"Sister, we're almost ready. The puppets are immortal. We should take advantage of the fact that those people haven't noticed and wipe them out in one fell swoop."
However, Concubine Xiao thought this was inappropriate. "Let's wait a while longer. The situation outside has been too tense recently. Even if we're determined, we're likely to be discovered."
Hearing this, Xiao Cheng was a bit reluctant. He had waited so long for this moment.
Power had driven the Xiao family almost crazy.
"Yue'er, have you forgotten our plan? Or are you backing out now?"
Seeing that he suspected her, Concubine Xiao's face darkened. "Brother, you'd better watch your words. You know I have a short temper. Moreover, if I really had no intention of helping father and brother stage a rebellion, why would I have gone to such lengths?"
Xiao Cheng was scared of his usually kind sister's sudden change of attitude. After all, Concubine Xiao's methods were truly terrifying.
He immediately changed his expression and smiled obsequiously. "Sister is right. It was my oversight. If father hadn't been pressing so hard, I wouldn't have been in such a hurry. I hope you can understand."
Hearing this, Concubine Xiao didn't even bother to look at him.
"I know. Go back and tell father that I'll act soon. It won't be long. I've loathed them for a long time."
These words finally relieved the people around.
"Then I'll go back and report to father. I'll come to see you next time."
Although he didn't get a response, he left like a sycophant.
However, as soon as he stepped out of the door, his face fell. He spat disdainfully in the direction of the door.
"Pah! What a thing! You're just relying on those dirty tricks. If I could learn them, I'd do better than you. Just wait. It won't be long before father and I hold great power. Then you'll be useless. Your tricks will fall into my hands."
As soon as he finished speaking, he felt a sharp pain in his neck. It seemed as if something had burrowed into it. Then he collapsed.
After a loud "thud", Concubine Xiao walked out of the room unhurriedly. She took gentle steps, with a gentle look in her eyes, but her slender fingers dragged the body on the ground back into the room without hesitation.
By this time, Concubine Mo felt as if her legs didn't belong to her. She had never seen such a ruthless person. She was even more ruthless than those in the harem.
What happened next scared her even more.
Through the crack in the window, Concubine Mo clearly saw Concubine Xiao using insects to dispose of her brother's body. In the blink of an eye, the dense insects disappeared into the body without a trace.
After finishing all this, Concubine Xiao said coldly, "Brother, you can stay here and contribute to my great cause."
After hearing Concubine Mo's account, Shi Muwǎn was furious. "Since her brother was killed by her, why does she blame the Shi family? It's nonsense and unreasonable!"
Hearing this, the two of them fell silent. After a while, the man explained voluntarily.
"Maybe in her eyes, your Shi family held great power at that time, leaving the Xiao family no room to survive in the court. This forced them to stage a rebellion."
Shi Muwǎn was so angry that she couldn't say a word.
Finally, Concubine Mo changed the topic. "The most important thing now may not be this. Haven't you thought that such a big incident happened suddenly and the scale of the secret room was so large? Obviously, Concubine Xiao couldn't have done it alone. There must be someone else supporting her."
Hearing this, Shi Muwǎn immediately remembered what she had seen in the secret room. Thinking of the endless secret room full of puppets, she felt that many people were involved in this matter.
"Let's go back and ask the masters of Baotuo Temple. They should know a lot."
The group made this decision and soon returned.
When they got back, everyone was still in the yard. Concubine Shen was the first to greet them.
Seeing Shi Muwǎn return safely, Concubine Shen was so happy that she was almost in tears. She kept wiping her cheeks with a handkerchief.
"Sister, you really scared me this time. I thought something really bad had happened to you. I would have felt guilty for the rest of my life."
Thinking of what Concubine Xiao had said and Concubine Shen's reaction, Shi Muwǎn looked cold. She pulled her hand away.
"If you're really scared, sister, go back quickly. We still have some things to deal with."
Hearing this, Concubine Shen knew that Shi Muwǎn was angry with her.
"It's right for sister to be angry. Actually, I didn't think much at that time. I was just afraid that if I said the wrong thing, sister might be in danger. I was doing it for sister's sake."
She was crying and looked so sincere. However, everyone present wasn't a fool. Concubine Shen's reaction at that time clearly showed that she had hesitated and was considering her own interests.
Shi Muwǎn was too lazy to keep up the pretense. She directly ordered the maid beside her, "Your mistress has been greatly frightened today. It may take a long time for her to recover. During this period, let her stay in her palace and not go anywhere."
It was equivalent to house arrest. Concubine Shen was unwilling. She had finally established a good relationship with Shi Muwǎn, but now everything had returned to square one. However, she knew it was useless to make a scene here, so she had to leave with the maid.
Cui Qizhou also cleared out all the irrelevant people, but he didn't allow any of the monks from Baotuo Temple to leave.
The monks were a bit scared when they saw the sudden change of situation. Yuru even plucked up the courage to ask.
"Why did the Empress Dowager and the National Teacher keep us here? Do you think there's something wrong with us?"
There was a hint of grievance in his words. To be honest, these monks usually stayed in the temple and never went anywhere. Now that such a big thing had happened, they were actually being suspected.
Shi Muwǎn could understand their feelings. "Don't panic, masters. We just want to find out the truth about this matter."
This time, it was the abbot who objected.
"Concubine Xiao is already dead. Moreover, this yard has been burned to the ground. What truth could there be? Empress Dowager, we all have a lot of things to do. We really don't have the time to accompany you."
As soon as Ze Ze heard this, he was immediately unhappy. If the common people heard what the abbot said, they might think that the current Empress Dowager was an unreasonable and capricious person.
"Please think twice before you speak, abbot. Not every title can be attributed to our Empress Dowager."