From inducing Empress Pei to prepare a banquet to putting allergens in the food and wine, this is clearly a perfect criminal chain.
The mastermind had considered every step, and things proceeded exactly as planned, without a single mistake.
With such criminal talent, the person who planned this must be an extremely smart person.
It's a pity that he uses his intelligence to poison others.
Through question and answer, Gu Jiu pieced together the truth, but he still didn't know who the mastermind was.
She observed Zhou Miao's expression, hoping to find some clues from it.
"Is Su Liangyuan the mastermind?"
Zhou Miao shook his head, "I don't know."
"Is Su Liangyuan a scapegoat?"
"have no idea."
At this stage, Zhou Miao didn't know the answer to any of the questions, and Gu Jiu was very upset.
"You don't know anything, what use are you!"
Zhou Miao's eyebrows twitched, "Our family is not yours."
Gu Jiu snorted, "You took so much money from this lady, and you can't even do a small thing, and you still have the nerve to quibble."
Zhou Miao snorted twice, "We took the money and gave you corresponding rewards."
Gu Jiu smiled, "You come here this time, are you out of money again?"
Zhou Miao chuckled but said nothing.
Gu Jiu raised an eyebrow. "Your godfather, Hu Jianzheng, committed a crime, and all his godsons suffered as a result. But you, who is also his godson, are safe and sound, and even got promoted. Could it be that you saved your life by betraying your godfather?"
Zhou Miao cried out in injustice, "Madam, please don't wrongly accuse us. We hate traitors the most and would never do something like betraying our godfather."
Gu Jiu smiled and said, "Hu Jianzheng has so many adopted sons, but except for you, none of them had a good ending. Who would believe me if I said there was no shady dealings going on here? Who would believe me if I said you escaped danger by luck? There's no such thing as luck falling from the sky in the palace. Eunuch Zhou, your methods are truly admirable."
Zhou Miao's expression was solemn as he whispered, "To be honest, Madam, I bought my life with money. Can you guess how much it cost me to buy my life?"
Gu Jiu looked him up and down, "Did you really buy it with money?"
Zhou Miao nodded repeatedly.
Gu Jiu sneered, "Your godfather has saved a lot of money, so why can't his life be bought with money?"
"Madam, why are you asking when you already know the answer? My family is a nobody, we've only been in the palace for a few years and haven't committed any crimes. After spending money and building connections, the higher-ups naturally turned a blind eye.
But my godfather is different. He is a big shot in the palace. Some people want to make money from him, but his money is too hot to handle, so they dare not take it. And his name is mentioned above, who dares to let him go?
Zhou Miao finished speaking, then laughed slyly and continued, "I was also lucky. I was able to establish connections early on. I spent thirty thousand taels and was able to save my life.
The new emperor ascended the throne and the palace was short of staff. I spent several thousand taels and successfully got promoted to a higher rank. However, I almost got caught because the Empress Dowager was allergic to something she ate.
Fortunately, the lady provided me with information that saved me from danger. After this disaster, I will definitely be able to turn things around and have good luck next year."
Gu Jiu smiled and said, "Then this lady would like to congratulate you in advance on a prosperous next year."
Zhou Miao didn't hesitate at all and said directly, "Even great fortune requires financial support. Madam, if you can support us a little, we will definitely repay you."
Gu Jiu laughed, "I have money, and a lot of it."
Zhou Miao was jealous, of course he knew that Gu Jiu had a lot of money.
In the whole capital, no one is richer than Gu Jiu.
Although most of the money was not hers, it did not stop everyone from treating her as a rich person.
Gu Jiu smiled and asked, "If you want money, you have to pay something."
"Isn't the news we gave Madam earlier enough?"
Gu Jiu shook his head, "Of course it's not enough."
Zhou Miao frowned and asked directly, "What does Madam want?"
Gu Jiu smiled and said, "If I ask you who the mastermind is, I guess you don't know. Just tell me what the attitudes of His Majesty and the Queen Mother are. What are the discussions in the palace about Su Liangyuan's sudden death?"
Zhou Miao pondered for a moment, "Madam, are you saying that His Majesty and the Queen Mother both know the mastermind behind this?"
Gu Jiu smiled, "Has the palace been peaceful these past two days?"
Zhou Miao thought for a moment and said, "It's still quite peaceful."
Gu Jiu asked again, "Has His Majesty been in a good mood these days? Has he been angry? Has he turned over any of the Empress's cards?"
Zhou Miao shook his head. "The weather is hot, and His Majesty can't stand the heat. He has a normal temper, but he hasn't gotten angry, nor has he turned over anyone's name. The Queen Mother is said to be in good spirits, and Princess Huyang comes to the palace every day to talk with her."
Gu Jiu knocked on the table and asked, "Tell me about Su Liangyuan's sudden death. What are the discussions in the palace?"
Zhou Miao said, "There's a gag order on this matter, so few people are talking about it. Even if someone does, they're hiding it from others. But His Majesty specifically sent someone south to inform the Su family, so I think Su Liangyuan should be innocent."
Gu Jiu clapped his hands when he heard this.
After a while, Qingmei came in holding a wooden box.
