Chapter 36 The truth?

The study room of Yude Hall.

"Your Highness, my people have made some progress in investigating Concubine Su's palace attire together with the Empress' people."

An Shun bent his waist, raised his head slightly, and looked respectfully at His Royal Highness the Crown Prince who was concentrating on reviewing memorials on the throne.

Jun Zechen had a solemn expression, holding a red brush in one hand, and was carefully reviewing the memorials. There was no trace of emotion on his handsome face, but he gave people a sense of invisible pressure.

"The maid Ru'er served in the Qiluan Palace before Concubine Su entered the palace. Later, because she was not liked by the Crown Princess, she was sent back to the Ministry of Internal Affairs."

An Shun's voice was a little cautious. After all, everyone in the Eastern Palace knew that the two most important masters were the Crown Princess and Concubine Su, and now this kind of relationship was involved.

Jun Zechen's eyes, as deep as a deep pool, moved slightly, but he was still writing and marking.

An Shun continued, "Later, Ru'er relied on some money and connections, and was assigned to Xiyan Palace after the concubine entered the Eastern Palace."

As An Shun spoke, he secretly observed the Crown Prince's reaction.

"After the concubine went to the Hall of Supreme Harmony, the maid Ru'er went to the lotus pond and was pushed into the lotus pond and drowned. The palace coroner also examined Ru'er's body and confirmed that she had drowned."

"But when we found her, Ru'er had been soaked for several hours. Her body was bloated and nothing could be seen. But there was An Liangdi's handkerchief in her arms."

When An Shun said this, his voice paused slightly.

Jun Zechen's brows furrowed even tighter, and a hint of anger flashed in his eyes. These women really do whatever it takes.

"I personally asked An Liang Di, and a maid in An Liang Di's palace said that she accidentally lost the handkerchief several days ago. I don't know how it ended up in Ru'er's possession."

An Shun felt a little regretful. He originally thought this was a breakthrough, but An Liangdi reacted quickly and directly sent a palace maid out to take the blame.

"I took this maid to be interrogated, and it turned out that she had hit her head and died yesterday when her subordinates were not paying attention."

Speaking of this, An Shun showed a hint of nervousness and worry.

This was a key figure, and now that he's dead, all clues are almost gone.

Jun Zechen's eyes flashed with cruelty, and then he ruthlessly spat out two words: "Useless."

When An Shun heard these two words, his heart tightened and he immediately knelt down, his body trembling slightly, "Your Highness, please forgive me, it was my negligence."

"Although the clues from An Liangdi's side are broken, the Empress has made new discoveries." An Shun hurried to make up for it.

Jun Zechen raised his head slightly, looked at An Shun, then lowered his head to continue reviewing the memorials, motioning him to continue.

"This maid Ru'er entered the imperial palace at a very young age. Before she went to serve in the Qiluan Palace, she worked in the Shufei Palace."

"But that was all several years ago. If the Queen hadn't gone out of her way to look through those old files, it would have been difficult to find."

You know, those dusty files cannot be read at will. Without the Queen's permission, it is absolutely impossible.

Moreover, the palace archives were numerous and complicated, and it took the Empress a lot of effort to find the records of a little palace maid.

Jun Zechen naturally understood the hardships involved, and was always grateful to his mother.

"The Empress said that if this matter involves Consort Shu, it will not be a simple matter."

"If Concubine Shu first placed this person in the Crown Princess's Palace, and then transferred her to the Concubine's Palace after the Concubine entered the Eastern Palace, Her Majesty would suspect that Concubine Shu was intentionally harming Your Highness's heir..."

An Shun's voice lowered slightly.

After hearing this, Jun Zechen finally put down the pen in his hand.

He looked straight ahead, with a dangerous gleam in his eyes, like a sharp blade, making people shudder.

He couldn't help but twirling the ring on his hand, his face expressionless, but an extremely oppressive aura emanated from his entire body.

Could it be that Concubine Shu still has hope for the Third Prince?

Oh, even if he has no heir, can the third brother shake his position as the crown prince?

His position as the crown prince was originally designated by his father. With his father's support, most of the old ministers of the royalist party stood on his side.

Moreover, he had recently proposed a number of policies on the reform of the imperial examination system and the appointment and dismissal of court officials, and most of the officials in the court had already submitted to him.

Not to mention that after he returned victorious from the expedition, he had been holding military power in his hands.

Only Shufei, a woman in the harem, was short-sighted and thought that the absence of an imperial heir would prevent him from ascending the throne.

Or was he too kind, giving the third brother a glimmer of hope?

Jun Zechen pondered secretly, and the expression on his face became more and more stern.

Xiyun Palace.

An Jinyan sat on the couch with a serious look on her face, her brows tightly furrowed, her heart full of doubt and uneasiness.

She never imagined that Concubine Su's use of motherwort would implicate her.

How come her handkerchief was on the maid Ruer?

If she had not taken precautions in advance and let the palace maid Ting'er directly admit the guilt, I'm afraid this matter would really be pinned on her.

Who is framing her?

Crown Princess?

Although An Jinyan didn't know who was behind the incident, she understood that some sacrifices were inevitable in this situation.

Although Ting'er died as a result, she would write to her mother and ask her to take good care of Ting'er's family.

