Princess Jinyang of the Tang Dynasty

At that time, Qi Changshi was also serving Princess Gaoyang.

Li Mingda originally just wanted to confirm whether the court lady committed suicide, so as to rule out any connection with the case he was investigating.Now I didn't expect that although she committed suicide, she also had a relationship.

Li Mingda immediately sent Tian Hanshan to inquire about those old palace servants who had served Princess Gaoyang back then, and asked about their situation back then.

It didn't take long for Li Mingda to get the news. Sure enough, the three palace maids died like sycamores.

At this time, further autopsy results also came from Wu Zuo. Even Wu Zuo never expected that there would be a torn wound on Wutong's lower body as a court lady.

The death of the court lady Wutong was definitely not a simple suicide incident.

Li Mingda even had a feeling that this kind of bullying most likely originated from the Wude Hall where Princess Gaoyang lived, and was then brought to the Daji Hall by Zhilan who was inherited.

Concubine Wei Gui didn't understand Li Mingda's words just now, now seeing her clear expression, Concubine Wei Gui was even more confused.

"Could it be that Wutong didn't commit suicide, but homicide?" Wei Guifei asked.

Li Mingda denied, "But her suicide is more heinous than homicide."

Li Mingda then asked Wei Guifei why she kept Zhilan by her side.

"I had a good eye for a long time, and Princess Gaoyang didn't bring her with me when she got married. I like her dexterity, so I asked for her." After Wei Guifei answered honestly, she suddenly trembled, "Could it be that Wutong committed suicide because of her? rise?"

"I'll find out after asking, but I'm sure that the death of this court lady is not simple, it's a big event. The result of this investigation is likely to surprise Aye."

Concubine Wei didn't take it seriously at first, thinking that since she didn't participate in this matter, it should have nothing to do with her.He suddenly realized that as a noble concubine, she is now the most honorable person among concubines, and this incident happened in his own palace. If His Majesty really showed his power, how could he escape her responsibility.

She is no longer a little girl, and she is still married for the second time. Concubine Wei Gui didn't want her status to be lost at this age. After thinking about it, she firmly expressed her support for Li Mingda's investigation.

Li Mingda quickly thanked Concubine Wei, "Then I won't be polite, I will borrow a few people from Concubine Wei."

Concubine Wei hurriedly said that she would go with Li Mingda to investigate, and she could be regarded as contributing to the rectification of the atmosphere in the harem.

After Li Mingda thanked Concubine Wei, he summoned Zhilan and other court ladies to the Lizheng Hall.

Zhilan and the others were led to the Lizheng Hall, and seeing the majestic and solemn place where the saint often handles government affairs, people couldn't help feeling afraid, and felt even more frightened, vaguely feeling that this was not a good omen.

After Li Mingda took his seat, he dismissed the idlers, leaving only Tian Hanshan and Biyun.

Zhilan and the others cowered and knelt in the center of the hall, their hearts beating more and more.

"Tell me carefully, how do you usually bully Wutong?" Li Mingda's tone was light, as if he wanted to chat with someone.

"Your lord, the maidservants have been wronged. The maidservants are busy serving Concubine Wei every day. They have no enmity with Wutong. There is no reason to bully her." Zhilan shed tears as she spoke, and sincerely kowtowed to Li Mingda .

Seeing this, the other four court ladies also kowtowed one after another, following Zhilan's example, weeping quietly.They didn't dare to cry loudly, for fear of offending the princess and being punished instead.

"Everything is according to Zhilan's orders. If they are interrogated separately, they will insist that they don't know, and if they refuse to admit it, it will be fine for everyone to get through it together." Li Mingda stated.

The words were neither salty nor bland, but it sounded like a thunderbolt to Zhilan and other five court ladies.

This... this... how?

How could Princess Jinyang know what they had just quietly talked about?

The five looked at each other suspiciously from the corner of their eyes.

"I really thought that if you didn't confess, I would be kept in the dark, don't you know? There are so many court ladies in Daji Palace. Back then you unscrupulously instigated so many court ladies to bully Wutong together, so you should have expected the troubles of today." Li Mingda He glanced at the five people sharply, and found that one of them was the most frightened, and his name was Chunliu.

When Zhilan and the others heard Princess Jinyang's words, they all trembled in fright. They never expected that the princess would know this step.Could it be that a traitor appeared among the five of them?Just now when the five of them got together to discuss, they were very quiet, so it was impossible for outsiders to hear them, only Chunliu went out by himself halfway.Zhilan and the other four all looked at Chunliu, but Chunliu was timid and was already trembling with fear.Seeing her 'guilty', the other four people doubted her even more.

"Chunliu," Li Mingda called deliberately.

Chunliu was stunned.

Zhilan immediately kowtowed to Li Mingda: "Your Majesty, I am willing to confess. It was Chunliu who came up with the idea to take us to bully Wutong! I never expected that she would be so vicious. She killed Wutong and wanted to frame us At the beginning, just because Wutong brought her hot water and accidentally burned her, she held a grudge and instigated us to insult Wutong together with her. She is the most favored maid around the imperial concubine. No way!"

After Zhilan finished speaking, she burst into tears, with an expression of annoyance and regret.While kowtowing to Li Mingda, she said guiltily that she was sorry for Wutong. At the beginning, they really did not think that Wutong would really seek death.

"You, you are talking nonsense, it's not me, it's clearly you!" Chunliu blushed with anger, but because she was not good at words, she didn't know what to say when she was in a hurry.

