tallest building

Chapter 341 Confessing to Guilt

The eldest princess was still pleading desperately: "I'm willing to swear on my life that my mother has no intention of harming anyone!"

But she also felt isolated and helpless, so she turned around and shook Consort Hui, saying, "Mother, say something! You should defend yourself! Why are you willing to suffer this injustice?"

"Yes, Your Highness, we have been wronged. Heaven and earth can bear witness to our innocence!" Chief Steward Hu and Granny Xia also knelt down and pleaded with Consort Hui, "Your Highness, please say something!"

But Consort Hui just knelt there blankly, ignoring the three people's desperate pleas.

A night breeze rose, causing the lanterns to sway and flutter. The five ghosts lay scattered on the ground, their pale white forms sending chills down one's spine.

Consort Hui stared intently at the five ghosts, but her mind was perfectly clear.

She saw it clearly, very clearly.

"Consort Hui, you'd better tell me the truth. If you're willing to be completely honest with me this time, I promise you I'll let you off the hook." These words were squeezed out by the Empress through gritted teeth.

At this moment, her face was even more frightening than those five ghosts.

"Consort Hui, you haven't uttered a single word since you arrived here. It's not that I'm not giving you a chance to explain, but what is the purpose of your silence?" the Emperor said in a deep voice.

Consort Hui suddenly gave a short, bitter laugh. She laughed at herself for being so clever, only to lose her life in the end.

She laughed at the Empress, who was still kept in the dark, yet still acted arrogantly and condescendingly towards her.

Little did he know that her fate would soon be even more tragic than his own.

She gave the eldest princess a deep look, forced a smile, and said, "Stop defending me. Take care of yourself from now on. And stop feeling resentful for me. If you need anything, go ask Princess Duanmin for help."

She said this because she anticipated that the Empress would make things difficult for the eldest princess in the future.

Although Princess Duanmin also disliked herself, she might still have some pity for the eldest princess out of consideration for their relationship today.

Princess Duanmin blinked but said nothing when she heard her say that.

Consort Hui straightened her clothes, raised her hand to touch her temples, and knelt forward two steps.

She knelt before the emperor, not even glancing at the empress: "Your Majesty, I confess my sins. I only beg that after I atone with my death, I may implicate as few others as possible."

Consort Hui knew that she was in a dead end, because the Emperor was standing against her, and she was doomed to die whether she lived or died.

It's no use pleading with the Empress; she's already become a clay idol, only she's unaware of it.

The emperor understood his own words, because he knew he was innocent.

"My lady..."

"Mother..."

The eldest princess, Granny Xia, Steward Hu, and others never expected that Consort Hui would confess so easily.

Consort Hui turned her head and gently shook her head at them: "No need for further words, just accept your fate!"

"Consort Hui, since you have confessed your crimes, considering that you are still the mistress of the palace and have given birth to two princesses for me, I will spare you from physical punishment. From this day forward, you will be imprisoned in the inner prison to await further judgment."

After the Emperor finished speaking, he turned to the Empress and gently patted her, saying, "Empress, you must also grieve in moderation, for the dead cannot be brought back to life. I am as heartbroken as you are. Let a proper memorial service be held to comfort Tan'er's spirit in heaven!"

"Your Majesty..." The Empress wept uncontrollably, still clutching the imperial edict tightly in her hand, "My Tan'er... my heart aches so much..."

"Take the Empress back to the palace safely, and burn the Crown Prince's talisman! Lest she be reminded of him and become even more heartbroken," the Emperor ordered. "It's late, everyone go back and rest. What happened today must not be spread, or you will be severely punished." Even so, how can secrets stay hidden forever?

The events that occurred in Consort Hui's palace quickly spread throughout the entire harem.

"My God! You can never truly know a person's heart just by looking at their face. That Consort Hui is nothing more than a dog in front of the Empress. Who would have thought she would harm the Crown Prince!"

"You're absolutely right. Without a little profit, who would be willing to get up before dawn? Even if she weren't so attentive, she wouldn't be doing badly. But to offer such excessive attentiveness—what else could it be but ulterior motives?"

"But in the end, she's really too cruel. How could she do that to such a young child, one she'd watched grow up? It's terrifying to think about. She always seemed like a saint. Tsk tsk..."

"Keep it quiet! If someone hears, you'll get a hundred lashes! It'll hurt like hell."

As Zhang Ma came in from outside, she heard the people from the Imperial Kitchen gossiping amongst themselves.

She pretended not to hear, grabbed a handful of dried scallops, and soaked them in a basin of water.

The Empress is ill, very ill, and everyone knows that it is due to sudden and severe pain.

After so many years, how can one bear to learn the truth about the Crown Prince's untimely death?

Moreover, the Empress has not had a moment of peace in the past six months.

The Zhao family was convicted and demoted, as was the Dong family; each of these events was enough to exhaust the Empress.

Wen Mingqian served the Empress day and night.

"Mingqian, go and rest! You've been working like this for two days straight," Yu Lu whispered to Wen Mingqian. "Even a heart of stone can't take this long!"

"I'm fine, Steward Yu, why don't you go and rest first?" Wen Mingqian's expression showed his exhaustion. "Even when Her Majesty the Empress takes calming medicine, she still can't sleep soundly. I massage her acupoints whenever I want, which always helps a lot."

Yu Lu couldn't persuade her otherwise, so he went to rest first and then came back to take her place.

“It’s daytime now, so it’s alright that Her Majesty the Empress is awake. She can have something to eat. You should take this opportunity to go back and lie down for a while and have something to eat. We don’t know how long it will take for Her Majesty to recover, so we can’t afford to collapse prematurely,” Yu Lu said softly.

"Alright, I'll go downstairs and change my clothes first." Wen Mingqian stood up, his steps a little unsteady, and slowly walked out.

Yu Lu quickly called over a young palace maid to help her.

When Wen Mingqian returned to his residence, Xiaoyue hurriedly came to greet him: "My wife doesn't look well. Have you eaten yet?"

"I've eaten, so I'm not hungry. I just haven't slept much these past two days, and I want to lie down for a bit."

"Then my wife, lie down and take a nap. I'll go prepare some bathwater for you. When you wake up, you can take a bath and change your clothes."

Xiaoyue knew that Wen Mingqian liked cleanliness.

Wen Mingqian fell asleep as soon as he lay down on the bed, and when he opened his eyes again, it was already dusk.

"How long have I been asleep?" Wen Mingqian was still a little dazed when he first woke up.

"My wife has been asleep for about three hours!" Xiaoyue said with a smile. "Zhang Ma made you some food, and it's been kept warm here!"

“Where did Chang’an go? I haven’t seen him since I came back,” Wen Mingqian said.

"The Fourth Young Master is with the teacher! He came back around noon and didn't disturb you since you were sleeping."