Queen: “!!!”
The Queen almost wanted to order the palace maids to stop Anle and the others, but she couldn't bring herself to do it, so she could only watch them all leave.
The wife of the Duke of Dongping was so angry that the flesh at the corners of her lips trembled.
She was used to suppressing Jingle with her status as a mother-in-law, and she never thought that one day Jingle would turn over her palm. She almost fainted from anger.
The atmosphere suddenly became very stiff, as if the air had stopped flowing.
There were still eight or nine female relatives who had not left, including of course some royal family members. For example, the Princess of Cheng County always followed the lead of the Queen and did not get involved in this muddy water.
None of the women dared to look at the Queen's gloomy face, nor did they dare to offend her frown. They all drank their tea in silence, pretending to be deaf and dumb.
Others didn't look at what was said, but Lady Enguo didn't think so. She complained angrily, "Queen, what the hell is going on!"
"Jingle used to be gentle and graceful, how come she has become so rude now?! She must have been taught a bad way!"
“…”
Lady Enguo was angry and kept nagging.
The other female members looked strange when they heard this.
They didn't want to quarrel with the Queen, and they actually understood everything. If it was "not knowing the etiquette", then the Lady of the Duke of Enguo had nothing to say. The Queen could call the Princess by her title, but the Lady of the Duke of Enguo had no right to call the Princess "Jingle, Jingle". This was a violation of the hierarchy and "not knowing the etiquette"! As Lady of the Duke of Enguo kept nagging, the Queen's mood became worse, and she wished she could sweep everything on the coffee table to the floor.
On the first day of the Lunar New Year, at the beginning of the new year, she, the queen, lost face!
The queen looked sinisterly through the transparent glazed window in the direction of Shouning Palace.
It is a sunny day today, but the snow has not melted yet. The thick white snow is piled on the glazed tiles on the roof, making the sky outside seem a lot brighter.
The imperial city after the snow is as beautiful as a painting. The pure white snow hides countless dirt and dust buried underneath.
Shouning Palace, which usually seemed as deserted as a cold palace, had not been so lively for a long time, and the air was filled with laughter.
The female relatives who came to pay their respects to Queen Mother Yin were all wearing gold and silver jewelry, and covered in jewels, adding a bit of festive atmosphere to this palace without a single touch of red.
In contrast, Empress Dowager Yin, who was wearing a dark purple jacket, had a very plain makeup. She only wore a pair of white jade hairpins between her hair which was streaked with some silver threads. Her face was particularly white, as white as a wall, and she looked sickly, as if she had been ill for a long time and had not recovered.
The wife of Prince Li, the wife of Prince Shun, Jingle and other female relatives all knew that Empress Dowager Yin had been bedridden for many years, so they did not think much about it and just thought that the Empress Dowager was just feeling a little unwell.
But Chu Qianchen had a sharp eye and could tell at a glance that the reason why Queen Mother Yin looked pale was because of her makeup. She had deliberately applied a lot of white powder on her face.
However, because the makeup covered Empress Dowager Yin's face, it was difficult to tell what her complexion was like. Chu Qianchen was thinking about finding an opportunity to check the Empress Dowager's pulse later.
Everyone, including Chu Qianchen, greeted Queen Mother Yin and paid their respects to her.
Queen Mother Yin asked everyone to sit down with a smile on her face. She was very happy to see her daughter-in-law coming to wish her a happy new year, and her eyes softened a little.
After the Queen Mother Yin and the Princess of Li, the sisters-in-law, exchanged a few words, Chu Qianchen took Jingle's hand and patted it, sighing, "Mother, the princesses have been bullied by their husbands recently, and they want to seek your support."
They were clearly here to ask Queen Mother Yin for justice on Jingle's behalf, but Chu Qianchen included the other princesses in his remarks. While speaking, Chu Qianchen calmly winked at Queen Mother Yin.
Queen Dowager Yin's eyes turned. She was a smart person and understood immediately.
