The Empress Dowager frowned, "This palace is a place where rules are followed, how can we mess it up? If a concubine with a lower rank than you, Concubine Mei, calls you Liang, would you be happy?"
Liang is Concubine Mei’s surname!
Mei Fei also knew that the Queen Mother was a very disciplined person, so she did not dare to argue anymore and instead scolded Madam Linglong, "You don't have to be nervous. Just call me what you call me in the mansion now. How can you lose your sense of propriety?"
Madam Linglong looked as if she had been taught a lesson, and humbly said, "Yes, I will keep it in mind."
The Queen said to Eunuch Sun, "Go and bring Xia Zian's maid Xiaosun here. If her wound is not healed, bring her here."
"Yes!" replied Eunuch Sun.
Prime Minister Xia thought that even if the girl was brought here, she would not dare to say anything since he was here, so he just let Eunuch Sun go.
After Eunuch Sun left, he sighed and said, "No matter what happened, it was my fault. I am willing to take the blame."
This demonstrates his responsible attitude.
The Queen refused to accept the charge and said in a cold voice, "Whoever made the mistake in this matter should bear the consequences. If the Prime Minister made the mistake, I will never condone it. If it was Yuan who ordered it, I will punish Yuan severely."
Prime Minister Xia said: "Yes, I am willing to be punished."
Zi'an was outside the palace, listening to all these conversations, and felt it was extremely ironic.
It's all the mother's and her's fault, they are so innocent!
The prime minister of the current dynasty was so shameless that it really refreshed her three views.
I really don't understand why Yuan married him back then. Although he holds a high position as prime minister, he does not have the bearing of a man, nor the mind of a general. He is only greedy, profit-driven, and fighting for power. To put it bluntly, for a man like this to have become the prime minister, it was pure luck, except for the blessing of his family and the protection of his ancestors.
Eunuch Sun soon brought Xiaosun in. Xiaosun was actually unable to get out of bed and walk, so he could only come in with the help of two palace maids.
Xiaosun saw Zi'an outside and was about to ask a question, but Zi'an put his hand on his lips and told her to be quiet.
Xiaosun understood, so she lowered her head and went in with the two palace maids.
The Empress Dowager had never seen Xiaosun, nor did she know that Xiaosun had entered the palace. When she saw a girl with horrible injuries coming in, she could not help but ask in shock and anger: "What happened? This girl looks only thirteen or fourteen years old. Who is so cruel?"
Madam Linglong said nonchalantly, "Replying to the Empress Dowager, this girl was serving Zi'an. She made a mistake and was caught and beaten by the housekeeper."
Beating maids happens in every family, so it must happen in the palace as well, and the beatings are much more cruel. On the day she went to the palace to pay her respects to Concubine Mei, she saw Concubine Mei ordering people to beat a maid so badly that she could only breathe out, not breathe in.
Moreover, she heard that the Queen was even more strict. Beating and scolding were minor matters, but for serious cases, it was common to sentence people to death.
However, Madam Linglong did not know that the Empress Dowager was unaware of what the Queen and Concubine Mei had done. Although the Empress Dowager was clear about rewards and punishments, she only sentenced according to the measure. It was like Zi'an breaking off her engagement with Prince Liang and claiming to be the descendant of Wen Yi. At that time, people thought that she only knew superficial medical skills and wanted to make meritorious deeds, so the Empress Dowager ordered her to be thrown into the torture chamber.
When Concubine Mei heard Madam Linglong say this, she couldn't help but curse in her heart: What a shallow person she is. She doesn't know her limits at all. Isn't she courting death by saying these things in front of the Empress Dowager
Sure enough, the Empress Dowager looked unhappy after hearing Madam Linglong's indifferent attitude, "What kind of mistake did you make? You have to be beaten like this."
Prime Minister Xia poked Madam Linglong with his elbow. Madam Linglong also knew that she had said something wrong, and quickly explained: "To answer the Queen Mother, it was not me who ordered the beating. It was the housekeeper who saw that this girl refused to admit her fault and beat her hard. I have already punished the housekeeper."
The Empress Dowager glanced at Xiaosun and saw tears in her eyes. Her face looked very aggrieved and pitiful. She thought that the beating was unjust.
Xiaosun was supported by the palace maids and knelt on the ground. The empress dowager saw her wounds and couldn't bear it. She frowned and said, "Help her up, don't kneel."
Xiaosun looked at the Empress Dowager weakly. She was frightened by her noble aura and her legs went limp. She almost knelt down again and said incoherently, "Your servant, your servant pays respect to the Empress Dowager."
The Queen Mother looked at the face that had lost its original color and turned bloodless, shook her head and sighed, "Come on, I will only ask you a few questions, and then you can go back."
Xiaosun said, "Oh!" and tried to stand up as much as possible. "Yes, Your Majesty, please ask."
The Empress Dowager looked at her and couldn't bear to ask, so she said to the Queen, "Ask, quickly."
The Queen had already woken up, and she stood up and bowed to the Queen Mother: "Yes!"
After sitting down, he immediately asked, "You are here to serve Xia Zian, right? Is your wife Yuan popular in the mansion? What kind of person is she?"
Just as Xiaosun was about to answer, he heard Prime Minister Xia cough. Xiaosun subconsciously glanced at Prime Minister Xia, and seeing his cold eyes, he was so scared that he stopped talking immediately. He didn't dare to look at the queen, so he just lowered his head and stammered for a long time, unable to utter a word.
The Queen laughed strangely, "What's wrong? Don't you dare to say it? If you have anything to say, just say it in front of the Queen Mother and me. You are not spreading rumors, so why can't you say it?"
Xiaosun glanced at Prime Minister Xia and Madam Linglong again, and was sweating with nervousness. During the days when she was with Zi'an, she had been bullied by Madam Linglong and Prime Minister Xia for a long time, which formed a psychological fear. Even though she knew she could speak out now, she couldn't open her mouth and could only stammer, "Your servant... Your servant..."
Zi'an heard this from outside and felt a little nervous. Xiaosun was a very timid child and her injuries were so serious. If she was under too much psychological pressure, she would faint.
Upon seeing this, Concubine Mei shouted angrily, "Why are you hesitating? Just say whatever you want to say in front of the Empress Dowager and the Queen."
Mei Fei originally thought that Xiaosun was cowardly and timid. Now she dared not speak and almost fainted. If she yelled at her a few more times, she would definitely not dare to say a word.
However, after she yelled, Xiaosun slowly raised his head, remembering when he was caught in the mansion, he thought he was going to die. He had no regrets then, and he should have no regrets now.
Thinking of the oppression that Madam and Miss had suffered for many years, she could no longer hold back her tears and trembled as she said, "Her Majesty the Queen Mother, Madam is the best person, and so is Miss. I think Madam and Miss are the best people in the world!"
The Queen originally wanted to ask her about Yuan's personality and character, but Xiaosun just said that she was very good. She didn't know how to describe it, but it made the Queen Mother feel sincere.
The Empress Dowager felt sorry for the girl and said, "Forget it. I won't ask her any more. Take her away."
"Empress Dowager," Xiaosun broke free from the support of the palace maid, knelt down with a plop, raised her pale face and cried, "Miss, you have no choice but to regret the marriage. If the Prime Minister had not threatened you with divorce, you would not have agreed to the marriage. Because you said that once you get married, your wife will definitely die, so you want to regret the marriage."
"Nonsense!" Prime Minister Xia's face was as black as an iron pot. He didn't care that the Empress Dowager and the Queen were present and immediately exploded. "Who instructed you to say that? You are so confused about right and wrong. It seems that this beating is too light."
(End of this chapter)