If Jiang Xinyue's guess was correct, Minister Pei of the Privy Council likely knew about Lady Pei and Concubine Li's plot to harm her, and was preparing to let Lady Pei take all the blame to save Concubine Li.
As she expected, Minister Pei, under the watchful eyes of the assembled concubines, wore an expression of anguish. Completely ignoring the gazes of the concubines, he was on the verge of falling to his knees in tears: "Your Majesty! This old minister is guilty. I have raised an unfilial daughter! I am sixty years old, and she has utterly disgraced me! Your Majesty... please sentence this old minister to death! I wish to atone for my sins with my life!"
The Xuanwu Emperor's face darkened: "What are you doing, Minister Pei? Quickly rise. What fault does Minister Pei have?"
Minister Pei was a veteran of three imperial reigns. Even if his daughter had done something wrong and he came to beg for punishment, the Emperor should show leniency. As long as it wasn't a major crime like treason, Minister Pei could live well.
The Emperor had to treat him with respect.
Otherwise, the court officials would only feel disheartened.
Minister Pei was also an old hand at theatrics. Tears came on cue as he pulled on the rope in his hand, dragging Lady Pei out from behind him.
He shook his head, his body swaying slightly: "Your Majesty, this rebellious daughter of mine audaciously brought a snake charmer into the palace. She originally intended to have her perform snake dancing for Concubine Li, but the snake charmer disappeared shortly after entering the palace. This unfilial daughter searched for a long time but couldn't find her. When it was time to leave the palace, she could only return home. Out of fear, she didn't tell me immediately, only informing me early this morning. I rushed to the palace as soon as I heard. Although her intentions were good, she ended up doing harm. Your Majesty, has the snake charmer been found? Has she injured anyone?"
With these words, Jiang Xinyue gained a new understanding of Minister Pei's thick skin.
She wouldn't believe it even if it killed her that Minister Pei didn't know about the snake charmer releasing snakes in Hexi Palace, intending to cause her death and the loss of her unborn child.
If he didn't know, how could he have arrived so timely?
Wasn't he just trying to save Concubine Li?
If she could figure this out, the Xuanwu Emperor surely could as well.
"No one was injured?"
Consort Liang had been cleared of suspicion by Jiang Xinyue herself, and Concubine Li had just tried to blame her. How could she let Concubine Li off the hook?
Living up to her reputation for sharp words, she pointed at Minister Pei and scolded: "How can all you Pei family members be so shameless? You, the Minister of the Privy Council, surely have spies in the palace. You clearly knew early on that the snake charmer nearly killed Concubine Zhen and her unborn child. Why come here pretending to be innocent? Both old and young, you're all the same, so good at playing dumb. Why don't you go join a theater troupe? This consort thinks Minister Pei would make quite the actor."
Yes, Minister Pei knew, but no one dared to expose him so blatantly!
The atmosphere became awkward for a moment. Minister Pei's tears were still flowing down his wrinkles, making it even more uncomfortable.
No one offered him a way out, leaving the situation so awkward that one could curl their toes.
The Xuanwu Emperor couldn't help but smile for a moment, but quickly composed himself, fearing others might see. He used a cough to cover his laughter: "Consort Liang, don't be impertinent. How can you speak to Minister Pei like that?"
Consort Liang obediently curtsied: "Your Majesty is right. Please forgive me, Minister Pei. Earlier, Concubine Li kept insisting that the snake charmer died in my palace, implying that I was the culprit. I couldn't hold back and spoke my mind. The Minister of the Privy Council is magnanimous, please don't take offense at this insignificant woman's words."
She really said everything that needed to be said.
Minister Pei repeatedly said he wouldn't dare, then turned to Jiang Xinyue and asked: "This old minister truly didn't know about this. Is Concubine Zhen injured?"
Nonsense!
Those snakes were so brightly colored, anyone could tell their fangs were full of deadly poison. If she had been bitten, would she still be standing here?
"I am injured," Jiang Xinyue said, not following the expected script. She clutched her chest fearfully and said: "This consort now feels nauseous, wants to vomit, feels dizzy, and has blurred vision at the sight of bright colors... My hands are still trembling uncontrollably. The room where this consort resides is full of snake corpses. This consort fears she will be haunted by nightmares every night from now on. This consort has heard that in folk customs, snakes that enter a home can only be driven away, not killed, or else it brings misfortune to the household. But this consort is in the imperial palace, if in the future..."
She shook her head, too frightened to continue the thought: "This consort is too traumatized. How can I ever look at snake soup or snake meat again? This incident will be a shadow over this consort's entire life, following me until I die. Minister Pei, do you think this consort is injured or not?"
Some wounds are invisible, in the heart, and they are harder to heal than visible external injuries.
This must be what Concubine Zhen meant, more or less!
Minister Pei hadn't expected someone to be even more shameless than himself. She was standing there perfectly fine, without a hair out of place, yet Concubine Zhen made it sound more serious than if she had actually been injured.
And she even asked him - what could he say? That she was being overly dramatic?
He had come to admit fault in the first place, so he had to maintain a humble attitude.
"Yes, yes, yes... It's all the fault of this rebellious daughter of mine. Your Majesty, Concubine Zhen, please punish this unfilial girl. This old minister has no complaints."
Seeing Lady Pei bound with ropes, kneeling on the ground in such a sorry state, Concubine Li felt greatly insulted, her chest heaving violently.
"It's..."
In a moment of impulse, Concubine Li was about to confess, not wanting to see her mother humiliated like this in public.
"Your Majesty, Concubine Zhen, this was all due to this minister's wife's own misguided actions. Concubine Li knew nothing of this. Please, Your Majesty, do not blame Concubine Li."
Lady Pei shook her head at Concubine Li, interrupting her words.
The Xuanwu Emperor exhaled heavily through his nose, not making an immediate decision.
According to Minister Pei's implications, and since Jiang Xinyue hadn't been harmed, this matter could be downplayed or even dismissed entirely.
But the Xuanwu Emperor wondered, did Concubine Zhen have to die for him to hold Lady Pei and Concubine Li accountable for their wrongdoing?
Just because Concubine Zhen was lucky enough not to be bitten by a snake, did that mean she couldn't demand severe punishment for the two of them?
What if Concubine Zhen had been unfortunate and died from a snake bite?
Who could compensate him for the lives of Concubine Zhen and the child in her womb?
Lady Pei's worthless life was no match for his Concubine Zhen in the Emperor's heart.
He unconsciously looked towards Jiang Xinyue, who only gave a smile that didn't reach her eyes, as if to say: You handle it as you see fit, but if this matter doesn't satisfy this consort, Your Majesty knows my temperament.
The Xuanwu Emperor shook his head. How could her unspoken words keep replaying in his mind?
"Lady Pei brought such a dangerous person into the palace without authorization, putting the concubines of the harem and myself in danger. This act is tantamount to regicide. Let her be put to death!"
The words "put to death" were spoken as casually as if he were ordering fish head soup for dinner, leaving everyone stunned for a moment, unable to react.
