Chapter 596: Trapped in a Dead End
Like a spring dream leaving no trace—this "no trace" refers to how when it burns, it robs people of their senses, akin to an aphrodisiac, stirring desires and causing men and women to lose themselves in passion. Yet once the incense burns out, it leaves no evidence behind.
No traces of aphrodisiacs remain in the body, nor are there any marks at the burning site. This incense is exceptionally fine; after burning, its particles drift into the air like ash, scattering with the wind.
Thus, when Liu Sanzhi sent someone to examine the Female Historian's body, he personally inspected the scene of the incident but found no clues whatsoever.
Returning with Liu Sanzhi was the Marquis of Zhenbei. Both the Marquis of Zhenbei and the Pingyao Marquis were searching for the assassin. The Pingyao Marquis captured Fazhao and the Female Historian, while the Marquis of Zhenbei brought back a corpse and escorted two individuals.
"What is this…?" The Youning Emperor's face darkened instantly.
"Your Majesty, I pursued the assassin and followed the trail to…" The Marquis of Zhenbei paused before continuing, "the courtyard of Noble Consort Rong, where I happened upon these two eunuchs dragging the assassin's body, attempting to destroy the evidence and cover their tracks!"
The two eunuchs trembled in terror. When Noble Consort Rong saw the face of the man whose black mask had been removed, all color drained from her cheeks.
This man was from the Rong family!
He was indeed sent by her, but not to assassinate the Emperor—rather, to capture Shen Xihe.
In truth, she had set up a chain scheme. Ziyu was merely a decoy. Once Ziyu was abducted and she noticed the civet cat behaving strangely, she would inevitably alert Shen Xihe's people before fainting, fearing that Shen Xihe might be ensnared in the plot.
However, within the Xiangguo Temple, the number of attendants each master could bring was limited, with only one person left on guard. The rest were housed together with female historians from other palaces and could not make any rash moves, lest they alert others.
Thus, the guard left by Shen Xihe's side, upon receiving Ziyu's warning, would inevitably go to the kitchen to investigate. Noble Consort Rong had long since arranged everything there. She knew that every maid serving Shen Xihe was meticulously selected from the northwest and skilled in martial arts.
Not daring to be careless, she chose a talented young member of the Rong family—the eldest son of her concubine-born younger brother, who served in the Golden Guard. His position allowed him to move freely, and if anything went wrong, he could easily escape.
As long as they captured another of Shen Xihe's maids and framed her for attempted assassination, Shen Xihe, in her pursuit of palace authority, plotting to harm a noble consort would be no minor offense.
Noble Consort Rong never imagined that Shen Xihe would be even more ruthless than her. She only intended to paint Shen Xihe as someone who would stop at nothing for power, but Shen Xihe turned her into a conspirator who plotted treason and attempted regicide for authority!
Xiao Changqing closed his eyes, while Xiao Changying clenched his fists and gritted his teeth. The two brothers had long advised their mother not to lightly make an enemy of the Eastern Palace, reminding her that the Crown Princess was no ordinary person. She had already held palace authority for many years; even if she continued, the Emperor would not elevate her to Empress. Why exhaust herself striving for it?
Yet their mother, blinded by her unwavering devotion to the Emperor, believed that by retaining palace authority, once the Crown Prince died, the Emperor's past vow not to appoint another Empress to avoid destabilizing the Crown Prince's position would naturally become void. For the sake of the realm, the Emperor would then act according to the circumstances and appoint a new Empress.
Wishful thinking! She completely disregarded her sons' counsel, leading her into this current dead end!
The one with the most interesting expression was not Noble Consort Rong, but the Youning Emperor. While others might not know the truth behind the assassination attempt, how could the Emperor not know?His man had vanished. He should have voluntarily surrendered to the Marquis of Zhenbei, been captured by him, detained and brutally tortured, before finally being silenced through a fabricated suicide to cover up the matter.
