Who said the heir would die out? The concubine is pregnant again!

Princess Rui stared at Xu Fanglin suspiciously. "Qiuhe is your head maid. Besides you, who else can command her?"

Xu Fanglin's eyes darted around as she considered what to do.

"Mother, you are wise. I have already sent Yingzhu to the Prince's side. Only she is the one with the good fertility that the Taoist priest predicted, and can bear children for the Prince. So why should I send Qiuhe to the Prince? This is not reasonable!"

"Qiuhe, tell me honestly, what instructions did your master give you?"

Princess Rui questioned in a deep voice. Qiu He was weak and powerless, kneeling on the ground, her voice barely audible.

"The Crown Princess said that Yingzhu is beautiful, and she was worried that the Crown Prince would fall in love with Yingzhu. She was also afraid that Yingzhu would become spoiled and disobedient, and that the Crown Princess would not be able to control her. That's why she asked me to give the Crown Prince medicine."

If the Crown Prince is willing to take the maid as his concubine, all will be well. If it is discovered, the blame will be placed on Yingzhu.

"Nonsense! I never said anything like that!"

Enraged, Xu Fanglin suddenly stepped forward and slapped her across the face. Liang Yunqian gave her a look, and Granny Qiao immediately went up and pulled the princess away.

"Her Highness the Princess and the Crown Prince are both here! This is a public interrogation; no one will be wrongly accused. We urge the Crown Princess to exercise restraint and listen respectfully. Beating a witness is against the rules!"

Granny Qiao's voice was gentle, but her attitude left no room for doubt.

Xu Fanglin then realized that she had been so angry that she had lost her temper and her composure.

After calming down, Xu Fanglin stood up and curtsied. "Mother, I was just wronged and I was so angry that I lost my temper."

"Qiuhe's words are all lies. I never said such a thing. If I had instructed her to put a sleeping potion in the sachet for the young master, may I be struck by lightning!"

Remembering how he had wronged Yingzhu yesterday, Liang Yunqian was unwilling to let anyone else be wronged, so he immediately questioned Qiuhe.

"Words are no proof; do you have any evidence?"

Qiuhe nodded hurriedly, "This servant has evidence. This sleeping potion is not easy to buy and is very expensive. One ounce of sleeping potion costs ten ounces of silver!"

"My family took all my money, so I didn't have much on me. It was the Princess Consort who gave me this money, which I secretly bought in the alley in the north of the city."

She gave the exact date, and Liang Yunqian summoned the gatekeeper of the Prince's Mansion, as well as the coachman from that day.

All people entering and leaving the city were registered, and the driver could also testify that Qiuhe did indeed go to the north of the city that day.

Qiuhe even handed over the remaining sleeping potion. Yingzhu secretly observed and saw Xu Fanglin's expression change drastically!

Yingzhu knew what she was afraid of, because the sleeping potion was indeed bought by Qiuhe at Xu Fanglin's request, but it was not placed in a sachet, but in a hand warmer.

Xu Fanglin only allowed Qiuhe to take the medicine once. Fortunately, Yingzhu replaced the hand warmer in time, thus saving Yingzhu from the undeserved disaster of her previous life.

The medicine in the sachet was Qiuhe's doing. She wanted to serve the prince, but was afraid that the prince's wife would not agree, so she secretly put the medicine in the sachet.

After the incident, she was severely tortured and could not bear it, so she blamed it on Xu Fanglin, conflating the two events.

Xu Fanglin knew the whole story, but dared not mention the hand warmer at all, because she felt guilty!

Qiuhe has already betrayed her, and she dares not expect Qiuhe to help her cover it up. Once the hand warmer is mentioned, the old story from last time will be brought up again, and Xu Fanglin will be even more culpable!

She was speechless and sweating profusely.

This is what she deserves. Yingzhu will make her experience firsthand what it feels like to be wronged.

It can't be said that she was wronged! After all, Qiuhe, this venomous snake, was raised by Xu Fanglin herself, and now that she's been betrayed, it's her own fault!

Princess Rui glanced at her with disgust. "You, the daughter of the prestigious Xu family, have actually committed such a scandalous and insidious act, utterly disgracing the Prince's mansion!"

"Aunt, the Princess Consort despises such despicable methods. Her vile behavior makes her unworthy to be my cousin's Crown Princess!"

Zhao Tangwei added fuel to the fire, and Xu Fanglin eagerly turned to Liang Yunqian.

"Your Highness, it really wasn't me! We are husband and wife, you should believe in my character! Even if Qiuhe really went to the north of the city, it doesn't prove that I instructed her."

Perhaps someone instructed her to set a series of traps for me? My lord, I'm innocent! You must seek justice for me!

Liang Yunqian remained silent, his gaze on Xu Fanglin unfathomable.

Upon seeing this, Yingzhu had a bad feeling.

Did he not believe Qiuhe's testimony? Or did he believe it but had reservations, which is why he delayed issuing a verdict?

The whole story was out in the open, and Yingzhu secretly warned herself not to rush him. Rushing him would only arouse suspicion, and there were others present who were even more anxious than her.

Seeing that her cousin didn't respond, Zhao Tangwei reminded him again, "Cousin, Qiuhe is her confidante. If she hadn't instigated her, how would Qiuhe dare to do such evil deeds?"

Qiuhe nodded repeatedly, "Miss Zhao is absolutely right. This servant really doesn't have the guts. It was all... the Crown Princess who instructed this servant to buy the medicine."

"This servant doesn't have the guts to harm anyone, but I couldn't disobey my master's orders and was forced to do the errand. I beg Your Highness, please forgive me this time, since I've confessed on my own initiative!"

"Being a maid is also in a difficult position; ultimately, it's because her master is heartless!"

Zhao Tangwei clicked her tongue in amazement while tugging at her aunt's sleeve and giving her a meaningful look.

Princess Rui naturally understood Zhao Tangwei's meaning, and tentatively said to Liang Yunqian:

"Yunqian, this matter is of great importance. Drugs are extremely harmful to the body. You are already recuperating, but she drugged you. Wouldn't that damage your vital energy?"

Fanglin's actions have disgraced both families. How can someone with such behavior be fit to be the Crown Prince's consort? In my opinion, we should summon her father to discuss this matter..."

Before the last two words could be uttered, Liang Yunqian already raised an impatient brow.

"Shen Yingzhu is the one chosen by the Taoist priest to be pregnant. Other women do not have the constitution, so even if they are drugged, it will not benefit their offspring. The Crown Princess instructed Qiuhe to drug me, which was really unnecessary."

"Mother, you shouldn't be deceived by Qiuhe's one-sided story, lest you give those with ulterior motives an opportunity to take advantage!"

Xu Fanglin thought she couldn't clear her name, but to her surprise, the prince actually stood by her side.

Overjoyed, she echoed repeatedly, "Your Highness is absolutely right! Thank you for trusting me! I knew it; Your Highness understands me best!"

Upon hearing this, Princess Rui abruptly stopped herself from saying the second half of her sentence.

Zhao Tang's lips were slightly red and pursed. She wanted to say something more, but then she saw Princess Rui's eyes narrow slightly, and she shook her head at her, indicating that she should not say anything more.

Just now, when Liang Yunqian said those words, his gaze seemed to fall on Zhao Tangwei unintentionally.

It was obvious that he had begun to suspect Zhao Tangwei, and she really shouldn't say anything more, lest she get herself into trouble.

At first, Yingzhu was greatly disappointed when she heard Liang Yunqian defend Xu Fanglin, but after observing Liang Yunqian's expression, she thought about it for a moment and understood his intention.