After a lapse of three days, there is still no evidence in favor of Wu Mei, and she is calm, and she does not complain about grievances, but talks with the jailer and even discusses parenting experience with the female jailer.

Above the court, the ministers were almost one-sided, thinking that Wu Mei was at a loss and had no excuse at all, so they were willing to admit their guilt and deserve to be executed.

Although Yuan Ziyan was anxious, he was always silent and did not express his position on this, and the most tangled was Li Zhi. Staying up all night for days made his eyes red and bloodshot, he couldn't accept that Wu Mei was a murderer anyway, but the facts were in front of him, everyone could clear their suspicions, but even if they were like a national teacher, they couldn't intercede for her.

After the dispersal of the dynasty, Yuan Ziyan still found Li Tao and said frankly: "Mao Gong, I believe that Wu Mei is innocent, and she will definitely not be a murderer." ”

"I believe it too."

Li Tao's answer made Yuan Ziyan slightly stunned, and asked, "Why do you say that." ”

"There will be no mistake for those who are trained by Ziyan himself." Li Tao looked serious, and then said: "This matter did start because of the Middle Palace, but it was not the Empress and Mrs. Wei Guo who did it, it must be someone else." ”

"I think so too, and this person's position is very strange, he should have enmity with the queen and Wu Mei, could it be that which daring concubine in the back court can't succeed?" Yuan Ziyan analyzed.

"It's not like it, the last powerful person in the back court is Concubine Xiao Shu, but she is currently in a unified alliance with the queen, and she won't make a move easily." Li Tao analyzed.

"But that was before, and now the queen wants to make other princes crown princes. Is it necessary for Concubine Xiao Shufei to be so good to her? ”

"What Ziyan said is not unreasonable, but it is not enough to use this as an excuse to kill people and blame them." Li Tao thought for a while and said, "Purple smoke." Presumably there will be shocking secrets here, if Wu Mei is not guaranteed, you should not be deeply involved in it, I will send someone to inquire outside the palace to see who has been out of the palace most frequently recently. ”

Yuan Ziyan expressed her gratitude for this, but after separation, her mood was very heavy. Wu Mei is like her own daughter, how can she see her daughter suffering and sit idly by. Maybe Li Tao doesn't understand this feeling. But his words still reminded Wu Mei that those who are relatively free to enter and leave the palace have the most motive to commit crimes.

And he is also a person who has an enmity with the queen and Wu Mei, because of Liu's death, no matter who suffers. or the lack of evidence to identify the murderer. But the two will also become the object of suspicion.

Of course, those who can walk freely in the palace are either rich or expensive, and this is best to ask Li Zhi. As we said earlier, the court system of the Tang Dynasty was not too strict, and since Li Yuan, there has been a big family practice, so there is a situation where a woman in the back court hooks up with the king of Qi. The subsequent Xuanwumen Mutiny was also a serious consequence of relatively lax management.

Although this was refined and standardized in the later Tang Taizong period, due to the Taiping period. It is also a situation where the monarch and the ministers are single-minded, and the heirs of the Houting court are prosperous and relatively stable, so there are many factors that cannot be considered.

For example, for the relatives and nobles who have the privilege of entering and leaving the palace at will, their psychology is the same as that of modern people, they feel that their status is noble, and they disdain to register at the gate, and the guards do not dare to forcibly stay, and they have always acted arbitrarily.

In Li Zhi's generation of emperors, he is the most emotional, seven aunts and eight aunts and uncles, all have this privilege to enter the palace for a gathering, so the order is relatively chaotic, and the investigation is also a little difficult.

At this time, Li Zhi was wrapped in a strip of cloth on his head, and he was lying on the dragon couch with his teeth grinning, Yuan Ziyan sighed slightly, waved his hand to signal the idlers to withdraw, came to Li Zhi's side, and asked softly: "Zhi'er, gout again?" ”

"Well, I've taken medicine, but it doesn't work, the pain is unbearable." Li Zhi said with his eyes closed.

"It's more painful in my heart."

Li Zhi reluctantly sat up at this time, and said gloomily: "Stepmother, it's not that Zhi'er is narrow-minded, it's just that Wu Mei is too chilling. It took a lot of trouble to get her out of Ganye Temple, and I didn't even tell my stepmother in advance. The queen still has kindness to her, how can Wu Mei take revenge? Moreover, she still has my child in her belly, what kind of heart will this child be if she grows up? ”

Yuan Ziyan was silent, Li Zhi stopped complaining, and comforted: "Mother-in-law, I haven't given up the investigation, but Wu Mei also needs to cooperate, why don't you tell where you went that night, even if you say one at random, you can always give everyone an explanation." ”

"Zhi'er, you can have this heart for Wu Mei, I am happy for her. But as a monarch, you must not act partially, it is unfair. As for Wu Mei, although I know that she has difficulties, I don't know how to deal with it, so I haven't seen her in the past few days. At present, the ministers are urgent, and only seven days are given, and if they don't act, maybe there will be one more unjust soul in the back court. Yuan Ziyan said gloomily.

