The King of Liang, the feudal lords outside the town, and the generals inside

On the queen's side at this time, Lan Yan tremblingly said: "I don't understand why Lan Qian said that so abruptly at that time, but she fell ill and died the next day. Lan Xi hurried in to report that morning, It is said that someone saw the imperial concubine behind the rockery yesterday, and wondered if they heard something."

The queen asked anxiously, "What happened next?"

Later, the Empress Dowager ordered Lan Yan to go to Fangfei Hall, and asked the noble concubine to go to the Palace of Compassion and Peace to talk with the Empress Dowager.

The noble concubine thought for a while, then nodded and said: "Since the queen mother wants to see me, I am naturally willing to go. Then my aunt will go back and report to you first, and I will go immediately after dressing and changing."

While changing clothes for the noble concubine, Huanyan said: "Your Majesty, the Empress Dowager has always disliked you, and you are still pregnant, in case there is any conflict..."

The imperial concubine lowered her eyes and said: "No, I have to go, I have to ask some questions clearly. You and Xin Yan will watch outside at that time, if it doesn't sound right, go and invite the emperor and sister immediately .”

"Your Majesty..." Huanyan was inexplicably worried about losing something, "My Lady has been preoccupied since she returned to the palace yesterday, what happened?"

The imperial concubine remained silent, and said for a while, "What's the matter, we will find out today."

When the empress dowager was talking to the imperial concubine, the empress dowager shunned all the servants, and no one knew what they were talking about.

Huanyan and Xinyan stood outside anxiously, when suddenly, the voice of the noble concubine came out, "Huanyan! Go find the emperor!"

Lan Yan said: "At that time, the servants were ordered by the Empress Dowager not to allow the concubine's maids to leave the Palace of Compassion, so they were detained by the guards. The servants heard the concubine yelling, 'What a vicious queen, you deserve a thousand knives! Cut'... Later, when the maidservant and Lanxi went in, the noble concubine fell to the ground clutching her stomach, and there was still blood on the ground."

The queen mother stood aside, her chest fluctuating, "What are you looking at? Don't tell the imperial doctor and Wen Po!"

After Lan Xi left in a hurry, the Empress Dowager ignored the screaming concubine, beckoned Lan Yan to come closer, and said in a low voice, "Get rid of those two maids and throw them to the mass grave. Hurry up!"

Lan Yan took the order, knocked out Huanyan and Xinyan, loaded them into the carriage carrying water in the palace, took them to the mass grave outside the palace, and stabbed them a few times indiscriminately.But after all, she was not a Lianjiazi like Zhu Sha, and she didn't hurt her vitals immediately after a few stabs.

Huanyan cried and said: "After the servant woke up, he found that he was seriously injured, and Xinyan beside him was also dying. The servant wanted to ask for help, but he lost too much blood and couldn't move, and finally passed out. When he woke up again, he was here. In the Taoist temple, the Taoist priest saved the servant girl, and the servant girl survived by chance, but Xinyan..."

She cried for a while, calmed down a bit, and then said: "This servant is just trying to find a way to see the empress, tell the whole story, and let her be the master of the imperial concubine, but unexpectedly, she meets His Royal Highness King Liang. I beg your highness to see you in the past. For the sake of the imperial concubine and empress who helped you, please bring your servants into the palace to meet the emperor!"

Bai Yu asked Huanyan to change into the clothes of a palace maid, and immediately took her into the palace.The Chongming Palace was very quiet, occasionally a few laughing voices could be heard, it was Prime Minister Shen Qing who was talking to the emperor.

Bai Yu hesitated for a while, and was about to let the eunuch go in to report, when the queen hurriedly got out of the sedan chair with her skirt in hand, and trotted in.

"Sister-in-law." Bai Yu saw that the eunuch behind the queen was escorting a maidservant, but after a closer look it was Lan Yan, "The truth has finally been found out?"

The queen's eyes were red and she nodded, "King Liang also wants to see the emperor?"

Bai Yu thought for a while, then asked the servants to step back, and said in a low voice, "The imperial concubine's maid, Huanyan, is still alive, and I brought her into the palace to face the saint."

Only then did the queen notice the maid who had been bowing her head behind Baiyu, she was stunned for a moment and then showed a joyful smile, "Okay, okay, so it's not Lan Yan's one-sided words!"

"What did Lan Yan say?"

The queen looked around, and told Bai Yu about Lan Yan's confession, and Bai Yu said, "Huan Yan also said the same thing. It seems that in the Palace of Compassion and Ning, it was indeed the Queen Mother who murdered her, rather than taking revenge on the noble concubine."

