Chapter 56 Questioning Qin Er
Qin'er entered Zhaochun Palace. After stepping through the palace gate, she raised her head slightly and her eyes fell on Concubine Chunshu who was sitting in the first seat.
Her expression froze, and she hurried forward a few steps, bowed respectfully, and said in a slightly nervous voice: "I, the servant Qin'er of Yikun Palace, pay my respects to Her Majesty Consort Chun Shu."
Su Jingyao sat quietly in her chair with a kind smile on her face.
Beside her stood the female officials from the Ministry of Punishment and the Ministry of Palace Justice. They all had serious expressions and held paper and pen in their hands, ready to record all the results of the interrogation impartially at any time.
"Qin'er, you should also know that I was entrusted by His Majesty and the Queen Mother to investigate the poisoning of the noble concubine. This time I called you from Yikun Palace because I have something to ask you."
Su Jingyao spoke slowly, the smile on her face still there.
Qin Er quickly replied respectfully, "Your Majesty, please ask me. I will tell you everything I know."
Su Jingyao tilted her head slightly, with a hint of inquiry in her eyes.
She asked softly, "I heard that you prepared all the meals for the concubine on the day she was poisoned?"
"Yes, my queen." Qin'er replied hurriedly.
Then, as if she remembered something, she quickly added, "But the imperial concubine's meal was touched by Guo'er that day, and Eunuch An Shun also came to ask me about it that day. Later, Eunuch An Shun also searched Guo'er's room, and found An Zhaorong's dowry in Guo'er's room."
"Well, I have seen all of what you mentioned in Anshun's records."
"But I have already asked An Zhaorong. Her pearl earrings were lost when she was in the Eastern Palace. An Zhaorong also reported the loss at that time."
"At that time, Guo'er was still in the Ministry of Internal Affairs and had not yet been assigned to the Imperial Concubine's Palace."
Su Jingyao spoke slowly and steadily, her eyes always fixed on Qin'er.
"In order to confirm the connection between Guo'er and An Zhaorong, I went to look at the files of the Ministry of Internal Affairs' allocation of palace maids after Your Majesty ascended the throne."
"Guo'er was originally going to be assigned to Concubine Bai, but it seems that you and Guo'er have a good relationship, so the Ministry of Internal Affairs transferred both you and Guo'er to Yikun Palace." Su Jingyao's voice was still faint.
When Qin'er heard this, her face turned pale instantly, her heart suddenly panicked, and her body trembled involuntarily.
Then he knelt down with a plop, his voice filled with panic and fear.
"My queen, I didn't know Guo'er was An Zhaorong's person at that time. I always regarded Guo'er as a good sister. The imperial concubine has a high position. At that time, I wanted Guo'er to live a good life with me."
"Since Guo'er entered the Yikun Palace because of you, how could An Zhaorong bribe Guo'er with the pearl earrings she brought as a dowry in the East Palace?"
Su Jingyao's voice suddenly became louder, with a questioning tone.
Qin'er's face became even more flustered, her lips trembling, and she stammered, "I don't know anything, Guo'er...Guo'er..."
Her eyes were filled with fear and confusion. She couldn't say anything for a moment and just kept shaking.
A barely perceptible hint of strangeness flashed across Su Jingyao's eyes, and then a gentle smile reappeared on her face.
"Get up, don't be nervous, I just want to sort out all my thoughts today."
After hearing what Su Jingyao said, Qin'er was startled for a moment, and then she breathed a sigh of relief as if a huge stone had been lifted from her heart.
His body seemed to relax, and he slowly stood up.
Su Jingyao immediately asked, "Where were you at 12:00 yesterday?"
When Qin'er heard this, a thoughtful look suddenly appeared in her eyes.
The hour of Xu?
At that time, in order to ask Ping'er about the progress of Concubine Chunshu's investigation into Concubine Gui's poisoning, she happened to make an appointment with Ping'er to meet in the grove outside Yikun Palace and Zhaochun Palace at 10 p.m.
Qin'er frowned slightly, and there was a hint of tension in her eyes.
Su Jingyao didn't even wait for Qin'er to think about it, and said directly: "The people in my palace saw you and Ping'er last night, and later they dug out ebony powder from the roots of the tree where you two met."
"When I summoned you today, I asked Ping'er first. She said that you buried it. You went to her to bribe her to get the news about Zhaochun Palace and to cover up for you!"
When she said the last sentence, Su Jingyao's voice became noticeably heavier.
Her expression became extremely serious, and her beautiful eyes stared at Qin'er intently.
Although Su Jingyao questioned Ping'er in advance, Ping'er naturally did not mention the matter of ebony powder.
She was originally just a spy for the Imperial Concubine to gather information about Zhaochun Palace, and had little to do with the Imperial Concubine's poisoning this time.
But it did not prevent Su Jingyao from using Ping'er to get Qin'er to speak.
When Qin'er heard this, her heart started beating wildly and beads of sweat instantly appeared on her forehead.
She did meet Ping'er last night, but she had never buried the ebony powder. Her ebony powder problem had been solved long ago!
Qin'er's face turned pale instantly, her legs went limp, and she fell to her knees again with a plop.
She cried out in a tearful voice, "My Lady, I am innocent. Ping'er is a member of your palace. How can you just believe her one-sided words?"
"Oh? Your Majesty and the Queen Mother have entrusted this matter to me, which means they trust my impartiality. Every time I ask questions, the female officials will record them. If you find the testimony of others suspicious, I will naturally give you the opportunity to defend yourself."
Su Jingyao said this expressionlessly, with a hint of majesty in her eyes.
