Chapter 163 Others Take the Blame 1
Facing Xiao Jingheng's sudden question,
Song Zhao was stunned and surprised.
But her eyes did not dodge at all, instead she stared straight into Xiao Jingheng's hesitant gaze.
Tears could be seen flickering in her eyes.
Mixed with loss... or disappointment,
"What?"
She clearly heard what Xiao Jingheng said, but she seemed to not be able to believe her ears and asked again.
Xiao Jingheng paused, and slowly loosened his grip on Song Zhao's wrist.
"nothing."
They looked at each other in silence.
What broke the shocking silence was Song Zhao's question, which he asked with a look of grievance:
"Your Majesty, are you suspicious of me? Your Majesty thinks that I deliberately framed Li in order to avoid punishment?"
Her voice was a little choked, but the tears in her eyes just rolled around in her eye sockets and did not fall.
"So in the eyes of the emperor, I am such a calculating and scheming woman?"
Song Zhao's aggrieved look made Xiao Jingheng waver for a moment.
His expression eased a little, and he comforted her, "I just asked casually, but you may have been suspicious. But since this matter was a sin committed by Zhao (Shu Fei), I really don't understand why Li became the scapegoat in the end?"
"Your Majesty doesn't understand something, but you want me to explain it to you?"
Song Zhao rarely put away her gentleness and questioned Xiao Jingheng, "During that time, I asked to be confined to my room. The whole matter was investigated by the emperor. How can I influence what the people in front of the emperor find out? If the emperor is suspicious of this matter, he should question all the people who investigated the matter in the past. First, it can dispel the emperor's suspicion, and second, it can prove my innocence."
Her excitement was completely exposed in front of Jamel Xiao.
Like any person who has been wronged,
From her face, Xiao Jingheng could not see any panic or fear.
All there is is the stubbornness of one's nature and the vague sense of grievance.
Xiao Jingheng was used to seeing people acting in front of him.
Therefore, seeing Song Zhao like this, the doubts in my heart about her have been dispelled a little.
He was just about to hold Song Zhao's hand and say something soothing to her.
But Song Zhao deliberately put his hands behind his back and said in a calm tone:
"I am feeling a little unwell, and I am afraid I cannot accompany Your Majesty tonight."
Then she bowed and left, "I'll take my leave."
After saying this, he turned around and left.
No matter how many times Xiao Jingheng called her from behind, she never looked back or stopped.
This was the first time that Xiao Jingheng saw some fierceness in this bright and beautiful woman.
If this matter really wronged her,
I'm afraid it will really chill her heart.
Xiao Jingheng was also very upset about this.
But as an emperor, he held the power of life and death over the world, and he had seen too many schemes since he was young.
The suspicious nature is innate in the blood of the royal family, which requires him to suppress his emotions with reason at all times.
So in the end that day, Xiao Jingheng did not chase out.
Instead, he ordered Jiang Deshun, "Go check all the people involved in Li's affairs in the past to see what really happened. I remember that the one who convicted Li was a medicine shop in Kyoto who said that they saw Li's maid coming to buy cosmos."
He stroked the black jade ring on his thumb, and after a long silence, he stopped his movements and said solemnly:
"Catch all the shopkeepers and clerks of the medicine shop and interrogate them strictly. If anyone dares to lie again, kill him directly without having to come to me."
*
During the period when Jiang Deshun was investigating the matter, Xiao Jingheng never visited Song Zhao once.
If he didn't come, Song Zhao wouldn't rush to see him.
The two of them were in a stalemate.
It was not until three days later that Jiang Deshun brought several confessions back to Xiao Jingheng.
"Your Majesty, the shopkeeper and the employees of Tongjitang all confessed under torture. This incident really has nothing to do with Concubine Li, and her maid Fu'er has never bought Agastache rugosa. The people at Tongjitang said this because someone gave them silver and Fu'er's portrait, and told them that if anyone asked about this matter, they should insist that they had seen Fu'er come here to buy."
Xiao Jingheng asked: "Who handed over the portrait and the silver?"
Jiang Deshun said, "It's Xiao Jingzi, the eunuch in charge of purchasing in the Ministry of Internal Affairs. He is waiting outside the palace now. Does the emperor want to summon him?"
Xiao Jingheng nodded silently, and Jiang De shouted for someone to bring Xiao Jingzi in.
The one who entered was a thin young eunuch.
It was obvious that he had suffered a lot.
His face was covered with bruises and swelling, and his hands were clamped so tightly that they were unrecognizable.
He knelt in front of Jamel Xiao and said incoherently:
"Your Majesty, spare my life... I am the one in charge of purchasing things outside the palace in the Ministry of Internal Affairs. It was Concubine Liu who gave me money and asked me to help her do this... I was not aware of this, please spare my life!"
"Liu Changzai?" Xiao Jingheng was stunned for a moment, and couldn't remember who this person was for a long time, so he glanced sideways at Jiang Deshun.
Jiang Deshun understood what he meant and said hurriedly, "There is indeed a Concubine Liu in the palace. She entered the palace last year with Concubine Yi, Concubine Xiao, and Li."
After his reminder, Xiao Jingheng finally had some impression of Liu Changzai.
It seems that he favored her several times when she first entered the palace.
But every time Liu Chang was lying on the bed, he was like a dead piece of wood, saying nothing and not calling out.
Gradually, Xiao Jingheng stopped favoring her, and after a long time, he almost forgot her existence.
"Since it's her? Then go and bring her here."
Jiang Deshun nodded, and then asked Xiao Jingheng, "Your Majesty, how should this servant be dealt with?"
Xiao Jingheng said casually: "You can do whatever you want. Just remind those servants in the Ministry of Internal Affairs that if anyone dares to help the palace to communicate with each other or give private information in the future, I will punish all three clans of their family and will never tolerate it!"
He said that he would let Jiang Deshun handle it himself.
But didn’t the implicit meaning of these words tell Jiang Deshun how to deal with the situation?
So Jiang Deshun took Xiao Jingzi away and ordered him to be beaten to death.
Then he held the three clans outside the palace responsible.
Originally, they should all be executed, but considering that they were all his servants, Jiang Deshun did not do anything cruel. He simply exiled them all to Lingnan and left them to fend for themselves.
On that day, when Liu Changzai was called to Chaoyang Palace, it was just sunset.
She lived in Zhaochun Palace with Huipin.
Since she lost Xiao Jingheng's favor, she has been living like a walking corpse every day.
When the time came, he stood up and paid his respects to the Queen. After that, he had three meals a day in the palace.
He rests when the sun sets, over and over again, as if he is counting the days waiting for death.
She never had the mood to look at the scenery trapped in the red wall.
At this moment, she stood outside the gate of Chaoyang Palace, looking at the afterglow of the setting sun falling on the glazed gold bricks of the hall, reflecting the colorful and dazzling light, and smiled helplessly.
The palace servants escorting her asked her, "What are you laughing at? Hurry up!"
She whispered, murmuring to herself:
"I used to think that everything in the palace was good. This imperial city was shining. Once I entered, the road ahead would be bright and glorious. But now I see that I was just being ridiculous."
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