Five years after her death, she awoke on the dragon bed.

Chapter 302 Better to kill the innocent than let the guilty go free
Lou Suying knew that Empress Dowager Chen was worried about her, so she smiled and said, "Mother, you can rest assured, I'm as strong as an ox!"

Empress Dowager Chen chuckled: "Then you should rest early. I'll come see you again tomorrow."

Lou Suyi readily agreed and asked Murong to see Empress Dowager Chen off.

After Empress Dowager Chen left Xianfu Palace, Lou Suyi specifically asked Jili to find Granny Li, who was in charge of the search.

Granny Li did recall that she was in charge of searching the maids of Quanfu Palace: "This old servant personally searched Lanlan's body and confirmed that it was impossible for Lanlan to have a dagger on her."

"Isn't Granny trying to shirk responsibility?" Lou Suyi asked calmly.

“If it is my fault, I will not shirk it, but I am certain that Lanlan was not hiding any weapon on her at the time,” said Granny Li with righteous indignation.

Lou Suyi felt that Granny Li didn't seem to be lying, but this matter still needed to be verified.

After dismissing the crowd, Murong said to Lou Suyi, "You are injured, so it's important to heal your wounds first."

Lou Suyi only then felt the pain in her wound, but the sooner the matter was investigated, the better.

"Lanlan needs to be interrogated more thoroughly; we can't completely trust what this palace maid says."

Seeing that Murong looked at her with disapproval, she added, "I'm fine, this little injury is nothing."

She was somewhat happy, only because Empress Dowager Chen was unharmed; otherwise, she would have been held responsible.

"You don't need to worry about this. Just focus on recovering from your injuries," Murong said solemnly.

Lou Suyi saw that he was worried about her because he had furrowed his brows: "I'm really fine. The wound isn't deep. I'll be fine after a good night's sleep."

As soon as she finished speaking, Murong picked her up and gently placed her on the bed, afraid of aggravating her injuries.

Lou Suying lay on the bed but couldn't fall asleep. Seeing that Murong had also gone to bed, she asked, "Isn't Your Majesty staying up all night tonight?"

She remembered there was a writing ceremony scheduled for early morning.

Murong asked in a calm voice, "In this situation, do I still have the mood to stay up all night?"

Staying up to welcome the New Year is not as good as staying up to watch over the injured Empress.

Lou Suyi was speechless for a moment, pretending she hadn't asked.

After a moment of silence, she continued, "The more I think about it, the more I believe that Consort Hui is just a scapegoat, and that Lanlan has someone backing her..."

She had barely opened her mouth when Murong looked over.

She chuckled awkwardly, "Doesn't Your Majesty have any curiosity at all? Anyway, I really want to catch the real culprit."

"Shut up!" Murong suddenly shouted.

Lou Suyi was startled and immediately dared not speak again.

You know what, the emperor can be quite intimidating when he's serious.

Logically, Murong should be happy that she saved Empress Dowager Chen, so why is he giving her a cold shoulder?
Because of Murong's tyranny, she dared not speak again.

In addition, he had indeed been injured tonight, and because Empress Dowager Chen had been somewhat frightened, he soon became sleepy.

When Murong saw that the woman beside him had finally quieted down and heard her breathing become steady, he knew that this talkative woman had finally fallen asleep.

He got out of bed and walked out of the bedroom with a sullen face. Seeing Murong suddenly emerge, Ji Qing immediately went to greet him: "Your Majesty, what brings you here?"

"Have someone interrogate me as soon as possible. I need to know the results." Murong's face was grim.

Ji Qing could tell that His Majesty was truly enraged.

He hurried off to deliver the message, but when he returned, he found Murong sitting in the hall, seemingly lost in thought.

Ji Qing stepped forward to report, saying, "The results of the interrogation are still pending. Would Your Majesty like to go and get some rest?"

There's a "first writing ceremony" in the early hours of the first day of the Lunar New Year, so even just taking a nap is fine.

"I still need to stay up all night to celebrate the New Year, and also wait for the results of the interrogation," Murong said in a low voice.

Ji Qing knew he couldn't persuade him. Then he remembered that the Empress had shielded the Empress Dowager from a knife. Was His Majesty upset because someone had tried to assassinate the Empress Dowager, or because the Empress was injured?
He didn't dare ask.

After all, no one would be happy if the Empress were to suffer a bloody disaster on New Year's Eve.

By the time the trial results were released, the initiation ceremony had been completed.

Ji Qing handed the interrogation results to Murong and said, "Everyone in Quanfu Palace was interrogated, and quite severely, including Consort Hui. But everyone's story is consistent; they all say that Consort Hui never said those treasonous words. Also, Lan Lan insists that she wanted to gain Consort Hui's favor, which is why she risked everything to assassinate the Empress Dowager. As for the dagger, Lan Lan said that she left Taihe Hall before the banquet ended and then retrieved the dagger from where she had hidden it beforehand. I went to check where the dagger was hidden; indeed, one brick was loose, and there was enough space inside to store the dagger."

“Since they each have their own version of events, then one of them is lying!” Murong said calmly. “Bring them in; I want to question them myself.”

Murong issued an imperial edict, and soon people carried the wounded crowd into the hall.

Liang Wanying was also tortured; she had never suffered such torment in her life.

The moment she saw Murong, tears streamed down her face uncontrollably: "Your Majesty, I am innocent! Someone is trying to harm me! I beg you, Your Majesty, to do me justice..."

Murong stood up, walked slowly to Liang Wanying, and calmly asked, "You say you are innocent, but do you have any evidence?"

Leung Wan-ying was speechless for a moment. She had no evidence, and she had indeed said those words. How could she prove it?
Murong looked at all the servants of Quanfu Palace: "Since it was the servants of Quanfu Palace who committed such a treasonous act, everyone in Quanfu Palace must be punished. Here's what I'll do: I'll give you a chance. If anyone identifies the murderer, I'll give that person a chance to live. Otherwise, everyone in Quanfu Palace will die!"

It was because he had been too lenient in the past that these people were able to challenge the imperial authority time and time again.

Everyone's expression changed drastically. They hadn't expected His Majesty to be so ruthless. Was he going to massacre the entire Fu Palace? Even if Consort Hui was innocent, would he rather kill the innocent than let her go?

Ji Qing also felt that this matter had escalated. He felt that the situation was urgent, and if His Majesty really wanted to massacre the entire Quanfu Palace, he would probably be branded as a tyrant.

Even though the Empress was injured and the attack was directed at the Empress Dowager, His Majesty's actions were still too harsh.

Your Majesty has achieved remarkable political achievements since ascending the throne and enjoys a good reputation among the people. If this matter causes a reversal in public opinion, the consequences will be severe.

Thinking of this, he quietly withdrew, woke up Lou Suyi who was sleeping, and explained what had happened in the hall.

Lou Suyi felt much better after a nap. She hadn't expected that Murong was still awake at this hour, interrogating everyone in Quanfu Palace.

She hurried to the palace and saw a palace maid accusing Liang Wanying in order to save her life. She claimed that Liang Wanying had long disliked Empress Dowager Chen and that she had heard Liang Wanying threaten to get rid of Empress Dowager Chen.

In other words, even if Leung Yuen-ying did not instigate this, she still has to take the blame.

"You said Consort Hui once threatened to get rid of the Empress Dowager. When and where was that? Who else was there at the time?" Lou Suyi asked loudly.

The palace maid seemed surprised by Lou Suying's sudden appearance and the question she was asked, and she couldn't answer it for a moment. The more anxious she became, the more nervous she got, and the more nervous she got, the less she could explain.