Chapter 647 Poisoning
Inside Huguo Temple, incense smoke swirls and the bell tolls loudly and far-reachingly. In the main hall, the Buddha statue stands solemnly, its lowered eyes seemingly gazing upon all living beings.
Xie Shang walked unhurriedly to her side. He saw Jiang Fenghua kneeling in front of the Buddha statue, her hands clasped together. The candlelight in front of the Buddha flickered slightly, reflecting on her face. Her expression was calm, her eyes were slightly closed, and she was sincerely worshipping the Buddha.
He suddenly spoke up: "Ruan Ruan."
"One must be sincere before the Buddha. Since the Emperor has come, let us calmly offer our prayers!"
Xie Shang knelt on the prayer mat beside her. He knew she had many questions in her heart. He said, "Actually, you don't need to care about what Su Qingqing said. The crimes of the Su family are too numerous to count. Eliminating the Su family is a good thing for the country. I can also explain Su Tingwan's matter."
“Your Majesty, one must remain calm and composed before the Bodhisattva.” Jiang Fenghua smiled. “The epidemic is spreading in Jishantang. If we do not find a way to treat the people in time, the consequences will be unimaginable. I am not thinking about Consort Su’s matter.”
A hint of doubt appeared in Xie Shang's eyes, hoping that she really wasn't thinking about it. She heard her lips move slightly as she murmured, "May Buddha bless all living beings and spare them from suffering. May the epidemic disappear soon and the people live in peace and prosperity."
But Jiang Fenghua's heart could not find true peace. The bell rang in her ears again, and those resentful eyes that hated her kept appearing in her mind.
At this moment, Shang Hongcai arrived. He looked grave, his head slightly bowed, and said in a deep voice, "We haven't found Consort Lan. If she had fallen off such a high cliff, she would probably be smashed to pieces by now..."
Jiang Fenghua stared at Shang Hong and said coldly, "Announce the bad news!"
"Yes," Shang Hong replied respectfully.
Xie Shang did not suspect that Consort Lan's accident was deliberately arranged. After three concubines in the palace had accidents one after another, he arranged for the monks of Huguo Temple to perform a ritual for the three of them. All the concubines in the palace had to mourn for them for a month, and everyone became anxious.
Gao Qingtong and Song Jing exchanged a glance. Song Jing then said, "Consort Lan even copied Buddhist scriptures for Consort Zhang and Consort Pan, but unexpectedly, they couldn't even find their bodies."
Gao Qingtong also lamented the unpredictability of life and the impermanence of existence.
Shu Yan was even more frightened, thinking to herself: Fortunately, the person who went out with the Empress was Consort Lan. Helan Yanran was implicated by the Empress!
The other concubines dared not utter a sound. Ever since the Empress returned, the concubines had been having one misfortune after another, and no one knew why. They all knelt in the temple hall and prayed to the Bodhisattva for protection.
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Meanwhile, Zhao Jin, A Chong, and the others were all ordered to be imprisoned by Lin Feng.
Lin Feng interrogated her for a while, "Where did Su Qingqing hide the Ninth Princess? Who does she usually contact? Who is helping you?"
Zhao Jin said, "We don't know where the Ninth Princess is. Since returning from the Northwest, Madam has been with the Empress Dowager. All we know is that the Empress Dowager is helping Madam take revenge."
Lin Feng interrogated them and even used torture, but he didn't get any useful information.
Jiang Fenghua, Xie Shang, and Jiang Jinyan came from the main hall of the temple and heard Zhao Jin's voice.
When they came in, Zhao Jin and A Chong both looked in Jiang Fenghua's direction.
Jiang Fenghua said, "What do you get from helping Su Qingqing like this? Money, power, or are you really loyal and selfless to the Su family, even willing to risk your lives to help her cover it up?"
Zhao Jin said nothing. The Su family supported them, and all she knew was obedience. Loyalty was the only thing they had to do in their lives. Now that the madam was dead, they had lost their pillar of support, and they didn't know who to be loyal to anymore.
Jiang Fenghua then walked up to A Chong and said, "You must be under twenty years old. You're so young and you're already doing this dangerous job with your aunt. Your parents must be heartbroken if they knew!"
Ah Chong stared at her face. "I don't have parents. My aunt raised me. My aunt is my mother."
"Oh, so if I kill you, no one will feel sorry for you. I wonder if your aunt will feel sorry for you. I guess she won't, because you are just an assassin she trained." Jiang Fenghua took out a dagger and pressed it against Ah Chong's heart.
Ah Chong was stunned. He looked in Zhao Jin's direction and saw Zhao Jin's cold eyes. He said in a deep voice, "If you want to kill us, then kill us. Why torture us like this? We are just following orders."
Jiang Fenghua ignored her completely, and the tip of the knife drew closer and closer. If Aunt Zhao didn't care about Achong, her sword would have pierced Achong's body in the mountains. At that moment, she panicked.
Seeing this, Zhao Jin said urgently, "A-Chong doesn't know anything. It's no use for you to press him. We don't know anything either."
Ah Chong said, "The person who brought the lady here was a woman. She was wearing a cloak and her face was covered while she was sitting in the carriage. I saw her from afar when I went down the mountain to pick up the lady. Her servants were also wrapped up tightly, and even the coachman's face was not shown. I saw that the coachman had a scar on the back of his right hand. The Ninth Princess was sent to Jiangnan."
Zhao Jin quickly stopped him, saying, "A-Chong, shut up."
Ah Chong said, "Aunt, let's tell them what we know. We have done everything we could for the Su family, but what have they done to us? Has Madam Su treated us like human beings? You have received favors from the Su family, but I haven't."
At this moment, Jiang Jinyan also arrived: "The Liu family of Jiangnan is the maternal family of Old Madam Su. When the Su family was raided, the Liu family was not raided. The Liu family has been in business for generations and has no connection with the Su family on the surface. Therefore, the Liu family was not implicated by the Su family at that time. Su Qingqing probably wanted to assassinate the Empress and then go to Jiangnan to meet with the Ninth Princess. Perhaps the Ninth Princess knows something."
Xie Shang then asked, "Was the epidemic at Jishantang also caused by you?"
Ah Chong said, "It's not an epidemic, it's poisoning. The symptoms of poisoning are similar to those of an epidemic. Only a large dose will cause immediate death. The poison was mixed in the well of Jishantang, and they only showed symptoms of poisoning after drinking the well water."
"So it's not contagion, but poisoning. Everyone in Jishantang has been poisoned, but the symptoms and the timing of the poisoning are different. What kind of poison makes it feel like an epidemic? Who gave you this poison?"
“It was given by the Madam. Our men disguised themselves as refugees and infiltrated Jishan Hall to poison them. They were also the first to die, just to create panic.” Ah Chong added, “It was the Madam’s idea. We don’t know where she got this poison from.”
"Su Qingqing is really ruthless. She doesn't even spare her own people. You all really obeyed her and risked your lives to serve the Su family. Now that the Su family is destroyed, Aunt Zhao still won't say anything?" Jiang Fenghua mocked. She felt that Zhao Jin should know who was secretly colluding with Su Qingqing.
“Ah Chong has already said everything, what else can I say? I have nothing more to say,” Zhao Jin said.
Jiang Fenghua stared at Zhao Jin and guessed, "You really are A-Chong's aunt, not his biological mother."
Zhao Jin panicked and shouted, raising her voice, "What nonsense are you talking about? I... how could we be mother and son? We're not."
"If it's not true, it's not true. Why are you yelling? You're making people think you're guilty," Jiang Fenghua said calmly.
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