Traveling through ancient times to escape famine, the prince led me to rebel

Chapter 348 Slander

Perhaps because she took Wang Defa's words to heart, the queen stood there in silence for a moment, and finally returned to her Kunning Palace reluctantly.

Although the Queen Mother only said that the Queen was recuperating and did not mention house arrest in order to save face, she still sent a capable nanny to stay by the Queen's side and watch over her.

After the Queen left, the Queen Mother closed her eyes and remained silent for a long time before opening her eyes again.

"Fukang Palace, what's the situation now?"

Wang Defa still looked terrified, but his words were still very coherent:

"I hurried to report this matter to Her Majesty, and temporarily sent people to seal off the entire Fukang Palace.

I dare not touch Commander Lin's body, so I have sent people to guard it.

Xiao Xingzi refused to say a word about Commander Lin's body appearing in his room, so the servants sent people to tie him up.

Everything depends on your decision, Madam."

Wang Defa is worthy of being an old man beside the Empress Dowager, and his arrangements are all very appropriate.

"Does the emperor know about this?" the Queen Mother continued to ask.

"The Fukang Palace is surrounded by the people sent by my servants. In the short term... no news will come out." Wang Defa said.

The Queen Mother was silent for a moment again, and finally instructed Wang Defa:

"The Empress Dowager's health has not improved, so don't bother her about this matter for now.

Go and report this matter to the Emperor now, and ask him to go to Fukang Palace with me.

Also, call Dr. Zhang."

"Yes."

……

Huo Qingyun, along with the imperial guards, quickly searched the entire front court, but did not find any trace of Lin Yuanfang.

When he brought this news back to Emperor Tianqi, he happened to meet Wang Defa who was anxiously asking for a meeting.

Seeing Huo Qingyun was there, Wang Defa hesitated to speak, but finally said cautiously:

"Your Majesty, the Empress Dowager asks you to go to Fukang Palace."

Early in the morning, the empress dowager sent Wang Defa to say that Lin Yuanfang had disappeared after guarding the Qianqiu Festival palace banquet last night, and asked Emperor Tianqi to send people to look for him in the front court.

Countless thoughts flashed through Emperor Tianqi's mind, and finally he called Huo Qingyun and asked him to take people to find Lin Yuanfang.

The empress dowager herself sent people to look for someone in the harem under the pretext of looking for the jade dragon head hairpin.

After hearing what Wang Defa said, Emperor Tianqi's eyes moved between Huo Qingyun and Wang Defa.

Since Huo Qingyun did not find Lin Yuanfang, and the Queen Mother sent Wang Defa to summon him to Fukang Palace, does it mean that Lin Yuanfang is in Fukang Palace at this time? He actually went to the harem!

In a moment, Emperor Tianqi felt that he had added another green hat to his head, and the veins on his forehead bulged!

But soon, Emperor Tianqi thought that the person living in Fukang Palace was Luo Xiaoran...

Amidst the overwhelming anger, a hint of nervousness suddenly arose.

When Huo Qingyun heard that the Empress Dowager summoned Emperor Tianqi to Fukang Palace, he immediately thought of Lin Yuanfang, whom he had been looking for the whole morning, and he should be in Fukang Palace at this time.

But why would he go there? Luo Xiaoran lived in Fukang Palace, Lin Yuanfang would know it!

Thinking of Lin Yuanfang's lustful nature, Huo Qingyun clenched his fists.

At this moment, Emperor Tianqi stopped making random guesses and asked Wang Defa directly:

"Is Lin Yuanfang in Fukang Palace?"

This……

Wang Defa looked at Huo Qingyun with some embarrassment. Commander Lin was indeed in Fukang Palace, but it was a serious crime for an outsider to trespass into the harem. How could he let the Huo family know about it!

What’s more, Commander Lin died in Fukang Palace!

"Look at what Huo Qingyun is doing! Answer me!"

Wang Defa saw that he couldn't hide it any longer, so he had to reply "Yes!"

All of a sudden, the worries of Emperor Tianqi and Huo Qingyun finally died.

They all knew Lin Yuanfang, he was arrogant and lustful. He definitely didn't go to Fukang Palace to do any good thing!

Emperor Tianqi's face was so gloomy that water could drip out of it. Huo Qingyun blurted out:

"Your Majesty, would you allow me to go with you?"

Seeing that Emperor Tianqi seemed unwilling, Huo Qingyun added:

“As the commander of the Imperial Guard, I have the duty to protect the Imperial Palace.

Now, a foreign man has trespassed into the harem. It is because I have failed to protect him. I beg Your Majesty to let me lead the imperial guards to capture Lin Yuanfang."

After hearing this, Wang Defa felt numb all over.

The death of Commander Lin in Fukang Palace is still a secret. The Empress Dowager only asked him to summon the Emperor but did not let him tell her about it. Should I say anything?

After turning this thought over in his mind for a few times, Wang Defa finally kept his mouth shut. After all, he would know the truth when the emperor arrived at Fukang Palace.