Ever since she learned that she was going to enter the harem, An Jinyan resolutely abandoned her kindness. In the harem full of intrigue and deception, she had to be cautious at every step.

After all, a single mistake could lead to her falling into an irretrievable situation, so she couldn't afford to make even the slightest mistake.

"Master, Ting'er is dead. You are completely cut off from the matter of Concubine Su."

"Although the Crown Prince and the Queen will not convict you for this, if His Royal Highness becomes suspicious of you, how can you gain His Royal Highness's favor?"

Bai Zhi said worriedly.

An Jinyan's eyes turned dark; this was indeed what she was worried about.

In the matter of Tang Fengyi's child, she can be said to have won a complete victory.

Although the royal heir was still in Tang Fengyi's belly, after suffering so much, her frail body might not be able to give birth.

Even if the baby was born, Tang Fengyi would probably be in danger of death.

The Crown Princess also had her golden book taken away by the Empress, and now she has become almost a mere decoration in name only.

If the Crown Princess's Golden Book has not been taken back when His Royal Highness the Crown Prince ascends the throne, then she will not even be qualified to be named Empress!

But……

She must not lose His Highness's favor!

"Your Highness and the Queen are investigating the matter of the concubine. I have nothing to regret for what I did not do."

"Your Highness the Crown Prince is also a man who can distinguish right from wrong. He will definitely not be angry with me."

This is the only way An Jinyan could comfort herself at this moment.

"Besides, the Concubine is kind. I will go to her and explain the situation to her. If she doesn't doubt me, Your Highness will naturally not say anything."

So many things have happened in the East Palace recently, and the entire East Palace seems to be shrouded in a thick haze, so depressing that it makes people feel breathless.

But there was a relaxed and joyful scene in Xiyan Palace.

"Master, several days have passed, and His Highness and the Queen still seem to have not found out what happened to An Liangdi."

Miaoyun asked softly, with a hint of doubt in her voice.

Su Jingyao narrowed her eyes slightly, a thoughtful look flashing in her eyes.

If this is true, then the palace maid Ru'er might not be An Liangdi's woman.

An Jinyan had been in the Eastern Palace even shorter than she was, so she didn't have anyone she could use.

Unless it is carefully cultivated in the family.

However, An Jinyan is not a stupid person. It is not a wise move to use people trained by the family before His Highness ascends the throne.

Moreover, if the empress wants to investigate the people trained by the family in detail, it is not impossible to find them.

What's more, the Queen attached great importance to her pregnancy. While the Prince was personally investigating, the Queen was also sending people to investigate.

The Queen has more people in the harem than even the Crown Prince. If the crime cannot be traced back to An Jinyan, then maybe she was not the one who did it.

"It doesn't matter, as long as my goal can be achieved."

Su Jingyao stroked her belly gently and said lightly.

There was no emotion on her face, except for the slightly raised corners of her mouth, which revealed a hint of pride.

"But Master, don't you want to kill two birds with one stone? Now that the Crown Princess has had her Golden Book taken back, An Liang Di is very proud of herself."

Miaoyun said this somewhat indignantly, her brows furrowed and her face full of dissatisfaction.

"Miaoyun, don't just look at the surface of things."

Su Jingyao raised a meaningful smile, which was a little cunning and calculating.

"My goal has always been clear. I want the Queen to hate the Crown Princess and prevent her from ascending the throne. I want the Crown Prince to hate An Liang Di and make An Liang Di lose favor. Haven't I achieved all of this?"

She didn't mean for either of them to die.

First of all, Ling Yue must not die now. If she died now, it would become an eternal pain in Jun Zechen's heart.

As for An Jinyan, if she has not harmed her child, then let her go.

An Jinyan has a good family background and her father is a marquis with some power, so she cannot be punished without evidence.

Since ancient times, the royal rulers have wanted to separate the front court and the harem, but how can they be truly separated?

With a good family background, even if An Jinyan is not liked by the prince, she will not live too badly.

Unless the prince's hatred reaches a certain level, like the original owner in the original book, An Jinyan might not have a good time.

After listening to her master's words, Miaoyun thought about it for a while and felt that her master was right.

Afterwards, Su Jingyao continued, "There aren't many women in the Eastern Palace right now. The Crown Princess's Golden Book was taken back by the Queen. If An Liangdi is punished again, I will be the ultimate beneficiary. Smart people judge by the results, and the attention on me will increase significantly."

Su Jingyao doesn't want to expose her ambitions now, and she doesn't want the Bai Lianhua persona that she has worked so hard to establish to be destroyed.

"Now that An Liang Di is fine, everyone will only think that this is a fight between An Liang Di and the Crown Princess, and I am the one who has been implicated innocently."

"My master is wise, and I am grateful for your teaching." Miaoyun said respectfully.

Su Jingyao is very satisfied with the current situation. She just needs to push Ling Yue again.

The Empress was completely disappointed in the Crown Princess, and it was difficult for Jun Zechen to enthrone Ling Yue as the Queen after he ascended the throne.

Su Jingyao carelessly stroked her nail polish, with the corners of her mouth slightly raised.

She really couldn't wait to see Ling Yue being demoted to a concubine, and she wanted to fill up Ling Yue's blackening progress bar.

As for An Jinyan, let her live peacefully and serve as her shield for now.