Chapter 734 The Real Culprit Behind the Scenes (First Update)
Wang Xu stared at Gu Jiao in disbelief: "Why are you giving him acupuncture?"
"Forced confession," Gu Jiao said.
"You can force a confession with just one injection?" Wang Xu said he didn't believe it.
Gu Jiao didn't tell him it was a hallucinogen, lest he overthink it and believe that Gu Jiao was manipulating the murderer's confession.
Gu Jiao watched as the murderer lay on the ground, his tense body gradually relaxing, realizing that he was hallucinating.
We can't let him go too deep, otherwise he'll completely lose contact with the outside world and won't be able to hear anything from it.
Gu Jiao tapped his shoulder with a rolling pin and said seriously, "If you don't want to suffer any more, hurry up and tell me, who is the murderer?"
Gu Jiao had already knocked the person unconscious, and only heard the news when Wang Xu arrived, so that Wang Xu could hear the murderer's name with his own ears.
The murderer didn't struggle much and confessed honestly.
However, the name he gave was not the one that Gu Jiao and Gu Changqing had in mind.
"Who is Li Ping?" Gu Jiao asked Wang Xu.
Wang Xu thought for a moment: "He probably didn't mean Li Ping, but rather Consort Li, a lady in the palace."
To confirm his suspicions, Wang Xu asked him a few more details about how Consort Li had instructed him.
He was in a confused state at the moment, and he would say anything that he could remember without reservation.
Based on the testimony given, it was indeed Consort Li of the inner palace who instructed him to assassinate Shangguan Yan.
Why did Consort Li kill Shangguan Yan? Consort Li didn't tell him. Consort Li had no connection with him before. She accidentally discovered his affair with a palace maid.
In the Great Yan Imperial Palace, it was forbidden for eunuchs and palace maids to have sexual relations; if discovered, it was a capital offense.
Consort Li used this as leverage to force him to help her get rid of Shangguan Yan.
"Does Consort Li have a grudge against Shangguan Yan?" Gu Jiao asked.
Wang Xu fell silent.
Consort Li had only been in the palace for a few years, while Shangguan Yan had been imprisoned in the imperial mausoleum for over a decade, and the two had no contact whatsoever.
It's impossible to celebrate a holiday.
But Wang Xu's silence was not because of this, but because... Consort Li was getting very close to an imperial concubine in the harem.
Gu Jiao looked at Wang Xu: "Who?"
Wang Xu said solemnly, "Consort Wan."
Consort Wan, whose original surname was Mu, was the eldest daughter of Old Master Mu and a sister to Mu Qingchen's mother.
Consort Li had no one to rely on in the harem, and her early days were very difficult. It was only after she got close to Consort Wan that she rose from a lowly maid to the Consort Li she is today.
Gu Jiao asked in confusion, "Does Consort Wan have a grudge against Shangguan Yan?"
“There was a festival,” Wang Xu sighed. “It was when Shangguan Yan had just brought the one-year-old imperial grandson back to Shengdu. Consort Wan was whispering to her servants in private, saying that no one knew if the child was an illegitimate child picked up from outside. Shangguan Yan, who was still the Crown Princess at the time, overheard this. After slapping Consort Wan, Shangguan Yan was still not satisfied and punished her by making her kneel in the Imperial Garden as a warning to others. At that time, Consort Wan was not yet a Consort, but a Concubine Wan, but it was still very embarrassing.”
Gu Jiao stroked her chin: "The Crown Princess has so much power."
Wang Xu then said, "With Empress Xuanyuan and the Xuanyuan family backing her up, she naturally has great power. Besides, she is the only legitimate daughter, and below the Emperor and Empress, she is the most honored."
It's like the style of the Xuanyuan family.
From this perspective, Shangguan Yan is very protective of Xiao Qing.
Gu Jiao said, "There's no use in guessing here. We'll have to ask Consort Li whether Consort Li was behind it or not."
Wang Xu agreed wholeheartedly: "I will go to the palace now."
"Wait a minute," Gu Jiao called out to him.
"Huh?" Wang Xu was taken aback.
Gu Jiao pointed to his arm: "Your injury."
"Ah, this." Wang Xu had forgotten that he was still injured. He suddenly felt a little uncomfortable and coughed lightly, saying, "It's not a serious injury."
Even so, when Gu Jiao walked towards him with the first aid kit, he reluctantly offered her his arm.
Gu Jiao took out cotton swabs with iodine from the first-aid kit, treated him, and stitched him up with three stitches.
Because of the anesthetic, it didn't hurt at all.
