Chapter 75 He couldn't hold on any longer.
Feng Mingyuan was so frightened that he trembled like a leaf, and dared not look directly at the emperor, so he could only lower his head even further.
Xiao Shenjing felt his blood rush backward in an instant, and the sound of drums echoed in his ears.
If it's true that Yuwei has tuberculosis, then she would have risked her life to frame Yunxi, knowing full well that she was dying.
She drove Yunxi to the brink of despair by threatening to kill herself.
So what did Yunxi say at that time?
She tried to explain to him, "I said it wasn't me, she said she wanted to kill the people from Hongxiuzhao. I had barely finished speaking when she smiled at me and pulled a knife from her sleeve."
She was rebellious to the core, and even when her life hung by a thread, she refused to humble herself.
But that night, she clearly lowered her stance towards him.
He believed her words, but because he couldn't face his own guilt, he took his anger out on her.
Not only were they banished to the cold palace, but they also chained her limbs.
She clearly hates being restricted, loves freedom, and enjoys being around people the most.
But he took everything away from her, not just for a day, but for a whole month.
That's why she resolutely chose such a tragic way to leave herself.
In that instant, the veins on Xiao Shenjing's neck bulged, as if a large hand was gripping his neck, tightening inch by inch.
My throat hurt so badly it felt like it was going to break, and I was almost unable to speak.
Fu Shun's expression changed. "Your Majesty?"
Xiao Shenjing rubbed his forehead.
After a few breaths, he seemed to finally recover from the suffocation of drowning.
He waved his hand and softened his voice, "Say it again."
"My father was diagnosed with the Empress's incurable disease last month, and three days later he was forced to resign. On our way back home, everyone except me..." At this point, Feng Mingyuan was already sobbing uncontrollably, his thin shoulders trembling violently, and he was almost unable to speak.
"Raise your head," Xiao Shenjing commanded.
Shen Mingyuan slowly raised his head, his eyes blurry with tears as he met the emperor's deep gaze.
The child before me, though disheveled, spoke clearly and without pretense.
"Speak slowly, who is your father?" Xiao Shenjing asked.
"Your Majesty, my father, Feng Zhao, once served as the Left Vice Director of the Imperial Medical Academy." Shen Mingyuan wiped away his tears with his sleeve, trying to keep his voice from trembling. "On the fifth day of the fourth month, my father was summoned to Chengqian Palace to examine the Empress's pulse. After returning, he appeared unusually distressed. Three days later, someone came to our home, forcing my father to resign from his post."
Xiao Shenjing glanced at Fu Shun.
Fu Shun quickly lowered his eyes and replied, "Your Majesty, Feng Zhao is indeed the Left Vice Director of the Imperial Medical Academy, and he resigned and went into seclusion last month."
"Do you have any evidence?" the emperor asked.
The Empress did indeed cough, but he didn't know it was tuberculosis.
Shen Mingyuan pulled a prescription from his pocket and presented it with trembling hands: "This is what my father gave to me before he died. It contains the medicine that Her Majesty the Empress should drink."
Fu Shun stepped forward, took the handkerchief, and presented it to the emperor. Xiao Shenjing unfolded it, glanced at it, and then clenched his fist tightly. "Continue," he said.
"After my father was forced to resign from his official post, our family returned to our ancestral home in Suzhou. While traveling through Xuzhou and Lüliang Hong," Shen Mingyuan's tears welled up again. "A group of masked men attacked our carriage at night. My parents and younger sister were all killed. I was left behind because of a stomachache and needed to relieve myself."
The child could no longer speak and collapsed to the ground, sobbing uncontrollably. The surrounding guards and eunuchs all showed expressions of pity.
Xiao Shenjing's face was ashen. If what the child said was true, then a high-ranking official of the Imperial Medical Academy was forced to resign and his entire family was murdered, and he, as the emperor, knew nothing about it!
"Your Majesty, what this boy says is absurd and unfounded," said Minister Lin of the Ministry of Rites, who was accompanying the emperor. "In my opinion, it would be better to hand him over to the Ministry of Justice for thorough questioning. This would prevent him from attempting to slander the Empress and mislead Your Majesty."
