Everyone present, upon seeing the Princess Consort arrive, hurriedly rose to greet her, saying, "May the Princess Consort be well!"
The Princess Consort raised her hand, gesturing for Jiaming and the others to rise, and said in a gentler tone, "My dear sisters, there's no need for such formalities!"
At the Fujin's signal, Jiaming and the others stood up, but Li Shi remained in a half-squatting position to apologize. She knew that the Fujin did not include her among those who were exempt from formalities, after all, she had said those words.
Even though the only child the Fujin truly cared about was her own eldest son, she was still the principal wife and the legal mother of all the younger princes.
Therefore, she still needs to put on a show to protect her son and maintain her good image as the legitimate mother in her husband's eyes.
Furthermore, she had always been at odds with the Fujin (principal wife), and since the Fujin had finally caught her red-handed, how could she possibly let it go easily? She would feel regretful if she didn't make things difficult for herself.
Seeing that the Fujin had made the decision, Jiaming didn't say anything more.
What Li thought of, she could certainly think of as well, so she waited for the Fujin to make her move.
When the Fujin (principal wife) faced Li Shi, her expression turned serious.
The heavy, oppressive aura made everyone except Jiaming gasp for breath.
Li, who was being specifically targeted, involuntarily lowered her head even further.
Seeing that everyone else was doing the same thing, Jiaming, who was not affected at all, quickly followed suit and did something similar.
The lady at the head of the table glanced at everyone, but didn't notice anything amiss with Jiaming. She was satisfied with the power of her imposing aura.
Nodding silently to herself, she turned her gaze back to Li, who was half-kneeling and apologizing. After a cold snort, she said, "You've made a mistake for speaking recklessly. Hmph, you're just a lowly concubine. Although you've given birth to children, so what? You're just a concubine. The Fourth Prince is the master. How dare you make up stories and curse him?"
Li's pride was hurt by the Fujin's words, "You're just a concubine," and she unconsciously clenched the handkerchief in her hand.
Hesheli, Song, and others, who were also concubines, were included in the Fujin's words, and everyone immediately felt uncomfortable.
Jiaming was already aware of her situation when she entered the Prince's residence, so the words of the Princess Consort did not stir any emotion in her heart.
However, everyone else reacted, but she didn't, which made her stand out too much. So she lowered her eyes and her movements of playing with Xiao Hongjing's chubby little hands noticeably paused.
Having recovered from the blow to her self-esteem, Li knew that punishment was inevitable. She wisely gritted her teeth, knelt down, and continued to beg for forgiveness, saying, "I know I was wrong, and I admit my mistake. I will never do it again."
At the same time, I wanted to beat myself to death for speaking so recklessly. Ugh, how could my mouth be so foul? How could I have said such things?
Now look what happened! Instead of digging a pit for the Guarjia clan, they dug one for themselves and jumped right in.
As various thoughts were churning within Li Shi, the Fujin frowned and said sternly, "Do you want there to be a next time?"
Li, who was multitasking, was taken aback at first, then quickly shook her head, "No, no, no, I didn't think of that."
"I'm sure you'll learn your lesson this time and won't dare to do it again." A glint flashed in the Fujin's eyes, and then she chuckled coldly.
Upon hearing the words of the Fujin, Jiaming and the others all understood that the Fujin intended to give Li a severe punishment.
Lady Li wasn't stupid; of course she understood the ill intentions behind the Fujin's words.
I couldn't help but shudder.
Jiaming felt for a moment that the Li family member on the ground was thin and pitiful.
She blinked, chuckled, and rolled her eyes inwardly: skinny and pitiful, ha, what an illusion. Even if it were true, that Li family member had provoked her enemies time and time again.
Mercy to the enemy is cruelty to oneself, a lesson learned from her previous life's apocalypse.
The princess tapped her fingers on the table, the sound striking Li's heart.
The wait for punishment was so difficult that Li felt extremely nervous, her back felt a little cold.
The Fujin left Li Shi in the cold for a while, deliberately making her kneel for longer before speaking: "Li Shi, you are also a mother, yet you so viciously cursed the Fourth Prince to have his hand crippled. You have no motherly heart. For the time being, you should stay in your Pear Courtyard and not come out. Instead, copy Buddhist scriptures more often to cultivate your character. And it won't be much, just like the Fourth Prince, three hundred times will suffice. Of course, it's best to finish it within this month."
Upon hearing this, Li's heart trembled, and her face turned even paler. Not only was she confined to her home, but she was also punished by copying scriptures three hundred times—so many!
Madam Li gritted her teeth and couldn't help but speak to the Fujin (principal wife), intending to struggle a bit, "Fujin..."
"What, do you have a problem with this?" After asking, the Fujin didn't let Li Shi answer, and then sneered, "I believe that even if the master finds out, he won't have any objections to the punishment I have given."
The thought that her words would reach the ears of the Fourth Prince made Li feel an urge to faint.
Oh no, from now on, my already low favorability rating in the Fourth Prince's heart will definitely be reduced even further.
Looking dejected, as if her father had died, Li Shi said blankly, "No, I have no objection."
When Lady Li received the signal from the Fujin that she could get up, she was about to stand up when a sudden inspiration struck her. Lady Li's expression immediately improved. Hmm, perhaps that's how it should be done. In that case, the punishment isn't too severe; it can only be considered average.
Simultaneously, the Fujin also noticed the loophole in her words and immediately added, "By the way, Sister Li, you mustn't copy the Heart Sutra three hundred times. The Heart Sutra is too short, only two hundred and sixty characters. It doesn't take much effort to complete. This punishment is too lenient."
Li wanted to explain.
But the princess consort didn't give her a chance at all, saying, "I believe the master thinks the same way."
Li: "..."
The princess smiled and continued, "I think the Ksitigarbha Sutra is quite good."
Li was dumbfounded. It was so long that even if he had more than ten days to copy it 300 times, he still wouldn't be able to finish it in another month.
After admiring Li's change of expression, the Fujin continued, "However, I also feel that copying such a long scripture is too difficult for you, so I have decided to punish you by making you copy the Diamond Sutra."
Compared to the Ksitigarbha Sutra, the Diamond Sutra is much shorter, and Li breathed a sigh of relief.
But then her face turned grim. “Madam, the Diamond Sutra is quite long. Three hundred recitations, I’m afraid we won’t be able to finish it this month.”
The princess consort chuckled and said, "It's alright, keep copying until you finish. Once you've finished copying, your confinement will be over."
Li breathed a sigh of relief. It was alright; at most, she would be confined to her quarters for a while longer to finish copying the Diamond Sutra three hundred times.
Hearing this, Jiaming felt somewhat dissatisfied; the punishment was still a bit lenient.
So, unwilling to accept defeat, Jiaming pondered how to add fuel to the fire and make Li Shi be punished even more severely.
Just then, everyone suddenly heard the Fujin's voice again.
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