Wang Xu glanced at Gu Jiao with a complicated expression, a surge of emotion welling up inside him: "Thank you so much."
Gu Jiao held out her hand: "One tael of silver."
Wang Xu: "..."
...
After paying the silver, Wang Xu, with a dark expression, took the murderer back to the Commandant's Mansion.
Watching the two figures disappear into the distance, Gu Changqing asked, "Was he the murderer?"
He was referring to the eunuch.
Gu Jiao said, "It's him. I've seen the back of his right hand. There's the crescent-shaped scar that Shangguan Yan mentioned."
Shangguan Yan had just woken up for a short while, and Gu Jiao took the opportunity to ask her about the murderer. Shangguan Yan did not see the murderer's face clearly, but she grabbed the murderer's hand and touched the scar on the back of his hand.
Gu Changqing's eyes were deep: "It's not Consort Han."
Yes, they all thought the mastermind behind this must be the Crown Prince's mother.
...
Wang Xu took the murderer back to the Commandant's Office, imprisoned him, and then hurriedly went to report to the King.
The king ordered Zhang Dequan to bring Consort Li to him, but Zhang Dequan only brought back news of Consort Li: "Your Majesty, Consort Li hanged herself."
After obtaining the king's permission, Wang Xu borrowed a very experienced coroner from the Ministry of Justice to carefully examine Consort Li's body and determine that Consort Li had committed suicide, rather than being strangled or killed and then hung up.
The clue we finally obtained was suddenly lost.
Since she's gone, the only options are to look at Consort Li's belongings and the people around her.
After a whole night of torture, one of the eunuchs finally couldn't hold on any longer and confessed that Consort Li had asked him to deposit a sum of three thousand taels of silver at a money exchange.
Consort Li's annual salary is only three hundred taels of silver. It would take her ten years of not eating or drinking to save up that amount of money. The problem is that she has not been here for ten years. She has already spent a lot of money on patronizing servants and showing respect to high-ranking consorts.
I'm already struggling to make ends meet, where would I find any extra money?
Consort Wan, who was close to Consort Li, became the first suspect.
Consort Wan cried out that she was wronged, saying that she had never given Consort Li this money. However, after the king severely tortured the palace maids and eunuchs around Consort Wan, a young palace maid confessed the truth.
The silver was indeed given by Consort Wan, exactly three thousand taels, no more, no less.
"Your Majesty—" Consort Wan knelt on the cold, hard floor, the gleaming white marble reflecting her tearful expression.
The king sat in a chair, with Wang Xu and Zhang Dequan standing on either side.
The king said sternly, "Will you confess yourself, or will I have your accounts thoroughly investigated?"
Consort Wan's salary was not low, but she had many expenses. Without the Mu family's tribute, how could she have come up with three thousand taels of silver in one go?
Consort Wan then honestly admitted, "...Your Majesty...I did give Consort Li three thousand taels of silver...that's because she told me her father was ill...and urgently needed money for his treatment..."
The king said coldly, "What kind of illness requires three thousand taels?"
Consort Wan looked aggrieved: "A bowl of bird's nest costs one hundred taels, is three thousand taels a lot?"
Consort Wan was the daughter of the Mu family. She lived a life of luxury since childhood. She ate bird's nest, which could be bought for one tael of silver outside.
She doesn't understand the hardships of ordinary people. Three thousand taels is more than enough to treat illnesses in Shengdu, let alone in a small county like Jiangyang!
The king asked suspiciously, "Then why did you deny it just now?"
Consort Wan choked up and said, "Isn't it because Consort Li got into trouble? I used to be close to her and was worried that I would be implicated, so I quickly distanced myself from her."
The king stared intently at her, a fierce glint in his eyes: "Consort Wan, I don't believe you."
...
Before dawn the next day, the entire harem knew that Consort Wan had instructed Consort Li to murder Shangguan Yan.
Consort Wan was banished to the Cold Palace. The King originally intended to strip her of her title and demote her to the rank of Noble Lady, but it was Consort Wang who pleaded for her, and her title was temporarily preserved.
Shangguan Yan was no longer the Crown Princess, but just a commoner. She hadn't actually lost her life, so such a punishment was already extremely severe for an imperial concubine.
Consort Wan cried and wailed.
Consort Wang told her to suffer in the cold palace for a while, and that she would find a way to rescue her after the king calmed down.
"Even the Empress went in and didn't come out, how can I possibly come out?" At the entrance of the palace, Consort Wan cried uncontrollably.
Consort Wang patted her shoulder reassuringly: "His Majesty is angry, give me some time."
