To everyone's surprise, Consort Zhao dropped all pretense and directly ordered someone to slap Xia Jieyu. Consort Shu felt as if she had been slapped across the face. Yun Chaoxi had waited for her to finish speaking before ordering the slap, so it wasn't just Xia Jieyu's face that was being slapped, but hers as well!
"Consort Zhao, what did Consort Xia say wrong? I think she makes a good point. If His Majesty makes an exception for me, I will also advise His Majesty."
Yun Chaoxi leaned back in her chair, propping her head up with one hand, her expression languid, perfectly portraying a favored and arrogant imperial concubine. "Every blade of grass, every tree, every person, and every object in the palace belongs to the Emperor. He can go wherever he wants and stay wherever he pleases. Xia Jieyu asked me to persuade him; does she want to put me in a difficult position or the Emperor in a difficult position?"
Zhu'er led two palace maids forward and had them hold down Xia Jieyu's shoulders. She then rolled up her sleeves and slapped Xia Jieyu twenty times with both hands.
Xia Jieyu's face was bright red, and the handprint was clearly visible; it swelled up in no time. She covered her face with both hands and sobbed.
Everyone present was stunned. Yun Chaoxi made no attempt to hide her arrogance, clearly intending to monopolize the Emperor's favor. Wasn't she afraid that the Emperor would abandon her?!
Some people were even thinking about how to report today's events to the emperor when the respectful greetings of palace servants could be heard from outside the hall.
"Welcome, Your Majesty."
Everyone's eyes lit up!
The Emperor's arrival is just in time; let him see how Consort Zhao is bullying others with her power!
A tall man dressed in a black robe embroidered with dark gold dragons strode into the hall. Upon seeing the people in the hall, he frowned imperceptibly.
Everyone rose to pay their respects, and Yun Chaoxi also stepped down from her seat, saying, "May Your Majesty be well."
Upon touching Yun Chaoxi, Chu Xiao's expression softened completely. He took a few steps forward to help her up and asked gently, "Have you been waiting long?"
Yun Chaoxi shook her head and smiled gently, "I'm chatting with the ladies of the palace."
Chu Xiao then spared a glance to scan the people present, and naturally saw Xia Jieyu kneeling on the ground, covering her face and crying.
"What's wrong? Did she make you angry?"
“Your Majesty! Consort Xia merely suggested that Consort Zhao persuade Your Majesty to stay overnight in the various palaces, and Consort Zhao became angry and punished her.”
"Which of you ladies doesn't want the Emperor to stay overnight? Consort Xia was only thinking of the ladies, but she was slapped and disfigured by the enraged Consort. Your Majesty, please be the judge." Consort Shu couldn't wait to speak, having long forgotten the advice her personal maid had given her before they left.
The entire hall fell silent for a moment, with only Xia Jieyu's aggrieved sobs remaining. "Your Majesty... I had no intention of offending the Noble Consort. I beg Your Majesty to do me justice."
She cried while showing her swollen, red cheeks.
Chu Xiao's expression was icy, and his thick eyebrows were slightly lowered, clearly showing signs of anger.
Consort Shu, who had been observing him closely, was secretly delighted. Was the Emperor going to punish this wretched woman?!
"I think you all have too much free time!"
"Since you have nothing to do, each of you go back and copy the Lotus Sutra twenty times, and send it to Zhaoyang Palace tomorrow. Consort Shu is especially talkative, so copy it twenty more times and send it over together tomorrow."
"From now on, the Imperial Concubine only needs to come to pay her respects on the first and fifteenth of each month. At other times, no one else should disturb her."
While everyone was stunned, Chu Xiao turned his gaze to Xia Jieyu, who was crying in the middle, and said, "Twenty slaps are too lenient, give her another twenty."
Everyone was speechless. No, Your Majesty, you punished someone without even asking them! Your favoritism is obvious!
