Selling wife for fame? Kick out the scumbag and marry the new emperor to enjoy the harem of favors

Chapter 114 Unable to Prove Himself
"Your Majesty, although I dislike Concubine Xie, I will never harm anyone!"

Concubine Wei's anxious voice of defense was heard outside the palace.

"Jieyu, you can't go in, Wei Jieyu, the emperor hasn't summoned you!"

Qingdong's voice of obstruction also rang out.

"I, you move aside, I want to see the emperor!" Concubine Wei was so angry that she didn't care about the rules. "Move aside!"

Inside the hall, Zhao Xingjin frowned. Seeing this, Yang Zhian hurriedly ran to the hall door, intending to stop him, but Concubine Wei was so excited that she pushed Qingdong aside and rushed into the hall.

"Your Majesty, I have absolutely no intention of harming anyone!"

After Concubine Wei came in, she knelt on the ground and shouted loudly.

Yang Zhian didn't have time to help him, and his hand was stretched out. Seeing that Zhao Xingjin didn't say anything, he took it back for the time being.

Concubine Wei, who had not received a response at that time, had an anxious look in her eyes that almost overflowed from her eyes. She spoke again with anger on her face as if she had suffered an injustice.

"I do have something called Ophiopogon japonicus in my palace. It's probably because since the beginning of autumn, I've been suffering from dry lungs and coughs, and feeling uneasy. Ophiopogon japonicus nourishes yin, produces fluid, moistens the lungs, and clears the heart, so I've used it as medicine to treat my illness. I've also consulted the imperial physician, and he has a prescription. However, I've absolutely never come into contact with the poisonous plant Ophiopogon japonicus!"

"Besides, if I had tampered with Concubine Xie's pastries, I would have recognized the dish of purple cloud cakes that Concubine Xie brought to Hanxiang Pavilion, and I would have thought of a way to prevent Concubine Xie from sharing the cakes with everyone present. But I didn't do that, which is enough to prove that I didn't know anything!"

Zhao Xingjin's face showed no emotion, but his eyes looked a little heavy.

After Concubine Wei finished speaking, she glanced at her and then said lightly.

"You get up first."

Concubine Wei pursed her lips, reached out to support her personal maid Nian Ci, and stood up first.

Zhao Xingjin narrowed his eyes and ordered in a deep voice, "Yang Zhian, bring up all the witnesses and evidence of this matter."

"Yes."

Yang Zhian responded, not daring to delay, and went there quickly.

Soon, two palace maids and two paper bags containing things appeared in front of Zhao Xingjin.

Wei Jieyu naturally recognized that one of them was the second-class palace maid beside her. She immediately stepped forward, bent down, grabbed the palace maid's collar, and questioned her harshly.

"Dujuan, I treat you well every day, why do you want to harm me? Who ordered you to do this?"

"How could you turn your back on me, Concubine?" The maid named Dujuan immediately looked at Concubine Wei with a face full of grief and indignation. "It was you who discovered that the fruits of Ophiopogon japonicus and Cymbidium orchid were very similar after drying, so you asked me to find a way to get some Cymbidium orchid!

"Because I used to work in the kitchen and knew the people in the dim sum department, you sent me to the kitchen and deliberately distracted them. How could you deny the fact that I tampered with Concubine Xie's dim sum?"

Upon hearing this, Concubine Wei immediately widened her eyes in shock and anger.

Seeing this, Nian Ci, who was standing next to her, immediately stepped forward, forcibly helped Concubine Wei to the side, and scolded Du Juan.

"What nonsense are you talking about? The Concubine has only ever allowed you to take Ophiopogon japonicus. When did you ask for Orchidaceae? You lowly servant, you have committed this heinous crime of killing someone, yet you are still trying to slander the Concubine. If you are willing to tell the truth now and confess the person behind this, the Concubine might be able to plead for you in front of the Emperor. If you still insist on being stubborn, when the truth comes out, your head and the heads of your family will be chopped off!"

"family?"

Du Juan's expression suddenly changed, as if she was provoked by something, and a fierce and resentful look immediately flashed in her eyes.

