The Imperial Garden was bathed in the bright spring sunshine, with flowers blooming in profusion and a delicate fragrance filling the air. Mu Yanran, dressed in a rose-red palace gown, adorned with an eight-tailed phoenix hairpin, and with lips as red as blood, appeared like the radiant sun. Even the most beautiful flowers in the Imperial Garden paled in comparison to her.
"What are you doing?" The palace maid behind her dutifully held up the umbrella, casting a shadow around Mu Yanran. Her voice rose, filled with undisguised anger.
Upon seeing Mu Yanran, the palace servants immediately knelt down with a thud, completely disregarding their knees, their bodies trembling. Mu Yanran held the highest position and received the most favor in the harem, wielding absolute power over everything. The palace servants' fear of her was practically ingrained in their very bones.
Taking advantage of the opportunity, Situ Yuan, who was exhausted from being chased, hurriedly slipped into the flower bushes and developed some goodwill towards Mu Yanran, after all, she could be considered his savior.
"Your Highness, a dog offended me. I was so frightened by it that I ordered the palace servants to catch it in the Imperial Garden. Is Your Highness really going to interfere in such a trivial matter?" Consort Li moved gracefully, raising her chin high as she met Mu Yanran's gaze, sparks flying between them.
"Heh..." Mu Yanran reached out and adjusted the hairpin in her hair, a mocking smile playing on her lips. "It's just a dog, I naturally won't care. But if it disturbs the Emperor's rest, can you, Consort Li, bear the responsibility?"
As she finished speaking, Mu Yanran's smile vanished, her phoenix eyes widened, and her imposing aura was fully revealed.
Upon hearing this, Consort Li's smile froze, a flash of resentment crossing her eyes. That damned Mu Yanran had so easily pinned such a huge accusation on her. Wasn't it just because her father was a general who protected the nation? I'm still a princess; do you think I'd be afraid of you?
"Mu Yanran, I only showed you some courtesy because you are a Noble Consort, but I didn't expect you to take advantage of me. I am the dog I want to catch, and I will skin it, debone it, and make dog meat hot pot. What can you do about it?"
Relying on the support of her maternal clan, Consort Li was arrogant and conceited, her charming face filled with arrogance and pride.
Mu Yanran was also quite angry upon hearing this. How could a daughter of a military family listen to such threats? If she were to lose her temper, she might very well whip Consort Li.
The two women were locked in a fierce standoff, neither willing to back down. The air thick with tension, and the palace servants behind them dared not intervene. For a moment, the atmosphere seemed to freeze.
"Fine! You dare to disregard me? Even if you are a princess, I will still teach you a lesson so you know what respect and hierarchy mean." Mu Yanran waved her hand behind her, and a black whip appeared in her hand, making a cracking sound when it hit the ground, making everyone's scalp tingle.
Looking at the marks left on the ground, Consort Li, though fearful, couldn't let go of her princess pride and, chin held high, spoke fearlessly, "Mu Yanran, how dare you—I am a princess, if you dare to touch me, the Qin Kingdom will not let you off."
Mu Yanran's face flushed slightly. She had a fiery temper and couldn't stand such words. The whip in her hand flew towards Consort Li's beautiful face like a nimble snake.
"Ah—" Seeing Mu Yanran's actions, Consort Li was greatly frightened. She staggered backward and fell to the side, narrowly avoiding the whip, but was accidentally hit on the cheek by the end of the whip.
The feeling of weightlessness made Consort Li's face turn pale instantly. She fell into the lake like a kite with a broken string, making a loud splash, and her figure quickly disappeared without a trace on the lake surface.
"Your Majesty—" The palace servants around Consort Li were terrified. They thought it was just a normal quarrel, and that the Consort would at most reprimand her for the sake of the motherland. So they did not stop Consort Li's disrespectful behavior. However, they underestimated Mu Yanran's temperament.
"Quickly, save her—" Seeing the palace servants panicking and Consort Li nowhere to be found, Mu Yanran finally snapped out of her rage and turned slightly pale. She waved to the palace servants behind her, and they scrambled into the water like dumplings being dropped into a pot, searching for Consort Li.
The Imperial Garden was instantly thrown into chaos. The news that Consort Gui had caused Consort Li to fall into the water and that her fate was unknown spread throughout the entire palace in no time. After all, the palace was deep and secluded, and with so many people and so many opinions, it was impossible to keep it a secret.
Situ Yuan, who caused this whole incident, didn't care about any of that. He just spurred his horse and desperately headed towards the Golden Dragon Palace. He had to get back to his body.
However, Situ Yuan forgot one thing: the Golden Dragon Palace had been the emperor's bedroom for generations and was heavily guarded. How could an ordinary little dog like him possibly break in? Moreover, since Situ Yuan fell into a coma, Mu Yanran had the Golden Dragon Palace surrounded like an iron barrel to show her caution.
"Where did this stray dog come from? Get the hell out of here!" The guards outside the palace saw the snow-white figure and were filled with impatience. They raised their feet and kicked Situ Yuan coldly, unaware that the lowly creature under their feet was the emperor.
A snow-white ball rolled around on the ground, finally coming to a stop due to inertia. The intense pain brought Situ Yuan to a state of heightened clarity he had never experienced before. He was now just a lowly stray dog, no longer the high and mighty emperor. It was precisely because of this that he wanted to regain his body and kill all those who dared to be disrespectful to him. Including everyone who had witnessed his transformation into a dog; only in this way could he conceal this humiliation.
Situ Yuan curled himself up into a ball, his small body trembling slightly, while firmly memorizing the guard's face.
In the lush green flowerbed, a white and reddish ball appears and disappears, its snowy white fluff drifting in and out of sight as a gentle breeze blows.
Situ Yuan felt excruciating pain all over his body, unable to even scream. The humiliation, anger, and fear within him were amplified infinitely. At this moment, he had an unprecedented hope that Xue Li would come to find him and take him back to heal his wounds. Gradually, his consciousness became increasingly blurred, and Situ Yuan finally succumbed to darkness.
Like Situ Yuan, Consort Li was also helpless and pitiful. She was pulled out of the icy water by the palace servants after a near-death experience. Her long, black hair was wet and draped over her face, her hairpins and ornaments were in disarray, her small face was pale, and her lips trembled, unable to utter a single word.
A pang of guilt and unease flashed through Mu Yanran's heart, but remembering Consort Li's arrogant and domineering manner, she couldn't bring herself to do it and could only speak stiffly. "What are you all standing here for? Can't you see that Consort Li is quite cold? Quickly send her back to the palace and ask the imperial physician to treat her."
Even though some of the palace maids around Consort Li were dissatisfied, they still valued their mistress's safety. They called on the group of palace servants behind them to get to work, but before leaving, they turned back and glared fiercely at Mu Yanran.
"Your Majesty, the palace servants around Consort Li are truly ignorant of etiquette; they don't even understand the proper order of rank," Zhu Qing, who was beside Mu Yanran, said resentfully, equally indignant on behalf of her mistress.
"Enough. I don't care much about such clowns. As long as Your Majesty has me in your heart and is in good health, I am satisfied." Mu Yanran stroked the silver silk earrings on her ears, and couldn't help but feel a pang of melancholy when she thought of her unconscious beloved.
"Your Majesty's concern is surely comforting to His Majesty," Zhu Qing reassured her.
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