The eldest princess pulled the rope, causing Bao Lei to almost fall.
Bao Lei, who had been silent all along, finally exploded at this moment.
She raised her foot and kicked the princess hard in the back of her knee.
The princess fell hard with a thud, her mouth full of blood.
Before she could turn around, Bao Lei was already on her back, clenching her fists and pounding her furiously.
"I'll beat you to death! I'll beat you to death! It's all your fault, you idiot! Waaah, only your son is human, and we're all just livestock, aren't we?!"
"Back then, he favored his concubine over his wife and caused my mother's death, and you helped cover it up. Now, because of him, my family has been destroyed!"
"You're the one who deserves to die the most, you old hag! Why weren't you sentenced to be slowly sliced to death?!"
The eldest princess was stunned by the beating!
The crowd, who had been smashing vegetable leaves and eggs, were stunned and instinctively stopped.
The eldest princess struggled to her feet, cursing, "You brat, are you crazy? I am your grandmother, how dare you! Stop it right now!"
Unfortunately, Bao Lei wouldn't listen at all; she just kept hitting him frantically, as if she wanted to vent all the resentment she had accumulated over the years.
The eldest princess, being older and stronger, seized an opportunity to pin Bao Lei down and began to retaliate.
The grandfather and grandson turned against each other in front of everyone.
Some onlookers booed and jeered incessantly.
"Beat them! Beat them to death! They're all a menace; every one we kill is one less to worry about!"
"Exactly, not a single one of them is any good. It would be peaceful if they were all dead!"
"Now you realize you were wrong? What were you doing all this time?!"
When the guards pulled the two apart, the princess was covered in blood, and Bao Lei had lost two teeth and had a bruised and swollen face.
The officers were ruthless, grabbing their swords and striking each of them a few times, yelling, "You're about to lose your heads, what are you doing?"
"One man, one knife, a clean and quick journey; may I be a good person in my next life!"
After saying that, he shouted for the people ahead to speed up. Before the princess and Bao Lei could say anything, they were pulled and staggered forward.
As for the beloved son whom the princess had been so concerned about, he was at the back of the procession, having passed out from his nicotine cravings. He was dragged along the road, his clothes torn, and he was practically dead.
Before Xindu became the new capital, it was just a prefecture, and Caishikou, a place used for beheadings, rarely had a chance to be bustling with activity for several years.
But this time, it made up for all the excitement of the previous years.
Right now, a row of ten wooden stumps is placed in the middle of the open space.
Ten executioners, with red turbans tied around their heads, wearing only leather vests with black hair exposed on their chests, and holding gleaming ghost-head knives in their hands.
Those onlookers who glanced over were so frightened that they couldn't help but take two steps back.
Behind the guillotine, there was a table and three chairs.
Marquis Xinting sat in the middle, with Eunuch Feng from the palace on his left and the Minister of Justice on his right.
These three people represent the presiding judge, the emperor, and the imperial court.
Gathering together represents the united front of all forces in Tianwu, their unwavering belief in eradicating Furonggao completely.
Standing outside the arena, the crowd waiting to collect the bodies of their loved ones, even though they were weeping and wailing, did not dare to step forward to plead for mercy or pull anyone away.
As the sun reached its zenith, the Minister of Justice said, "My Lordship, shall we begin?"
The Marquis remained silent as always, only nodding.
Eunuch Feng immediately took the imperial edict and began to read it aloud.
Everyone knelt down on the ground. Eunuch Feng read with great intonation, but he didn't really put his heart into it.
He occasionally glanced at the crowd about to be beheaded, with a hint of disgust.
Why did I end up taking on such a job?
All I see are unlucky souls, all I hear are pitiful pleas for mercy; it's enough to give me nightmares every night.
I must try to snag a job at Broken Gold Beach another day, and I must spend more time in the princess's warm room.
Look more at those blooming flowers and eat a few refreshing fruits, otherwise you won't be able to get rid of this bad luck!
He could afford to daydream, but everyone else was listening intently.
Upon confirming once again that their family members were to be beheaded, some people started crying again.
Those sentenced to hard labor, however, were survivors of a catastrophe, unable to laugh or cry, caught in the middle and in a very difficult position.
The servants who had been sent by their master to gather information were overjoyed and happily ran home.
As expected, their young lady was not on the list, and the imperial edict did not mention her at all.
In this way, not only would he be beheaded, but no one would ever mention the matter again. Anyone who dared to cause trouble would be disobeying the emperor's orders!
Soon, ten people were pinned down in front of the wooden stump.
Among them, the eldest princess, her son, and Bao Lei—this family occupies three positions.
It's because they have incurred so much public resentment that the victims have become the perpetrators. The pitiful are also the most hateful!
The princess and Bao Lei, who were originally full of energy and fighting each other on the road, are now paralyzed with fear.
They were practically dragged to the guillotine!
The eldest princess muttered to herself, repeating the same few phrases over and over again.
"I am the eldest princess, and I demand to see the Emperor!"
Bao Lei, on the other hand, stared blankly, like a puppet.
At that moment, with her head pressed against the wooden block, only one thought remained in her mind.
How could her prime years have come to an end?
If she hadn't been born into the Bao family, if she hadn't coveted Baiyunjian, if she...
Unfortunately, no one could give her an answer.
The executioner spat a mouthful of strong liquor onto the gleaming blade, raised it high, and brought it down with force.
With a splattering sound, blood splattered everywhere, and the head rolled away.
Whether good or bad, happiness or resentment, life ends in a lifetime.
In a teahouse not far from Caishikou, on the second floor of a small private room, the window was pushed open a crack.
A cold breeze slipped in and curiously circled around.
The Third Princess, pale as a ghost, lay unconscious in the chair, startling the two maids so much they nearly wet themselves.
They kept pinching the Third Princess's philtrum and splashing cold tea on her face, and it was only with great difficulty that the Third Princess woke up!
The third princess was momentarily dazed, then burst into tears.
"Waaah, Bao Lei is dead, and her head rolled so far away! Waaah, she's looking at me!"
"She hates me for bullying her all the time, she hates me for not pleading for her!"
"I wanted to plead for him, but my mother wouldn't allow it!"
The two old women were filled with regret.
Although they were the princess's governesses, they were still servants, so how could they really go against the princess's wishes?
So, the princess threw a tantrum and insisted on leaving the palace to see Bao Lei one last time.
They couldn't stop her, so they figured that once the princess had seen it, she would give up and would be easier to serve in the future.
Who would have thought my luck would be so bad...
I had just arrived here, gone upstairs, and opened the window when I saw the execution in full swing, heads rolling around...
If the Emperor and Empress found out, they would lose their heads as well.
One of the old women quickly advised, "Princess, don't worry, you're overthinking it. Miss Bao brought this upon herself, it has nothing to do with you."
“Yes, Princess, she tried to harm you before, have you forgotten?” another nanny chimed in, trying to persuade her.
"Let's hurry back to the palace and find a royal physician to take a good look at you. You can't let this fright make you sick; this old servant can't bear that responsibility."
The two of them worked together to lead the Third Princess out of the teahouse and quickly returned to the palace.
But once inside the palace gates, the Third Princess insisted on seeing the Emperor.
No one knows what the Third Princess said to the Emperor this time, but when she came out, apart from her badly swollen eyes, her expression lacked her usual resentment and arrogance...
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