Inside the box was a thick stack of banknotes. Gu Jiu pushed the wooden box in front of Zhou Miao and said, "Answer my last question, and this money will be yours."
"Excuse me, ma'am."
Zhou Miao rubbed his hands and stared at the wooden box, very excited.
He loves money and never hides this fact. It can be said that he loves money openly.
Gu Jiu stared at him with sharp eyes, "Is Jiang Shuyi dead?"
boom!
Zhou Miao's head exploded.
He was dumbfounded, his eyes wide open, looking at Gu Jiu.
His palms were sweaty, his heart was beating like a drum, and his muscles were tense.
He licked his lips, and it took him a long time to find his voice. "Of course she's dead! The late emperor ordered her to be buried with him, and she dared not disobey."
"oh!"
Gu Jiu said "oh" meaningfully.
Zhou Miao's heart began to tremble rhythmically, one tremor and three tremors.
"Madam, don't you trust our family?" he asked boldly.
Gu Jiu pursed her lips and smiled, "I didn't say I didn't believe you. It's just that my impression of Jiang Shuyi is not a woman who would obediently accept her fate. Do you think that since she knew that the late emperor wanted her to be buried with him, she would obediently accept death?"
"What else? That was the order of the late emperor, and it was in the palace. Even if Jiang Shuyi didn't want to die, she had no choice."
Zhou Miao snorted, his expression turned cold, and he looked very angry.
Gu Jiu looked at him strangely, "Why are you angry? Are you angry about her death?"
Zhou Miao still had a stern face. "How can I not be angry? I finally helped Jiang Shuyi get to where she is now, but the late emperor's decree destroyed all my years of hard work.
"We wanted to help Jiang Shuyi survive, but unfortunately we didn't have the ability. We didn't dare contact Madam at that time, but even if we did, Madam wouldn't be able to help her."
Gu Jiu nodded. "You're right. The capital was in turmoil at the time. I couldn't even protect myself, so how could I help her? And then she really died?"
Zhou Miao had already calmed down.
He looked at Gu Jiu with a half-smile, "Madam, if you don't believe what we say, why don't you find a chance to go to the underground palace and take a look?"
Gu Jiu shook his head, "That's not necessary."
Zhou Miao's eyes moved downwards, landing on the wooden box containing the banknotes. "Can our family take this money with us?"
Gu Jiu knocked on the table and nodded with a smile, "You can take it away."
Zhou Miao was so excited that he hugged the wooden box tightly, as if he was afraid that someone would snatch it away.
"Thank you, Madam, for your generosity. Next time we need your help, please don't be stingy."
"Okay! This lady will certainly not be polite to my father-in-law."
"Goodbye!"
Zhou Miao hummed a country tune and left the palace.
The maid Qingzhu couldn't help but complain a few times.
"He comes here every now and then to ask for money. He clearly treats Madam's place as a treasury, and when he's short of money, he finds an excuse to come. No, now he doesn't even need an excuse, he comes here openly to ask for money. Why don't the nobles in the palace punish him?"
Gu Jiu smiled and said, "The money will be given to anyone. After weighing the pros and cons, it will naturally be given to those who are valuable and willing to cooperate."
Qingzhu whispered, "I'm just angry. Eunuch Zhou is too greedy. It's not easy for Madam to earn a little money, but he wants money with a clear conscience."
Gu Jiu laughed, "If he doesn't speak with confidence, he should bear a grudge. If that happens, I won't dare give him money."
Qingzhu was about to complain, but Gu Jiu stopped her, "Alright, stop talking about Eunuch Zhou. Go bake some big buns."
The big buns that Gu Jiu mentioned are actually bread.
I thought that the ingredients were not complete these days and the baked food would not taste good.
Unexpectedly, the baked buns had a wheaty aroma and were quite delicious.
Even Yu Ge'er likes to eat it.
But he is still young and can only eat a little at a time.
I drank a glass of iced watermelon juice to relieve the summer heat, and then collapsed on the couch, unwilling to move.
This summer is exceptionally hot, but fortunately, it always rains after about ten days of heat.
The cicadas were still chirping on the branches, making people feel upset and a little depressed.
Qingzhu baked three big buns, cut them into slices, and shared them with everyone.
Gu Jiu ate a piece and tore off a small piece to feed Yu Ge'er.
Xiao Cui rushed in with a heat wave on her body. She first drank a large glass of cold water, then wiped the corner of her mouth and said, "Madam, what did you guess?"
"What's the matter?" Gu Jiu asked curiously.
"The second wife's concubine is in labor and will give birth soon."
Huh?
Are you about to give birth?
Is the due date at this time?
Gu Jiu hasn't paid attention to the situation in the second house recently.
Xiao Cui said excitedly, "The Second Prince rushed back personally and even invited the imperial physician to wait. If a boy is born, the Second House will have a illegitimate eldest son. Tsk tsk... I'm afraid there will be chaos in the future."
Qingmei said, "What future? Things are already starting to get messy now. Even if the Second Prince cares about the baby in my belly, he shouldn't show it so obviously. If he really gives birth to a bastard son, where will the Second Madam put her face?"
Gu Jiu was idle and eating melons. "Let's wait for the news. Whether it's a boy or a girl, we'll have news tomorrow at the latest."
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