Chapter 115: It’s Ruined

After hearing this, Chang Fu went straight for the statue of the Child-Sending Guanyin. The object had not been in the inner hall for very long. Chang Fu held the statue in both hands and brought it before Qin Zhiyi, kneeling as he said, "Your Majesty, I have asked clearly. I suspect the problem may lie within this Child-Sending Guanyin."

"In addition, I have brought everyone who has come into contact with Consort Xian's meals."

"Imperial Physician," Qin Zhiyi called out. The physician immediately took the statue from Chang Fu's hands.

The physician examined the Guanyin repeatedly. With a furrowed brow, he sniffed it, then placed it on the floor. "Your Majesty, my knowledge is limited. I request that you summon other physicians from the Imperial Medical Academy to determine the truth together!"

Meanwhile, the palace servants outside were being interrogated one by one. Yet, after a full round of questioning, their stories remained consistent, and nothing seemed amiss.

Consort Shu knelt on the floor, feeling slightly relieved upon hearing this. Knowing she could not just sit and wait for death, she said, "Your Majesty, I believe these servants will not tell the truth unless they suffer a little."

"What is the rush, Sister Shu?" Shen Fuyu stood up unhurriedly. "Even those rushing to be reincarnated aren't this impatient. Whether or not this matter involves you, Sister, is for His Majesty and myself to decide."

"I believe the innocent will clear themselves. Please, Your Majesty, make your judgment." Consort Shu ignored Shen Fuyu. She knew this wretch only existed to spite her, but so what? It was merely Yiqi powder; she hadn't used it, and she didn't believe this woman had the power to turn white into black!

Shen Fuyu glanced at Consort Shu. The innocent will clear themselves?

What a joke. No one who falls into one of her traps ever walks away clean!

However, she hadn't intended to deal with Consort Shu directly just yet, but whether or not Consort Shu could escape on her own would depend on her own capability.

Approaching the physician, Shen Fuyu coughed lightly. "Smash it."

The physician blinked. "Pardon?"

The physician picked up the Guanyin with trembling hands, swallowed hard, and looked at Qin Zhiyi, then at Shen Fuyu. Was he really to smash this?

Seeing the firm look in Shen Fuyu's eyes, the physician gritted his teeth, grabbed the statue, and slammed it onto the floor! In an instant, the Guanyin shattered into pieces. Gray powder spilled out, filling the air with a medicinal scent. Consort Shu’s face turned pale at the sight. "What... what is this!"

The physician was shocked. He pinched some of the powder, sniffed it, tasted it, and immediately kowtowed. "Your Majesty! This is the pollen of the Nether Yin Flower! It is an extremely cold substance. Even a tiny amount would cause a pregnant woman to miscarry!"

"Even without ingestion, if this pollen lingers in the air for a long time, it will damage a woman's body and make it difficult to conceive again! If a pot of this flower were placed near a pregnant woman, she would miscarry within months! The pulse would only show the woman's frailty; one could never tell the cause was a simple flower!" The physician spoke while frantically trying to collect the powder from the floor.

"Your Majesty! Lady Jiang must be jealous of Consort Xian’s favor and pregnancy, and thus committed such a vicious act!" Consort Shu said with righteous indignation. "If it hadn't been discovered today, no one would have known this Child-Sending Guanyin was actually a Child-Killing Guanyin!"

"So? That doesn't prove the Yiqi powder has nothing to do with you," Shen Fuyu blinked. She saw it—Consort Shu was trying to use Lady Jiang as a scapegoat!

"You!" Consort Shu gritted her teeth. Kneeling on the ground, she felt a head shorter than Shen Fuyu in presence. Yiqi powder, Yiqi powder—she was obsessed with such a trivial thing, and even the exposure of Lady Jiang's statue couldn't shift her attention!

"Your Majesty! Lady Jiang is truly heartless!" Shen Fuyu turned and sobbed. "This Guanyin was finely crafted, cleverly hiding such a poisonous thing to harm my child! My life is so bitter!"

Qin Zhiyi: "..."

Isn't your existence the most painful thing in life?

He noticed Shen Fuyu had been quite calm from start to finish.

"Issue an edict," Qin Zhiyi said, his face remaining stern. "Lady Jiang has attempted to harm the imperial heir in Consort Xian’s womb. Strip her of her rank, exile her to the Cold Palace, and order her death. Imprison the entire Jiang family and await judgment."

Glancing at the Nether Yin flower pollen on the floor, Qin Zhiyi added, "Collect these remains, send them with the edict, and have someone personally watch Lady Jiang consume them."

The inner palace was never short of such sordid affairs, but because it happened right beside him, he found it particularly chilling.

Qin Zhiyi looked at Shen Fuyu and suddenly felt a bit of envy. "Consort, you have been startled."

He then issued another decree, lifting Shen Fuyu’s confinement as a gesture of comfort.

She had inadvertently done him a favor again. With Lady Jiang dead and her family imprisoned, whether or not this would implicate the Sun family depended on this move.

"Minister Shen, I recall your eldest son is now serving in the Ministry of Justice?" Qin Zhiyi’s memory was usually quite good. "Have him follow and observe this case."

Having such an opportunity was basically a precursor to a promotion and a raise! Shen Shucheng was overjoyed. Ignoring his eldest daughter lying on her bed, he knelt immediately. "This subject thanks Your Majesty for your immense grace on behalf of my son!"

"Your Majesty, Consort Shu is still kneeling," Shen Fuyu said, considerately pulling the shrinking Consort Shu out from the shadows.

"Hmm, Consort Shu, you may rise," Qin Zhiyi replied. He had not forgotten about the Yiqi powder. "Although this Yiqi powder is harmless, in the wrong hands, it can be a lethal tool. I will get to the bottom of everything."

But he did not trust Consort Shu, so he did not offer her the words "you are innocent."

Shen Fuyu’s timely sneer shattered Consort Shu’s defenses.

She hated her!

Chang Fu’s efficiency was also high; he organized the interrogations outside and the cleanup inside, keeping everything orderly.

"Bring her in!"

Outside, a guard suddenly dragged in a palace maid. The girl’s clothes were tattered, clearly having been tortured; she was dragged in and thrown to the floor, weeping uncontrollably.

"Your Majesty, I found a packet of Yiqi powder in this person’s quarters. She claimed it was obtained from the Imperial Medical Academy under the pretense that a cold could not be cured," the guard reported. "She also had access to Consort Xian’s meals."

"Well, speak up. Who gave you such audacity?" Shen Fuyu pursed her lips and smiled faintly. "Do you know what the punishment is for framing an imperial consort?"

What was the punishment again? It didn't matter; she’d threaten her first.

The maid trembled, glancing around before lowering her head. "It... it was Consort Shu! Consort Shu ordered me to do it! I didn't know this Yiqi would harm the Consort! I beg for mercy!"