Emperor Tianqi finally agreed to Huo Qingyun's request. Under the leadership of Wang Defa and the escort of the imperial guards led by Huo Qingyun, Emperor Tianqi rushed to Fukang Palace as quickly as possible.

……

Inside the Fukang Palace, everyone was detained in the courtyard.

Xiao Xingzi's hands and feet were tied and his mouth was gagged.

The other palace servants huddled together, fearfully facing the unknown storm.

Luo Xiaoran was treated better and even had a chair to sit on. Wei An stood behind her and glared at Xiao Xingzi who was pretending to be dead, his teeth almost breaking.

If Luo Xiaoran hadn't told her not to act rashly before Eunuch Wang came back, she would have gone up and torn Xiao Xingzi to pieces right now!

From Xiao Xingzi’s guilty expression, Luo Xiaoran and Wei An could both tell that Xiao Xingzi had known about Lin Yuanfang’s body in his room long ago and was not “unaware”.

Thinking that the Queen Mother would come over later and Xiao Xingzi would insist that he had killed Lin Yuanfang, Luo Xiaoran could not help but exude a murderous aura.

The Queen Mother arrived first, and as soon as she entered Fukang Palace, she went straight to Lin Yuanfang's body.

There is blood on the bed and floor in Xiao Xingzi's room. The Queen Mother must not step on it.

So the palace servants carried out Lin Yuanfang's body and considerately covered it with a layer of white cloth.

After seeing with her own eyes that Lin Yuanfang was indeed dead, the empress dowager felt her legs and feet go weak and she almost fell.

The personal nanny quickly sent someone to bring a chair. After the empress dowager sat down, she still felt palpitations.

Because nothing is more shocking to a person than seeing a dead body with one's own eyes, especially when the dead body is that of her most beloved nephew.

She had no children and treated her brother's children as her own. Unexpectedly, she would end up sending her brother off before her!

The queen mother swept her hateful gaze around the yard, and locked onto Luo Xiaoran accurately, her voice sounding as if it could freeze:

"Luo Xiaoran, tell me why Commander Lin died in Fukang Palace where you live?"

A haze flashed across Luo Xiaoran's eyes. Facing the now emotional empress dowager, she chose to - also be emotional, and seamlessly put on a sad expression with tears in the corners of her eyes.

"Your Majesty, please accept my condolences. Regarding Commander Lin's matter, I feel deeply that the heavens are jealous of his talent.

But please understand, Your Majesty the Queen, I discovered Commander Lin together with Eunuch Wang who came to search the palace.

Moreover, I slept very soundly at the dinner yesterday because I drank too much, so I didn't know how Commander Lin appeared in Fukang Palace.

I also want to know who murdered Commander Lin, making Daliang lose a pillar of talent. I beg the Queen Mother to find out the murderer and comfort Commander Lin's spirit in heaven!"

As soon as Emperor Tianqi and Huo Qingyun arrived outside the gate of Fukang Palace, they heard Luo Xiaoran's powerful words, and their hearts were shocked again and again!

What! Lin Yuanfang is dead! And he died in Fukang Palace!

Emperor Tianqi immediately gave Wang Defa an angry glare, blaming him for not reporting the matter in advance. Wang Defa responded with a wry smile.

Huo Qingyun was frightened by Luo Xiaoran's crying voice, and subconsciously thought that it was the Queen Mother's coercion that caused Luo Xiaoran to fall into fear.

But when he thought about Luo Xiaoran's words, he couldn't help but curl the corners of his mouth.

When...will Luo Xiaoran stand up for Lin Yuanfang?

She probably hasn't spoken to Lin Yuanfang yet, right?

So, her sadness and fear just now must have been acted!

Luo Xiaoran's expression in the courtyard was a little too sincere, and the Queen Mother was also dazzled and stunned.

This Luo Xiaoran shouldn't know Yuan Fang, right? Why is she acting... quite sad?

Perhaps it was because when they first met, Luo Xiaoran was amazed at the Queen Mother's appearance, which made the Queen Mother, although she despised Luo Xiaoran's background, think that this woman was sweet-mouthed enough, so her impression of Luo Xiaoran was not bad.

In addition, Luo Xiaoran being the Princess of Yan cannot help to boost the power of the Prince of Yan, which is a good thing for their Lin family and the royal family.

At this point, the Queen Mother was no longer averse to Luo Xiaoran.

Before this, when the empress dowager heard Wang Defa report that Yuan Fang died in Fukang Palace, she never suspected that it was Luo Xiaoran who did it, but rather that someone framed her.

As Yuan Fang's aunt, she had to treat Luo Xiaoran sternly. After all, Yuan Fang died in the palace where she lived.

But she couldn't easily deal with Luo Xiaoran, the sweetheart of King Yan. Although King Yan was in the northern border, he sent memorials to her almost every five days, all of which expressed his appreciation for Luo Xiaoran.

Emperor Tianqi gave her these memorials. After reading them, she couldn't help but wonder if something happened to Luo Xiaoran in Kyoto, Prince Yan's army might come to the outskirts of Beijing for training.

