Chapter 104 - Who Was So Bold?

Madam Qin looked at Shen Ninghua with resentment. “Princess Zhaohua, isn’t Tao Hong telling the truth? You actually laughed when you heard this. Could it be that in your heart, the Second Princess’s death makes you so happy?”

Shen Ninghua slightly restrained the smile on her face, and her black eyes shone with a penetrating light. “Madam Qin, I laughed because your words are too funny! You believe this maidservant Tao Hong, and she is also the Second Princess’s maidservant from your home. She must be very loyal, right?”

“That’s for sure!”

‘”Since that’s the case, there’s something I don’t understand. She said that she was hiding in the cabinet and was stunned when she saw me drugging the Second Princess. But she didn’t come out to stop me. Why? If it were any other maid, they would have charged out to fight with me, right?”

Tao Hong paused and her expression became a little stiff. “I was too scared to react.”

“Oh? Since you were so scared, how can you remember all the details so clearly?” Shen Ninghua looked at her coldly.

Tao Hong unconsciously turned her eyes away and did not dare to look at Shen Ninghua. “These are based on my…memory. When I heard that the Second Princess had passed away, I realized that you had conspired all these!”

Shen Ninghua coldly curled her lips. “You recalled it afterwards from your memory. In other words, the truth depends solely on your one-sided words.”

“No, it’s not.” Tao Hong looked up at Madam Qin, and her expression became more and more panicked. “Ma’am, I have served the Second Princess loyally and do not dare to betray her at all. My words are all true. Please believe me.”

Madam Qin glared at Shen Ninghua with hatred and gritted her teeth. “I definitely believe you. Princess Zhaohua, the Second Princess has never had any friendship with you, but the two of you stayed together for an hour before she died. And you are also proficient in medicinal skills. If you wanted to harm her, it would be very easy. Furthermore, as far as I know, you still have quite a few poisons on you, right?”

Shen Ninghua’s eyes moved as a cold light flashed across the golden hairpin on her head. “Madam Qin, this joke is not funny at all. Nobody is allowed to bring any medicine with them in the imperial palace, let alone in the Chengqian Palace. I don’t have the courage to do so.”

Madam Qin sneered and said with certainty, “Your Majesty, I am now charging Shen Ninghua for bringing medicine into the imperial palace with ill intentions. In addition, she used poison to kill the Second Princess. Your Majesty, please investigate thoroughly and give justice to the Second Princess.”

Baili Qingcang cast a faint glance at Madam Qin and then turned to look at Shen Ninghua. “Ninghua, what do you have to say?”

Shen Ninghua took two steps forward and knelt on the ground. “Your Majesty, Madam Qin is making a false accusation against me. I’m innocent. I did not murder the Second Princess, nor did I hide any poison on me.”

Madam Qin sneered. “Since you are so sure, do you dare to let someone search your body?”

Shen Ninghua looked back at her and said, “Madam Qin, since you know that I am the Prefectural Princess, how do you dare to say so?”

“Do you not dare?”

“I have a clear conscience. Why don’t I dare! However, you cannot search my body just because you want to. If you can’t find anything, will you bear the consequences?”

“Alright, I’ll bear the consequences. If you don’t have any poison on you, I’ll personally kneel down and apologize to you. I’ll also give you 10,000 taels of gold as compensation!”

“Deal!” Shen Ninghua turned to look at Baili Qingcang and said, “Your Majesty, you heard what she had said. Please witness for me and Madam Qin. Also, please send a female medical official to search my body.”

Baili Jinchuan had been kneeling by the side with his head drooped, but when he heard Shen Ninghua agree to the body search, he immediately frowned and looked at her. His hands clenched into fists in his sleeves, and he felt a surge of anger in his heart. A proud girl like her was now having her body searched…

But Shen Ninghua herself did not care. After the female medical official arrived, she directly stood up, walked to the side, and generously let the female medical official examine her.

Madam Qin stared at the female medical official’s movements without blinking, wishing she could step forward to do the search herself.

The hall was completely silent. Everyone was quietly waiting for the medical official’s report.

It took a quarter of an hour for the examination to finish. “Your Majesty, Princess Zhaohua is clean. She doesn’t have any poison.”

Tao Hong’s body suddenly softened, and her face turned pale with despair. Shen Ninghua was clean?

Madam Qin’s eyes widened. “How is this possible?”

The female medical official’s movements were very careful. Shen Ninghua only slightly tidied her sleeves and stood still. “Madam Qin, you seem to be very sure that I have poison on me. Why?”

Madam Qin choked and sweat appeared on her forehead. She didn’t know how to reply.

Shen Ninghua continued. “I was very curious. That maidservant Tao Hong should also know that I am proficient in medicinal skills. But why is she so sure that I had fed the Second Princess poison instead of medicine that was good for her body? Madam Qin, you are even more incredible. You insisted that I had poison and brought it into the imperial palace. This makes me wonder. Have you done something to frame me?”

“I haven’t!” Madam Qin knelt down with a plop in front of Baili Qingcang. “Your Majesty, I did not falsely accuse…”

Baili Qingcang’s eyes darkened as he coldly said, “If you didn’t falsely accuse Ninghua, then poison should be found on her body. However, the truth is exactly the opposite.”

