Chapter 442 Hesitation
What Lady Qiao's younger brother did was really despicable. He happened to see a girl in a temple and thought she was beautiful so he flirted with her. Unexpectedly, the girl was so frightened by the lecher that she slipped and knocked over the incense burner. The burning incense in the burner all fell on her face and body, not only disfiguring her face, but also blinding one of her eyes. If the girl was from a poor family, Lady Qiao's family was at least a family of officials, and they could have given some silver to compensate her for the loss, but they never expected that the girl was also from a family of officials.
Concubine Qiao's younger brother was sued and imprisoned. Concubine Qiao's father had only one son so he had to deal with the case. The case was at a stalemate and no verdict was made. However, the man had molested her first and the man's family also put pressure on him, so it was useless to just deal with the matter. Then he thought of his daughter in the palace, thinking that at least his daughter could help to put in some good words for him. After all, he didn't mean to harm anyone, so there would always be some way around it.
Lady Qiao felt that if this matter was put on Concubine Xian, there would definitely be a chance to turn it around. After all, there was the incident of Shen Zhizhuo. Look, the emperor did not punish Shen Zhizhuo severely for such a serious crime as stealing Prince Huai's seal while on official business. But Concubine Xian was favored, what could she do when she couldn't even see the emperor?
Lady Qiao was at a loss as to what to do, but she remembered Concubine Xian and realized, "Is Concubine Xian's brother in Jinzhou now?"
She asked the palace maid beside her, and the maid said, "Yes."
The palace maid hadn't thought of this, but when Lady Qiao asked this, she understood what Lady Qiao meant.
Lady Qiao's father was an official in Jinzhou. As the younger brother of Concubine Xian, any date he set would naturally be special. As long as Concubine Xian sent a letter, the matter would naturally be done.
But Lady Qiao and Shen Qing had some hatred in the past, although it was not serious, now...
Lady Qiao had never been troubled by Shen Qing in these years, but she was actually schemed by Shen Qing to cause her to fall out of favor. She did not dare to approach Shen Qing and hesitated for a while.
He couldn't think of anything going right staying in his own palace, so he subconsciously headed towards Zhaohua Palace, and finally arrived at the Imperial Garden.
She was a little hesitant to go in, but she was thinking about her father and brother in her heart. Walking in the imperial garden, the flowers were clearly blooming, but she looked at them with a frown, full of hatred.
Concubine Qiao walked in the Imperial Garden for a long time, and the palace maids around her felt a little exhausted. They had been walking for such a long time. Concubine Qiao herself was preoccupied so she didn't feel tired, but she was tired following them, and there was nothing she could do. She felt very depressed.
Except for Concubine Xian, all the concubines in the palace were out of favor. However, the maid who followed Lady Qiao felt that she was really aggrieved. Following this master, she offended Concubine Xian from the beginning, and was later punished by the Queen because of someone else's scheme. What kind of life did she live after the green card was withdrawn? But she could only serve by her side. She was really not without resentment over the years.
In the end, Lady Qiao stayed in the Imperial Garden until dark and still did not have the courage to go to Zhaohua Palace to pay her respects.
The maidservant had been walking with Lady Qiao for most of the day and her waist and legs were sore. She was also used to being naked with the maidservants on duty at night.
"If you ask me, if you really care about it, don't worry about your own face. How can your face be more important than your family? Go and ask the virtuous concubine for help. No matter whether the virtuous concubine agrees to help or not, you have done your best. There is really no other way. What else can you do?"
Jinse, the maid on duty, looked a little changed after hearing this and only responded twice.
The next day, Jinse entered Fengyi Palace quietly.
When Jinse arrived at Fengyi Palace, someone reported it to Jinzhi. Jinzhi looked at Jinse and raised her eyebrows: "What's the matter?"
At the beginning, the Queen was thinking of asking Jinzhi to arrange people to keep an eye on those who had some conflicts with Shen Qing. Since Concubine Qiao fell out of favor because of Shen Qing, naturally she also asked people to keep an eye on her. After all, it is best to use other people's hands instead of one's own. And someone like Concubine Qiao may be needed at any time, so it is necessary to have someone of her own by her side. There are more than one such person in the harem.
Jinse then told Jinzhi about Lady Qiao's brother.
After hearing this, Jinzhi went to report to the queen.
The queen raised her eyebrows when she heard this. This was quite a coincidence.
"Even if Lady Qiao is brave enough to ask for help, if Concubine Xian disagrees, she will probably just swallow her anger. But if her request fails and she suffers instead, do you think she will hate Concubine Xian?"
Jinzhi understood what the queen meant, and a fierce look flashed in her eyes: "Don't worry, your majesty, this matter will definitely not be noticed."