Shen Mingyuan suddenly looked up and glared angrily at the Minister of Rites.
"No need." Xiao Shenjing coldly interrupted, "Fu Shun, take this child back to the palace and place him in a side hall. I want to investigate him personally."
"Return to the palace." The emperor, enduring the excruciating pain of being bitten by thousands of ants, ordered in a deep voice, "Bring the edict of execution to the palace."
When Fu Shun helped Shen Mingyuan up, his legs were so weak that he could barely stand, but he bit his lip tightly to stop himself from crying.
"Child, come with us," Fu Shun said softly, helping the thin Shen Mingyuan as they followed the imperial carriage toward the Forbidden City.
The sky was unusually gloomy tonight, with dark clouds looming overhead, as if a torrential downpour was about to fall at any moment.
As soon as Xiao Shenjing returned to the Qianqing Palace, the imperial edict was already waiting in the side hall.
Upon seeing the emperor, they immediately knelt and paid their respects.
Looking at the people kneeling at his feet, Xiao Shenjing gritted his teeth, clenched his fists, and after several breaths finally said, "Interrogate everyone in Chengqian Palace properly. If they don't reveal the truth about the Empress's illness, I will take all their heads."
In the flickering candlelight, the emperor's face, half-lit and half-shadowed, appeared far too cold and frightening.
Inside the main hall of Chengqian Palace, all the embroidered curtains had been roughly torn down, revealing the imposing pillars. More than thirty palace servants knelt on the ground, while Xing Zhao, dressed in a black official robe, slowly and meticulously wiped the iron ruler in his hand with a white silk handkerchief.
The young emperor sat on a dragon-patterned chair at the palace gate, his knuckles tapping the gilded armrests, watching everything with an expressionless face.
He once thought that Yuwei was just too disappointed in him.
It was his favoritism towards Yunxi that made her unable to accept it, leading her to choose death as a form of revenge.
She was his savior, yet she died because of him.
Therefore, he was in so much pain and could no longer face Yunxi.
If only he had stood up for her then and told her he believed her, instead of saying those hurtful things out of anger.
If he could go see her.
As long as there is hope, how could Yunxi possibly commit suicide by self-immolation?
He personally drove her to her death.
"His Majesty's decree: everyone in Chengqian Palace must be interrogated." The executioner suddenly struck the blue brick with his iron ruler, the metallic sound making several palace maids tremble. "If no one confesses today that Her Majesty the Empress concealed her illness, none of you will keep your heads today."
His voice wasn't loud, but it suddenly caused a suppressed sob to erupt in the hall.
Xing Zhao glanced around and smiled slightly. "Let's start with the head maid."
Two inspectors dragged a woman dressed in plain clothes into the hall. Aunt Xueyu's hair was disheveled, and there was blood at the corner of her mouth, but her back was still ramrod straight. She was forced to kneel in the center of the hall, facing the young emperor who sat upright on the dragon-patterned throne.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty," Aunt Xueyu said, forcing back her trembling, as she kowtowed towards the door, "The Empress only suffered from a persistent cold, not tuberculosis, Your Majesty."
Xiao Shenjing was not wearing his dragon robe today; his black casual clothes made his face appear icy cold. He tapped his fingers lightly on the armrest, staring at Xueyu, his dark eyes revealing no emotion whatsoever.
“Aunt Xueyu,” Xing Zhao knelt down to look her in the eye, “you are Her Majesty the Empress’s most trusted lady-in-waiting, and you should understand that the Empress’s will cannot be disobeyed.”
Xueyu shook her head repeatedly: "Your Majesty, whether the Empress suffers from tuberculosis or not, you can find out by asking the imperial physician."
Xing Zhao chuckled lightly, then suddenly grabbed her left hand and pressed it to the ground. A flash of cold light, and a three-inch steel nail pierced through her palm, pinning her hand to the crack in the blue bricks.
"Ah!" Xueyu's scream echoed between the beams of the palace.
Xiao Shenjing didn't even lift his eyelids: "How much do you know about the Empress concealing her illness?"
Xueyu trembled with pain, but bit her lip to swallow her groans: "Your Majesty is indeed unwell, but it's just a cold."
