Chapter 138: The ruthless couple
Her life should have been gone long ago.
But the time is not right yet.
“No hurry.”
The emperor's voice in the dark night was like water under a glacier, chilling one's bones. "When you went there, did anyone notice you?"
The matter was of great importance, Xia Qie's voice unconsciously lowered a little, and he said:
"The sky was dark, with no stars or moon. I lay on the rooftop and no one noticed me."
No matter who you are or how careful you are, just before the spoon enters your mouth, a drop of colorless and odorless poison will fall.
That is also unknown to gods and ghosts.
The Buddhist beads clashed with each other, making a harsh rustling sound. The emperor raised his hand and Xia Qie stepped back.
At dawn, Zhou Ninghai ran in with a message. He sent all the people in the hall out, leaving only Songzhi.
"My lady, Liu Bin is gone."
Nian Shilan was putting on her makeup. She looked at Zhou Ninghai in the bronze mirror and said in disbelief:
"Liu Bin, how come Liu Bin is gone?"
"The coroner found that he had drunk a lot of alcohol before his death. It is speculated that he fell into the lake while hugging a stone while drunk. There was also a witness at the Imperial Hospital who said that he carried a wine bottle with him and liked to drink after work."
It is possible that Liu Bin was a gambler and alcoholic.
"I specifically tracked the path he took to find the possible location where he fell into the water." Zhou Ninghai paused, "In my humble opinion, it is unlikely that he fell into the lake accidentally."
"You mean, man-made?"
Zhou Ninghai nodded.
"But what did you find?"
"On the contrary, nothing was found."
"Then why do you doubt that it was not an accident?"
"Because the traces left behind have been destroyed by others."
"Do you want to cover up your mistake?"
"Your Majesty is wise. I think so too."
"No one has an unprovoked grudge. Liu Bin has only been in the palace for a short time, so he is not destined to have a life-and-death feud with anyone." Nian Shilan thought, "The only people who can take action in the palace are those who are in the palace."
Zhou Ninghai also had doubts in his heart, "Something happened to the Fourth Prince last night, and all the palaces and courtyards were guarded by guards. I guess no one had the opportunity to take action."
The meaning of this statement is already very clear.
"Summer mowing."
"It's someone from the Sticky Rod Department!"
"It's the Emperor!"
Nian Shilan said three sentences in a row, and Zhou Ninghai's eyes were filled with shock.
"I am stupid. Why would His Majesty take action against a young imperial physician who was just transferred to the imperial palace?"
"Yeah, why did he attack Liu Bin?"
Nian Shilan picked up a golden hairpin and put it down again, "Does he know something?"
Song Zhi, who had been silent the whole time, slowly asked, "Could it be related to the death of the Fourth Prince?"
"What did you think of?"
Song Zhi shook her head, "I was just wondering, why did the emperor make such a hasty conclusion about the Fourth Prince being poisoned? Where did Li Danying get the Hedinghong from? Why didn't the emperor even ask?"
"And Nanny Zhang said that the Fourth Prince did not eat anything that Li Daying sent him. Why does the Emperor still blame Li Daying?"
"If you want to blame someone, why not the death penalty?"
Nian Shilan looked at Song Zhi and said, "Because Li Jingyan is the biological mother of the Third Prince, the Emperor cannot ignore the Third Prince."
"Anyway, the final news to the outside world was that the Fourth Prince died suddenly. If the Emperor really wants to care about the Third Prince, he should simply not punish Concubine Qi, at least not at this critical juncture."
The Fourth Prince died suddenly, and at this critical moment, Concubine Qi was reprimanded for her misbehavior in front of the palace.
Anyone with a brain would connect these two things.
The emperor intended to tell everyone that it was Concubine Qi who did it, but out of fatherly love he could not bear to see the Third Prince lose his support, so he spared Concubine Qi's life.
etc.
What does Nian Shilan think is wrong?
"You just said that the Fourth Prince didn't eat the food that Li Danying sent?"
