I became the tyrant's only belief.

Chapter 479 The unfamiliar white-eyed wolf

"You sleep on it every day?" Shao Liyi stared wide-eyed in surprise at Lan'er.

The others were also looking at Lan'er.

Lan'er lowered her eyes: "This servant did not sleep with the dagger under her pillow. Please do not wrong this servant, young lady."

"But the item was indeed found under your pillow." Chu Liuzheng blinked. "And there are quite a few witnesses, right, Chen Xing?"

"Yes." Chen Xing raised his voice, "The three people who shared a room with Lan'er all saw it; the dagger was under the pillow."

"As you said, the dagger in the Yaohua Palace storeroom is damaged, but the one that Eunuch Zhou brought back is not. So you are implying that Eunuch Zhou secretly switched the daggers." Chu Liuzheng held up the dagger for everyone to see. "It seems that you are crying wolf."

Lan'er stared at the missing piece on the dagger, knowing that Chu Liuzheng had deliberately framed her, but there was no evidence, just like when she framed Shao Liyi.

"Why aren't you saying anything?" Chu Liuzheng looked at her. "Are you admitting it?"

“No,” Lan’er insisted, “this dagger is not mine.”

Chu Liuzheng did not argue with her, but looked at the emperor and said, "Your Majesty, whether this dagger is in the storeroom or under Lan'er's pillow, it has never left Yaohua Palace. The assassination should have nothing to do with Shaoliyi."

Since she, the aggrieved party, has said this, what else can others say?
“What you say makes sense.” Xiao Jingfan pointed at Lan’er, who was kneeling, “Lock this treacherous servant in the Censorate and interrogate her to find out the truth.”

"Your Majesty!" Lan'er panicked for the first time. "Your Majesty, this servant did not lie. Chu Liuzheng deliberately framed me!"

Xiao Jingfan remained unmoved, and two eunuchs stepped forward and dragged Lan'er away.

"His Majesty!"

"His Majesty!"

"I'm innocent!"

Lan'er's shouts kept coming from outside. Chu Liuzheng shook his head, picked up the bowl, and drank a spoonful of bird's nest.

[They feel perfectly justified in framing others, but when they themselves are framed, they feel more wronged than Dou E (a legendary figure known for her tragic fate). How can people be so hypocritical?]

"Zhou Yuande, continue the investigation," Xiao Jingfan instructed. "Make sure you find out the truth!"

"This servant obeys." Zhou Yuande felt somewhat grateful to Chu Liuzheng, but he didn't know that Chen Xing had entered the storeroom before him, put a dagger inside, and then cleaned the murder weapon stored in the Imperial Household Department before placing it under Lan'er's pillow with lightning speed.

The weapon Chu Liuzheng held in her hand was a genuine murder weapon. She had originally intended to bluff Lan'er, hoping she would panic and make a mistake, revealing her true intentions. However, Lan'er was calmer than she had expected, so she had no choice but to use Lan'er's own methods against her.

Hopefully, the Censorate can uncover something from the investigation.

After everyone in the hall had left, Chu Liuzheng took the initiative to confess to the emperor everything she had asked Chen Xing to do. She had no confidence that she could hide it from the emperor's eyes and ears.

Xiao Jingfan's expression was unreadable as he asked, "Why are you helping Shao Liyi?"

"I'm helping myself," Chu Liuzheng said. "Since entering the palace, Consort Shaoli has never had a dispute with anyone. She has a very kind nature and is very amiable to the palace servants. I even helped her before. How could she possibly instigate Xiao Xuanzi to kill me?"

Xiao Jingfan neither confirmed nor denied this.

“Your Majesty, I’m not trying to help her. I just don’t want to let the real culprit go, nor do I want to become his accomplice.” Chu Liuzheng looked at him obediently with her almond-shaped eyes full of affection. “If you think I’ve done something wrong, you may punish me as you see fit.”

