"Take this earring away and investigate it thoroughly," said Hua Yueye, narrowing his eyes. His intuition told him that there must be a greater secret behind the owner of this earring.
"Yes," replied the black - clothed man, nodding slightly before leaving.
Time passed quietly. Before they knew it, three days had passed, and Su Qingwen's physical body was almost fully restored.
Meanwhile, the black - clothed man had traced the origin of the earring to the Nine - Palace Department.
It was always under Li Ruhua's management. In fact, all the jewelry of the palace maids in the palace came from the Nine - Palace Department. In this case, Li Ruhua was indeed the most suspect.
Holding the earring and playing with it in his hand, Hua Yueye frowned tightly, filled with suspicion. After all, Li Ruhua had always shown a good relationship with Su Qingwen. Why would she want to secretly poison her?
"Your Majesty, why not interrogate her thoroughly?" the black - clothed man lowered his eyes and said from below.
"No," Hua Yueye shook his head and refused. "We can't tip off the enemy."
"Let me think it over. You may leave first," Hua Yueye lowered his head and said seriously.
"Your Majesty, Imperial Physician Zhang has come to feel Concubine Xian's pulse. Do you want to go and have a look?" At this moment, the voice of a young eunuch came from the door.
Hearing this, Hua Yueye gave the black - clothed man a look, signaling him to leave quickly.
The man nodded rapidly and slipped out through the window.
Hua Yueye left through the main door and strode towards the palace where Su Qingwen was staying.
In the past few days, Su Qingwen had been in a coma. Imperial Physician Zhang had said yesterday that she seemed to be about to wake up soon, as her finger had moved once.
Today, he must see Imperial Physician Zhang diagnose her with his own eyes.
Just after Hua Yueye left, Li Ruhua arrived. Looking at the empty room, she couldn't help frowning. She clenched her fingers unhappily and asked in a deep voice, "What on earth is going on? Where is the Emperor?"
"I heard that he has gone to see Concubine Xian," replied a palace maid beside her timidly.
"Fine," Li Ruhua was quite dissatisfied in her heart, but she didn't show it on her face. After thinking for a while, since Hua Yueye would surely come back, she waved her hand. "I have something to discuss with the Emperor. You may leave first."
"Yes," the young palace maid glanced at her. Not daring to offend her, she obediently backed out.
Seeing this, Li Ruhua walked around casually in Hua Yueye's study. She took a step forward and came directly to Hua Yueye's desk. Suddenly, her gaze was caught by a familiar little thing.
Wasn't that Xiaocui's earring? Why was it on Hua Yueye's desk?
At that moment, Li Ruhua felt dizzy. Countless possibilities flashed through her mind. Finally, she came to a terrifying conclusion: That stupid girl Xiaocui must have been discovered by Hua Yueye.
What should she do now!
Li Ruhua's face turned pale instantly. She bit her lips tightly and gasped for breath. Finally, she managed to steady herself. No, if Xiaocui was discovered, she would surely be in trouble too. She would never allow such a thing to happen.
Thinking of this, Li Ruhua quickly pushed the door open and left.
"Miss, you're back. Did you see the Emperor today?" Xiaocui greeted her at the door, her eyes filled with a hint of expectation. "Any progress?"
Li Ruhua was so annoyed that she had no mood to reply. She just kept thinking about how to solve the problem of the earring.
She looked up at Xiaocui and asked coldly, "I'm asking you, did you lose one of your earrings?"
"This..." Xiaocui was stunned for a moment. A look of confusion flashed across her eyes. Then she reached out to touch her ear, as if recalling something. "I did lose one earring a few days ago, but it wasn't worth much, so I didn't pay much attention. Why do you ask, Miss?"
"Good. Just as I thought," Li Ruhua lowered her head and said mockingly.
She had been so careful, but still made a mistake at this critical moment. This Xiaocui was really too careless.
Seeing her like this, Xiaocui was a bit scared. She bit her lips slightly and stepped forward to ask, "Miss, what are you talking about?"
"Slap!" Li Ruhua unceremoniously raised her arm and slapped her.
The slap was delivered with full force. Xiaocui's body fell to the ground like a rag, looking extremely miserable.
Her ears were buzzing. Xiaocui had no idea what was going on. She looked at Li Ruhua aggrievedly and asked, "Miss, what did I do to let you down? Why are you treating me like this?"
How dare she ask? The corner of Li Ruhua's mouth curled up in a sarcastic smile. She stared at Xiaocui intently and suddenly had a vicious thought: If Xiaocui died, then there would be no witnesses.
Yes, that's right. If she wanted to save herself, she had to sacrifice someone.
"How dare you ask? Xiaocui, I'm telling you, your earring was found on the Emperor's desk. Do you know what this means? The Emperor already suspects me. It's all because you're so stupid!" Li Ruhua pushed Xiaocui hard and said with disgust.
Xiaocui opened her eyes wide in disbelief. Tears streamed down her face. She struggled to get up from the ground and grabbed Li Ruhua's clothes. "Miss, I'm wrong. Please give me another chance. I'll surely find a way."
"Forget it," Li Ruhua suddenly stood up. There was a hint of killing intent in her eyes as she looked at Xiaocui. "It's too late. I can't protect you anymore. Xiaocui, didn't you say you'd always help me? Then, help me one last time, okay?"
Saying this, she squatted down and slowly stroked Xiaocui's neck with her delicate palm.
At that moment, Xiaocui seemed to understand what she meant. She immediately shook her head in horror. "Miss, please don't treat me like this. I'm really scared."
"Xiaocui, if there's an afterlife, don't be my servant again, okay?" Li Ruhua sneered and suddenly grabbed Xiaocui's neck, squeezing it tightly.
"Ah!" Xiaocui opened her eyes wide and tried to struggle, but Li Ruhua was so strong that she couldn't resist at all. Finally, she could only close her eyes in despair, feeling the strength leaving her body as she bid farewell to this world.
Xiaocui's body slowly slid to the ground. Li Ruhua gasped for breath and took a step back. In fact, this was the first time she had ever killed someone. There was no other way. It was all to save herself.