Chapter 974 Bamboo Vinegar
Everyone was taken aback upon hearing this.
Yuwen Yuan's eyes flickered slightly, but his expression remained calm. He simply asked, "How can you prove it? Tell me."
Shang Ruyi said, "Father Emperor, you can let Eunuch Liu smell the scent of that piece of clothing."
"Smell it?"
Yuwen Yuan was somewhat surprised. He turned to look at Liu Yu and gestured for him to do as he was told. Liu Yu hurriedly brought the rag to his nose and smelled it, then his eyes widened in surprise: "This, this is—"
He stammered, but couldn't come up with a coherent explanation for a long time. Yuwen Yuan simply reached out and took it, then smelled it himself.
Everyone around him stared intently at him. His face gradually darkened, and he remained silent for a long while without saying anything. Instead, he casually handed it to Tao Wanyin, who was standing next to him. Tao Wanyin took it, sniffed it briefly, and immediately said, "This smells like bamboo vinegar."
"...!"
Shang Ruyi secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
During her two days in Chengqian Palace, she had already reviewed all the events that had happened and roughly deduced how the other party had planned and lured her into the trap, but she was not entirely certain. Now, hearing Tao Wanyin say that there was bamboo vinegar on the piece of tattered clothing, she knew that her deduction was correct.
The rest was easy.
So she said, "That's right. A few days ago, there was a termite infestation. The palace used bamboo vinegar to kill the termites. I'm sure everyone is familiar with that smell."
Zhang Yuping chuckled and said, "Yes, that smell permeated the entire palace; it was quite unpleasant. But Princess Qin, what does it mean that this piece of clothing has the smell of bamboo vinegar?"
Shang Ruyi looked at her and smiled, "Consort Zhang lives in Shujing Palace. The termite extermination in the inner court took place the day after Liangyi Hall and Taiji Hall. Several other palaces were also severely infested by termites, so by the time it was Qianqiu Hall's turn, it was already the day Father Emperor celebrated the birthdays of Consort Zhang and Consort Tao."
"..."
"That is, the day when Sun Xianyue came to Qianqiu Palace and had a secret meeting with me."
Han Yuhui said, "What's the problem with that?"
Shang Ruyi smiled faintly: "Han Shanggong was busy dealing with termites in various parts of the palace, so she probably didn't notice that when the bamboo vinegar was used to treat termites in Qianqiu Palace, it was noon that day."
"..."
"How could the smell of bamboo vinegar from the midday fumigation have gotten onto this piece of clothing left behind by Sun Xianyue, who came to Qianqiu Palace in the evening?"
"..."
"Could it be that Sun Xianyue arrived at noon?"
"..."
"But that noon, when the bamboo vinegar was being steamed, the smell was so unpleasant that I took everyone away from Qianqiu Palace and went to Jinyu Garden to talk to Madam Chu."
"good!"
As soon as Shang Ruyi finished speaking, Chu Ruoyan immediately chimed in: "That noon, Sister Ruyi did indeed bring Yuangan and everyone from Qianqiu Palace to my Jinyu Garden in order to avoid the smell of bamboo vinegar. Everyone in Jinyu Garden can testify to this!"
Pan Qing, kneeling beside her, also said, "This servant can also testify!"
Yuwen Yuan looked at them and nodded slightly.
At this moment, Han Yuhui panicked a little. Just as her eyes were darting around, Shang Ruyi took the initiative to look at her and said with a smile, "Han Shanggong, if I remember correctly, the reason why the incident of my 'secret meeting' with Sun Xianyue occurred that day was because the palace maid named Wenying who was with you that night said that she saw someone climb out of Qianqiu Palace."
"..."
"Did Sun Xianyue arrive at Qianqiu Palace at noon or in the evening?"
Hearing this, Chu Ruoyan and the others were somewhat surprised, and even Yuwen Yuan glanced at her unexpectedly.
The smell of bamboo vinegar on the tattered clothes just now was enough to prove that Shang Ruyi had not met with Sun Xianyue in secret. So why did she seize the opportunity to clear her name and then go looking for trouble with Han Yuhui?
However, no one spoke.
Han Yuhui was clearly surprised, but she quickly calmed down and forced a smile, saying, "Of course, it's at night."
Shang Ruyi said, "He came at night, so how come his clothes still have the bamboo vinegar we used at noon on them?"
"..."
"If I remember correctly, it rained that afternoon."
"..."
"Not to mention that the smell dissipates after the bamboo vinegar is fumigated, how could there be any bamboo vinegar residue after it rains?"
Han Yuhui glanced at the scraps of cloth in Tao Wanyin's hand and suddenly said, "Look, this scrap of cloth only has a faint smell of bamboo vinegar on it, which is now barely perceptible. It's clear that it wasn't actually contaminated with bamboo vinegar."
At this point, she immediately added, "Unless, this rag is really stained with bamboo vinegar, it can't prove that he came at noon."
Hearing this, Chu Ruoyan glared at her fiercely: "Han Shanggong, this piece of cloth is gray. How can anyone tell whether it's stained with bamboo vinegar or not? Aren't you making things difficult for me?"
Seeing her anxious, Han Yuhui smiled instead. She glanced at the grayish-blue rag again and said confidently, "Madam, what are you saying? I'm just stating the facts. After all, people who come at night can't be covered in the bamboo vinegar that was used for fumigation at noon."
Chu Ruoyan was speechless.
Just then, Shang Ruyi suddenly looked at her sharply: "What if bamboo vinegar gets on this?"
"...!"
Han Yuhui was taken aback by her gaze.
From the first day Shang Ruyi married into the Taiyuan family and they met at the villa, several years have passed. Han Yuhui is well aware of this woman's intelligence and is even more surprised that she can fight on the battlefield as a woman, fighting alongside Yuwen Ye. But even so, Shang Ruyi rarely shows such a sharp gaze.
That gaze made Han Yuhui feel even more uneasy than her words.
Seeing her somewhat bewildered expression, Shang Ruyi became even more aggressive, raising her voice and saying, "Han Shanggong, I'm asking you, what if I can prove that this thing is stained with bamboo vinegar?!"
This one sentence has almost driven Han Yuhui to the brink of despair.
In fact, the people in the main hall had already realized that this was a confrontation between Princess Qin and Han Shanggong. If Shang Ruyi could really prove her innocence, then the person who fabricated this series of so-called "private meeting" evidence was probably Han Yuhui!
Just as Han Yuhui was at a loss for what to do, Yuwen Yuan suddenly said, "If this piece of clothing is indeed stained with bamboo vinegar, at least it can prove that the piece of clothing was left at noon, and that Princess Qin was not in Qianqiu Palace and did not have a private meeting."
Hearing him emphasize the word "at least," Shang Ruyi's gaze flickered as she looked at him.
In other words—
She immediately exclaimed, "Father is wise!"
Yuwen Yuan looked at her: "How will you prove it?"
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