"You're so smart, don't you wonder why I found out about this so quickly? I'm afraid you don't even know the efficacy of the fragrant cakes, so why do I know? Do you think it was just the doctor who figured it out? I'm afraid you already knew that the prince was going to deal with the prince? So, you're already a discarded pawn, don't you know that?"
"I think you must also know that he has secret agents like you in various palaces. But you see, these palaces have collapsed one by one, and none of them has a good outcome. With the ability of the prince, it would not be difficult for him to protect people like you. Especially, he was the one who dealt with the aftermath of Prince Jing's Palace. However, not only did he not rescue his secret agents, he also sent people at the first time..." Meng Qi made a gesture of raising his hand and cutting with a knife.
Li narrowed his eyes and looked up at her, a thoughtful look on his face.
"Besides, it really doesn't matter whether you tell me or not. Forget about the fact that Mother Jin and Roland have already confessed everything. You're just a concubine in the palace, and you were born a maid. Let alone the prince, even if I wanted to find a reason to make you disappear, no one would ask a single question.
"And the prince didn't want me to waste time with you. He's facing an imminent battle with the Crown Prince, so he doesn't have the energy to interrogate you for information that's completely worthless to him. It's me, a woman too, who can bear the thought of you being used by the Crown Prince like this. Watching you work so hard for him, while he treats you like a nobody, ah, why do you have to do this? Tell me, I can't promise anything else, but I can spare your life and see what happens to the Crown Prince in the future."
"Are you telling the truth?" Li said softly.
"Of course, the prince has promised me that I have the final say on how to deal with you."
"No, that's not what I'm asking. I mean, the people the prince had planted in other palaces, didn't he save any of them?"
Meng Qi was stunned for a moment, then nodded. "Really? I promise you. I heard that Ms. Xu from Prince Jing's Mansion has a good relationship with you. You two came from the Imperial Court together, right?"
Li looked up in surprise. Meng Qi smiled faintly. "See, I told you everything I said was true. Ms. Xu's standing with Princess Jing was much higher than yours. When the Eastern Palace raided Prince Jing's mansion, Ms. Xu led them to find Prince Jing's two concubines and his son and daughter, who were hiding in the cellar."
"She died at the hands of the people sent by the prince?" There was no emotion in Li's voice.
"That's right, the East Palace people said they would take her to see the prince. Haha, seeing the prince is like seeing the King of Hell."
Li closed her eyes, tears streaming down her face. Meng Qi remained calm, sipping her tea slowly. Sometimes, it wasn't the cruelest punishment or irrefutable evidence that broke the will of someone like Li. It was the insignificant things they focused on, the things that could make them give up, that were the fatal blow.
After a long while, Mrs. Li finally spoke quietly, "What did Mother Jin say?"
Meng Qi exhaled. "She said that you were responsible for the deaths of the two former princesses, and that you took advantage of the young master's weakness while helping with matters at the mansion. You also instigated Mrs. Wu to give Mrs. Lin advice, causing her to abort my child. And you tried to kill Song Bairan twice."
"I didn't want the Second Young Master to die. I just wanted the prince to look down on him and make him distrust you."
"So, you have the chance to take the Second Young Master with you?" Meng Qi said coldly, "For your own selfish reasons, you disregard the Second Young Master's health?"
"That fragrant cake will not affect the Second Young Master's health. As long as he doesn't use it anymore, he will recover in a month or so."
"Who told you that? Prince? Haha, let me tell you, the first time was really nothing, thanks to me moving the Second Young Master to the outer courtyard early on. The second time, you let Mrs. Hu mix the fragrant cakes brought by the eldest lady with the Second Young Master himself. In just two months, the Second Young Master will become a useless person with sore bones all over his body, a useless person who will never stand up again."
"Impossible, you're talking nonsense." Li said loudly.
"Believe it or not, I'm telling you, every word I say is true. I don't need to lie to you. The person who made this fragrant cake is a woman named Zhuang Jing."
"How do you know?" Li asked in surprise.
"Qingning's master, who discovered the problem with the fragrant cake, and Zhuang Jing are fellow apprentices," Meng Qi said coldly. "Do you still believe the prince is sincere towards you? That he will protect you? He's been deceiving you with his promises for so many years, how could you be so foolish as not to have even a shred of doubt?"
Li murmured, "How do you know?"
"Know what?"
"Do you know that the prince is sincere in his promise to you?"
Meng Qi breathed a sigh of relief. She had guessed correctly. The Crown Prince had such a tight grip on Li, someone without any relatives or connections. She couldn't imagine anything other than romantic attraction. Especially after helping Meng Wan investigate Concubine Hui, she'd even included Li in the list. This Crown Prince was truly capable, having so many women completely devoted to him. He looked like a ghost.
"I am also a woman. We women are soft-hearted. Besides parents and children, the only people who are soft-hearted are men. Tell me, tell me about your story with the prince."
Li straightened her body, supported by the corner of the table and slowly stood up. Yuan Dong hurried forward to stand in front of Meng Qi.
Li chuckled and held up her two bloody hands that had been stepped on by Chu Yong. "Why are you so nervous? What can I do to the princess in this state?"
After saying that, he sat down on the kang on the other side and said, "Princess, please give me some water to drink. This story is a bit long."
Meng Qi looked at Li sitting elegantly on the kang, sipping the tea gently, as if she had invited her to chat.
Meng Qi looked Li up and down. Li was not a beauty, or to be more precise, she was not even close to being a beauty. But she just had that kind of energy about her, and that feeling made Meng Qi instinctively doubt that Li could be a lowly palace maid from the imperial palace.
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