As the Empress, she shouldn't have threatened others in such a way, putting them in such a difficult position.
"This is not something I can decide."
Yu Ying, however, believed that this was Su Yushan's excuse, saying, "The Emperor only listens to you. As long as you ask, he will definitely agree."
The Empress made a presumptuous guess, and Su Yushan sighed helplessly, "Your Majesty is wrong. Sometimes the Emperor is very stubborn. Once he makes a decision, even I can't persuade him."
"You can give it a try! You're pregnant now, the Emperor won't dare to disturb the fetus, he'll definitely listen to you."
Hongli has always been thinking of her; how could she use her pregnancy to threaten him?
Seeing that Su Yushan remained unmoved, Yuying had no choice but to resort to her last resort.
“My second brother, Fu Qing, risked his life to save you in a critical moment. He has done you a great favor. Even if you don’t care about him, please help me out for the sake of him saving you!”
Last time, Fu Qing was trampled on the arm by a horse while saving her, and she estimated that the injury was quite serious, but she did not dare to ask about his condition, for fear that Hongli would become suspicious again and bring trouble to Fu Qing.
Fu Qing had indeed been kind to her, and Su Yushan was always grateful to him, but that didn't mean she should be grateful to the Empress.
"This whole mess was caused by Dong Ling. If Dong Ling hadn't caused the trouble, why would Lord Fu have taken the risk? In a way, Dong Ling is Lord Fu's enemy. How can you use him to plead for Dong Ling? Wouldn't his injuries have been for nothing?"
Yu Ying, however, believed that since they were all family, Fu Qing wouldn't care about such things. "Before I got married, Dong Ling had always been by my side. My brother also knew her. Even if she had made a mistake, I don't think he would want to just watch her be torn apart by five horses!"
You are still pregnant, and it's not good for you to bring bad karma to the child. Please, for the sake of the child's well-being, have mercy! I dare not beg you to spare her life, I only beg you to let her depart peacefully.
To get her to agree, Yu Ying went to great lengths to come up with various reasons.
Seeing the deep sorrow in her eyes and the tears streaming down her face, Su Yushan felt a headache coming on and really didn't want to get involved. But when she thought of her child, her heart softened.
"I can give it a try, but I can't guarantee whether the Emperor will agree. Don't have too high hopes."
As long as she's willing to speak up, Hongli will definitely agree!
With her consent, Yu Ying felt relieved and allowed the palace maids to help her up.
After leaving Changchun Palace, a gust of autumn wind blew in her face, chilly and making Su Yushan's head buzz, her headache getting worse.
In her view, being too kind is not a good thing; for example, the Empress was burdened by her so-called kindness.
But why did she soften her heart and agree today? If Hongli doesn't agree, the Empress will probably think that she wasn't sincere in pleading for him.
Just as she was feeling melancholy, she suddenly saw a figure hurrying towards her.
That bright yellow hue was particularly dazzling in the sunlight. As people approached, Su Yushan asked in surprise:
"Your Majesty, what brings you here?"
Hongli looked at her anxiously, "I heard that the Empress summoned you to Changchun Palace, worried that she might try something underhanded with you. How are you? Has she made things difficult for you or harmed you?"
Su Yushan smiled with relief and shook her head. "I'm fine. She didn't hurt me. She just wants me to plead with you on her behalf."
"It's for Dong Ling again?" Hongli scoffed with disgust. "Why won't she give up? Dong Ling committed a heinous crime, and she's still pleading for him? She's delusional!"
"She didn't want Dongling to be torn apart by five horses. Actually, taking Dongling's life would be enough revenge. How he died doesn't seem to matter much anymore. How about we change the punishment?"
Su Yushan tried to plead on his behalf, but Hongli's gaze was cold and sharp, and he immediately refused.
"This is very important! I want everyone to know that those who plotted against you will suffer a terrible death! Therefore, Dong Ling must be severely punished. Only in this way can we deter others!"
She knew Hongli wouldn't agree, but she had already promised the Empress. Su Yushan was in a dilemma; if she told Hongli, Hongli would be unhappy; if she didn't, the Empress would be unhappy. She was caught in the middle and truly in a difficult position.
"But our baby is about to be born..."
Upon hearing this, Hongli understood. "Did she tell you that you should accumulate blessings for the unborn child and not be so cruel?"
"Yushan, you and I are upright and honest, and have never done anything immoral. We have already accumulated much good fortune for the child, so you have absolutely no need to worry. What she said was purely to scare you; don't let her words soften your heart. Besides, this is my decision, it has nothing to do with you, and you don't need to blame yourself."
Hongli insisted on his own opinion and refused to change it. Su Yushan had already tried to persuade him, but he still disagreed, so she had no choice but to let him have his way.
"Fine! Then I won't bother with it."
Hongli had other political affairs to attend to, so he didn't accompany her any longer. When they reached the crossroads, they parted ways; one went to the Hall of Mental Cultivation, and the other returned to the Jingren Palace.
After that, Yu Shan didn't inquire about the matter again, while Yu Ying had high hopes. She thought that since Su Yu Shan had agreed, she wouldn't lie to her. As long as Su Yu Shan spoke up for her, the matter would definitely succeed.
She couldn't save Dongling's life; the only thing she could do was to leave Dongling with a complete corpse.
At lunchtime, Yu Ying couldn't eat a single bite. She was preoccupied with wanting to know Dong Ling's condition and kept asking Granny Qin to inquire about the situation.
As for the guards, Hongli had already given instructions. Knowing that the Empress would ask questions, he instructed the guards to tell a lie, saying that Dongling had committed suicide by poisoning herself.
Yu Ying took it seriously and didn't suspect anything. She thought her pleas had worked and that Hongli had really changed his mind. Little did she know that Dong Ling had already been torn apart by five horses and died a very gruesome death!
Emperor Hongli even summoned the palace servants to watch. The cruel scene and the mutilated, bloodstained corpses horrified them and made them want to vomit.
In truth, Granny Qin knew the truth, but the guard had already lied. If she were to tell the truth as well, the Empress would surely be heartbroken. To avoid upsetting the Empress, Granny Qin ultimately dared not tell the truth, deciding to keep it a secret for as long as possible.
As evening fell, the Empress Dowager finished her meditation and casually inquired about what had happened in the palace these past few days. She then learned that the Emperor intended to depose the Empress, and that Dong Ling had already been executed by slow slicing!
In just three days, so many changes had occurred, which greatly angered the Empress Dowager, who immediately ordered someone to summon the Emperor.
Hongli happened to have something to say to the Empress Dowager, so he went to Cining Palace.
Upon arriving at Cining Palace, the Empress Dowager began to berate the Emperor, "I absolutely believe in the Empress; she is not that kind of person! Dongling's mistake should not implicate the Empress. You cannot threaten to depose the Empress because of this!"
The Empress Dowager looked resolute, exuding an air of profound wisdom. Upon seeing this, Hongli couldn't help but think of a certain scenario.
"May I ask Your Majesty, if this had happened to Yu Shan, and her maid had harmed the Empress, would you still think Yu Shan was innocent? Wouldn't you surely believe that Yu Shan secretly orchestrated this to have her banished to the Cold Palace?"
If it were Su Yushan, the Empress Dowager would be too busy kicking her when she was down to protect her.
The Empress Dowager, caught off guard, was speechless. Feigning righteousness, she said, "I'm judging the matter, not the person. No matter who it happened to, my attitude is the same. If a palace servant commits a crime, only the servant should be punished; there's no need to implicate her mistress. According to the Emperor, does this mean that from now on, if any servant makes a mistake, their master will also be punished?"
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