webnovelfull Chapter 433: Lotus Orchid Destroyed
Chapter 433: Lotus Orchid Destroyed
Seeing the panicked look of the palace maid, Jiang Suining's heart skipped a beat.
The next moment, she bowed to Qin again and said, "Madam, I still have some things to deal with regarding the banquet, so I will take my leave first."
When leaving, Jiang Suining glanced at Lu Yan, who understood and followed him.
Qin looked at their backs as they left. Although the palace maid had lowered her voice, she could still vaguely hear Lianbanlan.
Could it be that something went wrong with the lotus orchid sent by Concubine Shu’s mother’s family?
After thinking for a moment, Qin quickly walked towards Concubine Shu's palace.
On the other side, Jiang Suining and Lu Yan left the banquet and quickly walked to the Imperial Garden.
As soon as I approached, I saw that the place where the Cymbidium was placed was in a mess.
Many orchid pots were tilted or even broken.
Many of the orchids that were in full bloom were damaged and fell to the ground, covered in mud.
Only a few are still intact, but most of the leaves are damaged.
There were only five or six pots left that were completely intact.
Seeing this, Lu Yan was shocked, "How could this happen?"
Wei Yao stood aside with a worried look on her face. When she saw Jiang Suining and the others coming over, she walked forward and spoke.
"I just passed by and saw it was like this. It was obviously vandalism."
"Where are the palace maids who were originally assigned to guard here?" Jiang Suining asked with a frown.
"He said that he had a sudden stomachache and went to the toilet. He just came here and is very scared now." Wei Yao pointed to the palace maid who was kneeling on the ground not far to the right with a pale face.
Jiang Suining took a look and then looked away, "Did you find anyone suspicious?"
"Not yet." Wei Yao shook her head and said worriedly, "Now that the flower has become like this, if the Concubine Shu sees it, she will definitely be furious. This birthday party will probably be ruined."
"Not only is the birthday party ruined, but this lotus orchid was carefully cultivated by Concubine Shu's mother's family. If it is destroyed like this, I'm afraid we will all be held responsible." Lu Yan's face was very ugly, and her heart was in a panic. "And I heard that Concubine Shu is quite superstitious. If her favorite flower on her birthday was destroyed, she would probably be even more furious if she thinks it is a bad omen."
Jiang Suining pursed her lips and looked at the orchids in front of her. Before she could say anything, a stern questioning voice suddenly came from behind her.
"How is this going!"
The Concubine Shu, dressed in luxurious palace clothes, appeared behind them. Looking at the destroyed lotus orchid in front of her, her face turned pale in an instant.
"Is this the lotus orchid my father and brother sent me? You are so brave, how could it become like this!"
Qin stood behind Concubine Shu, looking at the orchids on the ground, and spoke with a regretful tone.
"It took a lot of effort to cultivate these lotus orchids at this time of year, but now the birthday banquet has not started yet, and the queen and everyone else have not seen them yet. It's a pity that they are destroyed like this."
"Your Majesty, please forgive me. These flowers were originally placed here perfectly fine, and we don't know why they became like this." Lu Yan quickly knelt down and began to explain.
Jiang Suining and Wei Yao also knelt down.
"Your Highness, these orchids were intact when they were moved from the greenhouse and placed here. Someone must have destroyed them intentionally." Jiang Suining lowered his head and spoke.
Shu Fei was furious. Upon hearing this, she immediately asked, "Who on earth is so bold as to be so arrogant?"
"Please give us some time, Your Majesty. We will definitely find out the truth." Jiang Suining promised.
However, these words naturally failed to dispel Concubine Shu's anger. "Is it enough to just say to check it out? You are the ladies-in-waiting selected by the Empress. I entrusted the birthday banquet to you because I trusted you. But now it has turned out like this, which shows that you have neglected your duties and don't care at all!"
"My Lady, we were really cautious in every way, but we didn't expect someone would sabotage us so deliberately, so..."
Lu Yan wanted to explain, but was interrupted by Concubine Shu before she could finish her words.
"I don't want to hear your excuses. I only know that these orchids were carefully cultivated by my mother's family and were specially sent to the palace to celebrate my birthday. Many people also know about this and are just waiting to see the orchids. Now that the orchids are ruined, where is my dignity? You must be held responsible for this!"
Concubine Shu’s words made Lu Yan and Wei Yao tremble all over.
Just as he was about to open his mouth to plead for mercy, Jiang Suining suddenly looked up at Concubine Shu.
"Your Highness, this matter was indeed our negligence, but today's birthday banquet has not yet begun. Please calm down for now. Your Highness, we will definitely find a way to make amends and will never let Your Highness lose face because of this matter."
"Remedy? How can you remedy it?" Concubine Shu's face looked extremely ugly.
Jiang Suining was silent for a moment, then kowtowed to Concubine Shu again.
"Please rest assured, Your Majesty. I will definitely find a way. If not, I am willing to let Your Majesty deal with it."
"Sui Ning..." Lu Yan called out subconsciously.
Wei Yao also looked at Jiang Suining worriedly.
These flowers have been messed up like this, there is no way to fix it.
Seeing Jiang Suining's confident look, Concubine Shu frowned suspiciously. She still couldn't believe it completely. However, looking at the mess on the ground, she could only try her best.
"Okay, I will trust you for once, but if you fail to save my dignity when everyone is enjoying the flowers, then you will be punished for both crimes!"
"Yes, I understand. Thank you, Your Majesty."
Concubine Shu left the Imperial Garden with a gloomy face. Before leaving, Qin did not forget to look at Jiang Suining, wondering whether she was just delaying for a while or if she really had some other solution.
However, she did not ask, but left with Concubine Shu.
On the other side, He Qingrui, who was originally talking to her mother at the banquet, hurried over after hearing the news. She was frightened when she saw the mess on the ground.
"Who on earth did this? It's so wicked! Are they trying to kill us?"
Lu Yan, Wei Yao and the others no longer cared to find out who had done it and just looked at Jiang Suining with concern.
"Sui Ning, do you really have a solution?"
"It's already ruined like this, what else can we do?" A sarcastic voice sounded.
Only then did they discover that Yang Manman was hiding behind a rockery not far away.
"When did you hide there?" Wei Yao frowned and asked.
"It was not long after the Concubine Shu came. Fortunately, I hid in time." Yang Manman looked gloating.
Lu Yan said dissatisfiedly: "Yang Manman, don't forget your identity. If the Concubine Shu blames you, you will never be able to get away with it."
"What does this have to do with me? I never interfered with Lianbanlan's affairs from beginning to end. If anyone is to blame, it can only be Jiang Suining and Wei Yao. They didn't have the ability but insisted on pretending to be great. Now something has gone wrong."
Yang Manman walked up to the few people, looked at the orchids on the ground, her face full of an expression of watching a good show, and spoke to Jiang Suining.
"If I were you, I would kneel down in front of the Concubine Shu and beg for mercy. Admit your fault quickly. Maybe the Concubine Shu will spare your life!"