Transmigrated Female Official

While Chong Huan was summoning someone, Chu Qingluo and the Sixth Princess exchanged a knowing glance. Things were developing in the direction they had predicted.

The Buddhist attendant who claimed to have encountered Ziyan was actually someone they had deliberately arranged. The attendant hadn't seen Ziyan at all that day; it was all Chu Qingluo's scheme.

Since Longkui could get Li Yan to bribe Du Yuan to give a false testimony, Chu Qingluo decided to have someone try to deceive the Eighth Princess. Although it was also a lie, most of what Chu Qingluo had the Buddhist attendant say was true.

Fortunately, the Eighth Princess lived up to expectations, her words were much faster than her brain.

When Chonghuan saw the person who had been summoned outside the palace, he was stunned for several seconds, completely forgetting to react.

Seeing the figure moving at the door, but not seeing Chonghuan bring the person in, the Empress couldn't help but urge, "Chonghuan, why haven't you brought the person in yet?"

"...Coming right now." Chonghuan, ignoring his own surprise, led the person into the hall.

When this person appeared in front of them, the Empress and the Eighth Princess reacted just like Chong Huan, instantly stunned, while Chu Qingluo, the Sixth Princess, and Jiang Sha watched with great interest as the Eighth Princess's face turned from red to deathly pale.

"May Your Majesty be well!" The man stepped forward and immediately gave the Empress a deep bow.

"This...how is this possible..." The Eighth Princess's mouth gaped open involuntarily, her finger pointing at the person kneeling before her, as if she had seen a ghost. "Didn't you already...do that?"

The Empress stared at the person in disbelief, muttering her name uncertainly, "Li...Yan?!"

"The sinner Li Yan kowtows to Your Majesty." Li Yan kowtowed to the floor.

"What's going on? Didn't she die unexpectedly in the Heavenly Prison? Is this what you mean by making the dead speak?" The Empress looked at Jiang Sha, waiting for her explanation.

Jiang Sha then said, “Your Majesty, this person is indeed Li Yan, the executor of the Wuhua Palace. She was poisoned in the imperial prison that day, and the head of the Imperial Medical Academy, Fang Ying, rushed to the scene. Li Yan was already lifeless and in critical condition. Thanks to the tireless efforts of Fang Ying and the other physicians, she was finally saved.” After speaking, Jiang Sha gave the Eighth Princess a meaningful look and continued, “Li Yan was clearly alive, but I suppressed this news, making everyone believe that Li Yan was dead. It was truly… a last resort.”

Recalling the day Li Yan was imprisoned, Chu Qingluo bumped into her outside the prison. At that time, Chu Qingluo predicted that Long Kui would definitely take Li Yan's life.

It's obvious who Long Kui is. How could she allow someone like Li Yan, who carries so many secrets, to become a threat to her?

Therefore, the first thing Chu Qingluo did after leaving the Heavenly Prison was to go to the Flying Rainbow Palace to find the Sixth Princess. They needed to send people to keep a close watch on the activities inside the Heavenly Prison. Once Long Kui made a move, they had to rescue Li Yan in time.

"...Jiang Sha, you really have done a lot of 'good' things behind the scenes!" The Empress pointed out Jiang Sha's name, appearing somewhat displeased.

"Your Majesty, I have no intention of deceiving you. It's just that Li Yan is a key figure in several cases, and someone wants her dead. I risked my life to keep this a secret in order to protect her."

"You always have an excuse," the Empress said. "I want to see just how far you've come in investigating these cases."

“If it weren’t for solid evidence, I wouldn’t have invited Princess Anyang and Lord Chu to come here today.”

Seeing Jiang Sha's confident expression, the Empress leaned back and said, "Alright! Tell me, I'm listening."

At this moment, the Eighth Princess's legs felt weak, and she could no longer stand on the spot. "Your Majesty... An Yang suddenly feels unwell. Could you... grant An Yang permission to return to the palace to rest and come to pay her respects another day?"

Jiang Sha's purpose in coming to the Phoenix Palace was clearly to point out the serious mistake made by the Eighth Princess. However, after going around in circles for so long, she still hasn't gotten to the point. Therefore, the Empress can't let the Eighth Princess go.

The Empress gestured for Chonghuan to move a chair next to the Eighth Princess before saying, "Please sit down."

Seeing the Empress's unyielding expression, the Eighth Princess had no choice but to sit down in the chair and continue to pretend to be sickly.

After that, Jiang Sha turned her head and said to Li Yan, "Li Yan, the Emperor is right in front of you now. Quickly tell me the whole truth."

“Yes…” Li Yan raised her head, but after a long pause, she couldn’t utter a single word. There were just too many things to say. Although Jiang Sha had given her some pointers in private, she was now facing the Empress herself and was extremely nervous. Her mind went completely blank, and she didn’t know where to begin.

"Don't be nervous," Jiang Sha tried to reassure her. "I just mentioned the Buddhist temple to His Majesty."

Reminded by Jiang Sha, Li Yan nodded, gasped, and said, "That day, Princess Xile and Lord Longkui went to the Buddhist hall to offer incense. Although it was nominally to pray for the baby in the princess's womb, they were actually also offering incense to the Fifth Prince."

"..." The Eighth Princess offered incense to the prince who had been sentenced to death in the Buddhist hall. This was indeed disobedient, but the Fifth Prince was still her own flesh and blood. The Empress couldn't bear to investigate and punish him any further. She only asked Li Yan, "Were you there at the time?"

“I arrived later.” Li Yan recounted how she had witnessed someone eavesdropping on the conversation between the Eighth Princess and Long Kui outside the Buddhist hall. She then said, “Princess Xile ordered me to catch the eavesdropper, so I took a few attendants and chased after him. But… after knocking him unconscious, I discovered… it was Lord Ziyan.”

Upon hearing this, the Empress asked urgently, "What did you do to him afterward?"

“I dare not disrespect Lord Ziyan, but I also dare not disobey the Eighth Princess. So I moved Lord Ziyan into the room where incense is stored and then reported to Lord Longkui.”

The Empress knew that Longkui and the Eighth Princess were close, and she actually hoped that Longkui could provide more assistance to the Eighth Princess so that she could make some progress. Therefore, the Empress did not ask why the Eighth Princess's people were entrusted to Longkui.

Li Yan continued, "At first, I had no idea how serious this matter was, until... Lady Longkui actually intended to poison Lord Ziyan!"

"Without any grudge or enmity, why would Minister Long commit such a heinous act against Ziyan?" The Empress looked at Li Yan suspiciously and ordered her to explain herself.

"Because the conversation between Lady Longkui and the Eighth Princess in the Buddhist hall... is a secret that cannot be known to others."

"Since you arrived later, how do you know what they were talking about?" The Empress's question was equally unambiguous.