Zhilan continued to kowtow to Li Mingda, "Your lord can go and investigate. Almost all the maids in Daji Palace knew about Wutong being beaten for scalding Chunliu back then."

Chunliu: "Princess, I have been wronged! The servant admitted that the scalding happened, but I hit her a few times in anger, but it didn't matter. It didn't hurt Wutong. But Zhilan, her way of torturing Wutong, That's the real reason why Wutong was killed. I'm afraid your lord would never have imagined that she used—"

"Your lord, she bit me back! At the beginning, it was obvious that she couldn't get used to the sycamore tree anymore, so she thought of a bad move, repairing the sycamore tree several times, kicking and giving acupuncture. Late last night, she actually instigated everyone to pick up the sycamore tree. even poured cold water on them, and kicked and beat them for a while. The servant girl was so frightened that she had a nightmare all night, and she still trembles when she thinks about it. Earlier, in front of the noble concubine, the princess Asking us, the servant girl wanted to admit it frankly, but the servant girl was afraid that the lord and concubine would not believe the maidservant, and if she turned around, the servant girl would end up like Wutong again." Zhilan cried hard, and kowtowed to Li Mingda, begging the princess to Take her word for it.Even if you don't believe me, please save her life.

Li Mingda blinked, but did not speak.

At this moment, Chunliu looked like she was going crazy, she rushed towards Zhilan with a blushing face, and scolded her for lying.

Zhilan shrunk her neck and knelt there motionless, letting Chunliu pull and pat her.Anyone who saw this scene felt that Chunliu was powerful and Zhilan was extremely angry.

"Your lord, what I said before had nothing to do with Wutong's death was also ordered by Chunliu. You deserve to die, you are guilty!" Zhilan held onto Li Mingda while being pulled by Chunliu. After kowtowing several times, he looked like an honest and kind servant.

"Presumptuous, in front of the princess, how decent are you!" Tian Hanxi sternly said.

Only then did Chunliu realize that she had gone too far, she immediately stopped her hands and froze for a moment, realizing that the situation was not in her favor, kowtowed to Li Mingda crying loudly, explaining that she was wronged and that the mastermind was really not herself.

Li Mingda looked at the other three court ladies who shrank their necks silently, and asked them what to say.

The three maids looked at Chunliu, then at Zhilan, and kowtowed to express that what Zhilan said was true, and that everything was indeed caused by Chunliu.

When Li Mingda heard this answer, he frowned fiercely, and looked at Zhilan again with extremely surprised eyes.

What is the difference between this court lady, so that in such a crisis, other people dare not tell the truth, help her smooth things over and defend her.

Chunliu was already desperate when she heard the words, she was so frightened that she almost collapsed on the ground, weeping uncontrollably, her chest heaving and falling with difficulty.

At this moment, Zuo Qingmei entered the door, and after saluting, she whispered a few words into Li Mingda's ear, and then she glanced at Zhilan with unusually stern eyes.

"Bring it up." Li Mingda said.

Suddenly, a little maid presented a wooden stick as thick as a child's fist.

Li Mingda glanced at the thickness of the stick, his expression changed drastically, and he immediately got up and shouted at Zhilan, "You have such a vicious heart!"

Zhilan was so frightened that she shuddered all over, her whole face pressed to the ground, and she knelt obediently towards Li Mingda.

"Yes, yes, this is the stick. She ordered people to use this pair of phoenix trees..." Chunliu pointed at the stick, tears streaming down his face, as if he had finally repented. Just watched, but didn't stand up to help her."

"Obviously you asked us to do it!" Zhilan bit Chunliu back.

Immediately afterward, three young maids from Daji Palace came in one after another, and confessed how they watched Wutong being humiliated last night.All the maids of three lives admitted that it was indeed Zhilan who took the lead in doing this, and she brought the stick specially.

Zhilan's body trembled more and more violently.

At this time, the other three palace maids saw that the situation was not good, so they turned their backs one after another, and confessed to Li Mingda that the real envoy was indeed Zhilan. Because they were afraid, they helped Zhilan to blame Chunliu at the beginning.

"Born from the same root, why did you treat another girl like this!" Li Mingda gritted his teeth, and ordered Tian Hanshan to wait for these court ladies to sign their testimony.She felt quite disgusted, but Zhilan had to continue the interrogation.

Seeing that she was the only one left in the hall, Zhilan hurriedly kowtowed, begging Li Mingda to spare her life for the sake of Princess Gaoyang.

"She has no face with me, you think too much. If you want to survive, it depends on what you can give me." Li Mingda narrowed his eyes and stared at Zhilan. Is the death of the three people related to you as well?"

"Your lord, this servant girl is really wronged. The death of the three of them has nothing to do with the servant girl. It's because Princess Gaoyang connived at the servant girls. The three of them were rejected by Princess Gaoyang because of their mistakes, so they sent them away. The maidservants taught them every day, and sometimes the princess was unhappy, so she asked the maidservants to lead people to her, so the princess pinched and kicked to discourage the princess. The princess was also happy because of this, and her mood improved a lot .”

"Qi Changshi is also involved?"

"No, he didn't." Zhilan paused for a moment, then continued, "But later, I heard a rumor that Qi Changshi seemed to have a very good relationship with Luanyun. After Luanyun left, he even took the risk of paying homage to Luanyun in private. , burned paper for her."