NCCnovel Chapter 301 Preparing to Enter the Palace
Chapter 301 Preparing to Enter the Palace
Chapter 301 Preparing to Enter the Palace
Yongping, who was standing to the side, couldn't help but laugh at the situation and also thought that Consort Chen was incredibly stupid.
"This is utterly absurd!" The Empress Dowager slammed her hand on the table, startling the palace servants who were attending to her into lowering their heads, fearing that she would be held responsible for the Empress Dowager's anger.
Consort Chen's expression changed immediately. She knew she had said the wrong thing, but she didn't dare to make a sound. She could only look at the Empress Dowager cautiously.
"There's absolutely nothing to it, why do you need to prove it yourself? I can tell you're indecisive, believing these baseless rumors. Issue my imperial decree: from now on, anyone in the palace who dares to discuss this matter or fabricate rumors will be immediately beaten to death!" The Empress Dowager spoke with great force, even her forehead was clenched, she seemed to be furious.
"Grandmother, please have mercy and spare this noble person for now." Jing Anle seemed to be pleading, but in reality, she was stirring up trouble.
The kneeling noblewoman trembled with fear and, unable to bear it any longer, broke down and cried out, "Please, Your Majesty, have mercy! Please, Your Majesty, have mercy!"
The Empress Dowager's words were law, and she naturally had to save face. She glanced at Yongping without showing any emotion, after all, this Consort was someone she had brought. "Issue my imperial decree: Consort Li has fabricated rumors that have damaged the royal family's reputation. She shall be beaten to death immediately!"
Those cold words sent a chill down Consort Li's spine, making her feel as if she had fallen into an ice cave. Forgetting everything else, she immediately kowtowed to Yongping, crying, "Princess, save me! Save me..."
But before she could finish speaking, she was dragged away.
Jing Anle immediately feigned a worried and frightened expression. The Empress Dowager was so protective of Prince Qing's family, and even showed affection for Jing Rou. Although they were not biological mother and son, they were more like biological mother and son. It seemed that sowing discord between them was more important.
Yongping looked at Jing Anle, secretly harboring resentment: "That Jing Anle, she took a person's life with just a few words."
Jing Anle noticed that someone was watching her, and she looked up to meet Yongping's gaze without flinching. At that moment, it seemed as if they were engaged in a silent battle.
Yongping hated the late Empress Qin Yin, and naturally she also disliked Jing Anle. When she first returned to the palace, she didn't take Jing Anle seriously, but now she had to admit that Jing Anle was definitely not a simple person.
The most annoyed person was the Empress Dowager. She had been in a good mood today, but now her mood had been ruined. However, Consort Chen's words were not without reason. She felt that Prince Qing should indeed do something.
……
Prince Qing's Mansion.
"Enter the palace?" Princess Qing was momentarily stunned.
"Aren't there enough rumors already? Why does the Empress Dowager want us to go out and attract attention? The most important thing right now is for Rou'er to marry Qi Zhi smoothly!"
Princess Qing's voice unconsciously grew louder, and she subconsciously covered her mouth after speaking. For some reason, her temper had become more volatile lately, and she had never been so angry when she was pregnant with Jingrou.
Prince Qing took it all as Princess Qing's growing weight and the stress of caring for Jing Rou, and didn't take it to heart at all. Instead, he hugged Princess Qing tightly and comforted her, "My dear princess, don't worry. The Empress Dowager's idea is that the more we are in the limelight, the more we should go out and show people, so that those lowly people will shut up."
“Ke Rou’er…” Princess Qing immediately understood that Ke Jingrou was indeed pregnant, and she couldn’t help but worry whether the young girl could bear such gossip.
“Therefore, my beloved consort should go and persuade Rou’er,” said Prince Qing.
"Those who achieve great things must dare to think and act. If they cannot even accept this much criticism, how can they accomplish anything?"
Princess Qing's heart was pounding, and Jing Rou was also uneasy at this moment.
