Chapter 72 Palace Fight
Upon hearing this, Cui Zhaoyi looked at Concubine Yao with anger.
"I didn't do that, Concubine Yao, you can't slander me so casually!"
Then he stood up and knelt before the queen.
"Please Your Majesty, I ask you to examine me. I did speak a few words to Madam Xiao, but we have no grudges against each other. Why would I push Madam Xiao into the water for no reason?"
"The Imperial Concubine has always disliked me and is disgusted by my recent favor from the Emperor. Now she must be trying to slander me."
Upon hearing this, Concubine Yao spoke in a cold voice.
"I am the imperial concubine appointed by the emperor himself, do I need to be jealous of you?"
"Cui Zhaoyi, it's obvious that you're holding a grudge against me for punishing you. Since you learned that Madam Xiao and I are on good terms, you're deliberately humiliating her and asking her to serve as bait for you."
Receiving the imperial concubine's gaze, Cuizhu hurried forward and knelt down.
"Your Majesty, I saw it with my own eyes. It was Consort Cui who pushed Madam Xiao into the water."
"It's my fault. If I had known that Consort Cui was so hostile to our lady's guest, I should have taken Madam Xiao away from Consort Cui."
Upon hearing this, Cui Zhaoyi remembered to push the green bamboo.
"How dare you slander me."
"Slandering a concubine is a serious crime. When the Empress finds out the truth, she will definitely skin you alive.
Cuizhu was pushed and almost fell down.
Keep speaking.
"You, Madam, have already said that defaming a concubine is a grave offense. How could this servant dare knowingly commit such a crime? As soon as you heard that Madam Xiao was our Imperial Concubine's guest, you deliberately made her kneel. As a humble servant, I dare not accuse you, Madam, so I had no choice but to speak up for Madam Xiao and find a compromise to get her to stand up."
"I never imagined that Empress Zhaoyi would be so arrogant and domineering that she actually dared to push a second-rank imperial consort into the water."
Cui Zhaoyi felt that she had no way to defend herself.
"Your Majesty, I don't have any. Please investigate."
Concubine Yao held her handkerchief and sighed.
"Alas, it's me who has implicated Madam Xiao. As a noble concubine, the Emperor has allowed me to assist in managing the six palaces. A few days ago, Consort Cui was disrespectful to me, so I gave her a small punishment as a sign of chastisement. I didn't expect to provoke Consort Cui's hatred and cause Madam Xiao to suffer such a great punishment."
Cui Zhaoyi argued hurriedly.
"Your Majesty, Madam Xiao's manner of address was incorrect. I was merely correcting her and had no intention of humiliating her. The suggestion to bring the bait was made by the Imperial Concubine's personal maid. Someone is trying to frame me."
As he spoke, he looked at Concubine Yao.
Cuizhu knelt down and kowtowed to the queen.
"Her Majesty the Queen."
"Please understand, Her Majesty the Queen."
"The reason I suggested that Madam Xiao bring the bait to Empress Zhaoyi is because Empress Zhaoyi asked Madam Xiao to kneel the whole time. Madam Xiao is, after all, a second-rank consort appointed by the Emperor. If she keeps kneeling in the palace and is seen by others, how can Madam Xiao maintain her dignity in the future?"
Upon hearing this, Cui Zhaoyi couldn't wait to speak.
"You slut, you did it on purpose..."
The queen listened to the argument between the two sides, her brows furrowed, her eyes sweeping across everyone's face, trying to find clues to the truth.
The atmosphere in the palace was tense, the flickering candlelight reflected the different expressions of the people.
"Enough!" The queen suddenly slapped the armrest, her voice as cold as ice, instantly calming the noise of everyone in the hall.
"This is my Fengyi Palace, not a place for you to make a fuss."
Cui Zhaoyi kowtowed heavily to the queen.
"Empress, it's clear that someone is plotting against me. Cuizhu is the Imperial Concubine's personal maid, so her testimony doesn't count."
