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The Empress Dowager immediately stood up from the chair.
The sound of the slap rang through the room. Imperial Consort Rong cradled her face in her hands. Her eyes were brimming with resentment when she said, “A-Hua was injured, and as his mother, it’s naturally my job to worry about my son. I merely invited her here to interrogate her. But sister, why did you rush up to me and slap me before understanding the entire situation first? Or is it because you wish to tie yourself together with the Princess of the Liang Country on the same boat?”
“Stop trying to slander or scare me.” Empress Xin said, “This case should’ve been handed to the Ministry of Justice to be reviewed. Even if the current evidence proves that she is indeed guilty, based on her status as the Crown Princess, she should’ve been sent into the Imperial Clan Court. You have no right to stick your nose into this matter!”
The Empress Dowager couldn’t hold back her anger and said, “It is just as Qing Rong had said. Qin Yi had taken Xian Sheng and Zhan Yin, and Qing Rong away. However, Qin Yi treated Xian Sheng as a guest of honor while only heavily punishing Qing Rong. Qing Rong personally told me everything; why would she lie?”
“That is indeed strange,” Empress Xin said as she raised her eyebrows slightly. She appeared more respectful compared to the imperial consort; however, the tone of her voice suggested that she wasn’t going to back down from the conversation, “Qin Yi hates Zhan Lue deeply, so if he wanted to punish one of the girls, then he should’ve punished Zhan Yin. Isn’t it strange that instead of punishing Zhan Yin, he chose to punish Qing Rong…Why don’t we ask Qing Rong to come here and explain why she was punished by Qin Yi?”
The Empress Dowager frowned and proceeded to order one of her servants to bring Qing Rong here. Then, she turned to face Zhan Yin and asked kindly, “A-Yin, do you know why Qing Rong was punished by Qin Yi?”
Zhan Yin hurriedly replied, “I don’t know. When I was there, Qing Rong was dragged out alone and when she returned, her hand was broken.”
The expression on Empress Dowager’s face appeared distressed as soon as she heard Zhan Yin’s explanation. She asked, “Was Qing Rong treated as a guest of honor by Qin Yi as we have heard?”
“I don’t know.” Zhan Yin said, “I was blindfolded when I was locked up, so I didn’t know what was going on at that moment…but Qing Rong was also blindfolded like me. I don’t understand how she was able to see that my sister-in-law was treated like a guest of honor.”
One of the servants supported Xian Sheng and helped her onto a seat to the side of the room. Xian Sheng would occasionally let out a soft cough, otherwise, she remained perfectly silent.
Qing Rong arrived shortly. Empress Xin asked her, “What did you do to anger Qin Yi?”
She lowered her head and hesitated. The Empress Dowager coaxed her and said, “Don’t be afraid, just tell us the truth.”
“I…” Qing Rong glanced at Zhan Yin and said, “He asked me if I am Zhan Yin, and since I didn’t want him to hurt Zhan Yin, I told him that I was A-Yin instead…”
Zhan Yin looked asked in debrief, “Y-you did that for me?”
A flash of light flickered across Xian Sheng’s eyes. Empress Xin was also caught off guard by Qing Rong’s sudden tactic. Imperial Consort Rong suddenly chuckled and clapped her hands, “This is quite interesting. I can’t believe that you’re actually trying to protect the culprit by condemning the only person who is kind enough to protect you. This situation is funny and amusing.”
Qing Rong lowered her head and sobbed. Then, she looked towards Empress Xin and asked, “Is that true?”
“Nnn…” Qing Rong pitifully wiped the tears away from the corners of her eyes. Xian Sheng looked at her thoughtfully.
She recalled something that Qin Yi had said at that time. He said, “Is the girl who is screaming and crying the girl we’re looking for?
Logically speaking, Qin Yi should know which one of them was Zhan Yin. Qin Yi had always done whatever Xian Sheng wanted. If she didn’t want him to hurt Zhan Yin, then he would never defy her orders.
So the question remained. How did Qing Rong’s hand get broken? There was no one here that could refute her claims.
“Nonsense!” Zhan Lue suddenly walked into the room. His fierce gaze immediately fell on Qing Rong. Qing Rong’s heart chilled when she saw him. It was obvious that she feared him and was also in shock of his sudden appearance.