Shen Qing said, "I heard that Uncle Third has done quite a lot of things for the people during his tenure in the past few years, though he hasn't achieved any great feats. I reckon he'll be back in the capital next year."
These words really hit the spot with Mrs. Xing, making her extremely happy. "I'll take your kind words, Madam."
Seeing that Mrs. Xing had defected to Shen Qing, Mrs. Ge also said, "Madam, previously I was outspoken and said a lot of unpleasant things. Please don't take it to heart. Our Second Branch will also follow your lead."
Mrs. Xing and Mrs. Ge, who used to flatter her, had both switched sides to Shen Qing. The old lady was so angry that she fainted on the spot.
Shen Qing lowered her eyelashes to hide the contempt in her eyes. The old lady fainted at just the right time, but fainting wouldn't help.
"Carry the old lady back to the Renshou Hall and invite a doctor to the mansion."
Shen Qing's move of killing the chicken to scare the monkeys was really effective. The Marquis Mansion remained very peaceful for quite a while after that, and no one dared to cause any trouble.
Now, after Mrs. Wei left the main hall, her heart was still pounding. She recalled that sometimes when Mrs. Zhang chatted with her, the topic always drifted towards the madam. At that time, she thought Mrs. Zhang wanted to curry favor with the madam and squeeze her out, so she didn't tell her much truth. Now it seemed...
Fortunately, she had been cautious!
Mrs. Zhang, she should be someone from Prince Jin's camp. After all, they were all from the same place.
But she was a bit depressed. How could someone as gentle and quiet as Mrs. Zhang be selected, while she, who was so beautiful, wasn't chosen by Prince Jin to be a spy?
Now it seemed that currying favor with the madam was the wisest choice. No, she would go back and stew some soup right now!
Whether the madam drank it or not was up to the madam, but whether she made it or not was up to her!
Shen Qing thought that Ji Junye would be very busy during this period and she wouldn't see him for several days. But he came that very night.
"Is the imperial concubine so bold?"
She dared to use such a powerful drug. Her end was predictable.
Ji Junye sneered. "She's reaping what she sowed."
"Indeed."
In this life after her rebirth, she wouldn't show any sympathy for someone like the imperial concubine. The imperial concubine had tried to take her and her child's lives. The only reason she hadn't taken action against her was that she hadn't had the time.
She would never let go of anyone who tried to harm her and her child!
Ji Junye had so many things to do. He only stayed in the Zhuoying Courtyard for a while and then left. It was the same for the next few days. Shen Qing advised him once, saying that since he was busy, he didn't need to come. She didn't need to be accompanied every day.
But when she met Ji Junye's resentful gaze...
Forget it. If he wanted to come, he could. Anyway, it wasn't her who was being worn out.
Seeing Mrs. Zhang's miserable state, everyone in the Marquis Mansion felt uneasy for a while. Jiang Chan was busy with the household affairs and taking care of the child. She rolled up the curtains and stayed in her room. Mrs. Wei ran to Shen Qing's place all day long, either bringing soup or snacks. She was happy to do so even if she was turned away every time.
...
"Your Majesty, Prince Seventh requests an audience."
"Let him in."
Prince Seventh looked at the solemn imperial study. His legs were trembling a bit, but thinking of his purpose, he still mustered up the courage and walked over.
"I, your humble younger brother, pay my respects to Your Majesty."
Ji Junye wasn't so strict with children, especially a child like Prince Seventh who had once had a similar experience to his. Moreover, in this incident, he had been used by the Xiao family.
"Get up and sit down."
Prince Seventh got up as he was told, but didn't dare to sit.
"What's the matter?"
Prince Seventh stammered, "Your Majesty, I, I heard that the imperial concubine has made a mistake. The master said that no one is perfect and everyone makes mistakes. Could Your Majesty give her a chance to repent?"
Ji Junye looked up from his official business. His tone was a bit cold. "You're here to plead for the imperial concubine? Who taught you this?"
Prince Seventh was already afraid of this elder brother. Being stared at by him like this, he was almost on the verge of crying. "No, no one taught me. I came here on my own..."
