Noble Lady Lan took a deep breath before she gave the Emperor and the Empress a smile.
"It seems like someone wants to frame this lowly concubine. I have always laid low and did not fight for favor but somehow, someone wants me-no, wants the whole of my family dead. The Emperor is wise, please allow this lowly concubine prove her innocence." Noble Lady Lan did not panic as she leveled her gaze at the Emperor.
Narrowing his eyes, the Emperor considered her words and her actions. To be honest, this is the Empress's first pregnancy that managed to survive the first 3 months and he was extremely happy and looking forward to his child. He was furious that someone attempted to harm his unborn child and in that rage, he may have not been thinking clearly. He eyed the kneeling Noble Lady Lan carefully as he considered her words.
Noble Lady Lan's words were true. She had never fought for favor and was often bullied. For the sake of his friendship with her father, the Emperor had bought her into his Imperial Harem and tried to shield her from potential traps. But if the person herself is stupid enough to walk into those traps herself, there is really nothing the Emperor can do. He also understands that if he blatantly showers her with favor, it would attract unwanted attention. Being bullied is better than being dead.
Although there is also another side that the Emperor has to consider which is that Noble Lady Lan is jealous of the Empress and plotted against her but the Emperor discarded that thought immediately. He remembers the first time he visited her palace and the way she served him. It was as if she deliberately wanted him to not favor her. If that is the case, then this entire situation is a set up to frame her. But then again, why?
Noble Lady Lan has nothing under her name. She has not much wealth nor assets and she is not favored. In the end, what is the motive?
"Very well, explain yourself then." The Emperor decided to give her a chance. If she can resolve this situation, it would prove that she has the wits to stay alive. This way, her father would not be so worried about her and not apply pressure against him during court sessions. Ever since Noble Lady Lan's family found out that their precious daughter is not being treated well in the Imperial Harem, they have been angry with the Emperor. Although they did not show it, the Emperor could sense the disapproval reeking out from her father during court sessions and private discussions.
But this matter concerns an Imperial child. Even if the Emperor wishes to protect Noble Lady Lan, he cannot change the law. The Emperor stared at Noble Lady Lan with a small glimmer of hope that she is able to protect herself and her family from misfortune.
This glimmer of hope was seen by Noble Lady Lan, who scorned in her heart. He who had never shown her any care or affection is asking her to save herself from his women who schemed against her, just because he does not wish to lose the support of her family. What a joke.
But she has to do it. For the sake of her dear family members, she needs to stop her act right now. Holding her head up high, she slowly spoke.
"Let's start with Imperial Consort Rui. At that day that you came to visit, I offered you tea. You were the one that said you heard of my family's famous tea leaves and asked if I had any. I said yes and offered you a pot. You then ask for some to share with the other sisters and I declined because I honor my family rules. We do not share our personal tea leaves to others. So may I ask Imperial Consort Rui, where did you get those tea leaves to share?"
Imperial Consort Rui smiled her usual gentle smile at Noble Lady Lan and replied, "I do not understand what you are saying, sister. That day, you did give me tea leaves to share with the other sisters."
"The tea leaves in my palace are well accounted for. There is a logbook to record every single pot of leaves and it is extremely detailed. If I did indeed gift Imperial Consort Rui such a gift, it should be recorded. This lowly concubine asks for the Emperor's permission to retrieve the logbook." The Emperor nodded and her maidservant ran back to their palace to retrieve the logbook.
"While we wait, there are also more loopholes in Imperial Consort Rui's story. If I gifted her tea leaves, why did she gift them to the Empress? Imperial Consort Rui is of a high position and her giving out gifts to concubines of lower-ranking is normal. However, giving the Empress something that was given to her is not. Does she mean that she dislikes the gift and decided to dump a discarded gift in the laps of the Empress? If so, this is pure disrespect towards the Empress and towards the rules of the Imperial Harem."
"Although this lowly concubine does not wish to brag, I am a tea master and also well-versed in medicine. Tea leaves are fragile and there is no way for tea leaves to carry any sort of poison on them. The only way the Empress can be poisoned was to pour the poison in after the tea was brewed."
Imperial Consort Rui narrowed her eyes as she scoffed at Noble Lady Lan's words. "How confident are you when you said those words? If it is a tea master, this Imperial Consort shall believe you due to your family background. But medicine?"
"This lowly concubine has been trained in medicine from a young age under a master. To prove that this concubine is not lying, this concubine can tell the Emperor that the Empress did not miscarry."
At her words, the Emperor stood up in shock. "What do you mean?" He asked the kneeling lady in front of him in elation but remembering the scene full of blood, his hopes dimmed.
"If the Empress did miscarry, there should be a lot of blood." Noble Lady Lan explained.
"Just because you didn't see the blood, doesn't mean it wasn't there. I had the maids change the sheets of blood because it was too unsightly and it smells bad. I worry that it might further traumatize the Empress," the Emperor told her.
"Smell bad? Is it possible for the sheets to be retrieved?" Noble Lady Lan asked.
"You wish to harm me even more? How dare you, Noble Lady Lan!" The Empress shrieked but the Emperor held up his hand and looked at Noble Lady Lan for an explanation.
"As I have said, if the Empress did miscarry, there should be a lot of blood. Fresh blood." Noble Lady Lan did not explain any further and there is no need to because the Emperor had caught onto her point.
Fresh blood would not smell bad so quickly.
"Get the sheets back, quickly!" The Emperor hurriedly ordered and the sheets were bought back by the maids. The stale odor of dried blood filled the air and the maids averted their eyes from the bloody sheets.
