Professional Ethics of a Concubine

Regarding the matter of Lin Qingwan and the child, Ye Qingzhi asked Nanny Zhang beside her, and Prince Jing went directly to find Xie Mingli.

Xie Mingli also worked in the Ministry of Revenue. Relying on his relationship with the Marquis's Mansion, the emperor's appreciation, and his ability to get things done, he was promoted to the position of Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue within eight years of entering the officialdom.

His immediate superior is Minister Chen.

Before Xie Jin returned to the royal family, Xie Mingli was someone that Shangshu Chen was trying to win over. He was very kind to Xie Jin at work and always wanted to develop him into his confidant and bring him into the prince's camp.

However, after Xie Jin became Prince Jing, Xie Mingli could only belong to Prince Jing's faction and stood on the opposite side of Minister Chen.

Although he could still maintain his reputation while working in the government office, Minister Chen would occasionally make things difficult for Xie Mingli or ask him to do dirty, tiring and offensive work.

What's even more outrageous is that Minister Chen was particularly insidious and asked his subordinates to chat about some gossip about favoring concubines and neglecting wives in front of Xie Mingli, which was to secretly mock him and rub salt into his wounds.

Working in the yamen every day is a torture for Xie Mingli. When he returns to the Marquis' Mansion, he will think of the bad things he did to Lin Qingwan, which is also torture.

Therefore, in just two or three months, Xie Mingli was tortured by the remorse and pain in his heart and became unrecognizable.

He was alive, but he was just living in pain.

Today is the 28th day of the twelfth lunar month. Because of the incident in which Chen Guangyao stabbed Xie Yongsheng, the Emperor became ill from anger. Yesterday he announced that he would move to the hot spring villa for recuperation and handed over all affairs to the Crown Prince.

Minister Chen was at the center of the incident. He was so overwhelmed that he had no time to take care of the affairs of the Ministry of Revenue. He asked his subordinates to handle the matters that needed to be handled and gave them holidays.

So, Xie Mingli did not go to the Ministry of Revenue today, but stayed in the Marquis' Mansion.

The Pingnan Marquis's Mansion is now headed by Jiang Rou, the wife of the second wife. Moreover, there is no Zhao Xinlan to cause trouble. After a few months of experience, she has been able to handle all matters in an orderly manner.

Now that the Chinese New Year is approaching, except for Xie Mingli's yard, all other places are decorated with lights and full of the festive atmosphere of the New Year.

It is impossible for other people in the mansion to be immersed in the pain of Lin Qingwan's death like Xie Mingli. It has been more than a year, so they should just live their lives as usual.

Prince Jing entered the Marquis of Pingnan's mansion and did not allow anyone to follow him. He came to Xie Mingli's study as if he knew the place well.

"I have met His Highness."

Xie Mingli heard the sound of a door being pushed open, raised his eyelids and looked over. Seeing it was Prince Jing, he slowly stood up and greeted him, with an expressionless face the whole time.

If you say that he is neither humble nor arrogant and is calm and composed, that is absolutely not the case. He is like this because he has lost all desire in life and doesn't care about anything.

"Look at you, you look like a dead man. It's unlucky to see you too much!" King Jing was a little angry when he saw his cowardly look, and said in a cold voice,

"The person is dead, who are you showing this regretful look to? Even if Lin Qingwan came back to life and could see it, do you think she would forgive you for the stupid things you did?"

"I do not ask for forgiveness." Xie Mingli's face finally showed a different expression. He looked like he was about to cry in pain. He said in a hoarse voice,

"This is what I deserve."

King Jing sneered twice and continued, "I want to ask you, was the child that Lin Qingwan gave birth to really stillborn? Was the grave you had built for the child really the dead baby buried in it?"

Xie Mingli was shocked by his questioning, staring with his eyes wide open, and said in a trembling voice,

"When Qingwan gave birth prematurely, I was out of town on business, and my servant came to me and told me that Qingwan had a difficult birth. Because I had some misunderstandings about Qingwan at the time and had always had a grudge against her, I didn't take it seriously.

When I had dealt with everything and rushed to the delivery room, I heard the midwife exclaiming that it was a dead baby!

At that time, I had just been having a hard time doing things and was feeling angry. Then I heard that the child was dead, so I got furious and had the child taken away and buried without even looking at him.

I, I regretted it. Afterwards, when I calmed down, I asked the servant, and he took the child directly to the mass grave outside the city.

I got furious at the time and asked him to find the child's body and rebury it, but the place was a mass grave... The servant went there and came back saying that he couldn't find it.

