Chapter 106 Chapter 106 "I don't know." ...
Purple Palace.
The lights were bright, but the low pressure seemed to have almost condensed into substance.
Sheng Puzhu lowered his head and eyes, kneeling respectfully on the cold jade brick. Even with his head lowered, he could clearly feel the scrutinizing gaze from the throne.
"Sheng family."
After a long moment, a slightly stagnant voice rang out from the high seat. Its tone was calm, yet it carried an undeniable authority: "The Crown Prince suffered a sudden illness after eating the cake Changning presented to him today."
"Let me ask you, did you see with your own eyes Changning taking the mooncake from Duanyang Mansion?"
There were many people kneeling in the hall. Sheng Puzhu raised his eyes slightly, and his peripheral vision fell on the corner of the bright yellow robe embroidered with delicate dragon patterns.
She tried to sound calm, "Sir, that's true."
"Oh, you are quite honest." The sage's voice was unrecognizable. "Then tell me, who is the murderer, Duan Yang?"
Sheng Puzhu shook her head. "I dare not speak rashly. I ate the moon cakes Princess Duanyang gifted me with my family after returning home. In other words, before the moon cakes were presented to the Eastern Palace, anyone, at any stage, could have tampered with them."
She paused and said coldly, "Of course, this also includes me."
Inside the hall, someone gasped.
Some people were in disbelief, while others looked terrified.
The saint seemed to have never expected that a young girl, kneeling on the ground and looking at her, would have the courage to say such words.
"Sheng raised his head."
Sheng Puzhu knelt respectfully on the ground, feeling a slight chill from the floor tiles seeping into his knees, which spread to his entire body in an instant.
She raised her eyes, there was a thin layer of sweat on her forehead, her lips were slightly pale, but her eyes were clear and black, without a trace of humility.
"Changning."
"Tell me, what's going on with this cake?"
Xiao Yueshu supported herself on the ground with her palms and slowly raised her head: "Uncle Emperor, I really don't know why the moon ball is poisonous."
"It's clear that I ate a lot today as well."
The sage's face was gloomy, and he looked coldly at the thin and frail shoulders of Princess Changning, Xiao Yueshu: "Then why was it my Jiulang who was poisoned?"
Xiao Yueshu shuddered, her heart seemed to be pinched by an invisible hand, and all eyes around her, whether bright or dim, were focused on her.
She couldn't be as calm as Sheng Puzhu. She raised her tearful face, her eyes swollen like walnuts. She was so scared that she could only repeat that she was wronged. She fell to the ground, crying until she almost died.
"Since it's an injustice."
"Then tell me, who is it?"
"Is it Duan Yang, or Princess An?" The sage's face was expressionless, and every word he spoke was chilling. His gaze suddenly dropped. "Or do you think it's Sanlang's wife, Sheng?"
Xiao Yueshu's crying suddenly stopped, her forehead pressed tightly against the cold floor tiles, not daring to move.
"no."
"It can't be them."
"But I really don't know who it is."
The saint no longer looked at Xiao Yueshu. His cold gaze slowly swept over the women kneeling below. In the long dead silence, it seemed as if he wanted to silently drive people crazy.
"Someone come."
"Take her away and lock her up in a side hall. She is not allowed to leave the palace without my permission."
"Royal brother."
"Changning is your biological niece, and she grew up with Jiulang."
"Duan Yang!" The saint's eyes flashed like lightning, with an unprecedented fierceness. "Before you plead for her, you'd better think clearly about where the poison on the moon ball came from!"
The saint's chest rose and fell slightly, and his voice suddenly rose, carrying a heart-pounding coldness: "If Jiulang were to have an accident."
“Cough cough cough…”
The eunuch standing by was startled and was about to bring the medicine.
The saint waved his hand violently: "No need to come over."
The saint clenched his teeth as he suppressed a cough, his tall body trembling slightly, his chest heaving violently.
Except for Xie Zhiyan's sudden frown, no one noticed the white handkerchief that flashed across the saint's palm.
She folded the handkerchief into a square smaller than the palm and covered her lips. However, at the moment the handkerchief was clenched, a few red spots the size of sesame seeds appeared on the silk as white as rice paper.
The saint sitting high up in the seat turned the handkerchief over as if nothing had happened and put it into his sleeve.
His face was as gloomy as water, and his cold gaze swept over everyone in the hall. His voice was hoarse: "Someone has to be buried with him!"
Princess Duanyang pursed her lips tightly, her face pale.
At this moment, a young eunuch outside the palace hurriedly reported: "Your Majesty, His Royal Highness Prince Ning requests an audience."
Prince Ning came at the wrong time.
A complex emotion flashed across the saint's eyes. He snorted coldly, unable to tell whether he was happy or angry: "Xuan."
"Royal brother."
Prince Ning walked into the hall in such a hurry that he didn't even notice that the jade button on his lapel was loose. It can be seen that he came in a hurry.
"Your humble servant pays homage to His Majesty."
"I have just heard about the Crown Prince's affairs. I am terrified and have come to apologize."
"Yue Shu is usually unruly, but she has no grudge against the Crown Prince."
"Could it be a mistake?"
Prince Ning was bent over, perhaps because he was jogging. His cheeks were abnormally red, and his lips were as pale as paper. He was not in good health, and his chest was heaving as he breathed heavily.
"A mistake?"
The saint's expression did not soften at his arrival. Instead, he frowned and slowly leaned back in the dragon chair, his fingers unconsciously tapping on the memorial: "Where are you going?"
Prince Ning was lustful.
