The little Palace Maid would not say a word, even when Yu An was tied up with her, she remained silent.
For many years, Yu An had everything he wanted in the Imperial Palace. Even the Empress showed respect to him, the head Eunuch who served the Emperor. All the princes, except for Crown Prince Yan Huisheng, would try to curry favor with him from time to time. The court officials treated him as an honored guest and did not dare to neglect him. Apart from serving the Emperor, his life was even more comfortable than the Emperor’s.
In the palace, the maids and Eunuchs privately called him Lord An.
He did not want to end up like this. He had served the Emperor for many years and the Emperor couldn’t do without him. As long as he confessed his sins and performed meritorious deeds, the Emperor would, in view of his long service, show leniency. The best outcome would be to continue serving by the Emperor’s side, and the worst would be to be released from the palace to retire. He certainly didn’t want to die without knowing his fate.
So, he immediately confessed how he got involved with the little Palace Maid, who brought them together, and who was involved. He told everything in one go.
Yu An had managed to hold the position of head Eunuch under the Emperor for many years, and he was certainly not a simpleton. He allowed a little Palace Maid to approach him, but naturally, he would thoroughly investigate her. Except for not knowing that the little Palace Maid could also skillfully use a hidden golden needle for assassination, he considered his understanding of her background to be very clear.
The Emperor immediately sent people to quickly arrest all the people mentioned by Yu An.
Of course, in addition to a group of servants, there were also masters of the palace involved, who were also to be summoned. Leading the charge were Lipin and the Virtuous Wife. Another person implicated was the second prince’s mother, Duchess De.
The small palace maid was able to get close to Yu An, thanks to a little Eunuch named Chun Zi from Duchess De’s Palace.
Duchess De had thought that no matter what, the fire would not reach her. She was proud of herself for not doing anything wrong, cautiously obeying the instructions of her son, the second prince, Yan Lin, and waiting for her opportunity. But who would have thought that before the opportunity arrived, she received a summons from the Emperor, and it was even the Imperial Guard who was sent.
The Imperial Guard had already been investigated several times since the incident. The current Imperial Guard had been strictly examined three times, so it could be said that no one dared to cause trouble at this time. Even when Duchess De wanted to probe for some information, the Imperial Guard kept their mouths tightly shut, only repeating one sentence "The Emperor has summoned Duchess De." Duchess De had no idea what was happening and couldn’t even get a message to her son, so she could only go to see the Emperor with a heavy heart.
The Virtuous Wife, Duchess De, and Lipin met at the door of the Hall, and all of them had a feeling that something was wrong.
When they entered the inner hall, as expected, the Emperor immediately questioned them upon seeing them, asking what their intentions were.
The three of them were mothers of three princes, but were all involved in this big case. Facing the Emperor’s interrogation, the Virtuous Wife finally understood what Concubine Ning Yao, the wife of the Crown Prince, had done. She was speechless for a while. Lipin only learned at this moment that her father and uncle were involved in such a big case and that they had died. She looked pale and didn’t know how to rebut. Only Duchess De shouted out that she had been wronged, saying that the little Eunuch named Chun Zi was not her pawn.
But unfortunately, when the little Eunuch named Chun Zi was found, he was already dead. Duchess De had nothing to say in her defense.
The case was heard for most of the day. After all the people involved had been interrogated, the evidence still pointed to Lipin. After hearing that Chun Zi was dead, the little Palace Maid finally confessed, with a pale face, that she had been instructed by Lipin. When she was driven out of Liren Palace, it was a scheme that Lipin had orchestrated, hoping she would create chaos in the palace. She wanted the Empress, the Virtuous Wife, and Duchess De to fight amongst themselves, with the best outcome being adverse circumstances befalling the Crown Prince, the elder prince, and the second prince. Then, her son, the fourth prince, could take advantage of the situation.
Lipin, pale, yelled in protest, "You little wench, slandering and framing me."
The little Palace Maid took advantage of Lipin’s close proximity, bit down on the hairpin on her head, and swallowed it. In an instant, the sharp end of the hairpin punctured her throat, and the little Palace Maid died instantly.
Lipin screamed in terror.
This time, Lipin was truly at a loss for words.
The Emperor’s face turned dark with rage and he shouted, "Lipin! Confess your crimes!"
Lipin fell to the ground and shouted in protest with a white face, "Your, Your Majesty, it is not me, I dare not ..."
"You dare not? All the evidence points to you!" The Emperor was so angry that he kicked Lipin over. "Come, take this wench to me ....."
"Father." Yan Huisheng interjected. "Since Lipin protests her innocence, let Miss Lipin produce her evidence of innocence!"
The Emperor retracted his foot and listened to his words, staring angrily at Lipin. "You tell me, how will you prove your innocence to me?"
Lipin looked terrified and frenzied, she knelt on the ground murmuring: "How can I prove my innocence? How to prove ..... to prove my innocence ..."
As she spoke, tears streamed down her face. Her family was involved in the Imperial Guard case, and both her father and uncle had committed suicide. She was also involved in the murder of old Mr. Zhao, Zhao Fei, the assassination of the Princess Sheng An, and the Empress. Now, the palace maid had died, biting her on her deathbed. Unfortunately, she indeed had contemplated stirring up conflict between the Empress, the Virtuous Wife, and Duchess De, thereby implicating the Crown Prince, the elder prince, and the second prince, so that her son, the fourth prince could benefit.
Lipin couldn’t come up with any other evidence to prove her innocence at the moment. She could only look at the Emperor in tears and ask, "Your Majesty, can my death prove my innocence?"
The Emperor’s anger did not subside. "You committed such a calamity, yet you want to get off the hook by dying?"
Lipin’s face went completely pale.
The hall was silent for a moment, the only sound was Lipin’s mournful crying.
Looking at the time, Princess Sheng An said to the Emperor, "Your Majesty, the trial has reached this point, everyone is tired. Why not call it a day?"
Princess Sheng An did not say to close the case, only to call it a day.
The Emperor, with his belly full of anger, shouted, "Take all of them to ..." He was about to order them to be taken to the dungeon, but remembered that the dungeon was currently unreliable and even he, as the Emperor, did not trust it anymore. So he closed his mouth.
The Rui’an King chimed in at this time, "Your Majesty, let the Imperial Guard keep an eye on them. For now, let’s keep them under custody in the palace!"
The stakes of such a big case could not be taken lightly. Even if the trail ended with Lipin, everyone involved in the case must be penalized according to their roles in the crime. Who was more guilty or who was less guilty, whether it was according to the law or how they were dealt with, all had to be discussed with the important ministers in the court before a decision could be made. After all, it involved the mothers of three princes.
This was indeed a big case!
The Emperor, with his head spinning in anger, nodded his head, "Let it be this way for now!"
Princess Sheng An bowed and left the palace. Naturally, Su Rong also had to leave the palace. The Emperor looked at Su Rong, wanting to keep her in the palace to talk, but he had really lost his mood that day. So he said to Su Rong, "Come to the palace another day to speak with me."
He did not say to visit her at the Shen Residence another day.
Su Rong nodded her head agreement.
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