Xing Zhao sighed and took a red-hot iron skewer from the charcoal brazier. He lifted Xueyu's skirt and slowly pressed the skewer onto the tenderest skin on the inside of her calf.
The stench of burning flesh filled the air. Xueyu threw her head back and let out a scream that was not human, her fingernails scratching ten bloody marks on the ground.
"Your Majesty!" she finally broke down in tears, "Her Majesty has always been devoted to you!"
"Continue." The emperor remained unmoved, his indifference chilling.
Xing Zhao took out twelve silver needles from the iron box. These needles were as thin as cow hair. After being soaked in medicine, they would travel along the blood vessels, causing excruciating pain.
When the sixth needle pierced Xueyu's fingertip, she went limp like a rag doll. Xing Zhao leaned close to her ear: "If you don't confess carefully, how many times can you withstand the methods in the Zhao Prison?"
Xueyu trembled all over and finally broke down.
I'd rather die than experience even a fraction of the methods used in Zhaoyu.
She prostrated herself on the ground, weeping, and said, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, this servant also found the blood-stained handkerchief in a hidden compartment under the bed after the Empress passed away."
Cen Yuwei originally intended to keep it a secret from Aunt Xueyu and save her life.
Unfortunately, since Vice General Cen cannot enter the palace every day, the blood-stained handkerchief certainly cannot be delivered in time.
Xiao Shenjing suddenly closed his eyes.
"Your Majesty," Xing Zhao called out.
Xiao Shenjing's fingers slowly caressed the armrest of the dragon throne, his knuckles turning white from the force.
"As the most capable head maidservant by the Empress's side, she was unaware that her mistress was seriously ill. Drag her away and give her sixty strokes of the cane, strip her of her rank, and permanently demote her to the laundry department. The rest of the maidservants shall be dealt with according to the law."
As soon as he finished speaking, the whole room was filled with weeping.
Xiao Shenjing paused for a moment before saying, "Have Gu Wenqian continue the investigation for me, and punish all those involved severely."
He stood up, and Fu Shun quickly offered his arm.
When Xiao Shenjing placed his hand on his wrist, Fu Shun immediately felt a weight he had never experienced before.
In the past, His Majesty would almost always just lightly drape it over his shoulder, never like this.
It seems like they're starting to feel the strain.
Xiao Shenjing returned to the Qianqing Palace with an air of composure.
As dinner was served, a thunderclap suddenly exploded in my ears.
It felt like a firecracker was being set off right next to my ear.
Lightning cleaved the deep palace in two, illuminating the young emperor's trembling eyelashes.
Xiao Shenjing ate a few bites and then cleared away the dinner.
The dragon-patterned canopy fell, blocking all view.
Xiao Shenjing suddenly buried his face in the cool brocade quilt.
Another thunderbolt struck overhead.
"Who said I'm afraid of thunder?"
"Xiao Shenjing, you've killed so many people, aren't you afraid of going to hell after you die?"
He'll go to hell, but what about her?
In that instant, Xiao Shenjing suddenly realized that he had never even spoken a proper word to her before they were separated forever.
In this life, he will never see Yunxi again.
The next life, the life after that
And so, it was goodbye forever.
A wisp of sandalwood incense wafted from the bronze crane's beak, and the bedroom door slowly closed, shutting out the deep sunlight.
Fu Shun had just bowed and retreated to the doorway, and before he could straighten up, he suddenly heard stumbling footsteps coming from inside the hall.
He paused, then subconsciously looked up.
The moment the door was opened, he saw a pair of bloodshot phoenix eyes and red-rimmed eyes.
"Your Majesty," Fu Shun said with a look of astonishment.
"Where is Yunxi?" Xiao Shenjing grabbed Fushun's arm, his eyes burning with rage as he frantically asked, "Where did you bury Yunxi for me?"
"Jin Jinshan," Fu Shun stammered in reply.
The next moment, Xiao Shenjing shook off his arm.
When Fu Shun finally realized what was happening, his pupils widened suddenly.
Lightning cleaved the night.
He saw the young emperor, dressed in a thin undergarment and barefoot, walking towards the outside of the palace.
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