Weird, my gaming life

When Zhu Wanying saw who it was, her eyes instantly lit up with joy.

She was right; Qin Xiu would definitely come to help her.

Although her father, the emperor, has come, she is no longer as isolated and helpless as before.

But she knew that if she had to choose between the throne and herself, her father, though he loved her, would definitely choose the throne.

She didn't hold much resentment about it.

Because she knew that even her father, who was high and mighty, was not free to act as he pleased within the royal family.

Behind him were hundreds of millions of ordinary people; he was her father, and also the emperor of hundreds of millions of ordinary people.

He loves himself, but at the same time, he must also shoulder the responsibilities that come with him.

Among her many close relatives, the only one who would help her without hesitation was the brat she picked up.

Because they are so alike, both lonely and helpless, both longing for the last sliver of warmth around them.

"How dare you! Who is this brat? How dare you spout nonsense here!" The old nanny beside the Empress shouted sternly.

Lin Yuan acted as if he hadn't heard, even though he had been there for a while.

He had simply concealed his presence with his Purple Illusion Demon Eyes and had been observing the situation here.

After all, only a fool would rush in without knowing anything.

He should at least try to figure out who the person is.

After observing for a while, Lin Yuan felt that this was a very clumsy palace intrigue.

"Qin Xiu, Princess Changping's personal bodyguard, greets Your Majesty and Her Majesty the Empress."

Lin Yuan said solemnly.

He did not mention that he was a page in the library, because that identity would not allow him to participate in the matter.

Instead, he showed the token given to him by Zhu Wanying, directly identifying himself as Zhu Wanying's personal bodyguard.

Zhu Hongyuan naturally recognized Lin Yuan, and looking at this suddenly appearing child, he seemed to see a glimmer of hope.

"You claim this item is fake, what proof do you have?"

"Heh, Your Majesty, you actually believe the words of a mere child."

It's not that I'm questioning His Majesty, but what could a six-year-old child possibly understand!

The Empress snorted coldly, her eyes filled with a hint of coldness and disdain.

Zhu Hongyuan gave her a cold look, his voice becoming unyielding.

"Your Majesty, children's words are often the most trustworthy; they don't have as many schemes and tricks as children!"

"Qin Xiu, tell me, why is this thing fake!"

After saying this, Zhu Hongyuan ignored the Empress's completely cold expression and looked straight at Lin Yuan.

Lin Yuan straightened up, his gaze falling on the tray.

"May I ask Your Majesty, do you know what conditions are required for a true curse?"

The Empress was taken aback; she had no idea about any of this.

Lin Yuan didn't wait for her reply and spoke to himself.

"True witchcraft requires yin wood imbued with intense resentment, which must be nourished for seven days with the heart's blood of the practitioner."

Then, at the third quarter of the midnight hour, use silver needles soaked in corpse oil to pierce several major acupoints related to the victim's destiny, while chanting incantations to draw upon the yin and evil energy of heaven and earth; only then will it be effective.

He paused, his gaze sweeping over the surprised and uncertain faces of everyone present.

This was recorded in one of the several rare books he had recently read in the imperial library.

I found it fascinating at the time, but I never imagined it would come in handy now.

"And this thing..."

A hint of disdain flashed in Lin Yuan's eyes.

Indeed, all the knowledge I've learned has been put to good use.

Lin Yuan walked to the tray, reached out and picked up the wooden figure, weighing it in his hand.

"This wood is ordinary peach wood, which is perfect for exorcising demons and warding off evil spirits."

As for the claim that it bears magical power, that's utter nonsense. The patterns carved on it, though seemingly ferocious, are actually chaotic and don't form any effective magical array.

"And these silver needles," Lin Yuan casually plucked a silver needle, flicked it between his fingertips, and a hint of amusement flashed in his eyes.

"The insertion points were not only completely haphazard, but they didn't even match many common acupoints on the human body."

If witchcraft were this simple, there probably wouldn't be many people left to live in this world.

Lin Yuan's teasing voice wasn't loud, but it clearly reached everyone's ears.

He lifted the wooden figure and looked one last time at the birth dates written in cinnabar on the back.

"Most importantly, the spell must be cast with cinnabar, mixed with extremely yin substances, so that the final color will be dark purple."

The writing on it was bright red, appearing to float on the surface.

Lin Yuan touched the writing on it, then brought it to his nose and smelled it.

"It was clearly written with 'Purple Gold Ink'."

When he said the words "Purple Gold Ink", Lin Yuan paused for a moment, his gaze sweeping over the faces of the Empress, the eldest princess and the others.

Zhu Lingyun's heart skipped a beat, and the color drained from her face instantly.

"Nonsense! What purple-gold ink and evil energy? You're just spouting nonsense! Father, he's just an accomplice that Third Sister found, spreading rumors and misleading the public!"

"Oh?"

Lin Yuan's lips curled into a mocking smile. "Why is Your Highness in such a hurry to refute?"

He turned to Zhu Hongyuan, his voice rising slightly.

"Your Majesty, according to what I saw in the Tiangong Kaiwu Detailed Explanation in the library, the purple-gold ink was a tribute from the Western Regions."

Because of its vibrant colors and complex production process, it was typically used for imperial edicts and comments in the palace.

