The Emperor's heart is won, she sits on the Phoenix Throne! The Divine Physician's Eldest

"Song Siyao, what are you saying? Do you know what crime it is to slander me?" The Empress's face darkened.

"Your Majesty, do you even know how gruesome the death of the Princess Consort of Zhen was? Seventeen cuts! She endured the pain of the first sixteen cuts before finally dying from the last one!"

Song Siyao's gaze was as cold as ice as he stared intently at the Empress.

The Empress smiled and asked nonchalantly, "Of course I know that the Princess Consort of Zhen died a terrible death, but what does that have to do with me?"

“Of course it’s related, because you are the murderer.” Song Siyao’s voice was cold and sharp.

The Empress's smile froze instantly, her face filled with anger. "Song Siyao, don't make false accusations. I have no grudge against the Princess Consort of Zhen. I have no motive to kill her."

"Moreover, on the day they left the capital to bid farewell to the Emperor, I met with Prince Zhen and his wife, and we even spoke. The palace servants on duty at the time can all testify to this."

“I know you were close to the Princess Consort of Zhen, and I was heartbroken by her death, but you can’t just frame someone to avenge her, can you?”

Song Siyao looked directly into the Empress's eyes and saw that she remained calm and did not reveal the slightest flaw.

The empress's ability to commit such ruthless acts demonstrates an inner strength that is beyond the reach of ordinary people.

"Your Majesty, you have no grudges with the Princess Consort of Zhen, but you do have grudges with the Prince of Zhen."

The Empress's face flushed red, a hint of murderous intent flashing in her eyes. "Song Siyao, I am the Empress of the Great Zhou Dynasty. You'd better think carefully about what you're saying, or I'll make sure you die a horrible death!"

Song Siyao noticed the subtle changes in the Empress's expression and knew that the Empress was in turmoil.

"Your Majesty, after pretending for so long, have you forgotten what kind of person you really are?"

Song Siyao said, "Today, I will expose your crimes to the world and let everyone see what you have done!"

"After the Princess Consort and the Prince of Zhen got married, you poisoned the Princess Consort, making her health weaker and weaker, and also making her unable to conceive."

"You ruined the Princess Consort's body and you're still not satisfied. You even have people spread rumors that the Princess Consort is a shrew. The originally kind and gentle Princess Consort has become a morally corrupt and wicked woman in the eyes of outsiders."

Upon hearing this, the Empress burst into laughter, "Absurd! Utterly absurd! Song Siyao, I know you're good at making up stories, but a story is just a story, not the truth. I've already said that I have no grudge against the Princess Consort of Zhen, so why would I want to harm her?"

"Because you're jealous of her!" Song Siyao said.

"As the Empress, I am the most honored woman in the Great Zhou Dynasty. Why should I be jealous of her?" The Empress said with a face full of disdain.

"You are jealous that the Princess Consort is the love of the Prince of Zhen's life, so you want to kill the Princess Consort."

Song Siyao revealed the secret: "Before you entered the palace, you had a relationship with the Prince of Zhen. Later, you became greedy for vanity and wealth and abandoned the Prince of Zhen."

"But after you entered the palace, you were still unwilling to accept it. When you saw that the Prince of Zhen had a Princess Zhen, you became jealous and so you poisoned her."

The Empress, her sore spot touched, pointed at Song Siyao and said, "Song Siyao, this is baseless slander! I will kill you!"

She then looked at Emperor Changlong and pleaded, "Your Majesty, Song Siyao is ruining my reputation. You must do me justice!"

"Empress, do you think I know nothing?" Emperor Changlong's face was icy cold.

The Empress's heart skipped a beat. "Your Majesty, what do you mean by that?"

"I know everything you've done over the years," Emperor Changlong said coldly.

"Your Majesty, tell me what I did?" the Empress mocked. "Produce me with solid evidence, or you'll make it sound like I'm some heinous criminal."

"Youfeng, tell her!" Emperor Changlong ordered.

“Yes, Your Majesty.” Song Siyao continued to expose the Empress’s crimes, “Over the years, you have not only harmed the Princess Consort of Zhen, but also the Prince of Ling.”

"When you entered the palace as Empress, you saw that Consort Rou was favored by the Emperor, so you killed Consort Rou. Later, as Prince Ling grew up, you worried that he would threaten Prince Jin's position, so you poisoned Prince Ling as well."

"Ling Wang's bones became fragile due to poisoning, which is why his injuries on the battlefield were so severe. It was also because of the poisoning that his injured leg could not be healed."

The Empress dismissed the remark with disdain and roared, "This is utter nonsense! Without any evidence, it's all slander!"

"I see you won't shed a tear until you see the coffin! Guards, bring the witnesses!"

At Emperor Changlong's command, guards immediately brought the witnesses forward.

"Speak! What has the Empress made you do?" Emperor Changlong roared.

These people had already been interrogated, and they no longer concealed anything, telling everything they knew.

"Back then, Consort Rou committed suicide because Her Majesty the Empress personally told her a piece of news."

The speaker was an elderly palace maid whose face was burned beyond recognition. "I overheard this news while hiding in the shadows. Later, I was chased by the Empress when I left the palace, but I was lucky enough to survive a fire."

"Her Majesty the Empress ordered me to poison the Prince. I have been infiltrating the Prince's residence and dared not disobey. The lives of my entire family are in Her Majesty the Empress's hands." This man was a servant of the Prince's residence and was considered an old servant of the Prince's household.

"Her Majesty the Empress ordered me to poison the Princess Consort of Zhen. I am a cook in the Prince of Zhen's mansion. Years ago, my son was seriously ill and we had no money for treatment. Her Majesty the Empress gave me a sum of money."

This was the cook who was Princess Zhen's favorite during her lifetime; the food she made was the one that suited Princess Zhen's taste best.

"The Empress ordered us to assassinate the Princess Consort of Zhen. We were to stab her seventeen times. The first sixteen stabs were not enough to kill her, but the last stab was the only one that could kill her."

……

All the testimonies pointed to the Queen, but she remained unmoved.

She asked with a smile, "Are you acting? Did you rehearse your lines beforehand? Why seventeen cuts? Why not fifteen or sixteen?"

Song Siyao replied, "Because you were exactly seventeen years old when you abandoned the Prince of Zhen!"