The early summer sunshine was very warm. It penetrated through the clouds thousands of miles high and fell on this quiet courtyard. Rong Tang's hands and feet slowly warmed up.
He was not surprised that Su Huaijing knew these things. He used to think that a villain should have some growth process, so that he would not reach a height that was enough to defy the heavens when he first appeared.
But in this life, Shen Feiyi came first, and Sheng Chengli came later. Even though Su Huaijing was not amazing when he first appeared, his growth was also shocking.
He was like a weed growing in a dark valley. At first glance, he was inconspicuous among the vitality all over the mountains. But once he relaxed his vigilance and looked back, he would find that all the grass leaves growing in the entire valley were branches growing from him.
The root system is hidden underground, intricate and intertwined, and the tentacles surround the entire valley.
Without giving anyone any chance to catch their breath, he had already been the master of this valley.
This discovery made Rong Tang feel a little surprised, but at the same time he also felt uncontrollable worry.
—Because what Su Huaijing said was not actually what the old people in the palace saw.
Even in his previous two lives, Sheng Chengli was favored by Emperor Renshou because of this incident.
The reason is simple, Concubine Shu was wronged.
Shufei was from a foreign race and was good at using incense. After the death of the emperor's eldest son, the director of the Imperial Hospital resigned and returned to his hometown. At first, no one in the palace thought about incense.
But when Concubine Shu became pregnant, Emperor Renshou hid it from her and ordered the Ministry of Internal Affairs to grant her the favor of the Pepper Room when one of the concubines went to pay respects to Queen Wang. Only then did they find a bag of aged herbs in a secret place in the bedroom.
At first it wasn't a big deal. It was normal for concubines in the harem to use incense, and no one should worry about it.
But the senior maid in Concubine Shu's palace panicked when she saw the bag of vanilla and knocked over a vase that was half a person's height, which aroused the suspicion of the chief steward of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
The other party reported the doubts to Emperor Renshou, who was very suspicious and immediately summoned the imperial physician to identify the patient.
The director of the Imperial Medical Bureau at that time was one of the imperial doctors who treated the eldest prince a few months ago. The moment he smelled the scent, his face changed and he knelt down immediately.
Emperor Renshou then knew that his favorite concubine was hiding something.
The director of the hospital said that there are fragrant herbs in the south which are very fresh and fragrant. If they are mixed with several spices and made into incense, and taken every day, it will strengthen the body and consolidate the essence, which is of great benefit to people with congenital weakness.
Emperor Renshou frowned and asked, "Isn't this a good thing?"
The director of the hospital said, however, that everything is mutually reinforcing and mutually restraining, and this is especially true for medicinal things. If this herb is used to make incense according to the secret recipe handed down from ancient times, it is a good thing, but if someone mixes it with the magic glass grass grown in the extremely cold land of the northern border, it will become toxic. Long-term fumigation will stimulate the body's self-defense mechanism in the first few months, making the patient have the illusion of vigorous energy, rarely feel tired, and feel that all his symptoms have been cured, becoming more and more excited. However, once the defense mechanism is over, the accumulated toxins in the body and the consequences of overdrawing the body will appear together.
If the patient has a weak constitution, it is easy for him to die suddenly.
As the director of the Imperial Hospital finished speaking, the palace fell silent. Emperor Renshou was silent for a long time and ordered someone to bring the palace maid who had knocked over the vase.
The latter, however, was in a panic. She knelt on the ground as soon as she saw Tian Yan, and kept saying, "These were all ordered by the Concubine Shu. I know nothing, nothing."
At this point, there was no need to investigate further. The emperor was furious and sent Concubine Shu and the fifth prince to the cold palace.
The eunuchs and maids who served in the palace of Concubine Shu should all be executed, but when Concubine Shu heard the emperor's verdict, she did not say a word of rebuttal. She just covered her pregnant belly and knelt quietly in front of Emperor Renshou, saying: "The palace maids are innocent. This was done by me alone. I beg Your Majesty to show some leniency and let them live."
As a result, among the eunuchs and palace maids in Guangde Palace, only the senior palace maid was beaten to death, and the rest were all sold out and sent out of the palace or to other palaces.
This past event was written in the novel. When Rong Tang saw it, he couldn't help but shout "Awesome!"
Otherwise, why is Concubine Shu the biological mother of the male protagonist? If all the evidence and witnesses were collected to prove the crime of murdering the prince, a death sentence of a white silk ribbon would be a pardon outside the law. But in the case of Concubine Shu, everything was proven, and the emperor could even condescend to listen to her defense in person.
Even if she didn't argue, she just said a few words and Emperor Renshou really released her palace servant.
It's outrageous.
Even though Rong Tang knew that the author wrote a mother who was like the emperor's white moonlight just to give the hero a golden finger, he still found it outrageous.
The emperor and the concubine saw each other for the last time. One was sitting and the other was kneeling. The pregnant woman still had her charm. She took off all her pearls and silks, and knelt on the ground in a plain and elegant manner, almost dull. She did not cry out for her injustice, but begged her husband who had been with her for many years to release the innocent servants.
Whenever Emperor Renshou woke up in the middle of the night, he would always recall that delicate figure and that refreshing fragrance.
Concubine Shu died at the time when she committed the heaviest sins, but Emperor Renshou did not investigate the cause of her death.
But when Sheng Chengli came out of the cold palace, all the old things came to the surface again. Emperor Renshou suddenly realized that in Guangde Palace that year, Concubine Shu did not admit her guilt, but was heartbroken.
She didn't complain about herself because she felt disappointed for the person beside her.
