On the handkerchief, there was actually a complete erotic picture!
The naked man and woman were intertwined, locked in passionate embrace, an indescribably lewd scene.
The unmarried young ladies shrieked and covered their eyes.
The men who admired and respected Cheng Simian looked at each other in disbelief, staring at her with wide - eyed shock.
Concubine Lan was startled. She exaggeratedly feigned shock and said, "Miss Cheng is highly regarded by the Empress. How could she carry such obscene things with her?"
The Empress's face was as cold as ice. She lifted her eyelids and glanced at the Crown Prince, her eyes full of confusion, as if asking, "You invited me here early in the morning just for this? What kind of scheme are you up to?"
The Crown Prince stood firm, his eyes dark and menacing. His handsome face seemed to be brewing a storm.
Sure enough, everything was as Mianmian had predicted!
With the two most noble people, the Empress and the Crown Prince, present, no one dared to be the first to speak rashly.
After a long while, Lu Siming broke the silence.
"Bold Xueying! Such a private thing. Instead of hiding it and quietly returning it to Miss Cheng, why did you embarrass her in front of everyone?"
He was usually calm and gentle, but this time, his words were a cold and harsh scolding.
Xueying was so frightened that she kept kowtowing, not to Lu Siming but to Cheng Simian.
"Sorry, Miss Cheng. I'm young and inexperienced. I didn't know what this picture meant. I just thought you had a unique taste and liked to see such 'fights between fairies'..."
The master and the servant played their roles in harmony, insinuating that Cheng Simian had carried obscene things.
Lu Siming lost his warm and gentle smile. He stared at Xueying coldly.
"Xueying is so reckless in her actions. I've wasted my trust in you. Guards, drag her out and beat her severely!"
Xueying crawled on all fours towards Cheng Simian. She grabbed tightly onto her skirt and pleaded pitifully, "Miss, please spare me. I really didn't mean to embarrass you!"
Her wailing echoed throughout the villa, drowning out the gentle gurgling of the water.
Every plea for mercy was like a repetition, emphasizing to everyone that this was Cheng Simian's handkerchief.
Her mistake was that she shouldn't have returned the handkerchief in public, not anything else.
If Cheng Simian pleaded for her, it would mean admitting that she had carried obscene things, and even her reputation for being virtuous and kind - hearted couldn't cover up the fact that she was lewd.
If she didn't plead for her, it would make her seem both lewd and heartless, blaming Xueying for embarrassing her in public.
Qin Xuanyan was so excited that her whole body trembled. When she opened her mouth, her voice was quivering with excitement. "Your Majesty, the Empress, did you see? Cheng Simian is a seductress with evil intentions. She pretends to be a gentle and well - bred young lady, but in fact, she is more promiscuous than a brothel girl. She must have used this obscene thing to seduce the Crown Prince!"
Qin Ziqi's heart tightened. He nervously glanced at the Empress and tugged at Qin Xuanyan's sleeve, signaling her to shut up.
Cheng Simian was the candidate for the Crown Princess chosen by the Empress. For her to do such a shameless thing and be exposed in public would also make the Empress lose face.
Everyone understood this but didn't say it out loud. The Empress's dignity was the dignity of the royal family. Qin Xuanyan, just for the sake of a moment of pleasure, insisted on exposing it.
She didn't realize that by insulting Cheng Simian at this moment, she would only make the Empress more and more disgusted with her!
Qin Xuanyan was completely unaware of her gaffe. She still argued vehemently, like a moral judge. "Your Majesty, the Empress, please make a fair judgment. How can such a shameless woman be the Crown Princess?"
The Empress's eyebrows knitted into a knot, and there was a hint of dissatisfaction in her voice.
"What on earth is going on?"
She only stared at the handkerchief on the ground, as if asking Cheng Simian or the Crown Prince.
Cheng Simian's eyes were clear. In the face of the storm, she seemed untouched, calm and composed.
She lowered her eyes and looked at Xueying. "You're mistaken. This isn't my handkerchief."
The restless crowd suddenly fell silent.
Everyone looked shocked and stunned.
"Miss, your handkerchief was indeed left on the water corridor. I've retrieved it for you," Qiluo appeared in time, holding another handkerchief and presenting it in front of Cheng Simian.
