Chapter 75
She carefully chose her words, saying, "I feel like I've been led step by step into a huge pit. Every step I take is planned by someone else. After Chen Ziyi was killed, I was forced to come to the capital, and then I just happened to become the emperor. And now the mastermind behind it all seems to want to pull me down from this position. Actually..." She paused here, looking aggrieved, "Actually, I lied to you just now."
Song Luo Ning was startled. Her obsidian-like eyes trembled, and her fingers clenched tightly beneath her sleeves. She asked absentmindedly, "Hmm? What did Your Majesty lie to me about?"
Hearing Xiao Yu's words, she lost her usual composure. Her thoughts drifted back to the marriage contract, her father's repeated instructions before leaving the capital that she must marry this person, and the person her father sent to protect her. Song Luo's eyes darkened. She shouldn't have doubted her father like that.
Perhaps it was all just a coincidence?
She was somewhat dazed, but then Xiao Yu continued, "Actually, the literati in the capital have more than just a lot of opinions about me. My father-in-law's exact words were that those literati are very dissatisfied with me and are attacking me with words and writings."
Verbal and written attacks?
how so?
Song Luoning frowned. Even the most incompetent emperors in history were not openly criticized by scholars. Moreover, this scoundrel had just ascended the throne. So what if she really did kill him? Is it wrong to kill a traitor?
At most, you could say she's petty; why the need for such harsh criticism?
She would never believe that no one was behind this.
But the person behind it...
She suppressed her doubts for the moment, smiled gently, and asked, "Did Father say anything else?"
Xiao Yu shook his head: "My father-in-law has already gone to investigate the person who spread the rumors. I hope they can catch the mastermind as soon as possible." This mastermind is really despicable for spreading such rumors. And those so-called intellectuals, they did nothing wrong and made such accusations without any evidence. They call themselves intellectuals? They don't even know the principles that a three-year-old child understands.
She hadn't thought much of it before, but for some reason, she felt particularly wronged and pathetic, and wanted to cry, all in front of the young lady.
And she did just that. The girl's eyes reddened slightly, and her body trembled as if she was trying her best to suppress something. Like a wronged little animal, she buried her head in her master's arms, seeking comfort.
Song Luoning stiffened for a moment, then slowly relaxed, gently patting her back: "Why are you crying, husband?"
Looking down at the person in front of her, she couldn't help but feel sorry for him. She said gently, "My husband is already the emperor. He can't cry anymore. If people see him, they'll laugh at His Majesty."
She called him her husband; at this moment, they were just an ordinary couple, embracing each other.
After an unknown amount of time, the girl raised her head, her eyes moist, and with red eyes, she took out a porcelain bottle from her bosom. It looked familiar.
Song Luoning frowned slightly: "This is..."
"Antidote pills, take them for ten consecutive days and the poison in your body will be neutralized." He said, not caring about Song Luoning's expression, and shoved the pills into her hand, sniffing the air: "Once you're better, we can go to many places."
It's medicine again.
Song Luoning's gaze fell on the porcelain vase, her eyes filled with a dark and unsettling expression.
Where do these supposedly miraculous pills come from?
And the wisdom this person displays—could it really be something a country bumpkin could possess?
What secret is this person hiding?
Song Luoning's heart tightened. Could it really be as she had guessed before...?
The idea of someone being resurrected through another's body is indeed unbelievable.
But the world is full of wonders...
Seeing her staring at the porcelain vase, Xiao Yu's heart skipped a beat. She stood up, turned her back, and felt flustered. What if she asked her about it? How would she explain?
I couldn't help but worry.
Song Luo Ning pondered for a moment, then said, "Thank you, sir."
Huh?
Xiao Yu turned around, blinked, and breathed a sigh of relief when the young lady didn't press further.
But the way the young lady looks at me...
Xiao Yu's heart pounded. The young lady was too shrewd. She must have suspected him long ago, but why didn't she ask?
Could it be that she's not the original owner of this body?
Xiao Yu was alarmed and kept reassuring herself that the young lady had never been in contact with the original owner of the body, so it shouldn't arouse suspicion.
What I'm afraid of is her asking where the medicine came from.
However, since she didn't ask, she decided to play dumb. Once the young lady's poison was cured, she wouldn't need to take medicine anymore, and she wouldn't have this worry anymore.
Otherwise, if this happens a few more times, even if the young lady doesn't ask, I won't be able to help feeling guilty.
She quickly changed the subject: "I have already sent Fushun to bring Mother to the palace. I didn't mean to make the decision myself, but... Constable Liang suddenly returned to Linyang County, and I was worried about their safety outside. Of course, I don't doubt that my father-in-law's men can't protect them, but I feel more at ease having them by my side."
Xiao Yu rubbed her hands together, her eyes darting around. She absolutely couldn't admit that she felt guilty.
"What?"
Has Liang Chengqiu returned to Linyang County?
Why did she still go to Linyang County? Song Luoning pinched her fingertips: "Does my husband know why Constable Liang went to Linyang County?"
Why? Xiao Yu shook his head and guessed, "I guess the county government had some official business. I heard from Fu Shun that he received a letter and left in a hurry."
