The Empress of Zhen Huan Reborn

After returning from Chengqian Palace where the emperor was last night, Nian Shilan and Cao Qinmo remained silent all the way and returned to their own bedrooms.

This morning, before Nian Shilan went to pay her respects, Cao Qinmo once again asked to see Nian Shilan outside the door. Upon hearing this, Nian Shilan told Songzhi, "Let her in."

"Your Highness, I came here today because of what happened last night." Cao Qinmo knelt down and kowtowed as soon as she entered the room. "I can swear to heaven that I have no intention of betraying Your Highness!"

Nian Shilan sat on the couch, looking at her coldly, but still had doubts in her heart.

Seeing this, Cao Qinmo hurriedly said, "Your Highness, do you still not trust me? If I had any ulterior motives, how could I speak for Your Highness in front of the Emperor?"

Nian Shilan pondered for a moment and felt that what she said made sense, but her face remained gloomy.

"Forget it," Nian Shilan finally said, "Let's not talk about this matter for now. If you really have second thoughts in the future, I will never let you off easily. Stand up and talk."

Cao Qinmo felt relieved, stood up, and carefully stayed beside Nian Shilan.

"It's just..." Nian Shilan changed the subject, "I noticed that you looked strange when you saw the butterfly sugar cake last night. Why?"

Cao Qinmo had already thought that Nian Shilan must have noticed this detail, so she slowed down her voice and looked at Nian Shilan: "Does your Majesty trust me?"

Nian Shilan looked at Cao Qinmo and saw that she didn't express her opinion, so she motioned for her to continue.

Cao Qinmo whispered, "That day, I took Princess Wen Yi for a stroll in the Imperial Garden and overheard the conversation between Fu Cha Yingying and Li Changzai. She said that if the princes in the harem could grow up safely, the third prince might not be able to get the throne. Then she mentioned that when she was young, she had eaten the butterfly sugar cakes prepared by her stepmother. Who knew that the sugar cakes were mixed with a large amount of arsenic, and Fu Cha Yingying almost lost her life because of it."

"Ever since I heard their conversation in the Imperial Garden that day, I felt that this matter was of great importance, so I have been observing it secretly." Cao Qinmo took a deep breath and continued.

"Later, I discovered that not only Noble Lady Fucha, but also many palace maids and eunuchs had discussed this matter in private. Moreover, I also heard that the emperor's attitude towards the third prince has changed recently..."

Nian Shilan frowned slightly. She knew that what Cao Qinmo said was true. If this matter was really as Cao Qinmo said, then the consequences would be disastrous. She had to find a way to protect herself and the Fifth Prince.

Nian Shilan immediately spoke up, "Then why didn't you tell me when you saw that plate of dim sum yesterday? If I or the Fifth Prince had eaten it, do you know the consequences?"

Cao Qinmo knelt down and kowtowed quickly: "Your Majesty, please understand. There were too many servants in the palace yesterday, and I was afraid of alerting the enemy, but I stopped Princess Wen Yi from eating, and I looked at the plate of cakes from time to time. I knew that with your intelligence, you would definitely find the problem. If your Majesty was really negligent, I would also stop your Majesty and the Fifth Prince from eating at the critical moment."

After hearing this, Nian Shilan was silent for a while. "Then in your opinion, what should we do?" Nian Shilan asked.

Cao Qinmo pondered for a moment and replied, "I think the most urgent task is to find evidence to prove that someone is trying to murder the heir. At the same time, we must also be careful to avoid being framed."

Nian Shilan nodded in agreement. "Okay, then I'll do as you say. However, this matter must be kept secret and must not be leaked."

"In addition, we need to send someone to secretly investigate the matter to see if there are any other clues." Cao Qinmo suggested.

After thinking for a moment, Nian Shilan said, "Well, this is a great idea. But right now, there aren't many trustworthy people around me, so why don't you take charge of this?"

"I will do my best to live up to your trust, Your Majesty." Cao Qinmo knelt down and responded.

Afterwards, the two discussed some specific details and left. However, they did not know that a bigger conspiracy was quietly brewing...

After leaving the palace, Cao Qinmo was in a heavy mood. She understood the importance and danger of this mission, but she also knew that this was her chance to gain Nian Shilan's trust. If she could do it well, Nian Shilan would definitely not treat her unfairly. Cao Qinmo thought for a long time, and she decided to start with people who were close to Li Changzai and look for clues.

At the same time, in the dark, a sneaky palace maid overheard all this, secretly returned to her room, scribbled something on a piece of paper, stuffed it into an inconspicuous hole under the back wall of the Yiku Palace, and then buried the soil on the note.

The next day, Cao Qinmo came to Li Changzai's bedroom under the pretext of visiting her. Li Changzai, who was thinking about something in the room, suddenly heard footsteps coming, and then heard the maid report that Cao Guiren was coming to her palace to sit. Li Changzai couldn't help but feel very surprised, because the two of them didn't have much interaction on weekdays. However, Cao Qinmo's position was higher than hers, and she couldn't drive Cao Qinmo out of the palace even if she was reluctant. So she quickly stood up, tidied her clothes, and then walked out of the door quickly to greet Cao Qinmo's arrival.

During the conversation with Li Changzai, Cao Qinmo deliberately mentioned what happened recently to observe her reaction. Li Changzai acted surprised and said that she knew nothing about it. However, Cao Qinmo noticed that her eyes flickered a little.

After leaving Li Changzai's bedroom, Cao Qinmo secretly sent people to monitor her every move. Soon, her subordinates sent news that they found that Li Changzai had been in frequent contact with a guard in the palace. Cao Qinmo was secretly happy and felt that she was one step closer to the truth. She decided to continue to investigate in depth and find out the mastermind behind the scenes.

By following the guard, Cao Qinmo discovered that he often went in and out of a remote corner of the palace, which was an abandoned warehouse that few people usually visited.

Cao Qinmo was suspicious and decided to go check it out herself. When she quietly approached the warehouse, she heard a slight conversation coming from inside.

"How are things going?" a deep voice asked.

"Everything is going according to plan. Concubine Hua has taken the bait." Another voice replied.

Cao Qinmo recognized that one of the voices was that of the guard, and her heartbeat accelerated instantly. She realized that she might have touched upon a huge conspiracy.

But at this moment, she had to remain calm so as not to alert the enemy. She retreated cautiously, ready to tell Nian Shilan about her discovery.

When Nian Shilan learned about this, she was shocked. She didn't expect that such a huge conspiracy was hidden in this seemingly peaceful harem.

"I must find out who is the mastermind behind this!" Nian Shilan swore secretly.

She was worried about Cao Qinmo's safety, so she stopped her from following up and secretly sent secret guards to investigate everything related to the guard, trying to find more evidence.

In the process, Nian Shilan found herself gradually trapped in an intricate spider web, where every clue seemed to point in a different direction.