Chapter 62 - 3#
Jingzhe couldn’t see the expressions of the two people, but his heart jumped inexplicably.
This question was truly very subtle.
If they answered yes, then it meant they also thought the Empress Dowager’s purpose in living was to disgust Emperor Jingyuan. If they answered no, then it seemed to imply that Emperor Jingyuan’s actions were wrong.
This was a trap.
Fortunately, Wei Haidong’s deputies were not stupid people.
Lu Xudong coughed lightly and changed the subject: “The matters of the harem are naturally decided by His Majesty and the Empress Dowager. We, as officials, should just do our duty.”
Qi Wenhan also echoed: “Yes, yes, do our duty.”
Rong Jiu sneered, but didn’t make it difficult for them anymore.
He turned his head to look at Jingzhe, his gaze profound: “Do you understand now?”
Jingzhe was confused: “Understand what?”
“In this palace, everyone is acting.” Rong Jiu’s voice was low, carrying a trace of mockery, “Playing the role of a loyal minister, playing the role of a filial son, playing the role of… a person.”
Jingzhe was stunned.
He looked at Rong Jiu, suddenly feeling that this man was very pitiful.
Living in such a hypocritical environment, wearing a mask every day, how tired must it be?
“Rong Jiu…” Jingzhe wanted to comfort him but didn’t know what to say.
Rong Jiu waved his hand, signaling him not to speak.
“The show is not over yet.”
He looked towards the hall again.
Wei Haidong had finished questioning the manager of the North Room and ordered someone to take him away.
Then, another person was brought up.
This person looked very wretched,賊眉鼠眼 (shifty-eyed/thieving-looking). As soon as he came up, he knelt on the ground and kept kowtowing.
“Sir, spare my life! Sir, spare my life! I really don’t know anything!”
Wei Haidong slapped the table and shouted angrily: “You don’t know anything? Then why were you wandering outside Cining Palace sneakily last night?”
“I… I…” The man’s eyes flickered, stammering and unable to speak.
“Speak!”
Under Wei Haidong’s imposing manner, the man finally couldn’t hold it anymore and confessed everything.
It turned out that he was a eunuch from Cining Palace, ordered by the Empress Dowager to send a letter to someone outside the palace.
However, because he was timid, he lingered outside Cining Palace for a long time and didn’t dare to go out, until he was caught by the patrolling guards.
“Letter?” Wei Haidong frowned, “Where is the letter?”
“The letter… the letter was burned by me…” The man said tremblingly.
“Burned?” Wei Haidong’s face darkened, “You are quite bold!”
“Sir, spare my life! I was just afraid of being discovered, so I burned the letter…”
Wei Haidong snorted coldly: “Drag him down and beat him with twenty strokes first!”
“Yes!”
Two guards came forward and dragged the man down. Soon, screams were heard from outside.
Jingzhe listened to the screams, his face pale.
Although he had seen many cruel things in the palace, every time he heard such sounds, he still couldn’t help but feel afraid.
Rong Jiu noticed Jingzhe’s reaction and reached out to hold his hand.
His hand was cold, but it gave Jingzhe a sense of security.
“Don’t be afraid.” Rong Jiu whispered, “These people deserve it.”
Jingzhe nodded, took a deep breath, and tried to calm himself down.
He knew Rong Jiu was right.
In this palace, kindness and compassion were often the most useless things.
Only by being cruel enough could one survive.
Wei Haidong continued the interrogation.
This time, the person brought up was a maid.
She looked very calm, without the fear of the previous people.
“Name.” Wei Haidong asked.
“Chun Tao.” The maid answered calmly.
“Where do you serve?”
“Yonghe Palace.”
Yonghe Palace?
Jingzhe was stunned for a moment. Wasn’t that Concubine De’s residence?
Why were people from Yonghe Palace involved?
Wei Haidong also seemed a bit surprised, frowning and asking: “What is your relationship with Concubine Kang?”
“No relationship.” Chun Tao said lightly, “I just helped her deliver a few things.”
“What things?”
