Xiwen bit her lip.

"My lady, I am innocent."

Xiwen is usually mature and steady. She can remain calm no matter what the situation is and rarely shows such an expression.

Seeing this, the Queen became even more suspicious: "I haven't even asked you what crime you committed yet, and you're already crying foul?"

"Where were you last night? If you don't tell the truth, I will ask the maid who lives with you to come and confront you." The queen continued to ask.

Xiwen's voice was trembling slightly. She asked softly, "My Lady, are you really determined to do this?"

The Queen's questioning was part of Xiwen's plan, but she didn't expect the Queen to be so decisive.

The Queen said disappointedly, "If you are truly innocent, why do you have to be so hesitant and evasive in your words?"

Xiwen twisted his hands tightly together, as if struggling to make a decision.

Finally, she spoke up: "My lady, I did go to Lady Ji's room last night."

!!!

Wu Qing was surprised and said: [Ah, it’s really her. ]

[She admitted it straight away? I really didn’t expect that.]

[It's really strange. Aunt Xiwen is known for her cunningness in the original book. Normally, she shouldn't confess so easily.]

The Queen was angry and annoyed: "Xiwen, you have followed me for many years, and I have always regarded you as my confidant. But you actually did such a stupid thing!"

"Tell me, why did you steal the name list of Noble Ji?"

Xiwen was too closely tied to the Queen, and if she committed a crime, it would be a disgrace to the Queen.

Especially now that the Queen is still trying to get closer to Wu Qing.

Xiwen's action made the queen even more embarrassed.

Xiwen choked up and said, "My lady, I did enter Lady Ji's room at night, but I definitely did not touch the list."

She bent her knees and knelt down heavily.

The crisp sound of his knees hitting the floor made Wu Qing's teeth ache.

hiss.

This self-inflicted torture is really admirable.

"I heard that Lady Ji was busy dealing with palace affairs until late last night, and even her brush broke."

"My lady is working so hard, I dare not disturb her. I have to wait until she rests before I dare to quietly go in and replace her brush with a new one."

The Queen asked Wu Qing: "Is this true?"

Wu Qing nodded.

"Xiao Luzi also knows about this. Xiao Luzi was guarding the door of Lady Ji last night and saw with his own eyes the servant girl carrying the broken pen and ink out."

In other words, Xiwen entered Wu Qing's room last night to help her change her brush, not to steal the list.

After Xiwen finished speaking, she seemed to have lost all her strength and fell to her knees. "I know that I am mediocre and cannot help you, Your Majesty, but I will never dare to do anything to betray you."

"Noble Lady Ji was fortunate enough to share the palace affairs with the Empress, so I wanted to help Noble Lady Ji, but who knew that Noble Lady Ji would misunderstand me."

The queen lay on the couch, with an unclear look in her tired eyes.

Last night she did ask Xiao Luzi to guard outside Ji Guiren's door and protect Ji Guiren's safety.

"Pass it on to Xiao Luzi."

Xiao Luzi trotted in, knelt in front of the bed, and explained what happened last night one by one.

He followed the Queen's order and stayed outside Ji Guiren's bedroom all night without slacking off.

When it was late at night and everyone was asleep, Aunt Xiwen suddenly visited and claimed that she wanted to replace the writing brush and ink for Concubine Ji.

Xiao Luzi was originally skeptical and wanted to decline, but when he saw that Aunt Xiwen was already holding a set of exquisite writing brushes and ink, and that Concubine Ji had indeed mentioned that the pen was broken, he had to give up.

Xiao Luzi said with certainty that when Aunt Xiwen entered the bedroom last night, she only took out a used pen.

It seems that Wu Qing wronged Xiwen.

Wu Qing used his little brain to analyze the current situation.

[According to the records in the original book, Xiao Luzi is a loyal and honest person, and should not be the kind of person who easily lies.]

[Just because Xiwen doesn't have a list in her hand doesn't mean she didn't bring it with her.]

[I remember she hid it in her sleeve last night?]

[When Xiwen left, she probably only showed Xiao Luzi the brush. It was too dark, and Xiao Luzi didn't know whether she had hidden anything on her body.]

"Noble Ji and I have never met each other before, so it is normal for her to misunderstand me." Xiwen sighed.

The queen's fingers were unconsciously rubbing on the Buddhist beads, her face solemn.

She knew Xiwen was the most loyal.

But such people sometimes bite back at their masters in order to "protect their masters".

Before Xiwen could even wait for the Queen to speak, he knew that she was still suspicious of him.

There was a trace of resentment in her eyes, but she said, "My lady, after I came back from Lady Ji, I have stayed in the house and have not gone out. If I really brought the list out, I can only hide it in my own room."

Xiwen said, "Your Majesty, why don't you ask someone to search my room to see if there is any trace of the list."

There was a firm determination in her words, as if she had absolute confidence in her innocence.

The queen nodded slightly and ordered, "Xiao Luzi, take two capable men with you."

As expected, after a careful search, Xiwen's room was turned upside down, but nothing was found.

That mysterious list seemed to have disappeared out of thin air, leaving no trace.

All the evidence shows that Xiwen is innocent.

Wu Qing touched his chin and thought.

【She was the only one who entered my room last night. 】

[It's not on her body, nor in the room, so where could it be?]

[Perhaps there is another possibility, that is, a martial arts master sneaked into my residence at night and stole the book. ]

【Maybe I really misunderstood Xiwen.】

The Queen sighed.

Deep down, she still believed in Xiwen. After all, Xiwen had been with her for so many years and rarely made big mistakes.

Although Concubine Ji has the Book of Divine Secrets, she still has the mentality of a child and cannot fully trust Concubine Ji's thoughts.

The queen felt vaguely guilty towards Xiwen.

She said to Xiwen apologetically, "Get up. I have wronged you."

Xiwen wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes, lowered her head, and leaned aside quietly.

——The most important thing now is the consequences caused by the loss of the roster.

Wu Qing asked: "Such an important list, there should be more than one copy. Isn't there a backup in the palace?"

The queen sighed.

Indeed, there is a backup copy stored in the Ministry of Revenue.

However, to retrieve the backup list, one needs to go through layers of cumbersome procedures and audits, which will take at least seven days.

However, the Queen had to confirm the list of selected contestants on time seven days later in order to maintain the normal operation of palace affairs.

Wu Qing understood.

[So, the thief wanted me to delay the Queen's palace affairs because of the roster issue, and then lose the Queen's trust.]

【From the perspective of motive, Aunt Xiwen is still the biggest suspect. 】

There was a hint of fatigue in the Queen's voice that was hard to conceal.

She said, "Forget it. There is no other way but to go to the Ministry of Revenue to transfer the money. Lady Ji, please go get another booklet and I will teach you how to read it slowly."

"Wait a minute, Madam, I have something else to say."

Seeing this, Xiwen finally showed his fangs.

She whispered, "I think Lady Ji is not fit to continue managing the register."

"I don't mean to belittle Lady Ji, but palace affairs are of great importance, and the slightest mistake could lead to disaster. Although Lady Ji is willing to learn, she still needs more time and opportunities to hone herself."