Two men and women, soaked to the skin with their skin barely visible, were dragged ashore with difficulty, already unconscious.
The palace maids and eunuchs who were watching curiously couldn't help but scream when they saw this scene. The palace maids who were thin-skinned were even more panicked. They covered their faces with their hands and ran away screaming.
Soon, the scandal of the concubine and the guard having an affair by the Taiye Lake spread quickly throughout the harem.
Naturally, the news also reached the ears of Yang Guifei, who was in charge of the Phoenix Seal.
At this time, Yang Guifei was enjoying the bright moon and lanterns with the emperor. There were no other concubines around them. This was the emperor's grace that she enjoyed alone.
Suddenly, a female official whispered something in her ear.
Yang Guifei was stunned at first, then a gloating smile appeared on the corner of her mouth. No matter which concubine's affair was exposed, she was happy to see it. After all, the concubines in the harem were thorns in her eyes and thorns in her flesh.
She hesitated for a moment, looked at the emperor with complicated eyes, and said hesitantly: "Your Majesty, I have something to say, and I am hesitant whether to say it."
The Emperor smiled gently and encouraged, "My dear concubine, please feel free to speak."
Yang Guifei carefully observed the emperor's expression and spoke carefully, "Just now, the reeds by the Taiye Lake were unfortunately ignited by a falling sky lantern. The servants from the nearby palace rushed to put out the fire, but they discovered a concubine and a guard having an affair there. They accidentally fell into the water and were rescued by the eunuchs, still hugging each other tightly. I wonder which sister couldn't stand the loneliness so much."
Before she finished speaking, she sighed softly, like a helpless wind, gently blowing across the silent lake.
The emperor's expression suddenly darkened, like a sky covered with dark clouds. "Shameless wretch! I must see with my own eyes who dares to be so presumptuous!"
So the emperor, accompanied by Yang Guifei, came to the shore of Taiye Lake in a grand procession.
At this moment, the two people on the ground were naked and unconscious, hugging each other tightly, like a pair of entwined vines. Their long hair was spread out in a mess, obscuring their faces.
The palace maids and eunuchs around looked at each other in confusion, and no one dared to go forward to investigate without permission, for fear of becoming the target of public criticism.
"The Emperor has arrived!"
"The Imperial Concubine has arrived!"
Everyone knelt on the ground in unison and performed the ritual.
The emperor's eyes were like ice, staring coldly at the two people hugging each other on the ground.
The old eunuch beside him saw this and immediately understood what was happening. He instructed the young eunuchs, "Separate them quickly."
"My Lord, if we were to forcibly separate them... I'm afraid our lives would be in danger."
They originally planned to wait until the imperial physician arrived before separating.
Yang Guifei sneered: "Such a person who did such a shameful thing deserves to die. What else is there to worry about?"
The emperor nodded silently in agreement.
The young eunuchs then stepped forward cautiously and forcibly separated the two.
However, when they pushed aside the messy hair that covered the faces of the men and women and saw their true faces, Yang Guifei's sarcasm froze on her face in an instant, and she was frightened to death!
Everyone was stunned, looking at the unconscious woman on the ground in disbelief.
It turns out that the person who had an affair was not a concubine in the palace, but the emperor and the imperial concubine's favorite little princess - Xinyi Mingyao?
The emperor couldn't help but wonder if he was dazzled. How could the woman in front of him be the third princess whom he regarded as a treasure?
Yang Guifei screamed uncontrollably, the gloating she had just felt vanishing without a trace. She rushed forward and shook the unconscious Xinyi Mingyao vigorously, "Mingyao! Mingyao!"
The female official also hurriedly took out a cloak and gently draped it over the naked Xinyi Mingyao, trying to cover up her shame of being exposed to everyone.
The palace maids and eunuchs who were originally just watching out of curiosity couldn't help but open their eyes wide, their surprise was beyond words.
Suddenly, a feeling of relief washed over them. They hadn't rushed to discover the true identities of the two men, but had chosen to wait for the situation to escalate, until the entire palace was in an uproar, and they had witnessed it all together. If not, they might have all been secretly silenced by Yang Guifei and the Third Princess for knowing too much.
The imperial physician from the palace was quickly summoned to take Xinyi Mingyao's pulse.
Yang Guifei asked anxiously, "How is Mingyao?"
The imperial physician responded gravely, "Your Majesty, the Third Princess is merely in a coma from shock, fortunately, she's alright. But the other one...is dead."
Yang Guifei didn't care about the so-called adulterer at all. Her only concern was the safety of Xinyi Mingyao. When she learned that her daughter was safe, the heavy stone in her heart finally fell to the ground.
But then came a hidden rage. She silently blamed her subordinates for their negligence, for hastily labeling the incident as an affair between concubines without knowing the truth. She was naturally aware of Xinyi Mingyao's particular preferences, and even thought that if even Princess Ziyan could openly visit brothels, then why wouldn't her daughter occasionally choose a few men for entertainment?
However, what she had never expected was that this incident would turn into a farce, and she was even pushed in front of the emperor with her own hands!
This is undoubtedly what you deserve!
"emperor……"
She turned around and looked at the emperor with worry.
But she found that the emperor's face became increasingly gloomy, and he even took his anger out on her: "Noble Concubine, is this the good daughter you raised?"
Yang Guifei was immediately panicked and quickly knelt on the ground, eagerly explaining, "Your Majesty, I really didn't know anything about this. Mingyao has always been well-educated and well-mannered. This must have been forced by that person!"
As she spoke, she pointed at the dead man on the ground and without hesitation put all the blame on him.
The emperor turned his gaze and looked at the old eunuch Ying Shuo beside him.
Ying Shuo had already verified the relevant situation and reported to the emperor: "Your Majesty, this person is not a palace guard, nor is he a member of the family of a court official who entered the palace today. According to investigation, it seems that he is a eunuch brought into the palace by the third princess."
The emperor's gaze was as cold as ice as he stared directly at Yang Guifei. "My beloved, you are temporarily in charge of the imperial seal and the six palaces, yet you allowed your beloved daughter to secretly lead foreign officials into the Forbidden City, causing such a scandal?"
Yang Guifei knelt on the ground, trembling, her voice trembling: "I have neglected my duty, and I beg Your Majesty to punish me. But Mingyao is still young, and he must have been seduced by an evil spirit to make such a horrible mistake. I hope Your Majesty will show mercy and give him a lighter sentence."
Serving the emperor is like living with a tiger; the emperor's wrath and grace are all his blessings. Just a quarter of an hour ago, she and the emperor were still admiring the colorful flowers and lanterns all over the city, but in the blink of an eye, she was forced to kneel down and plead for forgiveness.
The emperor sneered.
His daughter is of noble status, so such a shameful thing cannot be blamed on her, it can only be the fault of others.
He glanced coldly at the man's body on the ground and said in a cold voice: "Come here, drag this lunatic out and chop him into pieces!"
The Jinyiwei quickly stepped forward and dragged the body away roughly.
"Put the Third Princess under house arrest in Yongchang Palace."
The emperor didn't want to look at his daughter who had brought shame upon him any longer. He looked away and looked down at Yang Guifei, who was kneeling on the ground. He said in a cold tone, "Yang Guifei has failed to educate her daughter properly and has failed in her duty as the head of the six imperial palaces. I revoke your Phoenix Seal, fine you your salary for six months, and confine you to the Yikun Palace."
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