In the Golden Luan Hall,
As usual, the Emperor sat upright on the dragon throne, quietly listening as the ministers one by one reported on the various affairs in the court.
Just then, a palace servant scurried up to the chief eunuch beside the Emperor.
Bowing low, the servant whispered a few words.
The chief eunuch was startled at first. His eyebrows knitted slightly as if he couldn't make up his mind.
Then he quickly walked up to the Emperor and said carefully, "Your Majesty, the Crown Princess is outside the hall. She says she has urgent matters to report to you."
The Emperor's face darkened slightly upon hearing this.
The Golden Luan Hall was the place where the Emperor discussed state affairs with the court officials.
The Crown Princess, a woman from the inner palace, how could she come to this place casually, especially during the morning court?
Could it be because of the disharmony in her relationship with the Crown Prince again?
The Emperor snorted coldly. "Tell her to wait in the imperial study."
But the chief eunuch didn't leave immediately after hearing this.
Instead, he looked at the Emperor with a为难 expression and said with difficulty, "Your Majesty, the palace servants have already tried to persuade the Crown Princess, but she refuses to leave..."
The Emperor's face suddenly turned even darker.
But after all, she was the Crown Princess, and he couldn't embarrass her in public.
So, the Emperor waved his hand and said in a deep voice, "Fine, let her in."
As soon as Song Yanran stepped into the Golden Luan Hall, her whole body couldn't help but tremble.
Even before she reached the door, her palms were covered in a thin layer of sweat.
But thinking about the child in her womb and Xiao Wang's future, she gained a bit more courage.
She summoned up her courage and stepped forward, then knelt on the hall floor.
"Father, I want to accuse Prime Minister Gu and the Empress. Back then, for their own selfish desires, they deliberately framed General Huo for treason!"
As soon as these words were spoken, everyone present, except perhaps Xiao Wang, was shocked.
Gu Kexing was even more flustered. He suddenly knelt on the ground.
He had done that thing very secretly back then, and all the outsiders who knew about it had already been taken care of.
How could the Crown Princess, a young girl, know about it?
Immediately, he exclaimed, "Your Majesty, I'm innocent! How could I do such a thing!"
Then he immediately said to Song Yanran, "Your Highness the Crown Princess, you can't just say such things recklessly!"
Song Yanran snorted. "Whether I'm speaking recklessly or not, Father will surely be able to tell."
After saying that, she held up what she had prepared long ago above her head.
After receiving a signal from the Emperor, the chief eunuch immediately took the thing from Song Yanran's hand and presented it to the Emperor.
"Father, back then, my maternal grandfather was coerced by Prime Minister Gu and the Empress. He had no choice but to help them imitate General Huo's handwriting and forge a letter of treason.
Grandfather thought he could survive, but unexpectedly, they killed him to cover up their tracks.
I beg Father to seek justice for my grandfather and for General Huo!"
The Emperor looked at the evidence presented by Song Yanran.
It was the manuscript of that letter of treason from back then, and he could tell at a glance that the handwriting was the Empress's.
"Why are you only saying this now about such an important matter!"
The Emperor's roar frightened Song Yanran so much that she trembled.
It took her a while to come to her senses. She exclaimed, "Forgive me, Father! I didn't mean to hide this! Prime Minister Gu and the Empress hold high positions and great power. I was really too afraid!"
The Emperor's eyes narrowed after hearing this.
How could he not tell which of Song Yanran's words were true and which were false?
If he remembered correctly, Song Yanran's position as the Crown Princess was actually requested by the Empress.
Now that he thought about it, it must have been Song Yanran threatening the Empress with the evidence in her hand back then.
The Empress was no good person.
Nor was Song Yanran necessarily a good one.
However, that wasn't the most important thing now.
Then he snorted coldly. His deep and angry voice echoed throughout the entire hall.
"Someone, go and arrest the Empress for me!"
Hearing this, Gu Kexing's heart was in his throat. Fine beads of sweat oozed from his forehead.
He was extremely anxious. What on earth had the Crown Princess presented that made the Emperor so angry?
The Empress was originally in the Shou'an Palace, enjoying the daily greetings from the concubines.
But suddenly, a group of imperial guards burst in. Without any explanation, they arrested her in front of all the concubines.
A moment later, the Empress was thrown onto the hall floor.
When she saw Song Yanran also kneeling on the hall floor, a sense of uneasiness suddenly rose in her heart.
The Emperor sitting upright on the dragon throne was even more furious.
She carefully probed, "Your Majesty, I wonder what I've done wrong to make you so angry?"
"Empress, look at the good things you've done!"
After saying that, the Emperor threw the manuscript onto the hall floor.
The Empress crawled forward on her knees and picked up the manuscript.
After reading clearly what was written on the manuscript, it was as if the sky was falling and the earth was splitting apart.
"Your Majesty, it has nothing to do with me. I didn't do this!"
The Empress trembled all over, and even her voice couldn't stop shaking.
"The evidence is conclusive! What else do you have to argue about!" the Emperor roared. "Someone, immediately arrest the Empress and Gu Kexing and throw them into prison!"
The incident happened so suddenly that Gu Kexing didn't even have time to react before he was grabbed by the imperial guards. As he struggled, his official hat fell to the ground.
"Your Majesty, I don't know what crime I've committed!" Gu Kexing shouted.
Then he looked at the Empress sitting on the ground in a hurry, hoping that she could give him an answer.
But the Empress was already overwhelmed by great fear and didn't have the time to care about Gu Kexing.
The Emperor waved his hand and said coldly, "Take a good look. See the good things you've done."
After saying that, the imperial guards immediately let go of Gu Kexing.
Gu Kexing staggered and crawled towards the Empress. He snatched the manuscripts from her hand.
One could see Gu Kexing's eyebrows furrowing deeper and deeper. A hint of surprise appeared in his eyes.
Xiao Wang, standing nearby, took in all of Gu Kexing's expressions.
It seemed that Gu Kexing didn't know that Song Yanran had these things.
Presumably, when Song Yanran went to the Empress with the manuscripts back then, the Empress thought it wasn't a threat, so she didn't tell Gu Kexing on her own initiative.
No wonder Song Yanran was still safe and sound. Otherwise, with Gu Kexing's cruel and ruthless nature, he would probably have attacked Song Yanran long ago.
In the end, it was the Empress who was too stupid. She thought that since she was firmly seated on the position of the Empress, a mere Song Yanran couldn't cause any trouble.
Gu Kexing frowned tightly. Unconsciously, he wrinkled the manuscripts in his hand.
It was the first time he knew that there was actually a manuscript from back then! And it was written by the Empress herself!
He frowned and glanced at the Empress who was kneeling on the ground, trembling in fear. Combining with what Song Yanran had just said, he probably already guessed why this manuscript had appeared here.
Had all his painstaking efforts over the decades really come to nothing today?
No! He had to calm down immediately and come up with a foolproof plan.
He absolutely couldn't let the matter of framing the Huo family back then be exposed!
Suddenly, an idea flashed through his mind.
He shouted at the Emperor, "Your Majesty! I'm innocent! Since the Crown Princess said that her maternal grandfather was good at imitating others' handwriting, then why couldn't this manuscript written by Her Majesty the Empress be imitated by him!
I beg Your Majesty to investigate thoroughly!"