Chapter 24
Seeing Liu Qinqin was about to speak, she immediately spoke first, "It does fit the figure of a royal concubine. Deputy Envoy Yang is very kind to Sister Huizhu. The ruby in her hair is unique to foreign countries. It is said to be very difficult to mine. I am afraid that you may not come across a ruby like Sister Huizhu's even after digging for several years. I still remember that when I was a child, I was fortunate enough to see an envoy from that foreign country visit Qingzhao Kingdom. The ruby presented to him was the size of a goose egg. The emperor loved it so much that he made a ring with the ruby and still wears it on his hand today."
Yang Huizhu's father was the deputy envoy of the Ministry of Public Administration, and he couldn't afford the ruby even with ten years' salary. Putting aside the origin of the ruby, just the fact that it was brightly worn on the head made people notice it at first glance, and her intentions were obvious.
Her little thoughts were seen through, and Yang Huizhu felt as if there was a lump of cotton in her throat. She stared with her eyes wide open, wanting to say something but not saying it, which actually pleased Feng Huanhuan. She thought: Why not add a few more fuel to the fire? So she added: "I see that Sister Huizhu's ruby is only a circle smaller than a pigeon egg, and it is also very rare in the world. At first glance, it seems to be a pair with the ring of the emperor."
After hearing what Feng Huanhuan said, Liu Qinqin's eyes were fixed on Yang Huizhu's hair, staring at her without blinking, which made Yang Huizhu feel uneasy and regretted provoking Feng Huanhuan. At present, she still had to rely on Liu Qinqin's foil to enter the harem. The news that her father had sought after was that the emperor was unwilling to accept his old age, so he seemed to want to summon the girls who had reached the age of marriage to the palace.
If she could get promoted, she was confident that she could become the top imperial concubine, after all, she was young. By then, how could her father be a minor deputy envoy of the Tongzhengsi? Her brother could also enter the government, and in this way, her mother's life in the mansion would be better.
Now, she has to endure.
So, she acted modestly and servilely, speaking to Feng Huanhuan with a low head and a pleasing look, while her eyes kept falling on Liu Qinqin: "Sister Feng, you have misunderstood. Father is a low-ranking official, and it was an accident that he got this item. It was given to me by an old friend of father. Father saw that I had reached the age of 15 and still did not have any hairpins to show off, so he gave me the ruby as a 15-year-old gift."
At this moment, a sneer suddenly came from behind, and the people present turned around subconsciously. Feng Huanhuan looked curiously at the tall woman who walked out from behind the wintersweet tree. She was wearing a neat indigo robe, a bronze sword on her waist, a hollow gold-thread hat on her head, a plain face, heroic features, and holding a gold-thread nanmu folding fan. Every time she fanned it, a mellow wood fragrance filled her nose, making people feel comfortable.
Only Liu Qinqin took the lead in reacting. She took a step forward, looked her up and down, and raised her head with disdain in her big eyes. "Who are you? You are obviously a woman, why are you wearing men's clothes? You are so rude. Don't you know what occasion it is today? Why don't you greet me when you see me?"
Feng Huanhuan silently took a step back, and was worried about Liu Qinqin. She was always confused and nosy. The most taboo in the deep palace was to talk too much, but now she hit a wall. The golden nanmu folding fan in the hands of the visitor had a great origin. If she guessed correctly, this woman should be the daughter of the late Princess Lan Yueming. Princess Ruxue and the current emperor were born of the same mother and had a very good relationship. She died of lung disease ten years ago and left a daughter. She followed the prince consort to the border to guard since she was a child and rarely showed up. The golden nanmu folding fan was called Xueyin Fan, which was a token of love given by the prince consort to the princess.
The consort was Lan Qi, the son of the Zhenbei general. When he returned to Beijing with his father, he fell in love with the princess at first sight. He was willing to take off his armor and accompany her, but the princess was a beauty with a tragic fate. Lan Qi was too worried and asked the emperor to take his daughter to the border to guard. He was away for ten years.
