Chapter 540 Do You Plead Guilty?
"No need to be polite." Queen Song nodded slightly to Concubine Liang and Concubine Rong, and said, "Sit down."
The two thanked her and sat down next to Chu Ying'er nervously.
Rongpin turned her head and winked at her daughter nervously. If it were not the wrong occasion, she would have wanted to ask for clarification immediately.
Chu Ying'er's eyes turned red with anxiety. Even though she was of noble status and arrogant in the palace, she was only twelve years old. When she saw her mother coming, feelings of grievance and fear suddenly surged in her heart, but she could only endure it for the moment.
Concubine Liang cast a soothing look at the two of them. Since the Queen did not ask for accountability, she must have believed Chu Ying'er.
And it couldn't be explained in just a few words, but Concubine Rong also understood it.
The hall was very quiet for a while. Empress Song held the teacup and drank it slowly. Concubine Shu also had a leisurely attitude, watching the show, but she did not dare to show it too obviously on her face.
Concubine Yi couldn't help but mutter, "Is Chu Pan'er a tortoise? When there's nothing to do, I see her all the time in the palace, but now she's so slow to come when I need something. Is she doing it on purpose?"
As soon as she finished speaking, the eunuch's singing of yes was heard outside.
"The Emperor has arrived."
Everyone in the room was startled, then stood up and walked out to kneel down to greet him.
Queen Song led the way and stood at the front, followed by Concubine Shu and Concubine Yi, and then Concubine Liang, Concubine Rong, Chu Ying'er and Lu Xiang.
"Your Majesty, may the Emperor be blessed with good fortune."
Everyone squatted and bowed to greet each other.
Emperor Chengde strode over, stretched out his hand to lift up Queen Song, and said to the others, "Stand up."
Concubine Shu looked at the emperor and empress holding hands in front of her and gritted her teeth in jealousy: "Why is the emperor here?"
She spoke before Queen Song, her eyes smiling and her tone intimate.
Emperor Chengde glanced at her calmly, then turned to look at Queen Song: "I heard someone poisoned you."
Queen Song raised her eyebrows slightly, a little surprised, but it was also expected.
It's not surprising that the Emperor knew that even Concubine Shu and Concubine Yi could arrive so quickly.
What surprised her was that she saw worry and tension in the emperor's eyes...
"Yes, I heard that it was done by the maidservant beside the Thirteenth Princess. Doctor Zheng replied that they had found the chronic poisonous thunder god wilfordii, which when mixed with the spices that the queen likes, can activate its toxicity and kill people in two or three months." Concubine Shu had a look of anger on her face. If you didn't know her, you would think that she had a very good relationship with the queen and that's why she was speaking up for her like this.
When Rongpin heard what Shufei said, her face turned pale, her legs went weak and she staggered. Fortunately, Lu Xiang stabilized her in time.
"Your Majesty, please be careful." Lu Xiang whispered.
Concubine Rong turned her head and gave Lu Xiang a kind glance, then looked at Emperor Chengde in panic.
Shufei's words put Ying'er in danger, and she was afraid that the emperor would be furious without asking the reason.
Concubine Yi looked at Concubine Shu speechlessly, who kept interrupting her. She rolled her eyes in anger and said, "If you don't speak, no one will think you are dumb."
Concubine Shu was so angry that she choked, but she had to maintain her gentle and dignified image in front of Emperor Chengde.
"Sister Yifei, how did I offend you? Why are you speaking so harshly?"
Every word sounded as if it was squeezed out from a secret hole, as if he wanted to bite Concubine Yi to death.
Emperor Chengde suddenly felt his head buzzing, and he dragged Empress Song to the palace. He did not respond to Concubine Shu's words, but sat down and asked Empress Song: "I have heard a little bit about it. Does this matter have anything to do with Thirteen?"
Queen Song calmed her mind, shook off the chaotic thoughts in her mind, and said with a fixed gaze: "It is related, but it is also not related."
