Ping Zhao Lu

Chu Yunxiao's expression was as calm as water, as if Lin Yufen's desperate plea for mercy was just a breeze that was insignificant and could not cause any ripples in his heart at all.

His deep eyes swept over Lin Yufen without emotion, and then he turned his gaze to Jian Ke and said coldly: "If there is even one falsehood in what you said, you will be doomed." His voice was not loud, but it carried a chilling majesty.

Upon hearing this, Jian Ke's body began to tremble uncontrollably. She kowtowed tremblingly, her forehead hitting the ground with a "bang bang" sound, and she kept muttering, "Your Majesty, I dare not speak nonsense! It is absolutely true that it was the virtuous concubine who ordered this servant to do this!"

At this time, Concubine Xian was already extremely anxious, and her originally dignified face was now somewhat distorted by fear and anger.

Her mind seemed to be filled with a mess and she completely lost the ability to think.

In a panic, she suddenly glanced at Lipin standing beside her, as if she had grabbed a life-saving straw. She immediately pointed a finger at Lipin and loudly accused her, "It must be her! She must have deliberately framed the Queen, and then tried to throw this dirty water on me!"

Concubine Li was startled by the sudden accusation from Concubine Xian and stood there in a daze for a moment before reacting.

She quickly stepped out of the line and knelt on the ground, her face full of grievance, tears welling up in her eyes. She choked and said, "Your Majesty, it's unfair. How could I be so omnipotent? Besides, all the witness testimonies clearly point to you, Sister Xianfei!" After that, she turned her head and glared at Xianfei fiercely.

Before Concubine Xian could open her mouth to argue, Liang Siyi, who had been silent for a while, suddenly kowtowed heavily to the ground. The sound was crisp and loud, as if to break the suffocating atmosphere.

"Your Majesty, please understand! The pattern of the dress the Queen is wearing, which is extremely similar to the one worn by Prince Huai, is now in the hands of Concubine Xian!" Liang Siyi shouted loudly, his tone firm and unquestionable.

Hearing this, the virtuous concubine, who was already in shock, suddenly widened her eyes again, and her eyeballs almost fell out of their sockets.

Her face instantly turned as pale as paper and her body began to tremble uncontrollably.

Obviously, she had never expected that things would develop in this direction. At this moment, her heart was filled with endless disbelief and deep despair.

"What a sinister, cunning and scheming Concubine Li is!" Concubine Xian cursed in a low voice with gritted teeth, her eyes burning with rage.

She knew very well in her heart that this bitch wanted to overthrow the queen but failed, and now she was trying to put all the blame on herself!

At the same time, Jian Ke on the side saw the situation and took the opportunity to say: "I can testify. The dress pattern was indeed handed to me by Concubine Xian herself, and then I prepared a copy and gave it to Liang Siyi to make it, and the real original was still returned to Concubine Xian." After saying that, Jian Ke turned her head slightly, looking directly at Concubine Xian, her eyes revealing incomparable sincerity and determination.

Chu Yunxiao's face was as gloomy as water, showing no emotion at all. He just spat out two words coldly: "Search the palace." Before he finished speaking, his sharp eyes like a hawk locked tightly on Concubine Xian, and then added: "Search the body."

Following the emperor's order, a group of well-trained palace servants quickly took action.

They began to search the concubine's bedroom in an orderly manner, leaving no corner untouched.

On the other side, several palace maids walked up to Concubine Xian and motioned her to stand up and undergo a body search.

The virtuous concubine's face was as pale as death. She knew that any struggle at this moment would be futile.

So, she could only suppress her humiliation and anger and slowly stand up, allowing the palace maids to grope and search her body mercilessly.

At this moment, Concubine Xian felt as if she were in a terrible nightmare. Everything before her became blurry and unclear. Only the deep despair in her heart surged up like a tide, almost drowning her completely...

Lin Yufen knelt behind with trembling knees, tears streaming down his face uncontrollably, crisscrossing across his wrinkled face.

He closed his eyes tightly, not daring to look directly at the heartbreaking scene before him.

You know, my daughter is a legitimate concubine after all! Now she has fallen to such a state, suffering the humiliation of being searched in front of so many people...

Lin Zhuoran, standing by, felt a similar mix of emotions. Although he and his sister had always been at odds and were not born of the same mother, they still shared the same blood. Seeing her suffer such a tragic end, he couldn't help but feel an indescribable pain.

At this moment, a loud shout suddenly came from the crowd: "Found it!"

Everyone's eyes instantly turned towards the direction of the sound. A palace maid excitedly raised something in her hand and spoke loudly.

The virtuous concubine froze on the spot, her face as pale as paper.