The queen looked at Concubine Cui.
"Then has anyone proved that it wasn't you who pushed it?"
Cui Zhaoyi was speechless for a moment. Her palace maids were not around at the time. Only Madam Xiao and Cuizhu were present.
"Your Majesty, I…I certainly did not push Madam Xiao. I beg Your Majesty to see clearly and clear my name."
There was a hint of crying in Cui Zhaoyi's voice, making her seem particularly pitiful.
This was something no one could prove. The queen looked at her and gave her a helpless look.
Concubine Yao spoke slowly.
"Empress, Consort Cui is arrogant and domineering. She arbitrarily humiliates the families of loyal ministers and even pushed Madam Xiao into the water. The imperial physician just said that Madam Xiao will need to recuperate for a while. This matter must be severely punished, otherwise the ministers will think that there is no discipline in the palace."
The queen rubbed her forehead with her hand, obviously feeling troubled by such a dispute. She thought that Madam Xiao was Xiao Fuguang's mother, and this matter must be explained, even if it was just for Xiao Fuguang's face.
At this time, the palace maid shouted.
"My lady, Madam Xiao is awake."
When the queen heard this, her eyes lit up and she immediately stood up and spoke gently to Madam Xiao on the bed.
"Madam Xiao, you're finally awake. You scared me today. Are you feeling unwell?"
Madam Xiao looked at the bed curtain above her head, then tilted her head to look at the Queen. She saw that the Queen was followed by Concubine Yao, and she forced a smile.
"Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty."
He said as he struggled to get up.
"Your humble servant pays homage to..."
Before Madam Xiao could salute, the Queen hurriedly supported her herself.
"Madam Xiao, please stop being so polite. It's a rare occasion for Madam Xiao to come to the palace, and yet she fell into the water. If Princess Huguo knew about this, she would be heartbroken. I will definitely give Madam Xiao an explanation for this matter."
Concubine Yao also stepped forward and spoke with concern.
"It's great that Madam Xiao has woken up. I was so worried just now. I didn't expect that I would bring disaster upon Madam Xiao just by chatting with her. The atmosphere in this palace is not right. The concubines are arrogant because of their favor and bully the ladies of the court. It's my fault. If I had known earlier, I should have personally escorted Madam Xiao out of the palace."
Upon hearing this, Madam Xiao felt mixed emotions. She was grateful for the Queen's concern and smiled in response to Concubine Yao's apology. It seemed that she would not be able to leave the palace today. She was afraid that Fu Guang and Qing Wan were very worried.
"Your Majesty, you are too kind. How could I dare ask Your Majesty to see me off? I haven't returned home so late, I'm afraid my family must be worried. I wonder if Your Majesty could find a way to have someone escort me out of the palace."
If she left the palace, it would be even more difficult to explain what happened today, Cui Zhaoyi spoke hurriedly.
"Madam Xiao, now that you're awake, tell the Queen that I didn't push you, you fell down accidentally."
Concubine Yao spoke from the side.
"Madam Xiao, don't worry. Since I allowed you to enter the palace, I will never watch you suffer any injustice. If the eunuchs hadn't happened to be nearby today, I'm afraid that Madam Xiao... I wouldn't know how to explain to the Princess Protector of the Country."
"Cuizhu, who escorted you out of the palace, said she saw Consort Cui push you. Consort Cui has been making excuses. Now that you're awake, tell us if someone really pushed you."
He did feel someone pushed him at that time, but he had no grudge against Cui Zhaoyi, so why did she want to take his life?
Seeing Madam Xiao entangled.
The Queen spoke.
"Madam Xiao, you don't have to be afraid. You just need to tell me the truth about whether someone pushed you. I will handle the affairs of this palace."
Mrs. Xiao nodded when she heard this.
"I did feel someone pushed me at the time, but I was so focused on holding the bait that I didn't know who pushed me."
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