Before Green Lotus could figure it out, He Liufeng spoke up, "Your Majesty, in my opinion, this girl named Green Lotus is still unwilling to tell the truth. Why not throw her into the Imperial Prison and give her a good beating? Then she'll know everything."
"Your Majesty, please don't!" Upon hearing that He Liufeng was going to throw her into the Imperial Prison, Green Lotus kowtowed repeatedly, begging for mercy. If she went into a place like the Imperial Prison, she would be crippled if not killed.
"Your Majesty, I think we should just let it go. This Green Lotus is talking nonsense and committing immoral acts in the harem. According to palace rules, she should be dragged away and beaten to death to avoid being left here to pollute our eyes." Upon hearing that He Liufeng wanted to throw Green Lotus into the Censorate, the Empress panicked. If she were thrown into that place, Green Lotus would definitely confess to everything.
If the Emperor were to punish me, not only would I be reprimanded, but it might also negatively impact the Crown Prince…
After the Queen finished speaking, she gave Green Lotus a warning look, as if Green Lotus would not let her family off the hook if she dared to say anything she shouldn't.
Green Lotus clearly saw the warning in the Empress's eyes. She closed her eyes, her heart filled with despair.
"It was all my fault, I was just talking nonsense," Green Lotus cried, then suddenly stood up and slammed her head against a pillar. Instantly, her head was bleeding profusely.
Soon, someone dragged Green Lotus's body away. The pink-clad palace maid slumped to the ground, her body trembling uncontrollably. Suddenly, she felt a cold gaze directed at her. Turning around, she saw the Empress staring at her.
The palace maid in pink steeled her resolve and stood up, ramming her head against a nearby pillar.
Two palace maids committed suicide here in succession. The ladies present turned pale and took their leave. What followed was a family matter of the royal family, not something they could watch. If they accidentally learned something they shouldn't have, they might lose their heads.
The ladies of the various families hurriedly left, leaving only the Emperor, the Empress, He Liufeng and Qu Qingxi, and a group of eunuchs and servants.
"Sister-in-law, I wonder which palace maid told you that Qingxi was changing clothes in Wanshuang Palace?" Although the two palace maids were dead, He Liufeng did not intend to let the matter go easily.
At this moment, a palace maid behind the Empress stepped forward, trembling, and said, "Your Highness, it is this servant."
"Did you just make things up yourself, or was someone instructing you?" He Liufeng stared at the palace maid who had spoken, his eyes filled with coldness.
The palace maid glanced at the Empress, then closed her eyes, her face ashen, and knelt down. "Your Highness, spare me! I was blind and saw things wrong."
"Hmph, spouting nonsense and slandering the Princess Consort, she deserves to die! Guards, drag this palace maid away and beat her to death with sticks!" He Liufeng stopped looking at the palace maid and casually glanced at the Empress.
Now that things have come to this, he knows exactly what happened. The Queen is really audacious to dare to scheme against Qu Qingxi.
Lai Fu glanced at the Emperor's face and, seeing that the Emperor had no reaction, knew that the Emperor had tacitly agreed. He then signaled the people behind him to drag the palace maid away.
After dealing with two people close to the Empress, the Empress's expression turned grim, but she couldn't say anything.
"Your Majesty, since there's nothing else, I'll take the Princess Consort back first." He Liufeng led Qu Qingxi to bow to the Emperor.
The Emperor glanced at Qu Qingxi, then nodded. "Alright, go back now."
"Your subject takes his leave." "Your subject's wife takes her leave."
After the ceremony, He Liufeng pulled Qu Qingxi away, holding her hand tightly the whole way without letting go.
The two remained silent all the way back to the manor. Qu Qingxi was about to return to her own courtyard when He Liufeng suddenly grabbed her hand again, saying, "Let's talk."
Qu Qingxi clearly knew what had happened today, but when she saw him, she refused to tell him and took all the blame herself. Now, when He Liufeng thought about it, he felt heartbroken and felt that he hadn't given Qu Qingxi enough security, which was why Qu Qingxi was unwilling to tell him.
Qu Qingxi glanced at He Liufeng, then nodded, and the two of them walked towards Qu Qingxi's courtyard.
"Why didn't you tell me what happened today?" He Liufeng stared intently at Qu Qingxi. Did she really not trust him?
"I can handle this myself, so I didn't tell you." Qu Qingxi said matter-of-factly. She had expected this from the beginning, and the rest was just a matter of acting according to circumstances, all within her power.
He Liufeng was stunned. She could handle it herself, so she wouldn't ask him for help. She was his wife, and she could talk to him about anything.
"Qingxi, I am your husband, your husband, someone you can rely on at any time," He Liufeng said earnestly.
Qu Qingxi: "..."
"He Liufeng, are you mistaken? We're in a cooperative relationship now. I treat your illness, and you pay me." Qu Qingxi looked at He Liufeng blankly.
What husband or husband? Do they even have that kind of relationship? Is he relying on He Liufeng?
LOL, you can only rely on yourself, relying on men is all bullshit.
If she hadn't known anything today and didn't have absolute strength, she would never have been able to escape from there. What the Empress and her men saw when they arrived was her having an affair with another man.
Nominally, she was the Princess Consort of Nanqing, a member of the royal family. If she were to be discovered dating a man, the matter would be suppressed to avoid damaging the royal family's reputation. However, she would definitely be executed by the Emperor by slow slicing.
Rely on others? How can you rely on them? By the time He Liufeng realized something was wrong, it was too late.
Mountains crumble and rivers dry up; ultimately, people have to rely on themselves. This is a principle that Qu Qingxi has understood since childhood. Even though she is the daughter of the Qu family in modern times, she wouldn't dare to say that she can rely entirely on the Qu family.
He Liufeng and she had only a simple working relationship. At most, they might rely on each other when their interests were involved, but otherwise, they would just leave it at that.
“I…” He Liufeng looked into Qu Qingxi’s sincere eyes and hesitated to speak. Her eyes told him that she was not lying and that she really only regarded him as a business partner.
He Liufeng felt discouraged and somewhat depressed, but he couldn't say anything to Qu Qingxi, because what Qu Qingxi said was indeed true; he and Qu Qingxi really did only have this kind of relationship at the moment.
After holding it in for a long time, He Liufeng only said one sentence, "Don't worry, I will get justice for you in this matter."
As she watched He Liufeng's figure disappear, the calm smile on Qu Qingxi's face vanished. She wasn't unaware of He Liufeng's feelings for her.
Just now in the palace, he held her hand tightly until they got into the carriage. He also disregarded the Emperor and Empress's feelings and directly punished the palace maid next to the Empress, taking charge of things for himself. This was a slap in the face to the Empress and a warning to the Emperor and Empress.
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