Chapter 21 The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind...
The hall was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Huang Liang stepped forward carrying a tray filled with beeswax. His steps were extremely light, each one seemingly treading on the hearts of everyone present.
Emperor Yuanming's face was as cold as ice, and he said sternly, "On my birthday, someone actually wishes for my death!"
To dare curse the emperor to death is tantamount to rebellion. Upon hearing Emperor Yuanming's words, everyone fell silent, trembling with fear.
The Wende Hall was dimly lit by candlelight on a rainy night, and a chill permeated the air.
Jiang Ling broke out in a cold sweat, thinking to himself that the beeswax burning out would indeed enrage Emperor Yuanming.
Upon returning to the Chuigong Hall, he summoned all those in charge of the harem and high-ranking concubines, fearing that he would not rest until he had thoroughly investigated the matter.
Emperor Yuanming lifted his eyelids and glanced almost imperceptibly at Jiang Ling, then picked up a beeswax and tossed it to the ground: "This is the beeswax used in the Lanyue Palace!"
The beeswax, as thick as a wrist, cracked on the ground with a "snap," rolled a few times, and landed in front of Consort Lin.
Consort Lin lowered her eyes and slowly knelt down. She picked up the beeswax and examined it carefully in front of her. After rubbing it between her fingertips, she brought it close to her nose and smelled it.
“Your Majesty, although I grew up in the capital, my ancestral home is in Shu Prefecture, and I have been familiar with various types of wax since childhood. The finest beeswax is very similar in color to honey, and after being made into wax, it is soft and resilient. When lit, it has a honey-like aroma. White wax has a very faint aroma, is generally white or light yellow, and is harder. Beeswax burns quickly, while white wax burns more slowly. The beeswax presented as tribute is mixed with the finest frankincense from foreign lands, which has a sweet and mellow aroma, accompanied by a faint spicy scent. The finest frankincense is called ‘Jianxiang’, followed by ‘Bottle Frankincense’.”
Consort Lin arrived gracefully, her voice calm, and she succinctly explained the difference between beeswax and paraffin wax.
At this point, holding up the beeswax that Emperor Yuanming had thrown at her, she changed the subject and said with certainty, "This beeswax has a wick made of beeswax, with only a layer of beeswax covering the outside. The fragrance used is made by grinding orange peel and adding some frankincense powder. Beeswax burns slowly, while insect wax burns faster. In addition, the weather is cold, and the insect wax easily forms a hard shell around the wick, causing the flame to fluctuate. A few strands of rush were used in the candle, and the flame eventually went out."
Emperor Yuanming coldly replied, "The lamps and candles presented as tribute to the palace were bought and sold by the Lin family!"
Consort Lin lowered her eyes and said, "If Lady Lin wanted to make money by deceiving others, she would not have done it so obviously. If it were me, I would have used more beeswax, added more frankincense powder, and used more rush pith, and sent it to the palace when the weather was hot. In this way, it would be almost indistinguishable from the beeswax that is usually offered as tribute."
Jiang Ling was utterly impressed. Consort Lin's response was appropriate and well-reasoned. When it came to matters of family and life and death, her composure and calmness were unmatched, even by Jiang Ling's best efforts.
Based on Consort Lin's unfinished words, Lin would not be foolish enough to send in fake beeswax on Emperor Yuanming's birthday.
Moreover, her words were more convincing than a direct defense: the fact that the beeswax was fake was not Lin's doing.
If the beeswax presented as tribute was without fault, then the problem must have occurred within the palace. Aside from the storeroom, the error must have been made by the Bureau of Ceremonial Affairs, or perhaps tampering occurred at the Lanyue Hall.
Consort Zhao and Consort Lin jointly managed the Bureau of Ceremonial Affairs. Since Consort Lin was innocent, Consort Zhao became suspicious.
Emperor Yuanming's gaze swept over them with a deep intensity. Consort Zhao stepped forward, then knelt down, her voice neither loud nor soft, and clearly stated, "Your Majesty, I am far less knowledgeable about lamps and candles than Your Highness. I do not know how to make fake beeswax, and I know very little about fragrances. In all my years managing the lamp and candle department, I have never found anything wrong with the lamps and candles. Your Majesty once taught me that if I do not know something, I should not be ashamed to ask questions, and I have always remembered that. As for something as obvious as fake beeswax, even if I were incredibly dull-witted, I would never do it."
Like Consort Lin, Consort Zhao did not cry or make a scene. She reasoned, presented the facts, and cleared her name with reason and evidence.
Furthermore, Consort Zhao's words also cleared Consort Lin and Lady Lin of any connection. Previously, the beeswax that Lady Lin had presented as tribute had never been defective, yet it had gone wrong on her birthday – this was extremely suspicious.
Neither of them had anything to do with it; the rest must be a mistake in the warehouse.