Lan Yueming grew up in the border area. If she were a man, she would definitely collect silk handkerchiefs every day. She moved closer to Liu Qinqin, leaning forward slightly. Her phoenix eyes under her heroic eyebrows were calm and deep. She chuckled and said something funny: "Are you not afraid of shortening your life if I salute you? Don't you want to live anymore? I can help you."
As she was speaking, the sword at her waist came out of its sheath, and the blade rubbed against the sheath, making a sharp rustling sound.
What a great sword, Feng Huanhuan thought.
But Liu Qinqin didn't take it seriously and actually laughed out loud: "Who are you trying to scare? Do you think you are a chivalrous knight? This is the imperial palace! I am not afraid of you! Do you know who I am?"
"Someone come!"
Liu Qinqin roared, and the guards around her appeared from nowhere. They were all a foot tall, wearing iron helmets and armor, with eyes like swords, emitting a bright blade light. These are not guards from the palace, Feng Huanhuan thought. Looking more closely, they all stood as still as pine trees, in neat rows, and the swords on their waists were all bronze. Feng Huanhuan's eyes lit up, and she was a little surprised. Perhaps she reacted too much, Lan Yueming tilted his head to look at her, showing her eight white teeth. Feng Huanhuan was startled, this smile was familiar, as if she had seen it somewhere before.
Before she could continue thinking, she saw Liu Qinqin kicking up her skirt, swinging in an arc half a person's height, and pacing back and forth in front of the dozen armored guards. They were as still as cedars, indifferent, not even raising their eyes. She instantly felt humiliated, and her anger rushed to her head. In an instant, she jumped up and barked like a wild cat whose tailbone was stepped on, "Are you deaf!"
"This woman of unknown origin is an assassin!"
"Why don't you take her down quickly!"
The armored guards remained indifferent.
"You! It's you. I ordered that the woman of unknown origin be taken away. Did you hear me?"
Lan Yueming folded her arms, as if watching a good show, and chuckled with her head tilted. Seeing that Liu Qinqin was really noisy, she pretended to wash her ears and said, "How did you grow up like this? How come you didn't die of your own stupidity?"
This also reminded Yang Huizhu, who had been silent, that Liu Qinqin was stupid, but she was not. The imperial palace was strictly guarded, and this place was a garden deep in the palace, so how could there be any strangers? The woman could walk freely here and dress freely, so she must be of noble status.
Liu Qinqin had no idea who she had provoked. She pointed at Lan Yueming and shouted, "How dare you! I am the future concubine. I was invited to the palace by Concubine Cihe. I am extremely honored. How dare you, a villain, insult me? Come on! Drag her out!"
——"Who do you want to drag out?"
When this voice came out, Yang Huizhu's eyes widened in shock, and she fell to her knees with a thud.
The armored guards behind him had already knelt on the ground, shouting loudly: "Long live the emperor."
Feng Huanhuan lowered her eyebrows and said, "Good luck to the emperor."
Liu Qinqin was the most relaxed person on the field. She knelt down slowly, her right hand half raised, "I, the humble girl Liu Qinqin, pay my respects to His Majesty. Long live the emperor."
Feng Huanhuan took a quick glance out of the corner of her eye, pursed her lips, and forced a smile: You know what, Liu Qinqin's palace etiquette posture is very good, I guess she must have secretly practiced it no less than a hundred times.
The emperor did not speak, and no one dared to move. Liu Qinqin could not hold on for half a breath, and her eyes were vague. Seeing that Lan Yueming had kept her arms around her chest from beginning to end, she was not only suspicious, but also furious, and said to the emperor: "Your Majesty, please make the decision for me!"
The emperor only chuckled and said in a majestic voice: "Speak."
With the emperor's permission, Liu Qinqin became even bolder. She pointed at Lan Yueming standing beside her and said, "She bullied me! This woman came from an unknown background and she wanted to kill me with a broken sword to scare me. She is simply an assassin! And those guards didn't listen to me at all. They were like wood. If the emperor was in danger and these guards still acted like this, how dangerous it would be for the emperor! Your Majesty! These people must be dragged out and beheaded."
