Chapter 259: Chapter 260 - The Truth (2)

“Lord Jiang, it’s not difficult to guess,” Yuan Xuepei was about to say something when Jian Xubai suddenly interjected. “You know, Miss Jiang has feelings for Xuepei. If she knew that Xuepei was in danger, how could she stand by and watch? Besides, although Cousin Mingfei is a bit dissolute, he is not a despicable man. When he saw Miss Jiang enter his room, he couldn’t do anything inappropriate. However, his reaction, in Miss Jiang’s eyes, was mistakenly related to Xuepei. It was not difficult to find out the truth, but as they talked it through, it would be embarrassing to shout for help at that time.”

After all, Jiang Muting had already been in the room for a while. If she cried for help back then, how could she not be suspected of indiscretion?

Moreover, Ji Mingfei didn’t do anything to her. Any girl who didn’t want to badger Ji Mingfei would choose to remain silent and see if she could not be found and preserve her reputation.

Jiang Yin was extremely remorseful that he had admitted Jiang Muting’s admiration for Yuan Xuepei because he hurried to stand up for his daughter, which made others keep suggesting that his daughter was pursuing the disabled man of the Yuan Family. However, he couldn’t refute at all!

After pacifying him, Yuan Xuepei asked the two men he brought to continue answering the questions.

According to the results of his investigation, the whole story was more or less the same as what Jian Xubai had just said. Elder Lady Tu and Madam Liang who were devoted to marrying a junior Miss Liang to Yuan Xuepei surely didn’t hope to let Jiang Muting get in their way.

Unfortunately, given Jiang Muting’s family background, they were helpless regardless of their resentment.

At this time, when the servants of Daiguo Grand Princess contacted them proactively, saying that they wanted to separate Yuan Xuepei and Jiang Muting by collaborating from within with forces from outside, they were naturally overjoyed.

“Go and bring in the people who are in contact with Madam Tu and Madam Liang!” Hearing this, everyone naturally looked at Daiguo Grand Princess. Daiguo Grand Princess noticed their gaze and ordered with a slight sneer. Her face was furious with calm eyes, which even contained a glitter of having her way.

Song Yixiao saw her facial expression clearly and couldn’t help meditating in silence.

After a while, two women decently dressed were brought inside. They cried out about their grievances and then denied the charges on them, but after Yuan Xuepei showed various evidence, they had no other choice but to plead guilty, saying, “All these years we have owed a debt of gratitude to Your Highness. Hence, we wanted to share your burdens and in a moment of madness…”

Daiguo Grand Princess interrupted them with a wry smile, “So it is not me who ordered you to do that, and instead, you did that all on your own?”

The two women categorically responded, “Exactly!”

Then they expressed their loyalty but the more calmly they faced death, the more they looked like the scapegoats of Daiguo Grand Princess.

“In that case, let the people in the palace hear this case!” After glancing at the crowd again, Daiguo Grand Princess took care of her delicate hair bun and said calmly, “After all, these two women have served me for years. No matter what I say now, I can’t avoid suspicion, making me unqualified for being the chief judge!”

Hearing that, the people in the hall looked at each other and all became hesitant. After all, if this incident was known by the people in the imperial palace and got escalated by various voices, putting aside Ji Mingfei whose reputation had already been rather bad, what about Jiang Muting’s reputation?

Jiang Yin was struggling in his heart and in the end, his love for his daughter prevailed. He said with cupped hands, “Your Highness, it is not necessary. I believe these two maids are calling white black and black white so as to palliate their crime! The truth must be that they manipulated the unkindness of the seniors of Marquis Boling and carried out the scheme for the sake of money!”

“I’m quite happy that you think so!” Daiguo Grand Princess leaned backward with a smile at the corner of her mouth and a cold look on her face, saying indifferently. “But my nephew, Xubai has suspected me. If I don’t ask the people of the imperial palace to handle this to find out the truth and do me justice, I will suffer wrong then. After all, there aren’t so many people who are as sensible as you, right?”

With a disregard for the Jiang Family’s request, Daiguo directly ordered someone to inform the people of the imperial palace and require them to carry out a thorough investigation into this incident. As the grand princess, since she insisted, all the people couldn’t reject her but watch the servant send the message into the imperial palace.

After a while, the Empress Dowager, Emperor, Empress, Noble Consort and Virtuous Consort all sent their trusted servants here. After a thorough investigation, they found that the two maids who colluded with Elder Lady Tu and Madam Liang to scheme against Jiang Muting and Ji Mingfei in the name of Daiguo Grand Princess actually worked for Noble Consort Cui though they were nominally the servants of Daiguo Grand Princess.

Worse still, under severe torture, their confession also involved their several families who were said to be deceased and yet still working in the dowry yard of Noble Consort Cui with other identities!

Due to the twist, Noble Consort Cui was quickly pushed to the heart of the struggle while Daiguo Grand Princess put aside her domineering bearing and sprang towards Emperor Xianjia, crying loudly, “Brother, you’ve been not feeling well these days. How can I not want to let you worry less in consideration of your health? However, did you see that? You are still well but your noble consort just can’t wait to get rid of me! If I were alone, for our affectionate kinship, I would have waited and met my doom so that you wouldn’t be torn! Nevertheless, I have children too. I offended the Noble Consort before but what wrong have my children done? Now I would like to die so that Noble Consort can be mollified, only hoping that you can keep my husband and two children safe!”