Emperor Chengde looked at her in confusion.
Queen Song then explained the key points: "...I have summoned the Ninth Princess to the palace. I will ask her everything when she arrives."
Zi Su brought a cup of tea and placed it on the table beside Emperor Chengde: "Your Majesty, please have some tea."
Then he stepped aside.
Emperor Chengde had no appetite for tea at the moment. He stared at the teacup in front of him with heavy eyes, as if he wanted to break it into pieces.
The atmosphere in the room suddenly became so depressing that it was hard to breathe.
Chu Pan'er and her maid were tied up by palace servants and brought into Jingren Palace. Chu Pan'er's mouth was stuffed with cloth, but the maid's mouth was not stuffed with cloth because she did not dare to curse like Chu Pan'er did.
When Concubine Shu saw Chu Pan'er being tied up like a prisoner, she immediately scolded him, "How dare you! The Ninth Princess is a royal concubine, and you dare to tie her up for the sake of committing a crime? Why don't you let her go quickly?"
Yun Lu snorted secretly and looked at Queen Song: "To reply to your Majesty, the Ninth Princess is disobeying your order and refusing to enter the palace. This is disrespectful to your Majesty."
No matter how noble you are, the Queen is the master of the six palaces, and she is also her mother. Her decree is second only to the Emperor's. If the Ninth Princess disobeys the order, she is slapping the Queen in the face, not to mention...
"This is my order. If Chu Pan'er resists, she will be tied up and brought into the palace. Does Concubine Shu have any objection?" Queen Song said, looking at Concubine Shu with a cold gaze.
Queen Song disliked Chu Pan'er because she argued against Lu Xiang. Later, she behaved even worse. She even dared to harbor evil thoughts and poison her. Should she still invite her into the palace respectfully?
Oh, giving her face?
When Concubine Shu heard what Queen Song said, she was choked up and couldn't speak: "I dare not."
"Since Concubine Shu is so eager to stand up for Chu Pan'er, I can't help but suspect that you may have something to do with this." Queen Song's unhurried voice frightened Concubine Shu, and she knelt down quickly.
"Your Majesty, please be wise. I would never dare to murder the Empress." She tilted her head slightly, a charming look on her still graceful face, and looked at Emperor Chengde aggrieved and helpless.
She was not afraid of Song Nanyue's slander, but she was afraid that if the emperor heard this, he would feel resentful towards her.
It had not been long since the Liu Anyao incident, and the emperor had become much colder towards her. If she continued to be dissatisfied, her position would be shaken.
Emperor Chengde looked at her expressionlessly and said, "Get up."
Concubine Shu was worried. After she stood up, she looked at Emperor Chengde cautiously, pursed her lips and sat quietly aside, not daring to say anything more.
All the tricks she used in the past were no longer effective. Concubine Shu frowned and pondered over and over in her mind what she should do next to regain Emperor Chengde's favor.
"Chu Pan'er, do you plead guilty?" Queen Song stared at Chu Pan'er fiercely and asked in a stern voice.
“Mmmmm…”
Chu Paner shook her head and made some noises.
After Queen Song asked this question, she stopped looking at her and turned to look at the maid beside her.
"I have seen you before. You were originally a maidservant beside Concubine Xian. What's your name?"
The maid nodded and said, "I am Yingxue, your Majesty."
"You went to the palace today and secretly saw the sparrow in the imperial garden, right?"
Yingxue was kneeling on the ground with her hands tied behind her back. She shook her head and said, "I did not enter the palace today. Everyone in the Princess's Mansion can testify that Miss Lu San has recognized the wrong person."
Queen Song sneered, "I didn't say that Third Miss saw it, how do you know?"
Yingxue's heart was shocked, but she remained calm: "I heard it."
Queen Song looked at her and smiled, her smile was so inexplicable that Yingxue felt creepy.
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