"But I don't understand why Lan Qian mentioned Concubine Zhen?" The queen frowned, "I remember that Concubine Zhen used to be the Empress Dowager's maid, and the late Emperor favored her on a whim and didn't give her a place. Later she seemed to have died of illness, and the Empress Dowager begged the late Emperor to make her a concubine after her death."

Bai Yu hesitated for a moment, and said, "Sister-in-law, let's think about it in the most astonishing and unbelievable direction. Perhaps, that is the only explanation."

In the Chongming Palace, the emperor looked back and forth a few times at a list in his hand, circled and sketched on it, and handed it to Shen Qing, "The rest will be handed over to Prime Minister Shen."

Shen Qing put away the list and said: "Don't worry, Your Majesty, the old minister will make proper arrangements."

"These people have some talents, and they are not close to the Cen family, so they can be of great use. The military generals who expand the territory are important, and these civil servants and Confucian scholars are also not to be neglected. The literati hold their pens and ink to sing and sing, often representing the public opinion of the world. direction."

Shen Qing nodded, thought for a while and said: "Then the new top scholar and this year's martial arts champion, the veteran will check the root cause after returning, and anyone who has a relationship with the Cen family will be released, and there is no need to stay in Beijing."

The emperor gave a "hmm" and said: "In conclusion, it is time to send some imperial envoys to various places to inspect the military, government and people's livelihood, and to rectify the administration of officials. Minister Shen will draw up a list of candidates for imperial envoys and show them to me."

"Yes." Shen Qing wrote it down, and said, "After the Queen Mother recovers from illness, the Cen family will definitely ask for an order to visit. Instead of letting their family members talk behind closed doors, it is better to put it on the bright side. The old minister thought, it is better to wait three On the day of the prince's hundredth day, the emperor named the third prince and held a hundred-day banquet for the emperor's relatives, important officials in the court, and the queen mother to attend. The Cen family should see the queen mother and the queen mother at that time. If you want to see each other in private , the emperor can easily shirk."

The emperor said: "Mr. Shen's suggestion is very good. I will do as you said. I will also make the noble concubine the imperial concubine and bury her next to the queen's mausoleum."

The two monarchs and ministers were talking, and the eunuch outside came to report that the queen and the king of Liang were asking to see each other.

"Then, the old minister will leave."

Just as Shen Qing got up, the emperor raised his hand, "No need, Prime Minister Shen has nothing to listen to."

Lan Yan and Huan Yan followed behind the empress and Baiyu, the empress saluted and said, "Your Majesty, these few days of hard work are worthwhile, this concubine finally learned the truth from this servant."

She pulled Lan Yan's hair and forced her to raise her head, "Tell the emperor what you told me just now!"

"Lan Yan, tell me everything you know verbatim, and I will spare your life."

Bai Yu said: "Brother Huang, let Lan Yan and Huan Yan talk together."

……

After a long silence, the sound of water dripping from the copper leak in the hall became clearer and audible, drop by drop, as if it could punch holes in people's bodies.

The emperor's voice was distant and ethereal, "Concubine Zhen?"

"She was the Empress Dowager's maid." The Empress said softly.

The emperor closed his eyes, his brows twisted into a river, "The old things, only Shen Xiang has experienced them here. Does Shen Xiang know anything?"

Shen Qing's complexion was heavy, and he glanced at Bai Yu, "The old minister is a foreign minister, and he doesn't know much about the harem. I only know that...the queen mother served the late emperor for many years, and it was true that she never conceived, so everyone rumored that the queen mother was barren. The old minister once heard the late emperor say that the imperial physician diagnosed the empress dowager, saying that with the empress dowager's physique, it is difficult to conceive, but it is not completely impossible, and needs to be taken care of. It was not until later that the late emperor's empress Shuyuan was happy, and the next day There is also good news from the Empress Dowager's Palace."

"Then what about Concubine Zhen?" Bai Yu asked.

Shen Qingdao: "Grand Concubine Zhen is the Empress Dowager's maid. The late Emperor favored her once and then forgot about it. The one who favored her the most was Empress Shuyuan. The late Emperor loved her very much, and she was always with her when she went in and out. about."

The queen hesitated and said: "Concubine Zhen...has she ever given birth?"

Shen Qing shook his head, "In the eyes of the late emperor, only Empress Shuyuan was the only one. There were many concubines with family backgrounds in the harem, and he couldn't care less about such a maid who had no status. She died of illness not long afterward, so the queen mother asked the late emperor Posthumously give her the title of Concubine Zhen."

"Was the emperor not born when Concubine Zhen died?" The queen asked immediately.

