Chapter 72 She is stupid
Inside the main hall of Zhaochun Palace, the atmosphere was so solemn that it seemed as if water could drip from it.
Sitting on the first seat, Jun Zechen's handsome face was full of majesty. He closed his eyes slightly, as if suppressing his inner anger.
In the huge hall, only the rhythmic tapping of his slender fingers echoed in everyone's heart.
At this time, Anshun had already brought all the relevant people over.
The palace maid Ying'er fell down on the high platform for no reason, and Li Shangfu, who was in charge of the palace dress of Concubine Chun Shu, was dressed in it.
An Shun also called Chen Shangfu over. Although she was not in charge of the concubines' attire this time, she was a female official sent by His Majesty to assist the noble concubine.
Concubine Gui, An Zhaorong and other concubines of higher status have been waiting in the main hall of Zhaochun Palace. Currently, they don't know what the situation of Concubine Chunshu is.
Lin Ronghua, Ye Ronghua and other new concubines were waiting in the side hall.
His Majesty has ordered that no one be allowed to leave.
Li Shangfu on the side was at a loss. When her eyes inadvertently swept towards His Majesty, she would swallow her saliva continuously, and she felt uneasy as if she had done something wrong.
In contrast, Chen Shangfu was calm and composed, just looking sideways at everything.
Although high-ranking concubines such as Concubine Gui and An Zhaorong were in a high position, they could not hide their nervousness at this moment.
Miaoyun walked slowly over, pushing a hanger with palace dresses on it.
She knelt on her knees and bowed respectfully to the imperial concubine.
Then he raised his head, his face full of sadness and anger.
"My Lady, my master has always been kind and generous in the harem and has never hurt anyone..."
"The style of this palace dress was designed by the master for the Queen Mother's birthday banquet. He also sent the Yunjin gifted by His Majesty to the Shangfu Bureau to be used for making the palace dress, just to celebrate the Queen Mother's birthday. But now the fabric of this palace dress has become ordinary brocade."
Her voice trembled with anger and her eyes became moist.
After a pause, she continued with a choked voice, "That's fine, but why is the embroidery on the palace dress mixed with poisonous juice?"
The imperial concubine opened her eyes wide, looked innocent, and kept shaking her head.
The noble concubine turned to look at Jun Zechen, but she only saw his deep eyes filled with coldness, which made her shudder involuntarily.
Feeling his indifference, the noble concubine quickly explained: "Your Majesty, I absolutely did not tamper with Concubine Chun Shu's palace dress! I would never do such a thing!"
Afterwards, the concubine turned to Li Shangfu and questioned him sharply.
"Li Shangfu! I gave you Concubine Chun Shu's palace dress to prepare, why did this happen?!"
When Li Shangfu heard the question, his whole body began to tremble.
She lowered her head, swallowed, and tried to calm her panic.
"Go back to your majesty, go back to your concubine..."
Li Shangfu's voice was a little trembling. She took a deep breath and tried to make her tone sound calmer.
"When Concubine Chun Shu's people sent the Yunjin to the Shangfu Bureau, a young palace maid took it over. The young palace maid may have forgotten to record it, and the palace maid who made Yunjin for Concubine Chun Shu later was another person."
"She didn't know about it, so she didn't use the brocade sent by Concubine Chun Shu, but used the brocade silk that was in Concubine Chun Shu's quota."
After saying this, Li Shangfu's knees went weak and he knelt on the ground.
"Your Majesty, I am guilty. I failed to manage the palace maids well, which led to this mistake."
"But! The embroidery on Concubine Chun Shu's palace dress is poisonous, and I had no idea about it!"
Jun Zechen's eyes were grim. Did she mean that Concubine Chun Shu's use of Yunjin exceeded her allotment and was extravagant?
After hearing this explanation, the imperial concubine couldn't help but feel relieved, as long as it was an unintentional mistake.
Chen Shangfu, who looked calm, pondered for a moment and said, "Li Shangfu, the Yunjin sent by Concubine Chun Shu is recorded in the Shangfu Bureau. Did Li Shangfu not check it?"
As soon as she finished speaking, Li Shangfu's body stiffened.
She didn't expect that Chen Shangfu would actually dismantle her stage.
Although Chen Shangfu had only been at the Shangfu Bureau for a short time, she was well-known for her ability to organize bookkeeping records.
What's more, for a concubine of such high rank as Concubine Chun Shu, how could it be possible that the Yunjin sent by her to the Shangfu Bureau was not recorded?
If it is true as Li Shangfu said, that the young palace maid who took over at the time did not keep any records, then wouldn't all the responsibility be placed on that young palace maid?
Chen Shangfu would naturally not let such a thing happen.
Li Shangfu's heart was pounding and his eyes couldn't help but flicker.
Because Concubine Chun Shu was a high-ranking concubine, the brocade satin in her allowance was already very good. In addition, Li Shangfu felt that Concubine Chun Shu would never offend the noble concubine, so even if he knew that the Shangfu Bureau had swallowed up Yun Jin, he would not interfere.
The noble concubine would not care about the fabric of Concubine Chun Shu's palace dress. After all, the noble concubine had clearly expressed her dissatisfaction with Concubine Chun Shu in front of Li Shangfu.
Use ordinary brocade instead of Yunjin, so that Concubine Chunshu's palace dress will not steal the limelight from Concubine Gui.
Li Shangfu was nervous and stuttered, "Mr. Chen, I have never seen the record book."
Jun Zechen's cold gaze fell on Li Shangfu. He no longer wanted to listen to her explanation.
"Take him to the Ministry of Punishment!"