It's a rather old-fashioned routine. The concubine who was Bai Yueguang was framed and died tragically during her pregnancy. Before her death, she was so gentle and kind that she begged for mercy for others.
Such an image is a position that cannot be replaced no matter how many favorite concubines come in the future.
With this, Sheng Chengli directly brought Emperor Renshou's guilt towards Concubine Shu and her son to the peak.
But Yuerong's death and Shufei's injustice, these two things should not have happened at this time.
Yuerong died on the fourth day of the first lunar month in the tenth year of the Qingzheng reign. It was a cold winter day and she fell into the cold lake in the imperial garden late at night.
Rong Tang had no idea what happened in the first incident, but the second incident was a "coincidence" that he had planned.
Rong Tang looked at Su Huaijing, who was still smiling gently, but there was an unfathomable depth beneath his smile. However, he did not feel fear, just worry.
He was afraid that Su Huaijing didn't know that Concubine Shu was actually wrongly accused in this matter.
If this is the case, his actions are likely to... help Sheng Chengli.
He pursed his lips, frowned slightly, and thought about how to tell him about this.
Su Huaijing tilted his head, very obediently, and said, "What does Tangtang want to ask?"
There were only two of them in the courtyard. It was almost noon, the wind and clouds dispersed, and the sun fell on the courtyard full of pear trees. Rong Tang hesitated for a moment and asked, "Do you think... that the eldest prince was killed by Concubine Shu?"
Su Huaijing blinked and was once again surprised by what Rong Tang asked.
He thought Rong Tang should ask him what position he was in to say that he wanted to make a profit, but Rong Tang asked him what secret he had told Ke Hongxue.
He thought Rong Tang should be afraid and escape, and when he should ask him why he did this, Rong Tang asked a yes or no question.
Su Huaijing couldn't see through his own little Bodhisattva.
But once again, I felt that I was spoiled by him.
There are so many suspicious points about him that anyone would be suspicious and fearful. He took the initiative to expose the doubts in front of Rongtang, but Rongtang turned a blind eye.
Tangtang is so smart, how could he not see it
He clearly... just trusted himself, protected himself, and indulged himself purely out of instinct, regardless of his wife's identity, position, or purpose.
Su Huaijing raised the corners of his lips and asked, "What do you think, Tangtang?"
Rong Tang breathed a sigh of relief and immediately reminded: "I don't think so."
"Yeah." Su Huaijing nodded, took his hand and left the yard, heading towards the dock: "I don't think so either."
"The Concubine Shu is a very smart woman. If she wanted to harm the prince, she wouldn't leave so many handles behind." Su Huaijing said, "Anything that goes too smoothly is actually the most suspicious. If you want to find the black hand behind it, just look at the vested interests."
"Your Majesty has been on the throne for two years. The Empress's legitimate son is still alive, and the concubine's illegitimate son is young. A case of incense poisoning has brought down the two most threatening princes in one fell swoop. It would be too stupid to say that Concubine Shu did it." Su Huaijing said softly.
Hearing this, Rong Tang's frown relaxed and he unconsciously squeezed Su Huaijing's hand. He couldn't tell whether it was his subconscious doing or he was just praising him.
Su Huaijing laughed and said, "Concubine Yi, Concubine Ru, Concubine Hui... anyone could be it. What a coincidence, one of them is the biological mother of the second prince, and the other is the biological mother of the third prince."
"Your Highness the Fifth Prince is very smart and decisive. What do you think, Tangtang?" Su Huaijing lowered his eyes and glanced at him. There was a smile in his eyes, but there was a cold edge in his eyes. "The death of a nanny who was dispensable to him in exchange for an impeachment, leaving a suspicion, and then bringing this storm in Songyuan to the harem. He just threw a stone into the water, and the ripples have already radiated to the shore."
If he hadn't naturally disliked her, if his emotions hadn't fluctuated with Rong Tang, Su Huaijing couldn't help but think throughout the day that he might have admired Sheng Chengli.
He is patient, knows how to lie dormant, is smart, and is ruthless.
Fighting for the throne is a road of no return with a high risk of death. Once embarked on, there is no possibility of turning back. He is alone, with neither party members nor relatives. All he can bet on is the guilt and pity of Emperor Renshou.
Unfortunately, it was... a little too hasty.
Su Huaijing led Rong Tang towards the island in the middle of the lake. On the way, they passed a courtyard. Halfway through the banquet, a guest went in and said something. Then people came out one after another. Most of them were students from Linyuan Academy. They couldn't hide their curiosity and excitement on their faces, and they all walked in the same direction.
Rong Tang looked carefully and saw Lu Jiaxi in the crowd.
Su Huaijing smiled at Rong Tang and said, "Tangtang, it seems that Master Ke was wrong."
He stretched out his hand to beckon Lu Jiaxi and asked, "Where are you going? Why are you in such a hurry?"
Lu Jiaxi saw his eyes light up, then he looked at Rong Tang, bowed respectfully, and said, "Go to the pond, they said they are pumping water!"
"Oh? What's the matter?" Su Huaijing asked.
Lu Jiaxi: "It's Master Mu! Master Mu wants to investigate the case. He said that there might be some hidden reason behind Nanny Yue's death!"
Su Huaijing smiled, let the man go, turned his head and looked at Rong Tang, his voice light and cheerful: "Master Ke always says that Master Mu only cares about his little disciple, but in my opinion, his disciple may not be as important as a finger of Ke Hongxue in Master Mu's heart."
He tilted his head and asked obediently, "Tangtang, do you want to go to the theater?"
It would be a shame if he didn't see with his own eyes the show he had specially arranged for his little Bodhisattva.
(End of this chapter)