"Your Highness can have an Imperial Doctor to double-check with what this lowly concubine is saying to see if this concubine has spoken the truth. For now, this concubine shall speak from a doctor's point of view. This blood is not the blood of someone who miscarried. Look at the way the blood seeps into the cloth, it indicates that something was burst at this point and the blood slowly flowed to this point. Also, when someone miscarries, the mother would not stop bleeding. Looking at the Empress now, it seems like the bleeding as stopped?"
The Empress widened her eyes and leaned against the bed frame weakly but Noble Lady Lan paid her no mind as she continued.
"The mother would feel as if life is seeping out of her body and she would feel extremely weak. This is why miscarriages are dangerous because not only the baby's life is lost, the mother's life is also endangered. Without immediate treatment, the mother would bleed to death. But Empress seemed to be quite lively when this lowly concubine entered," Noble Lady Lan gave the Empress a knowing smile.
"Does that mean the child is safe?" The Emperor was excited as he asked this question.
"Your Highness, the Empress did not miscarry does not mean the child is safe."
"What do you mean then?"
"This lowly concubine means to say that the Empress did not miscarry because she was not pregnant."
"Insolent!" The Empress stood up from her bed and slapped Noble Lady Lan. Much force was put behind the slap and Noble Lady Lan flew to the side due to the impact. Her entire face was starting to swell but it was worth it.
"How dare you slander-"
"Stop!" The Empress halted her hand at the Emperor's sudden bellow and glanced back in confusion.
"Your Highness?" The Emperor walked towards the Empress and slapped her. The Empress fell onto the floor and she looked up at the man she loved, distress in her eyes.
"Why did your Highness hit me?" The Empress could not understand why she was slapped. She is the one that the Emperor favors the most and she did not do anything wrong.
"Look at yourself, such a disgrace." The Emperor glared at her and pointed at her stomach.
Looking down in confusion, she finally saw that her robe was untied and her naked body could be seen by everyone in the chamber.
"Ahh!" The Empress screamed as she covered herself in shame, her face heating up in embarrassment as she clutched her robes together tightly.
"Vile woman, how dare you lied to me!" The Emperor is furious as he found out the real truth behind this entire farce.
"Lied to your Highness? I only accidentally showed my body to-" the Empress fumbled as she thought hard before she was interrupted by Noble Lady Lan.
"Your Highness, you have shown that your belly is not showing anything. If a pregnant mother had just miscarried, her belly would not look as flat as yours. If this lowly concubine remembers, your pregnancy is in the fourth month. You have exposed yourself, Your Highness." Noble Lady Lan explained to the befuddled Empress.
"No, Your Highness, I did not lie-" The Empress crawled towards the Emperor as tears streamed down her face but the Emperor did not show any hint of emotion other than anger as he kicked her away.
"Disgusting creature. Guards, grab her." The Imperial guards immediately grabbed the fallen Empress and held her up.
Just then, the maidservant returned from her palace with two logbooks in hand. Kneeling down behind her mistress, she held up the two books.
"These two books are the logbooks that mistress was talking about. The first book is for the palace to keep track of the tea leaves while the second book is to report back to the mistress's family. As the tea leaves that mistress uses are unique and rare, the amount that is taken out and the date is recorded down every single time the tea leaves are taken out. This has to be reported back to the family for tracking purposes and also for the Lord to know when to send in a new batch of tea leaves for his daughter. Would your Highness please take a look," the Emperor took the two books and flipped through it.
Every single record contains the reason why the tea leaves are taken out and the exact amount that has been taken out. The date and the person taking it out is recorded as well. As the Emperor flipped through the book, he quickly found the entry where Noble Lady Lan took out tea leaves to gift to Imperial Consort Rui.
"Your Highness, the logbook that is kept within the palace is accessible by people. However, the logbook that needs to be sent to my family is inaccessible by most people. It is handwritten by this lowly concubine and kept in a secret place that only my maidservant knows." Noble Lady Lan explained quickly and the Emperor flipped the second book. The moment he could not find the entry, he glared at Imperial Consort Rui.
"Your Highness, it could be that Noble Lady Lan deliberately did not add that record into her personal logbook." Imperial Consort Rui hurriedly scramble for an excuse.
"But if we do the math, the total balance does not add up with the extra entry. Just adding an entry would not be sufficient, Imperial Consort Rui. You need to calculate the balance in the end. But you wouldn't know how to do that, do you? Only a tea master is familiar with the calculations of tea," Noble Lady Lan smiled at Imperial Consort Rui's panicking figure.
"Ridiculous!" The Emperor was about to throw the books at Imperial Consort Rui before he remembered that these books belong to Noble Lady Lan. He lowered his arm and returned the books back to their owner before he laid down his order.
[The Imperial Order]
Empress Chen deceived the Emperor about her pregnancy and pushed the blame to another concubine. She is not virtuous and not fit to be the mother of the kingdom. Hence, Empress Chen is demoted to a Talented Lady and confined into the Cold Palace.
Imperial Consort Rui collaborated with the Empress to deceive the Emperor. Her heart is poisonous and fake. Hence, Imperial Consort Rui is demoted to a commoner and executed.
Noble Lady Lan is clever and managed to expose their plot. For her deeds, the Emperor awards her with 500 taels of gold, 10 rolls of moon silk, 3 golden hairpins, 20 jade ornaments. Noble Lady Lan will be awarded the title Imperial Consort Lan and is gifted the Cloud Palace.
That is all.