Hiss—
In what should have been a solemn and dignified palace hall, in a corner unnoticed by those at the upper seats, the imposing and stern emperor frowned. He almost couldn't hold back a pained groan.
Jun Wuyuan turned his head. His amorous peach blossom eyes sparkled with tiny ripples of light, silently showing his puzzlement tinged with a bit of grievance.
[What's going on? Why did Shanshan suddenly use her "Nine Yin White Bone Claw"? I didn't do anything...]
Ling Shan withdrew her hand from his waist and gave Jun Wuyuan a disdainful glance, her eyebrows slightly furrowed.
Her full and rosy lips pouted slightly. From her eyes to the tips of her hair, it all showed a look of: I'm not happy.
Jun Wuyuan's heart skipped a beat, and he quickly realized what was going on.
Ling Shan was jealous!
Ling Shan: "..."
Almost as soon as she heard Jun Wuyuan's smug thoughts as if he were wagging his tail, she instinctively straightened her back.
She was about to retort, but as soon as she sat up straight, she met Xu Jieyu's hesitant gaze and swallowed her words.
Jun Wuyuan hooked the corners of his lips. If it weren't for the inappropriate time and place, he would probably have hugged the girl in his arms... and been even more excited.
[Shanshan is so silly. How could she suspect that I have other thoughts?]
Ling Shan: "..."
She must have slept too much last night and was out of her mind to act like this.
Don't be angry.
"Your Majesty~"
A delicate and deliberately affected voice rang out, breaking the strange atmosphere between the two.
Jun Wuyuan was still immersed in the beautiful thoughts of "Shanshan loves me so much", "How could Shanshan be so cute", "Shanshan is really too..." when he was suddenly interrupted.
And it was by a very annoying culprit.
Jun Wuyuan's face darkened instantly, his eyes full of undisguised disgust.
Xu Jieyu's tender eyes met his, and she immediately felt as if she had fallen into an ice cellar.
Countless chills seemed to pour into her body from head to toe, and her limbs gradually went numb and stiff.
Why?
Before the unwillingness in Xu Jieyu's eyes could spread, Jun Wuyuan took out a piece of testimony from Liang Jiusi's hand and threw it in front of his knees.
The originally flimsy piece of paper carried a fierce momentum that shattered the last glimmer of hope in Xu Jieyu's heart.
"Xu, the Jieyu, is malicious and reckless. She bribed the performers of the opera troupe, planned a poisonous scheme, set fire to harm the Empress Dowager, as well as many concubines and noble ladies. The evidence is conclusive, and her crime is unforgivable. From now on, she is demoted to a commoner and will be given a cup of poisoned wine. There must be no delay."
Xu Jieyu tremblingly shifted her gaze from the black words on the white paper and met Jun Wuyuan's cold but even more charming face. Her eyes showed a moment of infatuation.
But the next moment, tears welled up in her eyes, and her face turned pale.
She heard Jun Wuyuan's cold and harsh voice:
"The entire Xu clan will be executed, and the nine generations of their family will be exiled to Lingnan. They shall not leave until they die!"
"No—"
Xu shook her head, her eyes full of tears of fear and pleading. She still refused to give up and tried to arouse Jun Wuyuan's compassion.
She didn't understand.
She just resented the humiliation that night and was jealous that Ling Shan, a lowly maid, could receive the emperor's favor.
Xu just wanted this slut to disappear. Even if she couldn't get rid of her, she wanted her to be disfigured and ruined.
Why should she, born into a noble family and raised as a noble lady since childhood, proficient in all aspects of virtue, appearance, speech, and skills, as well as music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, be stepped on by a lowly maid?
The emperor is the lord of the world, handsome and elegant. How could he be bewitched by such a humble person?
Why can't the emperor see her?
Even if it were the Shu Fei or Cui Guipin in the harem, Xu might not have been so broken and unable to accept it.
In the past, when Wang Chengbi was still alive, Xu didn't dare to express her love for Jun Wuyuan.
Even more, she had to endure the pain in her heart and help Wang Chengbi plan strategies.
"Your Majesty, this concubine..."
Xu's eyes were fixed on Jun Wuyuan, filled with infatuation, love, pleading, unwillingness, fear...
All kinds of complex emotions welled up in her cold body, and she felt a strong impulse to say something.
Unfortunately, Jun Wuyuan didn't want to listen to her excuses at all.
Last night's turmoil was truly caused by Xu. If she hadn't been so immoral and stupid enough to be detected for using others to kill, how could she have brought this disaster upon herself?
Thinking of last night, besides the person who tried to assassinate Ling Shan with a dagger smeared with something unclean, there was actually someone hiding in the dark like a poisonous snake.
Especially, after investigating all night last night, except for Xu, this stupid woman, and some unclean things and the minions of the Empress Dowager Wang, there was not a single trace of that black hand.
It was as if everything was just their illusion and nothing had ever happened.
Xu didn't even have time to react before she was covered by a hand and dragged out.
The concubines and noble ladies in the hall were also shocked by this scene. They didn't expect that it was actually Xu Jieyu, who used to be silent and only knew how to follow Wang Chengbi, who did such a thing last night.
Thinking of almost being killed by the falling fireball last night, the feeling of surviving a near - death experience made everyone feel extremely elated.
[Damn it. That dead rat had better hide deeply. Otherwise, if I find it... (a cold smile)]
Suddenly, Ling Shan's hand was held in someone's palm. She looked back at Jun Wuyuan and secretly squeezed his hand back.
Her eyes involuntarily scanned the concubines in the hall, and she had the same doubt in her heart.
Judging from the deliberate imitation of Yu Shiwei in the forest last time, that hand must be hiding in the harem.
Last night's act of taking advantage of the chaos also provided further evidence.
But who on earth could it be?
Ling Shan silently filtered through each concubine in her mind, and she couldn't help but feel a bit frustrated.
Reluctantly admitting it, this person was obviously a smart and cautious one.
"The Empress Dowager is seriously ill. Since you all have nothing to do, go to Yaotai Jinfeng to take good care of her. Don't cause any trouble. If there is anyone who is not afraid of death, feel free to make trouble!"
[I don't believe that that dirty rat can hide in the gutter for a lifetime and never come out!]
"We concubines and ladies obey the order!"
The Shu Fei and the others couldn't help but smile bitterly. They all knelt down to receive the order.
As for the noble ladies, except for Mrs. Xu, who had fainted and was dragged out following Xu Jieyu, they were finally sent out of the Yuhua Palace by the palace maids.
The originally good birthday banquet not only ended in discord but also caused a great deal of fear.
When the Empress Dowager Wang woke up again, she had already been sent back to Yaotai Jinfeng. Listening to Zhiju's trembling report, her anger boiled over. She was so angry that she almost fainted again.
"Jun Wuyuan! The Xu clan!"
The Empress Dowager Wang's gloomy face showed her deep hatred: "You all deserve to die!"
The carefully laid - out secret agents and information network of the Langya Wang clan had been uprooted like this, and all that was left were just small fry.
The hatred in the Empress Dowager Wang's heart was boiling, and her suppressed killing intent was about to burst out.