"Why do you plead for her?"
Seeing that his elder brother didn't blame him, Prince Seventh got a bit bolder, but still nervously twisted the corner of his sleeve. "Because in the whole palace, only the imperial concubine is kind to me. During these days in the Ganquan Palace, no one gave me leftover and moldy food. The imperial concubine even had someone make warm clothes for me..."
Ji Junye fell silent.
He had never withheld the allowances of Prince Sixth and Prince Seventh. Even the lowest-ranking servants in the palace didn't live like this, let alone an eight-year-old child!
Ji Junye's eyes were dark and his face was as cold as ice. Those who were familiar with him knew that this was a sign of his anger.
"Where are the servants who serve you?"
There was a mist in Prince Seventh's eyes. "They all ignore me. Xiaoluzi goes gambling every day. The nanny doesn't care about me either. She even steals my food..."
"Come here!"
Wei Chun rushed in. "Your servant is here."
"The servants who serve Prince Seventh closely will be executed by slow slicing. The rest will all be beaten to death with sticks. Execute them on the palace path so that all the servants can see what the end of those who mistreat their masters will be!"
"Yes." It was the first time for Wei Chun to see the emperor so angry. He didn't dare to delay and rushed to carry out the order.
Ji Junye looked at Prince Seventh again. His tone softened a bit. "I'll have someone select some new servants for you. From now on, you'll study in the Guangji Hall. No one will bully you again."
Prince Seventh's eyes were filled with tears of gratitude. "Thank you, Your Majesty."
Whoever said that the emperor was a bad person was wrong. The emperor was so kind to him.
"What about the imperial concubine..."
"She has committed a serious crime. I gave her a chance before, but she didn't know how to repent."
Prince Seventh couldn't have thought of coming to see him on his own. There must be someone whispering something in his ear.
The Xiao family...
And the harem also needed to be rectified.
That day, the palace path was dyed red with blood. After the execution, the servants washed it more than a dozen times before the smell of blood was removed.
In the Ganquan Palace.
Concubine Xiao was lying in bed, covered only with a thin quilt. The exposed parts of her body were full of traces of abuse, which were shocking. Her throat was hoarse from crying, and her face was ashen.
The effect of the drug was too strong. No matter how much she cried or tried to escape, she was finally caught back.
The emperor was really so cruel to her...
She was already defiled now. How could she have the face to live in this world?
She endured the discomfort of her body and got out of bed. She changed into a dress she had worn when she first entered the palace. She still remembered how full of hope she had been when she entered the palace. Now...
It could never go back.
A white silk was hung on the beam.
Let it end.
She kicked over the stool. The feeling of suffocation came, but it was not as numb as the pain in her heart.
Just as she made a sound, the door was kicked open from the outside. A dagger flew over and neatly cut the white silk.
Concubine Xiao also fell to the ground and coughed violently.
"Why did you save me?!"
The one guarding her was Hong Ling, who had once replaced Zhuxing for a few days. "The emperor has ordered that if Concubine Xiao commits suicide, the entire Xiao family will be executed and their property confiscated."
"The emperor... won't even let me die?"
Hong Ling turned her head away in disgust. Daring to use that kind of thing on the emperor, death would be too good for her.
"Although your maternal grandfather's Chen family has already been executed and their property confiscated for illegal land enclosure and oppressing the people, the Xiao family is still alive. How could you, Concubine, let the old people see their children die?"
As Hong Ling said, she got closer to Concubine Xiao. She made a cut on her arm with the dagger and then released the things in her purse.
Concubine Xiao looked at the wriggling bugs as small as rice grains and retreated in horror. "Don't come closer, don't come closer!"
But she was grabbed back by Hong Ling.
"The emperor said that you should reap what you sowed. Don't worry. This blood parasite won't kill you quickly. It will just multiply in your blood vessels and suck your blood until it has sucked all the blood out..."
Concubine Xiao let out a shrill scream, but Hong Ling's hand was like an iron arm. She couldn't break free at all. She could only watch helplessly as the bug crawled into her body through the wound.
She couldn't hold on any longer. Her eyes rolled up and she fainted.