In addition, the prince was an idle prince with no real power. Apart from hanging out with his concubines every day, his favorite thing was probably the various fireworks venues in Chang'an City.
"My dear brother, I didn't go anywhere. I was just fooling around in Chang'an City."
As if feeling guilty, Prince Ning even deliberately sniffed his sleeve. The scent of powder was so strong that it could not be concealed.
The saint quietly looked at the seemingly distracted and playful Prince Ning below, as if he wanted to see through the skin hollowed out by congenital illness and alcohol and sex to see his true thoughts.
"Since you think you made a mistake."
"Could it be that the person who poisoned someone was not Changning, but Duanyang?"
Prince Ning was so frightened that his knees went weak and he fell to his knees with a thud.
His fear and shock did not seem to be fake. Fine beads of cold sweat broke out at his temples, and in a blink of an eye, a small area of his collar on his back was soaked.
"My royal brother, please understand."
"It can't be Duan Yang."
"It's not Duanyang, it's not Changning, it's you?" The saint suddenly stood up and put his hands on the desk.
Prince Ning didn't know whether he was frightened or had a seizure. His body twitched uncontrollably and he barely bent over and crawled on the ground with his forehead pressed against the ground.
"I dare not."
"Your humble servant is nothing but a drunkard and a sickly person. I only have one daughter, Changning, and no son to continue the family line. I have long given up hope."
"Furthermore, Changning and Duanyang are just weak women. How could they do such a vicious thing? There must be a misunderstanding, or..." Prince Ning paused, trying hard to maintain his composure, "or they were taken advantage of by treacherous people."
He prostrated himself on the ground in an extremely humble posture.
"Heaven and earth can bear witness to my loyalty to my brother the Emperor and the Crown Prince. I have absolutely no intention of disloyalty."
"If my Royal Highness feels that I am at fault, I am willing to die to prove my innocence."
The saint sneered and was not shaken at all by these words.
He waved his hand behind him and said calmly, "The Queen Mother is old and not feeling well. Prince Ning will stay in the palace and serve her from today onwards."
"As for when to leave the palace."
"Wait until the Queen Mother is in good health."
Prince Ning didn't dare to look up, his face seemed to be distorted for a moment: "Yes."
But before everyone in the hall could breathe a sigh of relief, the saint continued, "And Duan Yang, stay as well."
"As for the others."
The saint pinched his aching eyebrows, closed his eyes, and swept his cold gaze over, finally landing on Princess Shoukang, who had remained silent the entire time.
He suddenly said, "Shoukang, you stay too."
"Your Majesty." Xie Zhiyan suddenly raised his eyes.
"What does Sanlang want to say?" The saint suddenly curled his lips. The prince's life or death was uncertain at the moment, and his calmness was really frightening.
Before Xie Zhiyan could say anything, Princess Shoukang calmly held his wrist.
"Royal brother, even I don't believe it?" Princess Shoukang faced the scrutinizing gaze on the throne, and even a very faint smile appeared at the corner of her lips, as if she didn't care at all.
"You guys step back first." The saint looked outside.
After the irrelevant people left, the saint slowed down his tone and said, "I am alone and I just want you to stay and talk with me."
Princess Shoukang spoke in a relaxed tone, as if it was just a joke between siblings: "Isn't it lively enough for you to keep Duanyang in the palace?"
"Duan Yang is not as considerate as you." The saint looked at her deeply. His words sounded like a sigh of emotion, but they clearly revealed a different deep meaning.
Xie Zhiyan felt even more uneasy. He raised his head, looked directly at the emperor, and used a more intimate address, "Uncle," which was unusual for him.
"Mother has been weak lately and may not be able to hold on."
"I beg you to stay and talk with my uncle."
The sage did not agree to Xie Zhiyan's request. Instead, he looked away and said in a deep voice, "Go to the Eastern Palace. The Crown Prince has just regained consciousness and has specifically requested to see you."
The atmosphere froze for a moment.
Sheng Puzhu knelt beside Princess Shoukang. Upon hearing this, she immediately clasped her mother-in-law's hand and whispered, "Mother, your daughter-in-law will stay with you."
Princess Shoukang slowly shook her head, her tone brooking no room for argument. "No, you will follow Sanlang to the Eastern Palace." She emphasized her tone, each word clear and distinct. "Don't leave his side for a single moment."
These words seem to be orders, but in fact they express one's attitude in front of the saint.
He also completely removed Sheng Puzhu from the muddy waters of the Zichen Palace and placed him in the relatively safe area of the East Palace.
"I..." Sheng Puzhu was interrupted before he could finish his words.
"Don't think too much." Princess Shoukang said gently.
Xie Zhiyan and Sheng Puzhu looked at each other and saw solemnity in each other's eyes.
The emperor's will has been decided and no further discussion is allowed.
At this moment, the sage suddenly asked, "Hold the inkstone."
"What do you think about Jiulang being poisoned?"
Princess Duanyang and Prince Ning were both kept under guard by the guards. They told the outside world that they were serving the Queen Mother, but in reality it was just a disguised form of house arrest.
Xie Zhiyan heard the voice and said in a clear and steady voice: "Your Majesty, I believe that Princess Changning was not responsible."
"As for Princess Duanyang and His Royal Highness Prince Ning, I dare not speak rashly."
"How dare you speak so recklessly." The saint leaned forward slightly, his eyes sharper. "So, what do you think, is it Duan Yang or Prince Ning?"
Xie Zhiyan lowered his eyes: "I don't know."
"Go, the prince wants to see you."
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