novelaction Chapter 913 The maid is dead!
Chapter 913 The maid is dead!
The little girl's face turned pale, and then her body suddenly convulsed, her lips trembled, and in the blink of an eye, she collapsed to the ground, unable to get up.
Mu Xin Nuan was immediately alarmed. "Someone, quickly summon the imperial physician."
This girl used a deadly poison in the palace and died in the harem. This is a very serious matter!
You should know that since the new emperor ascended the throne, no one has died in the harem.
Judging from the girl's appearance, most people guessed that she had been poisoned. However, she was Consort Luo's personal maid. Who would want to harm her? Moreover, it happened when Princess Su asked her a question.
After the imperial physician diagnosed him, it was confirmed that he had indeed died from poisoning, specifically from a slow-acting poison.
Logically, the poison shouldn't have taken effect so soon. Perhaps it was due to some prior stimulation that the poison acted so quickly.
"Consort Luo, I'm afraid you'll have to give me an explanation today. Why did Princess Nali fall into the water? Why did your personal maid die of poisoning at this particular time? Also, everyone knows Princess Nali is afraid of water, so why did she suggest going to play near the lotus pond?"
Consort Luo shuddered in fright. Although she had never witnessed the Empress's methods firsthand, she had at least heard of them.
"Your Majesty, I am innocent."
Lady Lu stepped forward, somewhat puzzled, and said, "Your Majesty, I feel there is something amiss."
"Please tell me and listen."
“Your Majesty, I was quite far from them at the time. Logically speaking, I shouldn’t have been able to hear the conversation between the women. In fact, I only heard Princess Nali say that she wanted to take a walk by the lotus pond, but I didn’t hear a single word of what they said afterward. I didn’t think much of it at first, but now that I think about it, something is not right.”
Mu Xin Nuan nodded, "Something is definitely not right. To put it another way, Princess Nali deliberately raised her voice so that everyone could hear that the two of them went to the lotus pond together."
Consort Luo nodded quickly, "Your Majesty is right. She deliberately wanted everyone to hear it so as to attract everyone's attention."
Princess Su frowned and shook her head, saying, "No! If that's really the case, wouldn't that contradict what you said before? You said she wanted to push you into the water, so why would she dig a hole for herself? If she wanted to harm you, she would naturally do it secretly, so why would she deliberately let others know?"
Princess Ming agreed, saying, "Aunt Wang is right. This doesn't make sense."
"Your Majesty, this girl is dead, but isn't there still Qiao'er?" Chunyu reminded her from the side.
Princess Su's eyes lit up. "That's right, and there's Qiao'er too. She must know something."
Soon, Qiao'er came over in clean, thick clothes. "Your Majesty, our concubine didn't want to go at the time, but Concubine Luo insisted on dragging us along. Moreover, she kept saying that she knew who caused our mistress's miscarriage, so our mistress had no choice but to go."
"You mean to say that it was actually Consort Luo who suggested going to the lotus pond first?"
"Your Majesty, that's right. Our concubine has been brooding over the pain of her miscarriage. When she heard Concubine Luo say that someone else was responsible for her harm, she naturally didn't want to miss this opportunity. However, she was also worried that Concubine Luo would take action against her, so she deliberately raised her voice to let everyone know that she was with Concubine Luo, so as to prevent Concubine Luo from having any more intentions to harm her."
Qiao'er wiped away her tears, "But I never expected that our mistress is still young and inexperienced. She was still outmaneuvered by Consort Luo."
"You're talking nonsense! She was the one who pushed me first. She got herself into the water, and she has no one to blame but herself."
"Consort Luo, although our consort has received the Emperor Emeritus's promise as his first consort, she has always been extremely respectful to you in the household. The Princess Consort can attest to this. Why would you go to such lengths to harm her?"
Princess Ming vaguely sensed that something was amiss. "Qiao'er, did you hear something?"
“Your Highness, I was following behind at the time and heard Consort Luo say, ‘Princess Nali, your enemy has never been me, but the Princess. The person with the most secure position in the Ming Prince’s Mansion is the Princess, and the one most capable of dealing with you is also the Princess. Therefore, if you want to gain a firm foothold in the Ming Prince’s Mansion, you must choose to join forces with me. Only in this way can you have the opportunity to stay by the Prince’s side for a long time.’”
Qiao'er's embellished words really surprised everyone.
Especially Consort Luo, who pointed at Qiao'er, was so angry that she could hardly speak.
"Qiao'er, you, you're just spouting nonsense! When did I ever say such a thing?"
"Hmph! Consort Luo, what goes around comes around. Did you ever say that the Princess Consort is our mistress's greatest enemy? In front of Her Majesty, do you dare to swear on the lives of everyone in the Luo family?"
This question successfully silenced Consort Luo.
Of course she wouldn't dare!
Although her words differed from Qiao'er's, the meaning was roughly the same.
Her hesitation alone was enough to convince everyone of Qiao'er's words.
Even Princess Ming, who previously only trusted Qiao'er three-tenths, now trusts her seven-tenths.
Mu Xin Nuan narrowed her eyes slightly. "Well, Consort Luo, I had no idea you were planning to become the Princess Consort of Ming. You actually dared to set your sights on me; you've certainly got some nerve."
"Your Majesty, I am innocent! I did not do it!"
Qiao'er cried pitifully and kowtowed heavily again. "Your Majesty, I went to change my clothes and went to the side hall first. I heard the imperial physician say that Consort Luo is seriously injured. If she had been rescued any later, she might have died. Your Majesty, our Consort Luo is naturally afraid of water. Why would she risk her own life to frame Consort Luo?"
Both Princess Su and Princess Ming frowned.
Consort Luo's account is clearly unreliable.
Nali was somewhat skilled in martial arts; if she really wanted to push Consort Luo into the water, it would be too easy for her. How could she possibly tire herself out and fall in herself?
But what if Consort Luo was plotting against her?
That also seems somewhat unlikely.
"Your Majesty, although I went to retrieve the jade hairpin, I was worried about Consort Luo, so I secretly kept an eye on both of you. It wasn't until I saw our mistress being forced closer and closer to the jade railing that I realized something was wrong, so I ran back as fast as I could. In that split second, I saw Consort Luo pull something off Consort Li's head, and our mistress tried to grab it, which is why she lost her balance. Consort Luo then took the opportunity to push her from behind, causing Consort Li to fall into the water."