Chapter 72 Will You Be Resentful? [37]
The morning court was so lively today, A-Chu had naturally heard about it from the palace servants.
The palace servants in the Eastern Palace were afraid of Si Jinye, but they had a good relationship with A Chu.
A-Chu was gentle and kind to the servants, and on several occasions when Si Jinye was angry and wanted to punish someone, it was she who persuaded him to stop.
Therefore, they dared to discuss palace gossip with Achu on ordinary days.
After the morning court session this morning, Shen Jingya was taken from Prince Rui's residence to the palace, where she and her husband Si Jinxuan were publicly flogged in the front court.
It would be hard for Achu not to know.
However, with Si Jinye, A Chu could hear things that the palace servants didn't know.
For example, what happens in the imperial court.
Si Jinye was not a qualified storyteller, but A Chu listened with great interest.
After Si Jinye finished speaking, he asked A Chu, "Shen Jingya was only flogged eighty times and demoted to a prince's concubine. Are you unwilling to accept this?"
Achu blinked: "Why would I be unwilling to accept this?"
Si Jinye: "She almost got you killed."
Achu laughed and hugged his arm: "But if it weren't for her, you wouldn't have been able to save me that day!"
"If you hadn't saved me that day, and instead you had abducted me from Lian Yue Nunnery to the East Palace, I wouldn't have been so willing to be with you..."
Before she could finish speaking, A Chu's cheeks were already flushed, and she refused to look at Si Jinye.
Si Jinye smiled as he leaned down and nuzzled A Chu's cheek with the tip of his nose.
He said with a smile, "So that's why I saved you like a hero."
"So, from what day did you fall in love with me?"
Achu gave him a playful glare: "How could that be! I'm too busy being afraid of you to fall in love with you!"
Si Jinye thought of how A Chu was often frightened to tears by him back then, which certainly didn't seem like she was in love with him.
He suddenly became curious and asked Achu, "When did you fall in love with me?"
Achu looked at Si Jinye and realized that he really wanted to know.
She had a thoughtful expression on her face.
"Let me think..."
"I don't know when it was."
"Perhaps, when I realized that you were just trying to scare me each time and wouldn't actually hurt me?"
"Or perhaps it was the night I returned to the Marquis of Zhongyi's residence that you clearly wanted to see me, but said it was Wangcai who missed me."
Recalling these memories, a smile couldn't help but appear on Achu's face.
Si Jinye felt inexplicably embarrassed, but he did not deny that he had indeed been thinking about A Chu at that time.
After Achu finished speaking, she asked Si Jinye, "And you? When did you fall in love with me?"
Si Jinye was just thinking about this question too.
"Like you, I don't know when it happened."
"Maybe it's because I find it cute when you cry, so I like to tease you."
"Or perhaps it's when I feel it's better to make you happy than to make you cry..."
For some reason, the two of them went from discussing calm and elegant topics to expressing their feelings for each other.
Later on, Si Jinye no longer wanted to express his feelings simply with words; he felt that expressing them through actions was more practical.
So, without A Chu noticing, she was tackled by Si Jinye.
After the commotion, Achu leaned against Si Jinye's chest, breathing slightly heavily.
Si Jinye picked up where they left off, his voice slightly hoarse as he asked A Chu, "Don't you really think the punishment for Shen Jingya is too lenient?"
Achu pursed her overly red and full lips before speaking: "I think her punishment was actually quite severe."
"She was demoted to a concubine of Prince Rui and would never be promoted, which was already a heavy blow to her."
Shen Jingya prides herself on being a time-traveling heroine, but as the heroine, she is demoted to the position of concubine of the male lead, Si Jinxuan.
Unless Si Jinxuan successfully ascends the throne and has deep feelings for her, he is willing to defy the imperial decree to grant her a position.
But with Achu here, Si Jinye won't die as early as in the original story.
Si Jinxuan was no match for Si Jinye.
Does he expect to ascend the throne smoothly like in the original story? That's uncertain.
Achu paused for a moment, then continued, "What's more, she was also flogged eighty times."
If the executioner were to use excessive force, eighty strokes of the cane could truly kill a person.
Shen Jingya is probably half dead.
In fact, Shen Jingya was nearly killed.
Although the guards who carried out the execution did not kill her, she had been pampered for many years and had never been beaten before!
Moreover, this is not only physical pain, but also psychological torment!
Shen Jingya even had the urge to die and travel back to the modern world!
But she was really unwilling to give up!
Why should she, a time traveler, end up in such a predicament?
Could it be that the plot of her novel has encountered such a major setback?
However, Shen Jingya was unaware that her setbacks were not yet over.
The day after Shen Jingya and Si Jinxuan were flogged, the news spread throughout the capital, from officials and noble families to ordinary people.
Shen Jingya, the most talented woman in the capital, is actually a morally corrupt, vicious, and cruel person!
Fearing that Miss Lin Miaoyi from the Lin family would steal her position as princess, she actually bribed villains to impersonate bandits and kidnap Miss Lin, ruining her reputation!
Poor Miss Lin was forced to marry far away, and she passed away in less than a year!
What's even more shocking is that a few months ago, the fifth young lady of the Marquis of Zhongyi's mansion, now the Crown Princess, also encountered bandits while accompanying the Marquis of Zhongyi's wife to offer incense.
If His Highness the Crown Prince hadn't happened to pass by and saved her, she would probably be the second Lin Miaoyi!
And that bandit was actually someone Shen Jingya had bribed to impersonate her!
"My God! How could Shen Jingya be so vicious!"
"Isn't the Crown Princess her twin sister? How could she do that!"
Someone nearby said, "I heard that Shen Jingya and the Crown Princess are not twins at all!"
This person's words immediately attracted the attention of those around them.
"Not twins? How is that possible!"
"How could it be impossible! Anyone who has seen them knows they don't look alike!"
"Do you all remember that the Crown Princess was taken away by that wicked concubine right after she was born, and lived as a concubine's daughter for more than ten years?"
"Although the Marquis of Zhongyi's mansion publicly claims that the wicked concubine gave birth to a stillborn child, I have a fellow villager who knows the midwife who delivered the babies for the Marquis of Zhongyi's wife and that wicked concubine. That midwife said..."
"What did the midwife say?"
"The midwife said that the wicked concubine switched her child with that of the Lady of Loyalty and Righteousness!"
"Huh? So that means... Shen Jingya is actually an illegitimate daughter?!"
"That's right!"
Don't underestimate the speed at which ancient gossip spread.
The rumor that Shen Jingya was a concubine's daughter rather than a legitimate daughter spread like wildfire throughout the capital in just half a day.
The Marquis of Loyalty and Righteousness also heard about it.
He felt that this news would eventually reach the emperor's ears.
Rather than waiting for the emperor to hear about it from others, it would be better for him to confess himself.
Marquis Zhongyi changed into his official robes and went to the palace to request an audience.
The emperor now gets a headache whenever he hears any news about Shen Jingya.
Upon hearing what the Marquis of Loyalty and Righteousness said, his face turned dark.
"Lord Zhongyi, how dare you! You actually tried to fool me by passing off a concubine's daughter as a legitimate daughter!"
The Marquis of Loyalty, kneeling on the ground, hurriedly kowtowed: "Your Majesty, please forgive me! I...I am guilty!"
The emperor severely reprimanded the Marquis of Loyalty and Righteousness, temporarily stripped him of his post, and sent him back to his residence to reflect on his mistakes.
That was the end of the matter.
However, the Marquis of Zhongyi's mansion became the talk of the town for a long time.
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