Madam Qin choked. She already knew that the Second Princess was in poor health, and she knew that her death knell was approaching. Originally, she did not want to frame Shen Ninghua, but when her daughter begged her, how could she say no? Her daughter had clearly told her that Shen Ninghua always carried poison, but why didn’t she have it now?

Shen Ninghua coldly looked at Madam Qin who had a sullen expression. “Madam Qin, after all, you are the Second Princess’s mother, so you are also my elder. There is no need for you to kneel down and apologize, but please remember to deliver the ten thousand taels of gold to my mansion.”

Madam Qin covered her chest with her hands and her eyes darkened. She clenched her fists so hard that her fingers broke her palms. But she could not retort, and her expression was instantly filled with despair.

Shen Ninghua, however, did not intend to let her go so easily. “I also found a witness. Madam Qin, you should also know him. Your Majesty, please allow me to bring the witness up.” Since these people dared to frame her, they had to bear the consequences!

“Alright!”

A young man dressed in short green clothes was pushed into the main hall. He knelt on the ground and kowtowed to Baili Qingcang. “Greetings, Your Majesty. Long live Your Majesty.”

Hearing the young man’s voice, Tao Hong suddenly turned her head. After seeing his appearance clearly, she was so frightened that she was paralyzed and almost unable to kneel steadily on the ground.

Baili Qingcang asked Shen Ninghua, “Who is this person?”

“Your Majesty, he is the son of the butler of the Second Prince’s mansion. He started an affair with Tao Hong a long time ago. If they frankly confessed their relationship, the Second Princess might not necessarily object it. After all, Tao Hong had served her for so many years. But Tao Hong kept it a secret until the Second Princess bumped into their obscene action. Therefore, she felt resentment in her heart and secretly drugged the Second Princess. She even stuffed cyperus rotundus into her pillow.”

“No, I didn’t. I didn’t…” Tao Hong cried out repeatedly, and her face was covered in tears.

Shen Ninghua snorted coldly. “You still don’t admit it. You are the Second Princess’s closest maid. She likes to have blooming petals in the pillow and you are responsible for putting the petals in her pillow. Recently, you did it all by yourself. Moreover, the manager of Capital Pharmacy saw the butler’s son buying cyperus rotundus many times. For whom did he buy that? Do you want me to call the shopkeeper of the Capital Pharmacy over to confront you? ”

Tao Hong involuntarily covered her belly, and her eyes were filled with despair. “I…I’m guilty…I’m sorry for the Second Princess.” Tao Hong couldn’t stand the interrogation and was on the verge of breakdown. She covered her face with her hands and cried. “Your Majesty, my guilt deserves the death penalty, but I beg Your Majesty to let my baby survive. I’ve been pregnant for two months. I beg Your Majesty to spare the baby.”

Madam Qin was dumbfounded. She knew that her daughter’s health was in crisis, but she didn’t know that the close maid Tao Hong had something to do with that. “You…you wicked servant!”

Madam Qin slapped Tao Hong in the face and directly knocked her to the ground. She roared and scolded angrily.

“The Second Princess is your mistress. How dare you murder your own mistress? What wrong has my Zhou family done to you? Did the Second Princess treat you harshly? How dare you do such a heinous thing?”

Tao Hong suddenly raised her head, and her face was full of resentment. “I did this because Zhou deserved it! She knew that I was pregnant and wanted to make a swap. She wanted to take my baby away and make it her own baby. If I hadn’t drugged her, she would have announced her pregnancy. When my baby is borne, she would directly take away my baby and claim it to be born by her for the Second Prince! How could I let that happen?”

“Shut up! Why would the Second Princess do so?” Madam Qin’s voice was hoarse, and she felt as if she had fallen into an ice cellar. What was this cheap servant talking about?

Tao Hong knew that she would inevitably die today, and she only wished for a chance for the baby in her belly to survive. “Your Majesty, I’m telling the truth. The Second Princess has made a lot of preparations in advance. If you don’t believe me, you can interrogate imperial doctor Li. He is solely responsible for checking the pulse for the Second Princess. The Second Princess bribed him in advance to make fake pulse records for her subsequent fake pregnancy. You can ask him!”

“You…” Madam Qin almost fainted. She had planned to help her daughter realize her last wish and bring down Shen Ninghua, but she didn’t expect to end up ruining her daughter’s reputation. Moreover, once Tao Hong’s words were confirmed, the entire Zhou family would be completely destroyed. Contaminating the royal bloodline was an appalling crime that would bring capital punishment to the whole family!

Baili Jinchuan suddenly frowned. “Zhou already has a son and a daughter. Why did she need to steal your baby?”

Baili Qingcang clearly had thought of this. “Zhou already has children. Why would she do this?”

Tao Hong laughed. “Your Majesty, there will be a second time only after the first time. Nobody knows for sure who are the real fathers of these two children!”

“How dare you!” Baili Qingcang suddenly stood up and pounded onto the table with a bang. Zhou was so bold to contaminate the royal bloodline!

Baili Jinchuan was stunned for a moment. Then his eyes became scarlet red, and rage rose in his eyes. He didn’t have many children, and he treated his son and daughter as precious treasures. But now, someone told him that the children he loved for several years were not his bloodline, but bastards from nowhere!