"Your Majesty, please save Princess Anru!" Concubine Shu saw Emperor An emerge and rushed forward, kneeling and sobbing uncontrollably.
"Get up. Crying and making a scene here, what sort of conduct is this?" Emperor An said coldly.
Concubine Shu, supported by palace maids, stood up. "Your Majesty, save Anru..."
"What happened to Anru?" Emperor An asked in a stern voice.
Concubine Shu cried, "Princess Anru is missing. I can't find her anywhere, it's as if she vanished into thin air."
"Nonsense. How can a living person just vanish into thin air?"
Emperor An was furious. This was the imperial palace, not the common folk's quarters. It was filled with elite imperial guards and royal guards. If the princess could go missing within the palace, it would mean the royal family was incompetent, the Emperor incompetent, unable to protect his own daughter.
Concubine Shu cried even harder. "Princess Anru is truly missing."
"What about her attending maids? Call them over. I will ask," Emperor An said, his face ashen.
Soon, Ruyi, the palace maid attending Princess Anru, walked over. "This servant greets Your Majesty!" Ruyi met Emperor An's gaze, trembling slightly.
Emperor An said coldly, "Were you always with Princess Anru?"
Ruyi nodded. "Yes, Your Majesty."
"Where did Princess Anru go last?" Emperor An asked.
Ruyi paused, her eyes darting towards a certain direction before quickly lowering her head. Emperor An narrowed his eyes and said sternly, "Speak..."
Concubine Shu also rushed forward, grabbing Ruyi's arm and crying out, "Tell us, tell us..."
"It was... it was Anning Palace..."
"Presumptuous..." Emperor An was utterly enraged.
Frightened, Ruyi fell to her knees, begging, "Your Majesty, this servant is not lying. It was indeed Anning Palace."
Emperor An's gaze turned cold. He looked at Ruyi and said, "What happened after Anning Palace? You weren't following?"
Ruyi trembled all over. "Yes, the Princess ordered this servant not to follow."
"Do you know that deceiving the emperor is a grave crime?" Emperor An said coldly.
Ruyi's head hit the ground with a loud thud, her forehead quickly showing a patch of red. "This servant is not lying and dares not deceive Your Majesty."
"Your Majesty, because it concerns Princess Anning, you refuse to believe it?" Concubine Shu looked up at Emperor An, her gaze filled with an unprecedented despair.
Emperor An raised his eyes. "Concubine Shu, do you know what you are saying?"
"This servant knows. This servant has always been clear," Concubine Shu said, word by word.
Emperor An's expression was very grim. He said, "Concubine Shu, you are ill. Severely ill. Guards, escort Concubine Shu back to her palace."
Concubine Shu broke free from the palace maids and lunged in front of Emperor An, shouting loudly, "Anning is your princess, but is Anru not? Is she not?"
"Yes, and that is why I cannot wrongly accuse Anning, nor can I let Anru's disappearance remain unexplained."
"Not wrongly accuse? Anru's last destination was Anning Palace. Isn't it obvious? Your Majesty, how long do you intend to protect her?" Concubine Shu screamed hysterically.
Emperor An frowned and said coldly, "Concubine Shu, you are quite unwell. Guards, escort Concubine Shu back."
Palace maids stepped forward to pull Concubine Shu away. She pushed them aside and shouted angrily, "Your Majesty, do you only have Anning in your heart? What about Anru? She is also your princess..."
"Escort her back," Emperor An said coldly.
"Father Emperor..."
Emperor An turned and saw a young girl approaching hastily from not far away. Upon recognizing the girl's identity, he quickly said, "Still not going back."
"Father Emperor, Princess Anru is missing, is that right?" Anning asked as she walked closer.
At this moment, Concubine Shu broke free from the maids' grasp and rushed forward, slapping Anning fiercely.
Anning heard a crisp sound, and the pain on her face spread throughout her entire body.
"You ill-bred person! Give Anru back to me, give her back to me..."
Seeing this, Emperor An's gaze turned frigid. He shouted, "Pull her away! Pull her away..."
Concubine Shu was pulled away, but she continued to shout angrily, "Anru was so good to you, how could you harm her?"
Anning looked at Concubine Shu and said, word by word, "Your Highness Concubine Shu, I did not harm Second Princess. I only just learned that Second Princess is missing."
"Nonsense. Then tell me, did Anru go to your palace?"
"Yes..."
"When did she leave?" Concubine Shu asked angrily.
Anning shook her head. "I truly do not know, because Father Emperor called me away. Sister Shumo by Father Emperor's side can testify."
"Shuxiang, go and summon Shumo." Emperor An's expression was grim. If not for Anning, his little Anning, subtly nudging him, he would have slapped Concubine Shu back. He had never even hit his own little Anning.
Soon, a hurried Shuxiang arrived, her face filled with terror. Anning frowned, feeling a sense of foreboding.
Shuxiang seemed distraught. Her legs gave out, and she knelt on the ground. Emperor An, seeing this, sensed something was amiss and quickly asked, "Where is Shumo?"
Shuxiang trembled all over, her speech stuttering. "Shu... Shumo is dead."
Emperor An's eyes were filled with deep coldness. He said, "Lead the way. I want to see."
Shuxiang led the way, and soon they arrived at Shumo's room. There, Shumo lay on the bed, her eyes wide open, staring fixedly ahead. It seemed she had struggled in her final moments, her hands still held in their last positions.
"Where is the imperial physician?" Emperor An turned and asked sternly.
Soon, an imperial physician entered. Before he could bow, Emperor An said, "No need to bow. Go and see if there is anything unusual."
The imperial physician stepped forward. After a while, he walked over and bowed. "Your Majesty, Miss Shumo was strangled. The killer did not use much force; it was the strength of a woman."
"Who are you?" A guard's voice was heard from outside.
Soon, guards entered and bowed to Emperor An. "Your Majesty, we have found a palace maid acting suspiciously outside." Da Feng Novel Network.
"Bring her in," Emperor An said coldly.
Soon, a palace maid was brought in. Looking at the maid, Anning felt a sense of familiarity, as this maid was from her palace.
Rong Cui, standing beside her, also recognized the maid and whispered into Anning's ear, "Your Highness, this is Xiangcao, from Anning Palace."
Emperor An glanced at the trembling palace maid and asked coldly, "Which palace are you from? Why were you acting suspiciously outside? Lift your head and answer me."
The palace maid was flustered and bewildered. When she looked up and saw Anning, she crawled to her feet, begging, "Your Highness, save this servant, save me..."
Anning glanced at her, her gaze as light as flowing water, without a ripple, yet clear as the bottom of a pool.
"Your... Your Highness..."
"Aren't you Shuxiang from Princess Anning's palace? State your grievance, and Father Emperor will see justice done," Anping said, supporting the Imperial Noble Consort as she walked in.
The Imperial Noble Consort approached Emperor An and bowed. "Your Majesty, this is my dereliction of duty. For such an incident to occur under my management of the harem, I am deeply ashamed."
Emperor An looked at the Imperial Noble Consort and said, "This is not your fault. Rise."
The Imperial Noble Consort stood up and looked at Xiangcao. "Speak whatever you have to say. His Majesty and I will ensure justice for you here."