Entering the palace means entering a high position; I'm His Majesty's cousin, who am I afr

Before Qi Ronghua could be questioned further, a shrill announcement rang out from the palace entrance: "The Empress Dowager has arrived!"

The concubines hurriedly rose and knelt to greet them.

Supported by Li Mama, Empress Dowager Shen slowly entered the hall. Seeing the beautiful women bowing to her, a cold glint flashed in her eyes.

Guided by Hongling, she first went to the small study to visit Shen Jiayu.

Seeing his usually clever and cunning niece lying on the couch with a deathly pale face, he was shocked.

Empress Dowager Shen felt a tightness in her chest.

I asked the doctor in person several times, and he said that I would wake up in the evening, which made me feel a little relieved.

After tucking Shen Jiayu in, Empress Dowager Shen left the small study with a cold expression and went to the main room.

As early as when Empress Dowager Shen arrived, palace servants brought out a sandalwood armchair and placed it diagonally below the throne.

After Empress Dowager Shen was seated, she looked around at the concubines for a long time before speaking indifferently, "Sit down, all of you."

Empress Dowager Shen did not come out often; the concubines in the six palaces could only see her during palace banquets or festivals.

She was usually very kind and gentle, and she doted on the two young princes even more.

The concubines rarely saw her with such a solemn and dignified expression.

For a moment, they fell silent, not daring to utter a sound.

The silence was broken by Empress Dowager Shen: "Where have you found out?"

Seeing the Emperor silently turning his thumb ring on the throne, Consort Li mustered her courage and spoke up: "Reporting to the Empress Dowager, Imperial Physician Guo said that Consort Chen was poisoned by the 'Hu Man Teng,' and the poison was hidden in the soil of the hibiscus flowers. It has now been discovered that the head gardener in charge of the flowers and plants in Yihua Palace secretly met with Consort Qi's personal maid, Xuezhu, late at night."

A sharp glint flashed in Empress Dowager Shen's eyes: "Where is Consort Qi?"

Upon hearing the Empress Dowager call her name, Qi Ronghua tried her best to suppress her panic, knelt in the hall, and said in a trembling voice, "Your Majesty, please understand, I am innocent!"

Empress Dowager Shen, though not angry, exuded an air of authority: "Are you innocent?"

With tears welling in her eyes, Qi Ronghua said, "Consort Chen is the Empress Dowager's niece. How could I, a mere Ronghua, dare to harbor any improper thoughts? My palace maids have always been law-abiding and dutiful. Someone must be impersonating me and framing me."

Empress Dowager Shen's voice was cold and deep: "Judging from your words, you have suspicions in your heart?"

Qi Ronghua suddenly raised her hand and pointed to a concubine inside the hall, "It's her!"

Following the direction Qi Ronghua pointed, everyone saw a beautiful, aloof face.

It is Consort Zhu.

Qi Ronghua tearfully pleaded, "She has always harbored resentment against me, and recently she has also become estranged from Consort Chen. She must have held a grudge and committed this heinous act, harming Consort Chen and framing me. I beg Your Majesty and the Empress Dowager to see the truth and restore my innocence."

Her appearance of vehemently defending herself aroused whispers among the concubines.

Could there really be something more to this story?

Could it really not be Qi Ronghua who did it?

Consort Zhu listened to the discussion and knelt in the center of the hall. Her back was straight and her words were full of tears: "Consort Qi is slandering me. I beg Your Majesty and the Empress Dowager to do justice for me."

Both concubines involved in the case claimed they were wronged and demanded that the truth be found.

Empress Dowager Shen pondered for a moment, then turned slightly to the side: "What is the Emperor's opinion on this matter?"

Sitting in the main seat, Pei Yan's expression was indifferent, and his voice was extremely cold: "Investigate thoroughly to the end."

Upon receiving the order, Qing'an hurriedly took away the head maids of Qi Ronghua and Consort Zhu, and then went to Qi Ronghua and Consort Zhu's palaces to search for relevant evidence.

While investigating the two imperial concubines, Qing'an also ordered people to interrogate the people in the flower room, hoping to find more relevant clues.

