Su Qingyu looked at the thing in front of her in surprise, "Where did this come from?" She reached out and touched it, "It's still warm."
Shen Zhixiu squeezed her cold hand and said seriously, "This is what your husband got from begging. Eat it while it's hot. Even if your husband is a poor man, he can't let his wife starve."
Su Qingyu chuckled, "Where did the Third Master go to beg for alms?" She took a sip of the fish soup and her eyes lit up, "It tastes so good, could it be the imperial meal?"
Shen Zhixiu smiled faintly and said nothing, watching her eat.
Some people in the hall noticed that Su Qingyu ate something different from them, but no one asked, assuming it was a reward from the Emperor. Many people sighed in their hearts, thinking that the Emperor really valued Lord Shen.
Su Qingyu drank half a bowl of fish soup, ate two buns, and gave the rest to Shen Zhixiu.
The two of them ate the imperial meal as if no one was around, and afterward drank some tea to cleanse their mouths.
After a while, Emperor Xuande brought Consort Xian and the Crown Prince into the palace. Su Xiangling helped the Crown Prince sit down and stood behind him.
Afterwards, Puyi and Mr. Zhou walked into the main hall together. Puyi was holding a mahogany tray covered with a cotton towel, and it was unknown what it contained.
After entering the palace, the two men bowed. Puyi stood up and said, "Your Majesty, I found something in Concubine Su's room. Mr. Zhou has identified it and confirmed that it is the thing that harmed His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."
When Puyi said this, everyone present was shocked, including Concubine Xian and the Crown Prince.
Su Xiangling, standing behind the prince, was startled at first, her body unconsciously swaying. It was as if she had been struck by lightning, and her mind went blank.
She looked at Puyi, who was handing the things on the tray to Hulu, who then presented them to the emperor.
On the tray was a doll-like object with words written on it and silver needles stuck in it. She had never seen this thing before, and it wasn't made by her.
Next to the doll was a bamboo stick that Su Xiangling was very familiar with; it was the divination that Taoist Yuan had given her earlier. She had clearly left that item at the Su family's house, so how could it be in Puyi's hands now?
Su Xiangling's thoughts were in disarray, but she wasn't completely clueless. Who else but Su Qingyu could produce this hexagram in the Su family?
Now it seems that this witchcraft was clearly a trap set for her by Su Qingyu and Mr. Zhou.
She hadn't thought about Su Qingyu and Mr. Zhou before, because Mr. Zhou didn't get close to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, and they couldn't enter the Eastern Palace. In her opinion, Su Qingyu summoning the birds was the greatest revenge against her.
She never expected that Su Qingyu had dug a big hole for her, a hole big enough to bury her alive.
Emperor Xuande and Consort Xian were looking at the doll at the moment. The prince's birth date was written on the back of the doll.
The virtuous concubine was furious. She looked at Su Xiangling with resentment in her phoenix eyes, wishing she could cut her into pieces.
The prince is her dearest child, and she will not let go of anyone who harms him.
Su Xiangling also realized at this moment that a disaster was about to happen. She walked around to the prince and knelt in the middle of the hall.
"Your Majesty is wise. This matter has nothing to do with me. I have never seen that puppet before."
"Someone must have seen that I was pregnant and wanted to harm me."
The virtuous concubine looked at the doll on the table, and the needles seemed to be piercing her heart.
She coldly questioned Su Xiangling, "It's not you? Look at this doll-making material. It was given to you by me when you first entered the palace."
"And what about this hexagram? The prince's eight characters are also at the back. Did you carve it there?"
The virtuous concubine did not dare to say that she had seen this divination before, and could only pretend that she had just seen it.
Su Xiangling's thoughts raced as she explained, "Your Majesty, it's not difficult for someone in the palace to get this material. Besides, I'm the Crown Prince's concubine. What good would it do me to harm His Highness?"
She didn't dare to bring this up with Su Qingyu because she had no evidence. She could only be vague, hoping to make Concubine Xian suspect the other concubines or the prince.
When she said this, a look of suspicion appeared on Concubine Xian's face. Su Xiangling had some truth in what she said. She was the Crown Prince's concubine, and it would be of no benefit to her to harm the Crown Prince.
She didn't want to protect Su Xiangling, but she was afraid that the person who actually harmed the prince would go unpunished.
Emperor Xuande thought more than Concubine Xian. After looking at the doll, he asked Mr. Zhou, "What is the function of this doll? Besides affecting the prince's health, is there anything else?"
Emperor Xuande also knew something about Miaojiang's witchcraft. Not only could it kill people, it was also said to shift fortunes, sever ties of love, and even drastically alter one's character.
Mr. Zhou replied respectfully, "I've seen it. The formation on this doll can transfer the prince's fortune to his child."
"I'd like to ask, does His Royal Highness have any other children? Or is there any other concubine who is pregnant?"
"This person should be the biological mother of one of the prince's children, or someone who is pregnant with the prince's bloodline."
The virtuous concubine picked up the teacup in her hand and smashed it directly on Su Xiangling's head. "Except for this bitch, is there anyone else in the Eastern Palace who is pregnant?"
Blood flowed down Su Xiangling's forehead, but she didn't dare to cry out in pain. At this moment, Su Xiangling's heart sank to the bottom. They didn't even give her a chance to survive.
Emperor Xuande pondered for a moment and asked, "Are you saying that she performed a witchcraft ritual and that the child in her belly will absorb the prince's fortune?"
Mr. Zhou nodded and said, "Your Majesty, besides you, who else in the Great Zhou has the best destiny and fortune?"
In the Great Zhou Dynasty, apart from the emperor, the prince is naturally the most honorable, and this is beyond doubt.
Mr. Zhou added, "But she must have only learned the basics. She inserted the needles incorrectly in two places, which affected the prince's health."
"It's a good thing it's like this, otherwise it would be too late to find out later."
Su Qingyu's mouth twitched as she heard this. Mr. Zhou was really good at making up stories. She had a rough idea in mind, but it was up to Mr. Zhou to decide how to say it.
In fact, she still felt a little regretful. If she knew the emperor's horoscope, it would make more sense that Su Xiangling wanted to kill the emperor and let the prince ascend the throne as soon as possible.
But she didn't know the emperor's horoscope, and Su Xiangling couldn't know it either, so they could only start with the prince.
When Emperor Xuande heard what Mr. Zhou said, his eyes suddenly became deep and he looked at him with an inexplicable expression.
"You also know witchcraft?"
Su Qingyu's heart suddenly tightened. Was the Emperor afraid of Mr. Zhou? She pursed her lips tightly, and the hand holding Shen Zhixiu under the table suddenly tightened.
Noticing Su Qingyu's nervousness, Shen Zhixiu patted the back of her hand and signaled her not to worry.
Mr. Zhou is not in the court, even if the emperor is wary of him, at most he will let him leave the capital. He will avenge his great hatred and go anywhere in the world.
Mr. Zhou was not surprised by the questions asked by Emperor Xuande, and was obviously prepared.
He gave a wry smile and said, "Your Majesty, you think highly of me. I have been practicing medicine for many years, so I can see some clues. As for how to do it, I don't know."
"This secret technique is not easy to perform. You need to know the opponent's horoscope and also get their hair or underwear."
"If anyone could use secret techniques to harm others, the world would be in chaos."
Mr. Zhou's words were meant to reassure Emperor Xuande. As for whether Emperor Xuande had let down his guard, he didn't really care. At worst, he could just leave the capital and head south.
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