The queen suddenly broke out in a cold sweat; she had never thought this would be possible.
The man kneeling on the ground had no choice but to tell the queen this seemingly useless information. Unexpectedly, he hit the nail on the head by accident.
The Queen hurriedly ordered, "Go and ask someone to find out the identity of that maid. I want to see for myself if it is that woman."
"Yes, Queen Mother."
The man quickly agreed and looked very happy.
Now I can finally get the job done.
When the eunuch arrived at the imperial kitchen, Shen Qingwan was picking out the newly delivered ingredients. When she heard someone calling her, she quickly put down the work in her hands and went out to meet the person.
"Who are you? What do you want from me?"
The housekeeper said sternly, "These eunuchs are going to take you to see the Empress Dowager to ask about your purchases outside the palace that day. Be careful when you go to the Empress Dowager and don't disturb her."
The housekeeper was very dissatisfied and couldn't understand it.
I just went there to do some shopping, how did I end up offending this giant Buddha
Originally, she was in charge of the imperial kitchen and had many opportunities to see the Empress Dowager, but for an ordinary woman like Shen Qingwan to receive the Empress Dowager's care, it was not only because she was favored, but also because something happened that day that she did not tell herself.
Thinking of this, the nanny was very angry.
I'm ready to give her a good meal when she comes back.
He warned Shen Qingwan with his eyes and prayed in his heart that she would not go like last time when he took Leng Xiang with him.
Shen Qingwan didn't expect that the Queen would summon her, and it was because of purchasing matters.
She calmed herself down and then calmly followed the others to the Queen's bedroom.
"This is it. Follow us in. Don't look around or talk nonsense. Wait until the Queen Mother finishes her questions. If nothing unexpected happens, you can leave."
Shen Qingwan thought to herself, you make it sound simple, but this is obviously not a good thing.
Forget it, they will meet sooner or later. Since she is here today, let her meet that black-hearted woman.
When they arrived at the palace, Shen Qingwan was shocked by the situation inside and couldn't help but become serious.
This was exactly the posture of interrogating a criminal. Seeing the Queen's serious look, my heart skipped a beat and I wondered when on earth I had been targeted.
"Is the one below Chen Juanzhi?"
The queen asked with full energy.
Shen Qingwan nodded.
"Do you know why I brought you here today?"
Shen Qingwan shook her head: "I just heard from the elder brothers who led the group that the Queen wanted to ask me about the purchases that day, so I followed her here."
"How dare you! I asked you a question, and you still dare not come?"
Shen Qingwan knelt down quickly, feeling extremely reluctant.
She didn't feel so wronged when she was a concubine.
But for the sake of future events, I had no choice but to endure it.
"In reply to the Empress Dowager, I dare not do that. I am just a lowly servant working in the imperial kitchen. How dare I disobey the orders of the Empress Dowager
"I see you don't dare, so let me ask you, why did you provoke the man who tied you up, and how did you escape from him?"
After asking this question, I saw a panic expression on Shen Qingwan's face, as if she was recalling something particularly bad.
"To answer the Queen Mother, I pushed him down when he wasn't paying attention. He was unprepared, and I've been doing hard labor since I was a child, so I was able to do it when he was least prepared."
The queen frowned.
"Then why aren't you panicking at all? You came back as if nothing had happened. I don't believe you. You didn't tell me the truth! How dare you!"
Shen Qingwan now had an idea in her mind. It turned out that the Queen was just trying to trick her and didn't see anything serious going on.
So I answered, "Your Highness, you don't know. I was also scared. That man was not a decent person. Although I am protected by the palace rules, if I was really punished, I would be too ashamed to return to the palace. With this thought, I suddenly got courage, and I escaped in a hurry. But the palace maids taught me the rules, not to run or make noise on the road, so I subconsciously did that. I didn't expect that the Queen Mother would misunderstand me."
"Misunderstand?"
The queen sneered and said, "Madam Gui, go and search her to see if she has anything on her body, and then come back and report to me."
"Yes, madam."
As he said that, he started to pull Shen Qingwan towards the bathroom.
Shen Qingwan followed her in obediently.
She was very shy when taking off her clothes. Fortunately, she didn't have any birthmarks on her body, otherwise it would have been exposed.
Nanny Gui checked her clothes from head to toe and didn't find anything representative. She couldn't help but glare at her, as if this incident was entirely her fault.
What an unreasonable old woman.
Back in the main hall, Nanny Gui's report made the Queen very disappointed.
She still didn't give up and wanted to blow something out of Shen Qingwan's mouth.
"Go, check if there's anything painted on her face, and get it off for me!"
Shen Qingwan was completely relieved now.
Half a cup of tea later, the Queen and Nanny Gui finally felt relieved.
"Mother, I don't think she looks like that, and there's nothing wrong with her face. It seems like a misunderstanding."
The Queen was somewhat angry. Not only because of these words, but she also felt that those people in the palace who had not been dismissed were laughing at her.
"What do you do? You made a mistake in such a small matter. Let the person who reported it be punished!"
"Yes, madam, but you..."
After saying this, she gestured to Shen Qingwan who was still kneeling in the hall. The queen then reluctantly suppressed her anger and waved her hand to ask Shen Qingwan to leave.
"In reply to the Empress Dowager, the Emperor has arrived!"
Just at this moment, a voice from outside the palace broke the atmosphere.
The Queen was in a bad mood and saw that the Prince was not in a good mood either.
"Niangniang, calm down. The emperor is still a child. If you show more care for him, he will understand you."
"Understand? He is an ungrateful person! I have raised him for so many years, and all my efforts were in vain. In the end, he still resents me for not giving him the throne! Don't you see how old he is and he wants to seize power? I have always done this for his own good, but now he dares to treat me like this. Will I still have a place in the future?"
Nanny Gui knew that she had touched the Queen's sore spot and did not dare to go into details. She had to step aside and be ready to mediate at any time.
The emperor's small figure came in from the door. He had heard everything his mother and Nanny Gui said in the hall just now, and he understood about 60% of it.
As soon as Nanny Gui saw the expression, she knew what was going on and couldn't help but sigh.
"Your son greets the Queen Mother, may she be well."
"Get up."
The queen said dejectedly.
Shen Qingwan just walked to the palace gate. Hearing this, she couldn't help but look back at the situation and slowed down her pace.