flstandardbreds Chapter 394 Testing
Chapter 394 Testing
Through the curtain, the emperor was sitting in the carriage. Gu Jianchu was wearing a cloak and Xie Ci'an had stuffed a hot water bottle in his hand.
Although there was a charcoal brazier in the carriage, the carriage would be warmer only when the door was closed to reduce the circulation of cold air. On the contrary, when the curtain was lifted, cold air would always flow in, and the charcoal brazier would not be very warm no matter how hot it was.
The Emperor and Empress' expressions were extremely cold, and Xie Ci'an's eyes even held a hint of impending anger.
I don’t know how these officials work for the people on a daily basis.
They just went out to the Wanguo Temple, but there was no peace for a moment.
When I went there, I encountered a corpse dumping site, and now when I came back, I encountered someone trying to stop the imperial carriage. There are really too many injustices.
Seeing the curtain inside the carriage being lifted, Cheng Song and Yun He consciously moved to the front of the carriage, waiting for the emperor and empress's instructions.
After the snow, the weather became cooler. Although it was very cold, Dou Cong couldn't help wiping the cold sweat from his head.
This unjust case was originally handled by the Dali Temple, but it happened to be brought to the attention of the Emperor and Empress. I wonder if the Emperor and Empress will think that he is incompetent and use this incident as an excuse to remove him from office after the matter is over.
One of the nosy colleagues came over and couldn't help but whisper, "Master Dou, is this the case you're handling?"
"It shouldn't be. I don't even know this woman." Dou Cong retorted, but he couldn't help but glance at the woman. He felt that she looked familiar, as if he had seen her somewhere, but he really couldn't remember where it was.
"As long as it wasn't Lord Dou, it's fine. Even if the Emperor wants to implicate him, given the relationship between Lord Dou and the Empress, the Empress will definitely plead for Lord Dou and will definitely not let him be wrongly accused in vain."
Originally, Dou Cong thought that this person was going to laugh at him, or was just asking out of concern. Only after hearing this did he realize that he was asking about his relationship with the queen.
He and the Queen had only a connection because they had handled a few cases together, but they really had no connection at all. The Queen was a very good person and she spoke for him because she didn't want him to be implicated by the Emperor. Not only him, but anyone else would help plead for him according to the Queen's temper.
Dou Cong straightened his expression and said, "Any official in the court, as long as they have done nothing wrong, the Queen will help plead for mercy. Not only me, but also Lord Zhou."
Lord Zhou on the side forced a smile, "Lord Dou is right."
At the same time, the emperor and empress in the carriage were unaware of the ministers' subtle thoughts.
When Gu Jianchu heard the name Zhang Ran, he felt that it sounded familiar, but he couldn't remember where he had heard it.
Gu Jianchu beckoned, and Cheng Song and Yun He stepped forward. "What's going on?"
Now that so many people were watching, it was like putting her and Xie Ci'an on the fire, and she had to take care of it.
If she doesn't do anything, tomorrow the streets will be full of gossip about her and Xie Ci'an being indifferent and cold-blooded towards the people.
However, even if there were no common people, Gu Jianchu would still take care of these trivial matters.
Cheng Song whispered, "Your Majesty, I don't know what happened. Our carriage was just driving on the street when this woman rushed out and blocked our carriage, yelling that she had a grievance."
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, would you like me to take the person away first and then hand this matter over to the Dali Temple for handling?" Cheng Song asked tentatively, staring at the expressions of Xie Ci'an and Gu Jianchu cautiously.
"No need, bring the person here." Gu Jianchu ordered coldly.
Except for the major events of the previous dynasty, Xie Ci'an almost always listened to the Queen, no matter the small matters inside or outside the palace. Now, after hearing the Queen's orders, Cheng Song, Wen Zhu and others did not ask for the Emperor's opinion, but directly did as Gu Jianchu ordered.
Cheng Song was more careful than others and would secretly pay attention to Xie Ci'an's mood.
Just now, he saw that the emperor's attention was all on Gu Jianchu, and it was clear that he would not interfere too much in this matter and directly handed it over to Gu Jianchu to deal with. There was no need for him to ask any more annoying questions.
Cheng Song immediately arranged for two guards to bring the woman to the imperial carriage.
The woman was wearing tattered clothes, which looked like the old clothes of a maid in the mansion. Her hair was messy and had cobwebs in several places, as if she had just run out of a dog hole or a dilapidated woodshed.
The weather is cold now, but the clothes the woman is wearing are very thin, which are clothes that are only worn in autumn. It is obvious that this clothes is not for this woman. It is too short when she wears it, revealing her ankles and wrists.
There were clear bruises on the ankles and wrists exposed to the air, like marks left by being tied up. Even the corners of the mouth had some bruises.
Perhaps due to the great shock she received, she had a stress reaction, and the woman knelt stiffly in front of the emperor and empress's carriage.
The moment the woman knelt down, Yunhe saw her delicate little face through her messy hair.
Yun He's expression changed drastically. He quickly approached the carriage and whispered to Gu Jianchu and Xie Ci'an, "Your Majesty, this girl looks like Lady Zhang."
"That Lady Zhang." Gu Jianchu asked suspiciously.
Xie Ci'an dismissed many concubines from the palace, but they were all of relatively low rank and had no sense of presence in the palace on weekdays. Because of their low rank and lack of favor, they would not cause trouble in the palace, nor would they try to make their presence felt in front of Gu Jianchu and Xie Ci'an, nor would they use tricks like Shu Guifei and others. For them, they just wanted to live a good life in the harem.
Even though there were no Concubine Xian, Concubine Shu and others pressing down on them, they did not step out to provoke Gu Jianchu.
They often went to pay their respects to Gu Jianchu, but Gu Jianchu had no impression of them, and Xie Ci'an had even less impression of them. Unlike Gu Jianchu, the women in the harem would not pay their respects to him every now and then, and he was too lazy to see them. Xie Ci'an didn't even know how many people there were in the harem.
Yun He whispered to Gu Jianchu, "This Lady Zhang is the sister-in-law of the Minister of Rites, and she lives in the same palace with Wen Nuan."
After Yunhe's reminder, Gu Jianchu had some impression. She remembered that this girl had excellent embroidery skills, better than her and her elder sister. On her birthday, Concubine Zhang gave her a double-sided embroidered screen with lifelike rich peonies embroidered on it. It is still on display in her hall.
It's only been a few days since he left the palace, and he's already in such a mess?
It was a great favor for the emperor to let them leave the palace. Not only did their families not know how to be grateful for the emperor's grace, they also treated these girls badly.