The name Liu Qin resounded throughout the hall, and almost everyone present changed their expressions.
When serving His Majesty, one must be extremely cautious. Those serving in the Qianqing Palace are all people of clean background. Even if they are partial to a certain concubine in the harem, or accept "bribes", their loyalty to the emperor is unquestionable.
Liu Qin is an old man in the palace. He has been following the emperor since he was a teenager. To be able to become the chief steward, his ability is naturally impeccable. Apart from Liang Jiugong, who has served the emperor since he was a child, Liu Qin is the most respected person in the Qianqing Palace. When he walks outside, officials in the court, who doesn't call him Eunuch Liu
But according to Rong Fei, Liu Qin, the deputy chief steward of the Qianqing Palace, was the imperial concubine's servant from beginning to end...
The Imperial Concubine's fingertips trembled and her face suddenly turned pale, but the one who was even more pale than her was Concubine Hui.
After being in disbelief, Concubine Hui took a deep breath and believed Rong Fei's words 60%.
Liu Qin, who liked gold and silver, was bribed by her in his early years and served as her eyes and ears. He passed on a lot of information for her, including the whereabouts of the emperor, thus helping the Yanxi Palace avoid many calculations.
Because of their years of cooperation, she believed Liu Qin's words without a doubt. When the news came out that Fulu had provoked the eldest prince, she believed it without verifying it.
If Liu Qin is the Imperial Concubine's man...
Having concealed the truth for so many years, and planning for his master for so many years, Concubine Yi and she were both used as pawns?!
Concubine Hui closed her eyes slightly, her chest rising and falling violently, as if she had been slapped dozens of times. The eldest prince, who was sitting next to her, was startled when he saw this and whispered, "Mother?"
"Mother, everything is fine... Keep listening." Concubine Hui sneered and squeezed out a few words from her throat.
The banquet was disrupted in an instant. Even if a needle fell to the ground, it was like thunder. When this secret came out of Rong Fei's mouth, the concubines either hung their heads in silence or looked at each other. No one dared to speak out to break the silence.
Liu Qin
Not only Concubine Hui, but Yun Xiu also felt a little confused.
All the doubts in the past were easily resolved. Yes, sowing discord and creating obstacles were certainly not something a small servant could do.
All the eyes of those who were questioning, malicious, and watching the show fell on the Imperial Concubine. She pinched her wrist tightly, trying hard to resist the dizziness, and said sternly: "Liu Qin and I have never had any contact, Rong Fei, there must be a limit to framing others..."
"Yes, they have never met before. This is the cleverness of the Imperial Concubine." Rong Fei smiled and turned to look at Kangxi, "Your Majesty, please forgive me for being nosy. There must be someone who knows Liu Qin's background, right?"
"She entered the palace in the tenth year of Shunzhi's reign, and was transferred to Jingren Palace in the eleventh year to serve the Holy Mother Empress Dowager, for about seven or eight years. Afterwards, she made a mistake and was demoted to sweep the Fengtian Palace, but I don't know when she was transferred to the prince's residence to serve the young emperor." Rong Fei said, "These are all what I sent people to investigate, and there may be omissions."
When the title of the Holy Mother Empress Dowager came out, some people gasped and Kangxi's eyes suddenly turned cold.
The Imperial Noble Consort was from the Tong family, and the Holy Mother Empress Dowager was also from the Tong family. They were aunt and niece...
Things had gotten to this point, and everyone was getting restless.
As if she had made up her mind, Rong Fei didn't care at all that she would kill 1,000 enemies but lose 800 of her own. Perhaps she felt the emperor's anger, she lowered her eyes slightly and said very quickly: "It was a coincidence that I noticed Liu Qin. If it weren't for my personal maid Shaoyao, how could I be sure that he was the Imperial Concubine's man?"
After saying that, she glanced in the direction of Prince Rong, then walked around to the center of the hall and bowed deeply: "... Please, His Majesty, order all the princes and princesses to retreat."
After a while, Kangxi said, "Allowed. Send Liu Qin here."
