Chapter 209 No Good Person Will Be Wronged
The Imperial Preceptor knelt on the ground with a thud. "Your Majesty, I am innocent! I have no ill intentions whatsoever. This must be a trick by the Northern Barbarians. They want to frame loyal officials and sow discord between the emperor and his ministers! Your Majesty, do not listen to Wanyan Tai's one-sided account. His register must be fake..."
Emperor Muzong, enraged, suddenly swept the teacup off his hand and smashed it in front of the Imperial Preceptor. "Just now, you all agreed that Wanyan Tai's roster was genuine. In just a few breaths, you've changed your minds?"
He paused, then tossed the roster to Shen Yanzhou. "Yunzhi, you will personally oversee the investigation of this case. Investigate carefully to determine whether it is true or false! I trust the Imperial City Guard; they would never wrong an innocent person!"
"Yes." Shen Yanzhou picked up the roster and bowed.
The Imperial Preceptor's face was ashen, and cold sweat trickled down his temples. Everything he had just said had been used against him by Emperor Muzong.
But at that time, he thought Pei Siyan was doomed, which is why he said so many harsh words!
That barbarian Wanyan Tai is so unreliable. Why can't he even handle such a small matter?
How could they make a mistake with a simple roster?
Emperor Muzong was furious, "Take them down now!"
The imperial guards drew their swords and immediately took the Imperial Preceptor away in custody.
Emperor Muzong glanced at Consort Tan's panicked face and suddenly shouted coldly, "Guards, draft an edict: Prince Rui is suffering from a leg ailment and is to immediately return to his fiefdom of Yanchang to recuperate. Consort Tan shall return with him. He shall not return to the capital without an imperial edict!"
Consort Tan, her face deathly pale, knelt on the ground and crawled step by step to Emperor Muzong's feet, hugging his legs and weeping bitterly.
"Your Majesty, I'm innocent! Your Majesty, someone must have deliberately framed me. That list must be fake. Your Majesty, the person behind this is malicious and wants to sow discord between you and Prince Rui. Don't fall for it..."
Emperor Muzong sneered and gritted his teeth, saying, "Consort Tan, who framed you?"
"I am but a lowly concubine, and I dare not speak. But I understand that whoever benefits is the suspect!" Consort Tan's eyes were red and swollen, and her bright red lips trembled incessantly.
Emperor Muzong had a cold expression, and he wasn't blind.
Wanyan Tai deliberately provoked Dou Wenyi, and the way he looked at her was fiery, the kind of look a man has when he lusts after a woman.
Pei Siyan was arrogant and proud, and he didn't even respect his father, the emperor. How could he possibly bow down to the Northern Di people?
He had even considered killing Wanyan Tai just now, so it's impossible for them to have conspired together!
As soon as he finished speaking, Emperor Muzong turned and left. Eunuch Feng was taken aback at first, but then hurriedly followed him out.
Pei Siyan glanced indifferently at Tan Jieyu, who was slumped on the ground, and took Dou Wenyi's hand. "Are you tired? Come on, let's go home."
Home?
Will the Eastern Palace become her home from now on?
Dou Wenyi suppressed her excitement and said, "Yes."
Pei Siyan put his arm around her waist and led her to the door. He suddenly stopped and turned to look at Shen Yanzhou. "I'm afraid I'll have to trouble you again, Lord Shen."
Shen Yanzhou tightened his grip on the roster, his voice still cold, "It's just my duty as a subject."
Watching the two figures disappear into the distance, he was slightly taken aback, a sense of melancholy rising in his heart. Just now in the hall, it seemed she hadn't even glanced at him once...
——
Finally boarding the familiar sandalwood carriage, Dou Wenyi couldn't wait to speak, "I bet you tampered with that list?"
Pei Siyan pulled her into his arms, a smile playing on his lips. "Yes."
"But Wanyan Tai is highly skilled in martial arts and naturally vigilant. It would be difficult to tamper with the roster at the palace banquet. So when exactly did you switch the roster?"
Pei Siyan explained calmly, "The person who just submitted the roster is not the real Wanyan Tai at all!"
Dou Wenyi's pupils suddenly contracted in disbelief. "No, the person who made things difficult for me at the palace banquet should have been the real Wanyan Tai. Was the person who went to the Emperor to submit the list someone you sent in disguise?"
"Yes." Pei Siyan's lips curled up almost imperceptibly as his slender fingers ran through her soft hair.
Dou Wenyi still found it unbelievable, "How did you do that in such a short time?"
Pei Siyan said quietly, "The Imperial Advisor prepared a secluded room beforehand. After Wanyan Tai left the banquet, he took advantage of the time he was sobering up to secretly go there to meet him. After a brief discussion, the Imperial Advisor left first, while my men were already hiding in that room. Using your Forget-Me-Not Powder, they easily subdued Wanyan Tai."
“That day when he was in Lanxiang Garden, Xu Sisi used the Forget-Worry Powder you made on him to successfully find the roster on him, so I had someone tamper with it.”
"Because she was worried that Wanyan Tai would wake up early, Xu Sisi had given him a bit too much medicine. Until an hour before the banquet, he was still unconscious. When the Northern Di delegation found him, they dragged him directly to Lanxiang Garden."
"So, he simply didn't have time to check that roster. But I was already there, when you mentioned Wanyan Tai last time, I ordered someone to find someone of similar build to him and made preparations in advance."
Dou Wenyi frowned slightly. "What about the real Wanyan Tai? Did you bring him back to the Tongwen Guan?"
Pei Siyan nodded. "The people in the delegation will only think he was drunk. As for the matter of presenting the list of names, he acted alone and no one knew about it. His memory of this will be hazy. By the time he realizes something is wrong, it will be too late to change anything."
"Perhaps Shen Yanzhou has even found evidence."
Dou Wenyi continued, "Wanyan Tai is far more dangerous than the Seventh Prince. We must not let him go back to the mountains so easily."
Pei Siyan raised an eyebrow slightly. "Don't worry, I've already ordered someone to poison him. It's a slow poisoning; he'll only die after he signs the peace agreement and returns to Beidi!"
Dou Wenyi still had many doubts. Pei Siyan's power was not to be underestimated, but when did he find out about the plan by Prince Rui to collude with Wanyan Tai to frame him?
It was as if they had predicted all their actions.
Pei Siyan stroked her earlobe. "Consort Tan left the palace and went to the Daxiangguo Temple. I sent Chiyan to follow her, so I know all about their plans."
What he never expected was that Prince Rui was not Emperor Muzong's biological son!
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