The little servant backed off a couple of steps with a hint of fear, looking at Ji Xinhe, reminded of the words she had just said.
"You think by helping Princess Chaoyang resolve the situation, she will reward you handsomely? Don’t forget, this is all her own trap; you were just a tiny chess piece used to drag me into it. But once the dust settles, and she reaps significant benefits, do you think she will really keep you? You are the evidence of her manipulation, and the safest solution is to silence you forever."
But if he couldn’t trust the princess, who else could he trust?
The little boy bit his lip, looking at Li Xinhe, the cunningly smiling young lady of the Li family, he began, "It was the princess who ordered me to take out this perfumed powder. Miss Li is correct. I intended to leave the house, but who would’ve thought that Miss Li spotted me halfway? She chased me all the way to the Wutong Garden, and after catching me here, the temple officials stormed in."
Chaoyang’s face darkened instantly, almost spitting blood with anger, she pointed straight at the boy’s nose and cursed, "This little traitor is your pawn! When did I ever ask him to hide perfumed powder?"
Xin He raised an eyebrow: "My pawn? He is a servant from your princess manor, how does that concern me? This is my first time visiting the princess manor, I have no idea about the manor’s affairs, let alone knowing this little servant. How is it that his confession suddenly became my manipulation? If the princess refuses to admit responsibility, it would be best to have the manor’s steward review the roster, to confirm whether or not this boy is a servant of the princess."
Chaoyang nearly fell down in exasperation, yet her dull brain couldn’t figure out how to defend herself, so she turned to Wei Popo for help.
Wei Popo also looked horribly pale, how could she possibly bring up the roster? She knew better than anyone else that this little servant was from the princess’s manor.
The perfect game they had originally set was pulled apart into chaotic pieces by Ji Xinhe in just a few short moves! 𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂
Lord Liu, realizing that the Princess Chaoyang was silent, had a slight understanding of the situation, and solemnly said: "Although this affair is mysterious, the perfumed powder was indeed found in the princess’s manor, and this little servant is indeed a servant of the princess, in my opinion..."
The more Lord Liu’s words turned unfavorable, the paler Chaoyang’s face became. Only now did she understand what is it like to shot herself in the foot. The incident today, slightly exploited by Ji Xinhe, had become a weapon against herself. The Emperor was already paying close attention to the black bear case, especially since it injured Marquis Mu. If the Emperor learns about her involvement in this affair, she will be in trouble.
Before Lord Liu could finish his sentence, they suddenly heard a small eunuch announce in a loud voice, "Consort Guifei has arrived!"
Xin He’s eyebrows tightened but remained imperceptible, the Imperial Consort?
How timely of her to show up!
She knew today would not be a peaceful day.
Lord Liu paused, swiftly turned around, and respectfully greeted her, "Greetings, Consort Guifei."
Following his lead, Xin He and all the other young ladies also bowed, "Greetings, Consort Guifei."
Seeing Consort Shen after less than half a month, she was as beautiful as ever. Dressed extravagantly and luxuriously, she lightly smiled, "Enough of the pleasantries, everyone stand."
"Thank you, Your Highness."
Consort Shen scanned the crowd once with her charming eyes, and laughingly said, "When I arrived, I saw the princess’s manor empty. I even thought I had remembered the date wrong, only to find all of you here at the entrance of Wutong Garden. What’s so interesting here that everyone is gathered around?"
Chaoyang immediately ran over, acting like a spoilt child, she held Consort Shen’s arm, "It is all because of Li Xinhe; she deliberately bullied me and even accused me of being involved in the black bear case! You must know, that black bear was a gift from the vassel state for the Imperial Concubine! Even if I am mischievous, I wouldn’t mess with the bear and risk alarming the Consort, which will hurt the Emperor’s heart! But she, she insisted on framing me!"
With Chaoyang acting all coquettish, it was as though she saw a life-saving straw.
Consort Shen glanced surprised at Ji Xinhe, "Is this true?"
Xin He’s gaze was profound, and her face remained expressionless. She didn’t quite believe the Consort’s display, it seemed the mask was about to be unveiled.
Xin He remained silent, instead Lord Liu hurried to explain: "I have just investigated this matter. The perfumed powder was indeed found on the little servant, and he was hiding suspiciously within the princess’s manor. Although there are some inconsistencies, the princess is indeed suspect..."
"See, even Lord Liu is against me!" Chaoyang complained indignantly.
Consort Shen casually laughed, "How serious could it be? It’s just a word of a little servant, shouldn’t be taken as gospel right? Maybe this little servant got the perfume powder from somewhere and happened to be found by the officials from the Dali Temple. It doesn’t prove anything. Today is such a good day, we shouldn’t let this affect our mood."
Lord Liu’s back was covered in cold sweat; did the Consort mean to ignore this?
However, Xinhe suddenly retorted in a cold voice, "Your statement is unjust, Consort. The Emperor issued an imperial edict to thoroughly investigate this case. The Dali Temple has been investigating for half a month without finding anything unusual. Today, finally, some clues appear, but the Consort dismisses it with a simple ’it’s nothing’. This case relies on even the smallest clue, with the Consort’s intervention, the case may never be solved."
Lord Liu was struck dumb. Was the young lady Li too brazen, for daring challenge even the Imperial Consort?
The temptation of Consort Shen’s smile wavered for a moment, then she forced a chuckle, "What Xinhe said is indeed reasonable. It is indeed rare to find a clue in this case, and we cannot easily let it go. However... Today is such a rare good day, and we are all gathered for a banquet at the princess’s manor. It would not be good to delay everyone because of this. So, why don’t we wait till the banquet ends, and then let the temple officials continue the investigation. Isn’t that better?"
Wait until the banquet ends?
With her eyebrows slightly raised, Xinhe considered: Does that mean there will be more twists and turns before the banquet ends?
Although her mind was in chaos, Xinhe managed to maintain an unruffled exterior, "Since the Consort has spoken, naturally I have no objection. If anyone is to be blamed, it should be the princess, who inexplicably chose today to let the Dali Temple officials in for an investigation. Not only did they interrupt everyone’s enjoyment, they brought about so many issues. Thankfully, the Imperial Consort arrived just in time. Otherwise, who knows whether we would even have this banquet."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