Don't be fooled by the sweet appearance of her daughter-in-law in front of her. In fact, she is very thoughtful. She has never been a nosy person. When doing anything, she wants to maximize its effect and achieve the effect of killing two or even three birds with one stone.
This time, the younger daughter-in-law should want to take this opportunity to let her, the queen mother, come out to take charge of the situation and regain the honor and power that belong to her, instead of being just a puppet being "supported" like now.
In the past few years, Empress Dowager Yin has been guarding the Shouning Palace without showing any signs of presence. On the one hand, she was drugged by the Emperor and Empress and her body was indeed not feeling well. On the other hand, she was actually somewhat disheartened and had no intention of fighting for anything. She just wanted her son to return safely.
If it was just Queen Mother Yin now, she wouldn't bother to work hard, but now she has a son and daughter-in-law, and there will be grandchildren in the future. For them, she can't be so negative anymore.
Being a mother makes you strong.
In just a moment, Queen Mother Yin's thoughts were already in turmoil.
Queen Mother Yin's face changed, and she covered her mouth with a handkerchief and coughed twice.
Nanny He gently stroked the Empress Dowager's back.
"Bang!"
Queen Mother Yin suddenly raised her hand and slapped the coffee table, frowning and angrily scolding: "Tell me, which princes-in-law are so bold that they dare to bully the daughter of the royal family!"
After coughing a few times, Queen Mother Yin's voice was a little hoarse, but more majestic, her tone was cold and stern, and she was intimidating without even being angry.
All the female relatives opened their eyes slightly wide, with different expressions.
To be honest, although the princesses including Yunhe and Duanrou came with Jingle with the intention of taking a gamble, they were actually unsure and very nervous.
After all, everyone knew that Empress Dowager Yin had been under house arrest in Shouning Palace for all these years, and she was content with it. To put it bluntly, she was just avoiding the limelight of the Emperor and Empress.
Such a queen mother might stand up for the Prince and his wife, but would she stand up for these concubines and challenge the queen's authority? !
No one expected that Queen Mother Yin would not play it safe, but would show her strength so strongly!
Princess Li looked down thoughtfully, raised her lips, and elegantly picked up the teacup. The Queen Mother had been a vegetarian for so many years, and it seemed that she was going to start a massacre.
Chu Qianchen said in a tender voice like a little child: "Mother, you don't know that the prince consort is too much!"
"Like Prince Consort Lu..."
Chu Qianchen started from the day when Jingle was injured on the forehead by Lu Fangrui because of a hairpin, and also talked about what happened in Duobaozhai. He described Jingle as pitiful as possible and Lu Fangrui as hateful as possible.
After talking about Jingle, she also told the rumors about Prince Consort Jin and Prince Consort Cheng one by one.
Her words were not particularly sentimental, but they touched Yunhe, Duanrou and others deeply. Thinking about the past few years, they felt a sense of regret that the days were passing by so slowly, and their eyes were filled with tears.
They were the daughters of the previous emperor, the daughters of a golden branch and jade leaf, but why did they live such a miserable life, reduced to the point of condescending to please the prince consort? ! "Jingle, come here." Queen Mother Yin waved to Jingle, called her to her side, took her hand and sat down on the kang, and looked at her forehead carefully.
After a few days of recuperation, the bruise on Jingle's forehead had healed about 80% and was basically covered with makeup, so other people didn't notice anything wrong with her face before.
At this moment, Queen Mother Yin used a handkerchief to wipe off the powder on Jingle's forehead, revealing the faint bruises under the powder. Looking closely, Jingle's forehead was still a little swollen.
Jingle is not even 10 years old yet, in the prime of her life. She should have been living like the king of flowers, the peony, and being doted on by everyone. However, she was treated so despised and humiliated by her gigolo husband.
Queen Mother Yin was both distressed and angry, and sighed, "I also remember the hairpin that your mother left for you. Back then, your mother said that she was unlucky and couldn't watch you grow up, so she left you something as a token of her remembrance."