The emperor raised his eyes and said, "Oh? Liu Shi really cares about me so much."
Liu Qinqin's eyes lit up and she looked up at the emperor. Although the emperor was over fifty years old, he was tall and strong, with broad shoulders. He stood with his hands behind his back. His bright yellow dragon robe showed his majesty, especially his eyes, which were calm and cool. People were fascinated by him and forgot to answer.
"presumptuous!"
The emperor roared, and everyone knelt on the ground in a panic, including Feng Huanhuan. She glanced at him secretly, and the emperor looked at him calmly, as if he was looking at a dead object. But Liu Qinqin didn't realize the seriousness of the situation at all. She still raised her head and looked directly at the emperor, even with some grievance: "Your Majesty, you... you are a vicious woman."
These words made everyone present feel a chill down their spines, proving that Liu Qinqin was not only mentally ill, but also had some hidden illness. Couldn't she have sensed the emperor's wrath?
The emperor was indeed very angry at this time, with his hands clenched tightly behind his back. When he saw this annoying woman, he felt disgusted at the sight of her.
"How dare you, Liu Shi, slander the children of the royal family?"
Liu Qinqin seemed to not understand and tilted her head to look at him: "I didn't slander the royal children, did I?"
The emperor was furious: "How dare you! How did Liu Yuanshou teach his children? How dare he look directly at the emperor! If he can't teach them, send them to the palace to learn etiquette from the nanny."
At this time, Lan Yueming saw that the imperial uncle had reached the limit of his patience, and suddenly wondered: Why did the imperial uncle tolerate this woman?
Liu Qinqin looked like she was about to cry, it was really... too dirty. How could such a dirty thing appear in the capital city after she left for so many years? So, she took the initiative to step forward and said to Liu Qinqin who was kneeling on the ground: "Oh? Wasn't it you who pointed at my nose and scolded me just now?"
"Do you want me to kneel down and salute you?"
"You are the princess?" Liu Qinqin said in a strange tone, her eyes twisted, "You said you are the princess?"
"This princess is the daughter of the eldest princess, Bo Ruxue. It would be fine if you didn't call yourself a commoner when you met me, but you even insulted the children of the royal family and showed great disrespect to the emperor. Tell me, is your head too heavy on your head?"
Liu Qinqin was indeed panicking, but she didn't think it was a big crime. She knelt down and slid to the emperor's feet, pinching the corner of the dragon robe. Her big eyes were red and her mouth drooped. "Your Majesty, I didn't know that the woman was a princess. Ignorance is not a crime. Your Majesty, please don't be a refugee girl, okay?"
At this time, the emperor's tolerance had really reached its limit. He had never thought that as the ruler of such a great country, he would still be controlled by others!
"Ah——" a terrifying scream, followed by a "bang——" sound, like a heavy object falling to the ground, and then a mellow angry voice came: "Bold Liu!"
"Come here! Drag Madam Liu out and give her fifty lashes! Madam Liu in the Imperial Education Palace should teach her the difference between respect and inferiority. Liu Huaide doesn't know how to teach her, so the palace will teach her for him!"
Liu Qinqin was lying under a wintersweet tree not far away, with red wintersweet flowers blooming on the snow. She seemed to be breathing weakly, holding her chest and gasping for breath, but her big eyes were always fixed on the emperor, with confusion and grievance in her eyes. Feng Huanhuan quietly withdrew her gaze, and Liu Qinqin was completely hopeless.
The farce was completely over. Liu Qinqin was lifted up from the snow by guards in flying fish uniforms and dragged away. She shouted in a whisper, "Your Majesty, I am innocent."
At this time, an old man's voice came from somewhere, very anxiously: "Stop, stop!"
"Your Majesty, please have mercy on me, Your Majesty, please have mercy on me!"
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