Later, Qingwan wanted to repair the child's grave, and I just asked someone to put some clothes that Qingwan made for the child in it, but there was no child's body.

Your Highness, you, you are asking this because you know something, whether the child is alive or not, and if you can't find him, was he taken away and rescued?"

When Xie Mingli asked the last question, his eyes were shining, he was excited and trembling, as if a dying man had found a reason and hope to live.

King Jing felt upset when he heard about the stupid things he had done.

If more evidence is found to prove that the child was indeed not dead, Lin Qingwan’s coffin will not be able to hold it down!

"What are you thinking? Even if the child didn't die at the time, you had him thrown into a mass grave. Wild dogs and wolves would have eaten the child. Even if he wasn't eaten by wild beasts, how do you think a weak newborn baby could survive? Who could save him..."

King Jing started to criticize without any hesitation.

"Is there shit in your head? That's your legitimate son, but you didn't even look at him and just had him taken away and buried. You are really good!

You really have brought this upon yourself. The bitter fruit you are experiencing today is all your own fault. Don't blame anyone else.

Without your connivance, the concubines in your house would never dare to lay a hand on the mistress of the house, or rival the legitimate son!

Now you only have those two concubines in your backyard, you might as well interrogate them directly and ask them whether they had any hand in Lin Qingwan's childbirth..."

Prince Jing stopped because Xie Mingli vomited blood again. He vomited blood several times and could not stand anymore. He fell to the ground and fainted.

Prince Jing rubbed his forehead in annoyance and asked someone to call the imperial physician.

Prince Jing always thought that he was a cold-hearted and cold-blooded person, but now, compared with Xie Mingli, Prince Jing felt that he was a good man with warmth.

Talking to Qingzhi more about the bad things Xie Mingli did will make him look even better. Qingzhi might be willing to do more of her duty because she sees how well he performs!

Xie Mingli vomited blood and fainted, but King Jing did not leave.

While waiting for the imperial physician, he did not sit idle. He promptly ordered people to call over Xie Mingli's two concubines and their servants.

Don't waste your time, it's a good opportunity to review it and do your old job.

The little tricks of the women in the harem could not escape his sharp eyes at all, and the servants could not resist his interrogation methods of coercion and inducement.

Before Xie Mingli woke up, Prince Jing had already come out with the result of the interrogation.

There is no doubt that it was done by Xie Mingli’s two concubines working together.

These two people saw that Xie Mingli did not respect Lin Qingwan enough and treated her coldly, so they came up with such vicious thoughts.

They first tried to get Nanny Zhang away, and then used threats and bribes to bribe Amber, the maidservant beside Lin Qingwan. Under Amber's control, they caused Lin Qingwan to give birth prematurely, and then they bribed the midwife to make Lin Qingwan have a difficult delivery and unable to give birth to the baby.

These were all arranged by them together.

Things went smoothly, and because of Xie Mingli's brilliant stroke, it went even more smoothly.

None of them used their own manpower to deal with the children.

The child was indeed alive when he was born, but his breath was weak. Naturally, they learned this from the midwife.

Afterwards they were not too worried because Xie Mingli's attitude spoke for itself.

Lin Qingwan and her legitimate son are not important in Xie Mingli's heart.

Therefore, facing the lady's cross-examination and questioning, they lied with a clear conscience and contempt in their hearts, without any panic.

If they were not panicking, they would not be exposed, so they hid easily.

After Prince Jing finished the interrogation, the imperial physician arrived and gave Xie Mingli acupuncture, and he woke up.

However, when King Jing told him the result of the interrogation and he knew that the child was indeed alive, Xie Mingli became so angry that he vomited blood again. Although he did not faint this time, he almost lost all his energy.

Prince Jing frowned when he saw him like this, called the imperial physician aside and asked him how he was.

"Your Highness, Lord Xie is too depressed. It has damaged his heart and liver. If this continues for a long time, he will die young."

The imperial physician sighed and spoke softly.

"Is there any good way to save him?" King Jing frowned.

"Heart disease needs to be treated with heart medicine. Medicine can nourish the body, but it can't lift a person's spirit. If a person has no spirit in his heart, how can he live long? Even if he is kept alive by medicine, he will only be able to prolong his life." The imperial physician shook his head expressionlessly.

Prince Jing frowned even more tightly, staring at Xie Mingli lying on the bed, wondering how to make use of the waste.

Go back and discuss with Qingzhi, and ask her whether Xie Mingli is alive or dead, which will make Lin Qingwan more satisfied.

Don’t send messages in your dreams just for no reason.

Not only does it make him feel bad, but he also has to be busy.