But when the palace maid carefully opened the neatly folded embroidered handkerchief and found the crucial drawing from it, Concubine Xian felt a black screen in front of her eyes and her heart seemed to fall into an abyss.

This blueprint must have been stuffed into her body by that slut Jian Ke when she was changing her clothes.

Thinking of this, Concubine Xian pinched the corner of her clothes angrily.

At the same time, another team of palace servants who were ordered to search the virtuous concubine's bedroom hurried over. One of them held an exquisite porcelain bottle in his hand and reported loudly: "Your Majesty, we have found a bottle of poison in the virtuous concubine's palace." After that, he respectfully presented the porcelain bottle.

When she saw that the palace maid handed her a bottle of Crane's Beak Red, the last bit of hope of Concubine Xian was shattered. She became stunned as if she had lost her soul, and her heart was dead.

That drawing was definitely not made by her.

However, this bottle of deadly poison actually belongs to her.

She had originally intended to use it on Xie Yushu, but when the news of Xie Yushu's death spread throughout the palace, she was so excited that she forgot to deal with the bottle of poison.

Really getting carried away.

"Xianfei, now that things have come to this, do you have anything else to say?" Chu Yunxiao sat upright on the high seat, his expression stern and his tone so flat that no emotion could be heard.

The virtuous concubine had nothing to say.

The maid who could give her advice was not around at the moment, which made her already confused mind fall into chaos. She had no idea how to deal with the current dilemma and solve it.

I saw crystal tears embedded in her beautiful eyes, as if they would roll down at any time.

With an almost pleading attitude, she cast a helpless look at the Queen Mother who was sitting on the main seat.

However, Queen Mother Jiang simply glanced at her with an extremely cold look and quickly turned her head away.

Then, the Queen Mother stretched out her hands and pressed her temples with an impatient look on her face. She seemed annoyed to even look at the virtuous concubine for one more second and refused to move her gaze even a little.

Seeing this, Concubine Xian closed her eyes in complete despair.

At this moment, she deeply felt that she was beyond help and no matter how hard she struggled, she could not change the impending tragic ending.

Looking back over the years, I have been fighting openly and secretly in this deep palace, and have experienced countless ups and downs. I never expected that in the end I would fall into the hands of Lipin, a fool who seems to be strong in limbs but simple in mind!

Concubine Xian really couldn't understand what kind of complicated relationship Liang Siyi had with Concubine Li?

Why are you so reckless in favor of her?

Could it be that Concubine Li gave Liang Siyi some great benefit that made her so devoted and willing to work for him at all costs?

Questions flooded into her mind like a tide, but Concubine Xian was exhausted at this time and no longer had the energy to delve into the reasons.

Chu Yunxiao looked at Concubine Xian coldly, with a hint of disappointment and determination in his eyes.

He originally thought that the woman would defend herself, even if it was just a futile struggle, but he didn't expect her to be so calm, as if she had already accepted it all.

Since she had no intention of living, there was no need for him to show mercy.

Chu Yunxiao's face was as cold as ice, and his voice was even colder, without a trace of warmth. "The virtuous concubine is extremely jealous and lacks moral integrity. She completely disregards the etiquette of the palace and intends to murder the queen. This crime is intolerable! According to the law, the entire clan should be exterminated to uphold the law of the land! However, considering the merits of the Lin family in the past, I will pardon their lives. However, the virtuous concubine Lin's crime cannot be escaped. It is unacceptable under the law. Her title will be immediately stripped, she will be demoted to a commoner, and she will be given a cup of poisoned wine!"

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone present was in an uproar, whispering to each other and sighing endlessly. Who could have imagined that the virtuous concubine who was so glorious and loved by the empress dowager would end up like this?

At this time, the virtuous concubine had collapsed to the ground, her face ashen.

The Lin father and son standing by both had expressions of despair on their faces.

Not only did they lose their blood relatives, but from now on, the Lin family's status in the court will plummet, and they may even never recover.

At this moment, Chu Yunxiao spoke again: "As for those accomplices involved in this incident, considering their sincere confession, they can be spared the death penalty, but they must be imprisoned in the Heavenly Prison for life and not allowed to take a single step out!"

Hearing this, Liang Siyi and the others couldn't help but secretly breathe a sigh of relief. Although he would have to spend the rest of his life in the dark prison, at least he had saved his life.

Lipin, who had been on edge, finally relaxed a little at this moment.

She subconsciously glanced at Liang Siyi beside her, and their eyes happened to meet.

In an instant, a barely perceptible smile flashed in both of their eyes, but it was fleeting, and soon they looked away quickly as if they were strangers.