"Why is Concubine Qi lying on the ground? What's wrong with you guys? Hurry up and help Concubine Qi up!" There was no warmth in Fu Yuheng's words, and his face remained indifferent.
Liu Churong turned around and knelt on the ground, "Your Majesty! It is absolutely true that Concubine Qi and Guard Ye had an affair. I have evidence."
The maids and old women no longer came forward.
Shen Qingwan scolded: "Are you all deaf? The emperor asked you to help Concubine Qi up!"
At this moment, she appeared extremely calm in this hall.
"Does Concubine Qi have anything to say?" Fu Yuheng asked regardless of what Liu Churong said.
At this time, Shen Qingwan shook her head gently at Concubine Qi.
"I have nothing to say." Concubine Qi said with a fearless attitude.
Liu Churong continued, "Your Majesty, this is a handkerchief that I found. It has Concubine Qi's nickname embroidered on it, and this silk is only available to those above the rank of Concubine."
After she finished speaking, she asked the servant to hand the handkerchief to Fu Yuheng.
"Guard Ye."
Fu Yuheng seemed extremely calm, without any anger at the loss of face for the royal family. "What do you want to say?"
Ye Feng raised his head immediately, "Your Majesty, all this has nothing to do with Concubine Qi."
"You mean, are you willing to bear the consequences of all this?" Fu Yuheng asked coldly, "The Queen's Kunning Palace is only half an hour away from here. I'm here, why hasn't the Queen arrived yet?"
Just as he finished speaking, Queen Xiao Shushen walked in from outside, her face full of panic.
As soon as he entered the room and before he knelt, Fu Yuheng waved his hand and said, "No need to bow. Look, this is the harem you have taken care of for me!"
Xiao Shushen still knelt down and kowtowed, saying, "Your Majesty, please forgive me for my dereliction of duty."
"Look at the fabric of this handkerchief. Who in the palace can afford it? The Imperial Concubine said that only people above the rank of concubine can afford this kind of silk." Fu Yuheng also became angry and fiercely threw the handkerchief in her hand at the Queen's face.
Xiao Shushen's body was shocked, she nodded repeatedly, picked up the handkerchief, but did not speak for a long time.
"Are you mute?" Fu Yuheng snorted coldly.
Xiao Shushen frowned and said, "Your Majesty, this is just ordinary material, anyone in the palace can use it."
Liu Churong exclaimed, "Impossible! How could I be wrong? Your Majesty, please take a closer look."
"Are you questioning me, Concubine?" Xiao Shushen sneered, and then questioned, "If you don't believe me, you can call the head of the clothing department to come and take a look. But I want to ask you, who gave you the power to rush into Jinrong Palace without informing me in advance? It seems that you don't have the power to help manage the harem."
Liu Churong shook her head, looked at Fu Yuheng with wide eyes, and said, "Your Majesty, I request to call the head of the clothing bureau."
Fu Yuheng rubbed his eyebrows, he really had a headache.
Shen Qingwan's eyes moved, and she walked to Concubine Qi, slowly stretching out her hand. The scars on the back of her hand from being stepped on by shoes were shocking. She slowly said, "I have already told the Imperial Concubine that this handkerchief is just ordinary material, which means that anyone can embroider their name on it and put the blame on Concubine Qi." She paused and continued, "It's just that the Imperial Concubine abused private punishment. Although your position is higher than that of Concubine Qi, you still don't have the power to deal with her, right? Now that her hand is injured like this, won't the Imperial Concubine give an explanation?"
"Explain?" Liu Churong started laughing, her voice full of arrogance, "Princess Qi is a bitch. She was caught having an affair with Guard Ye, and I am only trying to get rid of this scum for the royal family. Sister Xianfei, please take care of yourself first!"
"Your Majesty, may I see this handkerchief?" Shen Qingwan asked.
Xiao Shushen sent someone to hand the handkerchief to Shen Qingwan.
After looking at it for a long time, she kowtowed and said, "Your Majesty, the person who wanted to frame Sister Qi was too careless. He even embroidered my sister's nickname wrong. Look..."
After she handed the handkerchief to Fu Yuheng, Qiu Shui knelt down on the marble floor with a plop. "Your Majesty, Madam, all this is Qiu Shui's fault. Qiu Shui has always admired Guard Ye. Once when she saw him injured, she used her handkerchief to bandage him. I don't know how it was picked up by the Imperial Concubine..."
Liu Churong screamed, "You're talking nonsense!"
Qiu Shui kept knelt, "I didn't say anything nonsense, please Your Majesty and Your Majesty understand. My nickname is Qi, which is the same as my master's name, so my master gave me the name Qiu Shui. That handkerchief was embroidered by me before I entered the palace, so my name is on it, but Your Majesty didn't see it clearly..."
At that time, Liu Churong pulled the handkerchief over, and the word on it was indeed "Qi", not "Qi".
She screamed all of a sudden, "This is impossible! Your Majesty, I am not lying. Concubine Qi really has an affair with Guard Ye, Your Majesty."
The sound of kowtows echoed throughout the hall.
Shen Qingwan thought Liu Churong had gone crazy. Her good days were over since Concubine Qi entered the palace three years ago. She was jealous and resentful of Concubine Qi, and always wanted to bring her down and kill her.
"Enough!" Fu Yuheng moved the corners of his lips and shouted.
As soon as the two words came out, even Shen Qingwan was shocked.
"The Imperial Concubine has lost her virtue as a woman and is extremely jealous. She is now sentenced to three months of confinement. She is not allowed to leave Anqing Palace without my permission! Concubine Qi did not discipline her servants well, causing the maid to make a serious mistake. She is fined half a year's salary."
Liu Churong rolled and crawled to his knees in front of Fu Yuheng.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, I did not lie. Why do you trust Concubine Qi so much, but are so cold to me, Your Majesty—"
"Get lost!" Perhaps he didn't understand why Liu Churong, whom he doted on so much, became what she is today. Fu Yuheng fiercely kicked Liu Churong away, then looked at the people in the hall and said, "Ye Feng, you are the most important guard in the palace, but you had an affair with a palace maid. Now you are punished. I think of your meritorious service in protecting the emperor in the past few years, and now I grant you a marriage with Qiu Shui. You must treat her well."
Concubine Qi opened her eyes wide and watched all this unwillingly.
Shen Qingwan saw all these actions. She pulled Qipin's sleeve, and Qipin finally reacted.
"I thank the Emperor for granting Qiu Shui a marriage."
Fu Yuheng ordered: "Li Hengshun, send the imperial physician to check on Concubine Qi's injuries."
After saying that, he strode out of Jinrong Palace.
The moment Fu Yuheng walked out, he looked up at Shen Qingwan.
A chill tore through Shen Zhenzhen's body. That look... It was as if Fu Yuheng didn't care about anything today. She even felt that Fu Yuheng should know the truth about everything they did. But he didn't say it, or maybe he had something more important to do...
That feeling is terrible, as if I have always been just a clown.
When Xiao Shushen went out, she looked at Shen Qingwan deeply and said, "Xian Fei, have you thought about how to repay me?"