AWB Chapter 454 It's Me
Chapter 454 It's Me
"His Majesty has sealed off the inner palace, forbidding anyone from entering or leaving. Moreover, there are more guards at our palace gate than in other places..." The nanny sensed something was amiss and immediately reported.
"Does His Majesty suspect that you orchestrated this? Your Highness, you must find a way to clear your name!"
"How could it be me? I stayed in the palace and didn't go anywhere, nor did I see anyone." Consort Yu didn't care about this matter at all. She wasn't even qualified to attend palace banquets, so how could she have the leisure to do such a thing?
"You've met Wei Gongming, who accompanies the Third Prince, and you've also met the young mistress of the Right Chancellor's residence." The nanny was referring to Jiang Yunjiao, who had pleaded with Consort Yu to arrange for her to play the zither at the palace banquet.
“How could a mere maid like her do such a thing? Besides, it wouldn’t benefit her at all. That Wei Gongming, he’s the third prince’s closest confidant. The third prince has already joined forces with the Chu Emperor, how could it be him? Even if he wanted to deceive, he wouldn’t have the ability, and it wouldn’t benefit him at all…” Consort Yu naturally didn’t believe it either.
“Don’t underestimate this heir of the Marquis of Zhenning. His return this time is very strange. He only met you once, but he has been following the Emperor of Chu ever since. Isn’t that too obvious?” The old woman didn’t believe him.
"You mean, he could have betrayed the third prince?" Consort Yu thought the old woman was making a fuss over nothing. "If you ask me, it's because the Empress knew about the affair between the Emperor and the third prince, so she secretly poisoned him. But could she frame me? Yes, I must see His Majesty to clear my name!"
“But we can’t get out right now, and you shouldn’t take this matter lightly…” The old woman’s voice softened a bit, “And this old servant heard that the Duchess went to the Royal Garden to investigate Eunuch Hua.”
"The Chu Emperor went to the royal garden at the invitation of Jiang Yunjiao."
Therefore, no matter how you look at it, this matter is inextricably linked to Consort Yu.
Moreover, it was indeed Consort Yu who ordered Eunuch Hua to deal with Song Ziwen, but it wasn't out of great ambition or scheming; rather, it was because Song Ziwen refused to give her a carved dressing table flower.
"But I was only angry that Song Ziwen refused to help with the carving. I only asked Eunuch Hua to give him a scolding. I didn't tell him to kill Liu Yuechu!" Consort Yu began to try to salvage the situation.
"Moreover, why would Jiang Yunjiao invite the Emperor of Chu? This is not what I intended."
"All they ever do is cause me trouble! Can't they let me have a few peaceful days?" Consort Yu, who had just been nonchalant, became increasingly worried as she thought about it.
The palace is prone to creating trouble out of nothing, and it's impossible for major issues to be downplayed. Even trivial matters tend to escalate, and the matter won't be considered settled until several lives are lost.
“You think it’s not a big deal, but if Her Majesty the Empress finds out, who knows if it will add fuel to the fire? Besides, you can’t make a hasty judgment about what really happened. What if Liu Yuechu finds out that Eunuch Hua gave money to the Third Prince…” The nanny dared not continue.
That would further suggest that Qin Muyan is plotting a rebellion, something Emperor Qi Xiao would absolutely not tolerate!
Upon hearing these words, Consort Yu felt a chill run through her heart.
If we follow the old woman's explanation, perhaps it really is just that Eunuch Hua is acting on his own whims, and he's going to make a scene that could end in a fight to the death.
"Have Xiao Nanzi crawl out through the dog hole and find Wei Gongming as soon as possible to find out exactly what happened. Also, we must silence Eunuch Hua and destroy all his accounts."
"He must also contact the Left Chancellor's office to keep an eye on the Empress's every move. The Empress and the Third Prince absolutely cannot be made scapegoats!"
"This matter may not be so easily resolved; it may be the final contest between me and the Empress!"
……
The Jade Consort's words were relayed.
The trusted eunuch, Xiao Nanzi, immediately took action.
He was young and thin, and had even practiced bone-shrinking techniques, so he could squeeze through a dog hole only as wide as a palm. After escaping, he went to deliver a message to Wei Gongming.
At this time, Wei Gongming was on the banks of the Jing River, delivering a message for Qin Muyan.
His letter stated that the Chu Emperor and Liu Yuechu had both perished in the fire in the royal gardens, and that everything was done, so they could inform the Chu Kingdom to join forces in seizing the throne.
Seeing Xiao Nanzi sent by Consort Yu, he said calmly, "Please rest assured, Consort Yu, you only need to wait peacefully in the palace. You don't need to worry about anything else."
"Her Majesty also hopes you will contact the Left Chancellor's office to prevent Her Majesty and the Third Prince from being framed by the Empress." Xiao Nanzi carefully relayed the message, afraid of forgetting anything. He was covered in dirt and filth, after all, crawling out of the dog hole was no easy feat.
Wei Gongming glanced at him, his tone very calm, "There's no scapegoating. It was the Third Prince who ordered it."
Xiao Nanzi: "???" He was dumbfounded, staring blankly for a long time, his astonished eyes almost popping out of their sockets. "This, how can this be..."
“The Third Prince did not join forces with the Emperor of Chu at all. On the contrary, he conspired with the eldest prince of Chu, Chu Lan, to assassinate the Emperor of Chu, supporting each other.” Wei Gongming’s tone was very soft, almost as if he were talking to himself. “The reason I told Consort Yu that the Third Prince was in league with the Emperor of Chu was to prevent her from revealing the truth in her haste and ruining the Third Prince’s grand plan.”
"But...but Her Highness is still in the palace. If His Majesty finds out something, wouldn't that be extremely dangerous? We must also silence Eunuch Hua, and there are the accounts..." Xiao Nanzi was somewhat panicked.
He was young, and his voice was extremely high-pitched. His piercing scream sounded like a needle scratching on a metal plate, making it particularly unpleasant to hear.
"Her Majesty has enjoyed much happiness over the years. Now, for her son to ascend the throne, isn't it worth taking a little risk?" Wei Gongming looked at Xiao Nanzi. "You don't think it's worth it?"
Xiao Nanzi could no longer speak.
As he was shocked, he felt a sharp pain in his throat, followed by a gush of blood. Wei Gongming had already slit his throat with a knife hidden in his sleeve.
He couldn't possibly tell Consort Yu what he had just said, and he certainly couldn't return to the palace.
Wei Gongming dragged Xiao Nanzi and threw him directly into the river where they met. He watched him run away into the distance with the swift current before taking out a handkerchief to wipe his hands and throwing it into the river as well.
He glanced again at the garden fire that was gradually dying down in the distance, and muttered to himself, "What a madman!" He didn't know if he was talking about himself or someone else.
At this point, Yuan Cuo had completely gone mad.
With the fire still raging, he rushed into the garden to search for Liu Yuechu.
The guards didn't dare to delay and rushed in to search everywhere, but unfortunately, they couldn't find Liu Yuechu anywhere, and even the Chu Emperor was nowhere to be found.
Song Liu'er, who had accompanied Liu Yuechu to the garden, burst into tears and knelt on the charred charcoal, refusing to get up. "It's all my fault! Why did I let my master come to the garden to handle things? That person is dead, so what? What does it have to do with me! I'm the one who killed my master. I can never repay this debt, even if I die!"