bestfiction Chapter 283: Strong allies, twice the result with half the effort
Chapter 283: Strong allies, twice the result with half the effort
He may seem glamorous on the surface, but he can only be an idle dude in the imperial capital, so what?
He is also the crown prince!
It was not okay to question his wife like that in front of him!
Lu Hongru looked at Xiao Yan'an, opened his mouth several times, but didn't say a word, and his face turned a little red.
"Sir Lu, after I heard about this, I immediately sent people to secretly monitor the maid, but I didn't find anything suspicious about her, let alone suspect the imperial concubine. I thought, with such a big banquet in the Prince's Mansion, the people who come to attend are either rich or noble, and the Third Prince is also here, who would dare to tamper with the banquet? I didn't expect that such a thing would happen!" Ji Chuhe explained with a look of self-blame.
Lu Hongru's expression eased a little, "Where is the prince's concubine?"
"Someone, call the concubine!" Xiao Yan'an ordered outside.
Soon, Liao Yunfei came into the hall.
"Prince, Madam." She bowed to Xiao Yan'an and Ji Chuhe, and her hand holding the corner of her clothes betrayed her nervousness.
"Lord Lu has been ordered to investigate the case. You must tell Lord Lu everything you know truthfully and not hide a single word!" Xiao Yan'an said in a deep voice.
"Yes." Liao Yunfei responded immediately.
"Madam, seven days ago, did a maid who claimed to be the imperial concubine come to you and tell you that she wanted to tamper with the housewarming banquet of the prince's mansion?" Lu Hongru asked seriously.
Liao Yunfei felt conflicted. She was asked to identify Concubine Luo in public!
However, she had no choice but to answer truthfully.
He spat out a word from between his teeth, "Yes."
"What did she tell you?"
"She just said that she wanted me to join forces with her. After I rejected her, she didn't say anything else. I immediately told my wife about it!"
"Liao Yunfei, do you have anything to do with this matter?" Xiao Yan'an asked in a deep voice.
"Your Highness, you have wronged me! I have only been thinking about your Highness, how could I possibly do something that would harm you? When that maid named Leng Qiu came to look for me, I broke out in a cold sweat and immediately reported this to Madam."
"Bring Leng Qiu up!" Xiao Yan'an ordered again.
Leng Qiu was escorted in by Tianxi and knelt in the hall.
Seeing that she looked ready to die, there was no way of prying a word out of her.
"Madam, did she come to you and say that she wanted to take action on the housewarming party at the Prince's Mansion?" Lu Hongru pointed at Leng Qiu and asked.
"Yes." Liao Yunfei nodded in acknowledgement.
Leng Qiu immediately looked at Liao Yunfei with an expression that looked like he wanted to kill someone.
"Leng Qiu, if you are willing to confess the truth, you will suffer less physical pain. Who instructed you to attack the housewarming party of the prince's mansion?" Lu Hongru shouted coldly.
"My lord, I am innocent! I am a servant in the prince's mansion, and I only do rough work in the mansion. My masters are the prince and his wife. I do my job diligently. I don't even have the qualifications to serve at a banquet, so how could I have the ability to rig the banquet?" Leng Qiu cried out for herself.
As the chief envoy of the Supreme Court, Lu Hongru has been handling cases for many years and has seen many stubborn people like this.
"Come here, take Leng Qiu away and take him to the prison of the Imperial Court! Interrogate him thoroughly!"
When Leng Qiu heard the words "Tingweifu Prison", his body trembled noticeably.
Once you enter the prison of the Supreme Court, no one can walk out alive.
Before you confess, you can neither live nor die.
The methods used to interrogate prisoners there are beyond your imagination. There is nothing they cannot do. They can pry out any secret.
Ji Chuhe had already stopped Leng Qiu from committing suicide and handed him over to the Supreme Court, so he had less worries about the rest.
I have to say, the Queen is such a powerful ally!
Leng Qiu was taken away, and Lu Hongru slowly stood up and bowed to Xiao Yan'an.
"Prince, I will take the man to be interrogated first. Before the case is fully investigated, no one in the Prince's mansion is allowed to leave the mansion."
"Don't worry, Lord Lu. The Prince's Mansion will do its best to cooperate with Lord Lu in handling the case."
"Farewell."
"Master Lu, take care. Tianxi, let's see you off."
"Yes, Lord Lu, please."
As soon as Lu Hongru left, towards Sihai, Nanny Shang also stood up to say goodbye.
"Madam Shang, please stay." Ji Chuhe suddenly called out.
"Madam, do you have any other instructions?" Nanny Shang asked softly.
"Excuse me, what is the current situation of the Third Prince?"
"The Third Prince has woken up."
"That's good. Thank you, Aunt Shang."
Chao Sihai glanced at Ji Chuhe, and Ji Chuhe also looked at him. He immediately responded with a smile and walked away.
Only Ji Chuhe, Xiao Yanan and Liao Yunfei were left in the room.
Liao Yunfei looked at Xiao Yan'an pitifully.
"Your Highness, I am really innocent. Concubine Luo has been using me from the very beginning. I have never been in cahoots with her. As soon as Leng Qiu found me, I immediately told Madam the truth. I thought Madam would be prepared in advance, but I didn't expect that someone would still take advantage of me." Liao Yunfei was still explaining.
Ji Chuhe couldn't help but chuckle when he heard this.
Even now, Liao Yunfei still didn't forget to pull her.
This time, Liao Yunfei was smart and got herself out in advance, otherwise, Leng Qiu would not be the only one entering the Supreme Court.
"Liao Yunfei, Madam trusts you and puts you in charge of inspecting the ingredients. You clearly know what Concubine Luo is planning, yet you still have people tamper with it right under your nose. What use is there for you?" Xiao Yan'an asked back.
"Your Highness, I can guarantee that there is no problem with the materials I have checked!" Liao Yunfei retorted aggrievedly.
"Prince, Madam." Doctor Lin Shenlin walked in from outside.
In his hand, he was holding something wrapped in linen.
There was a red seal on the cloth bag, which was the mark that Liao Yunfei had checked.
Liao Yunfei was completely dumbfounded!
"This is the herb that is in the Grade One Eight Treasures Pot. It is very similar to spices and most people cannot tell the difference. I will take this package away first. It is important evidence."
"Thank you, Imperial Doctor Lin." Xiao Yan'an responded politely.
"Then I will take my leave first." Lin Shen turned around and walked out.
Liao Yunfei's face looked extremely ugly. This sudden situation left her with no chance to respond!
She dared to guarantee that Ji Chuhe put this package in there on purpose!
Ji Chuhe calmly picked up the teacup and took a sip of tea without even looking at Liao Yunfei.
"What else do you have to say?" Xiao Yan'an shouted angrily.
Liao Yunfei had nothing to say.
"Liao Yunfei, you dare to say that you have nothing to do with this matter? Did you deliberately mix in the packet of poison that is very similar to the spice?"
Liao Yunfei immediately knelt down and said, "Sir, I am innocent!"
"Whether it's unjust or not, the Supreme Court will investigate it! Come! Lock Liao Yunfei in the woodshed!"
"Prince, it's unfair! I am innocent!" Liao Yunfei shouted unwillingly.
The servant dragged her away without any explanation.