"See, how much blood?"
She looked at the screaming, suffering palace maid with a smile. Her beautiful, seductive face seemed to be stained with blood, as intense as the Lycoris radiata blooming on the other side of the Yellow Springs.
"Nan Shiying, you are presumptuous!"
Ji Hong abruptly stood up from his chair, his surging anger enveloping the entire hall in a tempest. A violent aura spread through the air, like a fuel barrel filled with diesel placed beside an open flame, threatening to explode and turn everything to ash. The fear made everyone hold their breath, only cold sweat trickling down their foreheads.
Nan Shiying released the palace maid’s hand. The maid knelt on the ground, clutching her wrist. Blood flowed from her wrist onto the ground. She raised her head, looking at Nan Shiying with venom, tears streaming down her distorted, ferocious face. Her piercing voice seemed to tear through the heavens, "Your Highness, even if you torture this servant to death, you cannot conceal your guilt."
Nan Shiying casually raised her hand and brushed her earlobe. She turned to look at the furious Ji Hong, showing no regard for the overwhelming imperial authority. Her back was straight, her demeanor proud and noble, without any trace of fear or unease. She smiled and said, "Your Majesty, please calm your anger. This consort merely wishes for everyone to see that the blood on my maid's body is hardly conclusive evidence."
Ji Hong was enraged. The pupils reflecting Nan Shiying’s figure seemed to churn with a surging tsunami. If it weren't for his apprehension towards Ji Jinmo, he would have long ago ordered the guards to drag this audacious, lowly woman to the imperial prison!
He took a deep breath, then slowly sat back down, sighing with a hint of weariness and helplessness. "Guards, go and check the dry well in the Cold Palace!"
"Your Majesty, this humble subject requests to accompany you." Marquis Xunyang suddenly spoke, requesting the Emperor's favor.
On one hand, he wanted to personally see if his wife had truly been thrown into the dry well by Nan Shiying. On the other hand, it was merely a calculated move following his understanding of the Emperor's intentions.
The Emperor suspected that Marquis Xunyang's estate had defected to the Regent. But if they had truly defected, it would be one thing. However, their estate had no connection whatsoever with the Regent. To be thus suspected by the sovereign, to the point of ruining his most outstanding legitimate son's career, if he didn't seize this opportunity to demonstrate his loyalty to the Emperor, then their estate's future days would be difficult.
Ji Hong found Marquis Xunyang to be exceptionally sensible for the first time. He naturally wanted to crush Nan Shiying directly in front of the court officials. He glanced at Nan Shiying with a troubled expression, struggled for a long time, and finally nodded, "Very well, as my honored minister requests."
"Your Majesty, this humble subject also requests to accompany you."
"Your Majesty, this humble wife..."
"Your Majesty..."
Everyone in the hall requested to go, until finally, Ji Hong was compelled to stand up, taking Consort Zou with him, leading all the civil and military officials and their consorts, and proceeded grandly towards the Cold Palace.
Nan Shiying was surrounded by the civil officials and their consorts, as if she were being revered, but it was more like she was being contained in the center, preventing her from escaping.
Nan Shiying's expression sank to the bottom. The closer they got to the Cold Palace, the more unpleasant her complexion became.
As everyone watched, some sneered, some mocked... The military generals who supported Ji Jinmo were cursing all eighteen generations of her ancestors in their hearts.
This good-for-nothing idiot, how could she kill an official's consort within the palace walls?
This palace, no matter what, was Ji Hong's territory!
The people of Da Li also came to watch the spectacle. Walking at the very back, the Qin envoy leaned over to the Princess of Da Li and quietly asked, "Princess, is this matter related to you?"
The Princess of Da Li glanced at him and shook her head, denying, "Of course not."
"That's good, that's good." The Qin envoy was truly relieved. It would be terrible if they, while eagerly watching others' amusements, ended up drawing fire onto themselves.
The Princess of Da Li let out a cold laugh in her heart. Her gaze fell upon the retreating figures of those from Lin Yuan, and a mocking cold light flashed in her eyes. Nan Shiying putting on a show of being fierce and yet weak, and you all actually believed it? Hmph, just watch, you don't even know who will be unlucky today!
The road from the hall to the Cold Palace was slippery due to the snow. It took them a full half hour.
Pushing open the gate of the Cold Palace, its dilapidated and desolate state made it seem unlike a place within the imperial city. Ji Hong had not taken many concubines, only demoting one noble consort to this Cold Palace. Besides her, most of the residents of the Cold Palace were concubines demoted by the former Emperor.
Now, these people were either old or dead!
"This sinful consort greets Your Majesty, greets the Consort."
Hearing the commotion outside the house, the sallow-skinned, poorly dressed Xin Gui Ren, who had once enjoyed favor, knelt tremblingly before Ji Hong and Consort Zou to pay her respects.
She noticed Ji Hong's gaze and instinctively tidied a strand of hair that had fallen to her temples.
Consort Zou couldn't help but let out a cold laugh. At such a time, was this woman still hoping to regain the Emperor's favor? It was sheer delusion!
Consort Zou did not show Xin Gui Ren any kindness. Hearing the disdainful cold laugh from above, Xin Gui Ren's face turned pale, and she quickly lowered her hand.
Although her days in the Cold Palace were lonely, she could still cling to life. But if she were to offend the Consort, she feared she wouldn't even have the chance to live.
Seeing her compliance, Consort Zou stopped wasting her attention on her and instead asked the palace maid, supported by a eunuch, "You, aren't you going to lead the way?"
The palace maid gritted her teeth, cradling her wound that was only simply bandaged. She led everyone towards the dry well.
After walking a short distance, a dry well appeared before them. The palace maid pointed at the dry well and said to everyone, "Your Majesty, Your Highness, it is this one."
"Guards..."
"Wait a moment!"
Just as Ji Hong was about to call for guards, Nan Shiying's voice stopped him. She pushed aside the civil officials and consorts beside her, elegantly walked to the dry well, and slowly sat on the edge. With a half-smile, she looked at the palace maid who was glaring at her, "Before this, this consort wishes to ask her, this Cold Palace is remote, and you do not seem to be a rough palace maid. Why did you inexplicably come here, and so coincidentally witness my maid killing the Marquis Xunyang's wife and disposing of the body in this dry well?"
"Replying to Your Highness, this servant did not see this in the Cold Palace, but on the small road outside the Cold Palace. This servant was ordered by Mama Sun to go to the New Garden to pick Yao Hua flowers, which is why I passed by that small road. If this servant had not coincidentally passed by, how could I have witnessed the scene of your ordering the killing of the Marquis Xunyang's wife?"