Jinse's return from the Queen's place did not attract anyone's attention. In fact, Concubine Qiao was not noticeable in the palace.
After Jinse returned, she served Lady Qiao.
Lady Qiao was really hesitant and could not make up her mind. She really knew that even if she asked Concubine Xian for help, it would probably not work. But she also thought that if she asked Concubine Xian and she really agreed, the matter would be solved. She still had a little self-esteem in her heart. If she had to say who she really hated in the harem, it would have to be Concubine Xian. But she was no longer her former lover, so she didn't dare to show it in public. If she was asked to bow her head, she would have to be servile, which was different from the usual greetings when they met.
Jinse said at this time: "My beauty, I have something to say but I don't know whether I should say it or not."
Lady Qiao was feeling complicated. When she heard Jinse's words, she glanced at her and asked, "What?"
"The beauty had never intended to get close to the Concubine Xian before. Over the years, even though Concubine Liu was punished by the Concubine Xian, she still stayed close to the Concubine Xian. In the past few years, she has lived a good life."
Of course there are real benefits for those of lower status in the harem to move up to higher positions.
Lady Qiao did pay her respects, but she usually leaned towards Concubine De. However, she was not very close to Concubine De, and it could only be said that they were just familiar faces.
Now that I'm asking for help from others, I realize that it would be useless if I didn't have someone to rely on. If I really join the team, I will always have someone to rely on.
Lady Qiao was unwilling to humble herself in her heart, but she knew this truth after living in the palace for so many years. And with her brother's affairs happening, she finally made up her mind.
Since she was going to ask for help, she naturally took out all the things she had.
In fact, giving gifts is secondary. The most important thing is the attitude. Concubine Qiao was feeling uneasy as she took the gift. She was heading towards Zhaohua Palace when she met Concubine Zhou on the way.
Noble Lady Zhou and Concubine Qiao had no connection with each other and never interacted with each other in the past. When they met, they would just greet each other.
And the palace maid behind her is holding something in her hand.
Concubine Zhou came out from the Imperial Garden. If she went in this direction, she would either go to the Imperial Garden or Zhaohua Palace. Concubine Qiao was accompanied by a palace maid holding something, so it was obviously not like she was going to visit the Imperial Garden. So, was she going to Zhaohua Palace?
What was she going to Zhaohua Palace for? Speaking of bringing things, Concubine Zhou suddenly remembered that she had asked Concubine De for help, wasn't it the same?
She raised her eyebrows as she thought about it, but after all, she didn't know the cause and effect. She did think of what happened back then and felt a little sad.
Lady Qiao did not take her encounter with Concubine Zhou to heart. She was feeling very nervous at the moment and could not think about anything else. She just finally arrived at Zhaohua Palace and went in.
After all, Shen Qing has been pregnant for less than three months, and the baby is not yet stable. Even if she wanted to come over to pay her respects, she would have to avoid it. Now it seems very strange that Lady Qiao comes to visit.
Chunhua frowned: "This Lady Qiao is so ignorant of etiquette. Everyone in the harem knows to avoid her, but now she comes to pay her respects."
Shen Qing said: "Just send him away."
She said and yawned.
She thought that maybe there was something wrong at this time, but she didn't have to take care of it just because someone came to her door. She didn't remember the things she had done with Lady Qiao. To be honest, Lady Qiao's little things were not worth her remembering for so long. But now she has relieved herself of the responsibility of assisting the six palaces. If the concubine has something to do, she doesn't need to go to her, she should go to the Queen and Concubine De.
They don't have much interaction on weekdays, and someone suddenly comes to pay his respects. She happens to be a little sleepy, so of course it is more important for her to take a nap. Does she have to see anyone who comes to her house?
It is said that the reaction after she got pregnant this time was really obvious. She was very lazy and sleepy, and she liked to eat heavy daily flavors. The last time she was pregnant with Xiaoliu, she was so stable and felt nothing. This time, she really experienced the weirdness of pregnancy.
But she didn't vomit, which was considered good luck. Shen Qing personally felt that her pregnancy was not too painful.
Shen Qing fell asleep here.
Lady Qiao was already thinking about how she should beg for mercy when Chunhua came over.
"The queen is still resting and I'm afraid she won't be able to get up for a while."
Lady Qiao had done a lot of things in her mind, and she thought she had to be humble when she met someone, but in the end she didn't even see the person. She was really gritting her teeth in her heart, but she had no choice but to stuff Chunhua's purse: "Aunt, I wonder when the queen will get up?"
Chunhua would naturally not take the purse: "My lady, you came at an untimely time. Your Majesty has not rested for long, so it is hard to say for sure."
