Chapter 180 Dealing with Liu Shihan
Liu Shihan knelt on the ground, her voice full of tears, her words filled with anxiety and indignation: "Your Majesty, the Emperor and Empress have been in charge of the harem for more than a few months. In such a large harem, who else could bring poison into Yaohua Palace so easily?"
"What's more, the Empress had the power to replace all the maids that I had arranged to be around the Third Prince. Even if the poison was not administered by the Empress herself, she is to blame for being so negligent in taking care of the Third Prince!"
She looked up at Quan Minghe, her eyes full of pleading and expectation, "Your Majesty, I am the biological mother of the Third Prince. I am the only one in the world who truly cares for the Third Prince. I really can't bear to see him suffer like this."
"Please have mercy on me and return the Third Prince to me to raise!"
Quan Minghe's face was as cold as ice, and there was no expression on his stern face. He just stared at Liu Shihan coldly without saying a word.
Just when the atmosphere was at a stalemate, the unconscious Third Prince on the couch suddenly uttered a faint moan: "Thirsty...drink some water..."
Shen Yuning was extremely anxious. She immediately stood up, walked a few steps to the table to pick up the tea, then hurried back to the bed and sat down, carefully feeding the third prince.
However, the third prince was still in a coma, and some tea slowly slid down the corners of his mouth and flowed down his neck.
Sudden.
Shen Yuning exclaimed in a low voice: "Doctor Zhou, come and take a look, what is this!"
Zhou Qi immediately frowned and walked forward quickly.
Liu Shihan, kneeling on the ground, suddenly had an ominous premonition in his heart, and an inexplicable fear began to spread in his heart.
Zhou Qi stared at the yellow marks gradually appearing on the third prince's neck, frowned, and fell into deep thought.
After a moment, he slowly spoke, his voice steady but with a hint of solemnity: "Your Majesty, Madam, I already know what poison the Third Prince was poisoned by. This is the poison of the Chinese tallow tree. The Chinese tallow oil extracted from Chinese tallow trees is poisonous. After some special treatment, it can be melted into powder to make a colorless and odorless poison powder."
"When Chinese tallow oil comes into contact with alkaline water, it will turn yellow. The teacup that Your Majesty just brought must have been washed with wood ash water, leaving a trace of alkaline liquid. This is why the poison powder on the Third Prince's body is visible."
Shen Yuning's expression became more and more nervous: "Why don't you quickly have someone clean the Third Prince's body and make sure the poison is completely removed!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the palace servants immediately acted in an orderly manner, carefully picked up the third prince, hurried to the inner room, and cleaned his body.
But at this time, Nanny Cui fell into deep thought.
After a moment, she said with a firm look, "Your Majesty, Madam, I guarantee with my life that everyone in Yaohua Palace is wholeheartedly devoted to the Third Prince, and there will be absolutely no omissions."
"But the people who were close to the Third Prince today were not only the servants of Yaohua Palace."
She paused for a moment and continued, "According to Imperial Physician Zhou, anyone who has been close to the Third Prince is a suspect."
"The Third Prince was playing on the bluestone path outside the lotus pond today. I remember every palace servant who came into contact with the Third Prince."
She analyzed with a firm gaze, "If there really was a palace servant who murdered the Third Prince, then there must be poison powder on that person's body. We can tell by testing it with wood ash water."
Liu Shihan was shocked.
This Nanny Cui could actually remember all the palace people who had come into contact with the third prince?
Does she remember Furong?
Liu Shihan subconsciously put her hands into her sleeves and clenched them into fists. The fear in her heart was surging and almost bursting through her chest.
Quan Minghe's eyes were dark and deep, and he immediately ordered in a cold voice: "No one in Yaohua Palace is allowed to leave at this time. Li Ming, you immediately take Madam Cui to the next room, and find other people to confirm that what Madam Cui said is true. Quickly capture every palace servant that the Third Prince has come into contact with after leaving Yaohua Palace today, and check them with plant ash water."
Li Ming immediately accepted the order: "Yes."
After saying that, Nanny Cui left the room under the leadership of Li Ming.
Liu Shihan was still kneeling on the ground, feeling as if a huge rock was pressing down on her heart. She became increasingly depressed and could hardly breathe.
A premonition of impending disaster enveloped her.
When Quan Minghe saw that Liu Shihan was no longer clamoring to take the third prince back as before, his originally calm eyes suddenly dimmed.
But no one noticed this subtle change.
"Liu Zhaoyi, please get up. The ground is cold. The Third Prince is still not fully recovered. How can I let you, his biological mother, get sick again because of him?"
Liu Shihan stood up slowly, and the palace maid beside her hurried forward, supported her, and led her to sit down on a chair.
At this moment, there was deathly silence in the third prince's bedroom.
Everyone was silent, quietly waiting for news. The depressing atmosphere was like an invisible net, tightly covering the entire space.
Soon, Li Ming hurriedly stepped into the bedroom.
