“Spare my tribe,” Elder Hua requested.
“Impossible!” Emperor Jingming flatly refused.
Lang’er, Fuqing, Fourteenth, Fifteenth, and the nearly-schemed Seventh Prince and his wife – all these incidents were orchestrated by these people. How could he possibly let them go?
Elder Hua gazed deeply at Emperor Jingming, then closed her eyes.
Emperor Jingming was exasperated: “You’ve already confessed. Are you still going to stubbornly resist at this point?”
Elder Hua reopened her eyes and calmly said, “I am a dying person with nothing left to lose. If you don’t agree, then so be it.”
Emperor Jingming trembled with anger.
If Elder Hua had confessed about any other pawn, it wouldn’t matter whether it could be confirmed or not. It would be better to err on the side of caution and eliminate the threat.
But this person was the Empress Dowager – the one who raised him, taught him, and single-handedly elevated him to the throne!
The grace of nurturing exceeds that of giving birth. As a mother, Empress Dowager was undoubtedly competent, not to mention she had brought Emperor Jingming supreme power and status.
For Emperor Jingming, it was hard to accept that the Empress Dowager was a foreign pawn without any concrete evidence.
“Fine, I promise you,” he said.
Hmph, what did it matter if he promised? He could always go back on his word later.
Never mind the saying about keeping one’s word. If they had schemed against him like this, what was wrong with telling a little lie? This was called the art of war!
Elder Hua believed him. After a moment of silence, she said, “The Empress Dowager has a light red birthmark on her left hip, shaped like a flower petal…”
Emperor Jingming felt somewhat embarrassed hearing this, but more than that, he felt a heavy weight.
Nanny Duo, now confirmed as a traitor, wasn’t a close attendant to the Empress Dowager in Cining Palace. If the Empress Dowager had no connection to Nanny Duo and her associates, Nanny Duo wouldn’t have had the opportunity to know such an intimate detail about the Empress Dowager, let alone Elder Hua…
After a long silence, Emperor Jingming slowly spoke: “Take her away for now.”
Elder Hua was quickly led away, leaving only Emperor Jingming, Pan Hai, and Han Ran in the hall.
Han Ran’s forehead was covered in cold sweat, wanting to wipe it but not daring to. Pan Hai was trying his best to minimize his presence.
At this moment, the Emperor had no outlet for his emotions; whoever caught his attention would suffer.
After an indeterminate amount of time, Emperor Jing Ming’s cold, hard voice broke the silence: “Pan Hai—”
Pan Hai shuddered, nearly falling over, but steeled himself and replied, “This servant is here.”
“Quietly question the maids who closely attend to the Empress Dowager in Cining Palace. Confirm… if what Elder Hua said is true.” Emperor Jingming struggled to say these words.
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
Emperor Jingming took a deep breath and added, “Do not disturb the Empress Dowager.”
Even now, he still held out hope. If it turned out that Elder Hua was making false accusations, at least the Empress Dowager wouldn’t know about this order and be hurt by it.
Pan Hai left to carry out the order.
Emperor Jingming looked at Han Ran.
Han Ran’s scalp tingled, and he lowered his head even further.
Emperor Jingming sighed, “You stay here and wait with me.”
Time passed slowly. Since Pan Hai’s departure, the Emperor and his subject felt nothing but torment.
After what seemed like an eternity, Pan Hai finally returned hurriedly.
Emperor Jingming found himself unable to ask the question immediately.
Controlling the turmoil in his heart, Pan Hai bowed and said, “Your Majesty, I have the information.”
Emperor Jingming steadied himself before asking, “Well?”
Pan Hai lowered his gaze and replied, “This servant questioned two maids who attend to the Empress Dowager’s bath. Both maids confirmed Elder Hua’s statement.”
Summoning the Empress Dowager’s close attendants would have easily drawn attention, but questioning the bathing maids was much more discreet.
These maids only appeared when the Empress Dowager bathed, far from being her close confidants.
Emperor Jingming’s hand trembled, his heart sinking into an abyss.
Elder Hua’s words were true. The Empress Dowager was a foreigner.
Whether she was Xuemiao or Wumiao, what did it matter? The important thing was that everything he had seen, heard, and felt from the Empress Dowager since his youth until now was all false.
All of it was false!
“You may leave,” he said.
Pan Hai was very concerned and couldn’t help but speak up: “Your Majesty—”
“Leave!”
Han Ran gave Pan Hai a look and was the first to retreat.
The two stood dazed in the corridor outside the hall.
The deposed Crown Prince had cuckolded the Emperor, and now the Empress Dowager was an impostor…
It seemed they knew too much. What should they do?