Chapter 124: Falling into Water

Chu Yunzheng's complexion was as dark as ink, and a frozen frost that would not melt gathered between his brows.

Wan Tang knit her brows, turned her head toward him, and her eyes were filled with complexity.

The palace attendants hurriedly wrapped the warming brocade blanket around Xu Luoyan, and steaming ginger soup was continuously poured into her mouth.

But she still trembled all over, not knowing whether it was from cold or from anger.

Pointing at Wan Tang, she cried hoarsely, "Emperor! You must stand up for me!"

Xiao Shunzi thumped to the ground with a "Thump", his forehead striking the blue stone slab heavily, and shouted, "Emperor, your wise judgement! Master, false accusation!"

"Shut up!" Xu Luoyan snapped, wrenching herself free from the attendants' support, and rushed forward to slap Xiao Shunzi across the face.

"Dog Nubi! How dare you speak here?"

A hint of coldness flashed in Chu Yunzheng's eyes.

Xu Luoyan turned and threw herself into Chu Yunzheng's arms, only to find the Emperor's arms hanging limp, not raising to catch her.

She wept, tears like rain on pear blossoms, "Emperor, you must definitely stand up for me!"

"I originally came to look for Consort Wan's younger sister, but was pushed into the water—this is murder!"

"Clearly it was done on purpose, premeditated."

Xu Luoyan grew more hateful as she spoke, gritting her teeth, "Emperor, I beg you, punish that scoundrel!"

The chill on Chu Yunzheng's face grew heavier.

Wan Tang listened, and the corner of her mouth involuntarily lifted.

"This matter has nothing to do with the Master."

Xiao Shunzi, ignoring the swelling on his face, continued to bow, "Xu Answering forced his way into Xitan Courtyard; Nubi said the Master was absent, she didn't believe it, and rampaged through the courtyard."

His voice trembled, "The Nubi were momentarily careless and lost track of Xu Answering; when we heard a sound again, Xu Answering had already fallen into the water…"

"She was hiding in the shadows; I saw her with my own eyes."

"When I turned back, I saw her figure, exactly the clothes she was wearing!"

Xu Luoyan said, turning back to look at Wan Tang, becoming more convinced.

"The Master was never there," Xiao Shunzi explained bitterly.

"How dare you argue!" Xu Luoyan raised her hand to strike again.

In the blink of an eye, Wan Tang seized her wrist.

Xu Luoyan's pupils contracted sharply, and she swung her hand back toward Wan Tang.

Slap!

A crisp slap rang through the courtyard.

Wan Tang withdrew her tingling palm, and the sorrow in her eyes deepened: "Sister, you are beyond cure!"

Xu Luoyan covered her face, staggered back, and stared in disbelief.

Chu Yunzheng's gaze was deep and his sight drifted slowly between the two.

【Xu Luoyan must be ill! How can she keep picking fights and get everything wrong?】

【Is the upstairs watching TV with their nose? Didn't they see Xiao Mingshu deliberately station someone in Xitan Courtyard, then disguise as Wan Tang, deliberately push the person into the water? All to kill by proxy.】

【Xiao Mingshu intentionally left the door open, and deliberately provoked Xu Luoyan, making her trouble Wan Tang.】

Wan Tang couldn't help but sigh inwardly; Xiao Mingshu truly had a malicious mind.

The moment the Prince was born, the Imperial harem no longer needed any other princes.

This not only could harm Xu Luoyan, but also plunge Wan Tang into an endless abyss.

Wan's back was drenched in cold sweat; if she hadn't been in Kunning Palace all this time, how could she explain this moment?

Xu Luoyan collapsed onto the ground, her drenched dress clinging to her body, her hair bun in disarray, her complexion as pale as paper.

She trembled, reached out, and grabbed the hem of Chu Yunzheng's dragon robe, her voice hoarse: "Emperor! Consort Wan is trying to kill me, yet you still dare such arrogance!"

"All of this is because you indulged it!"

She lifted her head, tears mixing with the pond water rolling down: "This is a threat to my life and my child's!"

Chu Yunzheng looked down from his height, his eyes showing no pity, only a terrifying coldness.

