Chapter 293 The Dowager Empress's Vicious Habits
Could it be that the young lady has already fallen victim to this old hag's evil deeds?
Upon hearing the Emperor's words, Lan Su became even more anxious, for her daughter was exceptionally beautiful, unmatched in the world.
That ugly old concubine loves to bully pretty young girls. Their daughter has fallen into her hands, and who knows what she will suffer.
Lan Su was extremely anxious, and slapped him hard across the face.
"What have you done to my daughter? If you don't let her out, I'll cut off every piece of your fat and feed it to the dogs!"
The Dowager Empress's face swelled up at a visible rate.
This was only because Lan Su held back her strength; otherwise, she might have killed the old man with a single slap.
The moment the palace maids and eunuchs in the Dowager Consort's palace saw the Emperor and Empress, not one of them dared to step forward to block Lan Su.
Besides, they couldn't stop her anyway; this girl is too brave.
When those two aunts were thrown in, although they slid right up to the Dowager Empress, the force with which they stopped was considerable, leaving two clear, shallow dents on the floor.
This isn't some little girl, she's clearly a killer!
Who would dare to step forward? Do they think they're too stubborn?
Even in front of the Emperor and Empress, Lan Su did not restrain herself in the slightest.
She could tell that Daiyu's status in the hearts of the Emperor and Empress was far higher than that of this old concubine.
The Empress only said that the Dowager Consort should not be beaten to death, lest she be unable to find out Daiyu's whereabouts, but she did not say that she should not use force to extract a confession.
The Dowager Consort spat out a mouthful of blood as soon as she opened her mouth, and half of her teeth came out with the blood.
"Your Majesty, are you planning to use this girl to get rid of me...?"
Despite her missing teeth, the Dowager Empress's speech was still clear to everyone present.
The Emperor's expression remained unchanged, and his words appeared to be an expression of upholding justice.
“We have always kept to ourselves. Today, you sent someone to summon Princess Jiangzhu for no reason, and she has disappeared from your palace. You have to give Lan Su an explanation, both morally and logically.”
"I've never seen Princess Jiangzhu here. If I had known she had such a ruthless killer by her side, I certainly wouldn't have had her summoned." The Dowager Consort was filled with regret, but the ruthless killer wouldn't listen to her explanation at all.
Seeing this, Lan Su didn't want to argue with them anymore, so she simply went to the Dowager Consort's palace alone and searched every corner inside and out.
This isn't the Lin family's place. In the Lin family, Lan Su acts with discretion and restraint.
In the Dowager Consort's palace, Lan Su acted like a bandit, ransacking the place without any restraint.
Miss Lin has disappeared here, and the biggest fault lies with me. Mr. Yuan will probably receive the news soon.
How am I supposed to explain this to my husband?
Lan Su flipped through the pages again, but still found nothing.
She walked into the courtyard, wanting to see if anyone had set up any traps or hidden rooms inside.
Mr. Yuan had told her that many large families and martial arts practitioners liked to build a secret room in their homes to hide things or people.
Zijuan and Xueyan were also in the yard, almost in tears. Seeing Lansu silently digging and knocking in the yard, they wanted to help, but Lansu shooed them aside, saying she was afraid they would only make things worse.
In the hall, the Emperor and Empress were trying to get information out of the Dowager Consort.
"You summoned Princess Jiangzhu here today just to talk?" The Empress knew that no matter how she pressed her, the Dowager Consort would never admit that she had malicious intentions in sending someone to trick Daiyu into coming.
But she couldn't help asking.
The Dowager Consort knew that Daiyu had disappeared, and she had indeed not seen Daiyu. She had not been able to use any of her methods, so she was not afraid and insisted on asking Princess Jiangzhu to come and talk to her.
"Back in the day, Princess Xuanning was also summoned by you to have a chat." The Emperor suddenly looked directly at the Dowager Consort.
The Dowager Consort was so frightened by that gaze that she fell to the ground. Princess Xuanning?
She seemed to remember the name, but over the decades, there had been so many young girls and low-ranking concubines who had come to talk to her that she couldn't possibly remember it clearly.
"Your Majesty, I am so old that I can no longer remember things from years past."
"How can you not remember!" the Emperor suddenly shouted.
“Xuan Ning has a Bodhi bead, which you had strung into a string of Buddhist prayer beads and wore every day, yet you don’t even remember her!”
Even now, the Dowager Consort Li still wears that string of Buddhist prayer beads on her wrist.
Upon hearing the Emperor's words, she subconsciously tucked the prayer beads into her sleeve.
"So it was her. She was indeed a beautiful young girl, just as pretty as Princess Jiangzhu."
When the Dowager Consort thought of Xuan Ning, she habitually stroked the Buddhist prayer beads.
"It's a pity that the heavens are jealous of beauty, and she died young." The old concubine's tone seemed to be filled with relaxation and contentment.
Upon hearing this, the Emperor's expression changed drastically.
"When you wake up in the middle of the night, do you not regret it? That little girl who was only twelve years old was bewitched by you to go to the Western Regions for a marriage alliance, and the whole group was buried in the yellow sand halfway there."
Xuan Ning is the Emperor's cousin, and the two have a very close relationship.
But ever since Xuan Ning started visiting the Dowager Empress from time to time, she has been single-mindedly trying to emulate Princess Wencheng and Wang Zhaojun, and no amount of persuasion from anyone in the family has worked.
The Dowager Consort Li was able to easily grasp people's hearts and took pleasure in changing other people's fates.
Xuan Ning didn't need to be sent for a political marriage; it was only because of her beauty that she was chosen. The Dowager Consort Li told her that among all the beauties throughout history, only Wang Zhaojun's journey to the border earned her a lasting reputation; the rest were considered traitors. Heaven had given her such a beautiful face; it would be a pity to let her fade into obscurity in the capital. A beauty should have a momentous achievement, be celebrated by posterity, to truly deserve the title of beauty.
Xuan Ning was thus bewitched by the Dowager Consort.
The Emperor had always wanted to avenge Xuan Ning, but unfortunately, he had never found an opportunity.
Taking advantage of Daiyu's disappearance, the Emperor wanted to settle both old and new scores.
As for Daiyu's whereabouts, after receiving news from Xueyan, the Empress sent people to surround the place completely, so that not even a fly could get out.
"Lan Su, what are you doing growing vegetables in the palace?" A woman dressed in a purple official robe and wearing a golden hair crown walked in from the doorway.
"Mr. Yuan, I've lost the girl. Please punish me. After you punish me, I will search for her no matter where she is, no matter where she is in the world!"
"Sister Susu, you said it yourself. I'm going to the ends of the earth from now on, and you have to come with me!"
A small head peeked out from behind Yuan Hongqu, mischievously watching the group of people in the garden.
"Miss!" Zijuan ran over first.
Lan Su paused for a moment, then took a quick step forward, arriving in front of Daiyu even faster than Zijuan.
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