Chapter 140: Family Fall
In fact, Song Zhao had already started to become suspicious about the whole matter since the Queen proposed to cut down the peach tree at the Locust Gate.
She has been in the palace for a long time, and the peach tree at the Zhisi Gate has not been planted there for a long time.
Why did the Queen not deal with it earlier or later, but had to wait until the Concubine Chen got the power to assist in managing the six palaces before asking her to deal with it?
And what about the Concubine Chen?
She could have refused, but it was her first day in charge of the six palaces, and so many concubines were watching.
Given her unyielding character, she would definitely take the bait if the queen provoked her a little.
Concubine Yu had a deep affection for the late emperor. Once the peach tree was cut down, Concubine Yu's condition would definitely worsen when she learned the news.
Prince Rui and the Ning family were already at loggerheads with each other, and this incident was like adding fuel to the fire.
On the surface, it seemed that the Queen was plotting against Concubine Chen.
But when Song Zhao thought about it carefully, he felt that this matter might be far more complicated than it seemed on the surface.
The Queen's calculations were too superficial and would certainly not be hidden from the suspicious Xiao Jingheng.
The Queen's move hurt one thousand enemies and eight hundred of her own, which was really not in line with her calm and steady style.
Eliminating all possibilities, the truth of the matter only has one:
——That is, everything that happened today was a trap set by Xiao Jingheng.
It was he who asked the Queen to cut down the peach tree, and then gave the Concubine Chen the power to assist in managing the six palaces.
At this time, in order to avoid suspicion, the Queen will definitely go with the flow and hand the matter over to the Concubine Chen.
As Concubine Chen had just taken power and wanted to establish her authority in the harem, it was impossible for her to refuse this matter.
The peach tree was cut down, and Concubine Yu was so angry that she died.
This made Prince Rui blame the Ning family for this.
Just at this time, Xiao Jingheng gave Prince Rui the title of prince, making it easier for him to do things in the former dynasty in the future.
The hatred for killing one's mother is irreconcilable.
Prince Rui will definitely keep biting the Ning family, and the Ning family will bite him back.
Among all the princes, Prince Rui was the most powerful and prestigious.
When the late emperor was choosing a crown prince, he was undecided for a long time between Prince Rui and Xiao Jingheng.
In fact, Xiao Jingheng has always been wary of King Rui.
It's ok now,
After this incident, the King of Rui and the Ning family had a complete feud.
They were biting each other and fighting to the death, and Xiao Jingheng only needed to stand by and watch the show.
Anyway, no matter who loses in the end,
Xiao Jingheng was able to eliminate a serious threat without spending any soldiers.
As for whether Concubine Yu was pissed off to death,
Or was Xiao Jingheng poisoned to death...
Song Zhao was too lazy to guess, nor did he want to think about it any further.
She only knew that the emperor's mind was definitely much more complicated than those women in the harem.
Therefore, when she faces Xiao Jingheng in the future, she must be more cautious and think three steps ahead in order to be safe.
*
At noon the next day, Xiao Fuzi came hurriedly to report:
"My lady, the carriages and horses escorting the master have already entered the palace this morning. The emperor interrogated the master after the morning court session, and now the matter has been concluded."
As Song Zhao removed the delicate makeup on her face, she asked casually, "What did the emperor say?"
Xiao Fuzi said, "The emperor spared my life, but demoted my position as the Duke of the Protectorate to the position of an Imperial Envoy. He ordered me to take the imperial edict and cross the Beihan River to deal with foreign affairs."
Xiao Jingheng did save Song Shicheng's life.
But he was banished to a foreign country, which meant that he was never allowed to return to Kyoto again.
Song Zhao pressed some powder on his thin red lips, trying to make himself look like someone who was worried sick, and then asked Xiao Fuzi,
"Father has a long journey ahead of him. He fell and injured his head in Henan, and the blood has not yet dissipated. It would be very risky for him to go. I asked you to prepare some medicine to dissipate the blood. Have you prepared it?"
Xiao Fuzi nodded in agreement, went back to the porch and gave Song Zhao a hidden brown pill.
After Song Zhao accepted the pill, he glanced at the copper clock and said, "At this time, father should be almost at the side gate of Wu, right? Come with me to see him off."
When Song Zhao rushed to the side gate of Wu, he happened to meet Song Shicheng who was about to leave the palace.
"Father!"
She cried out from a distance,
Song Shicheng stopped and looked back, and saw her daughter running towards her crying, and her heart was filled with emotion.
Since childhood, he has favored Song Yue and treated Song Zhao harshly.
But he never expected that in the end, the one who could plead with the emperor to spare his life would be this concubine's daughter who was not valued by him.
The person in charge of escorting Song Shicheng out of the palace was Xiao Yinzi. He accepted the benefits Xiao Fuzi handed him, but did not embarrass Song Zhao. He just said:
"Young Master, if you have anything to say, please tell Lord Song as soon as possible. I am here to do my duty and cannot stay any longer."
After saying that, he stood aside and did not stop Song Shicheng from going forward to meet Song Zhao.
At this moment, Song Shicheng is no longer the glorious Duke of the Protectorate.
He was hunched over, with gray hair, and his voice was much more aged.
"Zhao'er. Your father will not be able to help you in any way in the future. You should be careful in the palace..."
Song Zhao knelt down in front of Song Shicheng, crying, "Father, how could you not help me? As long as you are alive and well, it will be the greatest comfort to your daughter!"
Her act of bowing to Song Shicheng to say goodbye was against the palace etiquette.
Song Shicheng hurried forward to support her, "My lady, you must not do this!"
When Song Shicheng helped him to stand up,
Song Zhaoshen slipped the pill hidden in his sleeve into his hand without anyone noticing.
The father and daughter hugged each other and cried. Song Zhao said to him in a voice that only the two of them could hear:
"My daughter spent a lot of money to buy this medicine from the Imperial Pharmacy. After taking it, the blood clots in your brain will be gone. You must recover before you set off to this bitter and cold place. Don't worry me."
Song Shicheng was escorted back from Henan as a criminal.
Even if the military doctor treated him, he would not be too attentive.
Even if you try your best, it will never be as effective as the panacea in the palace.
Song Shicheng accepted the pills calmly, and with tears in his eyes he said "take care" to Song Zhao several times. Only then did he leave the palace at Xiao Yinzi's urging.
Song Zhao looked at Song Shicheng's departing back, and his originally sad expression suddenly turned cold.
She raised her soft fingers to wipe away the tears on her cheeks, and whispered,
"Father, have a safe journey."
In fact, the pills she gave to Song Shicheng were not good for removing blood stasis at all.
But it is an ordinary tonic pill.
It’s just that a poison that can kill people without warning has been added to it!
The poison was a substance used by the royal family to grant death. The reason why Song Zhao had it was because when the empress dowager asked her to execute Song Yue that day, she was careful and left some.
There is no limit to the dosage of poison. Once you are touched by it, you will definitely die!
Xiao Fuzi was a little worried about this.
Only after returning to the palace did he ask Song Zhao when no one was around.
"My lady, if the coroner finds out that the master was poisoned, I am worried that the emperor will suspect you, my lady."
"Suspect me? Haha?" Song Zhao laughed awkwardly.
"The Emperor will suspect that the Queen Mother secretly attacked him in order to preserve the dignity of the royal family, and the Queen Mother will suspect that the Emperor could not tolerate him and therefore wanted to kill him. With all their speculations, they definitely cannot suspect me."
As she spoke, her smile faded away, and she pretended to be sad and looked at herself in the mirror and said:
"After all, I am just a poor person whose entire family was slaughtered and who has no one to rely on in this world from now on."
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