Darkness once again enveloped the earth, so dark that one could not see their own hand in front of their face.
The moon in the sky was also obscured by dark clouds, with only a sliver of light showing.
The palace was very quiet; you could even hear snoring ten meters away.
Zhen'er, draped in a thin veil, stood by the window, waiting quietly.
Just as the clock struck midnight, a dark figure appeared outside and headed towards the inner room.
Seeing this, Zhen'er's lips curled up slightly. After the shadowy figure locked the door from the outside, she quickly locked it again from the outside.
"Your Majesty, are you shy? Why don't you light some candles?"
The dark figure was none other than Gu Qingtong. At this moment, he was unaware that he was trapped like a turtle in a jar, and he was grinning lewdly in the darkness.
Zhen'er did not respond, but quietly placed a lit incense stick through the crack in the window.
"Your Majesty, you little rascal, if you don't make a sound, I'll go to your bed."
After saying that, he slipped off all his clothes like an eel and rushed to the bed.
To his surprise, there was no one in the bed. He yelled, "Oh no!"
Just as he was about to walk out the door, he found that it was already locked. He was very anxious and tried to escape through the window when Zhen'er suddenly opened it. At that moment, thunder and lightning began to flash in the sky. In the brief flash of lightning, Zhen'er's face looked even more sinister and terrifying.
Startled, and with the added effect of the sleeping potion, Gu Qingtong quickly collapsed to the ground.
Zhen'er chuckled, then walked back to the room and kicked Gu Qingtong twice. Seeing that he didn't move, she breathed a sigh of relief. "Hmph, you dare to use your good looks on me? You're tired of living."
After saying that, Zhen'er tied him up and hung him on a wooden post.
Gu Qingtong was suspended in mid-air, his body hanging there. A chill swept over him, startling him awake and making him shiver.
That's right, it was Zhen'er who woke him up by splashing him with ice water. She doesn't show any 'tenderness' to women!
"Your Majesty, what are you doing? Do you want to play such a thrilling game?"
He was unaware that he was about to be in deep trouble, and he laughed with a disgusted expression.
"Don't say another word, or I'll cut out your tongue," Zhen'er threatened coldly.
Gu Qingtong thought Zhen'er was joking, and even licked his lips provocatively, "Is Your Majesty willing to do that?"
Seeing such a disgusting sight, Zhen'er could no longer hold back. She took out a dagger from her sleeve and stabbed it into Gu Qingtong's arm. "See if I can bear to do this!"
She revealed a cold expression that Gu Qingtong had never seen before.
The dagger pierced his flesh, and the pain immediately pulled him out of his reverie.
"ah!!!"
Gu Qingtong screamed, "Your Majesty, spare me! Your Majesty, spare me!"
"Spare me! Then tell me what you were trying to do just now?"
Gu Qingtong hurriedly said, "I didn't mean anything by it. Didn't Your Majesty summon me here?"
"I called you here, but did I ask you to take off your clothes?" Zhen'er raised an eyebrow and asked.
Gu Qingtong was stunned when he heard this. Could it be that Zhen'er really didn't mean that?
Before he could figure it out, Zhen'er stabbed him in the arm again, saying, "Tell me, who sent you to get close to me?"
She knew who it was, but she wanted a definite answer.
Gu Qingtong was truly panicked this time. "This humble servant didn't mean anything by it, Your Majesty. Please spare my life. This humble servant only approached Your Highness because I admire you. I really didn't mean anything else..."
He was in so much pain from his wound that his voice was heavy with breathing.
Zhen'er drew her knife. "Do you think I'm a three-year-old child? You can fool others with this kind of lie, but you can't fool me."
"No, I am telling the truth."
Gu Qingtong was in so much pain that he was covered in sweat. He hadn't expected the Empress Dowager to be so cruel as to stab his flesh with a dagger, causing blood to flow freely.
"Heh, the truth?" Zhen'er scoffed. "Would someone with homosexual tendencies suddenly fall in love with a woman?"
In the past two weeks, Zhen'er has also thoroughly investigated Gu Qingtong's bottom line. It's surprising that Cixi didn't know how to enjoy him; it turns out he has homosexual tendencies.
What's worse, he also abused children, especially boys! So Zhen'er had long harbored murderous intent.
"How...how did you know?" Gu Qingtong muttered softly, then said with a firm look in his eyes, "Empress Dowager, you must believe me!"
Zhen'er felt disgusted by Gu Qingtong's stubborn and defiant attitude; his expression was so repulsive that she felt like throwing up.
"Ha, believe you?" Zhen'er scoffed. "The boy in your cellar is covered in wounds!"
If it weren't for Zhen'er's secret investigation, this boy would probably have died a violent death long ago.
No wonder the boy disappeared seven days ago. Gu Qingtong thought he had run away, but it turns out he was rescued by Zhen'er.
At the time, he was too busy trying to please Zhen'er to investigate further.
"So... all this time your affection for me has been fake?" Gu Qingtong asked, clenching his fist. He thought that if Zhen'er really had even a shred of affection for him, then he would have a chance to live.
Unfortunately, he was overthinking things.
"Of course, from the first moment I saw you, I was already suspicious of you," Zhen'er said truthfully.
Gu Qingtong began to panic, and his lips started to tremble. He wanted to say something, but he didn't know what to say.
"I'll ask you one more time, who sent you to get close to me?" Zhen'er looked at Gu Qingtong calmly, the cold light in her eyes growing even stronger.
"..." Gu Qingtong remained silent for a moment, wanting to speak but not daring to.
"It seems you won't learn your lesson until you're faced with a death sentence. In that case, I will treat you like a child abuser."
After saying that, she instructed Xiao Anzi to bring over the long whip and the basin full of excrement.
While she made Xiao Anzi feed him those filthy things, she lashed her long whip at him, the tip of the whip striking his flesh with a cracking sound.
This was just one of his methods of child abuse; there were even more horrific ways that Zhen'er dared not do.
But even this slightest thing was too much for Gu Qingtong to bear. He cried out in a foul voice, "Your Majesty, spare me! Spare me! I'll tell you everything!"
"Hmph, if you had been so quick to agree earlier, why suffer the pain?" Zhen'er sneered, retracting the whip in her hand, and said again, "Speak quickly!"
"Yes, it was Eunuch Li, who was by the Empress Dowager's side. He found a handsome young boy for me, and I couldn't resist and agreed to it." Gu Qingtong continued with a mournful face, "He wants me to seduce you. When the time is right, he will bring the Empress Dowager to catch you in the act. In this way, they will have something on you and they will tell you to go west, and you won't dare to go east."
Zhen'er had expected this, so she wasn't shocked. Instead, she asked, "Eunuch Li, is it Li Lianying?" Her eyes grew even colder.
Gu Qingtong nodded. "It's him!"
"Very well!" Zhen'er narrowed her eyes. "It seems I should punish this rootless wretch properly."
At the same time, she would not let go of Empress Dowager Cixi, the sinner who had instigated the whole affair. Even if it cost her her life, she would drag her down to hell.
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