#43Consort Qing! Do you know your crime?
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Chapter 43 Consort Qing! Do you know your crime?
Just as Emperor Ren was thinking about how to appease Consort Qing, a eunuch suddenly ran over and said,
"Your Majesty, Minister Hu requests an audience!"
Hu Jianye, the Minister of Personnel, was the birth father of Consort Qing and Hu Chen.
Emperor Ren immediately felt a headache coming on.
Hu Jianye held significant sway in the court, with many loyal followers, and although Emperor Ren was somewhat displeased with him, he never dared to move against him.
Now that Hu Chen was dead, Hu Jianye was likely here to demand an explanation.
Emperor Ren said, "Let him go to the Imperial Study, and you all follow me!"
Emperor Ren waved his sleeve and immediately set off.
Shen Yulou followed closely behind Emperor Ren.
Upon reaching the Imperial Study, Emperor Ren sat in a chair, while Shen Yulou stood calmly to the side.
Seeing Shen Yulou show no signs of panic, Emperor Ren breathed a sigh of relief.
If it truly was Shen Yulou who did it, this young man would surely be feeling guilty.
Soon, an old man wearing a feathered cap and splendid official robes walked in with a brisk pace.
"Your humble servant greets Your Majesty!"
"Minister Hu, please rise. What brings you to the palace so late at night?"
Hu Jianye knelt on the ground, his face filled with sorrow, and said,
"My Son, Hu Chen, suddenly died after dinner. Your humble servant implores Your Majesty to uphold justice for Your humble servant!"
Emperor Ren said, "I have heard about Hu Chen's matter. How did he die?"
"Your Majesty, Your humble servant has already had a coroner examine the body. Hu Chen died from poisoning, and the killer must be Shen Yulou. I ask Your Majesty to punish him!"
Shen Yulou sneered inwardly. One Consort Qing wasn't enough, and now an old geezer had arrived.
Was it really necessary to kill him today to be satisfied?
Emperor Ren said, "Minister Hu, do you have any evidence?"
"Everyone present at Yu Cui Tower is evidence. Shen Yulou met My Son for the first time today, and he tampered with the food at the dinner table. At that time, he was the only outsider at the entire dinner table. If not him, then who else could it be?"
Emperor Ren said, "Minister Hu, it's best not to jump to conclusions too early. We can first let the Ministry of Justice investigate."
Hu Jianye said, "Your humble servant knows that Shen Yulou is an imperial envoy for child protection/maternity, holding an important position, but a life for a life.
So, Your humble servant can wait two days, and after he delivers the Princess, then I will ask Your Majesty to convict him and make him pay for My Son's life!"
Shen Yulou's expression changed. Old geezer! How insidious!
Knowing that Emperor Ren couldn't kill him now, he changed his approach, waiting to kill him after the delivery?
After hearing this, Emperor Ren was clearly somewhat moved.
After all, he still needed to consider the requests of both Hu Jianye and Consort Qing.
Emperor Ren looked at Shen Yulou and said,
"Minister Shen, can you prove your innocence?"
Shen Yulou's heart sank. If he couldn't prove his innocence, would he be convicted?
This dog emperor, I just risked my life for you, and now you're going to abandon me.
For such a grave crime, of course, the one who makes the claim must provide the evidence.
But precisely because these two people held extraordinary status, they had convicted Shen Yulou, and Shen Yulou had to prove his innocence.
Shen Yulou said, "Your Majesty, Your humble servant went to the Winery this time, and besides taking the Palace Maid Tao Hong, Commander Li also accompanied me."
Emperor Ren was startled. "Oh? Li Hui went too? Someone, summon Li Hui!"
Consort Qing's heart skipped a beat. Li Hui went with him too?
If it were anyone else, perhaps they wouldn't hold such an important position in Emperor Ren's heart.
Even if Shen Yulou saved the Princess, in Emperor Ren's eyes, he was no different from other imperial physicians.
But Li Hui was different. Li Hui was responsible for Emperor Ren's safety, and he trusted Li Hui quite a lot.