Li Ming bowed respectfully and reported: "Your Majesty, there are eight palace servants less than three steps away from the Third Prince today, including five palace maids and three eunuchs."
"Among them is Furong, the maid of Yong'an Palace."
Li Ming glanced at Liu Zhaoyi, who seemed to be feeling a little guilty, and continued, "I followed your instructions and soaked everyone in the wood ash water, even the clothes they usually wore."
"As a result, only the palace maid Furong showed yellow color."
Liu Shihan subconsciously grasped the armrest of the chair, her knuckles turning white from the force, as if she was going to crush the armrest.
In an instant, she fell to her knees again with a plop, looking panicked.
Her voice trembled: "Your Majesty, I really don't know why the maid Furong had poison powder on her body. Is this... is this a deliberate attempt by the Emperor and Empress to clear me of suspicion?"
"I am the biological mother of the Third Prince. How could I bear to hurt my own child?!"
Liu Shihan was frightened by the sudden change and her speech became incoherent.
Quan Minghe's expression did not change. "You have not even listened to Li Ming's story yet, and you have already concluded that the Emperor and Empress framed you. But tonight, I have only heard your slanderous remarks against the Emperor and Empress."
Liu Shihan became more and more panicked: "I dare not..."
Li Ming interrupted Liu Zhaoyi and continued, "Liu Zhaoyi, the maid Furong has confessed. And I personally checked the background of this maid. She was sent to the palace by the Liu family to serve you."
After saying this, Li Ming looked up at His Majesty and the Empress, and continued, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, this is Furong's confession. It records in detail the purpose of the Liu family letting her enter the palace, as well as the various actions of Liu Zhaoyi in plotting to murder the Third Prince and framing the Emperor and Empress."
Quan Minghe reached out to take the document, his eyes were as fast as lightning, he read ten lines at a glance, and finished reading it in a moment.
The look he gave Liu Shihan was cold and resolute, as if the person in front of him was already dead.
Then, he hurled the document fiercely at Liu Shihan's head. The document cut through the air like a sharp blade and smashed down heavily, instantly messing up her carefully combed hair.
Liu Shihan felt dizzy and her heart was beating like thunder.
Because of His Majesty's actions, she staggered and fell to the ground.
"No, no, Your Majesty, Furong is framing me. I have never done these things. I love the Third Prince very much, how could I hurt him? It must be the Empress who is framing me behind my back!"
Liu Shihan shouted at the top of her lungs, perhaps because she was brainwashing herself over and over again, and in the end, even she seemed to believe it.
She spoke sincerely and with tears in her eyes, as if every word came from the bottom of her heart.
Quan Minghe snorted coldly, looking at Liu Shihan with more disgust: "The maid from your Liu family personally sent to the palace signed the confession with her own hands. Tell me, who could have ordered her to frame you?"
"Also, if the Empress really wanted to murder the Third Prince, why would she wait until now to do it? Moreover, if she really wanted to do this, how could she simply let the Third Prince's skin fester?"
Quan Minghe paused, his expression becoming more stern: "Now that there is evidence, you have murdered the Third Prince and intended to frame the Emperor and Empress. Your crime is unforgivable."
"Since you are the third prince's biological mother, I will not punish you harshly and will spare your life. I will only strip you of your Zhaoyi position, deprive you of your status as the biological mother of the first and third princes, demote you to a commoner, and confine you to the cold palace, where you are not allowed to step out for the rest of your life."
Liu Shihan collapsed to the ground as if struck by lightning.
How could it turn out like this? !
She couldn't believe that things would turn out to this point.
She crawled towards His Majesty using her hands and feet like a madman, holding on to His Majesty's legs tightly with both hands.
She cried out, "No, no, no, Your Majesty, I am the biological mother of the eldest and third princes. How can you be so cruel as to deprive me of this identity!"
Seeing that His Majesty was indifferent, Liu Shihan softened her attitude and continued to plead: "Your Majesty, I was bewildered and confused for a moment. I did all these wrong things because I was jealous of the Emperor and Empress. I really know that I was wrong. Please have mercy on me and forgive me this time!"
Quan Minghe, however, was like a cold statue, his expression unchanged.
Liu Shihan turned to look at Shen Yuning again: "Empress, I know I was wrong. Please let me go. I will never snatch the Third Prince again. I am the Third Prince's biological mother. If the Third Prince grows up and knows that you hurt his biological mother, he will be angry with you."
"Please forgive me, I was wrong."
Liu Shihan looked at Shen Yuning pleadingly. How could she be demoted to a commoner? How could the princes she gave birth to be adopted by someone else!
Shen Yuning said nothing.
Liu Shihan's voice became a little higher, "Please forgive me, I was wrong!"
Quan Minghe could no longer bear it and coldly spat out three words: "Drag him away."
As soon as he finished speaking, the guards on both sides immediately stepped forward, picked up Liu Shihan, who was lying limp on the ground, and forcibly took her away.
The crying sound gradually faded away, echoing in the empty bedroom, and gradually dissipated...
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