After Concubine Qin nodded, Yunli said to Si Xi who was standing aside: "Eunuch Xi, I will accompany E Niang to the palace to meet the saint. There shouldn't be any problem, right?"
Si Xi lowered her head and said: "The emperor's decree is only to summon Concubine Qin. Whether the emperor will see Yunli or not is not up to the slave. The most I can do is to pass the message for you."
"Thank you, Eunuch." After saying this, Yunli said no more and supported Concubine Qin all the way to the Yangxin Hall. After Sixi announced her entry, she came out and said: "Your Majesty, please invite Concubine Qin to come with Prince Guo.
Go in."
"Thank you!" Yunli said in his heart. He was just afraid that Yinzhen wouldn't let him go in together, so he wouldn't be able to know Yinzhen's intention of summoning Eniang at the first time.
After stepping into the gate of the Vermilion Palace, the first thing that Concubine Qin did was to quickly take in the situation inside the palace. In addition to Yinzhen, Tu Lichen was also there, and there was a woman kneeling in the center of the palace. Although
I can't see his face clearly, but judging from his clothes, he shouldn't be from the palace.
After Concubine Qin and Yun Li bowed one by one, Yinzhen pointed at Ping'er who was kneeling on the ground and said, "Concubine, do you recognize this person?"
Following Yinzhen's words, Ping'er raised her face. When Princess Qin saw Ping'er's face through the skylight shining through the window, she had a ghostly feeling. She never expected to see her here.
The missing Ping'er.
Not to mention Princess Qin, even Yunli was also very surprised. She didn't know why Ping'er, who had been missing for a long time, appeared here, but judging from Yinzhen's overly solemn look, it was obviously not a good thing.
On the other side, Concubine Qin already said: "If you go back to the emperor, I recognize her. She is the maid who served me in the palace. Her name is Ping'er, and she is the one who served Concubine Xi all the way back to Beijing from Jungar."
.”
Yinzhen nodded slightly and said, "Then Concubine Qin should also remember very clearly about her previous testimony against the Queen in framing Concubine Xi?"
"Yes, I remember them all." While answering, Concubine Qin's eyes never left Ping'er, which made the latter feel as if she was being pricked by needles and could not sit still.
As soon as Concubine Qin finished speaking, Yinzhen asked: "Then do you know where Ping'er went after the queen was banned?"
Listening to this, Concubine Qin felt more and more something was wrong, "I don't know, this girl has never returned to Prince Guo's Mansion since the Emperor ordered her to be punished with a cane. Although I find it strange, I think she doesn't want to stay in the Mansion anymore."
, so I left without sending anyone to look for her. I wonder why she is in the palace now?"
Yinzhen did not speak, but turned his gaze to Tu Lichen, who nodded knowingly and explained: "I brought Ping'er to see the emperor, and I also found Ping'er. As for why Ping'er didn't return to Prince Guo's Mansion,
Concubine Qin should know this better than me."
Concubine Qin's heart skipped a beat, and she vaguely smelled something bad. She forced herself to calm down and said, "I really don't know this, please tell Master Tu Lichen."
Tu Lichen snorted coldly and said, "Does Concubine Qin still say such hypocritical words in front of the Emperor? Ping'er didn't return to Prince Guo's Mansion because she knew that as soon as she stepped into the Prince's Mansion, there would be only death waiting for her.
.”
"Where do you start talking about this?" It was Yunli who spoke this time, with a strange look on his face: "Who would want her life?"
"Your Majesty, you should ask Concubine Qin about this. I know best what she did." Although Tu Lichen was replying to Yunli's words, his eyes kept falling on Concubine Qin's face, taking in every detail on her face.
His expressions are all in his eyes.
Yunli's face darkened, and when he was about to speak, Yinzhen already said: "Okay, since everyone is here, let's talk openly about anything you want to say. There is no need to hide it like this anymore." After a pause,
He said: "Touchi, Ping'er said
What she said in Kunning Palace was all done under the instigation of others and was not true. The Queen had never framed Concubine Xi. Everything was a deliberate plan set by someone with the intention of harming the Queen. Did the Concubine know about this matter?
?”
Concubine Qin's heart skipped a beat again, and this time the situation was several times more dangerous than before. She forced herself to calm down and said, "Is there such a thing? I didn't know about it beforehand."
Tu Lichen said from the side: "Princess, Ping'er has done anything. Everything she did was under your instructions. The reason why she didn't dare to return to the palace is because she was afraid of being silenced by you."
Concubine Qin was shocked and said quickly: "Your Majesty, there is absolutely no such thing. The Queen and I have no grudges. It makes no sense at all to harm her. You must not believe this girl's nonsense.
"
Yunli also cupped his hands and said: "Your Majesty, I can assure you that I will never do such a thing. Please investigate clearly."
Yinzhen leaned back and leaned on the wide chair and said, "According to what you said, Ping'er is lying?"
When Ping'er heard this, she quickly kowtowed and said, "No, I didn't lie. Everything I said is true. There is absolutely no lie."
Yinzhen glanced at several people and said coldly: "Everyone says what they say is true. Which one should I listen to?"
At this time, Princess Qin had calmed down and said: "Your Majesty, can you allow me to ask Ping'er a few words?"
"Of course it's okay, just ask the concubine." Before the matter was concluded, Yinzhen still maintained the due courtesy and etiquette towards the concubine Qin.
"Thank you, Your Majesty." Concubine Qin bowed and turned to look at Ping'er, who had been kneeling on the ground. "You said that what you said in Kunning Palace last year was all what I ordered you to say. The purpose was to
Harm the Queen?"
Ping'er didn't dare to look at her, she curled up her neck and replied in a low voice: "This is what the concubine ordered the slave to do, so why bother asking the slave again."
"I ordered you?" Concubine Qin sneered and said, "Then have I told you why I did this? What good will it do to me if I harm the Queen? But don't tell me that you can't answer.
If you tell me, it proves that you are lying."
"I didn't lie. Everything I said was true." At this point, Ping'er had no choice but to grit her teeth and continue telling this lie.
"Then you answer immediately!" Under Concubine Qin's fierce gaze, Ping'er gritted her teeth and said: "Because Concubine Qin is afraid that Xiao Ningzi will tell the Empress about Master Seventeen's rescue of Concubine Xi, and she is afraid that when the Empress knows what happened,
It will be detrimental to Master Qi, so you take advantage of it first
, force the slave to obey your orders. Once the Queen sends word, everything will be blamed on the Queen, saying that she bribed the slave to deal with Concubine Xi, and the material the Queen gave to the slave becomes the best evidence, so that the Queen can
The concubine’s plan can be implemented smoothly.”
Although Ping'er was full of lies, she was right about one thing. She was indeed afraid that the queen would be unfavorable to Yunli, so she agreed to cooperate with Ling Ruo. However, she only forced Ping'er to tell the truth and did not slander the queen at all.
Because with the Queen's actions, the truth is enough for her to bear.