Jiang Ling's scalp tingled, his heart leaped into his throat, and his mind raced with a jumbled mess of thoughts: "I'm dead, I'm dead! I can't clear my name even if I jump into the Yellow River. This damn job, no money, and I have to pay with my life!"
Emperor Yuanming frowned, his ears aching from Jiang Ling's shouting. He had never doubted her; after all, she was lazy, unambitious, and spent her days eating and sleeping. With her abilities, she could never have accomplished that in such a short time.
"Your Majesty, I am innocent! I beg you to investigate!" Jiang Ling hurriedly knelt down, her face pale, and cried out her innocence.
Faced with everyone's awkwardness, Jiang Ling stiffened uncontrollably, her words stammering, "Your Majesty, I know nothing about beeswax or white wax, I haven't even finished reading the account books, and I'm not familiar with the storerooms. Your Majesty has just bestowed upon me the title of Consort and placed me in the Fan Ying Pavilion... Your Majesty is my heaven, I am endlessly grateful, and I hope Your Majesty will live as long as the heavens..."
Emperor Yuanming couldn't stand it any longer and raised his hand to interrupt her rudely: "Consort Jiang, shut up!"
Her words only served to remind him of the anger he felt at not even receiving a simple kowtow of thanks. Not only that, she had also been gossiping and badmouthing him behind his back, saying he'd only given him a tattered purse for his birthday!
He slammed his hand on the imperial desk and said angrily, "I will definitely investigate this thoroughly. If I find out the truth, I will exterminate his entire family!"
Jiang Ling stared blankly at Emperor Yuanming, her face growing paler and paler, her mind racing with wild thoughts: "What does he mean by not even allowing me to explain myself, and instead going to torture me into confessing, confiscating my property, and exterminating my entire family? What if I can't even gather nine generations of relatives? Since she's his concubine, does the imperial family count?"
Emperor Yuanming glared at Jiang Ling inwardly, then looked at Consort Liu and the others: "What do you have to say?"
Consort Liu knelt on both knees and respectfully replied, "Your Majesty, I have never been aware of matters concerning lamps and candles. I only know that Consort Zhao and I assisted Consort Lin in managing palace affairs and preparing banquets. I have no choice but to accept your punishment."
Consort Zhao and Consort Li, along with other palace maids, who were not assigned any duties, knelt on the ground and repeatedly said, "Your Majesty, we beg you to investigate thoroughly and clear our names."
At this moment, Consort Lin earnestly said, “Your Majesty, Lady Lin happens to be in Shu Prefecture and is in charge of the palace’s candles. Over the years, she has been walking on thin ice, fearing any mistakes. Who would have thought that such a serious oversight would still occur? I am not trying to plead for Lady Lin, but the candles were, after all, a tribute from her, and she should bear some responsibility. Consort Zhao and I are in charge of the Imperial Ceremonial Bureau, and we cannot shirk our duties. I will write back to Shu Prefecture to dissuade Lady Lin’s family from interfering in the matter of candles from now on. There are many merchants in Shu Prefecture who deal in candles; Your Majesty can choose a few other ones.”
Consort Zhao looked up at Emperor Yuanming, her almond-shaped eyes slightly red, as stubborn and arrogant as ever. Her voice, however, was choked with sobs, sounding very aggrieved as she said, "Your Majesty, I have failed to manage the Imperial Ceremonial Bureau properly, causing Your Majesty's birthday to be unsettled. I am guilty, please punish me, Your Majesty."
She bowed her head and kowtowed, her shoulders trembling, as if she were trying her best to hold back her emotions. After a moment, she raised her head again, her eyes glistening with tears.
"Your Majesty, I implore you to allow me to conduct a thorough investigation, uncover the mastermind behind this, and clear my name. I am but a novice in the arts and crafts, and I should have handed over the Bureau of Ceremonial Affairs long ago. Not only are the Noble Consort and the Virtuous Consort more capable than I, but all the other ladies are also more capable than I am. It would be more worthy of Your Majesty's favor if they were in charge."
Jiang Ling was able to conclude that the two were not the masterminds behind the scenes.
Without hesitation, Consort Lin relinquished the business of selling tribute lanterns and candles, cutting her losses to survive.
Consort Zhao was also caught off guard and took the initiative to admit her mistake and accept punishment. She relinquished the power of the Bureau of Ceremonial Affairs in order to investigate the case and avoid being put on the defensive.
However, even though it had nothing to do with them, they all readily relinquished power and benefits. Presumably, they couldn't withstand a thorough investigation and chose to sacrifice pawns to save the king.
In this way, it becomes a case of the mantis stalking the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind.
Jiang Ling felt uneasy and thought about Consort Liu, Consort Zhao, and others.
She had no clue what was going on and had no idea who was the mastermind behind it all!
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