0p0 Chapter 540: Is the appeal over?
Chapter 540: Is the appeal over?
In Kunning Palace, the queen was pruning branches.
Eunuch He frowned and hurried over to report, "Your Majesty, the Imperial Guards just reported that the Princess is kneeling in front of the South Gate, accusing you and the Duke of plotting to murder Your Majesty's siblings. What should we do?"
The queen paused while cutting the branches, and accidentally cut her finger with the scissors, causing her to gasp in pain.
Ignoring the wound on her hand, the queen stood there in a daze, allowing the bright red liquid to drip into the flower bud and seep in.
It felt like something was slipping away in my heart.
"Miss!"
Aunt Cui, who was standing by, quickly took out a handkerchief to bandage the queen's wound and called to the serving maid, "Quickly call the imperial physician!"
The queen looked at the bloodstains remaining on the petals, and felt inexplicably uneasy and infinitely sad.
"She didn't even ask a single question, and she directly sued me. She completely disregarded the kindness I'd shown her over the years of raising me."
Nanny Cui carefully bandaged the queen's wound, and she did not forget to comfort her: "Your Majesty, the princess is acting like this because she does not understand your painstaking efforts. If she did, she would definitely not do this."
The queen frowned.
Although she had expected this, she never imagined that Yue'er would be so decisive.
Eunuch He paced anxiously and asked again, "Your Majesty, what should we do now? His Majesty has already summoned the princess, but she is threatening her life by insisting on a public inspection of the artifact. What should we do? How about I go and persuade her?"
The queen looked at the bandaged finger. Some blood had seeped out of the white silk handkerchief, staining it.
She said quietly, "It's okay, everything has been arranged."
Eunuch He looked puzzled.
Aunt Cui explained, "That evidence doesn't prove anything. Let them examine it."
Hearing her say this, Eunuch He finally breathed a sigh of relief, but with lingering fear, he said, "Your Majesty is indeed far-sighted. As long as nothing happens, it's good. As long as nothing happens, it's good."
*
Zhang Zhong and Duan Xu came to the south gate together. Su Lingyue was still kneeling there holding the blood-stained clothes. Her slender back was straight. She looked weak but tough.
Perhaps because she had been kneeling for too long, a thin layer of sweat covered her forehead.
Not far behind her, her maid stood there, her eyes full of worry but she did not come forward.
Zhang Zhong stepped forward and nodded slightly. "Princess, we two are here to inspect the artifacts under the orders of His Majesty."
Su Lingyue held the blood-stained clothes and supported her knees with one hand, trying to get up, but her legs were numb from kneeling for too long and she couldn't move at all.
Seeing this, Caiyi hurried forward to help Su Lingyue up.
Holding Caiyi's arm, Su Lingyue barely stood firm and handed the blood-stained shirt in his hand to Zhang Zhong and Duan Xu.
"My Lords, these two blood-stained robes belong to me and the prince respectively. Please take a look."
Zhang Zhong and Duan Xu took the bloody shirt and took turns looking at it, but they couldn't figure out what it was.
Duan Xu asked, "The princess said this was evidence that the queen and Su Xiang murdered the prince. How can you prove it?"
Su Lingyue took two steps with the help of Caiyi and walked in front of Duan Xu. She gently patted her blood-stained clothes twice, and a little fine powder appeared on her hands.
"Yesterday, the Queen sent someone to bring me to the palace to choose a birthday gift. This is almost an annual custom. Dinner was served in the Queen's palace. During the meal, a maid accidentally soiled my dress. The Queen then asked her personal nanny to find this dress for me."
"The powder on it is the evil cause that caused the prince to vomit blood."
Duan Xu ordered the imperial guards beside him, "Go and inform His Majesty and ask the imperial physician to come over."
Su Lingyue said, "Doctor Zhang was once ordered to deliver medicine to the prince, so he has a certain understanding of the prince's condition and the medicine he takes on a daily basis."
Duan Xu nodded to the soldiers.
Doctor Zhang came over quickly, listened to Su Lingyue's description, took the clothes, shook out the powder from inside and began to check.
Smelled, crushed, tasted.
After a while of examination, Doctor Zhang frowned slightly.
