"Eat...eat it?"
Xiao Dianzi thought he must have misheard. He glanced at the Empress hesitantly, but the Empress's expression made him dare not doubt his ears.
"What, do I have to do this myself for such a small matter?"
Xiao Li and Xiao Dianzi exchanged a glance, and a chill ran through them. Neither dared to say another word, and Xiao Dianzi, carrying his basket, walked over with heavy steps.
Shen Mingzhuang knew that if word got out about his actions, people would say he was ruthless and heartless. But sometimes, kindness only brings more trouble. When dealing with someone like Ciyuan who was stubborn and unyielding, you had to show him the strength to make him wary, or be ruthless enough to make him fearful.
"Ciyuan" saw Xiaodianzi trembling as she pulled a green snake out of the basket. The snake was still writhing, clearly trying to break free. Being so close, the stench of the snake hit her. "Will you open your mouth yourself, or should I have someone pry your mouth open?"
Xiao Dianzi, suppressing his nausea, spoke to "Ci Yuan".
Man Huan frowned as well, and asked Shen Mingzhuang, "Your Highness, is this snake eaten raw?"
She had never seen anything more disgusting than this!
Shen Mingzhuang gave a faint "hmm" and said, "This is the original flavor. After all, his mouth is so tight. I want to see if he can actually swallow these snakes today. If he has the ability, he should keep his mouth shut."
Man Huan shivered. She understood that Shen Mingzhuang wanted to teach this imposter "Ci Yuan" a lesson, so she nodded and said nothing more, obediently standing aside.
"If you don't open your mouth, I'll have someone pry it open and pull out your teeth one by one. You either tell me where the real Master Ciyuan is, whose person you are, and why you're impersonating Master Ciyuan, or if you remain silent, don't blame me for being ruthless."
Upon hearing this, Ciyuan trembled even more violently. The former emperor had been known as a cruel tyrant, but in the past few years, he seemed to have become a different person. On the contrary, the empress, behind her gentle and benevolent demeanor, was actually such a person.
As he hesitated, Little Li had already stepped forward and grabbed his jaw. "Ciyuan" immediately widened his eyes and struggled, watching helplessly as the snake got closer and closer. He could already imagine such a foul-smelling creature crawling into his mouth and stomach...
"ah……!!!"
Ci Yuan felt a wave of acid churn in his stomach, and he opened his mouth wide as if to vomit, but the snake drew even closer. Ci Yuan could no longer hold back. He didn't care whether the Empress would change her mind in the end; he could tell that if he didn't say anything today, these disgusting snakes would be stuffed into his stomach. The thought sent chills down his spine.
"I'll talk! I'll talk... Your Majesty, I'll talk!!"
As Ciyuan spoke, tears streamed down his face. He was still a grown man, so it was quite unexpected for him to cry like that.
Shen Mingzhuang pursed her lips, barely maintaining her composure. She nodded, and Xiao Lizi and Xiao Dianzi together pulled the person out of the well and brought them to Shen Mingzhuang.
"Ci Yuan" collapsed at Shen Mingzhuang's feet, tears streaming down her face. "Your Majesty, it was the Duke of Wei! It was the Duke of Wei who sent me to impersonate Master Ci Yuan and enter the palace! Where is the real Master Ci Yuan? I...I don't know either!"
These words sounded somewhat true, but Shen Mingzhuang's brows furrowed again. "You're not telling the truth."
She tapped the armrest of the chair with a cold laugh, the sound seeming to strike one's heart, each tap sending shivers down one's spine.
"Feed the snake."
A cold voice rang out, and "Ci Yuan's" pupils constricted. She looked at Shen Mingzhuang in disbelief. This woman was truly ruthless. No wonder they say that the stinger of a wasp is the most poisonous thing, and a woman's heart is the most venomous. No wonder she could become empress. Few women could match her ruthlessness.
He swallowed hard, and before the little snake could reach him, he blurted out, "I'll talk, I'll talk, it's the heir of the Duke of Wen's mansion..."
Shen Mingzhuang lowered his eyes, his gaze gleaming with cold light.
Just as she was about to speak, a scream came from the bushes beside her. Everyone's attention had been focused on "Ci Yuan" and no one had noticed that there was someone in the bushes. Shen Mingzhuang let out a soft breath and ordered in a calm voice, "Bring the person over."
Several palace maids who had followed immediately responded and went over, but soon they also let out a scream. Shen Mingzhuang looked at Xiao Lizi with some displeasure. Xiao Lizi immediately had two strong palace maids hold down "Ciyuan" and ran to the bushes.
"snake……"
Several women were carrying bushes as they retreated. Suddenly, a green snake appeared to be crawling on one of the bushes. This snake was the one Xiao Dianzi had just brought from the Imperial Hospital. Upon hearing this, Xiao Dianzi turned around and saw that the basket containing the snake had been opened at some point. Cold sweat immediately broke out on her forehead.
"Little Li, kill the snake."
After saying that, she magically tossed a short sword over. Little Li hurriedly caught the sword, but his hands and feet were trembling. It wasn't that he was afraid of the sword, but he was afraid that if the news of him holding a sword in front of the Empress got out, he would lose his head immediately.
"I have given my permission, so you can take it without worry," Shen Mingzhuang said coldly, noticing Xiao Li's hesitation.
Upon hearing this, Xiao Li's demeanor immediately changed. He gestured for the others to step back, but Xiao Dianzi spoke up, "Your Majesty, please wait a moment. Let me catch this snake. It's a life after all; it would be such a waste to kill it like this."
"Then hurry up and catch the snake and take it back."
Shen Mingzhuang didn't waste any more time with Xiaodianzi and told him to hurry up.
Seeing that everyone's attention was drawn to the bushes, Ciyuan's eyes darted around, and he immediately had an idea.
"You just said that you impersonated Master Ciyuan at the behest of the Duke of Wen. Do you have any evidence? Also, why did he ask you to impersonate Master Ciyuan? You haven't said that yet."
Before Ciyuan's idea could fully form, he felt a chill at his neck as a short knife was placed against it.
"The young master said..."
Ci Yuan was almost in tears. He felt as if the Empress knew everything he was thinking. He inwardly cried out in alarm and dared not entertain any more strange thoughts. His voice was weak and feeble as he said, "The Crown Prince said that the Empress must not be allowed to find Master Ci Yuan, because he doesn't want her to find a way to save His Majesty's life..."
Song Yi? What exactly does Song Yi want to do? Shen Mingzhuang's anger immediately surged, her fingers clenched tightly in her palm, and murderous intent gradually rose in her eyes.
But the next moment, she realized that something was wrong.
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