After the imperial physician confirmed the pregnancy, Yan Wu instructed Physician Xu to be in charge of Yan Chaoxi's daily pulse and replaced all the second and third-class palace maids in Qingfeng Garden with new ones to ensure that no one with ill intentions could infiltrate the area.
Since the beginning of this month, the Crown Princess, Consort An, and Consort Zhao have all been unwell. With no one causing trouble in the inner palace, things have been much quieter. The lower-ranking concubines and ladies-in-waiting dare not cause any trouble, for fear of offending the Crown Princess and being punished.
Yan Chaoxi calculated the time; a month had already passed. Presumably, the props and talismans used on them had all lost their effectiveness, and the mansion would soon become lively again.
Yan Chaoxi knew they would come to cause trouble, but she didn't expect it to happen so quickly.
Early the next morning, a series of crying and commotion could be heard outside Qingfeng Garden, and it seemed to be more than one person.
Today was a day off, and Yan Wu had already woken up. He was sitting at his desk processing memorials when he heard the noise outside. Before he could even have someone chase them away, he saw that the person sleeping soundly in the inner room had been woken up.
He quickly got up and went into the inner room, speaking softly, "You sleep a little longer, I'll go and chase them away."
Yan Chaoxi rubbed her eyes, still feeling sleepy. "No need, I've had enough sleep. Let's see what they're up to."
Seeing Yan Chaoxi get up, Yan Wu hurriedly came over and took the clothes prepared on the rack to help her put them on.
She had already cursed the people outside who had woken her up in her mind.
Yan Chaoxi obediently stretched out her hands, letting Yan Wu do as he pleased. She discovered that Yan Wu, who had not been raised as a prince since childhood, did not have that kind of haughty arrogance. He was very efficient at serving people and was a good candidate for being a servant.
After dressing her, Yan Wu instructed Bi Chun to bring in water. After she finished washing up, the two of them leisurely left the room.
Yan Chaoxi couldn't help but marvel at Yan Wu's shamelessness at his leisurely demeanor. He showed no guilt or remorse for usurping the Crown Prince's place, as if the Crown Prince's residence had always been his.
Outside the courtyard gate, Consort An and Consort Zhao cried until they were almost out of tears and could no longer continue. Finally, the palace servants of Qingfeng Garden let them in.
Yan Wu coldly glanced at them, "Are you mourning?"
An Liangdi wiped away her tears and knelt before him. "Your Highness! Please, Your Highness, do us justice!"
Consort Zhao also said, "Please, Your Highness, do us justice!"
"What do you mean by that?"
Consort An cried as she spoke, “Since Consort Zhao entered the mansion, the three of us—Consort Zhao, the Crown Princess, and I—have been plagued by illness. The Crown Princess has not had a rest for a month, I have a splitting headache, and Consort Zhao has been having nightmares night after night. The imperial physicians have been unable to diagnose the cause.”
"At first, the Crown Princess said that the concubine's birth chart was too strong, bringing misfortune to everyone in the household, and that she had the concubine copy Buddhist scriptures. His Highness didn't believe it, and neither did Consort Zhao and I, believing that the concubine was kind-hearted and wouldn't harm anyone in the household. But..."
"But just yesterday, I dug up a doll in the courtyard with my birth date and time written on it. I was so alarmed that I went to ask the Crown Princess and Consort Zhao, and it turned out that I had also dug up the same doll in their courtyards."
As An Liangdi spoke, she ordered someone to bring up the unearthed dolls.
The palace servants brought out the items they had brought. On the plate were four palm-sized dolls, each with its birth date and time written on it and a yellow talisman pasted on it, densely covered with tiny needles.
These are the birth dates and times of the Crown Prince, the Crown Princess, Consort An, and Consort Zhao.
"Your Highness, two items were unearthed in the Crown Princess's courtyard, one yours and one the Crown Princess's. Please take a look and see if this is witchcraft. You must know that our Great Liang has always strictly prohibited such evil arts from harming people!"
As An Liangdi spoke, her eyes were fixed on Yan Chaoxi.
Yan Chaoxi raised an eyebrow. "So, from what An Liangdi is saying, I sneaked into your yard in the middle of the night, dug a hole, and put these little devils in there?"
“We don’t want to believe it was you who did it either, but why did the Crown Princess and we all fall ill as soon as you entered the mansion? Could it be that we buried these dolls ourselves?” An Liangdi questioned.
Consort Zhao also rubbed her head and looked at Yan Wu in a soft and weak voice, "Your Highness... I haven't had a good night's sleep in the past month, and Your Highness hasn't come to see me."
Zhao Liangdi was already thin, and after a month of torment, she is now even thinner and more pitiful, practically emaciated.
"As soon as these dolls were unearthed, the strange illnesses that plagued me and Consort An inexplicably disappeared. I do not believe that this matter has nothing to do with these dolls."
Yan Wu nodded to indicate that he had heard, and instructed Bi Chun to bring up breakfast.
Since the little princess is willing to watch the two of them act, then let her watch, but she can't go hungry.
Bichun arranged for the palace servants to serve breakfast. Yan Wuxian asked Yan Chaoxi to sit down, and Bichun served the two of them eight-treasure porridge.
An Liangdi and Zhao Liangdi's faces both stiffened.
Despite the suspicion that Yan Chaoxi had used witchcraft, the Crown Prince not only wasn't angry, but even seemed to be in the mood to have breakfast with her. The two women exchanged a glance, realizing they had underestimated Yan Chaoxi's standing in His Highness's heart.
But it doesn't matter. With the evidence so conclusive, they don't believe the Crown Prince would still favor Yan Chaoxi!
The witchcraft was indeed framed by them, but the strange symptoms on the three of them appeared and disappeared almost at the same time. An Liangdi and the other two would never believe that this matter had nothing to do with Yan Chaoxi.
They couldn't figure out how Yan Chaoxi managed to harm three people at the same time, no matter how hard they thought about it.
Therefore, the Crown Princess and the two of them joined forces to set up today's scheme. The evidence is sufficient, and unless Yan Chaoxi could have foreseen it in advance, she will have to accept the charge of practicing witchcraft today no matter what.
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