Duan Xu asked, "Doctor Zhang, how is it?"
Doctor Zhang replied, "The powder is black vine powder, non-toxic."
Su Lingyue stared coldly into Doctor Zhang's eyes and said, "The prince's original medicine was given by Doctor Zhang. Doctor Zhang should know that this black vine is one of the ingredients of that medicine and is non-toxic to ordinary people. However, the prince drank the medicine sent by Doctor Zhang, and the black vine can trigger the residual toxicity of the medicine that the prince took. Is that right or not?"
Duan Xu has been handling cases for many years, and his keen insight allows him to quickly grasp the information in Su Lingyue's words.
Is the medicine that Imperial Doctor Zhang was ordered to give to Prince Su poisonous?
That is to say, it was His Majesty who gave Prince Su the poison!
Duan Xu's breathing stopped for a moment.
Su Lingyue's voice was not small, and her words fell clearly into the ears of the people around her.
Those who were quick-witted immediately sensed something wrong in Su Lingyue's words and began to discuss it privately.
Doctor Zhang looked at Su Lingyue with a frown, as if considering how to answer.
Su Lingyue didn't give him a chance to think and continued, "Your Majesty has been giving me medicine for many years. The cold poison in the prince's body has already penetrated deep into his bones. If Doctor Zhang refuses to tell the truth, Lord Duan and Lord Zhang can find other doctors or physicians to take the prince's pulse. They will know the truth from the doctor immediately. However, at this point, there is no need for Doctor Zhang to hide anything. What do you think?"
Seeing the discussions around him growing louder, Doctor Zhang began to feel scared.
The emperor did not give any special instructions, nor did he forbid him from speaking.
On the contrary, if the fact that the medicine was given as a gift became known to everyone, whether the emperor would blame him or not is another matter.
Imperial Physician Zhang spoke loudly, "The medicine I was ordered to deliver was a tonic brewed by the Imperial Hospital. As for where the prince's cold poison came from, I don't know. However, this black vine can indeed trigger the prince's cold symptoms."
He looked at Su Lingyue, his face clear of guilt, and said righteously, "But why there was black vine powder on the princess's clothes, we need to investigate."
With just one sentence, the suspicion was immediately directed at Su Lingyue.
Su Lingyue was not panicked at all.
His words "black vine can induce Xiao Yu's cold syndrome" are enough.
Su Lingyue looked at Duan Xu and Zhang Zhong and said, "The guards at the west gate can testify that when I entered the palace, I was wearing a crimson-purple dress and amethyst headpiece. When I left, I was wearing the goose-gold peony dress given by the Empress. As soon as I returned home, the black vines on my dress triggered the poison in the prince. Your Excellency can now question the guards on duty at the west gate yesterday."
Duan Xu ordered the imperial guards nearby, "Bring over the men who were on duty yesterday."
Soon, the soldiers who were on duty last night were brought in.
"Your Excellency, the princess wore purple clothes when she entered the palace and when she left last night."
"Indeed."
Others echoed.
Duan Xu frowned.
Glancing at those people.
They all hung their heads.
Su Lingyue clutched the blood-stained clothes tightly, her eyes growing colder.
It turned out that my aunt had already planned it out and even arranged the imperial guards.
I guess everyone in Kunning Palace has a mouth.
She looked at Duan Xu and Zhang Zhong, her eyes filled with scrutiny and pressure. "Master Zhang, Master Duan, are you going to investigate Kunning Palace?"
Zhang Zhong glanced at Duan Xu and bowed to Su Lingyue, "Of course, the procedure will not be changed."
Su Lingyue showed appreciation: "Very good, he is not afraid of power, he is a good official."
She looked at Duan Xu again, and said, with a desperate look, "Although there are no survivors, those assassins last night were raised by my father. If you have time, you can find out how many he has. If you can find out, I'm sure His Majesty will thank you."
"Well, I have said all I have to say today. I ask that you two report truthfully to His Majesty and restore justice to the prince as soon as possible."
Zhang Zhong and Duan Xu looked at Su Lingyue in surprise.
The princess made a big fuss, and it ended just like that?
Looking at Su Lingyue's indifferent expression, it seemed that this public appeal was indeed over.