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Chapter 208
"The Crown Prince sent you? Why?"
Xiao Zhuzi's lips trembled, but before he could speak, Concubine Hui asked on Yun Wan's behalf, "Were you the one who pushed the Third Prince into the water? Was this all your scheme?"
Though phrased as a question, her tone was exceedingly certain.
Since his attempt to assassinate the Third Prince was orchestrated by the Crown Prince, it was glaringly obvious who the mastermind behind today's drowning incident was.
Xiao Zhuzi lowered his head in silence, clearly tacitly admitting to it.
His admission, however, caused Consort Lu to break down. She stared fixedly at Xiao Zhuzi. "What did you say? You came tonight to kill Hui'er?"
If the Crown Prince had sent someone to harm Hui'er, then what was the point of everything she had done tonight?
A completely unnecessary move? And she had even implicated herself in the process?
Consort Lu's psychological defenses gradually crumbled. A wave of regret instantly washed over her, lamenting her impulsive actions tonight that had ultimately been ruined by others.
Realizing the foolish things she had done while blinded by hatred, and the fate she would soon face, she began to feel afraid.
"Your Majesty! There must be a misunderstanding! I did not mean to hurt Hui'er! Someone was using me!"
She crawled towards Emperor Jingxuan, sobbing bitterly. "Your Majesty, Hui'er is the child I painstakingly raised. How could I bear to hurt him? Even though he is not my biological son, I have long treated him as my own!"
Her tearful pleas, however, failed to move anyone.
Concubine Hui sneered, "I saw with my own eyes how you tightly covered the Third Prince's mouth and nose, and you still dare to make excuses?"
She had long known that Consort Lu was not a good person, but she never imagined someone could be so vicious as to lay hands on the son she had raised for years just to achieve her goals. What else was she not capable of doing?
She even started to feel sympathetic toward the Third Prince for being burdened with such an adoptive mother.
"Imperial Father."
A feeble voice rang out. The Third Prince had woken up at some point and came out, supported by the palace servants.
Yun Wan was startled. "Chenghui, you're awake? Why did you come out?"
She took his hand and led him forward, while a servant brought a stool for him to sit on.
The Third Prince said listlessly, "It was noisy. I was woken up by the noise."
Seeing him, Consort Lu's expression brightened as if she had grasped a lifeline.
"Hui'er! Hui'er! Quickly, help Mother plead with your Imperial Father! Mother truly never wanted to kill you!"
She spoke in a panic, her body struggling incessantly as she was firmly held down by the palace servants.
"I saw it."
The Third Prince, sitting obediently on the round stool with his hands and feet close together, suddenly spoke up.
Everyone listened in silence.
The Third Prince looked at the wretched Consort Lu and opened his mouth, speaking weakly, "Someone covered my mouth and nose. I couldn't breathe. It was so, so uncomfortable."
His eyes went blank as he fell into his memories. "I heard Mother's voice. She told me not to blame her. I tried hard to open my eyes, and then I saw Mother's face..."
"Mother wanted to kill me."
He stared at Consort Lu, enunciating every word.
That single sentence crushed all of Consort Lu's illusions.
The Third Prince turned to look at Xiao Zhuzi, deeply disappointed. "And you. You pushed my arm, which was why I fell into the water. It was Sui who didn't give up on me and refused to let go."
Xiao Zhuzi was the servant who had been by his side the longest. Even when his Imperial Father arranged for him to live alone and assigned many servants to attend to him, he had never thought of replacing Xiao Zhuzi.
Under his gaze, Xiao Zhuzi didn't dare to lift his head.
Finally, Emperor Jingxuan gave the order: "Drag them away."
"The Lu woman intended to murder an imperial heir and frame the Empress. Her crimes are unforgivable. Strip her of her consort title, demote her to a commoner, cast her into the Cold Palace, and await further sentencing."
Though it was said to await further sentencing, everyone knew that the Lu woman would certainly not escape death.
A bone-chilling gaze fell upon Xiao Zhuzi. "As for this slave, take him down and subject him to severe torture for interrogation."
