Bao Qianshan was completely baffled and hurriedly went to the Lu Prince's Mansion to ask the Sixth Prince how to deal with Hongyu.
What about Hongyu?
The jailers chained her to the execution rack in the torture chamber.
She was starving to death, and one question kept replaying in her mind: Who betrayed her?
Originally, her plan with Consort Kong was to send someone to Steward Liao's house to investigate the situation. The Sixth Prince, feeling guilty, would naturally kill someone to silence him. When the Sixth Prince committed the crime, the secret guards hidden in the prison would appear and arrest him, thus exonerating her.
But now, how come another person has died?
Could it be that Consort Kong has changed her plan and wants to convict her of murder?
Swish, swish, swish... Hearing the heavy footsteps, Hongyu squinted and looked over; it was Gu Erlang.
Gu Erlang came over carrying a food box, filled a bowl with porridge, and scooped a spoonful into Hongyu's mouth.
Hongyu vomited, intending to vomit on Gu Erlang's face, but she was too weak and vomited on her own lips before sliding down to her chest.
Gu Erlang remained silent and continued to feed Hongyu porridge, but Hongyu continued to vomit.
After a long time, Gu Erlang couldn't remember how many bowls of porridge he had served. Anyway, there was a pile of white rice porridge under the execution rack.
Gu Erlang did not give up and continued to feed Hongyu.
At this moment, Hongyu was already in tears as she swallowed the white porridge.
After drinking a bowl of porridge, Hongyu regained her strength to speak. Her first question to Gu Erlang was, "Who betrayed me?"
Gu Erlang shook his head without saying a word, packed up the food box, and hurriedly left.
In fact, no one betrayed Hongyu; it was all Kong Xiang's scheme.
In order to eliminate the Sixth Prince, Prime Minister Kong ordered Master Gu to send the assassin Hua Die to prison and instructed Hua Die to insert a poisoned needle into the Sixth Prince's body.
If Hua Die survives, she must escape from the prison; if she is killed by the Sixth Prince, Gu Erlang must lead men out to scare away the Sixth Prince and frame Hong Yu for Hua Die's death.
This way, the fact that the Sixth Prince had sneaked into the prison could be concealed. The Sixth Prince's death would have nothing to do with the government.
Bao Qianshan dared not reveal the truth, after all, letting the sixth prince sneak into the prison was already a disobedience to the emperor.
And so, the sixth prince fell for a counter-espionage plot.
Kong Xiang is indeed a shrewd and calculating man, but how will Hongyu escape imprisonment?
------
Hongyu's clothes were torn to shreds and she was covered in bruises by the jailers before she fainted.
Splash...
A basin of cold water was poured over her, and Hongyu woke up. Two jailers stood beside her, and looking up, she saw a blazing furnace and a red-hot branding iron. She felt her pores contract and shuddered involuntarily, looking away.
Bao Qianshan approached, and the jailer stepped forward to report, "Sir, we have already used torture, but she has not admitted to having accomplices."
Bao Qianshan nodded, stood in front of Hongyu, and asked in a cold voice, "Speak! What poison did you use on the Sixth Prince?"
Hongyu was taken aback for a moment, then burst into laughter, "Hahahaha... The Sixth Prince was poisoned? Is he dead?"
Seeing Hongyu's surprised expression, Bao Qianshan concluded that the Sixth Prince's poisoning had nothing to do with Hongyu. Could it be the work of the woman in white?
Bao Qianshan dared not mention the woman in plain clothes to the Emperor, since the Sixth Prince's infiltration of the prison was a violation of the Emperor's orders.
As for how the Sixth Prince was poisoned, he could only follow the Sixth Prince's account, saying that an assassin had infiltrated the Prince of Lu's residence to carry out the assassination.
Now, the Sixth Prince is dead. The Emperor suspects that Hongyu colluded with the Kong family to assassinate the Sixth Prince, so he sends Bao Qianshan to test Prime Minister Kong.
Bao Qianshan pretended to be helpless and looked at Kong Xiang behind him.
Kong Xiang walked slowly over, his willow-leaf eyebrows and phoenix eyes raised, a gentle smile on his face, showing his kind and gentle demeanor. However, he suddenly pushed Bao Qianshan away and quickly picked up the branding iron and branded it directly onto Hongyu's chest.
"ah……"
Screams suddenly erupted from the cell, piercing, tragic, and prolonged, until Hongyu fainted and the screams ceased.
Kong Xiang laughed wildly, "Haha... Such a stubborn woman can only be tortured. The whip is useless against her. She will definitely confess honestly when she wakes up."
Hongyu awoke again, but she did not open her eyes, just as her heart had turned to ashes, devoid of any will to live. Kong Xiang's actions against her must have been due to Consort Kong abandoning her.
"Gurgle, gurgle..."
Why was there a sound of wooden wheels rolling in the torture chamber? Hongyu opened her eyes and saw that the room was still filled with flames, and what came into view was a wooden donkey.
Two jailers pushed the wooden donkey in front of Hongyu and stood aside, secretly laughing.
Hongyu was initially surprised, but when she saw a long wooden stick standing on the donkey's back, she was instantly terrified and struggled desperately.
She twisted and turned, trying to escape the torture chamber, but she was bound by chains.
The iron chain was incredibly strong; it brushed against the brand on her chest, and screams echoed through the room once more.
"ah……"
At this moment, Kong Xiang burst through the door, stormed up to Hongyu, and roared, "The Sixth Prince has died of poisoning! Speak! Did you send someone to assassinate the Sixth Prince? If you don't confess honestly, you'll be subjected to severe torture!"
The Sixth Prince is dead? Hongyu was both shocked and delighted, but she was covered in wounds and in unbearable pain. Looking at the torture instruments all over the room, she couldn't laugh. She could only shake her head and reply, trembling, "No... no."
"What a sharp tongue." Kong Xiang said as he approached Hongyu. He saw that Hongyu's chest was covered in blood, her flesh was mangled, and her clothes were tattered from being whipped.
He couldn't help but feel pity, so he lifted Hongyu's chin to examine her closely, then gently lowered it again, sighing:
"What a pity... Such a stunning beauty, is she going to die at my hands? I can't bear to see Miss Hongyu perish. Miss Hongyu, just admit it. As long as you admit to sending someone to assassinate the Sixth Prince and sign the document, you can live a few more days."
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