"Is that so?" Song Luoning seemed thoughtful.
For some reason, the young lady's aura suddenly seemed a bit low. Xiao Yu nodded emphatically: "My wife, what do you think of me issuing an imperial decree to summon her to serve in the palace?"
Song Luoning hesitated for a moment, paused, stood up, poured a cup of tea, and handed it to her: "Husband, let's wait and ask Constable Liang before making a decision on this matter. What if Constable Liang doesn't want to go to the palace? Wouldn't that be forcing him to do something against his will?"
Xiao Yu thought for a moment: "Captain Liang must be interested in Xiao Yu, but what my wife said is also right. Let's write a letter and ask her opinion."
Song Luo gazed at her without saying a word.
I hope I'm just overthinking it.
The next morning, Xiao Yu wrote a letter and had it sent to Linyang County by fast horse. About half a month later, Liang Chengqiu returned from Linyang County. At the same time, bad news came from the Dali Temple: the soldier who returned to report the news had suddenly died.
Having gone without a single clue for days is bad enough, but now even the only eyewitness has died, undoubtedly making the case more difficult.
Xiao Yu paused for a moment, then glanced at the people kneeling below the hall.
Is it really impossible to catch the mastermind behind this?
The capital city has recently been abuzz with public discontent. Several scholars who led the unrest have been arrested, but as soon as they were released, others jumped out. What's worse, some of them are even from prominent families.
In the imperial court.
Grand Secretary Zhang: "Your Majesty, now that the leads have run dry, I think we should focus on suppressing the rumors."
"Absolutely not." Xiao Qinya glanced coldly at them, her face serious. "Those scholars are merely misled. If the court were to suppress them, it would alienate all scholars in the land. If the court were to select talent again, who would be willing to serve my Baisheng?"
Song Yunzhou: "This old minister also agrees with the Grand Princess's opinion."
Just like last time, most people in the court sided with Chancellor Song.
Xiao Yu looked down at the audience, his expression unreadable. After a long while, he nodded. Indeed, they could not let the scholars down, otherwise the case would be in a dead end again.
She had no idea how to proceed with the investigation. Sitting on the dragon throne, she secretly observed the reactions of each minister. To control the court, she needed to understand which side each person was on.
I already had a general idea in my mind. For example, Grand Secretary Zhang seemed to be in the same camp as Prime Minister Song, but whenever he disagreed with the Prime Minister, he would show his dissatisfaction in his eyes.
For example, the Minister of Revenue and the Minister of Works belong to the same camp, yet they seem to be at odds.
And General Li, it seems he might already know about Xiao Qinya and Miss Li's affair, otherwise he wouldn't have glanced at Xiao Qinya before making his stance when choosing sides.
If I remember correctly, the Imperial Guards were the emperor's personal troops, and they only obeyed the emperor's orders. However, one thing is the same as in the original work: whoever Miss Li was with, General Li would be on that side.
In the original plot, Miss Li married the male lead, and General Li played an important role in the male lead's attack on the capital. It could even be said that without General Li, the male lead would not have been able to conquer the capital so easily.
Now that he was on the side of the Grand Princess, Xiao Yu was unsure whether Xiao Qinya had such intentions. If Xiao Qinya had rebellious thoughts, he probably wouldn't even have a chance to resist. He was conflicted.
The morning court session began at dawn, and before long it had passed dusk, yet the court officials still hadn't reached a conclusion.
Finally, Xiao Yu left only the Prime Minister, the Grand Princess, the Minister of Justice, and the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review to discuss the matter further.
Since the ministers had not yet eaten at this hour, Xiao Yu ordered someone to bring out a dining table, and the emperor and his ministers ate together in the hall. At the same time, he summoned Liang Chengqiu from the palace and continued to discuss countermeasures while eating.
There were only six people in the hall. Apart from Fu Shun, each of them had a servant standing behind them, while the rest waited outside the hall.
Since the last imperial decree was issued, the emperor's breakfast has been reduced to six dishes, which is probably less than the variety of dishes served in the homes of the officials present.
Xiao Yu glanced at them and said earnestly, "Please enjoy your meal."
What can you eat to your heart's content?
None of the officials dared to object. If the emperor could eat, why couldn't they? Did they want to feel superior in front of the emperor?
Who among those present wasn't a shrewd and calculating person?
When breakfast was almost finished, Xiao Yu smiled and said, "Captain Liang has a lot of experience in handling cases and is very skilled. Let her join the investigation. I hope everyone can catch the murderer soon."
"This..." The Minister of Justice glanced at the indifferent woman before him, then at the Emperor.
Isn't this ridiculous?
How could a woman know these things? Even if she was a constable, she came from a small place and had no experience to speak of. He looked at the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, who was more composed than him. He opened his mouth and then secretly glanced at Prime Minister Song, who was also very calm.
The Minister of Justice chose to keep his mouth shut.
As expected, he was the only one present who was not good enough. Fortunately, he had observed the attitudes of the others first. Otherwise, he might not only have failed to win the emperor's favor, but he might have also left the emperor with the impression of deceiving the emperor.
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