"what is going on?"
Jingrou had previously ordered all the maids in the room to be locked up, but only a day later, one of the maids tried to escape. As soon as she climbed out of the window, she fell headfirst and died on the ground.
Now, the maids in the room were all kneeling on the ground, their faces covered with tears, and none of them dared to raise their heads.
Jing Rou glanced over, her gaze sharp, and said to a maid in pink, "Can'er, you tell me! What's the deal with this lowly maid?"
Can'er slowly raised her head, looking equally frightened, her voice trembling. "Replying to Your Highness, after we were locked up together, Xin'er started talking nonsense not long after. One minute she was saying it was so dark, the next she was saying someone was chasing her. Soon after, she started smashing the windows, and then..."
Jing Rou found it strange. Could it be that Xin'er was the one who informed on them? But she wouldn't be so stupid as to expose herself so openly.
"Do you really think so?" Jing Rou turned to ask the other maids.
“Yes,” a maid replied.
"Xin'er started acting strangely after she came in, looking around everywhere," another maid continued.
"I guess Xin'er is just feeling guilty because she did something wrong, that's why she's scared and wants to run away!" the kneeling maid suddenly said.
Whether it was to clear their own names or to gloat, everyone was eager to shift the blame onto Xin'er.
Jing Rou frowned, feeling that this matter was strange. At this moment, the royal physician came to inform her of the autopsy results, saying that Xin'er had suffered great fright and mental confusion, which led to her death by hitting the window. There were no abnormalities in her body.
Jing Rou glanced at everyone in the room. These maids all looked timid and fearful, easily frightened by the slightest thing, and didn't seem like they would dare to do such a thing.
A subtle, sly smile flickered across Can'er's lips, but Jing Rou didn't notice it.
Just then, Princess Qing rushed over. She had just heard that something had happened here and was afraid that Jingrou would be frightened, so she walked quickly.
"Mother." Jingrou quickly stood up when she saw Princess Qing arrive.
"Let's go outside and talk." After saying that, Jing Rou helped Princess Qing out the door. Her calm and composed demeanor made Princess Qing feel a little uncomfortable.
"Rou'er, what's wrong with you..." Princess Qing spoke softly, afraid of startling Jing Rou.
"Does Mother think Rou'er has changed?"
The weather is lovely today; the sunshine is warm and cozy in the yard.
Princess Qing held Jing Rou's hand, tears welling in her eyes, "No, I just feel that my Rou'er has become sensible."
Jing Rou smiled, indicating that Princess Qing need not worry.
"I just find it strange that Xin'er would suddenly kill herself. Even if she was guilty, it was too obvious."
When Princess Qing arrived, she had heard what the servants had said. After all, she had been the mistress of the house for many years, so she naturally felt that the matter was strange. "I have already asked your father to investigate this matter, but there is still no result."
"It would be better to execute all these girls first to prevent future troubles."
"No!" Jing Rou exclaimed.
“If we execute them now, it might cause trouble. If we anger the person behind them, there might be even more problems. It would be better to release them for now and continue as before.”
Although Jing Rou is intelligent, she does lack experience in handling affairs. It is truly commendable that she could think of this. Princess Qing nodded in satisfaction.
"More importantly, the wedding is just around the corner..." Jing Rou unconsciously touched her belly. She couldn't afford any trouble before she married Qi Zhi.
Princess Qing also showed some worry. "Rou'er, the Empress Dowager wants us to come to the palace to prove that you are not pregnant. What do you think?" Princess Qing asked with some concern.
Jingrou's eyes were firm. "Mother, I am willing to enter the palace."
"The baby in my belly is only a month old, so it's not noticeable at all. The Empress Dowager's intention is simply to make me prove myself and quell the storm."
Princess Qing felt somewhat relieved to see that Jing Rou was so opinionated, but she had a vague feeling that this time entering the palace would be different from the past.