouble was even more of a headache.
Soon, Liu Qingxue was brought there.
"This concubine greets Your Majesty and Your Majesty the Empress."
"Consort Liu, do you know this person?" Yixiu asked, pointing to Fuling kneeling in the hall.
Liu Qingxue looked confused and bewildered. She walked closer and examined Fuling's appearance carefully, then shook her head. "Your Majesty, I don't recognize her."
"Indeed, this person accused you of harming Consort Hui's unborn child, ordering you to put musk in Consort Hui's pregnancy-preserving medicine."
"I didn't," Liu Qingxue retorted in a panic, "I have no grudge against Consort Hui, how could I possibly harm her?"
"You're lying! You're the one who threatened me with my parents' lives!" Fuling shouted angrily at Liu Qingxue when she denied it.
"Nonsense!" Liu Qingxue knelt before the two men, crying as she protested, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty the Empress, please do justice for me! I really didn't do it. I'm just a lowly concubine, what ability or means could I possibly have to harm Consort Hui?"
“I have evidence,” Fu Ling said angrily, trembling as she pulled out a silk handkerchief from her bosom. The handkerchief was embroidered with the character “snow.” “I was scared at the time, so I kept my eyes open and took Liu Ying’s handkerchief when she was not paying attention.”
Liu Qingxue's stammering sobs paused. "It's just a handkerchief, what does that prove? I've lost handkerchiefs countless times, maybe you deliberately stole it to frame me. Your Majesty, Your Majesty, you must do justice for me, for the sake of my past service to you..."
"Shut up!" Yi Xiu's expression changed, and she coldly rebuked him. Seeing the suspicious looks in the eyes of the others in the hall, she felt like killing Liu Qingxue. Was she hiding something and trying to pin the blame on her?
What others think is unimportant; what matters is the Emperor. The Emperor's opinion is the most crucial factor.
"Your Majesty, it was only when we were still in the Prince's residence that I took pity on Lady Liu and protected her twice. Now, Lady Liu's words are clearly an attempt to implicate me and evade responsibility. I have nothing to hide, Your Majesty is free to investigate. It was definitely not me who did it."
"Of course I believe you." Yinzhen patted Yixiu's hand to comfort her, then turned to look at the two kneeling on the ground and ordered, "Take them away and hand them over to the Censorate for interrogation. Use whatever means necessary to get them to talk. I want to know the whole truth."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"Your Majesty, no! Your Majesty, I'm innocent!" Liu Qingxue, dragged away by two eunuchs, looked terrified and struggled desperately. She couldn't believe that she had implicated the Empress and had been sent to the Department of Cautious Punishment.
The methods employed by the Censorate filled Liu Qingxue with dread. Looking at the unmoved Emperor, Liu Qingxue completely broke down, "I confess! I confess! Your Majesty, the mastermind wasn't me, it was Consort Li! It was Fei Yunyan! It was Fei Yunyan!"
Another person was exposed, and everyone in the hall was stunned. They hadn't expected that Liu Qingxue had someone backing her. At Yinzhen's signal, Liu Qingxue was dragged back again and collapsed to the ground.
"Tell me, what's this about Consort Li again?"
Sensing the Emperor's impatience and fearing she would be sent to the Imperial Prison again the moment she finished speaking, Liu Qingxue quickly interjected, "Your Majesty, it was indeed Consort Li who instigated this. Consort Li is arrogant, and as a concubine living in the same palace as her, I am often bullied by her. Because Consort Li is unhappy that Consort Hui is pregnant, she instructed me to harm Consort Hui."
"I truly have no choice. Consort Li comes from a powerful family and holds my entire family in her hands. I am of lowly status and have no power, so I have no choice but to obey Consort Li's orders... Even Fuling and her parents were arrested by Consort Li. How could I possibly have such power? They are all imprisoned on Consort Li's estate... And musk, such an expensive fragrance is not something I can obtain. It was all prepared by Consort Li..."
Liu Qingxue was so frightened that she blurted out everything, saying whatever came to mind, leaving no stone unturned, and completely discredited Fei Yunyan.
"Go and summon her." Yinzhen rubbed his temples, clearly showing his displeasure. The others in the hall naturally dared not say anything more, and soon Consort Li, Fei Yunyan, was brought in.
Before Yixiu could even question her, Fei Yunyan knelt down, her face pale, and blurted out, "I was just momentarily bewitched! I didn't mean it! Your Majesty, please spare my life..."
To everyone's surprise, the real mastermind was so easily intimidated. Before even being interrogated, she confessed everything; her resilience was even worse than Fuling's. Thinking about how she had almost been outmaneuvered by such a person, Shen Meizhuang's expression turned particularly grim.
"Consort Li, I have no grudge against you, why did you attack me?"
"No enmity?" Fei Yunyan looked up, glaring hatefully at Shen Meizhuang. "If you hadn't stolen my favor, I should be the one pregnant. You stole my favor, you stole my child, how can there be no enmity?"
Stunned by Fei Yunyan's logic, Shen Meizhuang was speechless for a moment.
"Enough," Yinzhen couldn't listen any longer and directly announced the fate of the people involved: "Consort Li and Consort Liu plotted to harm the imperial heir, and are hereby demoted to commoners and imprisoned in the Cold Palace, never to be released again. All other participants will be executed by flogging after the investigation is completed."
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