"Based on the old minister's impression, there shouldn't be any. At that time, the Queen Mother was just pregnant."

The emperor breathed a sigh of relief, but Shen Qing hadn't finished speaking, "But..."

He looked at the emperor's expression, and said, "Actually, the old minister and the first emperor also had doubts. Before the empress Shuyuan entered the palace, the late emperor still loved the queen mother very much, but the queen mother still hadn't given birth for many years. After the empress Shuyuan entered the palace, , the late Emperor rarely went to see the Empress Dowager, but the Empress Dowager was happy..."

Lan Yan seemed to think of something, and said timidly: "There is one thing that I have always found strange. All the concubines are surrounded by old mothers who have been serving them for many years, most of them have been serving the concubines since the time of the first emperor. But the servants, Lanxi, Lanqian...and Zhu Sha and others around the Queen Mother are all young maids under the age of 25. The servants and Lanxi had chatted privately, and they were all curious why the Queen Mother didn't have a senior nanny by her side. , there is not a single maid who served the Empress Dowager back then."

Bai Yu was quite clear about this question.Ruan Haoyue's mother used to serve Empress Shuyuan, but was silenced by the Queen Mother.She doesn't even keep the people around Empress Shuyuan, let alone those around her who know some secrets.

Thinking of this, Bai Yu suddenly thought of someone.

"Brother Emperor." Bai Yu looked at the emperor and pointed to the imperial study.

There must be some unspeakable secrets about the Empress Dowager and Concubine Zhen, otherwise why would the Empress Dowager kill the imperial concubine to silence them?As for this secret, Shen Qing may not be clear, but there is one person who definitely knows a thing or two.

The emperor understood what he meant, stood up and said: "The empress takes Huanyan back, and Lan Yan will lock her up first, and take care of her. I will think about this matter again. King Liang and Xiang Chen will follow me."

When the emperor, Bai Yu, and Shen Qing arrived at the secret room where Nanny Feng lived through the secret passage, she was sitting on the ground, staring blankly at the little light cast from above.Hearing the movement, he turned his head and smiled at the emperor.

The emperor squatted in front of her, wrapping his hands around her fingerless palms.

"Mommy, I know you can't speak, so I'll ask you a few things, you just need to nod or shake your head."

Nanny Feng looked at Bai Yu and Shen Qing blankly, and nodded.

The emperor took a breath, and asked slowly: "I gave you dumb drugs back then, which made you like this, is it the queen mother?"

Nanny Feng's eyes were deeply sunken because she was too thin, and two lines of tears immediately fell down.

She nodded heavily.

The emperor's hand trembled, and then he asked again: "She treated you like this because she found out that you knew her secret, right?"

Nanny Feng nodded again.

"That secret..." The emperor closed his eyes, with anger and sadness floating between his brows.He seemed unable to speak, but forced himself to force his voice out of his throat, "Is that secret related to my life experience?"

Nanny Feng's pupils twitched suddenly, as if her eyes had been pricked by needles, almost turning bloody red.She stood up abruptly, staggering a bit.She stared at the emperor firmly and nodded frantically.

These violent reactions made the emperor dare not ask any more questions, he was stunned for a moment, then turned his head to look at Bai Yu and Shen Qing.

Bai Yu said slowly: "Concubine Zhen did not die at that time, not only did she not die, but she was pregnant. The Empress Dowager is in the middle palace, but she has no sons and half daughters under her knees, while the late Emperor's most beloved Empress Shuyuan is pregnant. Once she gave birth to the prince, she would be the only son of the first emperor. However, the first emperor also strictly protected the empress Shuyuan, and the queen mother could not do anything, so she was terrified that the first emperor would spoil his concubine and destroy his wife. Coincidentally, Concubine Zhen was her maid again She has no power and power, so she threatened and lured Concubine Zhen, forbidding her to tell about her pregnancy, and maybe even locked her up in secret, saying to the outside world that she died of illness, and bribed the imperial physician to release the news that she was happy When Concubine Zhen gave birth, she took the child as her own, and then killed Concubine Zhen to avoid future troubles. However, a false pregnancy is a false pregnancy after all, and the maids who serve her day and night will always find some clues, so None of them have survived to this day. Nanny Feng is the wet nurse of the imperial brother, and one day she finally found something, but the Queen Mother knew about it, so she became like this."

Nanny Feng's scorched and pale lips trembled uncontrollably, and then spread from her lips to her body, violently and uncontrollably.She fell to her knees and kowtowed to the sky one after another, as if she was thanking the heaven for finally revealing the truth today.