Consort Wan gripped Consort Wang's hand tightly: "It wasn't me...it really wasn't me...Consort Wang, please believe me..."
Consort Wang sighed helplessly: "It's no use me believing you; it's His Majesty who needs to believe me."
Zhang Dequan urged, "Consort Wan, please."
Consort Wan glared fiercely at Zhang Dequan: "You dog!"
Normally, she's always called Consort Wan, but now that she's going to the Cold Palace, she doesn't even call her Consort anymore!
A luxurious palanquin carried by four men slowly passed by the entrance to Consort Wan's palace. On the palanquin, the dignified and elegant Consort Han casually raised her hand to the accompanying eunuchs.
The palanquin came to a stop.
Consort Han and Consort Wang were among the first to serve the king. They already had grandchildren, but because they took good care of themselves, they looked to be only in their early forties.
She gave Consort Wan a half-smile and said, "Oh, Consort Wan, are you leaving?"
When Consort Wang's beauty faded and her favor waned, she brought the eldest daughter of the Mu family into the palace to become her ally. Losing Consort Wan was like losing an arm for Consort Wang.
Consort Wan glared at her angrily, stepped forward, and pointed at Consort Han, saying, "It must have been you! You framed me! You killed Consort Li! It was you! It was all you!"
Consort Han raised her chin and smiled, seemingly mocking: "Why don't you say this to His Majesty, Consort Wan? If His Majesty also believes that I did it, I will pack my bags and move to the Cold Palace to keep you company without His Majesty's orders."
"you!"
Consort Wang shook her head at Consort Wan, signaling her to calm down.
Consort Han dusted off the handkerchief in her hand, looked ahead, and said indifferently, "Bring a few more quilts. I heard it's cold in the Cold Palace."
Consort Wan was furious, but it was no use being angry now, as this vile woman, Han, had caused her to be banished to the Cold Palace!
Zhang Dequan urged him again.
"Please wait a moment, Eunuch Zhang," Consort Wang said politely, and had a palace maid give Zhang Dequan a bag of gold.
Zhang Dequan accepted the money and said in a low voice, "A quarter of an hour. It can't be any later. This servant still has to report back to His Majesty."
Consort Wang nodded and then comforted Consort Wan for a while.
Consort Wan wiped away her tears with a handkerchief, her eyes red, and said, "Sister Xianfei, please take care of the Sixth Prince for me. That wicked woman is ruthless and cruel. She dared to harm me like this. I'm worried that she might harm the Sixth Prince."
The sixth prince, the only underage prince in the harem, and the youngest son of the king.
Consort Wang held her hand and said earnestly, "I understand. I will bring him to Xianfu Palace and will not allow anyone to have a chance to harm him. Listen to me, when you go to the Cold Palace, please don't throw a tantrum."
Consort Wan was taken away by Zhang Dequan.
Consort Wang sent her eunuchs to the Imperial Academy to pick up the Sixth Prince after school.
On her way back to her own palace, she encountered Consort Han, who was admiring flowers in the Imperial Garden.
Consort Wang looked coldly at Consort Han and said, "You've really gone too far this time."
Consort Han gave her a deep look and sneered, "Ha."
...
As dawn broke, the Imperial Preceptor's Palace also received news of Consort Wan's punishment.
Shangguan Yan is still asleep.
Inside the room, the three sat facing each other: Xiao Heng, Gu Jiao, and Gu Changqing.
"I never expected that Consort Wan would be the one to take the blame," Gu Jiao said. "That's really the way the Han family does things."
They all love making others take the blame.
“The opponent is very strong,” Gu Changqing said, not in terms of physical strength, but in terms of cunning and scheming.
It's not terrible for a family to have one person like this. If everyone is this smart, it's no wonder they can compete for the position of the number one family.
This is a very troublesome family.
But Xiao Heng felt no fear in his heart. Instead, a strange struggle and desire for power was growing in his blood.
This is probably how Gu Jiao felt when she met a master.
However, Gu Jiao was simply competing; he was ruthless, the kind of person who would devour others without hesitation.
The Han family and the Wang family are the two biggest fish. If the Han family wants to eat all the fish, then let them eat them.
None of the ten great families were innocent. Back then, the Xuanyuan family was massacred and the Crown Princess was persecuted. Every family had stabbed them in the back.
He showed no sympathy for Consort Wan.
Just like back then, no one sympathized with Xuanyuan Hanyan, who was banished to the cold palace.
“The Han family is a fine knife.” Xiao Heng lowered his eyes and rubbed the blade in his hand. “Now, let’s make this knife even sharper.”
(End of this chapter)
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