“Some ordinary items, nothing special.”
“Ordinary items?” Wei Haidong sneered, “Do ordinary items require you to deliver them secretly in the middle of the night?”
Chun Tao was silent for a moment, then said: “That was requested by Concubine Kang. I’m just a servant, I can only obey.”
“You are quite loyal.” Wei Haidong mocked, “But do you know what Concubine Kang did?”
Chun Tao lowered her head: “I don’t know.”
“She colluded with foreign enemies and intended to rebel!” Wei Haidong slammed the table, “And you, as her accomplice, what punishment should you receive?”
Chun Tao’s body trembled slightly, but she still didn’t speak.
Jingzhe looked at Chun Tao, feeling a bit unbearable in his heart.
He felt that this maid didn’t seem like a bad person. Maybe she was really just used by Concubine Kang.
But he also knew that in this palace, being used was also a sin.
Wei Haidong saw that Chun Tao refused to speak, losing his patience: “Since you refuse to confess, then don’t blame me for being ruthless. Someone, apply torture!”
“Wait!”
At this moment, a voice suddenly came from outside the door.
Everyone looked towards the door.
A man in a green robe walked in.
He looked elegant, holding a folding fan in his hand, looking like a scholar.
But the token hanging on his waist showed his identity—Vice Commander of the Imperial Guard.
“Commander Wei, why be so angry?” The man smiled and walked to Wei Haidong, “It’s just a little maid, why bother with big punishment?”
Wei Haidong frowned: “Shen Yu, why are you here?”
“I heard you were interrogating criminals here, so I came to see.” Shen Yu opened the folding fan and fanned himself gently, “I didn’t expect to see such an interesting scene.”
“Interesting?” Wei Haidong snorted coldly, “Do you think rebellion is interesting?”
“Rebellion is certainly not interesting.” Shen Yu smiled, “But interrogating a little maid is quite interesting.”
He walked to Chun Tao, bent down, and looked at her face.
“Tsk tsk tsk, such a pretty face, it would be a pity if it were broken.”
Chun Tao turned her head away, avoiding his gaze.
Shen Yu didn’t mind either, straightened up and said to Wei Haidong: “Commander Wei, give me face, how about letting her go?”
“Let her go?” Wei Haidong’s face darkened, “Shen Yu, are you crazy? She is a suspect in the rebellion case!”
“Suspect?” Shen Yu laughed, “She just delivered a few things, how did she become a suspect in the rebellion case? Commander Wei, you are too fussy.”
“Whether she is a suspect or not, I will find out after interrogation.” Wei Haidong said coldly, “It’s not your turn to intervene here.”
“Is that so?” The smile on Shen Yu’s face faded slightly, “What if I insist on intervening?”
The atmosphere in the hall suddenly became tense.
Jingzhe looked at the two people facing each other, feeling nervous in his heart.
He knew that the relationship between Wei Haidong and Shen Yu had always been bad.
Wei Haidong was a straightforward official, upright and outspoken, while Shen Yu was cunning and calculating, good at playing tricks.
The two often clashed in the Imperial Guard Office.
Unexpectedly, today they confronted each other again because of a maid.
Jingzhe looked at Rong Jiu subconsciously, wanting to see his reaction.
But he saw Rong Jiu watching the show with great interest, seeming to have no intention of intervening at all.
“What are you looking at?” Rong Jiu noticed Jingzhe’s gaze and whispered.
“Aren’t they going to fight?” Jingzhe asked worriedly.
“Let them fight.” Rong Jiu said lightly, “Dogs biting dogs, isn’t it interesting?”
Jingzhe: “…”
Well, Rong Jiu’s malicious taste came again.
Just when the two were at a stalemate, suddenly, a guard ran in.
“Commander! Not good! Something happened in the prison!”
Wei Haidong’s face changed: “What happened?”
“Concubine Kang… Concubine Kang committed suicide!”
“What?!”
Everyone was shocked.
Concubine Kang committed suicide?
She was the key figure in this case!