Speaking of her deceased mother, Jingle's eyes suddenly turned red, and her eye sockets were filled with crystal tears, as if the tears would overflow if her eyelashes trembled.
She raised her head slightly, trying hard not to let the tears fall.
Today is the first day of the Lunar New Year. It is unlucky to shed tears.
Jingle carefully wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes with a handkerchief. She held back her tears, but her eye circles were still red, as red as a rabbit's eyes.
Queen Mother Yin's eyes slowly swept around Yunhe and other princesses beside her, and she recalled the past with a sigh, which made the tears in their eyes even brighter.
The room suddenly lost all its joyful mood and was filled with a sad and helpless atmosphere.
Queen Mother Yin sighed quietly, and said to Princess Li and the others, "It's not convenient for me to be in the palace..."
She said it very subtly, but everyone could hear that Queen Mother Yin had no choice.
Several princesses from royal families exchanged glances in twos and threes, all of them were touched.
Although they had long known that the Emperor and Empress had imprisoned the Empress Dowager, they thought that the Empress Dowager was not the Emperor's biological mother after all, and the Emperor did not treat the Empress Dowager unfilially and took good care of her, so they did not say much.
To put it bluntly, this was not the first empress dowager to be imprisoned in history.
As long as their own interests are not affected, these princesses will not help the empress dowager for no reason. After all, no one wants to offend the emperor.
Queen Mother Yin seemed not to notice the complicated expressions of the princesses. She patted the coffee table again and said seriously, "But the daughter of the royal family cannot be bullied by others."
"This is how the people live. If a married girl is wronged by her husband's family, her parents-in-law will go to her husband's family to seek justice!"
Queen Mother Yin's words made all the princesses feel sympathetic.
As the saying goes, hold your head high when marrying off your daughter.
But that is also under the premise of being well matched, marrying a daughter to a family of higher status than one's own, not for the girl to curry favor with the powerful.
Anyone who understands knows that only when the two families are well matched, will the daughter's family have enough confidence to seek justice for her when she is wronged in her husband's family. Therefore, any reliable family will not find a son-in-law with too high a social status for their daughter.
This is even more so among newly royal families, where the marriages are either with nobles of several generations or with emerged nobles.
Every daughter of their Gu family is precious. Even the concubines of the royal family are rich ladies and noble ladies. They are not sent to be humiliated by their husband's family for nothing!
The princesses applied the experiences of the eldest princesses to their own daughters, and felt even more deeply. This atmosphere is corrupted bit by bit, and we can't let people think that the daughters of the Gu family are easy to bully! !
Chu Qianchen sat beside him, sipping hot tea to moisten his throat.
She brought everyone here, said everything she needed to say, and then didn't say much afterwards, looking well-behaved and harmless.
This made everyone forget Chu Qianchen's existence for a moment and focus their attention on Queen Mother Yin.
Others didn't know Chu Qianchen's methods, but Lan Ruo, who was completely conquered by Chu Qianchen, knew them best. She glanced at her side face from time to time, and sighed in her heart: This harem is about to change! As if to verify her thoughts, Queen Mother Yin put her other hand on the back of Jingle's hand and asked, "Jingle, do you want to divorce?"
Her wise and gentle eyes looked at Jingle without blinking.
This was the second time Jingle heard someone ask her this question, and she was shocked.
“…”
“…”
“…”
Everyone in the room looked at each other. It was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop.
In this almost eerie silence, Queen Mother Yin remained calm and composed, as if what she was talking about was a very ordinary matter.
Queen Mother Yin sighed, "As the saying goes, it is better to persuade people to reconcile than to separate. It is better to demolish ten temples than to destroy a marriage. But the premise is that the other party must be a person. Lu Fangrui is not a person, and keeping him is an eyesore."
Lu Fangrui is an ungrateful person who can never be tamed, a cold-blooded poisonous snake. No matter how much you reason with him, it is useless. This kind of scum cannot be tamed.
