Red Mansion and Crimson Pearl

Cao Feng, who was well versed in speaking, briefly explained what happened in the hall to Daiyu and Feng Tang, and then carefully repeated what Xie Changqing had said, and then asked them:

"Which one of these is real?"

Daiyu then looked at Feng Tang.

Feng Tang pressed the wound on his waist, took a breath, and grimaced: "Princess, please tell me, this old man is in great pain."

Is this because you don't want to expose your shortcomings and want to cover them up?

Daiyu rolled her eyes in her heart, but she had to speak up: "It's not much of a fabrication.

“Everything is there, but there is a slight difference in the number of people and the timing.

"Xia Shouzhong had entered the palace last night, pretending to bring his relatives to confront the Empress.

"After the confrontation, he was still loyal and obedient... Prince Ang was careful and felt that the number of people escorting them into the palace was a bit too large, and it seemed that something was wrong with what he saw when he first met them.

"The palace gates were already locked, so the people couldn't get out. General Feng pointed to a few empty houses outside the city wall for them to stay in temporarily.

"Prince Ang did not dare to report it rashly. He led his team to secretly investigate for most of the night, and finally arrested the thieves and the insiders who were in contact with them one by one in the early morning."

Cao Feng laughed in silence: "It turned out to be the prince of Zhongshun family, who cut off the retreat of Prince Yu?"

Daiyu smiled slightly, glanced at Feng Tang who was feeling a little uncomfortable, and continued:

"Later, the Queen went mad in Kunning Palace and ordered Su Hong to be released. She also asked Su Hong to send General Feng and me over, saying that she had a decree from the Queen to announce.

"I had just returned and had just sent away Concubine Yang's people from the Treasure Mirror Palace. Su Hong rushed over with injuries on her body and face...

“It was then that I realized that Su Hong had already started working for the emperor last fall.

“According to Aunt Su, our Queen Wan is truly devoted to Your Majesty.

"As long as the women in the world don't compete with her for the favor of His Majesty, she really doesn't care about her family or other people.

“It’s just that His Majesty has always treated the harem equally.

“Plus, she herself had never been pregnant, and after being boasted to by several ladies who had children, she began to have evil thoughts.

"She didn't ask for this matter on her own initiative. Instead, Uncle Wan complained to Prince Zhongshun in some way, and Prince Zhongshun took the initiative to 'find a way' and planted some spies.

"In the mind of our queen, the only role of these spies in the palace is to do things for her, such as keeping an eye on the whereabouts of the emperor, monitoring the evil deeds of the concubines, and punishing those who don't know what's good for them, etc.

“But we all know that these spies who entered the palace through the connections of the Wan family and the prince’s palace under the pretext of sending people to the queen, actually belong to Prince Zhongshun.

"Su Hong also said that the Queen was becoming increasingly perverted and violent. If the dietary imbalance mentioned by Imperial Doctor Wang was the main cause, then that would be unbelievable.

"She's just afraid there's something else we haven't found out."

After a pause, she sighed softly, "She said that among the Queen's diet, the only thing she loves is making tea, which she has had since she was a child.

"And the queen doesn't like to drink plain drinks, but she loves to make tea. So she can't do without the dragon and phoenix tea tribute from Fujian.

"Just yesterday, Master Zhitong sent someone to ask me, saying that Wang Ziteng shut everyone up with the phrase 'Twenty years ago, Fujian Dragon and Phoenix Tea', and asked me if I knew why.

"As soon as I heard Su Hong's words, I roughly guessed something and asked someone to quickly inform Master Zhitong."

The East King's fingers tightened, gripping the armrest of the chair, gritted his teeth and whispered: "Depose the Crown Prince first, my useless son-in-law has a pet who is good at making tea!"

That's right.

After all, Cao Feng was young and knew limited things about what had happened before, so he remained silent and just listened.

Prince Dun, on the other hand, felt his scalp tingle when he heard this, and he muttered quietly, "No way? Why would Prince Yu harm Queen Wan?"

Daiyu glanced at him and said nothing.

When the matter became connected, Chu Kui began to think something was wrong and told Daiyu: The Seventh Prince's biological mother, Concubine Wu, died in a very horrible way.

At that time, everyone in the palace knew that it must be poisoning. However, the Imperial Hospital conducted many tests in the palace and could not find out where the poison came from.

But when Daiyu inquired about the circumstances of Concubine Wu's death, she found out that it was the strange poison in the pomegranate that caused the disaster.

Therefore, if Prince Yu killed Concubine Wu first, the Seventh Prince would either be raised by the childless Queen Wan, or would most likely end up with Jia Yuanchun in Fengzao Palace.

But Empress Wan was infatuated with Emperor Zhaoming, and the Wan family was a descendant of Prince Zhongshun. How could Prince Yu keep her? !

This is why the influence of Dragon and Phoenix Tea on Empress Wan became increasingly greater.

Sure enough, the seventh prince entered Fengzao Palace.

It's a pity that Jia Yuanchun has a cold personality and doesn't even bother to compete for favor. If it weren't for her mother and uncle's explicit and implicit advice, she might have taken the position of concubine and received a salary, and then she would have tuned the zither and chanted Buddhist scriptures, and lived a life of retirement.

Daiyu pondered this in her mind, and waited until those people gave up probing the matter before continuing:

"Su Hong gave me a list of the spies that Prince Zhongshun had placed in the palace. We thought that even if it wasn't complete, it should be at least 80% of the list.

"General Feng followed the map and cleared out many of King Zhongshun's men.

"The people living near the city wall found that they could not contact their accomplices, so they bravely risked their lives to break into the palace, but were caught in the trap by General Feng."

Cao Feng listened attentively and could not help asking, "What about Xia Shouzhong and his relatives?"

"They were all shot to death." Feng Tang touched the bandage on his waist carelessly, his eyes flashing with pride and satisfaction, "Under that situation, how could the crossbowmen tell who was who?

“Besides, since he entered the palace with the rebels and obeyed them all the time without alerting the palace, he must be an accomplice.

"It's not an unjust death."

Daiyu was in a trance for a moment.

So, Sun Shaozu, who tortured the second sister to death in the previous life, Xia Jingui, who bullied Xiangling to death, and the "Fu Shi" who fawned on the powerful, all died silently, in a corner where no one knew, with thousands of arrows piercing their hearts?

She let out a long, gentle sigh of relief.

"As for clearing out the thieves in the harem, it is left to the heads of each palace to do."

Feng Tang heard her sigh and knew that she was in a complicated mood, so he took over the conversation, "I didn't hear any big noise elsewhere.

"Only the Baojing Palace was in chaos.

“I heard that when Concubine Yang came to the palace, she first tied up several of the most beautiful women in her palace, and then tied up the fourth prince’s wet nurse.

"There were thirteen or fourteen masters and servants in total, and she drove seven of them out for me to question."

"It's just a good excuse to change people." Prince Dun waved his hand nonchalantly, "The whole Yang family is like this, they are short-sighted.

"Don't worry too much. Those who can be found will be killed, and those who cannot be found will be detained. We will talk about it after His Majesty returns."

He hurriedly interrupted them and said with a sad face, "I want to ask, if His Majesty can't come back at noon, then the Linde Palace will host a banquet for foreign tribes, doesn't that mean the Third Prince will have to go there?"

How can I tell the Third Prince that half of what I just said was false?

How was he going to explain to the ministers at the luncheon that this young eunuch was just talking nonsense in Hanyuan Hall? !

Xie Changqing then made a bitter face, shrank his neck and hid back.