Qin'er was extremely flustered at this moment, as neither she nor Ping'er had buried the ebony powder yesterday.
Was it because Concubine Chun Shu discovered Ping'er's betrayal and Ping'er framed her to protect herself, or was it because Ping'er was Concubine Chun Shu's person and they conspired with each other to frame her?
But the Imperial Concubine and some of the elders in the Eastern Palace had said before that Concubine Chun Shu was kind-hearted and never did anything calculating, so there was no need for Concubine Chun Shu to team up with Ping'er to frame her.
Now Ping'er is pushing everything onto her. If it turns out to be true, she's done!
Her lips trembled slightly, and she said in a tearful voice, "My Lady, Ping'er must have deliberately framed me. It was Ping'er who buried the ebony powder."
"Qin'er, I will give you one more chance. Ping'er is my servant. You are in charge of the Imperial Concubine's meals. Even if Ping'er has ebony powder, she can't poison the Imperial Concubine."
"If you continue to talk nonsense and fail to find evidence to prove yourself, I will convict you."
Qin Er was completely panicked at this point, and her mind was no longer working.
"Your Majesty, I want to see the Imperial Concubine. The Imperial Concubine will definitely believe me."
"I know that Ping'er is from Zhaochun Palace. It was Ping'er who buried the ebony powder. But you, Madam, framed me in order to exonerate Ping'er and clear the suspicion of Zhaochun Palace."
Qin'er knelt on the ground, her face full of tears, looking particularly desperate. She cried without caring about anything.
"Concubine Chun Shu, everyone in the palace says that you are kind and fair, but little do they know that you are the murderer who poisoned Concubine Gui!"
In order to exonerate herself, Qin'er had no choice but to tie Concubine Chun Shu and Ping'er together.
Although the noble concubine originally wanted to frame An Zhaorong, since Ping'er in the palace of Concubine Chunshu admitted to the ebony powder, it would be okay to frame another Concubine Chunshu.
Your Majesty dotes on the Royal Concubine so much. If he knew that Concubine Chunshu was so cruel as to poison the Royal Concubine, Your Majesty would certainly dislike Concubine Chunshu. At that time, the Royal Concubine would be the only one favored in the harem.
She might even be promoted to a personal maid.
The personal maid of a head of a palace is a female official with a certain rank, and can even have a room of her own.
After Qin'er said these words, she knelt on the ground with her head lowered, constantly comforting herself in her heart.
Su Jingyao's beautiful eyes suddenly flashed with a barely perceptible hint of triumph, like the sly light of a fox, which disappeared in a flash.
Afterwards, she opened her red lips and said slowly, "Ye Lan, every word Qin'er said today must be recorded carefully. I have always investigated cases in an upright manner and will never show favoritism or commit corruption. Take Qin'er to the Ministry of Punishment immediately."
"No, I am a member of the Imperial Concubine's Palace. Your Majesty, you cannot punish me so casually!"
Qin'er's face was filled with fear and her eyes were filled with shock.
After all, whoever enters the Ministry of Punishment can walk out safely?
Either they die a violent death or they end up disabled.
"I am in charge of the Palace Administration Office and have the power to punish. Take him away immediately." Su Jingyao said calmly.
"Yes, I understand." Ye Lan answered respectfully. She was a female official from the Ministry of Punishment, and she came to assist Concubine Chun Shu in investigating the case.
After Qin'er was taken away, Su Jingyao said calmly, "Chu Xi, send someone to search Qin'er's room."
"Yes, Your Majesty." Chu Xi responded. She was a female historian in the Palace Administration Department, responsible for recording merits and demerits.
After everyone had left, Su Jingyao walked into the warm room and then lay down on the beauty couch.
I've been investigating the case these two days, and I've really been overworking my brain.
She gently closed her eyes and took a rest. When she woke up again, Chu Xi was already waiting for her in the hall.
"Your Majesty, I found An Zhaorong's pearl earrings in Qin'er's room. I think after Guo'er was taken to the Ministry of Punishment, Qin'er took all of Guo'er's things for herself." Chu Xi reported respectfully, bowing slightly as he spoke.
"In addition to this earring, there are also some gold and silver jewelry given by the Imperial Concubine. I also took out the clothes that Qin'er was wearing the day the Imperial Concubine was poisoned and took them to the Imperial Hospital for inspection. I didn't expect that the Imperial Hospital really found some ebony powder on Qin'er's cuffs."
Chu Xi continued speaking, with a serious expression on her face.
"Didn't she wash the clothes she changed that day?" Su Jingyao asked with a frown.
How come Anshun didn't check such obvious evidence that day?
"Qin'er probably didn't notice the ebony powder on her cuffs. The clothes of every palace maid were washed together on the same day, so Qin'er probably didn't notice it."
"Have you checked Qin'er's roster and resume at the Ministry of Internal Affairs?" Su Jingyao raised her eyebrows slightly and asked slowly.
The palace ladies' rosters and resumes were managed by the Imperial Household Department, but the Empress Dowager gave her the right to review them because she asked her to investigate the case.
"I have already checked. Qin'er and Guo'er were originally second-class maids in the Yikun Palace."
"It's just that the imperial concubine's personal maid, Juxiang, is Qin'er's fellow villager. She promoted her in front of the imperial concubine, so Qin'er was promoted to the first-class maid in the Yikun Palace in less than a month." Chu Xi answered in detail.
"Does Concubine Gui know that Qin'er has been taken to the Ministry of Punishment by me?"
“You should know.”
"Okay, you've worked hard today, please leave."
Su Jingyao waved her hand to signal Chu Xi to leave, and a smile appeared on her face.
Ling Yue, are you going to save Qin'er or give up on her?