Chapter 13: Drag and Beat

Jiang Yingli felt nervous when her name was called.

Oh no, His Majesty is really here to hold me accountable.

Jiang Yingli said stiffly, "Your Majesty, Su Xiuyi said she wanted to add a few words for me, so I let her come forward."

Xiao Chenglan looked at her standing in the corner, small and apprehensive, pursing her lips, and sighed slightly.

How could he be so obedient? He didn't dare to complain, and he even tried to cover up the truth.

Forget it, after all, the Su family’s power is too overwhelming, and you can’t blame her for being too timid.

While thinking, Xiao Chenglan had already walked in front of Su Xiuyi. There was a cold look in his eyes, but his tone was still gentle.

"Su Xiuyi, it seems that you are very opinionated and courageous."

Jiang Yingli understood that Xiao Chenglan was angry.

But listening to the gentle tone, Su Qingrong only felt that she was being praised. She was overjoyed and did not forget to choose words to show her virtue.

"Your Majesty, I am the highest-ranking official. If there are any omissions in Concubine Jia's precepts, I will help teach you a few things. This is my duty."

Xiao Chenglan smiled, "What if I say that Concubine Jia's commandments were taught by me personally?"

Su Qingrong, who was smiling just now, was stunned and her face suddenly turned pale.

Your Majesty personally taught me? How could it be...

Why would Your Majesty care about such matters?

She just said something...

She said that there were omissions in the commandments. Doesn't that mean that Your Majesty's teaching is not good?

Su Qingrong just found an excuse to establish her authority. She didn't care whether the commandments were really omitted or not, but she never expected that it would bring bad luck to His Majesty!

"Your Majesty, I know I was wrong! I was confused for a moment. I was just thinking about how hard Concubine Jia was working, and I wanted to help her. I have absolutely no intention of disobeying Your Majesty!"

This sudden change in attitude caught everyone off guard.

Su Xiuyi, who had been so arrogant just now, immediately touched the emperor's sore spot and knelt down to admit his mistake. The rest of the people dared not even breathe a word.

Especially Lu Cairen, she is now shaking like a sieve.

Just now, she thought that His Majesty came to see her in advance because of her beauty, but in the blink of an eye, Su Xiuyi had displeased the emperor.

What just happened replayed in her mind. Every scene of her relying on Su Xiuyi's power and being arrogant and domineering became a death warrant, making her break out in a cold sweat.

"Jia Jieyu represents me. If you are dissatisfied with Jia Jieyu and feel that there are omissions in the commandments, you are questioning me and slapping me in the face."

"You have disrespected the king and committed treason. How should I punish you?"

Xiao Chenglan's voice, which contained no anger, fell lightly into the ears of everyone in the hall, but it still weighed a thousand pounds, making it difficult for people to breathe.

Su Qingrong was so panicked at the moment that she suddenly raised her head and pointed at Lu Cairen who was kneeling and trembling nearby.

"Your Majesty, it was her! I believed her slander. She said I was the highest-ranking official and wanted to hear my teachings. That's why I was so fooled and wanted to teach her a few words. I have no intention of overstepping my bounds or disobeying her!"

Lu Cairen's face was completely pale. Su Qingrong's finger pointing at her and Xiao Chenglan's glare at her were like two sharp blades piercing through him. She was shaking so much that she couldn't speak coherently.

"Your Majesty, no...I don't have it! No..."

Xiao Chenglan glanced sideways, and glanced at Song Wanyan who was trying hard to ignore him.

"Song Xiuyuan, what do you think?"

When Song Wanyan was called out, she couldn't help but feel a little nervous, but she quickly calmed down.

It's not like she's taking advantage of her power to bully others, so why is she panicking?

"Your Majesty, I have seen more than that. Su Xiuyuan and Lu Cairen were late and showed no remorse, speaking rudely. Concubine Jia asked the sisters to take a seat, but Su Xiuyi refused, saying that Concubine Jia's instructions were not enough to teach them, and that she would teach them herself."

Song Wanyan had the Song family behind her, so she was not afraid at all. She blurted out all the things that Su Qingrong and Lu Cairen had done just now, bullying others by taking advantage of their power.

With every word spoken, Su Qingrong and Lu Cairen's faces turned paler.