Outside, everything was in a flurry of activity, but inside the main hall of Yihua Palace, all was deathly silent.

Qi Ronghua knelt on the ground.

She felt uncertain and uneasy.

Although he had previously warned his subordinates to be careful and leave no trace, now that the Empress Dowager and the Emperor are investigating the matter together, he doesn't know if he can escape unscathed.

If not…

Qi Ronghua lowered her eyes, glancing at Consort Zhu out of the corner of her eye.

If that's not possible, then at least she dragged that bitch Zhu Yao down with her.

If she can't escape, then Zhu Yao has even less chance of escaping.

Moreover, she was not the mastermind behind this, and her father had rendered meritorious service to the court.

His Majesty would not punish her severely; at most, he would demote her or confine her to her quarters.

As for that vile woman Zhu Yao, she will surely be despised. If no past favors are shown, she might even be banished to the cold palace.

Thinking of this, Qi Ronghua finally came to her senses and calmed down a bit.

Apart from her, the other concubines each had their own thoughts and were all pondering their own ideas, but none of them showed any emotion on their faces.

Time ticked by, and as everyone's nerves tightened, there was finally some movement outside.

Qing'an escorted Xuezhu into the palace and reported, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty the Empress Dowager, this servant found a bottle of 'Hu Man Teng Juice' in this palace maid's room."

Xuezhu kept saying she was innocent, her head hitting the ground with a loud thud, her forehead red and swollen.

Qi Ronghua hurriedly retorted, "This must be a frame-up by someone behind it!"

Under the watchful eyes of everyone in the hall, Qing'an slowly said, "This servant took Xuezhu to the palace maids in the flower room and asked around. Immediately, several of them identified her, saying that they had indeed seen her late at night in the Siyuan Si area recently. The two palace maids who happened to witness the secret meeting with Liu Qing said that Xuezhu's voice was very similar to that of the person from that night."

In this way, both witness testimony and physical evidence are available.

The person who secretly met with the flower garden manager was indeed Xuezhu.

Qi Ronghua felt dizzy, her mind went blank, and she couldn't quite make sense of what was happening in front of her.

Why did they find out about Zhu Yao but instead trace it back to Xue Zhu?

And why is Xuezhu going to the flower room all of a sudden?

While her thoughts were in turmoil, Xuezhu stopped crying out for justice, looked at Qi Ronghua with grief, and shouted, "This was all done by me alone, and has nothing to do with Ronghua. I accept the punishment."

As she finished speaking, her gaze fell upon the antique display shelf beside her.

She swayed and crashed into that spot.

At the critical moment, Qing'an reacted quickly and grabbed her, then ordered his men to restrain her.

Consort Li stood up and shouted, "You lowly servant, do you want to take the blame for Consort Qi with your life? Let me tell you, a palace maid who intentionally harms a concubine is guilty of a heinous crime punishable by the confiscation of her property and the extermination of her entire family. You are willing to take the blame for Consort Qi, but do you think your whole family is also willing to take the blame for Consort Qi?!"

The stern shout made Xuezhu tremble and shed tears. Her lips moved twice, but she couldn't utter a word.

Consort Li sneered, "You'd better confess the truth! Otherwise, your whole family's lives will be in danger!"

Xuezhu cried out in pain, then looked at Qi Ronghua in dismay, "Ronghua, I didn't want this either. I'm willing to die for you, but... but my family is innocent."

Qi Ronghua felt all her strength drain away, a bone-chilling cold washing over her: "What are you saying?"

Xuezhu choked back tears and said, "Ronghua, just admit it. You made me do all of this."

Qi Ronghua has been in the palace for three years now, and she trusts Xuezhu the most.

Although she still couldn't sort out all the details, she understood one thing.

That wretched maid identified her!

In her extreme rage, Qi Ronghua nearly lost all reason. She lunged at Xue Zhu, baring her teeth and claws, yelling, "You vile servant, what nonsense are you spouting? I'm going to kill you! Kill you!"

Qing'an quickly pulled her away.

Filled with resentment, Qi Ronghua lunged at Consort Zhu again, grabbing her by the neck and refusing to let go. "It was you, you vile woman, who tried to harm me! It was you!"