Chapter 326 Auntie Confesses
In the past few days, under Bai Lingxuan's careful care, Emperor Jingxi's health has recovered a lot and he is now able to attend court to handle state affairs.
After the prince found Xiaolian, in order to avoid any further complications, he immediately went to the palace and asked Xiaolian to tell the old emperor the truth.
The old emperor was furious when he learned the truth. First, the crown prince formed a clique for personal gain, and now even the fourth prince, whom he loved the most, was harboring evil intentions.
Emperor Jingxi immediately ordered that the Fourth Prince and his entourage as well as General Qian and others in prison be summoned to the palace for interrogation.
When the fourth prince arrived at the Qinzheng Palace, he cried out in injustice, "Father, I am innocent. General Qian is my father-in-law. It will not benefit me at all if I frame him."
The Fourth Prince's wife also quickly knelt down and said, "Father, the Qian Mansion is my daughter-in-law's family. How could my daughter-in-law frame her own relatives?"
After saying that, Qian Yuying looked at Xiaolian who was kneeling beside her fiercely and said, "You slut, my mother treats you well on weekdays, why are you slandering us so much and putting us in an unjust position?"
Xiaolian raised her hand and swore, "What I said is all true. There is absolutely no lie. Two days before the incident at Qian Mansion, the Fourth Prince's wife returned to Qian Mansion and conspired with Aunt Tong in the room for a long time. The next day, Aunt Tong asked me to help her stuff the treasonous letter into the master's room under the pretext of sending chicken soup. If I have lied to you, I wish to be struck by lightning and die a miserable death."
"Slut, I returned to the Qian Mansion only because I haven't seen my family for a long time and I missed them so much. I came back to visit my relatives. My aunt and I were just talking about some private matters in the room. How come you said it was a conspiracy with my mother?"
Qian Yuying choked up and said to the emperor, "Father, I am innocent. You must not believe what this slave girl said. No matter how cruel I am, I can't be so cruel as to harm my own relatives."
After saying that, Qian Yuying also winked at her mother. At this time, Aunt Tong, who had been silent all this time, stood up and knelt down and said, "Your Majesty, it was I who put the letter of treason into the master's room. This matter has nothing to do with the Fourth Prince's wife. I am responsible for my own actions. I hope Your Majesty will not implicate innocent people."
Emperor Jingxi questioned, "You are just a little concubine, why would you want to harm the Qian Mansion?"
Aunt Tong said with a face full of resentment, "Because I hate the master. For so many years, the master only had that bitch Han Xueruo in his heart and eyes. Even though Han Xueruo was a vegetarian and didn't ask about anything in the mansion, the master only cared about her. Since I gave birth to Yuying, the master never came to my room, so I hate him and the entire Qian Mansion. I wish they all died."
It was Old Madam Qian who forced her son to marry Concubine Tong. Now that she knows that it was Concubine Tong who framed the Qian family, Old Madam Qian can no longer control herself.
She pointed at Aunt Tong angrily and said, "You bitch, I have treated you well since you entered the Qian family. Over the years, your food, clothing and daily necessities are no different from those of the mistress. Sometimes your food, clothing and daily necessities are even better than Xuerou's. Although Yuying is your daughter, I was afraid that she would be wronged, so I kept her in Xuerou's name and married her off as a legitimate daughter. You, a vicious woman, are not grateful, and you even repay kindness with enmity by framing our Qian family. I was really blind to let you become my son's concubine."
Aunt Tong laughed and said, "Hahaha, I married into the Qian Mansion and lived as a widow for more than ten years. Do you think this is good to me?"
Seeing that Aunt Tong was going to take all the blame on herself, Xiaolian suddenly became anxious. The culprits who killed Brother Awang were the Fourth Prince and his wife. If they escaped, it would be difficult for her to avenge herself.
"You are talking nonsense. It was obviously the Fourth Prince and his wife who instigated you to frame Qian Fu. Otherwise, why would they chase after me?"
The fourth prince said to Xiaolian with a gloomy look, "How dare you, a lowly servant, slander me? When did I ever send anyone to hunt you down?"
"I heard it with my own ears. You and the princess discussed to kill me. If I hadn't heard it, I would have been killed by the sword long ago."
The fourth prince said to the emperor, "Father, this slave's words cannot be believed at all. I have never done these things. Please investigate clearly."
Emperor Jingxi looked at the people below without saying a word. His expression was unclear and it was hard to tell what he was thinking.
The prince looked at Aunt Tong and said, "Aunt Tong, you said that you were the only one who did this. But did you know that the seal on the letter of treason was the genuine seal of the Canglang Kingdom? Could it be that Aunt Tong is so powerful that she could make the king of the Canglang Kingdom produce the seal?"
After hearing this, Aunt Tong hesitated for a moment, but soon she argued, "I paid someone to stamp the seal. As for how they got the seal, that's not my business. I only know that if I pay them, they have to do the job for me."
Aunt Tong looked at the emperor again and said, "Your Majesty, it was all my fault because I was confused for a moment. The Fourth Prince and his wife knew nothing about this. I am willing to die to apologize. Please don't implicate innocent people."
After saying these words, Aunt Tong rushed straight towards a pillar in the hall and rammed into it hard. Immediately, blood oozed out from her head.
Seeing this, Qian Yuying immediately rushed over and cried, "Mother, mother..."
Aunt Tong looked at her daughter with her last breath, then used up her last bit of strength to look at the standing Fourth Prince and said, "Fourth Prince, I have made a big mistake... I have already died to apologize for my sin. The only thing I am worried about is Yuying. I hope that Fourth Prince will... treat her well in the future..."
Before she could finish her words, Aunt Tong died of suffocation.
Qian Yuying's heart was filled with mixed emotions at this moment. She hugged Aunt Tong's body and cried heartbreakingly. Perhaps it was not until this moment that she suddenly realized that she had lost the person who loved her most in this world forever.
Although Aunt Tong admitted to all the crimes, no one present was a fool. How could a small woman like her have the ability to get the real seal of the Canglang Kingdom? This matter must be related to the Fourth Prince.
But the final judgment depends on your Majesty's attitude.
At this time, the Fourth Prince's biological mother, Concubine Li, also broke into the hall. She cried and said to the emperor, "Your Majesty, I heard that someone framed the Fourth Prince. Your Majesty, you must not listen to other people's slander. The Fourth Prince has been filial and sensible since he was a child. It is impossible for him to do such a treasonous thing. Please consider the relationship between father and son and don't let the traitor alienate them."
Finally, the old emperor released the Qian family. Xiaolian should have been executed, but because she repented in time and told the truth, and the prince pleaded for her, Xiaolian was only given fifty lashes of the cane and then released.
As for the Fourth Prince and his wife, they were not convicted due to insufficient evidence. However, the old emperor already had a deep grudge against the Fourth Prince.
The people of the Qian family also knew it very well. After returning, General Qian wrote a letter of severance of the relationship and sent it to the Fourth Prince's Mansion. The Qian family would never recognize Qian Yuying as their daughter again.
Without her mother's family as a support, Qian Yuying now only has the Fourth Prince to rely on.
After the Qian family members returned, Qianhuan immediately sent someone to return the jade bracelet that Old Madam Qian had given her to its original owner.
The Qian family also learned from other people that Qianhuan, in order to save their family, gave free performances on the streets of Beijing and mobilized the people to sign a petition. Everyone in the Qian family was grateful to Qianhuan.
Qian Bolin never expected that saving Qianhuan was just a piece of cake, but she went all out to help him when the Qian family was in trouble and saved the entire family. He would never be able to repay this kindness in this life.