Chu Qing observed the reactions of the crowd carefully. Sure enough, she caught a fleeting look of uneasiness on Zhong Yi's face.
Chu Qing quickly shifted her gaze. She didn't intend to tip off the enemy for now. So, as if gathering her composure, she continued, "This princess has heard that all of you ladies and young misses received a sachet from Consort Gu?"
"Her maid said that the sachet could repel mosquitoes, so we took it! Who would have known... it could attract a fierce beast like a black bear!" someone said in panic.
"Exactly! What on earth was that consort up to!"
"Princess of Ning, why are you telling us this..." The wife of the duke's eyes flashed with a glint. She knew that Chu Qing wouldn't mention this in front of them for no reason.
After all, she was well aware that the Princess of Ning and them weren't on such good terms that they could talk about anything.
Seeing the wife of the duke speak, Chu Qing shrugged and said, "It's nothing. I just want to remind all of you to be careful, so as not to attract something terrible."
After hearing this, some people thanked Chu Qing with lingering fear, and then immediately ordered their maids to throw the sachets far away to avoid unnecessary trouble.
"How does the Princess of Ning plan to handle this matter? After all... this is no small matter. At that time, the emperor, as well as the prince and princess of Xiliang were all present." The wife of the duke continued.
She didn't think that Chu Qing would dare to make a big deal out of this. After all, it involved a concubine in the harem. She asked this question just to see Chu Qing make a fool of herself.
She didn't believe that the Prince of Ning would dote on Chu Qing so much as to go against the emperor. After all, Consort Gu seemed to be quite favored.
But before she could finish her thoughts, she was quickly proven wrong.
After hearing what Chu Qing said, Wei Ying's aura became even colder than before.
"I'll take you to find her."
After saying that, Wei Ying grabbed Chu Qing's hand. Without even glancing at the group of the wife of the duke and the others, he walked straight towards Consort Gu's tent.
When some people wanted to follow to watch, they were stopped.
"Do you still want to watch this kind of excitement? Aren't you afraid of losing your life?"
Being reminded like this, everyone scattered in panic. As long as the fire didn't burn on themselves, they naturally wouldn't be too worried.
...
Within half an hour, the news that Consort Gu had been placed under house arrest spread.
"Miss, your maid just went out for a walk. Sure enough, I saw that there were already guards outside Consort Gu's tent."
When Zhong Yi heard her maid's report, her heart tightened involuntarily.
This Chu Qing not only had a tough life, but she could also find out that it was the sachet that was the problem!
Now, judging from her appearance, she was determined to investigate this matter thoroughly!
Although it seemed that the target of her suspicion for now was Consort Gu, who had been used as a scapegoat, she was still a little worried that the other party would find out about her.
What should she do!
Just as Zhong Yi was pacing back and forth nervously, the wife of the duke lifted the curtain and walked in.
"Yier, what's wrong?" The wife of the duke saw that Zhong Yi seemed to have something on her mind, so she couldn't help but ask worriedly.
Zhong Yi already had a guilty conscience. Being asked by the wife of the duke like this, she originally wanted to hide it, but looking at the current situation, she felt that she couldn't bear it anymore.
So, with a somewhat flickering look in her eyes, she said, "Mother... actually... it was me who had someone tamper with the sachet that the Princess of Ning received..."
After saying that, she waited uneasily for her mother's reaction.
Sure enough, after hearing Zhong Yi's words, the wife of the duke was so angry that she raised her hand and slapped her.
Zhong Yi covered her face in disbelief and said indignantly, "Mother, you actually hit me!"
The wife of the duke regretted it a little after hitting her, but since she had already done it, she could only suppress her indulgence towards this daughter and said sternly, "It would be fine if you just did some small tricks. But this matter involves the emperor and the prince of another country. If they get hurt, not only your life, but even your mother and father will lose our lives because of this!"
Zhong Yi pouted and knew that she had been a bit reckless this time. So she put away the thought of refuting. She tugged at the wife of the duke's sleeve and said coquettishly, "Mother, we can't lose our lives because of that bitch Chu Qing. Please help Yier think of a way!"
"Oh, you!" The wife of the duke had a headache and her tone was inevitably gritted with hatred.
Zhong Yi lowered her head guiltily, hiding the hatred in her eyes.
"What exactly did you do?"
"I... I heard that Consort Gu was going to distribute sachets to repel mosquitoes. Coincidentally, I had... some medicine that could attract fierce beasts that I had obtained before. So I sent my maid to help with some other maids from other mansions... Then, when I saw the maid of the Princess of Ning come to get the sachet, I originally wanted her to put the medicine into the sachet. But who would have known... that Consort Gu actually sewed up each sachet after putting something in it. Since time was pressing, the medicine could only be smeared on the edge of the sachet. In the end, the sachet fell into the hands of the Princess of Ning."
After hearing this, the wife of the duke's face alternated between gloom and brightness. She really didn't know whether to praise this daughter or scold her.
The situation was urgent. The wife of the duke said coldly with a straight face, "Is the medicine still with you?"
"Yes..."
"Find someone to destroy this medicine in the middle of the night." The wife of the duke said coldly.
Zhong Yi nodded, but still said nervously, "But... I'm still afraid... that they will find out about me. That Consort Gu... what if... she tells on me?"
The wife of the duke sneered and said murderously, "If you want her not to tell, just kill her."
"But... she's a person in the harem, and there are guards in her tent now. How can we do it?"
"Are you stupid?" The wife of the duke tapped Zhong Yi's head and continued, "How could we do it ourselves! Have you forgotten your father's status! How could we do something like killing someone!"
"Mother is really far - sighted!" Zhong Yi was suddenly enlightened by this and her tone became quite relaxed.
"The wife of the duke is indeed far - sighted. This princess admires you."