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Eunuch Qin said with a smile, "Your Majesty, this servant believes Grannie Cai must have been mistaken. This is Renshou Palace, where skilled imperial experts abound. Which assassin would dare to recklessly barge in here?"
Grannie Cai, with a worried expression, stated, "Those assassins possess extremely high martial skills. They managed to escape from the grasp of the Dragon Shadow Guard. Eunuch Qin, it's better not to be careless."
In the past, the Emperor wouldn't have bothered with Empress Dowager Zhuang's well-being. However, now they had formed an alliance due to their shared enemies. The person hiding in the shadows, threatening the people he cared about, had him by the neck. He couldn't allow the other party to succeed.
"Step aside!" The Emperor said coldly.
Eunuch Qin didn't yield. He slightly bowed and said, "Your Majesty, Empress Dowager isn’t in Renshou Palace. If the assassins truly intend to target her, they must have gone to the imperial audience hall."
Grannie Cai's previously worried and humble demeanor changed. She said with a frown, "Perhaps the assassin is lying in wait here, planning to strike when the Empress Dowager returns! Eunuch Qin, by blocking Your Majesty from conducting a search, could it be that... you are in cahoots with the assassins?"
"Who gave you the audacity to shout and yell in front of Aijia's residence?"
Accompanied by a voice that was both imposing and devoid of anger, Empress Dowager Zhuang's phoenix palanquin appeared behind everyone.
They turned around and bowed in unison to Empress Dowager Zhuang, who was seated within the phoenix palanquin.
The Emperor looked at Empress Dowager Zhuang from a distance, his expression unruffled.
As the phoenix palanquin came to a stop in front of the group, Eunuch Qin stepped forward and offered his wrist to Empress Dowager Zhuang.
Empress Dowager Zhuang held onto his wrist and walked out slowly. She didn't need to raise her voice or use harsh words. Just a faint gaze was enough to awe everyone present.
Grannie Cai, who had relied on the Emperor's support moments ago, suddenly dared not utter a sound.
Empress Dowager Zhuang leisurely walked up to her, "Speak, why aren't you saying anything? Weren't you eloquent when Aijia was absent? How is it that the moment Aijia arrives, you become like a gourd with a sawn-off mouth?"
Grannie Cai lowered her head in distress and moved to stand by the Emperor's side.
The Emperor, unable to bear seeing Grannie Cai suffer unjustly, said, "What wrong has Grannie Cai committed? It's natural to conduct a search when there are assassins. It’s this old servant of yours who has been obstructing the search, causing suspicion indeed."
Eunuch Qin reported to Empress Dowager Zhuang, "Young Miss Gu is resting inside. This servant prevented everyone from entering because this servant was concerned about disturbing Young Miss Gu’s slumber. Besides, this servant indeed didn't find any assassins. If Empress Dowager doesn't believe me, you can ask the imperial experts of Renshou Palace. They haven't——"
Before Eunuch Qin could finish his sentence, the sound of weapons clashing came from the direction of the bedchamber. Everyone's hearts trembled, and then they heard Gu Jiao's cold shout, "Trying to escape!"
"Oh no! Young Miss Gu!" Eunuch Qin's expression changed dramatically. He quickly called out to the imperial experts of Renshou Palace, "Quick! Go and see!"
Four imperial experts turned and rushed towards the bedchamber. However, before they could fully mobilize, a cry of agony resounded, "Ahk——"
It was a man's voice!
Eunuch Wei opened his arms and shielded the Emperor, "Assassin! There's an assassin! Protect the Emperor!"
Just as the imperial experts of Huaqing Palace were about to move, Gu Jiao walked out, holding a disheveled and dirty-looking black-clad assassin. She threw the assassin to the ground and said calmly, "Here’s the assassin!"
Gu Jiao had already changed back into her own clothes. Her hair was loose, as if she had just woken up and hadn't had time to comb it.
Grannie Cai looked a bit bewildered as she watched the assassin.
Did the imperial concubine dowager guess correctly? Were the assassins really from the Renshou Palace?
But... Weren't there supposed to be two?
Grannie Cai glanced at Gu Jiao with suspicion, "Young Miss Gu, there were two assassins in total."
"Two? I only caught one." Gu Jiao said with her arms crossed and her expression unchanged.
The assassin's face was covered in dirt, making it hard to discern his original appearance. However, there were traces of blood at the corners of his mouth, indicating he had sustained severe injuries and was unable to fight back.
The Emperor looked coldly at the assassin and questioned, "Who sent you? If you reveal the mastermind behind you, Zhen will spare your life! As the supreme ruler of a country, Zhen’s words carry immense weight. Zhen never goes back on his word!"
A flicker of hesitation passed over the assassin's face. Their terrified gaze scanned the crowd outside Renshou Palace, finally settling on Grannie Cai's face.
An ominous premonition surged within Grannie Cai's heart.
