Intuition told Shi Muyuan that this matter was related to her.
The wet nurse's child was only seven years old this year. It should have been the most innocent time when a child needed to be cared for. Seeing his mother ill, the child wanted to go out to buy medicine for her on his own initiative. But once he left, he never came back.
When the wet nurse found that her child was missing, she went out to look for him. Finally, she found the child's body in a garbage dump in Changjing City.
By then, the child was on his last legs, still holding the medicine he had bought in his hand.
When the wet nurse said this, her eyes were already filled with tears. Even Shi Muyuan was quite touched.
As an on - looker, she could never understand what kind of emotion a mother would feel when she saw her child's body, especially when that child died in her arms.
"Humph, the last words my child said to me before he died were that with the medicine, mother would never be sick again. Can you imagine how I felt at that time?"
At this, anger appeared on Shi Muyuan's face. "Tell me. Who on earth harmed the child like that? As long as I can help, I will never decline."
The hatred in the wet nurse's eyes remained undiminished. "It was a distant relative of your Shi family. It seems that she is going to be with your eldest brother soon. I'm suddenly a bit curious. Which one will the noble Empress Dowager choose between her eldest sister - in - law and a human life?"
Shi Muyuan was stunned for a moment. It took her a long time to react to what the wet nurse meant. But she remembered that the future sister - in - law didn't seem to be the kind of person the wet nurse described at all.
She wanted to speak up for her future sister - in - law.
"Maybe your child was mistaken, or there were other people causing trouble. Sister - in - law could never be such a person."
Sure enough, birds of a feather flock together. The wet nurse suddenly felt disappointed. Why had she still held out hope?
"Humph, since you don't believe me, you can go and check it out yourself. But I won't spare the Emperor's life. Although I'm also very sorry that the Emperor would surely be a wise ruler when he grows up, I never thought that he would die here before he even grew up."
"Wait! Don't act yet. I've met that sister - in - law a few times. I just can't quite believe it. If you're not in a hurry, could you wait for me to send someone to investigate first? If what you said is true, I will never show mercy."
Seeing her serious face, as if she really had the wet nurse's interests at heart, the wet nurse thought that it wouldn't take long anyway. So she simply sat down on one side, but she refused to let go of the young Emperor, fearing that if she wasn't careful, she would lose her last bargaining chip.
Shi Muyuan winked at Cui Qizhou. He was the only person she could rely on now. Since Xiao Xiao wasn't around, she didn't know where to start the investigation.
Fortunately, this man wouldn't let her down at a critical moment.
Not long after, the shadow guard returned, holding a stack of papers in his hand.
"What you said today will be verified now. I hope you can confirm again whether what you said is true. I'll only give you this last chance."
The wet nurse straightened her back. She was neither overbearing nor humble. "I'm willing to swear on my life that what I said is absolutely true. If I've told any lies, may I be struck by lightning and never be reincarnated."
The ancients attached great importance to oaths, and it was the same in any dynasty. Shi Muyuan took the papers from the man and read them carefully.
However, the more she read, the more solemn her expression became. She never thought that that woman had always been so vicious and had actually harmed so many children.
She didn't know how she managed to finish reading the letter or how she returned it to the man. She only felt that her hands and feet were icy cold.
Her lips moved, but she couldn't say a word for a long time. Finally, after the man finished reading the letter, he directly gave an order to the shadow guard.
"Go and invite Miss Sun into the palace. I have something to ask her."
"Yes."
The shadow guard was very fast. After all, human lives were at stake. Now the wet nurse might kill the Emperor on a whim.
When Miss Sun arrived, she was still a bit dazed. At first, when she heard that the national teacher was looking for her, she thought that the national teacher wanted to ask her out. She was about to dress up nicely, but the shadow guard just grabbed her and left.
When she landed on the ground, she saw the man at a glance and immediately threw herself at him, looking aggrieved.
"National teacher, did you send this person?"
"Yes. I'm sorry to invite Miss Sun here today. Actually, I have something to ask you."
Before he could continue, Miss Sun interrupted him and kept complaining.
"National teacher, your shadow guard should be beheaded. He was so rude to me just now. He knew I was your guest but didn't know how to be more gentle."
The shadow guard remained calm. He had just followed his master's order to bring the person here. If there was anything wrong, his master would say so.
Sure enough, Cui Qizhou was a bit impatient.
"Miss Sun, please listen to me first. I called you here because the Empress Dowager and I have something to ask you. It's not that I invited you here alone. So please behave yourself. And I heard that Miss Sun seems to have an engagement with the eldest young master of the Shi family, right?"
Miss Sun was stunned for a moment. Then she turned around and saw the woman standing on the high - seat. She immediately realized what was going on. Thinking of her embarrassing behavior just now, she felt a bit awkward and wanted to defend herself.
"Greetings to the Empress Dowager. I'm really sorry for my lack of etiquette. I didn't even see the Empress Dowager. I hope the Empress Dowager can forgive me."
Shi Muyuan was a bit angry. Did her eldest brother have such bad taste? How could he choose such a woman?
If she hadn't sent someone to investigate just now, she might have been deceived by this woman. Not only did she do those bad things behind people's backs, but she also tried to flirt with others.
Her father was at least a high - ranking official in the court. As his daughter, she must have heard that the Shi family and the national teacher were at odds, but she still kept trying to get close to the national teacher. She was really shameless.
However, this wasn't the most important thing at the moment.
She coughed twice and pointed to the wet nurse on one side.
"I wonder if Miss Sun has any impression of this woman. The thing I want to ask you today is about her."
Miss Sun cast her eyes on the wet nurse. But when she realized who the wet nurse was holding, she exclaimed in surprise.
"Who is this woman? How dare she kidnap the Emperor in front of the Empress Dowager and the national teacher? Is she tired of living? You slut, I'll have you arrested right away."
Shi Muyuan suddenly felt a headache. How could she have thought that such a woman was suitable for her eldest brother? She was simply a brainless woman who loved to flirt with others.