After being shocked, Jingle subconsciously looked at Chu Qianchen again, thinking about what Chu Qianchen said to her in Prince Chen's Mansion that day: "Do you want to divorce? If you are not living well, why do you want to continue living together?"
Jingle blinked, her eyes flickering.
Chu Qianchen just smiled at her lightly and said nothing.
Jingle subconsciously pinched the dress under her hands and kneaded it in her palms. Her heart seemed to tighten little by little with this action.
Anyone can see Jingle's hesitation and struggle. After all, this is not a choice that can be easily decided.
Yunhe, Duanrou and other princesses were all silent. Although their husbands-in-law had shortcomings, they were not as bad as Lu Fangrui. They couldn't help but ask themselves, if they were in Jingle's position, what would they do?!
On the contrary, after a brief moment of surprise, Princess Li quickly came to her senses and looked calm. She knew Queen Mother Yin a little bit and knew her inherent arrogance. This was indeed the suggestion she would make.
Princess Li thought for a moment and advised Jingle: "The Queen Mother is right. If a person changes his mind, even ten cows can't pull him back, not to mention..."
She didn't say anything else, but everyone knew that Lu Fangrui's heart had never been on Jingle. This marriage was originally the idea of the Lady of the Earl of Dongping, and it was for the benefit of becoming a princess consort.
Jingle also understood this in her heart. On the wedding night, Lu Fangrui told her that he did not want to be a royal consort, but was forced to do so by his mother-in-law. He also said that he only had his cousin Ling in his heart.
Jingle clenched the hand that was holding the skirt even tighter, and the gold threads on the material rubbed against her delicate palm.
She took a deep breath, mustered up her courage, and said word by word: "I want a divorce."
These four words almost exhausted all her strength.
After she finished speaking, she even shuddered slightly.
Chu Qianchen seemed to see a slightly trembling white rabbit, running forward with all its might, trying to escape from the claws of the beast.
Even if it fell, even if it accidentally fell into a trap, it still kept howling and never gave up.
Chu Qianchen smiled.
The midday sun shone on her, and her quiet and peaceful expression made her look like a jade sculpture of Guanyin, even more graceful.
The phoenix's eyes were bright, filled with unmistakable joy.
Ninth Princess must be happy, she must think she did the right thing. Jingle's courage suddenly doubled, her heart was completely settled, she felt that her decision must be right!
She remembered another thing Chu Qianchen said, swallowed her saliva and said, "Can we have a beating before divorce?"
“…”
“…”
“…”
This time, after a brief silence, someone's chuckle broke the silence.
The person who laughed out loud was Queen Mother Yin.
Queen Mother Yin looked between Chu Qianchen and Jingle with interest. It was obvious who taught Jingle to say these words.
Her daughter-in-law is a hot-tempered one.
Queen Mother Yin was thinking that if she saw her son one day, she would have to talk to him and be careful not to make her daughter-in-law angry, so as to avoid being beaten.
She smiled, nodded solemnly, and said with a flick of her sleeves, "If you don't want a divorce, then give him a beating and we'll divorce him."
The son-in-law lives in the princess's mansion and receives the princess's salary. Except that his children do not take the princess's surname, he is no different from a commoner son-in-law who marries into the princess's family. Of course, the princess can divorce such an immoral husband.
Jingle was started again, her lips moved but she was too embarrassed to ask, but her eyes clearly asked, could she divorce her husband?
Why not? Queen Mother Yin smiled again.
Her face still looked a little pale due to the thick white powder she had applied on it, but she looked more energetic in just a few words, with a kind of confidence and composure, which reminded everyone present of how graceful Queen Yin was when the late emperor was alive!
"Pen and ink are ready." Empress Dowager Yin gave an order, and a palace maid went to get the four treasures of the study, placed them on the table by the window, and then spread out paper and ground ink.
The faint scent of ink wafted from the inkstone as it was ground in circles, blending with the incense in the room.
