allonlinenovel Chapter 627: Confrontation in the Hall (1)
Chapter 627: Confrontation in the Hall (1)
Wen Shichu waited outside the hall for a long time before Xiao Linzi came out to invite people.
"Doctor Wen, the Empress wants to see you."
"Greetings to Her Majesty the Imperial Concubine, and to all the ladies."
Wen Shichu knelt on the ground and saluted without looking away, his eyes always fixed on the space in front of him.
From this look, he seems to be a decent and polite person.
An Lingrong spoke in a serious tone.
"Get up!"
Xiao Linzi stepped forward and said, "Master Wen, I'm sorry."
He moved his hands and turned up Wen Shichu's cuffs, and sure enough, there were bamboo leaves embroidered on them.
An Lingrong also saw it and asked with a slightly raised eyebrow.
"Doctor Wen, this embroidery is very unique. Has it always been there?"
Wen Shichu bowed his head and replied without changing his expression.
"My mother has always loved bamboo, so she embroidered a bamboo leaf on my cuffs to express her longing for her."
He stroked the bamboo leaves lovingly, a hint of tenderness flashing in his eyes.
"I've had bamboo leaves embroidered on my sleeves for years, and my colleagues who are familiar with me have even joked about it."
Guarjia Wen Yuan sneered, "Doctor Wen, you and Concubine Zhen are indeed childhood sweethearts. You are both equally eloquent."
"I'm just confused. How could a humble imperial physician, upon meeting the imperial concubine, act as if she were entering her own home, turning up her sleeves and speaking to her face to face?"
"If this continues, from now on, when the imperial physician enters Concubine Zhen's palace, he can turn up his sleeves or take off his clothes. Is there anything he can't do?"
Wen Shichu was calm and composed, his voice was gentle and firm.
"That day, Empress Zhen asked me to inquire about Empress Hui's condition. Upon hearing that Empress Hui was feeling better, she was so happy that she treated me to tea. It was I who failed to show proper etiquette by rolling up my sleeves while drinking tea. It's all my fault."
Guaerjia Wenyuan refused to give in and continued to question.
"If Concubine Fei Zhen didn't care about anyone in the Imperial Hospital except you, how could she have entrusted you to take care of Concubine Hui, with whom she was like a sister?"
"It seems that the friendship between you and Concubine Zhen is truly extraordinary."
"Your Highness, I heard that Imperial Physician Chen was the one who took Concubine Hui's pulse during her pregnancy. How come after the birth, it was Wen Shichu who took over to look after the Eleventh Prince and Concubine Hui?"
"And when Imperial Physician Chen was searching for ancient books in the Imperial Hospital, he was crushed under a collapsed shelf. How come it was Imperial Physician Wen who saved him?"
"Concubine Zhen has a deep affection for Concubine Hui and is always concerned about her health. Is Wen Shichu also concerned about her and is using such a despicable method to legitimately fulfill Concubine Zhen's request?"
"My lady, you..."
Wen Shichu was so angry at Guaerjia Wenyuan's unreasonable behavior that he was speechless and his face changed slightly.
Seeing this, Zhen Huan turned her gaze to the palace maid kneeling on the ground.
"Feiwen, during the days you've been in the palace, I never realized you had such a broad mind."
Feiwen was not at all frightened by her words.
"I serve Your Majesty, and my heart is with You. However, I am a servant in the palace, and I can only be loyal to Your Majesty. If I have offended you, please forgive me."
Zhen Huan smiled faintly, "If your loyalty to the Emperor is considered an offense to me, then wouldn't that put me in a position of disloyalty and injustice?"
She spoke softly to the one above her.
"Your Highness, please allow me to ask her a few questions."
"Feiwen, no matter what the outcome of today's incident is, you can no longer return to Zhongcui Palace to serve me."
This treacherous palace maid is different from Ying'er. Ying'er was obviously coerced.
Zhen Huan just accidentally saw the scar on her wrist.
I guess this maid has suffered a lot over the years, so keeping her by my side is a kind of compensation.
Of course, Zhen Huan also had other considerations in mind.
Feiwen, who had already obtained the approval of Concubine Qi, was not afraid of her threats at all.
"As long as I serve in the palace, no matter which young master I serve, I will go through fire and water without hesitation."
Zhen Huan didn't get angry but smiled instead, with a hint of cunning in her eyes.
"Very good. We are master and servant after all. Since you have come to expose my private affairs today, I believe you also know that this is the last time you will serve me, so you should do your part well. Let me ask you, before you leave, did you wipe the glass vase on the rosewood table in the main hall clean?"
Feiwen replied without even raising her head.
"I've wiped it off."
Zhen Huan chuckled, and Cui Jinxi pointed at her and scolded her angrily.
"Nonsense! There's no glass vase on the queen's rosewood table. It's clearly made of green jade."
Feiwen's face changed and she quickly changed her words.
"I was mistaken. It was a jade vase."
According to An Lingrong, there was probably no vase of flowers on the table.
Neither these two things were included in the emperor's reward nor the share sent by the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
This palace maid must be guilty!
If she had been more cautious, Zhen Huan wouldn't have tricked her so easily.
At this time, Shen Meizhuang walked in from outside the hall and interrupted lightly.
"It seems Feiwen's memory isn't very good. It's amazing that you can still remember the pattern on Doctor Wen's cuffs."
Feiwen still insisted on making excuses.
"I remember it was a jade vase, that's right."
Zhen Huan walked forward and helped Shen Meizhuang to a chair, then considerately handed the teacup to her.
Only then did he have time to look at Feiwen.
"There's never been a vase of flowers on the rosewood table in the main hall. You serve me, but instead of focusing on serious matters, you spend every day wondering which imperial physician's hand is on mine, or what patterns are embroidered on your turned-up cuffs."
"If anyone else were to see these things, they wouldn't even dare to look at them. Why are you so attentive to even the smallest details? Your intentions are truly suspicious."
Feiwen panicked and immediately retorted.
"This important matter has occupied my mind day and night, so how could I possibly pay attention to anything else?"
Shen Meizhuang put the cup with the tea she had taken a sip of aside.
"If Imperial Physician Wen and Concubine Zhen were having an affair, they would naturally be wary of others. How come Feiwen could see it every time and conceal it so clearly? Is Feiwen paying extra attention to her master's every word and action?"
"Your Highness, a mere maidservant is actually spying on the Empress every day. I find this quite strange. Perhaps someone is behind this."
"Don't believe everything this little maid says. I'm afraid there's a bigger conspiracy behind this."
"Everyone in the palace knows that Concubine Qi has always been disrespectful to Concubine Zhen. After the incident, the maid from Zhongcui Palace took the initiative to report to Concubine Qi, and then together with her, exposed the incident to the Imperial Noble Concubine during the greeting ceremony."
"Is there anything wrong with this? Please judge for yourself, Your Majesty."
"Your Highness, Concubine Zhen is making unfounded arguments."
Concubine Qi looked at Zhen Huan angrily.
"If it's really as Feiwen said, if Concubine Zhen were to secretly murder her one day, then no one would know about the debauchery in the harem. In that case, it's not entirely unreasonable for her to ask me for help."
"I've heard that those who chant the Buddha's name are so compassionate that they wouldn't even dare to step on an ant. Concubine Zhen has been praying at Ganlu Temple for over four years. I'm sure she couldn't bear to see her unborn baby left alone, so she had the audacity to return to the palace with her big belly."
"But Wen Shichu has been in charge of this child from beginning to end. He has the final say on when the pregnancy will occur, when the fetus will move, and when the birth will take place."