45: The whole family was executed (please collect and read)

Chapter 45: Extermination of the Whole Family (Please bookmark and keep reading)

Soon, a woman in her forties, dressed very extravagantly, walked in.

As soon as she entered, she fell to her knees with a thud.

“this servant, Fangcao, pays respects to the Empress Dowager, Your Majesty, and the Empress!”

“Fangcao, this Empress Dowager asks you!”

Before Zheng Yi could speak, the Empress Dowager hastily asked, “Was the child born to Her Majesty the Empress under your constant care?”

“Yes, Empress Dowager.”

“And the three pregnant women you brought in? Was it to learn from them how to care for Her Majesty the Empress? Where are they!”

“Ah?”

Fangcao looked up at the Empress Dowager in surprise, then panicked and said, “Yes, that's... that's how it is.”

“They... the three of them were... were sent out of the palace by this servant.”

Watching the two put on an act, Zheng Yi sneered, “Bringing pregnant women into the palace to learn how to care for the Empress?”

“Then why weren't they brought in when the Empress first became pregnant, but only right when she was about to give birth?!”

“This... this... this, this...”

Fangcao panicked instantly, grit her teeth and said, “Your... Your Majesty, be... because pregnant women of an advanced age are in great danger, we... we had to handle it with extreme care!”

“Yes, that's it...”

Zheng Yi had to admire the cleverness of palace women; she actually came up with such an excuse on the fly.

He was so amused by the absurdity that he laughed.

“Summon the midwife!”

Soon, the midwife who had just delivered the Empress's child walked in trembling, bowing deeply.

“This... this servant pays respects to the Empress Dowager, Your Majesty, and the Empress!”

She had obviously heard what happened inside the room and guessed something. She was trembling all over now, terrified beyond measure.

“Granny Wang, is it?”

Zheng Yi said, “You are an experienced midwife in the palace. I ask you: when the Empress gave birth, did she give birth to a prince or a princess?!”

“It... it's...”

Granny Wang trembled with fear, barely knowing what she was saying.

She knew very well that inner palace struggles involved both the Empress Dowager and the Emperor.

A mere midwife could bring death upon herself with a single slip-up!

“Granny Wang, you and I are old acquaintances. I have not treated you poorly; you must never deceive Your Majesty!”

At this moment, the Empress Dowager spoke up again.

Zheng Yi looked at the Empress Dowager displeased: “Mother?”

“Emperor, this matter concerns the imperial lineage, so we must be cautious.”

The Empress Dowager bit the bullet and said, “I am doing this for your own good, Emperor.”

“It... it was a prince.”

After uttering those words, Granny Wang went limp and collapsed to the floor.

The Empress Dowager said with satisfaction, “My imperial son, did you hear clearly? Even the midwife says it's a prince. What doubts do you still have?”

Zheng Yi shook his head helplessly. Had he not already known the correct answer, he really might have been misled by the Empress Dowager.

Worthy of being the winner of the previous generation's palace fights!

One must know that the Empress Dowager before him was not Emperor Zhengyong's birth mother, yet she was able to firmly control Emperor Zhengyong and even push him onto the throne.

One could easily imagine her scheming skills in palace struggles.

But unfortunately...

What she was facing now was Zheng Yi!

“Phew...”

He took a deep breath and began to concentrate his perception.

That streak of Pure Yin Qi was still lingering in the palace.

Moreover, it wasn't far from the Empress's bedchamber.

Or rather... it was right inside the bedchamber!

Following the feeling in his heart, he searched slowly.

Lu Liner asked in confusion, “Your Majesty?”

“Silence, everyone...”

With his order, all the women present shut their mouths.

Even the Empress Dowager did the same.

At this moment, the Empress Dowager was using her gaze to warn Fangcao and the midwife, her eyes sharp as knives.

The two women hurriedly lowered their heads in terror, unknown what was going through their minds.

Soon, Zheng Yi arrived in front of a bookshelf in the outer hall of the bedchamber.

This bookshelf was massive, reaching all the way to the top of the bedchamber, filled with all kinds of books and antiques.

Seeing Zheng Yi come here, the Empress Dowager's expression turned even worse.

“Emperor?”

A mechanism?

Zheng Yi said, “Mother, will you open it yourself, or shall I?”

