Bang!
With a loud bang, Qingwu pushed open the main gate of Tingyu Tower and strode hurriedly into the inner courtyard.
Su Tiyue had just gotten up and was sitting on the chaise lounge in the main hall on the first floor, watching eagerly as Liu Wan opened a glutinous rice dumpling and handed it to her. Just as she was about to take it, she heard Qingwu's urgent voice outside the door: "Your Majesty, something terrible has happened!"
"Your Majesty, something terrible has happened!"
Qingwu's little face was red from the cold. She gasped for breath and said, "Xiao Anzi... Xiao Anzi is about to be beaten to death. Your Majesty, please go and see him."
"What?" Su Tiyue got off the couch, staring at her in shock. "What happened?"
Xiao Anzi has always been law-abiding and well-behaved, so why would he be beaten up for no reason?
Qingwu rushed over anxiously and grabbed Su Tiyue's arm, saying, "Your Highness, there's no time. Let's talk as we walk..."
As she spoke, Qingwu pulled her out of the courtyard in a hurry.
Liu Wan ran a short distance after them, then hurriedly returned, grabbed a white fox fur coat from the clothes rack, hugged it to her arms, and chased after them.
The reason was this: the charcoal in the yard had run out.
This morning, Xiao Anzi went to the storeroom to collect a large bag of charcoal. On his way back, he accidentally bumped into Consort Wan, who was currently enjoying great favor, in the passageway near Dongyang Gate. Xiao Anzi's head was knocked, and Consort Wan's men began to beat and kick him with extreme brutality. But Consort Wan was still relentless in her attacks on Xiao Anzi, threatening to gouge out his eyes and feed them to the dogs…
When Su Tiyue and Qingwu rushed to Dongyang Gate, the four eunuchs under Wanpin's command were still beating up Xiao Anzi.
"stop!"
Su Tiyue stepped forward and loudly reprimanded the servants. But those eunuchs were Wanpin's men, so naturally they wouldn't obey Su Tiyue's orders.
They didn't stop; instead, they went even further.
Seeing this, Qingwu quickly shouted, "Didn't you hear what our Lady said? Don't you all want to lose your ears?"
The eunuch didn't stop, acting as if nothing had happened, completely ignoring her, the Consort Shu.
This was simply outrageous. Qingwu rolled up her sleeves, ready to charge forward and fight them.
Qingwu has practiced martial arts since childhood and is exceptionally skilled.
To be honest, these few henchmen were no match for her at all.
However, after entering the palace, Su Tiyue was afraid that Qingwu would cause trouble, so she ordered that Qingwu was not allowed to lay a hand on others in the palace.
If Su Tiyue hadn't reached out and pulled Qingwu back in time, those four eunuchs would probably have been beaten to a pulp.
Su Tiyue grabbed Qingwu's arm, turned her head and glared at Wanpin, saying sternly, "Wanpin, if you don't stop your men, why don't we escalate this matter further and let the Imperial Household Department handle it?"
"Tch..." Consort Wan snorted disdainfully and said lazily, "Oh, the Emperor only said that he would let Chief Inspector Xiao teach Consort Shu a lesson. You don't really think you're about to gain favor, do you? Or... does Consort Shu think that Chief Inspector Xiao will help you? The Imperial Household Department is under Chief Inspector Xiao's jurisdiction... What, are you trying to use Chief Inspector Xiao to scare her?"
Su Tiyue said coldly, "What if that's what I think? Whether it's Minister Xiao or the Emperor, if I can say a few words to them in the future, and Consort Wan goes too far today... are you really not afraid?"
"Of course I'm scared. But we have to be reasonable and follow the rules, right? Sister, if your subordinates make mistakes and you can't bear to discipline them yourself, I'll discipline them for you." Wanpin rolled her eyes, taking advantage of her being in the right, and wouldn't let it go.
Su Tiyue's eyes sharpened as she nodded and said, "Fine, so Consort Wan wants to be reasonable and follow the rules, right?" She turned to Qingwu and said, "Have those few come over here and kneel down to pay their respects to me!"
Qingwu responded and walked away, quickly subduing the men. Then she twisted their arms, making the eunuchs stop and kneel in the snow.
"And you, Consort Wan, according to rank you are a Consort, and I am a Imperial Concubine, how come... you keep calling me 'elder sister,' but you don't even kowtow to me, younger sister?"
Su Tiyue glared at Wanpin, showing her no respect whatsoever: "You kneel down before me too! Today I'll teach you all a lesson about manners!"
"you!"
Consort Wan never expected that an unfavored concubine would use her rank to suppress her. She pointed at Su Tiyue's face and said angrily, "Why should I kneel before you? You just want to make a big fuss, don't you? Let me tell you, Consort Shu... whether you go to the Empress or the Emperor, you won't gain any advantage in this matter."
Su Tiyue hated being pointed at and scolded the most. She raised her hand and slapped Wanpin hard: "Which nanny taught you manners? Sister, do you not want your fingers anymore? Huh?"
"You...you actually dared to hit me! I'll fight you to the death..." Wanpin lost her mind after being hit. She covered her face and shouted as she was about to rush up and hit Su Tiyue, but was held back by two of her own maids.
"Your Highness, please calm down. You mustn't hit her..." One of the young palace maids clung tightly to Consort Wan's hand, crying and pleading.
There's no way to ignore this. Even though Consort Shu is not favored, she is still of higher rank than our master. If we were to punish her, it would be an act of insubordination.
You should know that this is a major taboo in the palace.
Su Tiyue stood still, not flustered at all. If Consort Wan dared to touch her, she would just let her do it.
Su Tiyue snorted coldly and said, "Consort Wan, when it comes to these rules, even your servants know more than you do. If a servant under my command makes a mistake and offends you, you can beat or scold him to vent your anger, but you cannot abuse your power, much less take his life..."
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