The assassin looked at Grannie Cai with fear and said, "It's... It's imperial concu—— "
"Silence!" Grannie Cai took a swift step forward. She seemed to have guessed what the assassin was about to say and wanted to stop him, but it was already too late.
The assassin half-lay on the ground, propping himself up with his elbow and gritting his teeth. He said, "It's Imperial Concubine Dowager Jing! Imperial Concubine Dowager Jing ordered me to assassinate the Empress Dowager!"
Grannie Cai was utterly stunned!
How could this happen?
Did she catch the assassin only to expose the imperial concubine dowager!?
She panicked and said, "You're spouting nonsense! When did the imperial concubine dowager order you to assassinate the Empress Dowager? If she really sent you, why did she instruct me to search for you?"
The assassin coughed up blood, then said with a sneer, "How would I know? Perhaps... Imperial concubine dowager suddenly realized that I knew her secret——"
Before the assassin could finish his sentence, Grannie Cai suddenly lunged forward and plunged a knife into his chest!
"You... You're killing... Silencing us..."
After uttering these words, the assassin's eyes rolled back, his body slumped, and he fell into a pool of blood.
Grannie Cai was so shocked that she staggered back several steps and sat down on the ground.
"I... I didn't... It wasn't me... I didn't kill anyone..."
She genuinely hadn't intended to kill.
She didn’t even throw herself forward on her own. It felt like her knee was struck by something, causing her legs to go weak and pounced on the assassin. Then, without fully comprehending what was happening, she suddenly found a knife in her hand.
That knife was then plunged into the assassin's chest.
Gu Jiao crouched down, used her fingertips to check the assassin's neck, and stood up, saying, "He's dead."
Empress Dowager Zhuang furrowed her brow, "Then quickly dispose of the body! Clean up the entrance! Not a drop of blood should be left behind! Aijia hates the smell of blood!"
"Yes, yes!" Eunuch Qin hurriedly called the eunuchs from Renshou Palace to remove the assassin's body and summoned the palace maids to clean up the scene.
Grannie Cai was completely bewildered by this series of events. She had never seen such shameless manipulation before. Her mind was in complete disarray, unable to think clearly. All she could do was keep defending herself, "Your Majesty... This servant didn't kill anyone... Please believe this servant... That knife isn't mine..."
Gu Jiao said, "Everyone saw it. If it's not yours, then whose is it?"
Eunuch Wei added, "That's right! If it's not yours, then whose is it? I saw it too!"
Grannie Cai shot a cold glare at Eunuch Wei, surnamed Wei, did you forget which side you are on again?
Eunuch Wei shrunk his neck, turned around, and slapped himself on the mouth. He mumbled, stupid mouth! Stupid mouth!
Grannie Cai knelt down with a thud and pleaded, "Your Majesty, if you don't believe this servant, you should at least trust imperial concubine dowager! How could she possibly harm the Empress Dowager? Imperial concubine dowager is kind-hearted. She would never do such a thing."
A complex emotion flickered in the Emperor's heart.
He had grown up relying on Imperial Concubine Dowager Jing, and he knew very well what kind of person she was. She wouldn't even step on an ant, always repaying grievances with kindness. Even when Empress Dowager Zhuang expelled her from the imperial palace, she never complained about Empress Dowager Zhuang in front of him.
Not only that, she always tried to reconcile his relationship with Empress Dowager Zhuang.
How could she do something so terrifying?
Furthermore, no one would make someone assassinate a target and then order for their capture with great fanfare immediately after.
According to the assassin's words, he discovered Imperial Concubine Dowager Jing's secret, and it seemed it was only after he was sent to assassinate people that she suddenly became aware of it.
This was even more ridiculous.
How could someone as innocent as a blank sheet of paper like Imperial Concubine Dowager Jing have a secret?
No, she had a secret.
A secret with Gu Chao.
The Emperor suddenly felt annoyed.
Thinking about how Gu Chao almost became his father, he became furious!
Perhaps in his anger, he found Grannie Cai a little annoying.
"Your Majesty..." Grannie Cai looked at the Emperor nervously.
The Emperor furrowed his brow and said, "Take Grannie Cai away... Interrogate her thoroughly!"
He used the words "take away" and "interrogate," which showed a great deal of distrust. It should be noted that the Emperor used to obey Imperial Concubine Dowager Jing's every word without any suspicion. Even Imperial Concubine Dowager Jing's most trusted confidant was considered his confidant as well.
But now, he was treating Grannie Cai as a suspect.
Even Eunuch Wei was shocked. "Your Majesty?"
However, the Emperor ignored everyone and flung his sleeve before leaving in an irritated mood.
Empress Dowager Zhuang and Gu Jiao returned to the bedchamber.
In the backyard of the bedchamber, the supposedly disposed body suddenly sat up. He wiped off the mud from his face, removed the blood pouch from his bosom, and raised an eyebrow with a smile. He said, "My acting skills aren't bad, right?"
Gu Jiao replied calmly, "Mediocre at best, not as good as mine."
Gu Chengfeng: "..."
Raz P.'s Thoughts
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