The empress dowager glanced at Jiang Yiyun and urged, “How dare you, palace maid? Speak up.”
“Your Majesty, this servant will speak. This servant will tell you everything. It was the empress. Her Majesty the empress wanted to harm Consort Chun.”
Jiang Yiyun inwardly marveled at how perfectly she acted out her panic and fear.
She had given Qiying far too many chances, but the other woman’s heart had already been ensnared by fame and profit, and she could no longer turn back. If Qiying could realize her mistake, Jiang Yiyun would never pursue the matter.
With Jia Yinger’s cooperation, the scene became even more convincing. “Elder sister, it really was you. How could you do this?”
The empress dowager shot Jiang Yiyun a sidelong glance and said sternly, “Speak. Explain everything clearly to this dowager. What exactly happened?”
“This servant saw it with her own eyes. Her Majesty the empress put poisoning in the tea, intending to harm the child in Consort Chun’s belly.”
Chu Yinheng glared at Jiang Yiyun. The two of them stared at each other, neither willing to yield.
“Her Majesty the empress certainly has quite some ability. Then again, it makes sense. In the imperial palace, only Her Majesty the empress would dare act so recklessly.” Gu Hanjue suddenly joined the “battle.”
That one sentence shattered Jiang Yiyun’s composure. “It seems I am not the only one who dares act recklessly in the imperial palace!” She looked at Gu Hanjue, wishing the knives in her eyes could truly shoot out and stab the man before her until he was riddled with wounds.
Then she cast a cold sidelong glance at Jia Yinger. “It seems there are not just two of us, either.”
Jia Yinger shrank back before avoiding that cold, severe gaze and turning to Qiying. “Since you knew Her Majesty the empress had such a plan, why did you not stop her? You not only harmed Consort Chun, but also left elder sister unable to turn back.”
Qiying sobbed, “Your Majesty, at the time, Her Majesty the empress threatened this servant. She said that if this servant revealed the truth, my family would suffer.”
Crying, she knelt on the ground and Begged for Mercy. “This servant was also forced into it. Your Majesty, please forgive this servant and atone for this servant’s sins. Empress dowager, please show mercy.”
“Bang, bang, bang…” The sound of her knocking her head against the ground continued without end as tears streamed down her face.
Her tearjerker performance moved everyone. Who could possibly not believe her?!
“Absurd!” The empress dowager’s eyes widened in fury. “This dowager has always felt that you were no good. Since you had not caused too much trouble in the imperial palace, this dowager let matters slide. This dowager never expected you to be so vicious that you would even dare plotting to harm the emperor’s offspring. You truly are audacious beyond measure.”
“Empress, what else do you have to say?” Chu Yinheng demanded sternly.
Jiang Yiyun remained neither servile nor overbearing. “Your subject and consort would like to ask Qiying a few questions.”
“Very well. I want to see what you can ask.”
She looked straight at Qiying. “Qiying, raise your head.”
Qiying did not know what she intended to ask. After a moment of hesitation, she raised her head and met the gaze of the person before her.
Seeing the utter lack of emotion in those eyes, she grew increasingly uneasy.
“Qiying, you just said that you saw me with your own eyes putting arsenic into the tea. Is that the truth?”
Qiying took a deep breath, steadied herself, and said, “Yes.”
“Good. Then tell me, what did I use to contain the arsenic?”
Qiying replied, “A white porcelain bottle with a blue stopper.”
“Heh, you remember that quite clearly. Then tell me how much I put in.”
“The amount was small, but enough to kill someone.”
“You mean I did not use it all, correct?”
“Yes.”
Qiying answered with complete certainty. She had carried out everything herself, so naturally she remembered every detail clearly.
Jia Yinger suddenly spoke. “According to what you are saying, the item is still On Jiang Yiyun’s person?” Rather than simply following Qiying’s words, she was guiding everyone’s line of thought.
“Her Majesty put it away herself. If you do not believe me, you may have someone conduct a body search.” Qiying was utterly fearless, because she had already secretly placed the bottle On Jiang Yiyun’s person.
“Ridiculous. If This prince were the one responsible for the poisoning, I would destroy the evidence. Why would I hide it on my person and deliberately leave myself open to suspicion?” A voice suddenly came from the corner, drawing everyone’s attention.
Chu Yexuan remained in an inconspicuous spot, his eyes filled with mockery.
“If I were you, palace maid, I would advise the empress to destroy the stolen evidence as soon as possible, lest her true intentions be exposed. Since you were so worried that your family would suffer, why did you not advise your master to destroy the stolen evidence?”
With a few words, he pointed straight to the heart of the matter, prompting everyone present to think deeply. Some even nodded as they pondered.
Chu Yexuan’s performance surprised Chu Yinheng somewhat. Although Chu Yexuan was not his full brother, he had also been raised by the empress dowager, so the two brothers had been close since childhood.
