His obviously intimidating interrogation made the two women kneeling on the ground tremble.
The plan tonight had completely fallen through. They had used Qu Yue, the innocent scapegoat, to keep the emperor for dinner. Then they had passed off the meal as Mu Yao's cooking. Now that they had been punished, they had pushed Qu Yue out to take the blame.
All these actions were unforgivable crimes.
When Xie Qichi asked this question, Mu Qing was already sweating profusely.
He was afraid that the mother - daughter duo would say something unfavorable to him, so he nodded first, "Yes!"
"Your Majesty, after today, I will surely keep a tight rein on my wife!"
Xie Qichi played with the jade ring on his finger unhurriedly, "How?"
Song Luo and Mu Yao were almost lying flat on the ground. Their disheveled hair was stuck to the grease on their faces, with clear palm prints. Tears and snot were streaming down, looking extremely disgusting.
"My lord..."
Song Luo raised her eyes, and there was still a glimmer of hope in her dull pupils.
Mu Qing slowly walked up to the two of them. His thin face was full of coldness. "Servants!"
Mu Yao suddenly reached out and grabbed Mu Qing's trouser leg. "Father! Daughter knows her mistake! I won't dare again!"
She was really scared. The family law of the Mu family was always extremely harsh. Even a strong young man would be skinned alive.
This fear coursed through her veins, making her teeth chatter.
Mu Qing kicked Mu Yao away. Looking at her was like looking at a pile of garbage. "Rebellious daughter! Is this how I've taught you? Disregarding human ethics and offending the emperor! It's already merciful not to chop off your head!"
"Your Majesty, please calm your anger. I will surely punish them severely with the family law!"
Xie Qichi did not respond.
Mu Qing was sweating like rain. Every step he took was like stepping on the tip of a knife. "Where are the servants?!"
His hoarse roar shocked everyone present. They hurriedly went to the storage room to fetch a long bench and a wooden paddle and placed them in the front yard of the dining hall.
The raised wooden paddle looked cold under the silver moonlight. Song Luo and Mu Yao were dragged onto the bench screaming.
The young servant gritted his teeth. "Madam, Miss, please forgive me!"
Smack—
The dull sound of the paddle hitting the flesh was followed by a shrill scream. Mu Yao spat out a mouthful of blood.
Qu Yue stood inside the dining hall, too scared to make a sound.
She swallowed nervously, still not understanding how things had turned out this way.
Clearly, she had wanted to take the blame.
But she never expected that in the end, it would be Song Luo and Mu Yao who were punished.
She quietly shifted her gaze to Xie Qichi, only to meet his cold stare.
That look went straight to her soul, making her breathing go out of rhythm.
Mu Wang stood beside Qu Yue. Her reaction did not escape his eyes.
Listening to the continuous screams of his mother and sister, and seeing his sister - in - law and the emperor flirting, the annoyance pent up in his heart was like a volcano about to erupt.
A cold snort escaped from his nose. "He knows you so well."
Qu Yue was confused. "Huh?"
"The emperor knew from the beginning that you cooked this meal."
Mu Wang's cold explanation, like the truth, fell into her ears.
Qu Yue had guessed a bit before, but she was still surprised to hear it confirmed by someone else.
"Mother and elder sister's tricks are like child's play in his eyes."
"The reason he cooperated so well—"
Mu Wang leaned over and whispered into Qu Yue's pink ear with a venom he didn't even notice. "He's taking revenge for you. Can't you tell?"
Xie Qichi was taking revenge for her.
Mu Wang's words were like a piece of saltpeter, igniting the spark in Qu Yue's heart.
Her eyes trembled, and she stared at Xie Qichi's direction in disbelief.
The latter's face was calm. There was a touch of crimson at the end of his long phoenix eyes, showing a trace of blood on his porcelain - white skin, as if there was a faint moisture on him.
Mu Qing's trembling inquiry rang out softly. "Your Majesty, twenty strokes of the paddle should be enough. What do you think..."
"I hope that Marquis Zhaoping will keep a tighter rein on the inner courtyard in the future."
"If necessary, you can ask the Lady of Zhenyuan for assistance."
Mu Qing glanced at Qu Yue and nodded repeatedly. "Your Majesty is right!"
Although they had invited Xie Qichi to have dinner, in the end, he didn't eat a single bite.
When Eunuch An announced that the emperor was returning to the palace, Qu Yue knelt down with the crowd to see him off.
Unexpectedly, just as she was about to kneel halfway, she heard Mu Qing's gritted - teeth order. "Hurry up and follow me to see off the emperor!"
Qu Yue didn't dare to delay and quickly stood up and followed.
When passing by the front yard of the dining hall, a strong smell of blood hit her nostrils.
Song Luo and Mu Yao were lying on two long chairs respectively. The coarse hemp mourning clothes on their buttocks had been beaten to pieces and were stuck to the flesh, which was shocking.
Their dying moans were endless.
Although it was extremely inappropriate, an inexplicable sense of pleasure welled up in her heart.
Why should Song Luo and Mu Yao order her around and then make her take the blame?
Qu Yue slightly hooked her lips, and her steps to see off the guests became a bit more brisk.
The large - scale entourage, led by Mu Qing, all kowtowed.
"See off Your Majesty—"
Xie Qichi got into the imperial carriage under everyone's watchful eyes.
In the morning, Qu Yue had knelt at the end. After this day, she was directly kneeling in Song Luo's position.
This was the status that Xie Qichi had established for her.
There was always a cold and damp gaze following her like a shadow. Qu Yue uncomfortably raised her head.
She found that the man in the imperial carriage was lifting the curtain with one finger. His phoenix eyes were lazily drooping, and his unfocused gaze seemed to have no focal point.
But Qu Yue somehow felt that he was staring at her.
Suddenly, the man's lips moved slightly.
Qu Yue understood.
He said, "Think about how you're going to thank me."
Thank him...
Shouldn't he be thanked by Mu Yuan?
Qu Yue was completely confused.
In her opinion, Xie Qichi's help today was all because of her identity as "Mu Yuan's wife".
While Qu Yue was in a daze, Xie Qichi's imperial carriage had already gone far away, leaving only Mu Qing's exhausted curse. "Hurry back to the mansion!"
She was so scared that her delicate body trembled, and uneasiness welled up in her heart.
As soon as she entered the main hall, Mu Qing's towering anger rushed straight at Qu Yue. "What on earth did you say to the emperor this afternoon!"
"Tell me everything, word for word!"
Qu Yue shrugged her shoulders. "Father, the emperor asked me my opinion of my husband..."
Mu Qing slapped the table. "What did he write?"
The scene of Xie Qichi's interrogation in the afternoon replayed in her mind. After a moment of hesitation, Qu Yue said slowly, "I was kneeling on the ground at that time. I wasn't very clear..."
For some reason, she didn't want to reveal too much about her relationship with Xie Qichi.
Mu Qing looked at her suspiciously. Then, an angry roar came from the corridor. "Father! It must be this bitch who told the emperor that we bullied her!"
Mu Yao had already changed her clothes, but her face was still pale, and she needed someone to support her when walking.
But her anger had reached its peak. She wished she could tear Qu Yue apart right now!
Mu Qing was also suspicious of this. "Did you really say anything?"
The aggressive aura made Qu Yue out of breath. She took two steps back, but there was a trace of stubborn determination in her eyes. "If I really snitched, the emperor's punishment would be much more than this."
As soon as these words were spoken, everyone present was shocked.
The usually weak Qu Yue, with the emperor's support, dared to refute!
Mu Yao suddenly raised her hand and slapped Qu Yue. "Are you very proud?!"