On the day of the funeral ceremony, before dawn, Ling Li had already taken everyone in the palace to wear plain clothes, and under the guidance of the palace etiquette envoy, he entered the Ji'an House located on the east side of the Yongnian Palace along the East Imperial Road.

Along the way, the white palace lamps, ceremonial tents, and silk silk are repeated, and the plain palace maids standing solemnly on the side of the road throw the white sacrificial flowers in the bamboo basket between their arms from time to time, and there are more sacrificial musicians who play in a loop, the music is mournful, and the scene is like a winter snow after the scene, a bleak.

Ling Li frowned and pursed his lips silently, as if he was trying his best to suppress his grief. Dong Yuejiao led the little silkworm dressed in decrepit linen clothes and followed behind.

After the group arrived at the hall of Zhonghe Gongshun concubine, the chief escort of the funeral carried the bridge and the don to deliver the envoy, according to the patrol envoy and other officials came to mourn, and made a detailed report to Ling Li on the process of the funeral ceremony before the funeral.

After the ceremony, the sky was already bright. There are also a number of eunuchs and palace maids in charge of funerals, holding book pavilions, treasure pavilions, shadow umbrellas, lanterns, and all sheng plates, which are lined up on both sides of the road. When the funeral procession stood still, a ceremonial envoy shouted: "The auspicious time has come, please bring all the officials and their families into the temple to mourn!" ”

Officials and wives of the fourth rank and above in the DPRK and the central government all entered the hall in turn to pay their respects, and Ling Li returned the salute with his wife and daughter.

Although Dong Yuejiao knew the whole process of the funeral, she didn't expect that the mourning of the ministers and their families would be so long. She got up too early in the morning, and only ate a little soup, and after standing for so long and repeatedly bowing her head and thanking the wife, she gradually became a little exhausted. She wanted to rest for a while in the side hall, but she turned her head to look at Ling Li, who was standing on the iceberg next to her and had a sad face, and she didn't dare to speak, so she had to continue to pretend to be a filial daughter-in-law.

After the ministers mourned, the family members of the clan mourned, and then the queen brought the harem concubines into the palace to mourn.

After the concubines gave their condolences, Emperor Chengde's royal car also arrived on time, and the mourning music and golden drums sounded in unison in Ji'an, and the funeral ceremony officially began.

The deacon of the funeral mission removed the lid of the coffin, and Emperor Chengde stepped forward to support the coffin and say his final goodbye to the deceased concubine. After his eyes hurriedly swept over the body of the concubine who had been carefully decorated, he ordered the coffin to be sealed.

"Wait a minute—"

The deacon was about to close the lid of the coffin, but Ling Li stepped forward and raised his hand to stop him, "Father, my mother's neck is bruised, and at first glance, she died of an accident, not a serious illness as mentioned in the urgent edict, and I hope my father will see it." ”

Emperor Chengde looked into the coffin again, and saw that the bruise on the concubine's neck was really obvious, so he frowned.

"Your mother didn't die of illness in the first place," Emperor Chengde had not yet spoken, and Empress Zhao beside him had already said with disdain: "She used witchcraft to cause trouble in the harem and was hanged." Such a disgraceful thing, Your Majesty and the palace originally wanted to cover up the past for her, but since the Third Highness is going to uncover it at this funeral ceremony, the palace will also fulfill you. ”

"Witch Gu troubles the harem, this is a big sin of the Nine Clans." Ling Li sneered, "Dare to ask the queen mother, why didn't my father not only give a severe punishment, but also give my mother the title of loyal and obedient concubine?" ”

"Your Majesty Kuanren, remembering that you have made meritorious contributions in the fierce battle in the western realm, and you can't bear to give sin, you don't want to be grateful for the return, but you actually expose your ugliness and ask aggressively on this mourning hall, what kind of system has it become?!" Empress Zhao reprimanded.

"The matter of the harem witch Gu should be jointly reviewed and verified by the Xuanhui Academy, which is in charge of the palace ban, and the Xuanhui Academy, the envoys of the Inner Palace, dare to ask the queen mother, have they ever issued an inspection document?" Ling Li continued to ask.

"The incident happened suddenly, after the palace searched for the tools of witchcraft in Jiqing Palace, the Imperial City Division and the Xuanhui Yuan did not have time to intervene, and your mother hanged herself in fear of sin. I also reported this to Your Majesty......"