"When will I have any family! I wondered why Concubine Wei chose me to do these dirty things. It turns out it's because I'm all alone. If I die, I die. No one will seek justice for me. I have no worries!" Her behavior was obviously beyond Nianci's expectations, and Concubine Wei was also stunned.

"You, don't you have a sister?"

"emperor!"

Du Juan ignored Concubine Wei's words, looked straight at Zhao Xingjin, and kowtowed hard.

"Every word this servant has said is true. Some time ago, a letter came from Concubine Wei's mother's family, urging her to compete for favors and conceive an heir as soon as possible to secure her position in the palace. This troubled Concubine Wei, so she publicly contradicted the Empress. It just so happened that while she was being punished for her mistakes, Concubine Xie was not only enjoying great favor, but also Liu Baolin in the Zhongcui Palace was getting close to Concubine Xie, which made Concubine Wei jealous. Therefore, she harbored hatred and plotted to get rid of Concubine Xie!"

"You are slandering me! You are totally unreasonable!"

Concubine Wei's eyes were bloodshot, her face turned pale with anger, her hands were shaking, and she was more out of control than ever before.

If Nian Ci hadn't supported her, she really would have been unable to control herself and would have stepped forward and slapped Du Juan hard.

But when Dujuan saw her like this, she became even more fearless.

"Jieyu has always prided herself on being noble and aloof. Her family background is no worse than Xie Jieyu's. She often looks down on Xie Jieyu for marrying into the palace for the second time. Therefore, she has long been dissatisfied with Xie Jieyu's favor. It seems that she is jealous of Xie Jieyu's favor, but in fact she is resentful of the emperor and thinks that the emperor should not favor a woman like Xie Jieyu!"

Having said that, he turned around and looked at Ziqiao who was kneeling beside him.

"Your Majesty, this maid's name is Ziqiao. She used to be the head maidservant beside Concubine Yi. Because she offended Concubine Zhuang, she was beaten on the face. Concubine Yi didn't like her ugly appearance and sent her away. When she was with Concubine Yi, she was also punished by Concubine Xie for her rude words. Now that she has fallen on hard times, she holds a grudge against Concubine Zhuang, Concubine Yi, and Concubine Xie."

"Concubine Wei ordered me to bribe her, hoping to shift the blame onto Concubine Yi after the incident, saying that Concubine Yi had ordered her to murder Concubine Xie. However, she was not so steadfast. After being questioned by Eunuch Yang, she betrayed me, leading to the investigation being linked to Concubine Wei."

When her name was suddenly called, Zi Qiao immediately looked up in shock, revealing her scarred and hideous face, with panic in her eyes.

"Your Majesty, please spare me, Your Majesty, please spare me. I know I was wrong. It was Concubine Wei who promised me that if I could handle this matter, I could leave the greenhouse and get an easier job. I was tortured in the greenhouse and it was unbearable. That's why I lost my mind!"

He came up and started crying and begging for mercy, looking really weak and unreliable.

Perhaps Zi Qiao's face really looked ugly, Zhao Xingjin took a look at it and frowned slightly.

Seeing this, Yang Zhian whispered in Zhao Xingjin's ear, "Your Majesty, this man did serve Concubine Yi before."

"Concubine Wei, do you have anything else to say?" Zhao Xingjin spoke in a deep voice, looking aside.

Du Juan's testimony, combined with Zi Qiao's reaction and the physical evidence, was indeed powerful enough, but Concubine Wei had no strong evidence from beginning to end to prove her innocence.

Before, Zhao Xingjin didn't think that Concubine Wei would murder Xie Jiu, but today at the crab feast, Concubine Wei showed great disgust towards Xie Jiu, and even deliberately found fault with a few simple words, which made people think more.

People will change, especially in the palace, Zhao Xingjin will not completely trust anyone.

But when she heard Zhao Xingjin's question, Concubine Wei not only did not immediately try to prove herself, but instead looked at him with disappointment and grievance, and asked back.

"Your Majesty, would you rather believe the words of two palace maids than believe me?!"

This rhetorical question made Zhao Xingjin's eyes darken instantly.

Just as he was about to speak, a weak but still clear voice suddenly came from the door.

"Your Majesty, I believe Concubine Wei will not murder me!"