Soon, Li Hui arrived at the Imperial Study.
"Your humble servant greets Your Majesty."
Emperor Ren said, "Li Hui, did you accompany Lord Shen to the Winery today?"
"Yes."
"Then did you notice anything unusual?"
Li Hui was startled. "Your humble servant did not notice anything unusual."
Emperor Ren said, "Hu Chen is dead."
Li Hui was instantly shocked. "What? How did The Emperors Maternal Uncle die?"
Li Hui's heart was now in turmoil.
Previously, Hu Chen had tried to poison them to death, but Shen Yulou had noticed it.
And now Hu Chen was dead?
How could Li Hui not be shocked?
Emperor Ren said, "Minister Hu and Consort Qing both say that Lord Shen poisoned Hu Chen. You were a party to it, what do you think?"
Li Hui thought for a moment and said,
"Your humble servant believes it's absolutely impossible."
Emperor Ren raised his eyebrows. "Oh? Why?"
"Your humble servant heard that Lord Shen was going to prepare alcohol for the Princess's delivery, so I voluntarily offered to go with him.
During that time, Lord Shen and I were inseparable, even going to the latrine together.
If Lord Shen had poisoned The Emperors Maternal Uncle, Your humble servant would certainly have noticed."
Hu Jianye frowned and said,
"Even if Commander Li was with him the whole time, it doesn't guarantee he didn't administer poison. Commander Li is not a doctor, after all, so how could he have noticed?
Your Majesty, Your humble servant requests that Shen Yulou be handed over to the Ministry of Justice for severe interrogation, and a conclusion will surely be reached!"
The Ministry of Justice was filled with Hu Jianye's people; once Shen Yulou entered the Ministry of Justice, he could forget about surviving.
Consort Qing also knelt on the ground, pleadingly saying,
"Your Majesty, Your humble servant seconds that. Please issue an imperial decree that after Shen Yulou delivers the Princess of Yan State in two days, he be handed over to the Ministry of Justice for interrogation!"
Emperor Ren's brows were tightly furrowed, clearly in a difficult position.
Just then, a eunuch suddenly walked in and said,
"Your Majesty, Consort Xian requests an audience!"
Emperor Ren was startled. Why had Consort Xian come?
Ever since the Imperial Son's death, Consort Xian had remained secluded. Emperor Ren had visited her several times, but Consort Xian's mood remained very low.
She even refused Emperor Ren's request for her to attend to him, simply heartbroken. Emperor Ren had even worried she might take her own life.
"Let her in."
Although the Imperial Son had died, Emperor Ren was still quite concerned about Consort Xian, and her arrival at this moment surely meant something.
Consort Xian walked in with a cold expression, and with a thud, knelt on the ground.
"Your Majesty, I have found the murderer who poisoned the Imperial Son. I ask Your Majesty to punish him!"
Emperor Ren stood up abruptly, his expression extremely solemn.
"Consort Xian, who exactly poisoned the Imperial Son?"
Consort Xian took out the letter, handed it over, and said,
"This is Wei Xingchen's handwritten confession. Please peruse it, Your Majesty!"
Emperor Ren took the confession.
At this moment, Consort Qing's face suddenly turned ugly. She quietly glanced at Shen Yulou.
Shen Yulou was also looking at her, and as their eyes met, Shen Yulou's lips curved into a playful smirk.
He hadn't originally wanted to fall out with Consort Qing so quickly, but there was no choice; Consort Qing had made the first move, so Shen Yulou had no choice but to drag her down with him.
After reading the confession, Emperor Ren was furious.
The hand holding the paper was trembling, and then he forcefully threw the letter at Consort Qing's face, angrily saying,
"Consort Qing! What do you have to say!?"
Consort Qing glanced at Wei Xingchen's confession, and her face instantly turned pale.
"Your Majesty, Your humble servant has been wronged! This is a setup. How could Your humble servant possibly conspire against the Imperial Son?"
Emperor Ren snorted coldly.
"Consort Xian, where did you obtain this confession?"