Legend of the Embroiderer

Chapter 164 The End of Rumors 3

Su Mengyao and Crown Prince Li Zhao felt as if they were in a turbulent ocean of public opinion. The malicious rumors in the palace surged towards them like a tide, bringing unprecedented pressure and challenges.

Faced with this dilemma, the two men resolutely chose to step forward, vowing to find out the mastermind behind the scenes and clear their own name.

Things were far from as simple as imagined. This vast palace was like an intricate maze, with numerous people and delicate relationships, and the paths of rumor spread were intertwined like a spider web, making it difficult to sort out the clues.

Although Li Zhao and Su Mengyao have ordered their confidants to closely monitor everyone in the palace in secret, the results have been minimal.

The palace maids and eunuchs all had ulterior motives, and in order to avoid getting into trouble, they blamed each other.

Whenever Li Zhao asked about the progress of the investigation, he often received vague and ambiguous answers.

These seemingly plausible news not only failed to help them solve the mystery, but made the situation even more confusing.

At this time, Li Zhao was sitting alone in the study, his face solemn and his brows tightly furrowed, as if two deep grooves were carved on his handsome face.

His eyes, which were originally bright and lively, were now shrouded in anxiety, flashing with uneasiness from time to time.

He kept urging his confidants to step up their investigations, but the results were always disappointing.

Li Zhao's mind was as clear as a mirror. He knew that the person who started the rumors was most likely hiding in some inconspicuous corner of the palace.

In this huge palace, every seemingly ordinary and unremarkable palace servant may be harboring ulterior motives.

However, it is not easy to accurately identify the real culprit among the vast sea of ​​palace servants!

This problem was like a huge, heavy stone mountain, pressing mercilessly on his heart, making him feel like he was about to suffocate.

Su Mengyao, who is in the palace, is also in trouble and encounters the same difficult and troublesome problems.

She knew very well that if she wanted to dispel the layers of fog before her and find out the real situation hidden behind it, she had to get valuable key clues from the mouths of those palace maids.

With this idea in mind, she tried again and again to communicate with the palace maids, hoping to gain insight into everything they knew.

But things went against her wishes, and the final result made her feel extremely disappointed. Every time she asked the palace maids for news with great anticipation, these maids would either stammer, evade her words, or be vague.

Or they would just shake their heads like rattles and categorically deny having heard even a single rumor.

Su Mengyao knew in her heart that the reason these palace maids were so cautious was simply because they were afraid of getting into trouble and being unnecessarily implicated by talking too much.

After all, the palace was full of twists and turns, and a single misstep could lead to ruin. But she didn't give up, and continued to persevere in finding a way out.

The next day, the sun was shining brightly and the breeze was gentle. Su Mengyao was strolling in the imperial garden. Suddenly, she noticed a young palace maid standing not far ahead.

The palace maiden looked panicked and worried, as if she was under tremendous psychological pressure.

Su Mengyao felt pity and slowly walked forward, asking softly, "Sister, you look so worried, I'm sure you've encountered something troublesome. Could you tell me what exactly happened?"

The palace maid was originally doing the work in her hands with her head down, when she suddenly heard a soft sound of footsteps coming from afar, and she subconsciously raised her head.

At this moment, her eyes unexpectedly met Su Mengyao's eyes, which were as gentle as water, as warm as spring breeze, and full of concern.

In an instant, the maid's heart was like being struck by lightning, and an indescribable gratitude quickly flashed across her eyes.

Then, the maid timidly opened her lips, and after hesitating for a long time, she mustered up the courage to whisper:

"Empress, I... I truly deserve death! A few days ago, I accidentally overheard some words that I shouldn't have heard. Since then, I have lived in constant fear, terrified that this incident would bring me death!"

As she said this, the palace maid's body trembled involuntarily, and even her voice trembled slightly, revealing the extreme fear and anxiety in her heart.

Su Mengyao frowned slightly at the sight, a hint of pity etched in her eyes. She hurried forward, gracefully extending her delicate, jade-white hands to gently grasp the maid's, which was slightly cold from nervousness and fear.

In an extremely gentle tone, she comforted him, "Don't be afraid, little girl. If there's anything wrong, just tell me. As long as you tell me everything you've heard, I will definitely take care of it for you. Don't worry, as long as everything you say is true, I will never let anyone hurt you."

Su Mengyao's tone was firm and powerful, like a towering mountain, giving people an unshakable sense of trust.

Her words contained endless warmth, just like a ray of warm sunshine that penetrated through layers of dark clouds in winter and sprinkled on the earth, easily dispelling the heavy haze that had shrouded the palace maid's heart for a long time, making the palace maid's hanging heart finally slowly settle down, and she suddenly felt unprecedented peace of mind.

The palace maid nodded slightly, opened her red lips, and slowly told the rumors she had heard in the palace.

The palace maiden looked nervous and lowered her voice unconsciously, as if she was afraid of being heard by others.

Su Mengyao listened attentively, her beautiful eyes fixed on the palace maid, not missing any details.

As the palace maid spoke, a clear picture gradually emerged in Su Mengyao's mind.

She knew very well that these seemingly groundless rumors did not come out of thin air, and there must be an invisible black hand behind them manipulating them in secret.

Who is this black hand? What is its ulterior motive? Su Mengyao pondered secretly.

After a thorough investigation, Su Mengyao and Li Zhao finally succeeded in identifying several suspicious characters.

They knew very well that this fierce struggle had just begun.

Every subsequent step is crucial, and any mistake will lead to a complete failure.

They must be extremely alert and move forward carefully, and must not miss any clues that may be the key to solving the case.

At the same time, you must always be wary of traps and snares set by the enemy to avoid falling into an irretrievable situation.