Transmigrated Female Official

Upon hearing this sudden and devastating news, the Empress nearly fainted.

Fortunately, Long Kui happened to be by her side. She immediately made a decision, ordering people to bring Chu Qingluo and Shaoyao into the main hall first, and ordering He Yujie and the coroner to examine Ziyan's body together. In addition, she sent a team to carefully search Guangrentang, making sure not to miss a single clue.

The Empress was deeply grieved and could not calm down for a long time. She simply could not accept that someone who had always been by her side had suddenly never woken up again.

With tears welling in her eyes, the Empress looked at Chu Qingluo and Shaoyao kneeling in the hall, and asked in a trembling voice, "...What exactly happened?! Ziyan was fine this morning, saying he was going to the Buddhist hall to pray for me and offer incense. How could he be gone so suddenly in the blink of an eye?!"

At this moment, Chu Qingluo's face was lifeless except for the dried tear stains. Her empty black eyes stared straight at the ground as she murmured, "Lord Ziyan..."

What should I say at this moment?

Tell her the truth: Ziyan came to her because he wanted to warn her that the Eighth Princess and Longkui were plotting against her.

To the Empress, this was mere hearsay and utterly absurd. And then there was the culprit, Long Kui, who stood there gloating, like a vulture eyeing its prey, ready to pounce.

It seems that no matter what choice Chu Qingluo makes, what awaits her is nothing but pitfalls!

"Lord Ziyan came to Guangrentang to see me, it seems he has something to say..." Chu Qingluo looked up and glanced at Long Kui without fear, only to see that her eyes were full of confidence and malice, she really looked like a wolf. "But before Lord Ziyan could say anything, he suddenly started vomiting blood."

Chu Qingluo took a deep breath and emphasized, "This humble official suspects that Lord Ziyan may have inadvertently learned someone's secret or offended someone, and was then cruelly poisoned and murdered."

Upon hearing this, the Empress exclaimed in disbelief, "Ziyan is a humble and cautious man. How could he offend anyone? Besides, given his current status, who would be so bold as to poison him?!"

“Your Majesty, I think Lord Chu’s explanation doesn’t quite make sense,” Long Kui chimed in. “If Lord Ziyan really offended someone and was poisoned before even reaching Guangrentang, why didn’t the poisoner imprison him? Instead, they let him run around. Aren’t they afraid that the so-called ‘secret’ would be leaked?”

"What if the poisoning was done secretly?" Chu Qingluo countered. "Lady Longkui, that should be easy to explain, right?"

"Alright, even if Lord Chu's hypothesis is correct, what is the purpose of Lord Ziyan's visit to Lord Chu?"

"As I just said, Lord Ziyan has not yet had a chance to explain his purpose."

"Is that really true?" Long Kui's lips curled into a wicked smile as she deliberately said, "It's said that Lord Chu and Lord Ziyan have an extraordinary relationship..."

"What do you mean by that, Lady Longkui?!" Chu Qingluo stared intently at the ill-intentioned Longkui, wishing she could poke several holes in her.

Ignoring her hostility, Longkui turned to the Empress and said, "Your Majesty, before Lord Ziyan was promoted to one of the Five Attendants, he and Lord Chu worked together in the Clothing Pavilion and were quite familiar with each other..."

The Empress narrowed her phoenix eyes and said coldly, "Minister Long, what exactly do you want to say?"

"I just wanted to say that it's not particularly strange that Lord Ziyan would go to Guangrentang to see Lord Chu."

"Absurd!" The Empress was furious upon hearing Long Kui's veiled words, especially since Zi Yan had just been involved in an accident. She rebuked him, "Zi Yan has always been self-disciplined and is not allowed to speak nonsense!"

"It was my fault for speaking out of turn, I am guilty!" The old fox Long Kui quickly bowed to the Empress.

At this moment, He Yujie and the coroner came to report the situation.

He Yujie said, "Your Majesty, after examination by myself and the coroner, it is confirmed that Lord Ziyan died from arsenic poisoning."

"Arsenic...?" The Empress leaned back, her face weary and filled with sorrow.

Longkui asked, "Lord He, have you made any other discoveries?"

“Yes, but…” He Yujie glanced meaningfully at Chu Qingluo beside her, as if she dared not finish her sentence.

"But what?!" The Empress couldn't stand her feigned submissiveness and said sternly, "Speak plainly! If you dare to be evasive again, I'll have you executed!"

"Your Majesty, please calm down!" He Yujie was startled and quickly said, "The guards who searched Guangrentang just reported that the tea in the teapot in the inner hall was strange. Upon inspection, it was found that the tea was mixed with arsenic!"

"This is impossible!" Peony, who had been silent until now, exclaimed in shock. She had personally refilled the tea in the inner room; how could there possibly be arsenic?!

He Yujie glanced at Shaoyao and said, "The evidence is conclusive. The guards who searched Guangrentang can all testify."

Chu Qinglu stared silently at the cunning and treacherous Long Kui, whose old face was becoming more and more... disgusting!

Was this Longkui's ultimate goal? To frame her for the crime of causing Ziyan's death.

Chu Qingluo had no choice but to kowtow and say, "Your Majesty! This matter was absolutely not done by me or Mo Shao! Please investigate thoroughly, Your Majesty!"

The Empress was skeptical that Chu Qingluo had poisoned Ziyan. "Even if there was arsenic in the tea in the inner hall of Guangrentang, it doesn't prove that it was Chu Qingluo who did it."

“Your Majesty is absolutely right,” Long Kui stepped forward and said, “This matter still needs further investigation before a conclusion can be reached.”

"Investigate! You must find out the whole truth!"

"Your Majesty is wise." Long Kui was not so kind, of course. She continued, "It's just that Lord Ziyan died of poisoning in Guangrentang, and all the clues we have now point to Lord Chu... Lord Chu is also to blame."

Upon hearing this, the Empress's phoenix eyes met Chu Qingluo's dark pupils below... Although she believed that those sorrowful eyes would not harm Ziyan, Long Kui was right; before the truth was revealed, Chu Qingluo could only be imprisoned.

Finally, the Empress steeled her heart and said, "First, lock Minister Chu and this executor up in the Heavenly Prison."

Chu Qingluo didn't argue much, but simply said, "This humble official believes that His Majesty is discerning and will surely clear my name." After saying that, she and Shaoyao were taken away by the guards.

I never imagined that my third trip to the prison would mean spending the rest of my life there.

On the way, Chu Qingluo said, "I'm sorry, Peony, I've dragged you into this."

"How could you have implicated me?" Although Peony was anxious and scared, she tried her best not to show these emotions, lest Chu Qingluo feel even more guilty. "I was the one who made the tea, there's no way there could be any arsenic in it, someone is definitely framing me maliciously!"

“This time, Ziyan’s life was also lost. It was extremely dangerous. I’m really worried…” Chu Qingluo looked at her with guilt and choked up, “Shayao, you must live well.”

Peony reached out and grasped Chu Qingluo's hand, tears welling in her eyes: "Qingluo, you must live well too."

Since losing Gongsun Yu, Chu Qingluo has never recovered. Now that she is imprisoned again, Shaoyao is afraid that she will completely lose the will to live and never recover...

What's more terrifying than hardship is despair.