He blamed himself for his mistake and had no interest in riding in the carriage. He simply took the horse and galloped away.
The general's mansion remained calm until Meng Yuxiu stormed into the study with a livid face and summoned Ke Shou. The maids and servants in the mansion became nervous.
"Miss Chang... has been imprisoned in the dungeon?" Ke Shou's usually calm face showed surprise.
Meng Yuxiu frowned and sighed, "It was my miscalculation that I failed to take care of her comfort. You must immediately send someone to investigate the cause of Consort Lan's miscarriage... No, they must have been prepared. This investigation probably won't find anything. You should arrange informants in the palace to monitor Xiao Shu'er and see if you can find anything."
Ke Shou accepted the order and left. Meng Yuxiu, unusually, reached out and rubbed his temples, feeling at a loss for what to do.
He used to be a warrior on the battlefield, and what he hated most was the infighting in the palace. A slight mistake could lead to utter ruin. He relied on his position to do whatever he wanted, never taking anyone seriously, and no one dared to do anything to him.
But now, he felt somewhat powerless. He had to rescue Chang Lili as soon as possible; the dungeon was no good place.
Meanwhile, from the cold, damp dungeon came suppressed cries of pain and the loud sound of whips striking flesh and blood.
Chang Lili gritted her teeth, her face sweat tinged with the smell of blood, and her clothes were completely torn to shreds.
Her hair was disheveled, her body was covered in blood, her clothes were torn, and beneath them, her once fair and slender body was now covered in lacerations.
Her face was pale, and her eyes were bloodshot, as if she might faint at any moment.
"Speak, did the First Prince instruct you to poison Consort Lan? If you confess, not only will you avoid the whip, but I'll also serve you the best wine and food," the jailer with the whip said with a lewd smile.
He felt a pang of regret; such a beauty was being tormented like this, it was a complete waste of talent. But he had orders from above, and he dared not do anything but obey the orders to torture her for a confession.
Chang Lili refused to speak, her gaze remaining as disdainful as before.
Seeing her clench her teeth like that, the jailer felt even more furious and swung his whip even harder.
“Why can’t you understand? Let’s see if you confess or not!” he shouted.
Chang Lili felt a burning pain all over her body, as if she were dying. She had already experienced this feeling once before when Xiao Shu'er had harmed her, and now that she was experiencing it again, she really couldn't take it anymore.
But she couldn't give in, she couldn't turn black into white and listen to those people to frame Xiao Lingshou.
These people are clearly trying to oppose him and want to frame him with a fabricated crime.
She increasingly felt that Xiao Lingshou was living a miserable life. Before, at the military manufacturing office, she felt that he was a lonely person. After seeing him in the palace, she felt that he was always alone.
Later, when she learned that he was the only eldest prince and was so disliked, she became even more determined to treat her only disciple well.
Moreover, she knew in her heart that once she confessed, she would lose her usefulness and her life would probably be in danger.
How could Xiao Shu'er possibly keep her around?
But as the whip continued to strike her body, leaving her with not an inch of undamaged skin, she felt that if this continued, her life would be in danger.
Finally, she couldn't hold on any longer, her head lolled to the side, and she fainted.
Seeing this, another jailer in the cell quickly pulled back the jailer who was continuing to whip the man in a fit of rage.
"Why are you getting so worked up? Have you forgotten what the higher-ups said? We can't let her die before she confesses."
The jailer holding the whip reluctantly withdrew his hand, sighed impatiently, and said, "I didn't expect her to be such a tough nut to crack. At this rate, I don't think we can beat her to death and she will give in."
Chang Lili's hidden arrow was left aside. The moment she was arrested and thrown into prison, she truly felt that she was unlucky. Ever since she met Xiao Shuer, that vicious and self-righteous woman, she had been constantly harassed and always faced imprisonment.
These past few days have been quite eventful, thrilling and exciting.
But the palace was truly not a good place. She had always been in grave danger before, and this time she was unsure if she could escape this dark and hopeless place.
As the whip lashed her body, and she was too weak to cry out in pain, she thought of Meng Yuxiu. Her heart was filled with bitterness and grievance, but also with a glimmer of warmth and hope. She knew that Meng Yuxiu must be trying to save her; he wouldn't stand idly by.
But she had made her mother-in-law worry again, and she couldn't shake off the guilt in her heart.
The fire, a raging inferno, surged towards Chang Lili like a ferocious giant python.
She was so frightened that she took off running, but she couldn't run fast enough, and she tripped and fell.
Beneath her were broken mahogany tables and chairs, and shards of porcelain painted with intricate patterns, but Chang Lili was not surprised by these things.
She looked down and saw her tender legs and feet; she had turned into a little girl.
The fiery python was still chasing her. She looked up, but couldn't move her feet. Her clear eyes were filled with terror.
The bodies lying haphazardly in front of me were all quite young, including a boy with a youthful appearance and a beautiful girl in her early twenties whose clothes were disheveled.
Chang Lili subconsciously took a step back.
The eyes of those corpses were not closed; pain and fear still lingered in them.
She looked up and around. It was a magnificent palace engulfed in flames. Thick smoke billowed from the vast palace, and beyond the flames, there were sounds of fighting, screams, and the deranged laughter of demons.
Chang Lili's small body began to tremble. Looking at the hell on earth before her, she felt there was nowhere to escape.
The demons outside the firelight were getting closer and closer, and the fire python behind her was also chasing after her. All that awaited her was purgatory.
As night fell, the general's mansion, which had been peaceful during the day, was thrown into chaos.
Having not seen Chang Lili for a long time, the mother-in-law couldn't help but inquire everywhere. However, the servants and maids in the mansion either didn't know the situation or dared not reveal the news to the worried mother-in-law.
So, after repeatedly asking around without success, the mother-in-law naturally turned to Meng Yuxiu, since it was he who had brought Chang Lili out unharmed that morning.
Faced with his mother-in-law's question, Meng Yuxiu didn't want her to worry, but he couldn't help but tell her the truth.
"Mother-in-law, something happened to Lili, I'm trying to figure out what to do..."
He had barely finished speaking when his mother-in-law's face changed drastically. She asked anxiously and in alarm, "What happened to Lili? What's wrong with her?"
Meng Yuxiu immediately changed his words, saying, "Lili is greedy and drank a few too many cups of wine at the banquet. She is not feeling well and is resting in the palace, being looked after by the imperial physicians."
"Is everything alright? Why is this girl so troublesome?" The mother-in-law asked with concern and helplessness.
Meng Yuxiu offered words of comfort, saying that Chang Lili was highly regarded by the Emperor and had imperial physicians in the palace, so nothing would happen to her.
She even said it was her own carelessness that caused her to forget to inform her mother-in-law and make her worry.
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