Chapter 97 That Matter
Zhu's mother took a deep breath and spoke about what she had kept in her heart for years.
"The second young lady was poisoned."
It was a slow-acting poison, which I actually discovered from the very beginning.
But when the second young lady found out, she told me not to make a fuss, that she had her own plans.
But in the end, the second young lady still passed away...
This is what the Second Miss asked me to bring out when she secretly sent someone to escort me out.
They said they would definitely show this to the young lady once everything was safe.
There are also these two documents. One was left by the Second Miss for Jin Yan the day before she left, and the other was written by Jin Yan herself.
"Young Miss, Seventh Prince, please take a look!"
Shangguan Jin remembered that Jin Yan was a maid brought into the palace by Shangguan Yao, a servant born into the Shangguan family.
However, after Shangguan Yao passed away, he also hanged himself with a white silk ribbon.
As she spoke, Zhu's mother pulled out three letters wrapped tightly in cloth from her bosom.
With trembling hands, Shangguan Jin opened the three letters one by one.
The seventh prince also came over to watch.
After the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, all three letters were read.
The seventh prince's eyes were bloodshot, and he gritted his teeth to stop himself from crying.
Upon seeing Consort Xian's familiar handwriting once again, the Seventh Prince finally couldn't hold back and sobbed on Shangguan Jin's shoulder.
Shen Qingyue was also wiping away tears with her head down.
Shangguan Jin was also covered in tears.
She kept gently patting the Seventh Prince's shoulder, trying to get him to restrain himself.
It turns out that Shangguan Yao's death was indeed orchestrated by someone else.
However, Shangguan Yao discovered it in time and then turned the tables on him.
This is why Old Master Shangguan said that Shangguan Yao broke the deadlock with his death.
That spring three years ago.
As before, Emperor Xiao Jing went to the outskirts of the capital for the spring sacrifice.
This has been a long-standing tradition in Chongqing. The founding emperor was of peasant origin and always valued farming.
Every spring, the emperor of Dayu would take his empress to the imperial estate on the outskirts of the capital to hold a spring sacrifice.
The emperor would personally go to the fields to show his emphasis on agriculture.
The spring festival in Dayu is very important. It lasts for fourteen days, from worshipping the gods to worshipping the ancestors, and then leading the officials to the fields.
During these fourteen days, the emperor would eat and live with all his officials at the imperial estate.
The day after Emperor Xiao Jing left, Zhu Mama, who was in charge of the small kitchen in Shangguan Yao's palace, noticed something was wrong.
Because of the fierce rivalry between Consort Xian and Consort Gui in the palace, Mother Zhu was extremely strict about what Consort Xian ate.
This time, she actually discovered that someone had poisoned the tea that Consort Xian often drank.
"Your Majesty, the person who poisoned us must have done so today."
"Only a few people handle the tea canisters every day, so we can tell who it is after one interrogation," Zhu's mother reminded her.
Consort Xian, however, thought a little more deeply.
Emperor Xiao Jing had just left when he was poisoned. Was it really just a coincidence?
"How potent is this poison?" Consort Xian asked Mother Zhu.
"It is a chronic poison."
Taking it occasionally a few times is fine.
"If this person takes it for half a month straight, they'll become mentally impaired," said Mother Zhu.
Consort Xian was even more puzzled.
She and Consort Zheng were now irreconcilably at odds.
If Consort Zheng had the opportunity to poison herself, she certainly wouldn't have used a slow-acting poison.
Given Consort Zheng's arrogant demeanor, she would definitely want to kill herself.
Furthermore, Emperor Xiao Jing was not in the capital when he suddenly died. By the time Emperor Xiao Jing returned, most of the traces had been destroyed.
Even if Consort Zheng knew what she was doing, what could she do?
Should Consort Zheng pay with her life?
Hehe, the Zheng family is powerful. At most, they can only demote Consort Zheng and then bring in another woman from the Zheng family.
There's also Empress Dowager Zheng in the palace!
Everyone knew that Emperor Xiao Jing would never break ties with Empress Dowager Zheng over a concubine.
This means that the Zheng family was not afraid of killing Shangguan Yao at all.
But now that they have the opportunity, they've chosen a slow-acting poison...
Shangguan Yao quickly figured it out.
The people in the palace didn't want Emperor Xiao Jing to return so soon.
The fact that they don't want Emperor Xiao Jing to return means they must be plotting something.
Or perhaps, she was just one of the people they were going to eliminate along the way.
If I were to suddenly die at this time, Emperor Xiao Jing would surely return to the capital overnight upon hearing the news.
Because behind Shangguan Yao was not only a family of officials known for their outspokenness, but also the Duke of Dingguo, the war god of the North...
Shangguan Yao is very smart.
She understood that others didn't want her to die so soon, probably because there were some things they hadn't planned yet.
As for what things were not planned well, Shangguan Yao still needs to investigate further.
After investigating for two days, Shangguan Yao finally found out some things.
For the past two days, she has acted as if nothing had happened.
She would drink the tea that was laced with poison without hesitation.
It was Consort Zheng's side that poisoned her.
As for why there wasn't a fatal dose of poison, it's probably because they were warned beforehand.
Furthermore, her people discovered that the wife of the Imperial Guard leader had entered the palace twice, both times summoned by Empress Dowager Zheng.
Her informant in the Empress Dowager's palace also said that the Zheng family members had been entering the palace more frequently in the past few days.
Sometimes they would even enter the palace in the morning, leave at noon, and then enter the palace again in the afternoon...
Shangguan Yao felt a vague unease.
The Zheng family members used to frequently visit the palace, but now they're only going in and out a few times a day, clearly indicating they're just messengers.
And what about the Imperial Guards...?
The current commander of the Imperial Guards grew up with Emperor Xiao Jing and was promoted by him.
Emperor Xiao Jing felt at ease leaving the capital, leaving the Imperial Guards behind, because he had a group of secret guards left behind by Emperor Taizu when he was still alive.
How many secret guards were there? No one except the emperor knew.
There are rumors that even if those secret guards were to fight all the Imperial Guards head-on, they could still fight to a draw.
This is why Emperor Xiao Jing felt comfortable leaving the Imperial Guards in the capital.
The imperial palace also needed the protection of the Imperial Guard.
Shangguan Yao had many thoughts on her mind.
While the Imperial Guards could not harm Emperor Xiao Jing's safety, they played a decisive role in the defense of the capital.
The officials followed Emperor Xiao Jing.
What if the Imperial Guards detained the families of officials...?
Shangguan Yao had no choice but to think that way.
If that weren't the case, why would the Zheng family want to befriend the commander of the Imperial Guards?
Everything made Shangguan Yao feel alarmed.
What is the Zheng family planning to do?
Should he simply kill himself? Or should he take the opportunity to eliminate the Shangguan family behind him, or even the Duke of Dingguo's mansion...?
Following that, Shangguan Yao uncovered some more things by relying on the hidden contacts left by the Shangguan and Shen families.
These events forced Shangguan Yao to consider his own actions.
The Zheng family's true goal was not simply to eliminate themselves.
Even eliminating the Duke of Dingguo was just a side effect.
What the Zheng family truly wanted was to force Emperor Xiao Jing to abdicate and install the Prince of Qin on the throne.
Just like when they pushed Emperor Xiao Jing to the throne.
The Zheng family wanted to install another obedient emperor on the throne...
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