[I've essentially deceived the emperor to his face, so if the tyrant really punishes me, I'll accept it, and then... we'll break up! He promised to unconditionally protect my personal safety, so domestic violence is unacceptable!]

Chu Liuzheng was making his own calculations in his mind, unaware that the abacus beads had already jumped onto the emperor's face.

Xiao Jingfan didn't know whether to be angry or amused. He had fed and cared for her well, yet she still wanted to take the opportunity to leave. Wasn't she an ungrateful wretch?

He forcefully kicked the person out.

Chu Liuzheng, who had nearly been hit on the nose, grinned at the door. Turning around, she saw Shao Liyi and her maid staring at her with wide eyes. She asked in surprise, "Why haven't you left yet?" Shao Liyi curtsied to her, "Thank you for your help today, Miss."

"No need to thank me." Chu Liuzheng waved his hand. "I believe that you are not the one who ordered Xiao Xuanzi to kill me."

Shao Liyi was both surprised and touched, her eyes reddening. "You're a good person. If anyone says anything bad about you in the future, I'll scold them back for you."

Chu Liuzheng, who was suddenly given a "friend card": "..."

【Don't be like that. With your tendency to cry easily when you get emotional, you'll be sobbing before you even manage to make anyone else cry.】

She smiled and said, "Thank you."

Shao Liyi stepped forward, took her hand, and led her a little further away before asking, "Did your help to me just now displease His Majesty?"

"No." Chu Liuzheng brushed it off with a few words, watched the worried, crying princess leave, and then went back to the Hall of Mental Cultivation to pack his things and move to a side hall.

The tyrant is furious and probably doesn't want to see me, so I'd better hide for a couple of days.

So, when His Majesty the Emperor returned after not seeing anyone for most of the day, he found the palace empty. Not only were the things on the bed gone, but even the wardrobe was half empty.

He asked with a grim face, "Where is he?"

Zhou Yuande glanced at him and carefully replied, "After leaving the Wenhua Hall, Miss Chu came back and moved some things to the side hall, saying that she would live there from now on until..."

"Until what?" Xiao Jingfan glared at him.

Zhou Yuande snapped to attention and said quickly, "We'll move it back when you've calmed down."

Xiao Jingfan: "..."

Xiao Jingfan: "..."

Normally, shouldn't the woman try to coax him after making him angry?
What now?
His Majesty the Emperor stormed off to the side hall in a huff.

The candles in the side hall had been extinguished. Behind layers of gauze curtains, Chu Liuzheng lay on his side on the bed, clutching a corner of the blanket, fast asleep.

Xiao Jingfan gritted his teeth, sat on the edge of the bed, and started shaking his head.

"W-What happened?" Chu Liuzheng woke up groggily. "An earthquake? A fire?"

She instinctively got out of bed and put on her shoes, only to bump into an embrace filled with coldness and the scent of sandalwood.

"Hmm? You're back." She wrapped her arms around the person's waist, nuzzling her head against their familiar chest, her voice muffled, "Why are you back so late? I told you staying up late is bad."

As the person in his arms hugged and nuzzled him, Xiao Jingfan felt as if a silver needle had pierced his chest, which was brimming with a mix of emotions, instantly releasing all of them.

Chu Liuzheng hugged him and said, "Go to sleep. You have court early tomorrow."

"Alright, let go first," Xiao Jingfan coaxed softly. "I haven't bathed yet."

"Oh." Chu Liuzheng let go of the person half-asleep, rolled into the quilt, tilted his head on the pillow, and fell asleep again.

Xiao Jingfan bent down to pull the blanket up for her before taking a bath.

Seeing the emperor storm in and come out with a smile, all within a quarter of an hour, Zhou Yuande couldn't help but secretly admire Miss Chu's skill!

Hearing the door close, the person being praised quietly opened their eyes and reached out to pull the blanket up.

Hmm... the emperor isn't as hard to please as I thought.

(End of this chapter)