Rebirth and Reversal of Fortune

Chapter 162 Sowing discord

Some people with ulterior motives in the court took the opportunity to sow discord and slander Su Jinxiu and Xiao Ling in front of the emperor, further aggravating the emperor's suspicions.

Deep within the magnificent palace, several ministers surrounded the emperor, their expressions enigmatic.

"Your Majesty, Su Jinxiu and Xiao Ling appear to be a united couple, but in reality, they each harbor their own ulterior motives. As far as I know, Xiao Ling desires to seize sole power in the Marquis's mansion, while Su Jinxiu is secretly cultivating her own influence. The conflict between them is imminent," a minister said obsequiously.

Upon hearing this, the emperor frowned even more deeply: "Is that really so?"

Another minister quickly chimed in, "Your Majesty, this is absolutely true. The Marquis's mansion is growing in power; if the couple were to turn against each other, it would surely cause chaos."

These slanderous words pierced the emperor's heart like poisoned arrows, deepening his suspicions of Su Jinxiu and Xiao Ling.

Inside the Marquis's residence, Su Jinxiu and Xiao Ling were completely unaware of this clandestine conspiracy.

"My lord, the emperor is now suspicious of us, so we must be even more cautious," Su Jinxiu said worriedly.

Xiao Ling held her hand and comforted her, "Don't worry, Madam. As long as we do the right thing, we will surely get through this ordeal."

However, what they didn't know was that a much bigger crisis was approaching.

Those who sow discord began spreading rumors among the people, saying that Su Jinxiu and Xiao Ling had long been at odds in order to compete for the Marquis's property.

"I heard that there is a lot of infighting within the Marquis's mansion, and Su Jinxiu and Xiao Ling are about to become enemies."

"That's right, the Marquis's mansion is probably going to be in chaos."

These rumors spread like wildfire and soon reached the emperor's ears.

The emperor was furious: "What kind of Marquis's mansion is this? How dare they cause such trouble right under my nose!"

Therefore, the emperor issued another decree, summoning Su Jinxiu and Xiao Ling to the palace.

Su Jinxiu and Xiao Ling were filled with trepidation upon receiving the imperial decree.

"This trip to the palace is likely to end badly," Su Jinxiu said.

Xiao Ling took a deep breath: "Don't worry, Madam, I will protect you no matter what."

Upon entering the palace, the emperor, with a gloomy expression, asked directly, "I've heard that you and your husband are not getting along. Is that true?"

Su Jinxiu and Xiao Ling hurriedly knelt down to defend themselves: "Your Majesty, this is a rumor. My wife and I have always been of one mind and have never had any disloyal intentions."

The emperor sneered, "Hmph, empty words are no proof; how can I believe them?"

Just then, a minister stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, I have evidence to prove that the couple is not getting along."

As he spoke, he presented some so-called "evidence".

Su Jinxiu and Xiao Ling were both shocked and furious when they saw the fabricated evidence.

"Your Majesty, this is clearly a frame-up. We beg Your Majesty to investigate thoroughly!"

But the emperor was already blinded by slander and wouldn't listen to a word.

"I'm giving you a chance. If you can prove your innocence, I'll spare you. Otherwise, don't blame me for being ruthless!"

Su Jinxiu and Xiao Ling knew that proving their innocence would not be easy, but they had no choice but to find a way out of this predicament.

Upon returning to the Marquis's residence, they began investigating the mastermind behind the incident.

"Who on earth is so ruthless as to want to kill us?" Xiao Ling said angrily.

After some investigation, they discovered that the mastermind behind all of this was a high-ranking minister in the court who had always been jealous of the Marquis's status and wanted to take the opportunity to bring the Marquis's family down.

"So it was him who was behind this. We must not let him succeed," Su Jinxiu said.

They decided to gather evidence to expose the minister's conspiracy.

During this process, they encountered various assassination attempts and traps.

"Watch out!" Xiao Ling pulled Su Jinxiu behind him, and a hidden arrow grazed past them.

"These people really will stop at nothing," Su Jinxiu said, still shaken.

But they did not back down and eventually found the key evidence.

When they entered the palace to meet the emperor again, the emperor's attitude remained indifferent.

“Your Majesty, I have found evidence proving that this was all a setup.” Su Jinxiu presented the evidence.

After reading it, the emperor's expression softened slightly, but his doubts were not completely dispelled.

Even so, the Marquis's mansion still needs to reflect on its own actions.

Su Jinxiu and Xiao Ling knew that there was still a long way to go to completely dispel the emperor's suspicions.

And what kind of wicked scheme will the mastermind devise to deal with the Marquis's mansion when his conspiracy is exposed?