...
In the latter half of the night, the Crown Prince jolted awake from a nightmare, sitting on his bed panting and covered in cold sweat.
Restless and uneasy, he summoned his confidant. "Is the matter settled? Where is Xiao Zhuzi?"
The confidant replied, "To answer Your Highness, Xiao Zhuzi has not yet returned."
"Could he have been caught?"
The Crown Prince was frightened into a cold sweat by this thought, muttering to himself in denial, "No, that's impossible."
"That wretched slave must have seen that the task wasn't completed properly and hid himself out of fear that I would punish him."
He had instructed Xiao Zhuzi to scheme and push that brat Sui into the water, preferably drowning him, and then frame that idiot Qi Chenghui for it, killing two birds with one stone.
In the end, that stupid slave couldn't even handle such a simple task and pushed Qi Chenghui into the water instead. Fortunately, he still had some brains and knew how to make up for it afterward by shifting the suspicion onto Sui.
Thinking this way, he became even more certain of his guess. He looked up and roared, "What are you standing around for? Hurry up and go find him!"
However, despite all his mental reassurance, the Crown Prince's heart remained anxious, and he tossed and turned all night.
The next day, a commotion came from outside the door. He got up and stepped out.
"What is all this noise so early in the morning?" he said in a displeased tone.
Seeing clearly that the person arriving was Jiang Fusheng, his expression changed slightly.
Jiang Fusheng didn't give him a chance to ask questions. Smiling, he extended a hand. "Your Highness, His Majesty requests your presence."
The Crown Prince had no choice but to quickly wash and dress, then followed him.
The Council Hall.
As the Crown Prince stepped into the hall, he found that Emperor Jingxuan was not alone. There were also several ministers present, all of whom cast varying glances at him when he entered.
Filled with trepidation, the Crown Prince looked toward the head seat. "Imperial Father, you were looking for me?"
Emperor Jingxuan remained silent. Instead, with a wave of his hand, he threw a bloodstained written confession at his feet.
"See for yourself the dirty deeds you've done!"
Seeing clearly the name of the confessor on the silk scroll, the Crown Prince's mind buzzed, and his face turned deathly pale.
...
The Crown Prince was deposed without any suspense.
When the news spread early in the morning, the group of people who had just heard that the Third Prince was awake and were preparing to set off to see the truth about yesterday's drowning incident were utterly dumbfounded.
Wasn't it agreed that a decision would be made today after the Third Prince woke up? How was it already over? And the Crown Prince had been deposed?
What had happened without their knowledge?
After making inquiries, the group fell into silence.
The deposition of the Crown Prince was entirely justified.
When the news reached Yun Wan's ears, she and Concubine Hui were in the Third Prince's room.
"Brother, open your mouth, ah~~~"
Sui sat on a small folding stool, trying hard to pinch the medicine spoon with his two exposed fingers to feed the Third Prince.
He didn't forget to remind him, "It's a little hot, drink slowly."
Pei Qian stood to the side, holding the medicine bowl with both hands.
After taking a sip, the Third Prince grimaced and said, "Fourth Brother, how about I do it myself?"
He was afraid of being tortured to death by the bitterness of drinking it sip by sip, and he was also afraid that Sui's unsteady hands would spill the medicine all over him.
Pei Qian shoved the bowl of medicine right up to his mouth and urged, "Stop talking, drink it quickly! Drink more! Drink until you're full! Then you'll get better!"
The Third Prince: ... Feeling that life had lost all meaning.
To the side, Yun Wan and Concubine Hui exchanged a glance, both seeing helplessness in each other's eyes.
Yun Wan prepared to fetch the candied fruit from the table, but unexpectedly, as soon as she stood up, her vision suddenly went black, and she fainted.
Not long after, a piece of news spread throughout the temporary palace, overshadowing the deposition of the Crown Prince:
"Her Majesty the Empress has fainted!"
"Her Majesty the Empress is expecting!!!"
[End of the Main Story]