And Shen Qingwan smiled gently.
"That hairpin... you were the one who told the secret!"
Leng Xiang couldn't believe her eyes. What was going on
She clearly saw where the hairpin was placed when Shen Qingwan was not around, so there was no mistake. Shen Qingwan even lovingly wrapped it with a piece of black cloth, so how could it become her personal item
Shen Qingwan gave Leng Xiang a sneering look behind her mother's back.
Want to steal her things and accuse her of being a high-profile person? You wishful thinking. You didn't check the stolen goods and showed them to others so easily. If you don't suffer a loss, then who will
Murong Wan stared at Leng Xiang almost viciously, as if she wanted to cut a piece of flesh from her and eat it raw.
"Okay, you used to call me sister affectionately, but it turns out you did something wrong behind my back, and you want to accuse others of it? Do you, Leng Xiang, underestimate me too much?"
The housekeeper looked at this mess of relationships and knew in her heart that this was a means used by the subordinates to win favor. Leng Xiang must have seen that the relationship between Shen Qingwan and Murong Wan had eased, and was afraid that it would threaten her position, so she started to stir up trouble.
The housekeeper had no control over how they fought among themselves. She only knew one thing: Murong Wan was not the only one who wanted to curry favor with the emperor today. She would know after she had a try, whether Leng Xiang had intercepted or not.
She has a very good personal relationship with Nanny Gui, who works under the Empress. I can ask her to borrow a few people from the Emperor's palace and ask them and I'll find out.
Leng Xiang saw that the nanny had sent people to the east and knew that the situation was not good. It might still be too late to plead for mercy.
So he didn't dare to hide it anymore and knelt down to kowtow to the nanny.
"Madam, please allow me to speak to you alone."
This is to save face and not want to break up with Murong Wan.
But how could the housekeeper allow the people under her to secretly form a group and deceive her, especially when they were related to the empress dowager's absolute authority? In order to warn everyone, Leng Xiang and Murong Wan were bound to be punished, and the punishment would be more severe than any previous time.
"Leng Xiang, don't blame me for not giving you face. You are very smart, but you use your intelligence in the wrong place. Murong Wan at least has some righteousness. You betrayed your sisters and tried to steal other people's achievements. If I don't punish you, I don't know what kind of trouble you will cause in the future."
So he waved his hand and did not call the eunuch in charge of punishment to come and carry out the execution. Instead, he ordered his subordinates and several palace maids who were not on good terms with Leng Xiang to take a palm-wide wooden board and hit the two men on the back.
This thing won't kill people, but it will hurt the flesh and bones. The palace rarely uses such underhanded means to punish people. Today, the two of them have violated the nanny's taboo.
There were screams of agony in the courtyard one after another, which really broadened Shen Qingwan's horizons.
She had been a virtuous concubine for many years, and she had only heard that the people in charge of criminal law in the palace had secretly created many ways of torturing people for the concubines to vent their anger. However, this kind of thing had always been hidden in the dark, and they would not and dared not do it in front of Fu Yuheng, and it had almost become an unwritten rule.
Watching the finger-thick wooden board quickly break through her flesh and stain her clothes red with blood, the whole yard was filled with a strong smell of blood, which made people terrified. Leng Xiang then realized that she could not do whatever she wanted in the palace.
Her little cleverness is nothing in front of Shen Qingwan.
Leng Xiang looked up and stared at Shen Qingwan. Shen Qingwan was not afraid at all and just looked at her calmly.
There was no anger or other negative emotions in his eyes, but the contempt of a superior looking down on the weak could not help but be revealed in his body language. Standing there, Leng Xiang dared not look at him anymore.
She can't afford to offend this person.
The beating was not enough, the nanny ordered the two men to kneel at the gate and reflect on their actions.
"Don't mention this matter again. If anyone violates the rules, they will be punished according to the palace rules. If anyone asks, just say that the two of them stole valuables from the storeroom. I let them reflect on themselves here. Apply medicine to them first, change their clothes to stop the bleeding. If you deliberately let people see it, I will at most be scolded by the Queen Mother. You, weigh the consequences yourself."
Everyone looked at the housekeeper with admiration.
It turns out that this is the price of touching the bottom line. Nanny will not allow anyone to get too far out of her control. If someone is ignorant and insists on crossing the line, then the fate of these two people is the best example.
"Mammy, you've said so much. Sit down and have some tea. They didn't know how to be sensible and made you angry. You can't let this really make you sick."
Shen Qingwan handed over a cup of tea at the right time. The nanny was satisfied, and then Shen Qingwan mentioned Murong Wan's matter.
"Mammy, there is something I don't know whether I should say or not."
"Tell me, when did you become so hesitant?"
Shen Qingwan glanced at Murong Wan, who was kneeling outside but could still hear their conversation, and said with a smile: "Mammy, although Murong Wan was a little inconsiderate in her actions, she is not a bad person after all. She is fundamentally different from Leng Xiang. If you can let her go, she will definitely be grateful to you, and will always help you keep an eye on Leng Xiang to prevent her from having any more tricks. This will save you a lot of trouble. If she fails to do her job well, you can never say for sure if you will punish her then."
The housekeeper was also a smart woman. She would not let Shen Qingwan run away with her thoughts. She smiled and glanced at Shen Qingwan, saying, "I won't tell you what you are thinking, but since you have always been in my heart, I will give you face. Murong Wan, get up, go back and lie down, and come to work tomorrow. Let's forget about today's matter. If you dare to do it again, I will never forgive you."
Murong Wan's crooked body finally fell to the ground. She paused for a long time before she barely stood up. She knelt down and kowtowed to her. She looked at Shen Qingwan with gratitude and then went back to her room to rest.
Leng Xiang turned her head, her white forehead was covered with crystal sweat, Shen Qingwan knew very well how painful the wound on her back was. But who made her have such bad intentions, making trouble out of nothing and looking for trouble with herself. In this case, she didn't mind giving Leng Xiang a lesson that she would remember for the rest of her life.
Leng Xiang was finally carried in. She was unconscious for a whole half day before she finally recovered. From then on, she never dared to find fault with Shen Qingwan again.
After talking about the disputes among women in the imperial harem and the imperial kitchen, it’s time to talk about what’s happening in the court.
The Queen has been very upset recently. Every morning at the court, there are always some short-sighted people who use rumors to target her right to rule the country from behind the scenes. They are veiled and blunt. If the prince was not still young, they would probably have signed a petition to ask her to step down.
There was unprecedented unity at this time, which was almost exactly the same as the opposition to her supporting the prince to rule the country.
The queen was almost furious.
She lifted the pearl curtain and went to talk to the emperor.