This Eunuch Gu was certainly not one of Yan Nangui's men.
It was just that the palace maids who served Xichun in the garden were assigned to her.
She looked to be around thirty years old, and knelt down to plead her innocence: "This servant doesn't know this old woman. I'm just a lowly servant and can't even attend to her closely. How could I have done such a thing?"
Granny Liu from the sewing room was shocked: "It was the handkerchief you gave me, why are you denying it?"
"I'm innocent! You say I gave it to you, but do you have any witnesses? I just came to serve Consort Chen and haven't even seen her face a few times. How could I be involved in such a thing? Your Majesty, Your Majesty the Empress, Consort Chen, this must be a frame-up!"
Eunuch Gu kowtowed repeatedly.
Granny Liu was very anxious, and it didn't seem like she was faking it. The two of them didn't say anything useful for a long time.
"Beat him, but don't kill him. Stop when he confesses."
Yun Ji responded and summoned several executioners.
Tie the two people facing the pillar together and whip their calves with bamboo sticks.
That way, even if they don't retaliate immediately, they won't die from the pain.
Granny Liu screamed and howled, but she insisted that it was Eunuch Gu.
But after being tortured for a while, Eunuch Gu suddenly said he was going to confess, and Yun Ji told people to stop.
He was untied and lay prostrate on the ground, pleading, "Your Majesty, spare me! Your Majesty, spare me! It was Jin Lingyi! It was Jin Lingyi! She gave me a hundred taels of silver and told me to do her bidding. She said the eldest prince was out of favor and had already been given to Ning Wanrong. She said the second prince had the best chance of becoming crown prince. She told me that as long as I went, people would suspect that Consort Chen was behind it."
"Consort Chen and Jin Lingyi have a past grudge, and no one suspects this matter. I beg Your Majesty to investigate thoroughly. This servant dares not speak nonsense." He got up and rushed towards the lotus pond on the side.
A guard rushed down to grab him, but he was too fast and reached the other side in no time.
It crashed right into a jagged artificial mountain.
The bloodstains on the sharp stone were clearly visible even across the pond. The person was definitely dead.
The guards returned from a long detour: "Your Majesty, the man is dead."
Shu Chengfeng remained silent.
Jin Lingyi knelt down: "Your Majesty, I did not, I did not do it! I am truly innocent. I have never dared to hold a grudge against Consort Chen, much less use my own child to frame her. There are many princes, and I am of humble birth. I never dared to imagine that the Second Prince would become the Crown Prince. Your Majesty, you must believe me, Your Majesty..."
"Jin Lingyi, it was your own foolishness back then that made Consort Chen punish you in a fit of anger. Today, you've reverted to your old ways. The facts are undeniable, so what excuses do you have left?" the Empress roared.
"No, no, I didn't, Your Majesty, I really didn't. That eunuch's death was too suspicious. Even if I used him, how could I have used him? There's no way to verify it now. This is slander, this is a miscarriage of justice! Is Consort Chen you? Why are you trying to harm me? I'm just an unfavored concubine. What do I have that would make you want to harm me?" Consort Jin cried.
Yan Nangui remained silent, simply gazing at her calmly.
"Very good." Shu Chengfeng sneered.
"Your Majesty, please calm down." The Empress took the lead in kneeling down.
Everyone knelt down.
“Jin, it is not your fault that you were born into a lowly family, but your mind is filthy and you have never changed despite repeated admonitions. You are truly unworthy to be the birth mother of a prince.”
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, no, I am innocent, Your Majesty..." Jin Lingyi cried.
"Jin has framed the Imperial Concubine and is hereby demoted to the rank of Attendant-in-Ordinary and moved to Suning Palace. The Second Prince will be sent to Fengxiang Palace to be raised. He will have no further connection with Jin. Everyone in the palace must remember that if anyone mentions that Jin is the Second Prince's birth mother, they will be executed without mercy."
"As you command!" the crowd replied in unison.
"Your Majesty, I will certainly regard the Second Prince as my own son. Please rest assured," the Empress said.
"Your Majesty, I am innocent! I am innocent..." Jin cried.
“Kill this wet nurse immediately. She can’t serve her master well, so she doesn’t need to serve anymore. Palace maid Liu, who dared to lay a hand on the prince’s things for her own selfish gain, should also be killed. Those who serve Jin and those who serve the second prince should each receive thirty strokes of the cane. From now on, Jin will only need one person to serve her.”
Upon hearing this, the wet nurse and Granny Liu immediately went limp. The other palace maids and servants were also trembling with fear.
"Get up, all of you. We'll take the Second Prince away now. Jin, pack your things and return to the palace today. If you dare to cause trouble again, I won't hesitate to give you a cup of poisoned wine," Shu Chengfeng said coldly.
Ms. Jin was stunned and shuddered in fright.
"Your Majesty, I have a few more questions for Lady Jin," Yan Nangui said.
“Consort Chen.” Shu Chengfeng frowned.
"Your Majesty, please rest assured, I only have a few words to say, I will not take action." Yan Nangui lowered her eyelids, not wanting to pay him any attention.
"You are permitted to stay for a quarter of an hour." With that, he left with the Queen.
The others glanced at it a few times and then left.
Jin Shiyu took a few steps back: "I am truly innocent..."
"Come inside," Yan Nangui said calmly.
"I'm innocent! I was framed!"
"Pull him in," Yan Nangui said irritably.
"Consort Chen..." Yun Ji hurriedly called out.
"I said, take him in. I want to ask him a few questions alone. What's wrong?" Yan Nangui looked at Yun Ji with sharp eyes.
Yun Ji's heart skipped a beat; only His Majesty could give her such a look.
"Yes, yes, yes." Yun Ji waved his hand, and Jin Shi was carried into the house by the guards.
Only Chanyi followed Yan Nangui inside.
Even as the wild geese fly south, he doesn't sit down.
Jin Shiyu trembled all over, terrified by her past experiences. Leaning against the wall, she cried out, "What are you going to do? I didn't hurt you, I didn't..."
"Of course I know it wasn't you, otherwise you wouldn't have survived," Yan Nangui said coldly.
Jin Shiyu was stunned for a moment, then overjoyed: "It wasn't me, it really wasn't me, you believe me?"
"Jin, you are truly foolish. What good would it do me to trust you? Would I help you?" Yan Nangui said coldly.
“No…you wouldn’t…” Jin Shiyu’s face darkened again.
"Who orchestrated today's events is currently unknown. However, I can see that you are innocent, and His Majesty can certainly see it as well. This is why you were spared punishment and were able to live."
"Why? Knowing I'm innocent, why..." Jin Shiyu shook his head in confusion.
"Because you are truly not a qualified mother to raise a prince. Look at the Second Prince, he is four years old and has been raised to be incredibly timid. You can't even keep an eye on your own servants, which is why this has happened. You have no one to rely on, and your own background cannot be hidden. What will become of the Second Prince in the future?"
"His Majesty is merely going with the flow. Sending the Second Prince to the Empress, even if he is only raised in the Empress's palace, will naturally make a difference for the Second Prince."
"Your Majesty... how cruel you are..."
"You blame him? He's the emperor, but did he expect your love to last forever? If you had known the rules from the beginning, things wouldn't be like this today. If you hadn't acted recklessly back then, you wouldn't be in this situation today."
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