"The queen mother also said that my mother was convicted and hanged, and now she hangs herself in fear of crime?" Ling Li stepped forward and lifted the sleeves of the concubine in the coffin and asked, "Will the arms of those who hang themselves be bruised?!" ”

Emperor Chengde, who was on the side, saw the purple arm of the noble concubine in the coffin, and couldn't help but change his face, turned around and asked Empress Zhao, "What's going on?" ”

"Your Majesty, when the concubine heard the news, she and Concubine Xu Guifei took people to Jiqing Palace to search, and Cheng Zhaoyi and the palace people stopped them with their lives, these traces may have been left when they were persuaded by the eunuchs with heavy hands." After that, Empress Zhao turned to Ling Li and said, "If you repeatedly force me to expose your mother's ugly things, aren't you afraid of losing your royal dignity in public and disturbing her life?" ”

"As soon as the queen mother went to Jiqing Palace, she found a witch magic weapon from the box under my mother's bed. At the end of Shen Shi, he searched for the magic weapon, and at the beginning of the time, my mother and concubine 'committed suicide in fear of crime', and she didn't want to have a chance to plead, and the felony person involved in witchcraft was not taken care of? Succeed in suicide so easily? ”

Emperor Chengde immediately asked Empress Zhao: "Didn't you tell me that Cheng Zhaoyi died when he was a son?" ”

"Your Majesty, the palace servant reported to me that he died when he was a son. Maybe it's a mistake? Empress Zhao said with an innocent face.

Ling Li sneered: "The high-ranking concubines of the harem died unexpectedly, and the eunuchs and palace maids did not report to the Tai Hospital, Xuanhui Academy, and the Imperial City Division for joint inspection, but directly reported the autopsy results to the queen of the middle palace. Not to mention whether my mother committed suicide in fear of sin, just talking about this chaotic harem management, you are seriously derelict in your duties! ”

Empress Zhao's face turned pale when she was asked, and she hurriedly said: "Your Majesty, how can it be your turn to ask about the management of the harem by the palace?" ”

"How you govern the harem has nothing to do with the ministers, but you use the authority of the middle palace to blame the death of my mother and concubine with witchcraft, but you can't help but ask!!"

"Ling Li, you...... You ......" Empress Zhao suddenly turned around and knelt down towards Emperor Chengde, crying: "Your Majesty, please make the decision for your concubines." The third prince suffered from madness due to the loss of his mother, and he bit the concubines indiscriminately, the concubines were really wronged, and Xu Guifei could testify for the concubines......"

"Your Majesty, what the queen mother said is true, the concubine was indeed going to the Jiqing Palace with her that day." Xu Guifei on the side was stunned for a moment, and then knelt on the ground and reported: "The palace maids and eunuchs of Jiqing Palace all know. ”

"It is rumored that the palace maids and eunuchs on duty in Jiqing Palace that day, I want to ask on the spot to understand." Emperor Chengde was originally suspicious of Cheng Zhaoyi's death, but at this moment, after Ling Li thought about it, he also felt that there was something strange about this matter, and immediately asked the eunuch to move the dragon chair and sit down in front of the mourning hall, intending to personally inquire about the matter.

"Your Majesty, I'm afraid I won't understand this matter." The Inner Servant Province knew that Liu Yin leaned down in the ear of Emperor Chengde and said, "The palace maids and eunuchs who served Cheng Zhaoyi in Jiqing Palace have been implicated in witchcraft and have all been killed with a cane. ”

Emperor Chengde was immediately furious: "Who allowed the cane to kill the palace maid and eunuch?!" ”

"Your Majesty, the palace maids and eunuchs of Jiqing Palace knew that Cheng Zhaoyi was practicing witchcraft, neither stopped nor persuaded him, nor reported it in time, seriously violating the palace rules, and the concubine ordered to be killed with a cane in anger, and failed to report it to His Majesty in time, and asked His Majesty to punish the crime."

As the queen of the middle palace, it was within the scope of her duties to order the palace maid and eunuch who committed the crime to be killed, and it was not a crime, so Emperor Chengde ordered: "Summon the personnel who went to Jiqing Palace to investigate the witch Gu case that day, and come over with the evidence and magic weapons that have been found, I want to see what it is!" ”

summoned the eunuch and immediately went to the Xuanhui Courtyard to summon people.