Then she was about to hit the pillar for suicide. Although she was stopped by her maids from getting hurt, her action not only made Noble Consort Cui take off her accessories and beg for mercy with her body shivering and her face ghastly pale but also the Crown Prince and his wife also kneel down next to the Noble Consort after arriving.

“What about the Crown Prince now?” Song Yixiao had been accompanied by her husband back to her own side yard for a rest a long time ago because of her pregnancy. She couldn’t help frowning slightly when she heard the news from the servant. “Although it was done by the Noble Consort, how can it not affect the Crown Prince?”

“So Uncle will definitely not let the Noble Consort plead guilty,” Jian Xubai said calmly while fanning her. “The Crown Prince will not collapse; nor can the reputation of the Noble Consort be ruined. This time, either the Noble Consort’s servant or some concubine in the imperial place will be the scapegoat.”

Song Yixiao thought of Emperor Xianjia’s constant partiality and then stayed quiet for a moment before saying, “Then what does Aunt Daiguo want after doing so many things? The Jiang Family must have realized that the Noble Consort seems to be the ringleader who tempted to frame Aunt Daiguo by scheming against Muting, but actually the case is that Aunt Daiguo has known the two women were working for the Noble Consort and met trick with trick so that she could take the opportunity to make a fuss before His Majesty! They don’t dare to talk of their disgruntlement but deep in their hearts, they must hate Aunt Daiguo. Now that Aunt has pissed off this family and put on such an act, I still can’t figure out what’s in it for her.”

“After all, Uncle attaches much importance to the Crown Prince, so even if he is displeased by the Noble Consort’s conduct, he must protect the Noble Consort,” Jian Xubai sneered. “But do you forget this? Aunt Daiguo is the birth daughter of Grandma! Although the Crown Prince is also Grandma’s birth grandson, they are two generations away!”

Even though the Empress Dowager didn’t approve of her youngest daughter instigating Prince of Wei to fight for the throne with the Crown Prince, Daiguo Grand Princess was her daughter anyway. The Empress Dowager might not care about her daughter being taught a lesson or insulted, she would definitely not watch her daughter perish!

Therefore, the fact that Noble Consort Cui actually planted some agents around Daiguo Grand Princess a few years earlier with the intention of setting against the latter had violated the personal boundaries of the Empress Dowager!

Jian Xubai hedged and then continued, “Just wait and see! After this incident subdues, Grandma will never spare Noble Consort Cui!”

“In that case, how can the Crown Prince not hate Aunt Daiguo?” Song Yixiao asked worriedly. “Given the Empress Dowager’s temperament, since she is going to stand up for Aunt Daiguo, how can she not take into account the fact that the Noble Consort is the Crown Prince’s birth mother?”

The problem was that it was reasonable that a son wanted to do his mother justice. Moreover, the grievances between Noble Consort Cui and Daiguo Grand Princess resulted from the domineering style of the latter back then. Over these years, Daiguo Grand Princess never showed any guilt for the Noble Consort. Instead, she spared no effort to seize the throne so that she could continue treading on the Crown Prince and his mother!

To be honest, it was justified that the Crown Prince would seek revenge on his aunt after he ascended the throne one day.

Under this circumstance, if the Empress Dowager wanted to protect Daiguo Grand Princess, apart from altering her stand to help Daiguo Grand Princess with making the other princes the heir, what else could she do?

After all, Empress Dowager must die before Daiguo Grand Princess. Even if the Crown Prince swore thousands of times in front of her, he could still break his promise after she and Emperor Xianjia both passed away. At that time, could she and Emperor Xianjia still crawl out of their graves to do justice for Daiguo Grand Princess?

Thinking of this, Song Yixiao suddenly remembered something. “Moreover, it was you and Marquis Yuan who found out the truth of today’s incident. Although you didn’t intend to fall into the trap of Aunt Daiguo, in the final analysis, the Noble Consort will suffer this time. I wonder whether she and the Crown Prince will hate you for that in the future.”

“Only when she can survive this incident first!” Jian Xubai said casually. “Besides, the reason why Aunt Daiguo could set the Noble Consort up by leveraging the two maids is that she has known whom they really worked for. Perhaps, that is also why they could be favored by Aunt. Therefore, even without today’s incident, something similar would happen. This time, because the incident has aroused too much attention, both Uncle and Grandma have to punish the Noble Consort after it subdues if they want to. It is actually a chance for the Noble Consort to take a breath.”

Then he snorted, “If this incident were secretly disclosed to Grandmother, according to her temperament, she would probably get rid of the Noble Consort without being noticed, not even by the Crown Prince! Which one do you think is better for the Noble Consort and her son? All in all, the Noble Consort shouldn’t have arranged spies around Aunt Daiguo!”

Song Yixiao thought to herself, “Although it is better to linger out than be killed unknowingly. A man’s mind is hard to predict. The Noble Consort and her son may not thank you for that!”

However, Jian Xubai was actually thinking, “No matter what, Cui Jianlian died because of Shanyao. The Crown Prince won’t be a big problem. After all, he only adored her for a while after she entered the Eastern Palace. His favor lasted less than one year, which was not that unforgettable. On the contrary, Noble Consort Cui was the one who watched Cui Jianlian grow up and personally sent this niece to hell. How can I not get rid of this hidden peril leveraging Aunt Daiguo’s power? She cannot be kept anymore.”