Liang Jiugong wiped a cold sweat from his forehead, murmured a yes, and hurried out of Yongshou Palace, as if there was a ghost chasing him.
Yinzuo was led by his wet nurse in a daze. Seeing Yinzhen sitting motionless on the table, he called out softly, "Fourth Brother!"
Yinzhen sniffed, shook his head at him, gritted his teeth, and knelt down: "Father, I won't leave."
Kangxi was stunned, pinched his brows, sighed, and his anger subsided a little: "Yinzhen..."
The Fourth Prince was still kneeling stubbornly, his back straight and his eyes red. For a moment, the stagnant air was as thick as ink.
The Imperial Concubine watched this scene and was so trembling that she could not speak.
Suddenly, a clear voice sounded urgently: "Emperor Father!"
The prince suppressed his anxiety, took a few steps forward, lifted the corner of his robe and knelt beside Yinzhen: "Fourth brother is so worried that he is confused. I beg Your Majesty to forgive me! Can you let him sit next to me?"
He shouldn't have been distracted at this time, but the emperor actually felt a little relieved.
"Okay," Kangxi's voice softened, "You take good care of your brother."
Seeing that the extremely cold situation was resolved by the prince, Rong Fei curled her fingers, not knowing whether to be angry or laugh.
But it's no big deal... Even if the Fourth Prince cried and begged for mercy, Tong Jia would not be able to turn things around.
The best is yet to come!
When Liu Qin was brought into Yongshou Palace, he was very nervous because when Liang Jiugong came to him, he said grimly, "Liu Zongguan, the emperor has ordered that you come with us, right?"
Steward Liang's expression showed that "you are about to meet with great disaster", and before Liu Qin could react, he ordered a few eunuchs to carry him away.
When he entered Yongshou Palace, he was thrown to the ground by the young eunuch, grimacing in pain. At this time, the uneasiness in his heart was replaced by viciousness, and he gritted his teeth and thought, old man, the situation will change in the future, don't let us catch you!
Liu Qin got up in a rather embarrassed manner, feeling his face burning. He looked up and saw the Imperial Concubine, the Imperial Concubine... the lower-ranking ladies looking at him with strange eyes. Instantly, a bad premonition came to his mind.
Before Liu Qin could even bow, Kangxi glanced at him emotionlessly. That glance… made him feel cold all over.
He finally felt fear.
I was wondering what was going on.
After all, he had been the chief steward for many years. Liu Qin trembled his legs, calmed his face, and subconsciously looked towards Concubine Hui.
Concubine Hui almost couldn't catch her breath and closed her eyes. What a bastard!
How could Concubine Rong not see the conspiracy between Concubine Hui and Liu Qin
She smiled sarcastically and thought to herself, when you pull out a radish, you bring out the dirt.
"Liu Zongguan must still remember who you were with and what you did on August 26 last year, right?" Rong Fei stared at him and said in a low voice, "Shaoyao, tell me!"
When Liu Qin heard the words "August 26th", he was a little confused at first, but after a few breaths, his expression changed.
"Your Majesty, and all the ladies, on August 26, the day before the Ninth Prince's third-day bath, I passed by the northeast corner of Chengqian Palace and vaguely saw two figures. They were Nanny Zhen and Chief Steward Liu, who were by the Imperial Concubine's side." Shaoyao's voice trembled a little, and she lowered her head and said, "I didn't suspect anything at first, but I vaguely heard Nanny Zhen mention 'Liu'... that is, the Sixth Prince, no, the former wet nurse of Prince Rong..."
The Imperial Noble Consort originally thought that Rong Fei was using Liu Qin to make trouble in order to expose the truth that she had taken care of Yinzhen for two days and two nights. Who told Rong Fei to mention that sentence, "pretending to be a kind mother"
Then she quickly denied the speculation.
Where did Concubine Rong get the evidence? Impossible, just a suspicion!
She dismissed all the imperial doctors and palace servants, leaving only Nanny Zhen by her side. Even if Concubine Rong had great connections, she could not have expected this to happen.
Or maybe he discovered the rumor that Fulu was extremely brave... It was Liu Qin who leaked the rumor on his own initiative.