Li Shangfu's eyes widened, his body trembled uncontrollably, and cold sweat dripped down.
"Your Majesty, I know I am guilty. I just gave the order to dress Concubine Chun Shu. I don't know how the subordinates did it."
Li Shangfu made an incoherent defense, "Your Majesty, please forgive me. I have not committed any crime against the Ministry of Punishment. I have only committed a crime of negligence!"
However, Jun Zechen was as cold as ice, showing no signs of wavering.
The eunuchs stepped forward, ready to take Li Shangfu away.
Li Shangfu was even more terrified. She knew that once she was taken to the Ministry of Punishment, she would be severely tortured or even sentenced to the most severe punishment, and would either be disabled or crippled.
Her eyes were filled with fear, and she kept shrinking back, "No, no!"
"My Lady Concubine, My Lady Concubine, please save me!"
Li Shangfu looked at Concubine Gui almost pleadingly, "I just followed your instructions and arranged for someone else to make the palace dress for Concubine Chun Shu. I don't know anything about it!"
When the imperial concubine heard this, her heart skipped a beat.
She looked at Jun Zechen uneasily, and her fear was overwhelming when she met his calm eyes.
She had never thought of harming Concubine Chun Shu. She knew that she was a little petty, but she had never thought of harming her.
"What is Li Shangfu talking about? Your rule is not strict, what does it have to do with me?"
The imperial concubine refuted with confidence, but there was also a slight tremor in her voice.
Li Shangfu wanted to continue to explain himself, but was forced to the ground by two eunuchs, and kept shouting "no".
The eunuchs dragged her out without mercy.
Afterwards, Jun Zechen asked Xiang Anshun expressionlessly, "Have all the palace servants who have come into contact with Concubine Chun Shu's palace dress been interrogated?"
"Your Majesty, I have questioned you, but..."
An Shun sighed, "There were five palace maids who made Concubine Chun Shu's dress. When I sent someone to look for her just now, one of them had drowned in the well outside Yaxiuxuan."
"Today's incident happened suddenly, and the time was too short. I have not yet fully investigated the cause."
Jun Zechen nodded. He also knew that it would be difficult to find out everything in a short time.
"An Shun, the poison in Concubine Chun Shu's palace dress and the palace maid who fell off the platform are all in your hands. I want to investigate thoroughly!"
"Yes, Your Majesty." An Shun replied solemnly, "I will get to the bottom of this matter!"
"Everyone leave, Concubine stay."
There was no emotion in Jun Zechen's deep eyes, and his tone was calm, but his cold words made the concubine feel as if her heart had fallen into an icy cave.
An Zhaorong breathed a sigh of relief after retreating, glanced at the noble concubine, and turned away with a sarcastic smile on her lips.
Soon, Jun Zechen and Gui Fei were the only two people left in the hall.
Jun Zechen sat there dignified and cold, his bearing could not be violated.
The imperial concubine stood in the center of the hall, her hands entwined nervously, looking helpless and frightened.
There was a suffocating silence in the hall, and the air seemed to be covered with a thick layer of frost, which made people shiver involuntarily.
Jun Zechen's cold gaze fell on Guifei, making her feel as if the last layer of protection had been stripped away.
Concubine Gui knew that she was indeed negligent in the matter of Concubine Chun Shu's palace dress, but she never expected that she would anger Jun Zechen to this extent.
She bit her lip and finally mustered up the courage to speak.
"I know that I didn't take good care of Concubine Chun Shu's attire, but it was the Queen Mother's birthday banquet, and I put all my attention on her, so I didn't notice that my subordinates were not careful enough."
Her voice became quieter and quieter, almost begging at last.
"Concubine Chun Shu has a rash on her body. Although it is serious, she will be fine after a few days of rest. Is it necessary for Your Majesty to be so angry? I think I have done a good job at the Queen Mother's birthday banquet today."
After all, the Queen Mother was very satisfied with the palace dress she sent, and nothing went wrong at today's birthday banquet.
"Concubine Chun Shu, I'm having a miscarriage."
Jun Zechen uttered these words word by word, staring at the noble concubine.
The imperial concubine opened her eyes wide, feeling as if the world was spinning around her. She opened her mouth in surprise, but could not utter a word for a long time.
"You thought your birthday banquet ended perfectly, but in fact, Concubine Chun Shu was holding back for you throughout the banquet. She was wearing uncomfortable brocade and poisoned palace clothes, and she felt extremely uncomfortable."
"For you! In order to prevent you from making a mistake in front of the Queen Mother, she held on for almost a whole day!"
Jun Zechen suppressed his anger, his voice was low and hoarse.
If Yaoyao wasn't so kind, if she had rested and received medical treatment earlier, their child might...
Jun Zechen closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them again with a cold look in his eyes, and continued, "The baby in her belly, who was less than half a month old, is gone because of you!"
The concubine was terrified and subconsciously took a few steps back, repeating "no, no" over and over again.
Her eyes were filled with fear and she was trembling all over.
"Your Majesty, I didn't mean it. I didn't know Concubine Chun Shu was pregnant. I didn't think of harming Concubine Chun Shu. I didn't mean it..."
The imperial concubine explained incoherently, her voice full of pleading.
Jun Zechen stood up, his eyes became more and more terrifying, as if he wanted to eat the concubine alive.
"Yes! You didn't mean it! You were..."
He didn't say the word "stupid".
He just stared at the noble concubine fiercely with his eyes like sharp swords, making her feel ashamed.
The palace was dead silent, with only the concubine's sobbing echoing.
She fell to her knees, crying bitterly, while Jun Zechen looked at her expressionlessly, but the coldness in his eyes could not be concealed no matter what.