His thin lips barely moved, his voice chilling to the bone: "I see you can speak and fight, your spirit is strong; what great trouble is there?"

Xu Luoyan shivered all over, the color draining from her face.

"As for you," Chu Yunzheng slowly crouched, his shoe tip pressing against her soaked skirt hem, "I have said, without a summons you may not leave Jingren Palace."

He reached out, gripping her chin with a force that nearly crushed the bone, "My words, you treat as wind in your ears?"

Xu Luoyan's pupils contracted sharply, finally realizing the emperor's wrath.

She hurriedly seized Chu Yunzheng's wrist, her voice trembling, "Emperor, your wise judgement! I am the victim!"

"The murderer is her; she intends to kill me and my child's life."

"Audacious!" Chu Yunzheng violently threw her aside, and as he rose his dragon robe fluttered, "Wan Tang is kind‑hearted, how could she harm you? I see you are the poisonous woman!"

Xu Luoyan completely collapsed, hysterically screaming, "She is the poisonous woman! I saw her push me into the water with my own eyes!"

"It's this very outfit, it's her!"

She suddenly laughed madly, "Emperor, you must not let desire cloud your mind and fail to discern right from wrong!"

Before her words finished, the temperature in the courtyard dropped sharply.

Chu Yunzheng's eyes swelled with murderous intent, the pressure around him terrifyingly low.

He said nothing, merely staring coldly at Xu Luoyan, his gaze as if looking at a corpse.

Wan Tang thumped to the ground with a "Thump", her forehead pressed to the earth, "I am wronged!"

Her voice carried a perfectly timed tremor, "I did not."

Chu Yunzheng's gaze toward Wan Tang was full of compassion.

Xu Luoyan shouted sharply, "Wasn't it Wan Tang who pushed? Could it have been me who jumped down?!"

Her eyes flashed with a wild light, "I bear the Imperial Heir; my father and brother are both key ministers of the Fengqi Kingdom."

She pointed at Wan Tang's nose, "Just to frame a low‑born scullery maid like you, and risk my and my child's lives? You deserve it!"

Wan Tang's chest rose and fell violently, a cold sneer in her heart; it seemed Xu Luoyan still didn't know that her useless brother was already dead.

Wan Tang smirked, imagining how spectacular Xu Luoyan's expression would be upon learning that her useless brother was already dead.

My eyes glistened with watery light: "I have nothing at all."

She suddenly lifted her gaze, a startling brilliance flashing in her eyes, "But I have the Emperor!"

"I act with complete integrity; if I haven't done it, I haven't," she said in a clear voice, "Moreover, I was in Cining Palace just now."

"Hahaha." Xu Luoyan laughed, her pearl hairpins all askew, "Cining Palace? When the Lady of Grace gives birth, no one except the Empress may approach!"

She suddenly leaned close to Wan Tang, whispering venomously, "How did you get in? Did you fly in?"

She deliberately elongated her tone, "Or did you crawl in through a dog hole?"

Wan Tang straightened her back, "I entered in a proper, upright manner."

Xu Luoyan raised an odd eyebrow, "The Empress Dowager was watching so closely, and you still managed to slip in?"

She suddenly showed a dawning realization, "Could it be that you hooked up with some wild man to help you?"

Slap!

A loud slap cut off her words.

Xu Luoyan staggered back a few steps, covering her face and looking up in disbelief. Chu Yunzheng stood before her, the cuffs of his dragon robe still trembling slightly.

"It is I." The Emperor's voice was as cold as ice, "I personally led her inside."

He stepped closer to Xu Luoyan, each word as sharp as a blade: "The wild man you speak of…"

"It is I."

Xu Luoyan collapsed to the ground as if struck by lightning, limp.

The courtyard fell dead silent, only her heavy breathing remaining.

Chu Yunzheng turned, pulling Wan Tang into his arms; under everyone's watchful eyes, he bowed his head and kissed the top of her hair.

His voice rang like a bell, "I can confirm she has been in Cining Palace all along."

"Moreover, Tangtang should be given a reward."

Chu Yunzheng clapped his hands, and immediately a squad arrived, carrying delicate trays into the hall.