Steal my marriage? Turn around and marry the tyrant to take the throne

In the deep palace, one might survive without the emperor's favor, but once the emperor becomes suspicious, it will be a catastrophe!

Seeing Consort Tong's panicked appearance, Shuangjiang quickly comforted her, "Your Majesty, please don't scare yourself."

“Consort Jiang is Consort Jiang, and you are you. His Majesty has always known that you are gentle and mild-mannered, never meddling in disputes, and have never had a close relationship with Consort Jiang. How could he implicate you for no reason?”

"We don't know anything. The most important thing right now is to stay calm and not panic."

These words calmed Consort Tong down a bit.

Yes, she and the Jiang family didn't have much of a relationship; they usually kept to themselves.

His Majesty will surely see the truth.

……

Chamber of Secrets.

Jiang Changzai's eyes instantly filled with tears: "Eunuch Li, I'm innocent!"

"I had no prior acquaintance with the Jiang family. We met by chance in the Imperial Garden that day and exchanged a few casual words. How did that lead to the arson case?"

"I don't even know which direction Yawen Garden is in. I beg Eunuch Li to investigate thoroughly and report to His Majesty to clear my name!"

She wept bitterly, her shoulders trembling slightly. Anyone who saw her would think she was an innocent and vulnerable woman who had been wronged.

Li Changde watched Jiang Changzai's performance quietly, and only after her crying subsided did he slowly speak: "Jiang Changzai, there is no one else here, so let's speak frankly."

"His Majesty ordered an investigation not into the fire at Yawen Garden. What he wants to know is whether you have any connection with the traitorous monk Xingchen, who has already been executed!"

At this moment, Chiang Changzai's heart was pounding like thunder!

Nangong Xuanyu knows!

He actually found out?!

But... how is that possible?!

Fatu Temple is destroyed, and Xingchen is dead. Where did Nangong Xuanyu find the clues from?!

She can't admit it!

I'd rather die than admit it!

Because if she admits it, what awaits her is an irredeemable fate; she will be forever nailed to the pillar of shame!

Her life was bought with Xingchen's life. She hadn't avenged Xingchen yet; she absolutely couldn't die!

In a flash, Jiang Changzai realized what was happening and asked blankly, "Xingchen?"

"Eunuch Li... why would you ask that?"

"Before entering the palace, I was just a sheltered young woman. I had only heard of the eminent monks of Fatu Temple, but I never had the honor of meeting them. After entering the palace, I lived even more secluded within its walls. How could I possibly have any connection with traitors?"

"What you're saying, sir, is... is far too shocking!"

When he said this, Jiang Changzai looked both aggrieved and stubborn.

Anyway, there's no way to prove it now that the dead are dead.

As long as she stubbornly denies it, what can Li Changde do? Can he conjure up evidence out of thin air?

Li Changde did not get angry. He took out a piece of paper from his sleeve and gently unfolded it in front of Jiang Changzai: "Jiang Changzai may want to take a look at this."

Jiang Changzai's gaze swept over, and his heart skipped a beat again.

That was an excerpt from the old archives of Fatu Temple, which clearly stated which room had a secret passage.

Her heart sank instantly!

Li Changde's investigation was so thorough!

Li Changde said slowly, "On the ninth day of the tenth month last year, you went to Fatu Temple with Madame Chiang to pray for blessings."

"Records show that you entered a private room with a secret passage alone, and deliberately dismissed all the guards and maids who were with you, and stayed inside alone for a long time."

At this point, Li Changde looked directly into Jiang Changzai's eyes and asked in a deep voice, "Jiang Changzai, tell me, why do you, a young lady from an official family awaiting entry into the palace, choose to be alone in a room at Fatu Temple?"

Upon hearing Li Changde mention this matter, Jiang Changzai was both alarmed and heartbroken.

That day was the only time she and Xingchen spent together.

She gave herself to him completely and has never regretted it.

Jiang Changzai said angrily, "Eunuch Li, before I entered the palace, I was merely following custom by going to the royal temple to pray for blessings and for a safe journey after entering the palace."

"At that time, Fatu Temple was a popular place of worship, and its eminent monks were famous throughout the capital. Who could have imagined that it would be a den of iniquity?"

"As for any secret passage, I've never even heard of it!"

“I went into that room simply because my mother was giving a sermon to the monk, which I found boring, and since the room was quiet and peaceful, I wanted to rest alone for a while. Was that wrong?”

"As for dismissing the maids and guards, Eunuch Li is mistaken."

"I sent Basho to the teahouse to see if they had any fresh vegetarian snacks. I ordered the guards to wait in the corridor to prevent any unauthorized people from disturbing us."

"How does this become a deliberate attempt to send them away?"

"Am I not even free to ask my maid to buy me some food?"

As Jiang Changzai spoke, he felt more and more justified, as if he had been greatly wronged: "Eunuch Li, I know His Majesty is furious about the fire at Yawen Garden, but you can't make wild guesses and pin unfounded accusations on me!"

"My loyalty to His Majesty is unwavering, as Heaven and Earth can attest! I beg Eunuch Li to investigate thoroughly and clear my name!"

Her quick thinking and cleverness in clearing herself of any wrongdoing was quite admirable.

If it weren't for Li Changde holding numerous highly indicative clues, they might have been deceived by Jiang Changde's demeanor.

Li Changde listened quietly to her finish speaking, his face remaining expressionless.

Jiang Changzai's reaction was exactly what he expected.

Without conclusive eyewitness testimony and physical evidence, it is by no means easy to pry open the mouth of a palace concubine based solely on these indirect clues and inferences.

Consort Jiang was, after all, a daughter of an official, a concubine in the palace. Without solid evidence, torture could not be used arbitrarily.

Otherwise, if she is proven innocent, this would become Li Changde's crime of usurpation.

But there are plenty of ways to get people to talk in the palace.

“Since Consort Jiang insists on saying this, I will naturally report your words to His Majesty verbatim.”

"However, this matter is of great importance, and His Majesty requires a thorough investigation. Until the matter is clarified, I'm afraid you will have to trouble Consort Chang to stay here for a while."

"Why don't you take this opportunity to think carefully about your trip to Fatu Temple on the ninth day of the tenth lunar month last year? Is there really nothing you've overlooked?"

"Are you truly completely unrelated to the traitor Xingchen?"

"Some things, if you think them through now and speak them out, might still offer a chance for reconciliation. If you wait until the evidence is irrefutable and everything is settled... then it will be too late!"

After saying this, Li Changde stopped looking at Jiang Changzai's ugly face and turned to leave.

Jiang Changzai had no idea how things had turned out this way.

No one had discovered her affair with Xingchen. In fact, she had even served the emperor once during this period.

How did Jiang Wange end up in this predicament after I helped her escape?

Chiang Chang-tsai knew that this was just the beginning, and Lee Chang-teh would not give up so easily.

Although he refrained from torturing her due to her status and the lack of evidence, there were plenty of methods in the palace to break a person's will.

Endless imprisonment, repeated interrogation, psychological oppression, suggestion, and intimidation...

Even seemingly ordinary daily routines may conceal hidden secrets.

Confined in this dark and sunless place, facing her deepest fears alone, how long can she endure it?