"Lingzhi, are you there?" It was Xiao Qingyun's voice.
Did he find out that the woman who raped him last night was her?
So you came after her early in the morning to ask her to take responsibility?
Lingzhi was feeling nervous, and the next moment, she heard the sound of someone slamming the door open.
She turned her head sharply.
"Lingzhi, what are you doing? Why don't you come and open the door for me?"
The cold voice came from far away.
Lingzhi's back stiffened, and she subconsciously wrapped herself tightly in the quilt, leaving only half her head exposed. She stammered, "I... I just woke up... I drank some wine last night, and I feel a little dizzy."
She didn't dare look at Xiao Qingyun. She grabbed the quilt so tightly that her knuckles turned white. Her palms were covered in cold sweat and her heart almost jumped out of her throat.
Xiao Qingyun had a cold expression, a face that was still so handsome that it infuriated both humans and gods. He gave her a sharp look, then frowned unhappily: "Why are you secretly drinking again! Where did you go last night?"
Hearing this question, Lingzhi's nose began to sweat out of guilt, but he gritted his teeth and held on.
"I stayed in my room the whole night and didn't go anywhere! But you, barging into a woman's bedroom so early in the morning, how can you still be a prince?"
Hearing her say this, Xiao Qingyun touched his nose and softened his tone: "I'm sorry, I was anxious at the moment, so... I'll leave now."
…
Xiao Qingyun left the room and closed the door again.
Seeing Lingzhi without leaving the room dispelled the last bit of doubt in his mind.
It seems that he was really dreaming last night.
After Xiao Qingyun left, Lingzhi lifted the quilt and looked at the kiss marks all over her body, feeling like crying but unable to do so.
I wonder how many days it will take for these marks to disappear.
…
The palace has been peaceful recently.
First, Concubine Ye was punished with house arrest, and then Miss Lingzhi caught a cold and had to stay indoors to recuperate.
The prince also runs out of the palace all day long, and no one knows what he is busy with.
The only slightly more lively place in the mansion now is Aunt Xia’s Qiuliyuan.
The prince has pardoned Xia Qinghe's punishment. She no longer has to work as a servant in the laundry room, nor does she have to serve in Concubine Ye's courtyard.
No longer having to be oppressed, Xia Qinghe finally lived a normal life as a concubine in the palace.
After being rejected by Xiao Qingyun that night, Xia Qinghe lay on the bed, feeling angry, humiliated, sad, and unwilling... In short, she did not sleep all night, and her tears soaked the pillowcase.
But now, she has figured it out.
Although Xiao Qingyun brought her back to the backyard and only gave her some food without even looking at her, it did not mean that he had no sympathy for her.
She knew one thing very well: the women in this backyard all relied on the favor of a man named Xiao Qingyun. This was true for her, and so was Concubine Ye.
The regent Xiao Qingyun is the master of this mansion.
Once you dislike someone, it will be difficult to change their impression later.
So she still had to calm down, see the situation clearly first, and then wait for an opportunity to act.
Lingzhi couldn't be won over, but fortunately she could still rely on Ye Wanning for help.
Xia Qinghe was just thinking when she saw Housekeeper Zhou coming in: "Madam Xia, someone is waiting for you outside. They are waiting for you at the back door."
"Okay, I'll be there right away. Thank you, Butler Zhou."
Although Xia Qinghe was wondering who was looking for her, she still headed straight towards the back door of the palace.
From a distance, I could see someone waiting at the door.
Just as Xia Qinghe reached the door, the person outside suddenly rushed over, as if he had grabbed a life-saving straw. He walked up to her in three or two steps and hugged her legs.
"Help me, girl, help me, please!"
After taking a closer look at the man's face, Xia Qinghe was stunned: "Purple clothes?!"
The streets are busy and noisy.
The man in purple standing at the back door of the palace was skinny, with a haggard face and his fingers were swollen beyond recognition.
She looked completely different from the cute girl she had been when she came back from the county town a month ago.
Seeing Xia Qinghe, Zi Yi's eyes turned red and tears immediately overflowed from her eyes: "Girl, I risked my life to escape just to see you."
"Don't cry first. What happened? Tell me clearly." Xia Qinghe suppressed her impatience and asked.
Zi Yi wiped away her tears, sniffed, and said, "After the young lady got married, the mistress used the excuse that I was the daughter of a servant, a slave who had sold herself, to betroth me to Liu Meng, the son of the housekeeper Liu."
Xia Qinghe was shocked when she heard this.
She knew Liu Meng. He was ugly, with pockmarks all over his face, a hunchback, and a limp. He worked as a groom in the Xia Mansion.
I didn't expect that my stepmother would marry the beautiful Zi Yi to such a man.
But in a moment, she understood.
After all, when she got married, she cheated her family out of a lot of money.
The stepmother treated her former personal maid in this way to vent her dissatisfaction with her.
Zi Yi continued, "But Liu Meng is mentally twisted. Not only is he perverted in bed, he also tortures and abuses me. He often whips me with a whip dipped in salt water, pricks me with needles, and drips wax on my chest..."
As Zi Yi spoke, he lifted the covered area of his clothes to show Xia Qinghe, which was covered with blue and purple scars.
"I really can't bear it anymore, so I went to the Madam to plead for mercy, asking her to save my life because of my careful service in the Xia Mansion for so many years."
"But Madam said that Liu Meng was only acting this way because he cared about me. She also said that Liu Meng's father was the steward, and I was just a little maid. Marrying Liu Meng was already marrying up high..."
Zi Yi finished speaking while crying, then fell to her knees with a thud, kowtowed repeatedly to Xia Qinghe.
He kept begging, "Girl, please save me! I can't go back. If I go back, I'll really die, girl!"
Xia Qinghe sighed and helped Ziyi up: "Okay, you get up first, I will make the decision for you."
She was isolated and helpless in this palace, so this time she just happened to leave Zi Yi behind.
She didn't have the right to bring someone to the palace privately, so she had to ask Xiao Qingyun for help.
After thinking it through, Xia Qinghe brought Ziyi back to the palace and took her to Butler Zhou.
After asking Butler Zhou to find a palace doctor to check on Ziyi, she went back to her room to get the Buddhist scriptures she had embroidered over the past few days, and waited alone in the pavilion on the road that Xiao Qingyun had to pass.
A jade Guanyin carved from mutton-fat jade is placed in this pavilion all year round.
Not long after Xia Qinghe arrived, she heard a rustling sound coming from not far away.
She hurriedly placed the Buddhist scriptures reverently on the table and knelt down in front of the Jade Guanyin in the pavilion.
When Xiao Qingyun walked over, he saw Xia Qinghe clasping her hands together, closing her eyes and whispering a wish.
"I pray that the Buddha may bless His Majesty with a healthy and worry-free life. I am willing to sacrifice my life in exchange for His Majesty's safety and well-being."
After saying this, she bowed down and kowtowed several times.
When she opened her eyes again, she found Xiao Qingyun standing behind her.
"Your Majesty."
Xia Qinghe quickly stood up and greeted Xiao Qingyun.
Xiao Qingyun's eyes darted across her red forehead and said, "You don't have to do this again."
"But I said something wrong?"
Xia Qinghe knelt down in fear.
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