Transmigrated Female Official

"It was Lady Longkui who told me this herself. She was worried that Lord Ziyan would overhear the truth about the Fifth Prince's ambush of Princess Anyang and his plan to eliminate Lord Chu. These are secrets that must not be leaked in the slightest. So no matter how many words Lord Ziyan heard, Lady Longkui will not let him live."

"Wait a minute," the Empress raised her hand, signaling Li Yan to stop. "You just said that Fifth Prince ambushed Anyang, and there's another, unknown truth behind it?"

Li Yan replied, "Yes."

"And is it true that Minister Long is also planning to harm Minister Chu?"

Li Yan replied, "Yes."

The Empress remembered that the guard Lei Tian had also testified that Long Kui had instructed him to frame Chu Qingluo. Now, Li Yan was saying that Long Kui intended to eliminate Chu Qingluo. It seemed that Long Kui truly couldn't tolerate Chu Qingluo.

The amount of information was overwhelming, and the Empress needed time to process it. The Emperor himself was harboring so many treacherous villains, even his own flesh and blood were stirring with malice, colluding with those outside the Emperor!

Now, it's imperative to do a thorough cleanup!

"Explain Ziyan's matter clearly first, and then explain these things to me."

"As you command." Li Yan continued, picking up where she left off, "Before poisoning Lord Ziyan, Lady Longkui had already devised a plan. After everything was ready, Lady Longkui personally mixed arsenic into water and then forced it into the unconscious Lord Ziyan's body. When Lord Ziyan woke up where he had been lying, he was all alone. We created the illusion that nothing had happened, and Lord Ziyan himself did not notice anything unusual about his body. But in reality, Lord Ziyan had already been poisoned before he went to Guangrentang."

The Empress utterly despised the title "Dragon, My Beloved Minister," and she gritted her teeth in fury, saying, "That Long Kui! How dare she poison my son, Ziyan?! Explain yourself! How did Long Kui orchestrate all of this?!"

The Empress roared in the hall, her voice so loud it nearly scared the Eighth Princess half to death, making her jump off her chair!

The Empress's current reaction is exactly what Chu Qingluo and the Sixth Princess have been waiting for. This is the attitude they should have had, the correct way to handle the situation! And this is just the beginning; what follows will likely enrage the Empress even more.

Knowing that the Empress believed her testimony, Li Yan quickly pressed her advantage, saying, "Lady Longkui first sent someone to deliver a message to her daughter, Long Xiaohan. Upon receiving the message, Long Xiaohan immediately sent someone with a token to her lover, Lei Tian, ​​to persuade him to obey Lady Longkui. After that, I don't know where Lady Longkui obtained the arsenic from, but she asked me to give it to Lei Tian and tell him to be ready at any time."

The testimonies given by Li Yan and Lei Tian coincided, making the Empress even more convinced that Long Kui, this sinner, was plotting something sinister!

However, given the wide-ranging nature of the case, including the Eighth Princess, the Empress still wanted to get to the bottom of it: "How were you so certain that Ziyan would go to Guangrentang to find Minister Chu?"

"Actually, Lady Longkui was only 60% sure, so she sent someone to follow Lord Ziyan. If Lord Ziyan went somewhere else, they would try to stall him until the poison took effect. If he went to Guangrentang, then they could kill two birds with one stone." As she said this, Li Yan unconsciously lowered her head again.

"You damned wretch!!" The Empress was now absolutely furious!

It turns out that her son, Ziyan, was framed and killed, and she had even harbored suspicions towards him, almost causing him to suffer an injustice.

This is all because Longkui, the culprit, has been trying to confuse the public. It's a shame that she trusted and relied on Longkui for so many years. She is simply unforgivable!

"How many secrets does this sinner, Longkui, still hide?! Confess to me at once!"

"Your humble servant obeys."

After that, Li Yan brought up the old case of the Fifth Prince's ambush of the Sixth Princess, which had already been closed, pointing out that the masterminds behind the case were actually Long Kui and the Eighth Princess, and the Fifth Prince was at most an accomplice. The motive for the ambush of the Sixth Princess was even simpler, and even if Li Yan did not say it, the Empress already knew it.

To seize the throne, they eliminated their rivals.

"Your Majesty! Xile absolutely did not orchestrate this!" The Eighth Princess knelt down before the Empress with a thud, innocently protesting, "This was all Longkui's idea; Xile really didn't participate!"

"Although the Eighth Princess is trying her best to clear herself of the matter, the Empress has already made her own judgment."

The Empress looked down at the Eighth Princess, who was crying her eyes out, with an extremely unfamiliar and disappointed gaze. The Eighth Princess had received more love than the other two princesses since childhood. Even though she was a bit spoiled and willful, the Empress never thought that she would become so vicious and ruthless one day.

This made the Empress even more heartbroken!

As the Empress and the Eighth Princess locked eyes in silence, Chu Qingluo slowly stepped forward. She, the spectator, had been standing there long enough; her legs were numb. Finally, she had witnessed the final blow.

Chu Qingluo calmly said, "Your Majesty, Princess Xile's mistakes are not limited to these."

Seeing that even Chu Qingluo had stepped forward to offer advice, the Empress immediately realized that the three of them had come prepared. And Xile's past would surely be exposed on the spot. At that point, even she herself might not be able to protect her.

"Minister Chu, regarding Ziyan's matter, I almost wronged you and made you suffer."

Chu Qingluo raised her hands and said, "Thanks to His Majesty's wise judgment, I was able to escape unscathed. However, I have something else to say now."

"Speak." What's meant to happen can't be stopped.

"Your Majesty, please allow the wet nurse to bring Tianyun over first."

Upon hearing Chu Qingluo's words, the Eighth Princess suddenly felt a wave of dizziness! Her body began to tremble uncontrollably!

If it weren't for Chu Qingluo's reminder, the Eighth Princess herself would have almost forgotten the good deeds she had done.

After the wet nurse brought Tianyun to her, Chu Qingluo continued, "May I ask Princess Xile, is the red birthmark on Tianyun's foot on her left or right foot?"

The Ninth Prince had mentioned the Eighth Princess's attitude towards Tianyun to Chu Qingluo, so Chu Qingluo was quite certain that the Eighth Princess would answer this question incorrectly.

"What right do you have to question this princess?" The Eighth Princess feigned composure and glared at Chu Qingluo. She was unwilling to answer, but when she saw the Empress's intimidating gaze, she had no choice but to obediently reply, "I...I don't remember very well, it seems to be on the left."

Having received the answer from the Eighth Princess, Chu Qingluo had her wet nurse take Tianyun over to the Empress for evaluation.

After examining Tianyun's two little feet, the Empress did not find the red birthmark Chu Qingluo had mentioned, and glanced at the wet nurse in confusion.

The wet nurse shook her head repeatedly, indicating that she did not.

The Empress frowned and asked, "Minister Chu, what are you doing?"

Chu Qingluo replied calmly, "Your Majesty, please allow me to conduct an experiment." To be continued.