"Mother-in-law, Sister Mei is stubborn, can you go and see her on my behalf, whether she is coerced, or she doesn't know at all." Li Zhi said in frustration: "Don't hide it from my stepmother, I also sent someone to see her, but she just brought a word, hoping to die after giving birth to a child." ”

"This time it's definitely not Wu Mei's procrastination, it's really ready to die." Yuan Ziyan frowned slightly, and returned to the topic: "Zhi'er, who in the palace has been here in the past few days after the incident?" ”

"I've also thought about this problem, but in those days, there were a few family banquets prepared in the palace, and there were many people staying in the palace, so it's really hard to say who took advantage of the chaos to do it."

"Female dependents, who are young and have status, and who are usually bolder?" Yuan Ziyan asked again.

Li Zhi thought about it seriously and said: "There are the seventh sister, Princess Baling, a number of Mrs. Yipin, by the way, and Gao Yang." ”

Yuan Ziyan frowned slightly, nodded, told Li Zhi to have a good rest, then got up to say goodbye, and then quickly passed this important information to Li Shan, so that he could focus on investigating these people outside the palace.

Subsequently, Yuan Ziyan came to the cell to visit Wu Mei, and brought a bottle of self-brewed fruit wine with him. Before I could go inside, I heard a giggling sound coming from inside.

"Wu Zhaoyi, it turns out that the national teacher is so interesting!"

"Yes, Wu Zhaoyi, can you tell us the story of the national teacher?"

"Another time, I was greedy, and I ate a few more pieces of meat during the weight loss period, so I was stunned to let my stepmother kick me out and run around the imperial garden, so tired that I was sweating profusely, and many people stopped to watch." Wu Mei smiled: "From an outsider's point of view, my stepmother is trying to harm me, but in fact, it is for my good to maintain my shape." ”

"Order rations, exercise more, and I'm going to do the same."

"Hey, it's a pity I'm so fat, it's too late to know!"

After speaking, there was another laugh, and when Yuan Ziyan walked in with a gloomy face, the two female jailers hurriedly got up and saluted Yuan Ziyan.

"Master Kuni."

"Look out the door, don't let anyone in, I have something to talk about with Wu Zhaoyi." Yuan Ziyan commanded coldly.

The two jailers hurriedly agreed, but no matter how they looked at the matter, the national teacher was not as amiable as Wu Mei described, but they didn't know that the years of fighting had made Yuan Ziyan's heart begin to calm down, and it was difficult to make waves.

"Mother-in-law, it's windy today, why do you come here in such thin clothes?" Wu Mei hurriedly moved her heavy steps to help Yuan Ziyan.

"Now that you know astronomy, you can know the weather in this prison?" Yuan Ziyan smiled lightly.

"It was the little window up there that told me that the sun should come in at this hour, and that the sun could shine in this corner. The stepmother once said that bathing in more sunlight is conducive to the growth of the fetus. Wu Mei smiled.

Hmph, Yuan Ziyan threw off Wu Mei's sleeves and said unhappily: "I just said that you have no heart and lungs, and you even know that you are a mother." Wu Mei, whether you have grievances or not, to be honest, I can spare you from dying, otherwise today will be your death! ”

Wu Mei was taken aback and muttered, "The child in my womb has not yet been born, is Your Majesty so eager to kill Wu Mei?" ”

"Who would leave a murderous demon by their side!" Yuan Ziyan said: "Wu Mei, since you can't tell where you went that night, and you don't admit that you killed the Liu family, do you really think that relying on the favor of me and Your Majesty, you can tolerate your lawlessness and hurt the heavens and reason?" ”

"The righteous mother is angry, and Paula has no intention of doing so. It's just, it's just ......"

Seeing this, Yuan Ziyan softened his breath, held Wu Mei's shoulder, and finally gained a few pounds of flesh and lost weight, not as mellow as before, and he was also very distressed, and said softly: "Paulie, no matter what the pressure is, even if you tell your stepmother, even I have the right to take you out of this ghost place after learning that you are wronged." Say it, Paula, say it. ”

"Mother-in-law!" Wu Mei burst into tears, knelt down with a puff, knocked her head a few times, and choked up: "Pauling's life is thin, but I beg Your Majesty to leave this child's life, as long as the child is born, Paulilai will kill himself immediately, and he will never break his word!" ”

"This child has witnessed unbearable things, and perhaps His Majesty does not want to keep him." Yuan Ziyan was a little desperate, this Wu Mei was really stubborn, and at this time she didn't say anything, she really had the urge to slap her a few times.

Wu Mei slumped on the ground, gently stroked her belly with a trembling hand, and choked up: "Mother-in-law, Paula begs you, this child is also equivalent to your grandchild, do you really bear to be taken away by me before he is born?" ”

"The child will only be safe if he follows his mother, Paula, don't worry, I will prepare a few more sets of clothes for the child, and burn them for you when the time comes." Yuan Ziyan was unmoved.

Wu Mei couldn't bear it, and finally cried bitterly, and the two jailers outside heard the movement, but they didn't dare to come in, and they speculated outside, it didn't seem like a good thing.

"Mother-in-law, how should I die?" Wu Mei showed a miserable smile, a few sticks of hay were still caught in her hair, and she was bent on dying, even caring about the child in her womb.

"There is no such cruel mother in the world!" Yuan Ziyan couldn't believe it, and beckoned back angrily: "Come on, bring the wine!" (To be continued......)