Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 408 The Way
After Weng Yi finished speaking, the master of ceremonies pondered for a moment and then looked up.

“Lord Weng,” the master of ceremonies said, “since those nuns have been wronged, may I take them back to Yunqi Temple?”

Weng Yi looked somewhat troubled: "Logically speaking, it shouldn't be possible, but... since the Empress Dowager is waiting for the nun to preach the Dharma, it's fine for the lady to take her away. However, there are too many nuns involved right now, so we can only take Master Mingzhen away. Moreover... after the Empress Dowager returns to the palace, she will probably have to send her back to make paperwork."

The emcee nodded: "Then I'll trouble you to make the arrangements, sir."

Weng Yi smiled and said, "Please wait a moment, Madam. I will have someone go and invite her right away."

Not long after, Master Mingzhen was led into the room by the jailer.

Upon seeing the emcee, Mingzhen could not hide her excitement, but fearing she might lose her composure, she immediately closed her eyes, put her palms together, and said, "Amitabha."

In the blink of an eye, she transformed from a murderous and arsonist into a Buddhist nun with profound Buddhist knowledge. She recognized the female official in front of her; she was the master of ceremonies beside the Empress Dowager.

The master of ceremonies said to Abbess Mingzhen, "Abbess, come with me. Don't keep the Empress Dowager waiting."

Master Mingzhen responded and straightened her back again. She thought she was really doomed. If she was caught red-handed by the yamen officials while leading her followers in a fight in the manor, she would surely be sentenced to death.

Unexpectedly, the Empress Dowager happened to be visiting Yunqi Temple.

Master Mingzhen silently recited Buddhist scriptures, praying that everything was under Buddha's protection. Although she might have to return to face these troubles after meeting the Empress Dowager, she could always persuade the officials of the Ministry of Justice to exchange benefits with her; she was someone who could speak to the Empress Dowager.

The two left the government office and got into the carriage.

The carriage moved slowly forward, and Abbess Mingzhen looked at the master of ceremonies: "I'm sorry to trouble you to come to the government office in person."

The master of ceremonies said calmly, "It's alright. After all, this is something the Empress Dowager has been thinking about for many years. Now that there's some progress, we can't keep Her Majesty waiting any longer."

Upon hearing this, Abbess Mingzhen felt a chill in her heart. When she looked at the emcee again, she found that his face had already darkened. Abbess Mingzhen panicked and instinctively tried to run away.

The master of ceremonies didn't look at Mingzhen, nor did he show any authority to suppress her. He spoke as naturally as if it were an ordinary conversation: "There are many ways in this world that make life worse than death, and you may not have tried them yet. Having the Empress Dowager in your hands is like having the sky's limit. I don't know what your plans are right now, but I guarantee... whatever you have in mind, we can definitely get it."

Master Mingzhen's entire body went limp, and she collapsed there.

The carriage did not return to Yunqi Temple, but instead headed straight for the palace gate. Relying on the palace plaque in the master of ceremonies' hand, it went directly to Cining Palace. Master Mingzhen saw the majestic palace through the gap in the carriage curtain, and her lips trembled like a leaf.

The car finally stopped, but Master Mingzhen was unable to move.

The master of ceremonies was already used to this. He got out of the carriage first and had two female attendants help Master Mingzhen into the palace.

The Empress Dowager's carriage just passed by the master of ceremonies, indicating that the Empress Dowager had already returned to the palace.

The master of ceremonies walked towards the main hall. As soon as she entered, she sensed the solemn atmosphere inside. She glanced around and saw several female members of the Shen family.

Although the matriarch of the Shen family was quite old, she was still in good spirits, sitting there as steady as a mountain. However, upon hearing the tragic news, her eyes inevitably reddened. Madam Gao, the principal wife of Master Shen and the birth mother of Shen Si Niangzi and Consort De, was now pale, her brows and eyes filled with pain and sorrow, making her face appear stiff and blank.

It's no wonder Madam Gao felt this way. What saddened her was first the news of her daughter's death, and second... that her daughter's remains were right under her nose.

Heartache and self-blame overwhelmed her at once; if she hadn't wanted to seek justice for her daughter, she probably would have collapsed under the weight of it.

Madam Gao clutched the handkerchief tightly in her hand. Over the years, she had donated countless sums of money to Yunqi Temple, hoping to support the compassionate nuns and ask them to chant sutras before the Buddha to pray for her daughter's well-being. But in the end, she was supporting the murderer who killed her daughter.

Madam Gao managed to control her tears with great difficulty; she couldn't shed tears in front of the Empress Dowager, as that would be impolite.

"If you want to cry, just cry. Don't hold it in, or you'll ruin your health."

Upon hearing the Empress Dowager's words, Madam Gao's vision blurred immediately. She didn't know how to thank the Empress Dowager, so she knelt down and kowtowed to her.

"Quickly help her up," the Empress Dowager instructed the lady-in-waiting. "Don't do this. In the end, it's also my fault. If only I had..."

“Your Majesty, you must not say such a thing,” said Old Madam Shen. “For Fourth Sister’s sake, Your Majesty and the Imperial Concubine have put in a lot of effort, but how could we have imagined that the child was in Yunqi Temple?”

"If Fourth Sister knew this from beyond the grave," Madam Gao felt even more heartbroken upon hearing this, "would she resent me?" She had used the Shen family's money to allow those murderers to live more comfortably, while her daughter had been carelessly abandoned.
"No," the Empress Dowager said in a dignified voice, "How can children resent their parents? Besides, you were deceived by the villains. Let alone you, before things came to light, who knew their true colors?"

At this point, the Empress Dowager seemed to remember something, and her tone changed: "I had forgotten about those who colluded with them."

After the Empress Dowager finished speaking, she looked at the master of ceremonies who had entered.

The emcee bowed, while Master Mingzhen behind her was already trembling with fear.

When the Shen family's gaze fell on Mingzhen, Mingzhen seemed to see Fourth Madam Shen standing right in front of her. She instinctively opened her mouth to beg for mercy: "Spare me... spare me..."

"Your Majesty, spare my life! Lady Shen, spare my life!"

“It was an accident… I didn’t mean to kill Fourth Sister Shen… Fourth Sister Shen wanted to escape, and I was afraid that things would be exposed, so I accidentally killed her.”

The Empress Dowager said coldly, "If you had even a shred of remorse, you wouldn't have continued to do those heinous things. This excuse might fool those clay Buddha statues, but do you really think you can deceive me?"

Mingzhen was too terrified to speak. The Empress Dowager did not want to interrogate him at this moment, but instead looked at the master of ceremonies.

The master of ceremonies understood and immediately reported everything he had heard and seen at the Ministry of Justice.

"The official Xu who captured Mingzhen and the others has been imprisoned by officials from the Ministry of Justice. The Ministry of Justice's troops even went to arrest people from the Guo family's fleet. Clearly, they are trying to distort the truth."

The Empress Dowager took a deep breath: "Go and invite the Emperor over. I also want the Emperor to hear this, this is the land of our Great Liang, and the subjects of our Great Liang."

"No wonder we haven't been able to find Fourth Sister," the Empress Dowager said. "Even if we did find her, they would cover it up. Who knows how many innocent souls they have in their hands? Your Majesty must give me and the people of the world an explanation for this matter."