If she died, wouldn’t the clues be broken?
Wei Haidong couldn’t care about arguing with Shen Yu anymore and immediately rushed out.
Shen Yu frowned, glanced at Chun Tao, and followed.
The others in the hall also followed out.
Jingzhe and Rong Jiu looked at each other and also stood up.
“Let’s go and see.” Rong Jiu said.
The two came to the prison.
Concubine Kang’s cell was surrounded by people.
Wei Haidong stood at the door with a gloomy face.
Inside the cell, Concubine Kang was lying on the ground, blood flowing from the corner of her mouth, dead.
“How did she die?” Wei Haidong asked coldly.
“Biting her tongue to commit suicide.” The coroner who examined the body replied.
“Biting her tongue?” Wei Haidong sneered, “She was fine just now, why did she suddenly bite her tongue?”
“This…” The coroner hesitated, “Maybe she knew she couldn’t escape death, so she decided to end it herself.”
“Bullshit!” Wei Haidong scolded angrily, “She must have been silenced!”
He looked around sharply: “Who has been here just now?”
The guards looked at each other, not daring to speak.
“Speak!” Wei Haidong shouted angrily.
“Report… reporting to the Commander,” a guard stammered, “Just… just now Vice Commander Shen came…”
“Shen Yu?” Wei Haidong suddenly turned his head and looked at Shen Yu standing not far away.
Shen Yu looked innocent: “Commander Wei, what are you looking at me for? I just came to take a look, I didn’t do anything.”
“You didn’t do anything?” Wei Haidong walked up to him step by step, “Then why did she die as soon as you came?”
“How would I know?” Shen Yu spread his hands, “Maybe she felt guilty and committed suicide when she saw me?”
“You!” Wei Haidong was furious, raising his hand to hit him.
“Stop!”
At this moment, a cold voice came.
Everyone was shocked and quickly knelt down.
“Long live Your Majesty!”
It was Emperor Jingyuan.
He was wearing a black dragon robe, his face cold, walking over slowly.
Behind him followed a group of guards and eunuchs.
Emperor Jingyuan walked to the door of the cell, glanced at Concubine Kang’s body, and said lightly: “Dead?”
“Reporting to Your Majesty, she bit her tongue and committed suicide.” Wei Haidong replied respectfully.
“Bit her tongue?” A trace of sarcasm flashed in Emperor Jingyuan’s eyes, “She has some backbone.”
He turned his head to look at Shen Yu: “You were here just now?”
Shen Yu quickly knelt down: “Reporting to Your Majesty, this subject just passed by here and came in to take a look out of curiosity.”
“Curiosity?” Emperor Jingyuan sneered, “Curiosity can kill a cat, don’t you know?”
Shen Yu trembled all over, cold sweat breaking out on his forehead: “This subject… this subject knows his mistake.”
“Since you know your mistake, then go to the Punishment Department to receive your punishment.” Emperor Jingyuan said lightly, “Thirty strokes, reflecting on your mistakes behind closed doors for a month.”
“Yes… yes! Thank you, Your Majesty, for your grace!” Shen Yu kowtowed quickly, as if he had been granted a great pardon.
Emperor Jingyuan ignored him and turned to look at Wei Haidong: “How is the investigation going?”
Wei Haidong quickly reported the results of the interrogation just now.
After hearing this, Emperor Jingyuan nodded: “Well done. Continue the investigation. Don’t let go of any suspicious person.”
“Yes!”
Emperor Jingyuan’s gaze swept across everyone present, finally landing on Rong Jiu.
“Rong Jiu, come with me.”
Rong Jiu bowed: “Yes.”
Emperor Jingyuan turned and left. Rong Jiu followed.
Jingzhe stood in the crowd, watching their receding figures, feeling mixed emotions.
He knew that this storm was far from over.
The death of Concubine Kang was just the beginning.
More bloody storms were waiting for them behind.
But he was not afraid.
Because he knew that no matter what happened, Rong Jiu would protect him.
And he would always accompany Rong Jiu.
Until the end of the world.