The emperor still did not speak.
Eunuch Liu hesitated. Lan Jieyu's words were essentially saying that she had the prime minister behind her, the prime minister had the empress dowager behind him, and the empress dowager was the emperor's birth mother. He couldn't afford to offend this whole series of relationships.
Just as he was wondering whether to ask the emperor how to handle the situation, Gu Jiangli cleared his throat and finally had a chance to speak.
"Eunuch Liu." Her voice was clear and crisp, seemingly carrying an inherent authority, completely different from her usual worried and sullen demeanor.
Lotus looked up at the scene with surprise.
Gu Jiangli then asked, "I've heard that there's never been a precedent of a concubine pushing another concubine into the water. If I had pushed Consort Lan into the water today, how would His Majesty punish me?"
The emperor raised an eyebrow and glanced at her again.
Gu Jiangli's thin shoulders trembled involuntarily from the cold wind, her makeup was messy and she looked disheveled, but her eyes were still bright and piercing, with pride and stubbornness that made people unable to look away.
This time, he didn't let Eunuch Liu speak; instead, he spoke himself:
"Thirty lashes and confinement to the house for one month."
Gu Jiangli met the emperor's gaze and slowly stood up.
"Alright, then give him thirty lashes and confine him to his quarters for a month."
Everyone looked at her in surprise, completely unable to figure out what she was thinking.
But soon, to everyone's astonishment, Gu Jiangli did something that left everyone speechless.
She quickly walked up to Lan Jieyu, grabbed Lan Jieyu by the collar, and forcefully pulled her up from the ground.
Lan Huier was caught off guard and screamed in alarm, "Ah—! What are you doing! Let me go!"
Gu Jiangli ignored him and dragged him to the edge of the pool in two steps.
Before Lan Huier could even regain her footing, Gu Jiangli kicked her directly in the waist.
"ah--!"
"Thump—"
Huge splashes of water rose from the surface of the pool.
Gu Jiangli turned around, knelt down again with swift movements, and said:
"Your Majesty, please punish me. I am willing to accept the punishment."
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