Baoqin glared at Shuiling with disgust and said to Lanqin, "Your Majesty, you must not be fooled by her again. She begged you in the same way when she was seducing the Emperor behind your back! You must not be soft-hearted again."
Lanqin felt a pang of pain in her heart, and as she recalled the scenes of Hongli being poisoned, she gave up on Ji Shi. Just as she was about to turn and leave, Ji Shi called out to Lanqin.
"It was Consort Nian!" Lanqin was taken aback and turned to look at Madam Ji. She quickly said, "Your Highness, it was Consort Nian who instructed me to do it!"
Lanqin said coldly, "I also thought it was Consort Nian before, and even had the Emperor go to Yikun Palace to investigate thoroughly. Apart from the palace maid you implicated, we found nothing else! What makes you say that Consort Nian instructed you to do it? Do you have any evidence?"
Lady Ji did not want to die, nor was she willing to be used and discarded by Consort Nian. Only by living could she take revenge. Lady Ji knew that only Lanqin could win back the Emperor's heart. If Lanqin was willing to help her, perhaps she could escape death.
Knowing that Lanqin must be eager to know the whole story, Madam Ji said to her, "I will tell you everything you want to know..."
Seeing Lanqin hesitate, Baoqin quickly stepped in front of her: "Your Highness, you can't trust Shuiling. What she says is all lies to such a treacherous person..."
Lanqin, however, said to Ji Shi, "Was the poison that Hongli suffered from brought from the Western Regions by you?"
Lady Ji smiled bitterly and said, "Your Majesty really thinks too highly of me. The poison in Beizi is called Strychnos nux-vomica, which is found on a rare tree in the Western Regions. Doctors in the Central Plains have never seen it before, so naturally they cannot cure it. It was General Nian who specially went to the Western Regions to find it for Consort Nian and brought it into the palace a long time ago. I was just being used by Consort Nian..."
Ji's words were within Lanqin's expectations. However, Lanqin did not expect that Consort Nian would plan and scheme in this way to harm Hongli, sparing no expense. It was even said that she and her brother had been plotting for a long time. If it weren't for Wuxiha's chance appearance, Hongli would probably have died without a burial place.
Lanqin lowered her head and asked, "Why did the palace maid not mention Consort Nian, but instead said your name?"
Suddenly, Lady Ji's face hardened, and she gritted her teeth, saying, "It's all Consort Nian's doing. She knew that once things were exposed, someone would have to take the blame, so she instructed the palace maids to implicate me. That way, she could escape unscathed from the Emperor's discovery. But how could she have imagined that I wouldn't give up so easily? I'm not willing to be used as a pawn and then discarded like this..."
Perhaps Ji's expression was too fierce, Baoqin was worried that Lanqin would be attacked, so she flashed to Lanqin's side to protect her.
Lanqin nodded slightly and then asked, "Was that palace maid the eunuch who took Hongli away from the prince?"
Lady Ji laughed, "Your Majesty truly has discerning eyes! Even with such disguise, Your Majesty was able to recognize her. Indeed! That palace maid has a special skill: she can imitate a man's voice. That night, it was this palace maid who dressed up as a eunuch and imitated a eunuch's voice to lure Hongli out of the prince's quarters!"
Lanqin clenched her fists inwardly, her face expressionless, and said, "And what about you? Did you personally stab the poisoned needle into Hongli's chest?"
Madam Ji stared blankly at Lanqin, then her gaze was replaced by fear. She whispered, "That night was dark. The prince went to the study alone, and I waited for him on the way. It was very dark, and I kept my head down the whole time, so the prince didn't see me clearly..."
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