Flowery Hair: A Maidservant

Chapter 383 The Seeds of Doubt

This is intriguing.

After a thorough inspection of the Shanggong Bureau's warehouse, there was nothing wrong with it. However, when it came to the Empress's first step, the brocade that was awarded out as a gift went wrong.

Although there is no concrete evidence yet, suspicion naturally points to the Empress.

After all, logically speaking, why would Qu Meiren, who received the reward material, harm her own cousin?

Tong Bo had just figured this out, which is why he was sweating profusely. After leaving the storeroom, he rushed to the Funing Palace to report to the Emperor before the other palaces received the news.

"What a meticulous scheme," the Emperor sneered. "Of all the fabrics that were given away as gifts, only one bolt was defective, and all of them were handled by my concubines."

His gaze swept across the twilight outside the window. "Lord Tong, who do you think I should question about this case?"

Tong Bo lowered himself even further, almost touching the gold brick.

How could a fifth-rank eunuch like him dare to wade into the murky waters of the palace? But he couldn't ignore the Emperor's words.

"Your Majesty, I...I am foolish. This fabric has passed through several hands, and perhaps there was a mistake at some point...But since it involves Her Majesty the Empress, I dare not fail to report this first."

Upon hearing this, the emperor remained expressionless, continuing to turn the pages of the account book.

"Since I ascended the throne, in addition to Yongxiu Cloth Shop, the Tang family business has also had 20% of its business exclusively supplying the inner court. Those old managers I met during my southern tour back then would never have made such a mistake."

"Explain everything to me, inch by inch, who in the palace harbored such malicious intentions?"

Tong Bo understood perfectly well that the Emperor's tone implied a severe punishment, but if such a thorough investigation were to take place, he would likely lose his head.

"The minister obeys the order."

Tong Bo accepted the imperial decree, bowed, and left the Funing Palace. On his way back to the Yeting Bureau, his deputy approached him and asked where to begin the investigation.

He slapped the kid across the face: "This job is yours. I've been interrogating him for two nights and I'm exhausted."

The deputy covered his face, gasping for breath, and cursed himself for his foul mouth.

......

Meng Shu only heard the news during dinner; it was Xiao Nianzi who came to deliver it.

Meng Shu dismissed everyone except Green Willow, who was serving her alone. She said to Xiao Yuanzi, "Cai Lian cannot be exposed. I asked you to keep an eye on the embroiderer who was tailoring clothes for Qu Baolin. From now on, you must keep an eye on her for even a moment."

Xiao Nianzi dared not be negligent and quickly bowed his head in agreement.

After he left, Green Willow whispered, "Does Your Highness think someone might try to frame the embroidery room?"

"This is the simplest way to end this matter. Now that things have come to this, the Empress will not do nothing."

Donggua has been making all sorts of strange soups lately, and this time the pumpkin, lily bulb, and lotus seed soup was quite to Meng Shu's liking. After finishing the soup, she pointed to the almost untouched dishes: "Take it away, you can share it. Tell Donggua that we don't need to prepare too many dishes these days."

Green Willow smiled and explained on behalf of Winter Melon: "His Majesty's arrival at our Cuiyu Hall is unpredictable, and Winter Melon always prepares the Emperor's favorite ingredients in advance for each meal..."

“There’s no need for any preparations these next two days.” Meng Shu took the damp cloth handed to her by Lvliu and carefully wiped her fingertips. “Since Consort Yi has just given birth, His Majesty will likely stay at Shujing Palace for a while longer.”

No sooner had he finished speaking than a familiar voice came from outside: "I'm going to Shujing Palace, but if I don't come to see Shu'er, I'll always be thinking about her."

Meng Shu looked up and saw the hem of her bright yellow dress brushing past the threshold.

Xu Jinxi followed behind, bowing low, clearly having not had time to inform them.

"Has Your Majesty had dinner? Would you like some of the freshly cooked winter melon, pumpkin, lily bulb, and lotus seed soup?"

A faint, almost imperceptible scent of milk wafted past Meng Shu's nose, and she knew the Emperor must have just come from Shujing Palace. Consort Yi had given birth prematurely, and the delivery was difficult; the child was born weak and required meticulous care due to its congenital deficiencies, which drew special attention from the Emperor.

The Emperor nodded with a smile and sat down at the octagonal table. As his gaze swept over the almost untouched dishes on the table, his brows furrowed slightly: "Shu'er is pregnant, she should eat more."

Green Willow brought over a bowl of soup and placed it on the table, smiling slightly as she said, "Your Majesty, the Empress had some snacks in the afternoon, so she ate less in the evening."

The Emperor scooped a spoonful of soup into his mouth and relaxed his brow slightly. "Donggua's cooking skills are improving more and more. With her in the small kitchen, I feel at ease. Jingming, pick out some small trinkets to reward her, as a way of rewarding her for serving Consort Jin well."

Jingming bowed in agreement, then, after a moment's thought, said, "This is quite a coincidence. Yongxiu Cloth Shop just received a batch of precious furs from the palace this month. The fur is glossy and smooth. How about I pick out two pieces of silver fox fur from them? That would be enough for Miss Donggua to make a vest."

Silver fox fur, a tribute item, was sometimes bestowed upon favored palace maids. However, most of these maids were discreet, using it as an inner lining of their clothing, which was not considered an overstepping of the rules.

Seeing that the conversation had unknowingly drifted to Yongxiu Cloth Shop, Meng Shu remained calm and said, "It is a blessing for the palace servants that His Majesty is so considerate. However, leather is precious, and usually, silk flowers and jewelry would be enough to reward them."

The Emperor looked up at her, his fingertips tracing the rim of the celadon soup bowl. He wasn't intentionally testing her; it was just that in this palace, if one were to speak of insightful minds and the ability to see through the illusions of the situation, there was probably no one else besides Meng Shu.

Given Consort Chun's simple and innocent nature, she might not even realize if someone had set a trap for her.

The Emperor waved for everyone to leave and briefly recounted the case reported by Tong Bo. Meng Shu listened quietly, only showing a slight expression of surprise.

At this moment, it would be inappropriate to say anything.

The seed of doubt has already been planted in the emperor's heart; all that remains is to wait for it to take root and sprout.

The Empress was too calculating; she used the tribute silk to stir up trouble, her ultimate goal being to target the Marquis of Lin'an's residence. If Meng Shu hadn't noticed beforehand, she might have succeeded. But despite all her calculations, she overlooked one thing—after the plot failed, the first person to be suspected would be none other than Meng Shu, the Empress herself.

However, tacitly, the Emperor seemed to only mention it casually, without asking any further questions.

That night, the palace lanterns in Cuiyu Hall burned for an exceptionally long time. The Emperor arrived at Lingcui Palace at dusk and did not leave.

Seeing this, even the other concubines in the palace, except for Consort Chun, lost their jealousy—when Consort Qi was pregnant, the Emperor never stayed with her.

The candles inside Renming Hall also burned all night.

Inside the flower hall, the Empress was still wearing her daytime formal attire, and she hadn't even taken off the phoenix hairpin in her hair.

Granny Gui entered with a hunched back and said in a low voice, "Your Highness, Commander Chen has arrived."

The Empress didn't even lift her eyelids: "Let him in."

Granny Gui was eager to make amends, so she summoned Chen Ling to the outer room to receive orders. About a quarter of an hour later, Chen Ling left Renming Hall alone.

The faint sound of a night watchman's drum drifted from afar, startling a crow roosting under the eaves.

The dark shadow darted across the palace wall and vanished into the inky darkness of the night.