After much consideration, she asked Wang Defa to call the emperor to Fukang Palace as well.

If he was destined to play the good guy, then the emperor would definitely play the bad guy in order to protect Luo Xiaoran and make sure that the real murderer of Yuan Fang would not be able to achieve his goal of framing her!

"I will find the murderer who killed Commander Lin, but his body was found in your Fukang Palace, so you cannot escape the blame!"

"What the Queen Mother said makes sense!"

Emperor Tianqi walked in with his imperial guards in a mighty procession. After quickly scanning the scene in the courtyard, he saw the arrogant Lin Yuanfang lying quietly on the ground. Countless complex emotions flashed in Emperor Tianqi's eyes.

But he quickly suppressed these emotions.

"How did Lin Yuanfang die?"

Wang Defa replied, "Commander Lin's body was found in the room of the eunuch Xiao Xingzi in Fukang Palace. I have already sent someone to invite Imperial Physician Zhang in accordance with the order of the Empress Dowager."

Emperor Tianqi gave Huo Qingyun a look, and Huo Qingyun went to Xiao Xingzi's room under the guidance of the eunuch.

Just at this time, Imperial Doctor Zhang arrived late. After paying his respects to the Empress Dowager and Emperor Tianqi, he went to check Lin Yuanfang's body at their urging.

"Reporting to the Empress Dowager and the Emperor, Commander Lin was knocked unconscious and then had his throat cut with a sharp knife, resulting in death from excessive bleeding."

Huo Qingyun, who had searched Xiao Xingzi's room, continued what Doctor Zhang said:

"Xiao Xingzi's room should be the place where Commander Lin was killed. It was not moved here from somewhere else."

With what Huo Qingyun and Doctor Zhang said, Emperor Tianqi felt more at ease and decided to cut the Gordian knot and put the matter behind him. After all, he couldn't let Luo Xiaoran get into trouble.

"What are you waiting for?

Since the body was found in the servant's room, and Lin Yuanfang was killed in that room, drag the servant to the prison and torture him, find out the reason for the assassination, and then execute him!"

Unexpectedly, as soon as Emperor Tianqi finished speaking, Xiao Xingzi, who had been silent all this time, suddenly shouted:

"Your Majesty, Commander Lin broke into Fukang Palace late last night and attempted to commit an indecent act against Miss Luo.

Miss Luo drugged Commander Lin and made him unconscious, then asked her servants to drag him to her room.

Later, Miss Luo was so angry that she ordered her subordinate Wei An to kill Commander Lin in front of the servants!

This was all done by Miss Luo and Wei An. This has nothing to do with me. Please, Queen Mother, Your Majesty, please look into this matter carefully!"

Xiao Xingzi's voice was so loud that he made everyone present's heads buzz.

He finally spilled the dirty water!

Wei An was so furious that she didn't care that she was in the palace anymore. She yelled at Xiao Xingzi:

"You're talking nonsense! The princess and I went to bed not long after we came back last night. We never saw Commander Lin at all!

Xiao Xingzi, you drove our princess all the way from the northern border to Kyoto, and after the princess moved into Fukang Palace, you also served her.

The princess has always treated you well, why do you want to slander her like this! "

Under Wei An's harsh accusation, Xiao Xingzi, who had just remained calm, had a flash of guilt in his eyes, but continued:

"I didn't lie! When Wei An killed Commander Lin yesterday, blood was splattered all over him.

"Eunuch Wang came early to search the palace today, so Wei An probably hasn't had time to deal with the bloody clothes yet. Empress Dowager, please send someone to search Wei An's room and we'll know the truth!"

What Xiao Xingzi said made sense, and the Queen Mother, who was initially certain that Lin Yuanfang's death had nothing to do with Luo Xiaoran, began to waver.

She knew Yuan Fang's lustful nature.

If it was really Yuan Fang who broke into Fukang Palace and acted foolishly, it is also possible that Luo Xiaoran killed Yuan Fang in order to protect herself or to preserve her reputation.

Thinking of this, the Queen Mother glanced at Wang Defa, and Wang Defa immediately took people to search Wei An's room.

Not long after, they actually found the bloody clothes!

The blood-stained shirt was displayed in front of the Empress Dowager and Emperor Tianqi. The Empress Dowager was so angry that she grabbed the shirt and threw it to the ground without any scruples.

"Luo Xiaoran, how do you explain this bloody shirt?"

The evil aura around Luo Xiaoran became even stronger. Unexpectedly, the other party not only prepared Xiao Xingzi as a witness, but also physical evidence.

She found that since coming to Kyoto, her patience seemed to have become disposable.

Whenever she encountered these inexplicable things, she could still act interested and submissive at first, but when it happened the second time, she became very irritable.

She had tolerated Concubine Tang's harassment in the Empress Dowager's palace, but she didn't want to tolerate it anymore at the Qianqiu Festival palace banquet.

As for the Queen Mother's questioning, she was still able to muster up the interest to act sad and regretful.

But now, she doesn't want to anymore.