Cheng Simian didn't reach out. The Crown Prince took it.
"Yes, this one that Qiluo retrieved is Mianmian's handkerchief."
Xueying stared blankly with her mouth open. She picked up the handkerchief with the erotic picture on the ground and then looked up at the one in the Crown Prince's hand.
Both handkerchiefs were made of rain - silk brocade. The embroidery patterns and colors were almost the same. The only difference was that the one with the erotic picture had five embroidered flowers, while Cheng Simian's had three.
The Crown Prince's personal verification was authoritative, and no one dared to question it.
Xueying's eyes involuntarily turned to Lu Siming.
Lu Siming was also caught off guard by this sudden turn of events.
Her mind was in a complete mess. What had gone wrong?
When she had helped Cheng Simian change clothes earlier, the one she had secretly taken was the one with five flowers...
Why was there another one with three flowers?
But since the Crown Prince had said that the handkerchief with three flowers was Cheng Simian's, how could she openly oppose the Crown Prince?
She couldn't say that the handkerchief with five flowers was stolen from Cheng Simian either, because then she would become a suspect in tampering with the handkerchief.
The Empress suddenly understood. She had been observing coldly and had already noticed something fishy.
Now that Cheng Simian's real handkerchief had been found, having spent years in the deep palace and being used to all the intrigues, she now saw everything clearly.
It was a brilliant move of turning the tables. It seemed that Mianmian was not only kind and generous but also intelligent and wise.
Concubine Lan was completely flustered.
This unexpected turn of events completely disrupted the script they had carefully planned in advance.
The story didn't unfold as they had envisioned, and they were completely on the defensive.
Cheng Simian's calm gaze swept across the various faces one by one.
This was the moment to truly show her kindness and magnanimity.
She motioned for Qiluo to help Xueying up and calmly explained to everyone, "This kind of handkerchief pattern has been quite popular in the capital recently. Many young ladies have them. At first glance, they look very similar. It's understandable that Xueying, in a hurry, mistook someone else's handkerchief for mine."
Xueying was completely dazed. She was only eager to clear herself of the blame. "Yes, yes, yes. I made a mistake..."
But by saying this, she was basically slapping Lu Siming in the face.
When she had rushed up to return the handkerchief to Cheng Simian earlier, Lu Siming hadn't suspected at all. His words had clearly implied that the handkerchief was Cheng Simian's.
He had only blamed Xueying for being reckless and revealing this shameful secret.
Now that Xueying had said this, and thinking back on Lu Siming's words, everyone's expressions became rather meaningful.
The Empress gave Cheng Simian an approving smile.
"Then whose handkerchief is this one with the obscene picture?"
Qin Ziqi and Qin Xuanyan lowered their heads, pursed their lips, and were unusually quiet.
Qin Xuanyan was so frightened that she didn't even dare to breathe loudly.
Who would dare to claim such a thing?
Qiluo spoke up, "Your Majesty, the Empress. I used to be a cleaning maid in Miss Qin's courtyard. This handkerchief looks familiar to me. It's somewhat similar to the ones Miss Qin usually uses."
It was just an uncertain and ambiguous guess.
But Qin Xuanyan exploded in anger. "Bitch! Did Cheng Simian instruct you to slander me? How could I possibly have such obscene things?"
Qiluo blinked her innocent eyes. "I didn't say it was yours. I was just guessing. Why are you so angry?"
Qin Xuanyan rushed forward to tear at Qiluo, but Qin Ziqi grabbed her.
"Idiot! Shut up!"
No matter what Qiluo said, as long as they didn't say a word and didn't admit it, they could muddle through this matter and everything would be fine.
But his stupid younger sister just had to make a fuss. Didn't this just prove her guilt?
The Empress looked at Qin Xuanyan, and there was not a trace of warmth in her eyes.
"Since it's not yours, then take out your handkerchief and show it to everyone. Wouldn't that clear your name? Why do you have to shout and argue with a maid?"
Qin Xuanyan stood there stiffly, her face completely bloodless.
The handkerchief with the erotic picture was hers. How could she possibly have another handkerchief to show to everyone?