Chapter 817 Execution of the Personal Palace Attendant
The convoy rested at the edge of the grassland.
The accompanying servants hastily set up a stove to prepare lunch, and dozens of people worked together. Soon, the aroma of food filled the air.
There is a natural lake nearby, and several people are standing by the lake.
The Queen's most senior attendant, Tinggu, looked pale and was being supported by others. Even though she was ill, she still exuded dignity and presence.
She stared coldly at the four palace maids in front of her and said coldly, "Either you do it yourselves, or I will do it."
With tears welling in their eyes, the four palace maids slowly raised their hands and began to slap themselves.
Clap clap clap.
The sound of the slap was crisp and piercing.
"Don't think you're something just because you're serving the Queen," Tinggu sneered. "Remember this: Asabu belongs to Prince Ari. Only we can serve the Queen, not you lot—"
The smile on her face vanished, and her gaze became as if she were looking at several dead people.
The next moment, she slowly ordered the people behind her, "Gag them and push them away."
The four palace maids opened their eyes wide in horror.
This lake is a natural lake, many times deeper than the artificial lake inside the palace. If you fall in, you will surely die.
In the morning, they were still celebrating being chosen by the Queen to be first-class palace ladies, but only half a day later, disaster struck.
All four of them were pale-faced and had no idea what to do.
The only palace maid with any courage spoke in a trembling voice, "If we die here, the Queen will surely know that it was Tinggu who did it, and the Queen will definitely seek justice for us..."
"Hmph!" Tinggu sneered mercilessly. "Four lowly maids who can't even be brought to the table, do you think the Queen would stand up for you? Besides, I am Prince Alex's confidant. Even if the Queen knows it was me, so what? With Prince Alex protecting me, the Queen wouldn't dare to lay a hand on me..."
"Is that so?"
A cold, angry voice rang out.
The four palace maids looked up and saw the Queen and her entourage walking quickly toward them. Their faces immediately lit up with joy.
The Queen arrived, and they were saved; they would not die.
Tinggu hadn't expected that the Queen would overhear her words. Although she was telling the truth, it was indeed quite disrespectful.
She immediately knelt down: "This old servant is unwell and came out for some fresh air. I encountered these four palace maids. They said that there is no place for this old servant by the Queen's side anymore, and they ridiculed and humiliated this old servant in various ways. This old servant couldn't hold back for a moment and started arguing with them... What this old servant said was just a moment of anger, a slip of the tongue. I beg Your Majesty to punish me!"
"That's not how it is." The palace maids quickly knelt down as well. "We were just fetching water and didn't do anything to Aunt Ting. Aunt Ting is about to slap us..."
The queen raised her hand and made a shushing gesture.
She could guess what had happened even without investigating.
Tinggu had served her for over a decade, and with Prince Ali as her backer, she was quite arrogant and domineering in front of the other servants. Many young palace maids had been tormented by Tinggu in the past, and when she heard about it, she only gave her a slight punishment and did not dare to actually kick Tinggu out of her palace... because she was afraid of incurring the displeasure of the prince.
Cheng Wanwan's words flashed through her mind: if she couldn't protect these four, then no one would truly stay by her side to serve her in the future.
The Queen raised her eyes and spoke slowly, "You said you were Prince Alexander's man?"
Tinggu lowered her head and said, "What this old servant means is that I am a servant of the royal family, and Prince Ali is the king's brother, so naturally he is also my master."
“What you said isn’t without reason.” The Queen smiled gently. “Prince Ali’s position in Assab is quite extraordinary. He holds a large army and intimidates the court. To be honest, I feel a little afraid every time I see him.”
Tinggu's face revealed a triumphant smile. Since they knew fear, she should hurry up and get rid of these four palace maids. Otherwise, when Prince Ali was angry, even if the other party was the Queen, she wouldn't give them any face...
The four palace maids felt their hearts sink when they heard the queen's words.
Although they were low-ranking servants, they knew very well that Prince Alex held an extraordinary position in Assab, but they did not know that the Queen was actually afraid of the Prince.
So, does that mean all four of them are doomed?
"Someone come here!"
The queen suddenly shouted.
The guards behind her immediately stepped forward. These guards were people she had promoted from the bottom ranks.
She coldly commanded: "The palace maid Tinggu has committed insubordination and offended the Empress. She shall be sentenced to drowning. Be done immediately."
Tinggu raised her head in disbelief: "Your Majesty, this old servant..."
"Let's do it!"
The queen interrupted her directly and gave a stern order.
She didn't want to hear anything more from Aunt Ting; she was afraid she would waver.
Now that she's come this far, there's no turning back. Whether for the prince or the princess, she must be at the forefront.
The guards behind her stepped forward, grabbed Tinggu's shoulders on either side, and pulled her toward the lake.
Tinggu was already ill and had no strength at all. She was easily dragged to the lakeside and her head was pushed down.
"Your Majesty, spare her life!" Aunt Yu, who was with her, hurriedly begged for mercy. "It is true that Aunt Ting offended Your Majesty, but her crime does not warrant death. Please, Your Majesty, consider Aunt Ting's many years of hard work in serving you and spare her life..."
The queen kicked her away: "Say one more word, and you two will both drown."
Yu Gu quickly shut her mouth. She couldn't believe that the usually gentle Queen would suddenly turn on them and kill them. Had she gone mad?
Although we are still within the territory of the Great Yu Kingdom, we will have to return to Asab sooner or later. How does the Queen plan to explain this to the Prince...?
Tinggu was held underwater by two guards. She stopped struggling after a while and was then thrown into the lake. After a while, Tinggu's body slowly floated to the surface.
The person who was full of imposing presence just moments ago has turned into a corpse in the short time it takes to drink a cup of tea.
The seven people who were with Tinggu all changed their expressions.
They truly never imagined that Tinggu would die like this, because of four young palace maids...
The Queen never expected that she would actually execute Tinggu.
She had long been accustomed to Tinggu's surveillance and tailing, as well as her occasional warnings and threats... She had fantasized countless times about driving Tinggu away, never thinking of killing her, but in the end, she was the one who died.
A feeling of exhilaration welled up within her.
Her gaze fell on the remaining seven people: "If you want to live, behave yourselves."
She looked down at the four palace maids and said, "You four have also been frightened. Go and rest in the carriage for a while. You can come back to serve me tomorrow."
By the time Cheng Wanwan found out about this, Tinggu's body had already been buried.
Because of this incident, even the secret guards who were keeping watch over the king became much more obedient, and for a time things were relatively peaceful.
The convoy soon arrived at the northern border of the Great Yu Kingdom.
One hundred thousand soldiers guard the border in northern Xinjiang. Thirty thousand were sent to support the Asab battlefield, leaving seventy thousand soldiers. Their camps stretched as far as the eye could see.
After spending one night at the imperial palace in the northern frontier, they crossed the border the next day and arrived at the Yuezhi tribe.
The Yuezhi were originally a nomadic people who gradually became a small state surrounded by several major states. The reason they were not destroyed was due to the balance of power among these states.
After entering the country, the surrounding scenery didn't change much, but the pedestrians on the road were shocking.
It was mostly the elderly, women, and children; the occasional man was either missing an arm or lame. The people's eyes were filled with numb pain as they struggled to survive like ants...
"The Yuezhi tribe has been at war for years..." the queen sighed. "Every year during harvest season, the Western Rong Kingdom steals large amounts of grain, and at other times the Laji Kingdom uses various excuses to seize cattle, sheep, and horses... All the men here have joined the army, but they still cannot resist the attacks of these two countries, and the people are suffering terribly..."
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