The imperial concubine's mind raced and she quickly thought of an excuse.
If the rumor was true, she would have no choice but to sacrifice the pawn to save the king and give up Liu Qin, the chess piece left by her aunt; if Rong Fei was relentless and caught Liu Qin's flaws, she would have no choice but to accept it.
Be it broken bones or loss of face, her position in her cousin's heart is already like this. What does a royal concubine with no real power have to lose
At most, he would be scolded and confined to his room.
Who would have thought that Concubine Rong would actually mention Yinzuo!
In an instant, the Imperial Concubine's hands and feet were cold, and Yinzhen... Yinzhen was still beside the Crown Prince...
Over there, Shaoyao continued, "I was confused as to why Nanny Zhen mentioned the wet nurse Liu, but I was afraid of being spotted, so I hurried away."
Rong Fei sighed softly and took over Shaoyao's words: "Shaoyao will report to me after returning to the palace. Your Majesty, don't blame me for being suspicious, because Wupin's delivery date is just around the corner..."
"I asked someone to keep a close eye on Chief Steward Liu's movements. The next day, it was the semi-annual visit to his family. They followed him from a distance, but saw Liu Qin leading a palace maid dressed as a maid! The maid hurried out of the palace, and the gatekeeper said that she showed the token of Chengqian Palace."
"The gatekeepers had never seen Liu before, and didn't know she was a criminal in the Ministry of Punishment, so they waved their hands and let her go. But they remembered Liu's true appearance, and if the emperor had a portrait, he would know it by asking!"
At the end, Rong Fei paused and said softly, "Who would have known that the person who was supposed to be at the mass grave could have sneaked out of the palace? It was not someone else's doing. I guess everything is under the control of the Imperial Noble Consort."
Those who knew the inside story knew very well that this "other person" referred to Soetu!
"Your Highness has done everything to murder the four-year-old Rong Junwang, the fourth prince's biological brother. It's not enough that you have played with everyone in your hands. Now you want to be the fourth prince's biological mother. Can you feel at ease? Can you sleep well at night? I just want to give justice to Rong Junwang."
…
As soon as he finished speaking, Yongshou Palace fell into silence.
Liu Qin was already shaking like a sieve, his whole body was weak, "Your Highness, I am innocent, I am innocent! This is a fabrication by Concubine Rong. I have never had any contact with Chengqian Palace, Your Highness!"
He then said in a hateful voice: "If Concubine Rong suspected me, why did she wait so many months to report it? Isn't it too late to give justice to Prince Rong?"
This is a clear hint that Concubine Rong has ulterior motives.
"I know you won't admit it," Rong Fei looked at him coldly, "Besides that, wasn't it you who fabricated the rumors and instigated Master Fulu to compete with Master Quinn? You hurried to the corner of the Imperial Garden to meet the head maid of Chengqian Palace. Shaoyao saw it all."
Liu Qin's face instantly turned gray.
"Your Majesty, I am not the one who knows the truth about Prince Rong's poisoning and I am not reporting it." Then, Concubine Rong kowtowed, "But suspicion is just suspicion. Based on Shaoyao's one-sided words and Liu Qin's relationship with Nanny Zhen, I am not sure that he is the Imperial Concubine's man, so I dare not report it."
"Without solid evidence, the Imperial Concubine could have just gotten away with it, sacrificing her own will to save her own, and saying that Liu Qin had acted on his own initiative in harming the Sixth Prince! But this time, Liu Qin promoted Master Fulu's bravery and mobilized many spies in the palace, but I caught him and was able to find out his connection with Chengqian Palace."
Rong Fei's meaning was very clear. This time, even if the Imperial Noble Consort sacrificed her car to save her driver, she would not be able to wash herself clean.
Kangxi closed his eyes, the prince looked solemn, and Yinzhen had already stayed where he was.
Sixth brother...was it also my mother's fault
He was so young...
After an unknown amount of time, the Fourth Prince stood up in a daze and staggered, then knelt down with a plop: "Father Emperor... Yinzhen does not want to change the imperial edict, please take back your decision!"