"To answer your Majesty, I heard this from outside the palace. That's what Madam Zhang said. She is right beside the prince, so she must not be so old and blurry that he can't see clearly."
Nian Shilan felt as if there was an earthquake, and she subconsciously reached out to grab Songzhi.
"The Emperor killed the Fourth Prince."
Song Zhi and Zhou Ninghai looked at each other, held their breath subconsciously, and were so shocked that they were speechless.
Connect all the events before and after, the Empress's strategies and the Emperor's actions.
Nian Shilan guessed it all.
The Queen did not kill two birds with one stone by taking down Sun Miaoqing and the Fourth Prince.
Instead, he killed four birds with one stone. He used Sun Miaoqing to let Li Jingyan come forward and get rid of the Fourth Prince. With Li Jingyan's brain, even if he did not poison with his real name, his actions would be quickly discovered.
The biological mother plotted to murder the prince, and the third prince completely lost his qualification to succeed the throne.
In this whole matter, the Queen's only regret was probably that she never expected the Emperor to personally take action against his grown-up son.
What’s even more terrifying is that the emperor may have been watching the development of the situation silently behind the scenes.
He may not have seen every detail clearly, but every step was within his calculation.
Illegitimate couples are so cruel.
A completely emotionless tool of power.
She knew he knew, and he knew she knew.
They are taking advantage of each other.
The coldness was like countless tentacles, slowly crawling up from the soles of my feet, and the sunlight shone in from the window and fell on my body.
Nian Shilan couldn't help but waver.
shudder.
Out of fear, she subconsciously put her hands on her stomach.
"How could the emperor kill..." Songzhi didn't dare to finish.
"Why not?"
There was a hint of sarcasm on Nian Shilan's lips. If a few years had passed, he might still have some concerns.
But he had only been on the throne for less than two years. How could he tolerate that little guy trying to take away the position he had worked so hard to obtain?
These few years were the time when he would kill any god who stood in his way, and any Buddha who stood in his way. Even if the empress dowager was ignorant, he would still dare to take action.
"Back then, he was not favored by the late emperor. The Nine Dragons were in danger of usurping the throne. He was surrounded by tigers and wolves. My brother served him at the front and back of the court. Yet, he dared to lay hands on the child in my womb."
"What is there for him to be reluctant about, just the son of a lowly maid in the imperial palace?"
After a while, Songzhi sighed: "The emperor got so angry at the beginning and demanded a thorough investigation. Isn't he afraid that he will find out something?"
Nian Shilan snorted and laughed, "Isn't he the same when I was a child?"
check!
Check carefully!
Is it to find out the truth?
No, it’s about finding out the insider.
Find one and kill one.
All palaces and courts were closed, and the news could not spread for a while. The unaware servants were afraid of the emperor's power and tried their best to investigate. If they found any clues, the emperor would immediately punish the person and collect evidence overnight.
Last night, the emperor called me over. Firstly, he wanted to know whether this incident had happened in his previous life. Secondly, he probably wanted to hear my true reaction.
If he finds that he is wrong, he can make amends and adjust his words in time.
At daybreak, the matter was settled.
No one, master or servant, spoke anymore.
The cold cicadas in the courtyard were so sad that the hall became even quieter.
After Nian Shilan finished washing up, she asked someone to place the dining table in the corridor as she needed to bask in the sun.
Songzhi was serving dishes nearby, "There is one thing I don't understand."
"What?"
"Sun Miaoqing only agreed to it. She has no children, and the Sun family is not a senior official. She made mistakes repeatedly before, so the emperor showed mercy. But this time, she instigated Concubine Qi to murder the prince, so why didn't he even call her over for questioning?"
There's nothing strange about not judging her.
After all, the prince being poisoned is not a glorious thing. If it gets out of hand, it will bring shame to their royal family.
However, they secretly dealt with Liu Bin, but did not allow Xia Qie to bury Sun Miaoqing.
That's a bit hard to explain.
Nian Shilan didn't understand: everything was obviously over, why did the Queen say it was not over?