"Your Majesty, Consort Qi requests an audience."
"What is she up to now? Have I been too kind to her?" Yi Hua was annoyed. Recently, Li Shi had been coming to her more and more often to settle disputes. It seemed that she needed to be given a warning. She was the first wife, not her mother, and not there to clean up her messes.
Unlike her previous composure when she was with Nian, Li was quite flustered this time.
"Your Majesty, I beg you to save my nephew, I beg you to save him." As soon as Li entered the room, she knelt on the ground. Yi Hua gestured for Yu Xue to help her up.
What happened to your nephew?
"Your Majesty, my nephew's surname is Li and his given name is Dong. He is not good at studying or martial arts. He just stays at home and sometimes listens to operas and drinks with his classmates. Although he has the demeanor of a playboy, he always knows his limits."
"He somehow got led astray and started frequenting gambling dens. I've reprimanded him several times, but it hasn't had any effect. My elder brother and sister-in-law are keeping a close eye on him, so things have been peaceful."
"But yesterday he accidentally killed someone, saying that he owed a huge gambling debt and that others were chasing him too hard, so he got agitated and hurt someone."
“According to the laws of the Qing Dynasty, murderers must pay with their lives. My nephew is doomed.” Li’s eyes were red from crying. “Your Majesty, I beg you to have mercy and spare his lowly life so that the Li family line can continue.”
"Consort Qi, the inner palace must not interfere in politics. There are laws to follow regarding the Li family's nephew's matter, and I am powerless to do anything about it. You may return now." Yi Hua thought for a moment and still reminded her, "Now that the eldest princess's wedding is approaching, you are her mother, and you should focus your energy on this matter."
Li Shi usually seems clever, but she makes foolish mistakes at crucial moments, which makes Yinzhen feel that Li Shi treats her nephews from her maternal family better than the eldest princess. He believes that those who can be lenient should be given a harsher sentence.
"We'll be leaving for the Old Summer Palace in two days. Have you packed your luggage?"
This means that if you, Li, continue to cause trouble, then there's no need to go to the Yuanmingyuan.
Li knew Yihua's personality well and knew that it would be useless to say anything more at this point, so she could only hang her head and return to Yongshou Palace.
Granny Jin said thoughtfully, "Your Majesty, the Empress mentioned going to the Yuanmingyuan Garden to escape the summer heat at the end. I suddenly had a bold idea. Do you think it might be Consort Nian's doing?"
"What do you mean? Explain in detail."
"Although our young master loves to play, he only listens to operas and drinks. He never goes to those shady places. Consort Nian's brother is highly regarded by the Emperor and has many people he can use outside. Could it be that because you didn't agree to take her away, she set a trap for our young master?"
"If that's the case, Consort Nian will have a backup plan sooner or later. You just have to wait and see."
"If it is truly that the young master is incompetent, then you have already begged him, and you can only leave it to fate."
Looking at Granny Jin, Madam Li suddenly realized, "Granny, what you say makes sense."
Sure enough, Mr. Nian came to visit in the evening.
Li was not one to hide her thoughts. She glared at Nian and shouted, "You crazy woman, you did what happened to my nephew, didn't you!"
"A life for a life, a debt for a debt—these are the natural order of things. Even if Your Majesty is an imperial concubine, you cannot be exempt from the laws of the land." Lady Nian's tone was tinged with sarcasm, a departure from her usual humility.
"How dare you!"
"I'm out of options, but there's still a way for your nephew. If the people don't complain, the officials won't investigate. As long as the aggrieved party relents, your nephew can still live." Lady Nian coaxed patiently, "How about an exchange? You find a way to get the Emperor to take me to the Yuanmingyuan, and I can naturally protect your nephew."
"You're threatening me!"
"It's just a means of self-preservation." Madam Nian smiled and stood up. "Your Majesty, you have two more days, no, you have a little over a day left. You must hurry."
Watching Nian's retreating figure, Li couldn't help herself and picked up a teacup, smashing it at her. Nian didn't even turn around when she heard the sound of the porcelain shattering.
Regardless of whether she could go to the Yuanmingyuan with them, just seeing Li's furious state today made Nian feel like she had hit the jackpot.
After calming down, Li Shi had no choice. She really couldn't watch her only son from her maternal family die like this. After thinking about it, she went to Yikun Palace again, but this time she was directly blocked at the door. She tried everything but failed to knock on the door of Yikun Palace.
"Granny Jin, prepare lotus seed and pear blossom soup. I'm going to the Hall of Mental Cultivation to see the Emperor." Lady Li finally made up her mind.
Granny Jin disagreed: "Your Majesty, the Hall of Mental Cultivation is where the Emperor discusses state affairs. Even the Empress rarely goes there. You cannot go there rashly. Besides, what would you say if you went? Would you directly tell the Emperor that you want to bring Consort Nian with you? In my opinion, the Emperor is more likely to find it troublesome and leave you in the Forbidden City as well."
"Forgive my bluntness, but you are the pillar of the Li family. What use are there if you fall, no matter how many good-for-nothing descendants the Li family has?!"
"Then I'll just ignore it?" Madam Li was somewhat swayed by what she heard. She felt sorry for her nephew, but she absolutely couldn't trade her own future for it.
"Her Majesty the Empress will surely investigate this matter once she learns of it. It would be best if she could mention it to the Emperor. However, Her Majesty the Empress may not be so kind. You should focus more on the eldest princess at this time."
"I can't get involved in her affairs. The Empress takes care of everything, and my brothers pave the way. I don't need to do anything." The quarrel between Lady Li and the eldest princess made Granny Jin feel as if she saw the Empress Dowager and the Emperor.
"Your Highness, you've been anxious all day. Why don't you rest for a while and think it over again?" Granny Jin helped Madam Li into the inner room.
Nian Sisi had been keeping an eye on Yongshou Palace. She learned that after Li Shi went to Yikun Palace once, she never left again. She was so worried that she was tearing her handkerchief to shreds. This was a last resort for her. Just like now, Li Shi had ruthlessly sacrificed her nephew's life, which would cut off all of her plans.
Yi Hua did indeed send people to inquire about this matter, and A Bao's men returned very quickly.
"Your Majesty, this is easy to find out. The young master of the Li family is a novice at gambling. He has a lot of money but bad luck, so the people at the casino welcome him."
"It is said that he has always been close to a young master surnamed Fan. When the two of them go to the casino together, it is usually the young master surnamed Fan who pays."
"On the day of the incident, the young master surnamed Fan was not present. The young master of the Li family lost money and could not produce any banknotes, so he got into a conflict with the people in the casino and even got into a fight."
"As a result, someone died. The casino immediately reported the incident to the authorities. The Li family, having nowhere else to turn, sought help from Consort Qi."
Yi Hua nodded: "Did you find out anything about that young master surnamed Fan?"
Abao shook his head: "This person seems to have vanished into thin air. No one in the Li family has ever seen him; they've only heard about him from the Li family's young master. I've inquired around, but no one has any recollection of him."
Yi Hua waved her hand: "Let's investigate privately."
"yes."
It was obvious that the young master of the Li family was being targeted. As for who was targeting him, Yi Hua had a general idea. She was too lazy to bother with the trivial matters of her subordinates, so she pretended not to know and focused on picking out dolls for Liu Liu.
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