OBS Chapter 1134 Lin Wan tells Shen Zhinian about the poison hairpin
Chapter 1134 Lin Wan tells Shen Zhinian about the poison hairpin
"This is both a respect for Yun'er and a grace for the Zhuang family."
"It's not for her to take advantage of Yun'er's admiration for me and use the child as a tool to win my favor and push it in front of me!"
The last few words were filled with undisguised coldness.
Shen Zhinian faced the emperor's scrutinizing gaze, her face still showing that gentle expression, but a fleeting light flashed in her drooping fox eyes.
Concubine Zhuang’s move...was ultimately a wrong one.
She underestimated the emperor's cherishment of his pure love for his child, and even more so his hatred of concubines who used their children to win his favor.
The eldest princess's small figure looked like a small flower wilted by frost when she returned to Concubine Zhuang's plain tent.
She hung her head and kicked the edge of the felt carpet gloomily. Even when Concubine Zhuang called her "Yun'er" in a gentle voice, she just responded listlessly.
Concubine Zhuang put down the Buddhist beads in her hand, walked to the eldest princess and squatted down, her gentle eyes fell on her little face full of grievances: "What's wrong, Yun'er?"
"You went to see His Majesty, why do you look like this?"
The eldest princess raised her little face, her eyes slightly red, and her voice choked with sobs: "Father...Father refused to come to see mother..."
Her little hand tightly grasped the sleeve of Concubine Zhuang, as if she had grasped the only support: "Yun'er told father that she wanted him to have lunch with mother. Father just said... let's talk about it when we are free..."
Tears welled up in her eyes, and she sobbed as she poured out the most straightforward confusion and grievances in her heart: "Yun'er doesn't want Empress Chen to fall out of favor... Yun'er just... just hopes that Empress Chen can spend a little bit of my father's time... a little bit of time with my mother..."
She stretched out her tiny thumb and index finger, indicating a tiny distance, her voice filled with a child's humble plea: "Just a little bit..."
"Why...why is Empress Chen still unwilling? Mother is so good..."
Concubine Zhuang listened quietly, looking at the eldest princess's undisguised confusion and her eagerness to speak up for herself.
She stretched out her hand, with a hint of coolness on her fingertips, and gently wiped away the tears that were about to fall from the corners of the eldest princess' eyes.
A helpless yet tolerant smile slowly emerged on his face, like a Bodhisattva in a temple showing compassion for all living beings.
"Silly boy."
Concubine Zhuang's voice was still calm, like the flowing water of a mountain stream: "Your Majesty is the supreme ruler, and he cares about the world. It is natural for him to favor someone and take care of someone. How can we interfere? We should not... force him to do anything."
She held the eldest princess's small body in her arms, her movements were gentle and soothing, and her tone became more generous: "It is a great blessing for mother to receive the grace of His Majesty and raise Yun'er."
"Other than that... Mother doesn't dare to ask for it, nor can she ask for it."
"Yun'er, don't say these things in front of His Majesty anymore, so as not to upset His Majesty, understand?"
These words, like the most soothing Buddhist verse, are filled with a sense of contentment and understanding that comes from accepting one's fate.
There was not a word of complaint, not a trace of resentment, only absolute obedience to the emperor's grace and power.
However, the better her mother was, the less she argued, and the more she silently swallowed all the grievances, the more the eldest princess felt wronged and sad for her mother.
Empress Chen obviously has everything, why is she unwilling to even give a little bit of her father's time to her mother?
My mother is so kind and gentle, but she can only stay alone in the tent, unable to even see my father...
Her small body trembled slightly in Concubine Zhuang's arms, and she buried her face deeper into Concubine Zhuang's clothes, which had a faint scent of sandalwood.
The eldest princess sobbed silently, not because she felt wronged for herself, but because she felt sorry for her mother's magnanimity.
Concubine Zhuang felt the eldest princess' suppressed trembling. Under her lowered eyelids, her eyes were as deep as an ancient well.
Only the fingertips that were twisting the Buddhist beads curled up slightly in the shadow where no one could see.
……
As dusk fell, the cold air flowed over the withered yellow grass in the paddock like an invisible tide.
Shen Zhinian returned to the elegant and graceful Zhai bird auspicious cloud tent, and Fuqiu quickly approached, lowering her voice to a very low level: "Madam, Madam Liu sent a letter, asking for a meeting."
Shen Zhinian paused as he untied the cloak's ties. He understood everything as his eyes moved. "You decide on the arrangements."
Fuqiu said respectfully, "Yes."
Dark as ink.
In a secluded corner at the edge of the camp, where old saddles were piled, the shadows were so thick that they could not be dispelled.
The cold wind blew up grass clippings and dust, making a whimpering sound.
Lin Wan was wrapped in a thick green lotus-colored cloak, almost blending into the darkness. It was not until Shen Zhinian's figure quietly appeared accompanied by Fuqiu that she took half a step out of the shadows.
The occasional flickering light from the night watch torches in the distance briefly outlined their vague silhouettes.
After Lin Wan finished her ceremony, her voice rang out in the whistling wind, clear and cold: "...I, your humble servant, have risked my life to see Your Majesty today, just to make one thing clear to you—"
"Shen Nanqiao is carrying a deadly poison and intends to murder the queen in the enclosure!"
Shen Zhinian stood quietly, her wide hood covering her entire expression, only the edge of her cloak fluttering slightly in the wind.
Lin Wan took a deep breath of cold air and continued, "She has been having an affair with... my husband for a long time. Your Majesty already knows about this. However, even earlier..."
Lin Wan's voice paused, with a hint of suppressed trembling: "She was once pregnant with Liu Shixiu's illegitimate child!"
"The child... later died. Shen Nanqiao became seriously ill because of it, and her temperament became more paranoid and crazy. She was convinced... convinced that it was you, Madam, who killed her child!"
"Liu Shixiu..."
When Lin Wan called out this name, her voice was filled with hatred: "He took advantage of Shen Nanqiao's grief over the loss of her son and made her deal with you!"
Shen Zhinian had already known about Shen Nanqiao's miscarriage from a carrier pigeon message during the day, so he was not surprised at this moment, but just a little curious.
She looked at Lin Wan and asked, "How did you know that?"
Lin Wan did not hide anything and said respectfully, "Your Majesty, I asked the maidservant named Luluo beside Shen Nanqiao. She was timid and not frightened, so she told me everything."
A hint of understanding flashed across Shen Zhinian's eyes: "So that's it."
"You said Shen Nanqiao intended to poison me?"
Lin Wan nodded and said, "Not bad!"
"She had a white jade hairpin on her body. The end of the hairpin was supported by gold thread and embedded with a round, full pearl the size of a lotus seed. It was given to her by Liu Shixiu himself."
"That pearl is hollow. Inside is a colorless, tasteless poison that dissolves in water and is difficult to detect with a needle or by a doctor! You only need to pick up a tiny bit with your fingernail and mix it into your food or tea..."
Lin Wan's voice was chilling and frightening: "It can make people die silently, with their intestines pierced and their stomachs rotted!"