novelaction Chapter 219 Frame-up
Chapter 219 Frame-up
The atmosphere in the banquet hall was tense and solemn.
The Royal Guards were on high alert, stopping all the people attending the banquet and conducting thorough interrogations.
The eldest prince tried to leave with the princess, but was decisively stopped by the royal guards.
The eldest prince's face was gloomy, with a flash of anger in his eyes. He scolded: "How dare you stop me, my prince? You are simply courting death."
Xiao Qi, the commander of the Imperial Guards, remained expressionless. "It is my duty, Your Highness. Please cooperate. If Your Highness insists on leaving, I will not stop him. I will personally report this to the Emperor, and I ask His Majesty to make the final decision."
Xiao Qi is impartial and only obeys the emperor's orders. Although the eldest prince is arrogant and domineering, he is still afraid of the emperor and can only stay and cooperate with the investigation.
The princess seemed a little panicked and held the eldest prince's arm tightly.
The second prince and his princess consort cooperated with the investigation, and looked at the eldest prince who was arrogant but did not dare to disobey his father's orders, with a sneer on his face.
Concubine He and several imperial concubines were no exception. They stood aside with different expressions on their faces.
Concubine He glanced at the nanny behind her, who gave her a reassuring look, and she immediately felt much more at ease.
The other imperial concubines were whispering to each other.
Shangguan Rui sat in a wheelchair and Shen Xue stood beside him. Although the two did not communicate, a glance was enough to reassure each other.
At this moment, a Royal Guard came running over and whispered something in Xiao Qi's ear. Xiao Qi's face changed and he shouted, "Bring her up here."
The Royal Guards came over with a palace maid. Everyone focused their attention on the palace maid, who came forward in panic.
"Who is she?"
"It was a young maid from Concubine Lin's palace. She initially brought a poisoned silver needle to Princess Ya'an to help Concubine Hui, but Princess Ya'an had her own silver needle and didn't use her poison needle. She took advantage of the situation and scattered the beads on the steps, causing the sedan chair bearers to fall."
The maid collapsed to the ground and kowtowed repeatedly: "I was ordered by others, this was not my intention."
Everyone was in an uproar, wondering who was behind this.
Xiao Qi said sternly, "Tell me who is behind this. If you tell even a single lie, I will not forgive you."
The maid pointed at Concubine Lin, trembling. "It's Concubine Lin. She's threatening my whole family's lives. I have no choice but to obey her orders, otherwise my whole family will suffer."
When Concubine Lin heard this, her face turned pale in an instant, and she hurriedly defended herself: "When did I ever order you to do anything? You lowly maid, don't slander me. Although I punished you last time, you can't frame me."
"You resent Concubine Hui for stealing your favor, and now she's pregnant with an heir. You're worried the prince will overshadow you, so you ordered me to cause her to miscarry. After she miscarries, you'll release my entire family, reward me with five hundred taels of silver, and allow me to leave the palace and reunite with my family."
The Imperial Guards found five hundred taels of silver on the servant and handed it to Xiao Qi, "Commander, these five hundred taels of silver were found on the servant."
"Commander Xiao, don't listen to this bitch's nonsense. I have never intended to harm Concubine Hui. Even if Concubine Hui gave birth to a prince, it has nothing to do with me. Why would I cause her to have a miscarriage?"
"Commander Xiao, I have a few more poison needles that Concubine Lin gave me in my quarters."
Xiao Qi gave a wink, and the Imperial Guards immediately went to search. Not long after, they indeed brought back several identical poison needles.
Seeing this, Concubine Lin glared at the servant angrily, "Commander Xiao, even if this silver needle was found in my room, it doesn't mean anything."
"Empress Lin, please go see the Emperor! Please let the Emperor make the decision."
The imperial guards carried Concubine Lin towards the main hall.
Xiao Qi also ordered the Royal Guards to search the banquet hall for any missed clues.
Lin Xiya, the daughter of the Minister of Revenue, was terrified. If her elder sister really murdered the imperial concubine and the heir, the Lin family would be doomed.
Everyone looked at Lin Xiya in amazement, as if she were a terrible plague god, and kept a distance from her for fear of being implicated.
Several imperial concubines watched in shock as Concubine Lin was taken away by the imperial guards, secretly thanking their lucky stars that they did not get too close to her.
They showed an expression of watching a show again, whispering to each other, and guessing that the fate of the Lin family had ended here.
Lin Xiya stood there, her face pale, her eyes filled with despair and fear.
Seeing this, everyone was frightened and left the palace.
Concubine He glanced at Shen Xue and thought to herself, "You've ruined my plans. I'll deal with you sooner or later."
