Chapter 153 This is to force her into a desperate situation
Zheng Fangchu didn't dare to look into his eyes. Those eyes that had once been filled with deep affection and infatuation when gazing at her, and which had made her extremely satisfied, now looked so hateful.
"Who, who would fall in love with you... Your Majesty, please do not believe his nonsense. He is just trying to drag me down with him, seeing that the truth has been revealed."
These words extinguished the last glimmer of hope in Zhuo Shiquan's heart.
He looked at Zheng Fangchu's slender back, the figure that once filled him with love, and now he wished he could break it with his own hands.
Zhuo Shiquan's expression was slightly cold as he strode inside and bowed to Meng Yan. "Your Highness, this is a case of disrespect on my part. I have disobeyed the rules of propriety and betrayed my loyalty. I am willing to be punished by the laws of the court. Someday, when Prince Meng returns to the capital, I will personally come to your door and apologize!"
Meng Yan smiled at him, "Your Highness, it's a great virtue to admit your mistakes and correct them. No one else knows about this except me. As for those eunuchs, they are all my confidants, so don't worry, Your Highness."
After hearing what the imperial concubine said, Zhuo Shiquan immediately understood that the imperial concubine was going to let him go.
He felt both guilty and respectful, and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, please be so magnanimous that I am ashamed! From now on, if the Yiyang Marquis' Mansion needs you, I will be at your disposal!" After that, he took his leave.
But before leaving, he turned back, looked at Zheng Fangchu, and said calmly, "Since you said we have nothing to do with each other, where did you get that cat's eye stone hairpin on your head?"
As expected, Zheng Fangchu's body trembled slightly, but he did not turn around.
The cat's-eye stone hairpin was a token of love given to him privately by Zhuo Shiquan.
Although she knew that it was extremely risky to attend the banquet today, she did not have any jewelry that could be presented to her except this hairpin. Not only other ladies and rich girls, but even the ladies in the palace might not have it. Driven by vanity, she gritted her teeth and put it on.
Unexpectedly, it became evidence for Zhuo Shiquan to bite her.
Zhuo Shiquan didn't expect anything. Seeing that Zheng Fangchu seemed indifferent, he turned around and strode away.
After he left, Zheng Fangchu didn't even dare to raise his head under Meng Yan's gaze. He shrank in his chair and said nothing.
There was silence for a long while, until Zheng Fangchu could hardly bear it anymore, Meng Yan finally spoke, "Tell me, how do you want me to deal with you?"
Zheng Fangchu couldn't help but look up, and asked in surprise, "Noble Concubine... Madam?"
Didn't she explain everything clearly? Didn't the Queen believe it? Why did she still want to punish her?!
Meng Yan smiled lightly and said coldly, "You didn't think you could fool me with that piece of nonsense, did you? I sent Prince Zhuo away first, just for the sake of the three families' reputation! You are, after all, a respectable young lady of the Anguo Mansion. The Anguo Duke was a hero in his lifetime, and I don't want his reputation to be affected by an unfilial daughter like you. Now, I give you two options. One is that the Anguo Mansion cancel the engagement. No matter what excuse you use, I will let this matter pass quietly, and I promise that the Yiyang Marquis Mansion will not pursue it. The second is that I will report today's incident to the Emperor. The daughter of an aristocratic family who ran away unmarried will be dealt with by the Emperor."
Zheng Fangchu almost fainted. The Imperial Concubine... was pushing her into a desperate situation!
She had already broken off relations with Zhuo Shiquan. If she also broke off the marriage with the Yiyang Marquis, who would be willing to marry her in the future? As her mother had said, after missing out on Meng Changyuan, it would be a pipe dream for her to dream of such a marriage again!
Zheng Fangchu burst into tears, her knees softened, and she knelt on the ground, "Your Majesty, I beg you, please don't do this. If you do, I will have no way to survive..."
"How can there be no way out?" Meng Yan sneered. "Miss Zheng is so arrogant, beautiful, and comes from a noble family. How could she worry about not being able to get married? If you use your methods to win over men, there will be countless men willing to take you in. Why bother to kill the tiny Yiyang Marquis Mansion? My brother is a rough and tumble warrior who doesn't know how to be gentle with women. He is not worthy of Miss Zheng."
Zheng Fangchu had long lost the dignity of a daughter of a wealthy family. She crawled to Meng Yan's feet, hugged the imperial concubine's legs, and begged bitterly, "Your Majesty, I beg you to rescind your order... Your Majesty, as long as I can marry into the Marquis's Mansion, I am willing to be a slave and serve Master Meng wholeheartedly for the rest of my life..."
Now, as long as she can save this marriage, she will do anything. As long as the Marquis's family is still willing to marry her, even if Meng Changyuan treats her as a slave, she will be happy with it!
Meng Yan only felt disgusted. She was the daughter of a rich Duke, yet she had fallen into such a state. Not only did she not dare to take responsibility for what she had done, she even knelt down and begged for mercy. She was truly despicable.
Ruizhu noticed that the Empress looked unhappy, so she scolded the two eunuchs guarding the gate, "What are you standing there for? Drag her out of here!"
Upon receiving the order, the two men hurried forward and dragged Zheng Fangchu away.
Zheng Fangchu's makeup was ruined and her hair was a little messy, she looked truly disheveled.
Meng Yan continued, "Miss Zheng, which of these two paths do you choose? I won't ask you a third time. If you choose neither, I will have to act according to the law."
Zheng Fangchu was completely desperate. In the hands of Concubine Meng, she had no room to struggle.
She closed her eyes slightly and uttered in a hoarse voice, "After I return home... I will ask the elders of the clan... to cancel the engagement..."
Meng Yan curled her lips and smiled lightly, "Why bother with all this trouble if you had said so earlier?" After that, she ordered the palace maid, "Help Miss Zheng to fix her makeup. The wife of the Duke of Anguo is still waiting for her in the west wing."
Zheng Fangchu had been numb, but upon hearing this sound, he immediately became frightened again.
My mother is here? Then, does she know?
Yunxiang came forward and bowed to her, "Miss Zheng, please come this way."
Zheng Fangchu stood up woodenly and followed Yunxiang over.
Now that things have come to this, she can only let herself be manipulated.
When he entered the west wing, he saw the wife of Duke Anguo standing in the room.
My mother's face seemed to have aged a little in just this short hour.
Zheng Fangchu nervously stepped forward and called out softly, "Mother..."
The old lady looked at her, her face suddenly filled with grief and anger, and she raised her hand and slapped her in the face.
Zheng Fangchu covered her cheeks, looking at her mother who had always doted on her in disbelief. "Mother, you...it's not my fault. I, I wanted to explain this to Master Zhuo..."
"shut up!"
The old lady clutched her chest and angrily shouted, "You good-for-nothing, our Anguo Mansion is finished!"
After sending Zheng Fangchu away, Meng Yan straightened her waist and relaxed her muscles.
Ruizhu smiled and said, "Your Majesty is tired. It would be good to rest for a while."
Meng Yan shook her head and smiled, "How can I rest? I have to work hard to finish today's affairs. The case is not over yet." Then she said seriously, "Bring him in."
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