Chapter 19 What I said is absolutely true!
Wang Decai's eyes widened. Is the emperor going to favor Lady Bai?
This... this is too sudden!
It’s totally against the rules!
But the emperor always keeps his word, and only the queen mother can persuade him, "Yes, I will save it!"
Bai Wutong grabbed Zhang Chengyan's sleeve tightly and took back his amulet quietly.
There was indeed a talisman in it, but it was soaked in special medicinal herbs and could arouse the most primitive desires in people's hearts.
What she wanted was the emperor's obsession with her body. The more she couldn't get it, the more itchy she felt.
But now is not the best time!
She wanted to completely pull the Emperor to her side on the night that Concubine Rong slept with her!
Having set this precedent, the emperor would think of Rong Fei whenever he saw her in the future.
"Your Majesty!" Bai Wutong pointed at the pond, "There was a bright light there just now. Could it be something there?"
Zhang Chengyan didn't want to care about that, but Bai Wutong was obviously afraid, "I'm thinking about Lady Gao again."
Lin Sheng jumped up, tapped the water surface with his toes, and scooped up the glowing object with extremely fast hands.
This thing is hidden between two lotus leaves. If it weren't for the moonlight, it would not be found.
"Your Majesty, this is... an earring!"
"Your Majesty, could it be that the murderer left it behind?" Bai Wutong grabbed his clothes tightly. "Although I also want your favor, but... I don't want to delay your business. I have always been here, waiting for you."
Zhang Chengyan held himself back, knowing that now was not a good time.
He put down the beauty in his arms and said, "Mr. Lin, bring the things over here."
"yes."
Lin Sheng stepped forward and presented it with both hands.
It was an earring with jadeite hanging on it and a circle of kingfisher feathers around it. Although it was small, it was very exquisite.
Zhang Chengyan recognized it at a glance; it was Concubine Xu's thing.
About two months ago, when Concubine Xu was in the imperial court, he rewarded her with this pair of jade earrings.
Zhang Chengyan's expression was cold, "Call Concubine Xu."
Half an hour later.
Concubine Xu came hurriedly.
She was wearing a lilac-colored long dress, her hair was pinned up, and her face was made up. She didn't look like she had just woken up, but instead looked like... she had been waiting for this moment for a long time.
Bai Wutong hid behind the shadows of the flowers, looking at her quietly.
She smiled and bowed, "Your Majesty."
"Xu Fei, how do you explain this?" Zhang Chengyan showed the jade earrings, "I remember it very clearly. This is what I gave you as a reward that day."
Concubine Xu was not very favored in the harem. It was good enough for her to serve the emperor once a month. This was the only time the emperor gave her a sincere reward.
Xupin's face changed slightly, and she bowed again, "Your Majesty, this is indeed my thing, but I lost it two days ago. I have been looking for it for a long time but couldn't find it. I don't know why it appeared here. When Your Majesty gave it to me as a reward, I wore it every day. Most people in the harem know about it. Maybe the other party deliberately stole such a conspicuous thing just to put the blame on me."
Zhang Chengyan looked at her steadily, "That makes sense, Mr. Lin, take the two palace servants around her to the Ministry of Punishment. Even her personal belongings can be lost, which means the people around her are not clean."
"Empress!" The two palace maids' faces changed drastically and they knelt on the ground in fear.
"Your Majesty, I am loyal to you and would never steal anything!"
The two men kowtowed continuously, and blood soon appeared on their foreheads.
No matter whether they were wronged or not, once they entered the Ministry of Punishment, there was no way they would come out intact. They were lucky if they had a broken arm or a broken leg.
In these years, a total of five palace maids were sent to the Ministry of Punishment, and without exception, all of them died there.
Lin Sheng was not polite at all. He called his men and planned to drag the man away directly.
"My lady, please save this slave girl!"
"My lady, I don't want to die! I have never stolen anything from you!"
The shrill cries echoed throughout the Lanxin Pavilion.
Concubine Xu clenched her hands and knelt on the ground, "Your Majesty, it was I who... killed Concubine Gao!"
The crying stopped abruptly.
The two palace maids stood there in a daze, and it took them a moment to come back to their senses.
"My lady, you didn't kill Lady Gao!"
"Your Majesty, your Majesty is innocent and definitely did not kill Lady Gao. Your Majesty, please do not accept this false charge for me!"
Concubine Xu just looked at Zhang Chengyan with a sad look, "Your Majesty, it was me who killed Concubine Gao. I followed my father in martial arts training since I was young, and I am very strong. After blowing the drug last night, I went in and took Concubine Gao away, brought her to this pond, and drowned her alive!"
She pointed to the pond where Lady Gao died, "It was here that I held her head down for a full stick of incense before I let go!"
"Enough!" Zhang Chengyan exuded a chill, "Why did you kill Lady Gao?"
Concubine Xu had followed him since she was in the palace and had never done anything out of line.
How could he suddenly do such a cruel thing as murder!
Xupin smiled miserably, stretched out her hand, trying to touch Zhang Chengyan, but quickly dropped it, her eyes showing deep affection, "Your Majesty, I understand why you favor Concubine Rong and Concubine Hui. They followed Your Majesty from the palace to this harem a long time ago."
"But... who is Gao Jingwan! How could she be pregnant with the emperor's child? If she really is pregnant, it will be the first heir of the Dragon Kingdom. The emperor will probably love her even more."
"What about me? What am I? Seven years ago, there was Imperial Concubine Rong. I thought I was not as good as her. But now there is Concubine Gao. I don't see where this will end. I don't see where this will end..."
She fell to the ground, crying bitterly.
Zhang Chengyan had a complicated expression, "You killed Lady Gao for your own selfish desires."
Wang Decai stepped forward and whispered, "Your Majesty, Concubine Xu is a Buddhist. She has not eaten meat or killed animals for three years. There were also concubines who entered the palace last year who were favored. Why did Concubine Gao have to be favored?"
Zhang Chengyan's pupils suddenly shrank, and he grabbed Concubine Xu by the collar, "You believe in Buddhism, so how could you kill someone for this? Tell me! Why did you kill Concubine Gao?"
Concubine Xu said nothing more and just shed tears silently.
Bai Wutong was certain that Concubine Xu was definitely not the murderer. She saw it clearly that night. She was an elderly nanny with the smell of medicine on her body.
As for Concubine Xu, her body had already been permeated with the smell of incense. Simply changing clothes and applying perfume could not completely conceal it, and it could not be hidden from her cat slave's nose!
Seeing that she didn't say anything, Zhang Chengyan smiled coldly and let go of her hand. "Issue an order that Concubine Xu kills Concubine Gao. She is guilty of capital punishment. I will only let her mother be buried with her because she has been with me for many years!"
Concubine Xu raised her head abruptly, "Your Majesty, I was the one who killed him, why did you implicate my mother?"
"Because she taught you to be such a vicious person. If you continue to let her live, your brothers and sisters may become the same as you. Marry a virtuous wife. Since she is not virtuous, it is just right for her to be buried with you!"
Concubine Xu gritted her teeth and kowtowed fiercely, not daring to hide anything anymore. "Your Majesty, it was Concubine Rong who asked me to do this! What I said is absolutely true!"
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