"Aren't you leaving yet? Are you going to wait for me and the Imperial Concubine to keep you here for lunch?"
The concubines slunk away. Consort Xian passed by Consort Shu, gave a mocking snort, and floated away. Consort Shu walked last, filled with resentment, especially when she heard the Emperor's gentle voice behind her, so warm and comforting. Consort Shu's jealousy reached its peak.
"Are you feeling better? Is there anything else that's bothering you?" Chu Xiao reached out and pulled his sweet and soft little concubine into his arms, kneading and pinching her like dough.
Yun Chaoxi slapped his haphazardly moving hands and glared at him, "Your Majesty, the people haven't all left yet!"
"What are they afraid of? They don't dare to look back."
Once everyone had left and the hall was empty, Chu Xiao immediately buried his head in her neck even more shamelessly, showering her with gentle, lingering kisses. "Xi'er is recovering so quickly. The flowers I planted last night have almost all disappeared by now."
Yun Chaoxi's face was flushed, her rosy lips slightly parted as she breathed softly with her rapidly beating heart, "Your Majesty, it's daytime now, why are you like this?"
Chu Xiao quickly pressed his lips against hers, saying, "Who says we can't be affectionate during the day?"
Yun Chaoxi wanted to cry but had no tears. She always felt that the effects of the medicine on Chu Xiao's body had not yet dissipated, otherwise why would a certain part of him keep sticking to her!
She couldn't help but twist her body, but Chu Xiao pressed her down even tighter. Yun Chaoxi immediately opened her watery eyes and looked at him pitifully, "Your Majesty, I'm hungry."
Chu Xiao had tasted pleasure for the first time last night, and now he was at the point where he couldn't stop. But no matter how beastly he was, he couldn't let his concubine serve him on an empty stomach, so he ordered the servants to prepare a meal.
Yun Chaoxi was promoted from Jieyu to Guifei, and the variety of dishes doubled. In addition to those sent from the Imperial Kitchen, Zhaoyang Palace also had a small kitchen with dedicated cooks. Since Yun Chaoxi had not yet moved there, Zhaoyang Palace sent newly made pastries to Liuxia Palace.
Yun Chaoxi hadn't eaten much since waking up, and was really hungry now. As soon as the dishes were served, she didn't care what Chu Xiao wanted to eat, and focused on her own stomach first. Only when she was half full did she pick up a piece of fish and put it into Chu Xiao's bowl.
"Your Majesty, please try this squirrel-shaped mandarin fish. The imperial kitchen makes it exceptionally well!"
Chu Xiao picked up a piece and ate it. "It's really good. Xi'er, if you think any dish is delicious, please let me try it too."
So Yun Chaoxi picked up a little bit of this and a little bit of that, and soon filled Chu Xiao's bowl, making it bulge into a small mountain.
Eunuch Liu wanted to remind her that His Majesty doesn't eat this much, but after thinking about it, he kept quiet. Oh well, His Majesty won't eat himself to death.
While eating, Yun Chaoxi asked him, "I just put on airs in front of all the concubines and even punished Consort Xia. Does Your Majesty think I'm arrogant because of your favor, and find me particularly annoying?"
If Chu Xiao really thinks that way, then she must change her strategy, continue to keep a low profile, act like an innocent flower, and proceed step by step.
Chu Xiao: "Arrogant because of your favor? That's a very apt term. Since I favor you, I will naturally allow you to act recklessly in the palace."
"But I didn't know that Xi'er, who is prone to tears, is so ruthless when it comes to punishing people."
Yun Chaoxi raised her chin arrogantly, "There's a lot His Majesty doesn't know!"
She was the pampered eldest daughter of the Prime Minister's mansion, how could she really be just a weak and delicate little flower who only knows how to cry?
Chu Xiao absolutely adored her little expression.
With other people present, Chu Xiao quickened his eating pace, finishing a bowl of rice in a few bites, then picked up the little concubine and took her into the inner room to rest.
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