This unusual behavior raised many questions and speculations in Chu Yinheng, who had always understood him. He could not understand why Prince Xuan, who had always been indifferent, had suddenly spoken in the empress’s defense.
Jiang Yiyun was also surprised by Prince Xuan’s behavior. It was difficult to imagine that such an indifferent and cold-hearted man would assist her repeatedly.
Jiang Yiyun gave him a grateful glance, then turned to Qiying. “Since you knew that if this palace were exposed, you would not escape unscathed, why did you not stop me earlier, yet rush to expose me afterward? This palace cannot see how eager you are to protect yourself. Rather, it seems you deliberately framed me.”
Faced with this counterquestion, Qiying found it difficult to answer for a moment.
Jia Yinger had seen her share of situations and naturally did not panic. “Elder sister, do not force this palace Maid to continue. Surely, when she saw you commit such a vicious act, she panicked. Now that matters have come to this, stop being stubborn and turn back quickly. Perhaps His Majesty may still forgive you.”
Those final words displeased Chu Yinheng even more. “Hmph, Yinger, do not beg for mercy on her behalf. I will not spare this poisonous woman.”
As he spoke, he drew the soft-as-bone Noble Consort Li closer.
Jiang Yiyun had long grown accustomed to his sarcastic remarks and harsh words, but she still felt a faint pain in her heart.
Just then, she unexpectedly noticed a scene: Gu Hanjue was coldly staring at the pair before him.
With no mind to pay attention to this strange scene, Jiang Yiyun merely retorted, “younger sister, you are truly contradictory. You claim to care about this palace, your elder sister, every time, yet your words never stand on this palace’s side. Now that the evidence has not appeared and the testimony has not been fully questioned, you are already so eager to convict this palace. What exactly are you trying to do?”
Before Jia Yinger could reply, Gu Hanjue spoke first. “In this seat’s view, it seems Her Majesty the empress is being unreasonable. Noble Consort Li merely urged you not to remain lost in delusion. With such a sister, Her Majesty the empress does not cherish her. It truly chills the heart.”
As soon as Gu Hanjue finished speaking, everyone was stunned. Prince Bianjian’s behavior today was truly abnormal. He had initially supported the empress, yet now he was standing up for Noble Consort Li.
Such completely contradictory actions appeared strange to anyone watching.
Many people began to speculate: could it be that he had failed to win the empress’s favor last time and had now fallen beneath Noble Consort Li’s pomegranate skirt?
Jiang Yiyun remained stunned for a long while before finally losing control. “Gu Hanjue, do not think that being Prince Bianjian gives you the right to spout such nonsense. Matters of the imperial harem are not for a eunuch like you to comment on.”
No matter how much she resented him, she had never acted so abnormally. Yet now she could not stop herself from lashing out angrily, her voice nearly becoming a roar. Her furious words also made the other party tremble.
Both of them had lost the composure they usually maintained today, making the situation especially chaotic.
“Heh. Her Majesty the empress is right. This seat has overstepped. However, this seat would like to see how Her Majesty plans to turn the situation around.” Gu Hanjue gradually suppressed his anger. A smile remained only at the corners of his lips, never reaching his eyes.
“I have not finished asking my questions, yet each of you has tried to stop me. Anyone who did not know better might think you were accomplices, which is why you are obstructing me at every turn.”
Jiang Yiyun swept her gaze over everyone, her eyes drifting back and forth between Gu Hanjue and Jia Yinger. She said sternly, “If anyone does not wish to be mistaken for an accomplice plotting to harm this palace and Consort Chun, then keep your mouth shut. Otherwise, you will be suspected of being an accomplice and trying to cover up the truth.”
At this, Jia Yinger shrank back slightly and said nothing more.
Jiang Yiyun ignored the others and continued questioning Qiying. “Since so many people have been devising a strategy for you, this palace will not make things difficult for you any longer. After all, we were once mistress and servant, and this palace can leave you a way out.” Then she said solemnly, word by word, “this palace will ask you one last time. Do you admit that every word you spoke today is true?”
Qiying lost some of her confidence under the questioning, but after secretly glancing at Jia Yinger, she answered firmly, “Yes. Every word this servant spoke is true, without the slightest falsehood. If even half a sentence is a lie, this servant is willing to accept punishment.”
“Very good!” Jiang Yiyun no longer looked at her, feeling only pity for her.
“Your Majesty, your subject and consort have been wronged. Since someone insists that your subject and consort was responsible for the poisoning, your subject and consort is willing to cooperate. Your subject and consort also hopes that Your Majesty will treat everyone fairly.”
Chu Yinheng slightly furrowed his brows. “Fairly? What do you mean by fair?”
“To prove my innocence, your subject and consort is willing to let the palace attendants conduct a body search. Then everyone present must likewise be searched without exception.”
The smile at the corners of Jia Yinger’s lips could no longer be restrained, but she quickly concealed it again.
“Very well. I agree.”