Concubine Liang was found in Youming Palace. Youming Palace is now uninhabited. It is located in the northernmost corner of the imperial palace and no one knows how she got there.
When we found her, she was shaking all over and was dirty, as if she had rolled in the mud.
Concubine Liang was brought before the emperor. She was still speechless and could only tremble.
The emperor saw her like this, after all they were husband and wife, and he couldn't bear it. He comforted her and asked, "Liangpin, do you recognize me?"
Liang Pin slowly raised her head, with fear still in her eyes. She kept twisting her sleeves in panic.
"Princess Liang, this is the emperor. Do you remember him?" Eunuch Lu leaned over and asked softly.
Liangpin stared at the emperor for a long while, and suddenly burst into heart-wrenching tears, "Your Majesty, please save me, I know I was wrong, your concubine and father want to harm me, I don't want to die!"
The emperor's fake face was of no use. The red spots on his face became more and more obvious, his brows were furrowed, and his anger gradually rose.
After a long while, he said woodenly: "Call the imperial physician!"
If Concubine Liang is not crazy, then someone is instigating her.
However, if she is really crazy, a madman cannot be taught, and what she says must be true.
After the imperial physician's diagnosis, Concubine Liang was indeed crazy.
The emperor investigated the matter of the cold palace again and summoned the guards of the cold palace and the Night King.
The Night King naturally told about the murder by the palace maid. Since the palace maid was already dead, there was no way to trace it. However, anyone with a brain could guess that this palace maid was the one that Taifu Liang had placed next to Concubine Liang.
The anger in the emperor's eyes grew more and more intense. He could tolerate a group of people making trouble, but he could not tolerate them joining forces.
He knew very well what the consequences would be if the Gui Taifei's people and the people before Taifu Liang joined forces.
Not only would this fail to restrain Murong Jie, but it would also threaten him as the emperor.
After dismissing everyone, Eunuch Lu asked softly, "Your Majesty, is it time to issue an order?"
The emperor raised his head and asked, "What decree?"
"Your Majesty, didn't you say yesterday that the crime of this assassination will be borne by the princess? The Ministry of Justice is still waiting for your order." said Eunuch Lu.
The emperor was silent for a moment, "Put it aside for now."
He raised his head, "What's going on with the noble concubine?"
"Your Majesty, the noble concubine has brought the Seventh Prince to accompany her, saying that he is bored in the palace."
"Besides that?"
"I left the palace and returned home yesterday. I stayed in the mansion for about an hour."
"Did anyone come to the palace while she was back home?"
"No, but the palace gate was closed, and the noble concubine entered Qingning Pavilion and did not appear until an hour later. The secret guards who followed her found that they could not find any trace of the noble concubine anywhere in Qingning Pavilion. It was as if she had disappeared out of thin air for an hour."
"It is impossible for a person to disappear for an hour, unless there is a secret passage in the palace that leads directly to the outside." The emperor was very familiar with the architecture of the Regent's Palace.
Eunuch Lu remained silent. For some things, those involved are often confused while those who are watching can see things clearly. The emperor thinks too much and cannot think clearly, but those who are outside the situation can see things very clearly.
But they couldn't say anything.
"What news is there from Prince Nan Huai?" the emperor asked again.
"Previously, the news came back that they went from Qiao Town to Sujiang Prefecture. Now they should have left Sujiang Prefecture."
"Everything went well?"
"nothing!"
The emperor thought for a moment and said, "Well, you go down first. Let the Ministry of Justice wait. There is no need to rush to close the assassin's case. As for the noble concubine, you can give her a pot of wine and see her reaction."
"Yes, I will do it right away."
After half an hour, Eunuch Lu came back and reported: "Your Majesty, the wine reward has been delivered, but the noble concubine accidentally knocked it down."
"Did you accidentally knock him down?" The emperor sneered and waved his hand, "Okay, go ahead."
"Yes!" Eunuch Lu stepped back.
In the afternoon, Zi'an came over to take my pulse.
The emperor had several blisters on his mouth, and it hurt to drink medicine, let alone eat. Zi'an advised: "Your Majesty, nothing is more important than your health. You have to think broadly."
The emperor looked at her and asked, "Princess, do you blame me at all?"
Zi'an smiled and shook his head, "Your Majesty, why do you ask? My husband has already gone to the battlefield, what else should I care about? It's just a reputation, what's the point of a woman having a reputation?"
"Do you really think so?" The emperor felt that she was being too selfless. Everyone has selfish desires.
Zi'an took out the golden needle and sighed softly, "I can't blame you. I don't dare to. I just feel aggrieved in my heart. But when I think about it carefully, I feel that there is nothing to be aggrieved about. What should I be aggrieved about? The Noble Concubine and I do dislike each other. There are too many things involved in this, and I can't explain it clearly at the moment. If I say that I didn't hurt the Noble Concubine, then I am truly aggrieved."
This was equivalent to admitting to the emperor that if she had the chance, she would take action against the noble concubine.
Such treasonous words were spoken in front of the emperor. If the emperor really wanted to judge him, Zi'an would be guilty of a serious crime.
If this had been said before, no matter what the Emperor thought of the Noble Concubine, he would have been angry with Zi'an and might even punish him. But not now.
Because he had already felt the threat that the noble concubine brought to the court and the imperial power.
If his guess was confirmed that she was in collusion with Master Liang, then it would go against his original intention.
The court was originally divided into three factions, which checked and balanced each other, so he was able to hand over power to Murong Jie with ease. However, if the two parties joined forces, then this balance would be lost.
The consequences will be serious.
After Zi'an left, Eunuch Bao came in to serve him. After hesitating for a while, he said, "Your Majesty, you don't have to believe what King Ye and the Regent Princess say. They may not be without selfish motives."
The emperor laughed strangely, "Really?"
Eunuch Bao said uneasily: "Yes, the Night King came to me before and asked me to speak in front of the emperor and say bad things about the noble concubine, but I didn't do that."
The emperor's face darkened, "Get lost!"
Eunuch Bao was so frightened that his face changed slightly and he bowed and walked out.
After leaving Xiwei Palace, the Night King was waiting for him at the corner again.
"Your Highness, I have already said a few bad things about you and the princess in front of the emperor as you ordered."
"Eunuch Bao, I can't forget you!"
After saying this, he walked away leisurely.
Letting Eunuch Bao go and file a complaint, saying bad things about him and the Regent Princess, would certainly backfire, because the Emperor no longer trusted Eunuch Bao and was certain that he had colluded with the Noble Concubine. At this critical juncture, he spoke for the Noble Concubine and attacked Prince Ye and Zi'an, which the Emperor saw as having ulterior motives.
Moreover, it can make him more suspicious and wary of the noble concubine.
In the evening, it started snowing.
Late spring cold snaps are often the most severe, with the cold current sweeping across the entire city like the backflow of seawater.
The emperor did not eat tonight, but took the medicine prescribed by Zi'an. He felt a little more energetic and asked the imperial physician to come and take his pulse. The imperial physician praised Zi'an's medical skills in front of him, and the emperor agreed with him.
"If it weren't for her, I'm afraid I wouldn't even be able to make it through the New Year." He said with a slight sigh.
(End of this chapter)