Having said this, Chunhua felt that Concubine Qiao was really ignorant. Originally, the concubines in the harem did not come to pay their respects to Shen Qing when she was less than three months pregnant. After all, they would wait until the fetus was stable. Now Concubine Qiao came and not only did she say that the queen was resting, anyone with a discerning eye would naturally know that she was sending the guest away.
Chunhua could also see that something was wrong with Lady Qiao, but since she couldn't do it in front of her, there was no way she could expect her to do it in front of the Empress.
She would not say anything bad to Lady Qiao, as that would bring bad reputation to the Empress. She just hoped that Lady Qiao would be sensible and leave on her own.
Could Miss Qiao not hear this obvious farewell? It seemed that she would not be able to see him again.
I've thought a lot about how to be humble when we meet, but now, I can't even see each other?
Concubine Qiao had no choice but to leave Zhaohua Palace as she couldn't insist on leaving.
She clenched her fists tightly. In fact, it would have been fine if her request had not been accepted the first time, but now that it was about to happen a second time, the obsession in her heart was even stronger than the first time she was rejected.
Lady Qiao was thinking about this matter, and came again the next day when Shen Qing had finished breakfast.
Chunhua didn't want to report it. This Concubine Qiao was so tactless. But the people were here. She was a concubine after all, so she couldn't ask anyone to kick her out. She had to tell Chen Qing to send someone away, and then she would send them away.
As a result, she came twice and Shen Qing became curious: "She didn't say what she was talking about?"
Generally speaking, if you can't see the master of the matter and you stuff money into the maid's pocket, then you have a reason and she will consider whether to report it to the master based on the severity of the matter. This is the case for most people in the harem who ask for favors.
Chunhua said: "I didn't say it clearly, but he stuffed a purse into my hand, but I didn't want it."
Shen Qing laughed when she heard this: "Aunt Chunhua doesn't need this. Come on, just send the person away. You don't have to report it next time."
Since I can't do it in front of Chunhua, it's probably not an easy thing. Asking her to do something but not knowing how to do it is a shameful thing. She is pregnant now, why should I worry about others.
Chunhua naturally agreed and turned around to send Lady Qiao away.
The second time Lady Qiao was "invited" out of Zhaohua Palace, she looked really bad. How precious is she! This is her second visit! How could she not even see him once? I thought she should have seen him the second time!
She gritted her teeth.
Jinse followed Lady Qiao and looked at her expression. After they returned, she said casually, "This Lady Xianfei is really, really doesn't treat a beauty as a human being."
Miss Qiao's face looked worse and worse, what should we do?
"She is the virtuous concubine, and I am just a little beauty. If she says she won't see me, then I won't see her." What can she do? Even if she asks someone to do something for her, or brings something to someone's door, then what? If someone says she won't see me, then she won't see me.
Lady Qiao was furious but there was nothing she could do. Her brother's problem couldn't be solved, so what could she do?
It's not good to go there for three consecutive days. You have to take a few days off. If you lose face twice, you have to go a third time. Lady Qiao is feeling more and more uncomfortable.
Three days later, Lady Qiao asked for a meeting again.
Chunhua was already annoyed. The queen was right. She really came again. Shen Qing had given instructions in advance, so she didn't have to report this time. She could just not let anyone in.
Lady Qiao had at least been treated perfunctorily before, but now she wasn't even treated perfunctorily and was sent away directly. She felt as if Chunhua had slapped her in the face.
When she returned to her own palace, she was so angry that she threw things around: "Xian Fei! Xian Fei! I was so humble, but she didn't even want to see me!"
I felt really embarrassed in my heart. The most embarrassing thing was not being rejected by someone, but not even meeting that person. It was really extremely embarrassing!
Jinse looked at Lady Qiao and lowered her eyes silently.
Concubine Qiao was really annoyed, but who else could she ask for help except Chen Qing? She couldn't see the emperor, and she couldn't do this matter herself. She could only delay it. She just silently hoped that there would be some turn for the better. Apart from that, she really couldn't do anything. After more than ten days, news came from outside the palace again, and Concubine Qiao seemed to be struck by a bolt from the blue.
It was her father who sent the message in before, and it was her mother who sent the message in now. After her brother was detained before, her father was outside to negotiate, and within these ten days, the other party found Shen Zhizhuo, and Shen Zhizhuo opened a case. The case was sentenced, and her brother was sentenced to exile. He met bandits within two days of being released and died. Her brother was the only child in her family, and her father vomited blood and died because of this matter. What her mother sent in was a swan song!
When Lady Qiao saw the words "Final Writing", she felt as if struck by lightning. How could it be possible?
But in just a dozen days, she had originally thought of asking Shen Qing to let Shen Zhizhuo open this day to help her brother, but Shen Zhizhuo helped the family of the woman who was molested? Her brother was gone, her father was gone? Her mother, was she gone now? In one night, the family was destroyed!
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