Later, it flowed into the inner court, and because the quantity was too small, it was always distributed and used by the Empress.

From my humble observation, the calligraphy and paintings in Princess Changping's room were usually done with second-rate pine soot ink.

Clearly, such a precious item as Purple Gold Ink was not for Princess Changping's use. It's just a mystery how the writing was done; was it created out of thin air?

Lin Yuan's words struck everyone's hearts like a heavy hammer.

At this point, the matter is crystal clear.

Although Lin Yuan did not specify who the murderer was.

However, the palace's expenditures are all recorded. By checking who used the Purple Gold Ink, we can quickly narrow down the suspects.

This would also completely clear Princess Changping of any suspicion.

Zhu Lingyun's beautiful face suddenly turned deathly pale, and a hint of panic appeared in her eyes.

She hadn't expected that the plan was about to succeed.

Suddenly, a child with such keen observation skills appeared out of nowhere.

He uncovered all her schemes from an unexpected angle, and even managed to bring trouble upon himself.

Because the purple-gold ink was the ink she used regularly, and apart from her mother, only she and the crown prince used it.

"He...he's talking nonsense! Father, please arrest this wicked brat immediately to clear Mother's name. Surely Mother couldn't have harmed herself!"

Her blustering yet cowardly demeanor clearly revealed a flaw in her performance.

As an emperor who had reigned for many years, what was there that Zhu Hongyuan couldn't understand?

"shut up!"

Zhu Hongyuan suddenly raised his voice, interrupting Zhu Lingyun's continued sophistry.

His cold gaze swept over his eldest daughter's face, which was gradually losing its color, and a hint of disappointment flashed in his eyes.

He remembered that he had never mistreated his eldest daughter. It was undeniable that he favored Wanying a little, but he had never neglected his other children.

But why can't she tolerate her younger sister, who has to be just like her mother, so jealous?

Zhu Hongyuan withdrew his imperial aura and continued to focus his gaze on Lin Yuan.

"Go on."

Lin Yuan nodded slightly, showing no sign of panic despite the Empress's murderous gaze.

"What I just said can all be found in the classics."

As for the purple-gold ink, there are traces to follow.

Although the purple-gold ink was distributed by the Empress, it still had to go through the Imperial Household Department.

A simple review of the Imperial Household Department's ink requisition records for the past few months will make it clear who is framing the suspect.

With each word Lin Yuan spoke, Princess Zhu Lingyun's face grew paler, and her body even began to tremble slightly.

The Empress suddenly stood up from her seat, her fingers clenched tightly beneath her phoenix robe.

"Your Majesty! Would you rather believe a boy of unknown origin than your own daughter and your concubine?"

This is utterly absurd! It's clear this kid colluded with Zhu Wanying to turn the tables and bite back!

Zhu Hongyuan slowly turned around, his dragon eyes staring directly at his empress, his tone revealing neither joy nor anger.

"Your Majesty, I only trust evidence. Since Qin Xiu has proposed a method of verification, then let us investigate."

He gave the empress no chance to refute him and raised his voice directly.

"Someone come here."

"yes!"

Two guards outside the hall responded and entered, bowing respectfully.

"Go to the Imperial Household Department and check the recent expenditure on Purple Gold Ink!"

"Yes, sir!"

The two imperial guards received their orders and hurriedly left the main hall.

Zhu Lingyun watched the guards leave and instantly collapsed to the ground.

She could refute everything else, but she couldn't refute the point about Zijinmo.

Because her mother is immobile, with her there, there is still a chance for the eldest princess to be saved.

The Crown Prince cannot afford to have this stain on his reputation, after all, he is the heir apparent of the country, so he must bear the consequences himself.

Thinking about what was about to happen, she deeply regretted listening to her second sister's instigation and doing this.

The Empress trembled with rage at the sight of her daughter.

At this point, she understood perfectly well that her daughter must have been too clever for her own good and had done something so foolish.

Now that the conspiracy has been exposed, their true colors have been revealed.

She wanted to yell at her daughter for being such a fool. She didn't object to her daughter using tricks or even poisoning, since she had done the same thing before.

But if you're going to do it, at least do it properly. How did you come up with this kind of half-baked job?

"Father, I was wrong. Please give me another chance. I did such a foolish thing because I listened to my second sister's instigation!"

Suddenly, Zhu Lingyun, who had collapsed to the ground, seemed to have thought of something. He quickly crawled towards the emperor, grabbed his trouser leg, and began to plead loudly.

However, Zhu Hongyuan didn't even glance at her. Now that everything had been exposed, what was the point of involving others?

Besides, the second daughter has always been gentle and virtuous, so why would she easily sow discord between the sisters?

Zhu Hongyuan pulled off the hem of his trousers, strode over to Zhu Wanying, and personally helped her up.

"Wanying, it's because your father is late that you've had to suffer."

Zhu Wanying shook her head, tears falling silently, but she didn't say anything more.

Looking at her stubborn expression, Zhu Hongyuan could only sigh silently in his heart.

He understood what his daughter was thinking; it was simply that he hadn't chosen her immediately.

But he was also helpless! The Empress was the head of the harem, and without sufficient evidence, even if he were the Emperor, he would have to show her some respect.

Otherwise, the entire court would be filled with endless remonstrances the next day.