Chapter 544 Who is the Mantis and Who is the Cicada
"Concubine Hui calculated that if I ate it, there would be two deaths, and no evidence. She also calculated that if I didn't eat it, and I discovered something, it would be known to everyone."
"By then, she will just need to find a scapegoat and act like she's been framed, and she'll be able to get away with it easily."
Chu Ruohan looked at her and sighed inwardly.
This queen is no longer the herbalist who had just entered the palace and was ignorant of the world.
This deep palace is indeed the place that tests one the most.
"What does the lady mean?"
Su Wan's gaze fell on the plate of pastries again, and a hint of ruthlessness flashed in his eyes.
"If she wants to see a play, I will sing for her. But the play has to be decided by me."
She suddenly raised her voice and shouted outside the hall, "Someone come."
The palace maid guarding the door immediately pushed it open and walked in: "What do you want, Your Majesty?"
Su Wan picked up a piece of flower cake, put it to the tip of her nose and sniffed it gently, a satisfied smile on her face.
"This cake smells sweet, and I think it tastes good. I'm a little tired and want to rest for a while. Please take the cakes down and keep an eye on them to make sure no one else eats them."
The maid was stunned, but still responded respectfully: "Yes, your Majesty."
After the maid left with the tray, Chu Ruohan asked in confusion, "Madam, what are you doing?"
Su Wan winked at her and motioned for her to come closer.
A moment later, a cry of surprise suddenly rang out from Kunning Palace, followed by the palace maids' tearful screams: "Oh no! The Empress has fainted!"
The news spread throughout the harem like the wind.
The emperor was reviewing memorials in the imperial study. When he heard this, his pen paused and the ink instantly spread across the memorial.
He stood up suddenly, his face livid: "Call the imperial physician! Go to Kunning Palace immediately!"
When the emperor and the head of the Imperial Medical Bureau hurried to Kunning Palace, the bedroom was already in chaos.
Su Wan lay on the bed with a pale face and eyes closed.
Chu Ruohan was sitting beside the bed, wiping the cold sweat from her forehead with a handkerchief, her eyes full of anxiety.
"What's going on!" The emperor strode in, his voice full of suppressed anger.
Chu Ruohan quickly stood up and saluted, her voice choking with sobs, "Your Majesty, I was talking to Your Majesty, and Your Majesty said she was a little tired. But not long after she lay down, she suddenly had an unbearable abdominal pain and then fainted."
The head of the Imperial Medical Service did not dare to delay and hurried forward to take the patient's pulse.
He knelt beside the bed, placed three fingers on Su Wan's wrist, and frowned more and more.
The emperor stood aside with his hands behind his back, emitting a terrifying low pressure. All the palace servants in the bedroom knelt on the ground, trembling.
After a while, the head of the court withdrew his hand and knelt down in front of the emperor with sweat on his forehead: "Your Majesty, the Empress... The Empress has been poisoned!"
"Poisoned?" The emperor's eyes narrowed instantly, emitting a dangerous light. "What kind of poison?"
"It's...it's Cinnabar."
The head of the hospital replied tremblingly, "Fortunately, the dosage was not large, and it was discovered in time. I will prescribe a prescription to detoxify Your Majesty."
"It's just... it's just that the dragon fetus in the belly might be damaged. It's still unknown whether it can be saved."
"Waste!" The emperor kicked the head doctor in the chest, and the old doctor immediately rolled to the ground, not daring to say a word.
The emperor's gaze swept across everyone in the hall like a sharp sword, and finally landed on Chu Ruohan.
"Who has the Queen seen today? What has she used?"
Chu Ruohan immediately knelt down, took out a piece of pastry crumbs wrapped in a handkerchief from her sleeve, and presented it to him.
"Your Majesty, the Empress had not eaten anything before she fainted. Concubine Hui just sent someone to bring her a plate of flower cakes, and the Empress said she was tired, so she asked the palace maid to take it away."
"I was suspicious, so I secretly kept a piece."
The chief eunuch beside the emperor immediately stepped forward to take it and presented it to the head of the court.
The dean took only one look and tried it with a silver needle. The tip of the needle instantly turned black.
His face changed drastically, and he kowtowed, "Your Majesty, the poison is this cake!"
"Concubine Hui!" The emperor laughed in anger, murderous intent surging in his eyes. "Prepare! I want to ask her in person what she is up to!"
In Concubine Hui's palace.
She was sitting leisurely by the window, letting the palace maid comb her long hair.
Hearing the news that Kunning Palace was in chaos and the emperor and the imperial physician had rushed there, a smug sneer appeared on the corner of her lips.
What a fool he really is, he fell into the trap so easily.
At this moment, a noisy sound of footsteps was heard outside the palace, and the chief eunuch's sharp voice broke the silence of the palace: "The emperor has arrived!"
Concubine Hui was startled, but she didn't show it on her face.
She stood up calmly and went out to greet him. Just as she was about to salute, she saw the emperor rushing in with anger.
"Your Highness, I pay my respects to you." Concubine Hui bowed gently. "How did Your Highness find time to come to my place today?"
The emperor ignored her completely and stared at her with his fierce eyes, as if he wanted to see through her.
"I'm asking you, did you send cakes to the Queen today?"
Concubine Hui was stunned for a moment, then nodded with an innocent look on her face.
"Yes. The small kitchen in my palace just made some flower cakes. I thought they were delicious, and thinking that the Empress might like them since she's pregnant, I sent some over."
"What's wrong? But the cake is not to your Majesty's taste?"
As she spoke, she picked up a piece of identical flower cake from the table, took a small bite, and savored it carefully: "It tastes okay. Could it be that it was cold when it was delivered?"
The emperor looked at her calm appearance and his anger burned even more fiercely.
"Did you know that the Queen ate your cake and got poisoned!"
"What?" Concubine Hui seemed to have heard some terrible news, and the pastry in her hand fell to the ground with a "pop".
Her face turned pale instantly, her body swayed, and she looked at the emperor in disbelief.
"Your Majesty, this...how is this possible? I...I ate it too!"
She pointed at herself, her eyes quickly filled with tears and grievance.
"I used this cake too, how could this happen... someone must be trying to harm me and frame me!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the young eunuch who delivered cakes to Kunning Palace was escorted in by the guards. When he saw the emperor, he was so scared that he kowtowed repeatedly.
"Your Majesty, please spare me! Your Majesty, please spare me!"
When Concubine Hui saw him, she felt like she had grabbed a lifeline and demanded, "Tell me! Is it you? Did you poison the cakes to sow discord between me and the Empress?"
The young eunuch trembled all over and cried out, "Your Majesty, spare me! This slave... This slave didn't mean it!"
"Yes...someone gave me a packet of medicinal powder and told me to add it to the cakes for the Empress. They said that after the task was completed, they would give me a large sum of money and send me out of the palace and back home!"
"Who ordered you to do that?" The emperor's voice was as cold as ice.
The young eunuch trembled, but did not dare to reveal the mastermind behind the incident. He just kept kowtowing.
"I deserve to die! I was possessed by a demon! Please, Your Majesty, spare my family!"
Concubine Hui looked at this scene, sneered in her heart, but her face showed a look of heartbreak.
She staggered a step, held onto the table beside her, and looked at the emperor with tears in her eyes.
"Your Majesty, please trust me. I just lost a child and know the pain. How could I harm the dragon fetus in the Empress's womb?"
"Someone must be unwilling to see the Empress and I get along so well, so they set up such a vicious plan!"
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