bookcurios Chapter 337 Exchange
Chapter 337 Exchange
When things got to this point, even Yongzheng had to cast his suspicion on the queen.
The queen sat upright in her chair, her face still composed and calm, as if the turbulent waves in the harem were just a farce for her to watch at her leisure, and everything was within her carefully woven web of control.
Zhen Huan pondered to herself, "This Queen is usually very shrewd and calculating. How could she give in so easily in such a situation? She must have a back-up plan, but what this back-up plan is, it's hard to guess at the moment."
Sure enough, before she could even consider how the Empress would respond, Jianqiu stepped forward, knelt on the ground, and said, "Your Majesty, when the Empress instructed the Imperial Household Department to make a necklace of red agate beads, she specifically ordered two to be made. One was given to Concubine Qi, and the other to Concubine Chun."
Upon hearing this, the Empress's face revealed a perfectly composed expression of realization, as if she had truly just remembered the incident. She softly said, "Alas! If it weren't for your reminder, I would have nearly forgotten this. Concubine Chun, since that's the case, please quickly go and get your string of beads so His Majesty can see them. Jianqiu, please accompany Concubine Chun."
Fang Chunyi didn't understand why, but she didn't dare to ask any more questions. She stood up and said, "I obey your order. Ah Zheng, go get it."
Before the maid could reply, the Queen said, "You'd better go get it yourself. This matter is of great importance. We need to avoid any further mistakes."
"Yes!"
After Fang Chunyi and Jianqiu left, Zhen Huan and Shen Meizhuang looked at each other and sighed, thinking that they might return empty-handed today!
But the current developments are no longer under their control.
A quarter of an hour later, Fang Chunyi walked in with a box.
Seeing this, Su Peisheng stepped forward and was about to present the box, but Yongzheng's face was full of impatience. He waved his hand and ordered, "Send the imperial physician to see it!"
Su Peisheng didn't dare to delay and quickly handed the box to Wei Lin.
Wei Lin took the box, carefully took out the beads inside, and looked at them carefully.
After a moment, he stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, there is no musk in this necklace."
The Queen sat aside, her expression still calm, and she said calmly, "Jianqiu, go and take a look."
Jianqiu responded, took the beads from Wei Lin, walked to the window, placed the beads in the sunlight, and observed them carefully.
After a while, Jianqiu turned around and saluted again: "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, this string was given to Concubine Qi by the Empress."
These words were like a stone dropped into a calm lake, instantly stirring up a thousand waves. Everyone looked at each other in bewilderment; no one had expected such a sudden turn of events.
Yongzheng asked, "How did you know?"
"Your Majesty, when the Empress ordered me to go to the Imperial Household Department to make these two strings of agate beads, I took one of the two young ladies' names to make it easier to distinguish them, and asked the craftsmen to carve dark patterns on the beads that can only be seen in the sun. One string is carved with mandarin ducks, and the other with forsythia, which is also for good luck. And the string in my hand can be seen as mandarin ducks in the sun." As she said this, Jianqiu handed the beads in her hand to the Empress.
The queen took it, glanced at it casually, and then handed it to Yongzheng.
Yongzheng just took a quick look and nodded.
The Queen looked down at Fang Chunyi and said, "There must be some misunderstanding here. Lady Chun, please tell me how this string of beads came into your hands."
Fang Chunyi knelt on the ground and stammered, "Your Highness... Your Highness didn't know either. I just thought it was a reward from the Empress, so I accepted it without thinking much about it."
Yongzheng's face was terribly gloomy. He snorted coldly, "This harem is in such chaos! Even the rewards can be mixed up. Doesn't that mean everything can be swapped at will?"
Zhen Huan thought for a moment and said, "Your Majesty, I feel this matter is quite strange. Perhaps someone did it on purpose to confuse the public and put the blame on others. Your Majesty, please investigate this matter."
The Queen coldly asked, "Noble Lady Chun, Jianqiu has always been careful and prudent in her work; such a mistake would never have occurred. Tell me the truth today: how did Noble Lady Qi's pearl necklace inexplicably appear in your hands?"
"I don't know!"
Just four words.
She slowly raised her slightly childish face, her expression calm and without any trace of panic or fear.
But those eyes, which once always sparkled with lively and intelligent light, were now as deep as a deep pool. The corners of his mouth were slightly raised, outlining a vague arc, as if mocking this absurd situation.
"Hmph!" The Queen snorted coldly, a sinister look flashing across her face. She raised her voice and demanded, "Don't you know? Everyone in this harem knows that you and Concubine Qi have always had some conflicts. Could it be that you were jealous and secretly tampered with the beads, putting musk in them and then deliberately switching them with Concubine Qi, hoping to murder Concubine Qi and frame me at the same time?"
Zhen Huan watched from the side, knowing full well that the Queen was deliberately forcing Concubine Chun, hoping to find a scapegoat to smooth things over. She frowned slightly, and was about to speak in Concubine Chun's defense when Shen Meizhuang calmly tugged at her sleeve, signaling her not to act rashly for the time being.
Fang Chunyi raised her head, looked at Yongzheng and said, "Your Majesty, I am innocent!"
The Empress pressed on, slowing her speech but hammering down each word like a hammer: "Now that the truth has been revealed, fortunately, Concubine Hui and Concubine Xi are blessed with good fortune and are in good health. This is a blessing in disguise. If you are willing to confess the truth now, considering your youth and ignorance, I can, based on our past friendship, plead for you with the Emperor and perhaps even spare your mother's family from being implicated. But if you still persist in your delusion, then I am powerless to help you!"
"Sister Xifei," Fang Chunyi's voice trembled slightly, but she tried hard to remain calm, "Can you trust me to harm you?"
Zhen Huan sat there, her posture elegant and dignified. She raised her eyes slightly and glanced at Fang Chunyi indifferently, but her heart couldn't help but recall the past.
When they first entered the palace, they lived together in Suiyuxuan. She had treated Fang Chunyi sincerely and regarded her as a sister. Unfortunately, she joined the Queen's camp, sowed discord between her and Rong'er, and wore musk in front of her. She also wondered, how could that innocent sister who acted coquettishly and cutely in front of her be so easily swallowed up by the vortex of power and turn against her?
After returning to the palace, she was ready to ignore her, thinking that she had not done any evil again. Unexpectedly, the queen pushed her out without mercy.
"I only believe in evidence."