"Yes!" Concubine Rong bowed respectfully. Then she turned to the imperial guards standing on both sides and ordered, "Why aren't you quickly dragging this madwoman who spouts nonsense away!"
"Yes!"
Wei Dongling couldn't help but feel nervous. If Lady Xue was taken away and imprisoned like this, all their efforts would be in vain!
"No! I'm not mad!" Lady Xue tightly grasped the coffin and declared loudly, "Your Majesty, do you still remember that during the summer, Prince Yu once presented an account book, accusing the Zhao family of colluding with Xiliang? Although the Zhao family presented other account books to prove their innocence and were acquitted, the account book in Prince Yu's hand at that time was brought back by an eyewitness from a private place of the Zhao family! This witness saw clearly the collusion between the Zhao family and Xiliang!"
Everyone was greatly surprised upon hearing this. Lady Xue's words were clear and coherent, not like those of a madwoman. What shocked them even more was what she said! If the Zhao family had really colluded with Xiliang, it was no small matter!
Although the Zhao family had presented other account books to prove their innocence back then, they were still ransacked, and their family members were exiled as soldiers because of the unjust case of Prime Minister Su. But what did Lady Xue mean by bringing up the Zhao family at this critical moment? Now, in the palace, the Zhao family only had the powerless and imprisoned Empress Zhao and the tenth prince, who had half of the Zhao family's blood.
Did Lady Xue mean to imply that the fourth prince's suicide was not an accident but was caused by the tenth prince? But the tenth prince was still young and had been confined in the Ten Thousand Buddhas Pagoda. How could he have done such a thing?
Seeing that some of the court officials had started to whisper among themselves, the emperor was a bit displeased. He said in a deep voice, "The Zhao family was exiled as soldiers long ago. You don't need to bring this up again! Even if they really colluded with Xiliang, I will investigate it privately! Step back!" The emperor winked at General Fang beside him.
At General Fang's order, the imperial guards stepped forward in unison and pinned Lady Xue to the ground.
Furious, Lady Xue shouted, "Your Majesty! The eyewitness who gave the account book to Prince Yu back then was none other than Princess Wu! Princess Wu witnessed the collusion between the Zhao family and Xiliang with her own eyes, Your Majesty!"
Princess Wu?
All the court officials were in an uproar, and their discussions grew louder.
All the concubines in the harem immediately turned to look at Wei Dongling, their eyes filled with surprise.
"Father! What Lady Xue said is true!" Without waiting for others to react, Wei Dongling stepped forward slowly.
Lamei, standing beside her, felt a bit resentful looking at Wei Dongling's back. Princess Wu had claimed that she walked too fast for ordinary palace maids to keep up with, but in this grand occasion, her behavior was quite proper and in line with the rules!
Wei Dongling stepped forward, curtsied, and said, "Replying to Father! Replying to Concubine Rong! The account book that the fourth brother presented before was indeed retrieved by this daughter with her own hands from the Zhao family's tea house in Liaocheng! This daughter also witnessed the collusion between the Zhao family and Xiliang with her own eyes! The tea - picking field of the Zhao family in Xingshan was just a guise. Under the pretext of tea - picking, they were actually secretly smelting iron ore! The common people around the tea - picking field should be able to testify to this. Many strong men from poor families were taken there as coolies. After the mine collapsed, they were buried alive and couldn't escape in time!"
Secretly smelting iron ore! Many common people died in the mine collapse! This was a serious crime that would lead to the execution of the entire family! The Zhao family had actually concealed it completely! Had the local county magistrate not noticed it at all?
Seeing that the discussions among the court officials were incessant, the emperor frowned and looked at Wei Dongling. He said in a deep voice, "Today is the funeral of Prince Hanyang. We can't miss the time! We'll discuss this matter later."
"Yes!" When Wei Dongling bowed respectfully, she glanced at Lady Xue.
Lady Xue was pinned to the ground by the imperial guards. Seeing the look from Wei Dongling, she immediately shouted, "Your Majesty! Please investigate the Zhao family thoroughly! Prince Yu's death is most likely related to them!"
Concubine Rong frowned and scolded, "Nonsense! The Zhao family has already been exiled as soldiers. How could they have harmed your son, Prince Hanyang?"
Wei Dongling stepped forward and said, "Concubine Rong doesn't know. Before his death, the fourth brother had someone secretly investigate this matter. By chance, they found that all the exiled soldiers had been hijacked without a single one left!"
What? The emperor's complexion changed upon hearing this. If what Princess Wu said was true, it meant that Zhao Chuanyi and his family might still be alive! Unexpectedly, while Xiliang was sending its prince to show goodwill, it was secretly trading iron ore with the Zhao family!
The more the emperor thought about it, the more frightened he became. He had just managed to restore the tenth prince's identity in the past few days and was about to cultivate him, but such a thing had happened! Seeing that the discussions among the court officials were non - stop, the emperor nodded to Wei Dongling and said, "I already know about this matter. After the funeral of Prince Hanyang, I will have someone investigate it thoroughly."
Wei Dongling nodded in agreement. The emperor wanted to maintain the overall situation and didn't want to delve into this matter at this time. All they could do was wait.
Seeing that Lady Xue was about to be dragged away, Wei Dongling was secretly anxious. As expected, Lady Xue didn't disappoint them. She urgently shouted, "Your Majesty! There's another mystery behind the death of Concubine Chen back then! The fire in Jingyang Palace was not a natural disaster! It was deliberately set by Zhao Ji, Your Majesty!"
The emperor's complexion suddenly changed greatly upon hearing this.
Concubine Rong was so angry that she urgently ordered the imperial guards, "Cover her mouth! Don't let her spout nonsense!"
One of the imperial guards quickly stepped forward to cover Lady Xue's mouth.
Wei Dongling domineeringly shouted coldly, "Wait! This matter concerns the cause of death of my mother, Concubine Chen! Let her finish speaking!"
Concubine Rong's face instantly turned bad. Princess Wu was giving orders so disrespectfully in front of the palace. She simply didn't put the emperor and her, the noble concubine, in her eyes! Concubine Rong was about to scold Wei Dongling when she saw Lady Xue open her mouth and bite the palm of the imperial guard. The guard howled in pain as his hand bled!
Taking the opportunity, Lady Xue urgently shouted at the emperor, "Back then, Empress Zhao and Concubine Chen were pregnant at the same time. Since the imperial physicians diagnosed that both of them were carrying male fetuses, Empress Zhao became jealous and developed a murderous intention towards Concubine Chen! She deliberately planned the murder and set fire to Jingyang Palace! Seventeen lives were lost, including Concubine Chen and the child in her womb! I witnessed this with my own eyes. It's not an exaggeration!"
The emperor's face turned ashen.
The court officials were in an uproar. Lady Xue's words were more and more astonishing, which really made people shudder!
Many veteran officials remembered that when the fire broke out in Jingyang Palace, the emperor was on a personal expedition. At that time, Lord Yu, the supervisor of the censorate, was in power, and Father - in - law Zhao and the Prince Rui supervised the court. By the time the emperor returned triumphantly, the situation inside and outside the palace had changed. Prime Minister Su was unjustly imprisoned and his whole family was executed. Concubine Chen in Jingyang Palace was burned to death in the fire and there was not even a complete body left.
Now, in light of Lady Xue's words, had the Zhao family already been eyeing the position of the crown prince back then and deliberately suppressing all possible competitors?
The tenth prince's madness didn't improve until the death of the fourth prince. Could this also be one of Empress Zhao's schemes?