Naturally, some ambiguous and equivocal evidence would be left behind, pointing to Shen Xihe as the culprit. The Youning Emperor was not naive enough to immediately arrest Shen Xihe, as the hasty setup could easily leave behind traces of manipulation.
But up to now, the Marquis of Zhenbei had not seen any sign of his man. With such a major commotion, the assassins he had sent seemed to have vanished into thin air. It was highly likely they had already fallen into Shen Xihe’s hands. Even if they hadn’t, they would have to remain hidden at this point. Once the Marquis of Zhenbei captured someone from the Rong family, they could no longer reappear.
"Your Majesty, my mother has served by your side for over thirty years. Whether she harbors ill intentions, Your Majesty can judge clearly. Rong Qiu is now dead with no evidence to confront him. It is entirely possible that the person who attempted to assassinate Your Majesty had long laid a trap, killed Rong Qiu, and framed my mother," Xiao Changqing declared resolutely, standing tall with a straight back.
"Your Majesty," Xiao Changmin stepped forward, bowed, and said, "I saw Rong Qiu earlier tonight when he was changing shifts. It has been less than half an hour since then. Your Majesty was attacked after the shift change, and we all rushed here immediately after the assassination attempt. I am not particularly talented, but I truly cannot fathom how anyone could act so swiftly—killing Rong Qiu and disguising him as an assassin in such a short time."
"Since the imperial physician is here, why not have him determine when Rong Qiu was killed?"
When was Rong Qiu killed?
At the time of the Youning Emperor’s assassination, Rong Qiu happened to be threatening Zhenzhu. The two had even exchanged blows. Shen Xihe had secretly sent people to keep watch. When the cry of "assassin" erupted from the Emperor’s meditation room, chaos ensued as everyone rushed to protect the Emperor. Seizing the opportunity amid the panic, Shen Xihe’s men emerged, captured Rong Qiu, and subdued him. At that moment, everyone’s focus was solely on the Emperor, and many details were overlooked. It was also the time when security was most lax, making it easy to kill a living person and transport the body to Noble Consort Rong’s courtyard.
As for the two eunuchs, they were indeed attempting to destroy the evidence. Upon unexpectedly discovering a corpse and hearing of the Emperor’s assassination, their instinct was to dispose of the body. If they hadn’t, they would have been caught red-handed by the Emperor’s men and executed alongside the conspirators.
The imperial physician’s estimation of the time of death aligned perfectly with the assassin’s timeline. Moreover, Rong Qiu’s cause of death was determined to be suicide, with no signs of struggle on his body.
Thus, Prince Xin’s claim that Rong Qiu had been killed earlier to frame Noble Consort Rong was untenable. Not only was the timing too tight, but why would Rong Qiu, having just finished his shift, return dressed in black attire? It was highly unlikely that Rong Qiu had been bribed by an outsider. As a member of the Golden Guard, he was well aware that after his shift ended, he had no authority to remain within the inner grounds.
"Your Majesty, Rong Qiu was summoned by Noble Consort Rong after his shift. Several of my colleagues and I happened to witness it," Bu Shulin stepped forward and reported.
Rong Qiu had indeed been summoned by Noble Consort Rong after his shift. To avoid raising suspicions about his whereabouts, she had openly called for him. Had the Emperor’s assassination not occurred, even if Rong Qiu had been captured by Shen Xihe’s men, Noble Consort Rong would have had excuses to secure his release.
She never expected such a coincidence—the Emperor being attacked at precisely this moment. In fact, Noble Consort Rong now suspected that the assassination attempt on the Emperor was orchestrated by Shen Xihe. Shen Xihe truly had immense audacity!"Your Majesty, Mother has absolutely no intention of harming Your Majesty, and neither my brother nor I have any disrespectful thoughts toward Your Majesty!" Xiao Changying stepped forward and knelt before the Youning Emperor.
(End of Chapter)
OpenNovel