The aroma of cooking filled the house: I sent my eldest brother to become the Grand Secretary.

Chapter 358 Settling Accounts After the Autumn Harvest (Part 1)

The sky is bright.

Inside the Hall of Mental Cultivation, Zhao Zhaoxun looked down at Zhao Yuheng's wet nurse, who was kneeling on the ground.

The other person was so frightened that they knelt on the ground, trembling and not daring to move.

Zhao Zhaoxun turned around and looked at Ji Lingfeng with a puzzled expression.

"Tell the Emperor everything you know in detail," Ji Lingfeng said coldly.

The other person dared not look up, and her voice trembled as she reported to the Emperor, revealing her great fear.

"The third prince in the palace is not the third prince."

Zhao Zhaoxun frowned, feeling somewhat bewildered by her words.

“Even before the Third Prince was born, Her Majesty the Empress had replaced the servants serving Consort Jing with her own people.”

"It was around this time that I went to serve Consort Jing."

“On the day Consort Jing gave birth, I saw the real Third Prince. He had a cinnabar mole between his eyebrows.”

"But for some reason, when the Third Prince was brought here the next time, the mole between his eyebrows had disappeared."

“This servant guesses…” she paused for a moment, “This servant guesses that the Third Prince was switched by the Empress’s people.”

With a "bang," it was the sound of the Emperor angrily slamming his fist on the table.

The wet nurse was so frightened that she stumbled and fell to the ground.

"Continue," the Emperor said calmly, but everyone could tell he was very angry.

Zhao Zhaoxun thought of the cinnabar mole between his eyebrows. If he remembered correctly, the day after the Third Prince was born, Prime Minister Du's daughter-in-law gave birth to a son safely, and that child had a cinnabar mole between his eyebrows.

Well, Du Zhong, you actually dared to switch the prince with a cat.

"I was terrified, but to save my life, I had to keep it to myself and dared not tell anyone."

"Consort Jing is so pitiful."

"She didn't die from a sudden illness; she was secretly poisoned by someone sent by the Empress."

“I had previously received kindness from Consort Jing. When she passed away, I secretly went to see her at night. Her lips were black, and it was clear that she had been poisoned.”

"Please, Your Majesty, do justice for Consort Jing!" she cried, her voice choked with sobs, her tone filled with sorrow, as she kowtowed repeatedly to the Emperor.

Her head was quickly bleeding from the banging, but she seemed completely oblivious to the pain and continued to kowtow.

"Alright, I will investigate this matter thoroughly myself."

"If Consort Jing knew that someone still cared about her so much, she would be comforted even in the afterlife."

"You go down first."

Ji Lingfeng ordered his men to take the wet nurse away.

He looked up at the Emperor, who snorted softly, "Prime Minister Du's plan is quite clever. I thought his rebellion was just a new idea. I never imagined that he had already started this game two years ago."

"Go and summon the Empress to me!" Zhao Zhaoxun's voice revealed his struggle to suppress his anger.

……

When Shen Cao and He Wu arrived at the Shen family, the family was surrounded by a group of people, and the two of them stood in the shadows to observe.

Once they were sure they hadn't found anyone at the Shen family's house, Shen Cao took He Wu to the abandoned temple where the secret passage was located.

They hadn't walked far in the secret passage when they encountered Shen Shuhua and the others.

Looking at her family members who were safe and sound, Shen Cao smiled and said to Wan Yue, "Sister, I want to thank you for protecting my family."

Shen's mother leaned against Shen's father's chest, looking at Shen Cao with tears in her eyes.

They had already heard Wanyue tell them about Shen Cao's background on the way.

Their daughter was actually the daughter of the current emperor, and also the daughter of the Consort Shen standing before them.

When they met again, they could no longer be as intimate with her as before.

Shen Cao nodded to her parents, then turned to look at Shen Shuhua.

"Mother, are you alright?"

Shen Shuhua nodded, her voice choked with emotion. "Mother is alright."

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, the group headed towards the palace.

After meeting the Imperial Concubine, He Wu explained his master's plan.

Shen Cao stared at him coldly, saying, "Didn't you say you didn't know anything?"

After careful consideration, Shen Shuhua decided to return to the palace.

Inside the Hall of Mental Cultivation, the Emperor looked at Du Yuqing, who was kneeling at his feet and refused to speak, and a hint of disgust appeared in his eyes.

"Du Yuqing, even now, are you still going to be stubborn?"

"Your Majesty, I truly do not understand what Your Majesty means by these words?"

The Emperor's gaze lingered on her for a moment before he spoke towards the door, "Li Defu, bring her in."

As soon as he finished speaking, Li Defu led a group of people in, carrying someone on a stretcher.

The stretcher was placed beside the Empress.

Under Du Yuqing's puzzled expression, Li Defu gently lifted the white cloth covering the stretcher.

Upon seeing the face beneath the white cloth, Du Yuqing was first stunned, then fell heavily to the ground.

Her father had died.

"Du Zhong has already admitted to the rebellion. Empress, how long are you going to keep up your stubbornness?"

The Emperor's disgusted voice came from above, his tone carrying an oppressive aura that brooked no argument.

Du Yuqing looked at Du Zhong's corpse and suddenly burst into laughter.

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!"

Father, why did you do this to yourself?

She opened her mouth, about to speak, when she heard the eunuch's voice announcing something from the doorway.

"The royal concubine is here!"

She quickly turned around and looked towards the door, and when she saw Shen Shuhua's figure, she looked incredulous.

She was emotional; that bitch Shen Shuhua was still alive.

Granny Du deserves to die.

She stood up and pounced on Shen Shuhua like a hungry wolf pouncing on its prey, her eyes filled with murderous intent.

Fortunately, the people around her reacted quickly and pulled Du Yuqing away.

"Your Majesty, how dare you be so insolent in front of me?"

"You deserve to die!" The Emperor glared at the Empress, then turned to gently comfort Shen Shuhua.

Shen Shuhua shook her head at him to indicate that she was fine.

"Your Majesty, I know nothing about my father's actions. I beg you to investigate thoroughly and clear my name."

The Empress, who had initially agreed, changed her attitude the moment she saw Shen Shuhua.

Seeing her stubbornness, the Emperor squeezed out a few words, "You deserve to die!"

Just like your father.

"Ji Lingfeng, bring the person up."

When she saw who it was, the empress was taken aback for a moment, but quickly regained her composure.

She looked disdainfully at the person kneeling on the ground opposite her.

Hearing her accusations against her, Du Yuqing said aggrievedly, "Your Majesty, this dog servant is talking nonsense."

"Before Consort Jing passed away, she held my hand and entrusted the Third Prince to me."

"As for the claim that Consort Jing was poisoned by me, that's utterly absurd. Everyone in the harem knows that Consort Jing and I are the closest of friends."

"How could I possibly harm her!"

After saying this, Du Yuqing squeezed out a few tears to show that she had been wronged.

To everyone's surprise, the Emperor didn't even glance at her and continued, "I advise you to tell me everything you've done while I still have the patience."

"Otherwise, wait a while, and you won't even be able to cry."