But Su Qingrong was not as desperate as Lu Cairen. Song Wanyan had no scruples about adding insult to injury to her because she had the Song family behind her, but behind her was also the Su family!

Your Majesty's court relies on the Su family, and she is a daughter of the Su family. How could Your Majesty punish her severely for a mere concubine!

Thinking of this, Su Qingrong calmed down a bit and said loudly, "Your Majesty, before I entered the palace, my father repeatedly taught me that as a daughter of the Su family, I must strictly abide by the palace rules and set a good example. If it weren't for this bitch who kept slandering me, how could I have been so foolish?"

When Xiao Chenglan heard Su Qingrong deliberately mention the Su family, murderous intent flashed in his eyes, but disappeared in an instant.

At this time, Lu Cairen was completely desperate. Because she didn't come from a high-ranking family, she wanted to get close to a high-ranking concubine to take advantage of the situation.

Unexpectedly, he not only failed to catch the east wind, but was also thrown heavily into the mud.

Xiao Chenglan looked at Lü Cairen with cold, disgusted eyes and slowly opened his mouth, "You bullied the weak, assaulted a concubine, violated palace rules, spoke rudely, used your power to bully others, committed treason, and disrespected the emperor's authority. In every case, have I wronged you?"

At this moment, Lu Cairen couldn't utter a word of rebuttal.

She did all these things.

Is she going to be banished to the cold palace on the second day after she entered the palace?

Lu Cairen still had a glimmer of hope in her heart, hoping that His Majesty would not punish her so severely because of her appearance. If she was only confined for a few months, she would always find a way to make His Majesty remember her.

But if she is banished to the cold palace, it will be difficult for her to turn things around.

However, what Xiao Chenglan said made her feel cold all over.

"Come here, drag Lu Cairen away and beat him to death."

The Baohua Hall suddenly became so quiet that it seemed as if there was no one there.

Lu Cairen seemed to have all the muscles and bones pulled out of his body, and he knelt on the ground helplessly.

Su Xiuyi shivered all over.

All the concubines present, whether related or not, turned pale with fear.

Beaten to death....

On the second day after entering the palace, someone was about to be beaten to death...

When the eunuchs came forward to drag away Lu Cairen, her hysterical pleas for mercy and cries echoed in the hall.

"Your Majesty, I was wrong...I will never dare to do it again!"

"Jia Jieyu! Please, please let His Majesty have mercy! I kowtow to you and confess my guilt..."

"Empress Xiuyi! How could you be so cruel and destroy the bridge after crossing it? I was clearly doing this for you—"

Jiang Yingli's heart trembled at the sharp cry.

She knew that Lu Cairen would be punished for his outstanding stupidity, but she didn't expect that the retribution would come so soon.

It was the first time that Jiang Yingli had experienced being beaten to death with a stick, which instantly deepened her sense of reality that she was now in the deep palace.

This is not Prince Su's Palace, this is the new emperor's harem.

It can really kill people!

Xiao Chenglan raised his hand, signaling the eunuch to block Lu Cairen's mouth, and ordered calmly: "Fight outside the palace."

He paused, looking at Su Xiuyi, who was huddled on the ground. "As for Su Xiuyi, you listened to slander, were misled by treacherous people, and overstepped your authority. You will be punished with house arrest for one month to reflect on your mistakes."

Su Xiuyi no longer cared about her dignity and kowtowed to express her gratitude.

She knew that if it weren't for the Su family, she would probably have ended up like Lu Cairen.

Xiao Chenglan turned his gaze towards Jiang Yingli: "Jia Jieyu, follow me to the side hall."

Jiang Yingli's heart was pounding. Not daring to delay, she quickly followed Xiao Chenglan to the side hall.

The concubines in the palace had no time to think about why His Majesty called Concubine Jia to the side hall, because the screams of Concubine Lu were already ringing outside.

The dull sound of heavy objects hitting flesh and blood mixed with Lu Cairen's screams, like an indispellable haze, covering the Baohua Palace.

What’s even more terrifying is that Lu Cairen’s screams are becoming weaker and weaker.

In the side hall where no sound could be heard, Xiao Chenglan stood in the center of the hall with his hands behind his back.

As soon as Jiang Yingli entered the room, she heard Fu Wanquan closing the door behind her.

The sound of the door closing startled her.