With the principal making the on - the - spot accusation, the faces of the Princess of Lin'an and some ladies who had just spoken up for Xiao Jingwan instantly turned ugly.
Xiao Bao'er saw the angry little face of the Sixteenth Princess and a flash of surprise crossed her eyes. She had a clear view from the rockery. It was the Sixteenth Princess who slipped on her own and accidentally fell into the water. Why was she now saying that Xiao Jingwan had pushed her?
Ting Zhu and Ting Feng were both furious. They still remembered how confidently Xiao Jingwan had claimed that she had nothing to do with the princess's fall into the water. They had even felt that they had wrongly accused someone in the end. How thick - skinned this Xiao Jingwan was!
Xiao Jingwan stared wide - eyed at the Sixteenth Princess in disbelief. "Your Highness, what are you talking about? I never got close to you from beginning to end. How could I have pushed you into the water?!"
Hearing Xiao Jingwan's words, the Sixteenth Princess got even angrier. She burst into tears right in front of everyone. "It was you! You bad woman! Wuwuwu. You said you didn't like seeing me so close to Sister Bao'er. In a fit of anger, you pushed me in and said that since there was no one around, no one would find out it was you. Wuwu."
After saying that, she threw herself into Xiao Bao'er's arms, looking extremely scared. "I'm so scared. I almost couldn't see my mother - concubine."
Seeing that the Sixteenth Princess was so logical in her account, people's hearts changed once again. The Sixteenth Princess was only a five - year - old child. Could she lie?
If not, then it must have been Xiao Jingwan who did it.
What was wrong with the girls from the Xiao family? First, Xiao Jinghui's strange illness had been discovered. Now, Xiao Jingwan was accused by the Sixteenth Princess of being the one who pushed her into the water. There were only four girls from the Xiao family here today, and now only two were left...
The Princess of Lin'an was so angry that she even wanted to strangle Xiao Jingwan. These two sisters were here to jinx her today. Not only had none of their plans succeeded, but now she had even helped a wrongdoer get away with it.
Thinking of this, the Princess of Lin'an's disgust for the two sisters from the second branch of the Xiao family had reached its peak.
Xiao Jingwan wanted to stand up and explain to everyone, but as she stood up, she sprained her foot and fell heavily back to the ground. However, this embarrassing state did not arouse anyone's sympathy. Facing everyone's cold looks, Xiao Jingwan felt chilled to the bone.
She had to clear herself of the suspicion of pushing the princess into the water, or else the Consort Hui and the Emperor would never let her off lightly!
So, Xiao Jingwan crawled on all fours to the Sixteenth Princess's side, forcing a stiff smile in an attempt to look kinder.
But in the Sixteenth Princess's eyes, this look made Xiao Jingwan seem as hideous as a yaksha.
Xiao Jingwan grabbed the Sixteenth Princess with both hands and explained frantically, "Your Highness, please listen to me. I didn't push you into the water. You fell in by yourself, right? How can you slander me for something I didn't do?"
The Sixteenth Princess didn't listen to Xiao Jingwan's explanation at all. She was so scared that she shouted out loud. Although Xiao Bao'er didn't understand the Sixteenth Princess's intention, she still cooperated and protected the Sixteenth Princess in her arms, blocking Xiao Jingwan's outstretched hands.
This scene was seen by everyone, and it seemed as if a bad woman had done something bad and was threatening others not to tell the truth.
Ting Zhu and Ting Feng saw how scared the Sixteenth Princess was. They grabbed Xiao Jingwan away and angrily stood in front of the Sixteenth Princess and Xiao Bao'er.
Xiao Bao'er was afraid that the Sixteenth Princess was really scared by Xiao Jinghui, so she quickly lowered her head to comfort this aggrieved little one. But when their eyes met, Xiao Bao'er didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
The little girl who was still crying and making a fuss was now looking at Xiao Bao'er slyly and even gave her a smug smile. There was no sign of fear at all. She clearly looked like someone who had done something bad.
Now Xiao Bao'er understood. The Sixteenth Princess must have somehow known that Xiao Jingwan had watched her fall into the water without offering help, so she had come out to accuse her.
Xiao Bao'er helplessly tapped the Sixteenth Princess's little nose, and then tried her best to cooperate with her performance, playing the role of a kind and loving elder sister who was extremely heart - broken and comforting her younger sister in a soft voice. The timely tears and heart - ache in her eyes made the two hugging each other look extremely vulnerable.
This made the people around them feel even more heart - broken for them, and their sense of justice was instantly aroused.
"The princess is of noble birth. Why would she slander a daughter of an official family?"
"That's right. It's already early autumn. Even though she was wrapped in a cloak, the Sixteenth Princess must still be cold. If she didn't really have a huge grievance to clarify in person, why would she accompany us here in the wind?"
After saying that, everyone looked at Xiao Bao'er and the Sixteenth Princess. Instantly, they acted like drama queens. One coughed, the other sneezed, and they were shivering all over, looking extremely pitiful.
The hearts of all the ladies melted. They were even more rude to Xiao Jinghui. So what if she was the niece of Prime Minister Xiao? The Prime Minister's own daughter was the savior of the Sixteenth Princess.
They were both daughters of the Xiao family, but they had such different characters. With Xiao Bao'er as a contrast, people's looks towards Xiao Jingwan were even more unfriendly.
"This matter is of great importance. Since it involves a princess, we still need to report it to the palace and let the Emperor and the Consort Hui decide."
"Right, right. Let's send her to the palace. With the Consort Hui and the Emperor there, let's see how she can still quibble!"
With everyone's agreement, Ting Zhu and Ting Feng stepped closer to Xiao Jingwan step by step, trying to arrest her and take her to the palace.
Xiao Jingwan waved her hands and looked around in disbelief. "You just believe I'm guilty based on the princess's one - sided story. I'm not convinced! I'm not convinced!!"
Seeing that Xiao Jingwan was still so stubborn even when facing doom, the ladies said rudely, "Let's see if Miss Xiao can still be so stubborn after she enters the palace and experiences the interrogation methods of the Inner Court Department."
Ting Zhu continued, "Miss Xiao, the Inner Court Department has a total of 180 punishments for those who won't talk, such as the needle punishment, the whip punishment... If Miss Xiao can endure all of them and still not change her story, then what she says might be a bit more believable."
180 punishments?!
And she had to endure all of them to be a bit believable?!
If she endured all of them, would she still be alive?!
Although she was a young lady in the boudoir, she had heard of these punishments.
The needle punishment meant inserting the largest sewing needle bit by bit along the nail bed. Since the fingers were connected to the heart, this punishment, although it wouldn't kill a person, would torture them to the extreme.
Thinking of this, Xiao Jinghui felt a pain in her nail beds. Just imagining it, she could already picture what would happen to her if she entered the hell - like Inner Court Department.
So she shouted at everyone like a crazy person, "I didn't push the princess into the water!!"
"I saw it with my own eyes! She fell in by herself!!"