Suddenly remembering something, Yun Ni looked at the hairpin on Yun Xi's head, her eyes widening in shock as she angrily shouted,
"How did my hairpin end up on you? When did you steal it?!"
Yun Ni was extremely agitated, shouting at the top of her lungs. Everyone present looked at her blankly.
Madam Jiang's face turned deathly pale, cold sweat pouring down her back. She never expected that after all her long - planned schemes, things would turn out like this today!
"Oh? So it's found its rightful owner so soon. It seems that because it was dark, this thing mistook the younger sister for the elder one!"
As soon as Qi Rong finished speaking, several people in the audience burst into laughter.
You know, there were quite a few political enemies of the prime minister present. They were naturally happy to cheer on such a good show.
Yun Xi bit her lip, glaring angrily at Qi Rong.
She knew that he wasn't trying to help her but deliberately humiliating her father!
Qi Rong's attitude of watching the show made her feel something was off:
How did he know there was an inscription on the back of the hairpin? And he found it so easily.
Back then, she had only discovered it by chance after a long time.
Yun Ni didn't know either. Otherwise, even if she liked it, given her hatred for Yun Xi, she wouldn't have bothered to steal a hairpin with Yun Xi's name engraved on it!
Seeing her daughter being mocked, Madam Jiang wrung her handkerchief tightly. No longer caring about angering her husband, she stood up and retorted,
"This hairpin doesn't belong to my daughter!" Then, pointing at Yun Xi, she said angrily,
"It's Yun Xi! She stole the hairpin when Yun Ni's tent caught fire. Otherwise, why was the fire so strange? Why did only Yun Ni's tent burn?"
Madam Jiang's suspicion was not unfounded. Everyone present couldn't help but be a bit skeptical. At this moment, Yun Sheng shouted sternly,
"Silence!"
There was a cold glint in Yun Sheng's eyes, which was intimidating. However, Madam Jiang didn't back down this time.
With tears in her eyes and a face full of resentment, she looked at Yun Sheng,
"My lord! They are both your flesh and blood. How can you favor one over the other?"
Madam Jiang was extremely aggrieved and completely forgot that it was all because of her malicious intentions that things had turned out like this, and she had ended up trying to steal a chicken but losing the rice instead.
The current prime minister of the dynasty was publicly humiliated and questioned by his own concubine. Yun Sheng was so ashamed that he couldn't say a word.
But the queen's voice rang out just in time,
"Since this matter is of great importance, I've already had someone investigate the cause of the fire. It was Yun Ni who violated the rules and burned a few extra charcoal basins in the tent, which led to the fire. Yun Ni should take full responsibility, and it has nothing to do with others. As for the theft, there's no solid evidence."
This was almost a conclusive verdict.
Madam Jiang exclaimed in disbelief, "It's impossible!"
"Yun Ni is afraid of the cold. I had someone specially reinforce those charcoal basins. How could they catch fire?
It happened so suddenly. She just didn't have time to investigate yet!
"Are you questioning me?"
The queen's eyes turned cold. Madam Jiang was startled and quickly knelt down, kowtowing,
"I dare not, my lady!"
No one could bear such a big accusation!
Everyone was watching the show. A noblewoman who had had an argument with Yun Ni earlier took the opportunity to sneer,
"She's just a concubine after all. She just doesn't have the grace! There's both witness and evidence, and she still wants to argue?"
When one is down, everyone will kick. As soon as she said this, some people immediately echoed her to curry favor with the queen,
"The prime minister has been a widower for many years but hasn't taken another concubine. It seems there's a reason."
"This one is so troublesome. She even acts like she's so noble and puts on more airs than anyone else!"
These people were really going all out to flatter the queen!
"Mother..."
Seeing herself cornered, the usually domineering Yun Ni was scared.
Madam Jiang's face was gloomy, and she bit her lips until they bled. But to protect her daughter, she had to turn the situation around!
Suddenly, she stood up and rushed towards Jiang Qing. She raised her hand and slapped him hard on the face, scolding while hitting,
"You good - for - nothing! It's all your fault! You stole Yun Ni's hairpin and framed Yun Xi! Just because I didn't betroth that slut to you!"
Jiang Qing was beaten until the corner of his mouth bled and his eyes were spinning. He didn't even have a chance to defend himself.
Then Madam Jiang looked at Yun Xi, her face full of remorse,
"Yun Xi! It was mother who wronged you! I don't expect you to forgive me. I just beg you not to make things difficult for your younger siblings! Mother will atone for her sins with her life!"
Saying that, Madam Jiang ran a few steps and slammed her head into a nearby pillar. Instantly, blood gushed out, and she fainted...
Everything changed so quickly that no one could have predicted it.
Madam Jiang's move of sacrificing the pawn to save the king not only successfully stopped the queen from punishing them but also portrayed herself as a great mother.
This incident came to an end.
Madam Jiang was carried away for emergency treatment, and the people from the prime minister's mansion also left.
Jiang Qing was left kneeling alone in the middle of the field, looking blank. When he finally came to his senses, he only saw Yun Xi and her maid leaving at the end.
After Madam Jiang's self - inflicted injury, Yun Xi was silent.
Her bad reputation was cleared, but the entire prime minister's mansion had lost all its face and become a laughingstock!
Madam Jiang had brought this on herself. Although she had paid a price, Yun Xi knew that Madam Jiang wouldn't die.
Because that didn't fit Madam Jiang's cunning personality.
Thinking about the endless infighting in the future, she felt extremely heavy - hearted.
At this moment, Jiang Qing seemed to have grabbed the last straw of hope and shouted desperately,
"Yun Xi, I was wrong! You must save me. I really like you!"
Yun Xi's face was as cold as ice. She ignored him and didn't hesitate in her steps.
Seeing his last hope disappearing, Jiang Qing stood up and wanted to chase after her, but he was pulled back by a powerful force and fell to the ground.
The next moment, a hairpin was suddenly stabbed into his throat!
Jiang Qing's pupils dilated sharply. His face was full of pain, but he couldn't make a sound anymore.
Qi Rong had killed someone in public. There were screams all around the scene, and some female guests even fainted.
The ministers glared at Qi Rong angrily, but he just casually scratched his ear as if nothing had happened.
"Sorry, elder brother. He was really giving me a headache."
Qi Rong was arrogant and domineering. He always acted brutally, spoke recklessly, and looked down on everyone.
However, even so, he was deeply trusted by the emperor, who regarded him as his most capable lackey to eliminate many potential threats.
Therefore, even though the ministers were dissatisfied, they only dared to be angry but not say anything.
Looking at the body on the ground, the emperor couldn't help but frown,
"Seventh brother, you've killed him. How can I continue to interrogate about the assassination?"
Qi Rong's thin lips curled slightly, showing a wanton smile,
"Elder brother, if there are no living people, we can just question the dead!"
Qi Rong clapped his hands, and immediately someone stepped forward to drag Jiang Qing's body away.
Then, a royal guard presented a letter to the emperor.
"Your Majesty, this letter was found on the dead royal guard. Besides, there was also a pass token to the Huai Prince's Mansion."