"Her Majesty is ill?!"
When Liu Yu and Madam Wang arrived at Baoyi Palace, they were stopped at the gate. They were greeted by two maids, Tongxia and Yuyue.
"Sigh~" Yu Yue sighed deeply and said with a sorrowful face, "Her Majesty caught a cold last night. You two know very well how weak Her Majesty is... She can't even get out of bed right now, so I'm afraid she won't be able to see you two elders."
The mother and son looked at each other, both seeing suspicion in each other's eyes.
What a coincidence! He fell ill as soon as he came to see her?
In the past, they would have gone in directly to check its authenticity, but now they needed someone's help, and they were in the palace, so they dared not trespass on Qingying's palace.
Thus, the two had no choice but to return empty-handed.
Qingying placed the last stroke of her paintbrush on the paper, looked up at Yu Yue who had walked in, and asked, "Have they left?"
Yu Yue nodded. "They've already left. Judging from the direction they're going, they should have returned to the Empress's place."
Qingying chuckled and said, "I knew Liu Shushu would definitely try to cause me some trouble by pushing them onto me. If I help them, it would go against my original intention; if I don't help them, I will offend the Liu family. It's truly a dirty trick."
Yu Yue couldn't help but feel worried: "Your Majesty, if we send them away so easily this time, what if they hold a grudge? After all, the Liu family is still your maternal family."
“My maternal family? My maternal family is long gone. In the Liu family today, only my grandmother still treats me with a shred of sincerity, but when it comes to the interests of the family, she will still abandon me at will, just like everyone else.”
She had long seen through the ugliness hidden beneath those people's hypocritical masks.
They all pretended to dote on Liu Shushu, but weren't they just using her to protect the honor of their entire family? When she was forced to enter the palace, not a single person spoke up for her, nor did anyone sympathize with Liu Shushu. All they could see was the glory of the Liu family's daughter monopolizing the harem.
However, they are all selfish and wicked devils.
If that's the case, why should she treat them as family?
Qingying put down her paintbrush, walked to the side, took out a damp cloth to wipe her hands, and instructed, "Send someone to deliver this painting to the Jin residence... It's time to keep your promise to him."
...
When Jin Heng received Qing Ying's painting and understood the riddle within, he was overjoyed and immediately took the evidence he had just discovered to the palace.
Wei Huaixu was not surprised at all when he saw him.
He merely raised an eyebrow and asked, "What brings Minister Jin to the palace at this hour?"
"Your Majesty, I have obtained strong evidence that can convict Pan."
"Oh? Bring it here."
Jin Heng respectfully held a scroll of paper above his head, and Yu took the item from him and presented it to Wei Huaixu.
"These are letters exchanged between the Pan family and foreign enemies, as well as replicas of city defense maps and battle formation maps from our dynasty."
The reason why the Ye family was convicted of treason was because Grand Tutor Ye lost the city defense map, which led to the defeat of the Eastern Lin Kingdom. Coincidentally, the enemy country had Grand Tutor Ye's handwritten letter.
Just then, a popular uprising broke out, and at that time, many "righteous men" suddenly emerged in the court, demanding that the rebels be dealt with quickly to appease the people. The late emperor had no choice but to hastily close the case and confiscate the entire Ye family's property.
Wei Huaixu looked at each item one by one, his brows gradually relaxing. He put down the items and looked at Jin Heng: "This evidence is enough to wipe out the entire Pan family, but Pan Shi has already married into the Liu family, so this matter probably won't involve her yet."
"The person who communicated with the enemy's spies back then was Pan."
"Do you have any evidence?"
"That spy has been captured alive by me and is currently being escorted to the palace."
What was Pan's purpose in doing this?
"As far as I know, this is the truth."
"Oh? Tell me more."
"When Lady Pan first met Liu Yu, she secretly fell in love with him. However, Liu Yu had been in love with Ye Ning when he was an apprentice under Grand Tutor Ye. She expressed her love several times but received no response, which made her jealous and resentful. Meanwhile, Lord Pan and Chief Minister Yan had always been at odds with Grand Tutor Ye. When war broke out, they joined forces with foreign enemies to overthrow Grand Tutor Ye."
Wei Huaixu smiled and said, "Jin Heng, I was right about you. You are truly capable. You have managed to uncover all these old stories."
Jin Heng added, "I have compared it with Lord Pan's handwriting, and there is absolutely no mistake."
"Very well, this can be considered as clearing Grand Tutor Ye's name! You have done a great service. Now, tell me, what reward do you want?"
"Your Majesty knows what I want."
He clicked his tongue and said, "You are now second only to the emperor, and you can have any kind of woman you want in this world. Why are you so fixated on that one person?"
Jin Heng raised his head and looked directly at him, saying, "Your Majesty is the ruler of the world, how much more clear-headed is he than I am?"
Wei Huaixu rubbed his temples helplessly. "How dare you mock me... Fine, I will grant your wish."
Jin Heng kowtowed and bowed, saying, "Thank you for your great kindness, Your Majesty."
After he left, Wei Huaixu picked up the letters again and examined them carefully.
"The Pan family, the Ye family, the Pan clan, Ye Ning, what a tragic fate."
Yu said slowly, "Cause and effect are cyclical, and retribution is inevitable. Who can escape it?"
Wei Huaixu's eyes immediately turned cold, and a hint of murderous intent flashed across them.
He simply stood aside, smiling slightly, showing no fear whatsoever.
He knew that Wei Huaixu wouldn't kill him easily.
That is indeed the case.
Because he still has value to be exploited.
...
Liu Shushu had finally managed to get rid of Liu Yu and Wang Shi, and was sitting down to rest when a palace maid massaged her shoulders.
"Does Your Majesty really intend to intervene in this matter?"
She shook her head. "I can see that His Majesty is standing up for Liu Qingying this time and is determined to punish Pan Shi. Why should I go against his wishes?"
"But what about the Duke of Zhenguo..."
"As long as we isolate the Pan family, it won't endanger the Liu family."
"But she is, after all, your birth mother. Wouldn't it seem like Your Majesty is being too heartless?"
She snorted and said, "Even if she is my birth mother, how many days did she raise me? If I hadn't been so lucky, I would probably have died at her hands long ago. If she cared about me, she should have ended her own life to avoid dragging me into it."
The palace maid, seeing her indifferent expression, was speechless for a moment and dared not say another word.
Liu Shushu pondered for a moment and said, "Go and send someone to find out the situation and see how much evidence the Emperor has gathered."
"yes."
After the palace maid left, she felt somewhat uneasy. After pondering for a moment, she got up and went inside to write a letter.
"Someone, take this to Jishetang."
Liu Chenglin practiced medicine outside the palace, never entering the court or the palace. Moreover, he often visited the homes of high-ranking officials and nobles to provide medical care, and it would be easier to handle certain matters by entrusting them to him.
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