The Legend of the Concubine in the Harem

The Duke of Ying was stunned for a moment. He had never expected that the emperor would still remember him. He had only echoed the Marquis of Yuyang's words...

He thought about his eldest daughter who was currently attending a funeral, his grandson who had been indicated to be granted the title of a prince, his fourth daughter who was about to enter the palace as a female official, and his fifth daughter who was about to become a concubine... Duke Yingguo felt that although he had spoken, he had been deceived by treacherous people like Minister Cao and Marquis Yuyang. Even if everyone present today had to be convicted by the furious emperor, he should be the one with the least guilt.

The news of Miss Deng Si's death was kept secret in the Cining Palace and was not known to outsiders or family members. Before the sisters entered the palace, Duke Ying did give Miss Deng Si a few words of advice and told her the names of some influential female officials and eunuchs in his family in the palace. However, she was killed by the backlash of the panel at night. Her two younger sisters who lived in the same palace with her were never allowed to come into contact with the family's secret arrangements, and they had no ability to spread the news of Deng Si's death out of the palace.

Duke Ying, who knew nothing about this, immediately changed his previous position and no longer joined Marquis Yuyang and others in attacking the queen. Instead, he carefully replied, "Your Majesty is wise. The traitor Shen is guilty of a crime that cannot be punished. This traitor is cunning and has spread rumors and pretended to be a prophecy on the stone tablet. He is really bold. But since the rumors have been spread, I think we should find out the truth and make it public before the rumors cause irreversible consequences, so that this traitor's evil plan to slander the Queen Mother will not succeed."

His ability to adapt to changing circumstances was not weak at all, and Xie Yuzhen was secretly amazed - no wonder the Duke of England was as stupid as a pig but had a powerful weapon in his hand that was enough to threaten the emperor, and the emperor was still in a mood to play tricks on him leisurely.

The emperor is unruly by nature, and in addition to capable and virtuous ministers who can help him govern the country and ensure the safety of the people, he also needs jesters who can amuse him, flatter him, and stand up at the first opportunity to act according to his wishes.

But the Duke of England probably hasn't realized at this moment that the Emperor no longer wants to have fun with him.

"Go and ask my mother to come back. I will explain everything that happened today to her." The emperor glanced at Duke Ying and said, "Li Zong, go and see where the Jinwu Guards who searched and caught thieves in these people's homes have gone."

"Yes." Although Li Zong is a little older, his legs and feet are still very nimble.

At least he was much more efficient than the Duke of England, who had not been able to get a response from the emperor and whose legs began to tremble uncontrollably as he gradually realized that something was wrong.

Seeing this, Xie Yuzhen felt much relieved.

The Jinghe Stone Stele was made by the Queen's order, and several people who were familiar with water from King Dongxiang's old subordinates were sent to place it in the Jinghe River. The official in charge of repairing and dredging the section of the river where the stone stele was placed seemed to have little to do with the Marquis Yuyang's Mansion, but in fact he got the position by bribing one of Marquis Yuyang's concubines, who then whispered in Marquis Yuyang's ear.

After this incident, this man spread the word that he was the sworn brother of the concubine of the marquis's mansion and demanded bribes from people living around the river section. He only calmed down after being reprimanded by the inspecting superior.

The Jinwu Guards handle cases very quickly.

The incident happened in the early morning and it is now almost noon.

The so-called "poisoned wine" and "witnesses from that year" prepared in advance by Marquis Yuyang and his men were all brought to the Lizheng Hall.

The emperor's move made those officials who originally had no intention of getting involved realize that something big might happen next.

Stepping down from the throne, the emperor personally picked up the jug of poisoned wine and weighed it: "Purple-red Huaying is my father's favorite imperial wine, but this wine is not easy to brew. In addition, during the reign of the previous emperor, officials from various places occupied farmland in order to pick fruits and make wine for tribute, so that the people had no land to plant and could not pay taxes. Countless people starved to death or went into the mountains to become bandits..."

"After I ascended the throne, I ordered all orchards to be destroyed, and the properties of those corrupt officials who flattered the emperor were confiscated and distributed to the common people. Dasheng Winery is no longer allowed to brew this wine from now on... The purple-red Huaying wine in stock at that time was also buried with the late emperor." He opened the lid of the wine pot and took a look inside. "It's really hard for you. After more than ten years, you can still find the brewing recipe of purple-red Huaying wine. Look at the color. This wine has been brewed for a long time."

"It can be seen that you have been harboring evil intentions for a long time." The emperor thought that this matter was most likely spread by the Meng family, who had been concubines for generations. He immediately felt that his punishment of this family was too lenient. He only killed the members of the Meng family. If he had known that this family would be involved in so many things, he should have exterminated all three clans.

Then, the winery where Marquis Yuyang secretly brewed wine, the craftsmen he privately employed, and the pharmacist who made poison for him were also interrogated.

These so-called "evidence" that were originally intended to bring down the Queen from the throne eventually became evidence of Marquis Yuyang's unforgivable guilt.

Compared to the Marquis Yuyang who had lost all hope, the Duke of Yingguo, who had been maintaining a salute posture and had not been paid attention to by the emperor for a long time, was not yet desperate, but was also completely gripped by fear.

He really couldn't understand what he had done wrong.

The daughter who caused trouble in the harem died.

The daughter holding a powerful weapon in her hand turned herself in.

He and his sons resigned from their positions.

Why does the emperor look like he is still angry with his family?

Hasn’t it been…already reconciled and over?

Just when the Duke of England was feeling very nervous, Empress Dowager Hu arrived.

She did not have the empress dowager's formal dress, and still looked like an ordinary old lady. However, her expression was not as relaxed and happy as usual. Instead, the corners of her eyes and mouth were drooping, and the clothes she wore were dark and without patterns. It was obvious that she had already known about the "death" of Empress Ning and Concubine Ning.

Although Empress Dowager Hu usually appeared to be very kind, as an elder, she never showed such obvious grief when either Concubine Song or Concubine Deng died.

"Your Majesty, I know everything about today's events." She glanced at Xie Yuzhen and said, "I really don't know how to explain what happened back then. You gentlemen have been busy with this matter until now. It's already past noon. I'm sure you must be hungry. Why don't we let them take turns to have their meals first?"

The emperor was still playing with the jug filled with poisoned wine in his hand. He nodded and said, "Mother, you are right. I was not thoughtful enough."

This was of course just a polite remark. The so-called rotation in dining actually just meant clearing out all the minor officials who did not hold high positions, and leaving high-ranking officials with enough weight present, so as to confirm the authenticity of what was to be announced next and avoid the spread of this royal scandal as much as possible.

Obviously, compared to the emperor who had gone crazy and wanted to strip his father of his underwear, Empress Dowager Hu still had some rationality and wanted to maintain the face of the royal family.

Most of the palace maids and officials had left, leaving only the ministers of various ministries and a few elderly scholars.

The post of prime minister was not established in the Dasheng Dynasty. In the past, there was a Shangshu Ling who was above the six ministers, but it was abolished in this dynasty. In the past, in addition to the ministers of various ministries, there were also old ministers who retired from various ministries and held the empty title of doctor, also known as the Bachelor of Political Science, who would discuss politics.