Chapter 509: I’ve Tolerated You Enough
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
Consort Shu threatened her angrily.
Tang Shijun wasn’t easily intimidated, so she didn’t stop.
She acted like a tool for body searches, methodically searching Consort Shu without displaying any emotion.
In no time, she found a small bottle on Consort Shu.
She handed the bottle to Gu Qingluan and said, “Qingluan, see if this is it.”
Gu Qingluan opened it and took a sniff, nodding, “You’re right, the poison found in the victim’s body matches this toxin.”
She glanced at Consort Shu with a faint smile, “Now that we have both witness and physical evidence, what defense do you have left?”
“Hmph! Your people planted this bottle on me when they captured me, it’s a setup!”
Gu Qingluan raised an eyebrow. “Stubborn as a mule!”
She turned her gaze to the other side.
The guard had searched thoroughly but hadn’t found any poison.
Just then, Feng Yuanxi spoke up, “Check his hands.”
The young man’s expression changed instantly.
He instinctively hid his hands behind his back.
The guard quickly seized the young man’s hand and forcefully brought it forward for everyone to see.
The young man’s fingernail crevices were very dark.
No one had paid much attention to it before, a.s.suming it was due to him doing rough work and getting dirt on his hands.
But Feng Yuanxi had a keen sense of smell and detected a faint medicinal odor.
He never thought the young man had poisoned anyone before, especially considering the victim was his own sister. It didn’t add up for a caring older brother to be the one behind the poisoning.
Now that Mother suspected the young man, Feng Yuanxi became suspicious of the medicinal scent on his hands.
Gu Qingluan approached and examined the young man’s hands. When she got closer, she also detected a faint medicinal scent coming from them.
The young man’s face turned pale. Despite his efforts to hide it, he couldn’t help but appear guilty.
“Sc.r.a.pe off whatever’s in his fingernail crevices and feed it to a rat.”
The guard immediately prepared to do so.
“Be careful, and after you’re done, don’t touch your hands casually. Remember to clean up promptly.”
The guard nodded in grat.i.tude and proceeded to follow Gu Qingluan’s instructions.
Naturally, the rat wouldn’t just eat any food. So, the guard hid the dirt inside a steamed bun and threw it to the rat.
The rat they had caught earlier now came in handy.
As the rat consumed the bun with the concealed dirt, it began to struggle in agony within moments, its limbs stiffening.
The guard examined the dead rat and with a stern expression, reported to Gu Qingluan, “Reporting to Mistress, the rat is dead!”
The onlookers gasped once again.
Without Gu Qingluan having to say much, they had already figured out that the young man was one of the culprits!
He was the one who had truly poisoned the victim! The victim’s older brother!
The young man wore a defeated look, his head hanging low.
As soon as his hands were noticed, he knew he was in deep trouble!
People found it hard to understand why he would harm his own sister, his closest family member.
“For someone who couldn’t even have a decent meal, what could drive them to such inhumanity?” Gu Qingluan looked at the young man with a mocking expression. “Did Lady Liu’s offer seem tempting to you?”
The young man remained silent, essentially admitting it.
People still found it difficult to believe.
For the sake of personal gain, he was willing to kill his own sister?
Compared to the carter, this young man was truly heartless and insane!
Those who had risen against the Jun family because of him, now looked at him with hatred and contempt in their eyes.
They had fought alongside him against a common enemy, only to find out that he had orchestrated it all himself! Not only did he harm others, but he also deceived them into partic.i.p.ating. It was truly despicable!
Various curses and insults were hurled at the young man.
In the midst of his silence, the young man suddenly erupted, his eyes turning red. “None of you know a thing! You don’t know anything! What right do you have to judge me?! My sister willingly took the poison! 1 didn’t want to do it! But that woman forced us, either my sister dies, or I die! I can’t die! 1 still have unfinished business for my family’s revenge! My sister understood that, and that’s why she did it willingly! Do you think it’s easy for me to watch my sister die?”
This…
The crowd fell into silence.
No one had expected there was more to the story.
“Even so, you shouldn’t have let your sister die. She was willing to sacrifice her life for you, but what about you? You think being a boy makes you the pillar of the family’s fate?” Gu Qingluan sneered. “It’s just an excuse! What truly convinced you was the future that Lady Liu promised, isn’t it?”
The young man’s breathing became rapid.
From the looks of it, it was quite evident that Gu Qingluan had hit the mark!
This time, no one would feel pity for the young man.
Aside from his continuous lies and seeking sympathy, the fact that he sacrificed his own sister was despicable.
Regardless of his so-called hardships, they were just excuses to absolve himself.
If he truly had no choice, he could have sought help from the Jun family.
If he had told Gu Qingluan, he and his sister would have been protected by the Jun family, and no one would have threatened them.
Unfortunately, he didn’t make that choice because he valued the benefits promised by Consort Shu.
Gu Qingluan withdrew her gaze and turned to the Magistrate.
The Magistrate’s spirits were lifted. Finally, there was something he could do.
“Guardian Princess, rest a.s.sured, I will do my utmost to make her confess. Lady Lui is a wanted criminal by the court, and the palace may send people. At that time, we might not be able to stop them from taking her away.”
“It doesn’t matter; 1 believe the Emperor won’t tolerate a deposed concubine.”
Gu Qingluan glanced at Consort Shu with a faint smile. “We probably won’t have the chance to meet again. Farewell, 1 won’t be seeing you off.”
Consort Shu cursed in anger, “You wretch, you will have a miserable end!”
Bang!
A large iron ladle flew out and hit her in the back of the head.
“All!” Consort Shu’s body suddenly fell forward, accompanied by a piercing scream.
Tang Shijun stood with her hands on her hips.. “You’ve been spewing vulgarities for far too long, and I’ve tolerated you enough!”