Shen Xue stood aside, looking at Shangguan Rui. He comforted her softly, "Don't be afraid. It's okay. I'll go see the emperor, and Su Yu will take you back home."
"I'll go see how Concubine Hui is doing."
"Beize will take Xiaoxue to Concubine Hui's palace. We'll meet at the palace gate later."
"it is good."
Bei Ze brought Shen Xue to Hui Fei's "Ying Hua Palace" and the maid went in to report. Soon Chun Lan came out, "Princess Ya'an, the queen also ordered me to go to the banquet hall to check the situation. I didn't expect you to come."
"How is your Majesty?"
"The queen was frightened."
Shen Xue entered Concubine Hui's bedroom and saw her lying there quietly. Her complexion had improved a lot. Shen Xue hurried forward and felt Concubine Hui's pulse, asking with concern: "Your Majesty, are you feeling unwell?"
Concubine Hui shook her head gently. "I'm fine, just a little weak. Imperial Physician Chen prescribed me a pregnancy-maintaining medicine, but I haven't taken it yet. I'll take it after you come over for the checkup."
"I followed the imperial physician's instructions and ate my meal. Why am I experiencing signs of miscarriage?"
Shen Xue quickly used a silver needle to test the poison, and only after confirming that there was nothing wrong with the pregnancy-preserving medicine did Concubine Hui dare to drink it.
"I'm curious too. The last time I took your pulse, the prince in your belly was healthy. Why are you showing signs of miscarriage in less than a month?"
"What do you usually eat and use? Is there anything unusual?"
"Chunlan, tell Xiaoxue all the good food I eat every day."
Chunlan took out a stack of papers, which clearly recorded Concubine Hui's meals and daily life. "Master Ya'an, this is your Majesty's daily meals. I have recorded them clearly in the book."
Shen Xue looked at the food and didn't think anything was wrong, but when she saw the almonds, hawthorns, and fungus, her expression instantly became serious.
Concubine Hui anxiously asked, "Xiaoxue, is there any problem with my meal?"
"Almonds contain highly toxic substances. If consumed for a long time, the fetus will suffocate and die."
"Fish is cold in nature, and eating it for a long time can cause abortion."
"There's also black fungus, which has the effect of promoting blood circulation and removing blood stasis, but it's not conducive to the fixation and growth of the embryo and can also easily lead to miscarriage. If these three foods are consumed at the same time, it won't be long before the fetus is lost or even stillborn."
Concubine Hui was horrified when she heard this. "I didn't know these foods were so dangerous. I usually eat according to the imperial physician's instructions."
Shen Xue frowned and pondered, "Don't panic, Your Majesty. This matter still needs to be reported to the Emperor, who needs to investigate carefully. I believe someone knew the characteristics of these ingredients and deliberately included them in the meal."
Shen Xue looked through Chunlan's dietary records and carefully examined them, feeling somewhat relieved. "Don't worry, Your Majesty. Fortunately, this diet was only used for ten days. The first signs of miscarriage were discovered. If it had been used continuously for less than a month, it would have definitely resulted in miscarriage."
"During this period, you should stay in bed and rest. Wait until the fetal position stabilizes before getting out of bed. Get more rest, don't overwork, and be more careful about your diet.
Concubine Hui nodded, her eyes full of gratitude: "Xiaoxue, I praise you today, otherwise the consequences can be imagined."
"That's what you should do. Be more careful next time."
"Tell Chunlan all the taboos. From now on, let her cook my meals herself to prevent this from happening again."
"I'll write it down and give it to Chunlan right away."
"it is good."
"Have you found out who it is?"
"Princess Lin."
Concubine Hui was surprised and said, "Is it her? I have never had any contact with her. Why would she harm me? She only has one third princess, and my pregnancy has nothing to do with her."
"That slave girl insisted that you had taken away her favor, so she wanted to harm you."
"She was an unfavored concubine before I entered the palace, otherwise she wouldn't have been a concubine forever."
Concubine Hui gently stroked her abdomen, with a hint of anxiety in her eyes.
Shen Xue softly comforted her, "Your Majesty, please don't be too anxious. This is not good for you or the prince in your belly. The most important thing for you now is to take good care of the baby. The Emperor will make the final decision on what is right and wrong."
Concubine Hui nodded slightly. After a moment's silence, she said softly, "I always feel that this matter is not that simple. Maybe someone is deliberately looking for a scapegoat to take the blame."
"Your Majesty, please don't overthink it. The Emperor will definitely investigate. You should stay calm now. This will be good for the fetus."
Concubine Hui sighed, "I know that, but I always feel uneasy."