Even now, the Empress Dowager remained stubborn: “What is the Emperor talking about? I do not understand.”

“Hmph!”

Zheng Yi called out, “Chengen!”

“Your Majesty!”

Unexpectedly, the Empress struggled to sit up at this moment, grit her teeth, and said, “On the right side of the bookshelf, on the third shelf, the fourth emerald suet jade pot is the mechanism.”

“I... I also want to know what the truth is.”

Zheng Yi followed her directions, found the emerald suet jade pot, and turned it gently.

Clack...

Sure enough, the bookshelf quickly moved aside, revealing a hollow space behind it.

A suffocating smell mixed with faint traces of blood drifted out from within.

At the same time, several faint cries of babies echoed out from it.

Seeing this, Fangcao and the midwife fell into deeper despair, collapsing on the ground and trembling all over.

Zheng Yi led his people inside, and as expected, after turning a corner, he discovered several other figures present.

Three women who had given birth, and three old nannies tending to the babies.

Seeing Zheng Yi appear, the six were startled.

The three nannies hurriedly held the children, knelt on the ground, and cried out, “Long live the Emperor!”

Even the three women who had given birth struggled to stand up.

“Hand the children to me!”

“Yes... yes...”

The three nannies tremblingly handed the children over, and Zheng Yi inspected them carefully.

These three children were two girls and one boy.

In other words, the three pregnant women brought in by the Empress—or rather, the Empress Dowager—had given birth to two boys and one girl.

And the one they carried out was one of the boys.

As for his own daughter...

Zheng Yi fixed his gaze on the girl on the left, a strange feeling of Bloodline connection arising in his heart.

At this moment, the Pure Yin Qi happened to be slowly dissipating from her body.

“Bring the children out!”

The three nannies came out with the children; seeing this, the Empress Dowager slowly closed her eyes.

The Empress suddenly sat bolt upright and said shakily, “Ch... child, which one is my child?”

Zheng Yi looked at the midwife and said, “Granny Wang, I will give you one more chance.”

“Tell me which one is my child, and I can still leave you an intact corpse.”

“Otherwise, extermination of your whole family!”

Granny Wang's body froze, her teeth chattering as she looked up in panic.

“Your... Your Majesty, mercy, spare my life!”

“Speak!”

“It... it is that...”

Saying so, she pointed at the girl on the left. Zheng Yi nodded slowly.

“How are you certain?”

“The swaddling clothes are different. The boy was given a green background with a Dragon pattern, while the girl was given a red background with a singing phoenix pattern.”

“Who instructed you?”

Zheng Yi asked in a deep voice, “The Empress? Or the Empress Dowager?”

“Emperor!”

The Empress Dowager suddenly shouted harshly, “I did everything for the realm of our Great Yu! Please, Your Majesty...”

“Mother!”

Zheng Yi retorted, “What I do is also for the realm of Great Yu!”

“Raising a bastard child—I fear I cannot do such a thing.”

“Speak! Who was it in the end?!”

Granny Wang jolted in shock, subconsciously looking up at the Empress Dowager before hastily lowering her head, trembling as she spoke:

“It... it is...”

“It was me!”

Suddenly, Fangcao beside her abruptly looked up and said, “It... it was done by this servant. Everything was done by this servant.”

“It has nothing to do with the Empress Dowager or Her Majesty the Empress!”

“Oh?”

Zheng Yi glanced at Fangcao and also saw the Empress Dowager sigh with relief.

“It... it was this servant.”

As if she had figured something out, Fangcao said, “This... this servant saw Her Majesty the Empress yearning for Your Majesty so terribly, gazing toward Qiankun Hall every night in sorrow.”

“So I thought that if Her Majesty could give birth to a crown prince, Your Majesty would visit her more often...”

“Aunt Fangcao...”

The Empress was stunned as well, not expecting Fangcao to give such a reason, claiming it was entirely for her sake.

This...

Zheng Yi shook his head as well and said coldly, “Daring to harm imperial offspring for selfish gain—a heinous crime!”

“Granny Wang, grant her the white silk strip!”

“Exile her entire family to Nanyue County.”

“Fangcao... beaten to death with staves!”

“Extermination of her whole family!!!”