At that moment, in the courtyard, many women were washing the mountain of dirty clothes.
These people ranged in age from princesses and noblewomen who were only a few years old to elderly imperial concubines in their sixties and seventies.
"When will this laundry be finished?"
A woman in her twenties threw down the clothes in her hand and looked at her hands, which were almost soaked and bleeding.
"Hurry up and take a shower, or you won't be able to sleep tonight."
At this moment, a woman next to him sighed and said...
After hearing what the woman next to her said, the woman could only pick up her hands and continue washing.
While washing her hands, she muttered, "That Xi Ning, how could she be so harsh on this princess?"
If my elder brother ever comes to power, I will definitely skin him alive.
"Alright, let's get to work."
"I heard there's a victory celebration banquet going on outside. I wonder how it's going?"
A victory celebration banquet?
"It's Li Qin. I heard he conquered Shanxi and His Majesty is holding a victory banquet for him in the Forbidden City."
As the topic was brought up, the women working alongside them also began to speak.
After all, these people are locked up here, and they have endless work to do every day from the moment they open their eyes.
If we don't talk to each other soon, we're really going to go crazy.
"That scoundrel Li actually won again. If this continues, won't it be great? Hey."
"Did you know? The daughter of the former Crown Prince's wife was also imprisoned here some time ago, but was later taken away. Do you know why?"
"Why?"
"Former Crown Princess Jiang Qingyue is now Li Qin's concubine, so her daughters were naturally taken away."
"yes?"
"By the way, Huo Youyue, weren't you also the former Crown Prince's concubine?"
"Why is there such a big difference in treatment between you two? She's enjoying a life of luxury in Li Qin's mansion, while you're stuck here working day and night."
Li Qin, who had just arrived outside the courtyard, listened to the sounds coming from inside.
He turned to look at Xi Ning beside him.
"You've managed things quite well in the palace; they really know everything."
Xi Ning, who was standing nearby, broke out in a cold sweat after hearing Li Qin's words.
Those guys, they really dare to say anything.
They dare to gossip about anyone and say anything about anyone.
Is something like the former Crown Princess's affair something that can be discussed?
Li Qin overheard it.
"Master, I will go and teach them a lesson right away."
After saying that, Xi Ning walked directly into the courtyard, pointed at them, and said:
"Are you all tired of living?"
They even dared to gossip about the Duke.
"Guards! Guards! Give each of these gossipy fellows twenty lashes!"
The people in the courtyard were also extremely surprised and frightened when they saw Xi Ning suddenly barge in.
Shouldn't he be by the emperor's side, attending the victory celebration banquet?
How did I end up here?
The women who were speaking turned deathly pale with fright.
"Okay, okay."
Li Qin walked in with a smile, while Qi Duchen walked ahead, holding a lantern for him.
Upon seeing Li Qin enter, Xi Ning, who had been so imposing just moments before, immediately lowered her head and stood to the side.
At this point, everyone knew that the only person who could make the lawless Xi Ning so obedient was Li Qin, the powerful minister and the de facto ruler of the court, the Duke of Liaodong.
Li Qin walked up to the frightened women and said:
"Don't be afraid, lift your head, let me see."
Then the woman raised her head and looked at Li Qin.
Qi Duchen, with his keen eye, took the lantern and moved forward a little.
By the light of the lantern, Li Qin could see clearly.
Upon seeing her appearance, Li Qin frowned.
It's alright.
But when I turned my head, I saw a woman with messy hair kneeling next to me.
As Li Qin turned his gaze, Qi Duchen immediately turned the lantern around.
Then I noticed she was quite pretty, and then I asked:
"May I have your name."
“Returning to the Duke, my name is Huo Youyue.”
Huo Youyue bowed respectfully to Li Qin and said.
"Huo Youyue?"
Li Qin was taken aback when he heard the name. Wasn't this the former concubine of the Crown Prince that they had been gossiping about?
Good heavens, another former Crown Prince's concubine. There's already a Jiang Qingyue in my own residence.
Li Qin's gaze swept over Huo Youyue, and he nodded.
She has a good appearance and figure.
It seems the former crown prince has good taste, similar to mine.
Perfect, let her live with Jiang Qingyue.
Should we go together then?
If the original crown prince hadn't died, the original owner of this body wouldn't have been able to make up his mind to rebel and start a business.
I myself would never be standing inside the Forbidden City today.
Since he's risking his life to encourage himself to start a business...
He's dead, so it's his responsibility to take care of his wife and daughters.
Then Li Qin said to the eunuch beside him, "Write down her name."
Then Li Qin walked past her, and Qi Duchen's lanterns passed by them one by one.
Li Qin looked at them one by one, and then spotted two more who were quite good-looking.
The eunuch next to him also wrote them down: one was Gui Anrong, a concubine of Zhu Qizhen, and the other was Princess Zhu Xianshu.
It's like shopping in a mall, you can pick and choose at will.
After all, in Li Qin's eyes, these were all his spoils of war, no different from Jiang Qingyue's.
After writing down their names, Li Qin felt that was enough, so he didn't look at the rest.
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