sbdcsierra Chapter 479: Clever but not wise
Chapter 479: Clever but not wise
Having said this, two lines of tears ran down Defei's face, and she looked at the emperor with grievance and sadness.
Because she had to touch up Concubine De's makeup occasionally, Li Cairong would always be by her side whenever she went out.
Seeing Concubine De crying, Li Cairong was extremely anxious!
The soft wax she used to adjust Concubine De's nose was not waterproof! What if Concubine De cried even harder and ruined her makeup?
But at this moment, Li Cairong had no way to remind her.
Defei was completely unaware of Li Cairong's anxiety, and she portrayed the look of being wronged to the fullest.
Although many people knew about what Concubine De had done in the past, the emperor never publicly punished her for the sake of the Third Prince.
Therefore, in the eyes of some palace concubines and royal relatives, Concubine De was always gentle and graceful. In addition, the fact that she was not favored by heaven and her life was almost over made people feel even more sympathetic.
At this moment, these people looked at Concubine De with eyes full of pity.
What does this matter have to do with Concubine De?
Her maid was not feeling well, so she asked her to go back first. Wasn't that normal? Otherwise, who would be responsible for disturbing the Fourth Prince's full moon ceremony?
The Virtuous Consort also has good intentions. How can Your Majesty be suspicious of the Virtuous Consort just because he favors her...
Nangong Xuanyu would not treat any other concubine like this. But in his mind, Concubine De had a bad record. If she showed any suspicion, Nangong Xuanyu would doubt her to the end!
Of course, for the sake of the Third Prince, the emperor would not blatantly say that Concubine De was the murderer without any evidence and not give her any dignity at all.
But this did not affect the emperor's investigation into the matter.
"As Consort Xian said, anyone who passed by here during that time period was suspicious. I am not only suspicious of you, but also everyone on the list."
"Whether Qingdai is innocent or not is not something you can say with just your mouth."
At this point, Nangong Xuanyu asked Li Changde to hand over the list: "Su Quanye, search all their residences!"
The honey may have been disposed of long ago, but there will always be traces of what was done.
Su Quanye replied "yes" and immediately took people to do it.
Every gate in the palace is guarded by guards, so during this period, whoever passes through this palace road cannot escape the guards' eyes. Some of the palace servants on the list serve the ladies and young ladies.
Hearing Nangong Xuanyu's words, they couldn't help but become nervous.
Although this matter has nothing to do with them, who wouldn't be scared if their palace was searched for no reason?
If it were normal times, they could still cry out that they were wronged and ask His Majesty to revoke his order. After all, searching the palace was not a respectable thing for concubines.
But this time, it involves the Fourth Prince and the crown prince position, and they understand the pros and cons and can only shut up in disappointment.
Defei took out a handkerchief and wiped the tears from her face with grievance, without any panic.
She asked Qingdai to do this, so how could she keep the obvious evidence?
Even if His Majesty sends people to search, nothing will be found. In the end, the crime will still fall on Concubine Sun.
Empress Dowager Liu sat in the main seat and did not participate in the matter from beginning to end, but she was the person who saw the scene most thoroughly.
The concubines in the harem each have their own methods.
Concubine Liang usually adds fuel to the flames and rarely gets involved unless she is desperate. So even if she gets involved in some things, it looks normal on the surface and won't arouse suspicion.
However, Concubine De always felt that the emperor needed evidence to make a judgment, so she handled everything herself and only focused on the evidence. This was actually very stupid and naive.
This is where she is far inferior to Concubine Liang.
In the harem struggle, the most taboo is to use self-righteous strategies to challenge the emperor's authority.
Defei thought that if she hid in the woods, the emperor would not be able to find evidence that she was the murderer and would use her as a pawn to punish the people she framed.
Little did they know that for the emperor...why bother looking for it? Just burn the forest!
For example, this time, Concubine De thought that all the evidence she created pointed to Concubine Sun, and the Emperor would eventually punish Concubine Sun.
But she greatly underestimated the weight of Concubine Xian's words in the emperor's heart.
In the end, the emperor did not follow her ideas at all. He neither punished Concubine Sun nor suspected Concubine Xian. Instead, he turned the harem upside down.
Concubine De was indeed very cunning and had excellent strategies, but she was born in a small family and had many limitations in her vision.
He is clever in some ways, but not in some wisdom.
Her cleverness was enough in the struggle in the harem. But because of the death of the second prince, the experience in Gyeongbokgung Palace, and the lack of time left, De Fei was too eager for quick success and wanted to eliminate dissidents.
That's why she lost her patience and made enemies everywhere in the harem.
These are the reasons why she has come to this point.
Concubine De can no longer pose any threat to Concubine Gui.
As for whether she would fight to the death with Concubine Xian at the last moment of her life... this is something that Empress Dowager Liu would be happy to see!
Time passed by little by little. After an unknown amount of time, Su Quanye finally returned with his men to report.
"…Your Majesty, I led people to search the residences of people who passed by this palace road during that time period. Finally…finally, we found two jars of honey in the rooms of Concubine Hao and Qingdai respectively."
When Su Quanye said this, the young eunuch following behind him presented the honey to him.
Defei's brows were deeply frowned and her expression changed slightly!
She always liked to consider every possibility when doing anything. So Concubine De had already thought about who should take the blame if she still couldn't convict Concubine Sun at the last step.
Concubine Hao is the one she chose!
During the period when Concubine Xian was in confinement, Concubine Hao, for various reasons, caught the eye of His Majesty and was greatly favored. Moreover, many people in the palace said that perhaps she would follow Concubine Xian's path last year and rise straight to the top!
Then, it is understandable that Concubine Hao bears a grudge against Concubine Xian and plots against Concubine Xian and the Fourth Prince.
But why is there honey in Qingdai's room? !
Defei suddenly looked at Shen Zhinian, not missing the sneer that flashed across the other's eyes.
She is not a gentleman. Concubine De has used such disgusting means to plot against her and A Xu. Does she still want to reason with Concubine De?
The moment the emperor sent people to search the palace, Shen Zhinian secretly glanced at Xiao Zhouzi.
Honey is not something that is difficult to get. If there is no evidence, she will create it! Shen Zhinian is determined to convict Qingdai and Defei!
But Concubine De is still as cautious as ever.
If she had not involved Concubine Hao, Qingdai would not have been able to escape the blame.
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Note: 1 Quoted from the chapter review by reader "Baiji".