Even the crown prince is getting a marriage of convenience? Why are you in such a hurry to stop bein

The atmosphere fell silent for a moment, with only the emperor at the head of the table remaining expressionless.

Consort Xian sobbed, "Your Majesty, this matter truly has nothing to do with me. Thinking back to those days, Your Majesty was in danger, being chased by rebels. It was I who protected Your Majesty with my own body, thus saving Your Majesty from fatal injury."

"Your Majesty is extremely filial to your mother, and I am utterly loyal to you. How could I possibly send someone to tamper with this matter?"

She raised her tearful eyes and stared at Xiao Lie with resentment.

"There must be some people who have a grudge against Heng'er, and that's why they want to frame me for some crimes."

Seeing that the emperor's expression had softened slightly, Xiao Lie immediately spoke.

"Your Majesty, even if Consort Xian is innocent, the Procurement Office has witnesses and physical evidence regarding Shanqing's matter, which cannot be denied under any circumstances."

After saying that, he looked at Shanqing with pity, his voice tinged with a sigh.

"It seems that now that you've done this, you'll have to bear the blame yourself."

Shanqing was shocked, feeling as if a guillotine was hanging over his head, making his neck feel cold.

If his two superiors were to press all the blame on him in their words, he would probably face certain death.

In an instant, he hurriedly crawled to Consort Xian's side, grabbed the hem of her skirt, and cried out.

"Your Highness, this was the matter you entrusted to me. Now that something has happened to me, you can't just abandon me."

He knew that even if he implicated Consort Xian, he might not be able to escape unscathed. But if he were the only one to bear all the blame and die with resentment, that would be truly unjust.

If Consort Xian can clear his name, then he, as an accomplice, will still have a chance to breathe. But if not, he can still drag a noble lady down with him and suffer with her, then he won't be at too much of a loss.

Consort Xian was startled by his sudden leap, and she screamed and kicked, calling out urgently.

"Quickly, drag this lackey away!"

"How dare you be so disrespectful as to grab my skirt! How many heads do you have to chop off?"

An old eunuch was pulling at a concubine's back in public, making a terrible scene. De Shun quickly waved his hand, and several young eunuchs immediately stepped forward, pressed Shan Qing to the ground, and dragged him away.

Consort Xian patted her chest, still shaken, her face full of disgust.

But Shanqing's reddened eyes were fixed on him, as if hiding great resentment and regret.

He cried out, "Your Majesty, you can't just discard me like this! I was working for you!"

"Your Majesty, this servant confesses, this servant is willing to confess!"

"It was Consort Xian who deliberately arranged for someone to switch the good goods with the inferior ones in order to frame Prince Xiao. She even had me inspect the goods so that she could expose him on the spot and accuse him of a crime. Everything I have said is true. I hope Your Majesty will investigate thoroughly."

Consort Xian's face turned ashen, her teeth clenched so tightly she looked like she wanted to devour someone. If they weren't in front of the Emperor, she would have killed this utterly insolent, disrespectful servant on the spot.

In this situation, the truth is already clear.

Shanqing, still unwilling to give up, cried out, "Your Majesty only needs to send someone to Yuyi Workshop to investigate and you will find out that those substandard products were made by the shop's employees."

"Your Majesty, what I said is all true..."

Upon noticing the emperor's somber expression and the slight frown on his brow, De Shun's heart skipped a beat, and he immediately shouted.

"What are you standing there for? Quickly gag him! Shouting like this in front of the Emperor, what kind of behavior is this?"

So the rag was stuffed into Shanqing's mouth again, and no matter how hard he tried to shout something, his eyes widened, his veins bulged, and his face turned red, the words stuck in his throat and he couldn't utter a single one.

Whether to investigate or not is entirely up to the emperor.

If an investigation is conducted, Consort Xian's crimes will be confirmed; if no investigation is conducted, the blame will be firmly placed on Shanqing.

Anyway, there are plenty of servants, so the death of Shanqing doesn't really count.

It all depends on how the emperor decides to deal with Consort Xian.

The virtuous concubine's face turned deathly pale, and she trembled all over. She prostrated herself on the ground, pleading repeatedly.

"Your Majesty, have you forgotten what I did for you? Do you really want to believe that dog of a servant's nonsense?"

"Your Majesty, after all these years, don't you know what kind of person I am?"

"Your Majesty, think about all the years I've spent with you, think about the child I gave birth to for you. How can our bond be so easily swayed by his one-sided words?"

Xiao Lie sighed softly, "Your Highness, why are you doing this? You and His Majesty have had such a long-standing relationship, how could he possibly punish you for such a trivial matter?"

"Even if Shanqing loses his life, it will only be a matter of you copying scriptures behind closed doors."

Upon hearing this, the emperor on the throne turned pale.

"Consort Xian, I have repeatedly shown leniency, yet you continue to violate the rules. Is this what you think too?"

Consort Xian shook her head in alarm and hurriedly denied it. Looking at Xiao Lie's sincere expression, she almost gritted her teeth.

Xiao Lie did this on purpose.

If she had begged for mercy herself, His Majesty might not have said anything. But when others pointed it out, it changed the meaning, as if she had become someone who was spoiled and arrogant, and who used the emperor's favor to justify herself.

"Your Majesty, Xiao Lie hates me and Prince Kang to the extreme. Please don't listen to his nonsense anymore."

Xiao Lie shook his head helplessly. "These are merely my heartfelt words. His Majesty treats you differently from others. Why should Consort Xian make such a fuss over such a small mistake, putting on such a pitiful act?"

"Your Majesty is decisive and has a clear plan in mind. Consort Xian seems to have been greatly wronged, repeatedly refuting and belittling my words. Her words are full of grievance. Do you feel that your favor is not enough, and that Your Majesty has wronged and aggrieved you?"

These two sentences struck so hard that Consort Xian's mind went blank, her breath caught in her throat, and she almost vomited blood.

She cried out that she was wronged, but she couldn't stop crying either. She could only clench her fists tightly and pitifully manage to squeeze out a single sentence.

"Your Majesty, I had absolutely no such intention."

This farce was truly vexing. The emperor rubbed his temples, his complexion noticeably worse than when the group of people had entered.

He stared intently at Consort Xian, finding her face repulsive for the first time.

They are deeply favored but do not know how to be grateful; they are repeatedly shown leniency but do not repent.

Whenever they make a mistake, they bring up old grievances and put on a pitiful and aggrieved act.

The emperor sighed softly, realizing that he had been wrong to tolerate Consort Xian all these years.

It was all because he repeatedly let her off the hook that Consort Xian was spoiled into this petty and uncouth person. Even Prince Kang was corrupted by her, becoming narrow-minded and petty like a calculating woman.

"Consort Xian, you shall kneel before the Empress Dowager now."

After saying that, he stared at Xiao Lie again, "I will send someone to verify this matter. If the facts are indeed as Shan Qing said, I will not tolerate it."

Xiao Lie bowed deeply and responded, but didn't take it seriously.

Two kinds of people can't sleep in the same bed. In the end, how the emperor punishes them is entirely up to him.