Queen Mother Yin patted the back of Jingle's hand again and said, "Go and write."
She meant to let Jingle write the divorce letter herself.
Under the burning gazes of the crowd, Jingle's movements from standing up to walking to the table were very stiff. She had been introverted since she was a child, and didn't like people paying attention to her. She wanted to shrink between her sisters so that no one would look at her.
Today was probably the day she had received the most attention in her life.
Jingle was panicking, afraid, confused and at a loss.
She was a simple-minded person. After so many years in the palace, she had learned nothing but to endure. She also couldn't hide her emotions. Her panic at this moment was obvious.
Everyone saw it, and sighed in their hearts: A thousand-mile dam can be breached by an ant hole. The Lu family really pushed the honest man to the edge, forcing a soft-tempered person like Jingle to be driven out of this shocking thing and to distance themselves from Lu Fangrui.
Jingle picked up the wolf-hair brush with trembling hands. Her hands were shaking when she dipped the brush into ink. The palace maid next to her was really afraid that she would shake while writing, so she had already prepared a second sheet of paper.
Unexpectedly, when the tip of the pen touched the paper, it suddenly stabilized.
The hand holding the pen stopped shaking, and he wrote down word by word, line by line, slowly and firmly...
Jingle lowered her little head and stared intently at the paper in front of her. At this moment, the sounds from the outside world could no longer reach her ears.
She finished writing the divorce letter in one breath.
After writing the final signature, Jingle felt extremely happy and her whole body felt light, as if she had gotten rid of the disease that had troubled her for many years.
After she blew the ink off the paper, she picked it up and carefully presented it to Queen Dowager Yin, looking at her with a bit of timidity in her eyes.
Queen Mother Yin took the freshly-inked divorce letter and quickly read through it. She raised her lips and praised, "The handwriting is beautiful. You must have put a lot of effort into it."
Handwriting is as important as one's appearance. Beautifully written handwriting is like a personal impression and always leaves a good impression on people.
Jingle smiled shyly.
Queen Mother Yin put down the divorce letter and looked at Yunhe and the other princesses. She asked directly without beating around the bush, "Yunhe, Duanrou...what are your plans? Do you want to divorce your husband or wait and see how your husband performs?"
The meaning of Queen Mother Yin's words was very clear.
Lu Fangrui repeatedly used violence against Jingle and verbally insulted Jingle every day. He was not ashamed of this, but was eager to announce it to the world. Because the emperor and empress did not support Jingle, Lu Fangrui became more rampant.
The other princes-in-law also began to follow suit and became bolder day by day.
If we have to judge the crime, then Lu Fangrui is the main culprit, and the other princes-in-law are accomplices. Naturally, they cannot be lumped together.
Today, Queen Mother Yin supported Jingle and asked her to divorce her husband. This was enough to serve as a warning to other princes-in-law and let them know that the position of a prince-in-law is not just that of a husband. They and the princess are not only husband and wife, but also monarch and subject.
Yunhe and other princesses looked at each other, some shook their heads subconsciously, some hesitated, and some were tempted.
They have not yet reached the point where they could not live like Jingle, who had been abused to the point where she could not go on. Moreover, most of them already have children with their princes-in-law. Having children means an extra layer of worry. In fact, they hope that their princes-in-law can be more vigilant.
Queen Mother Yin only asked this to give them another choice. Of course, she would not force them to divorce their husbands. If they could still live together, who would persuade others to divorce?
This was also a statement from her, not only spoken to the princesses present, but also to the princes-in-law who were not present.
Queen Mother Yin stroked her sleeves gracefully. Her plain makeup and clothes were not as good as those of the Queen who was wearing the Nine Dragons and Four Phoenixes crown and the imperial robe today. However, in terms of spirit, demeanor, vision and knowledge, she was far superior to the Queen.
Queen Mother Yin smiled slightly and said, "If you have any problems in the future, you can come to me." Then she looked at Prince Li who was sitting below her, "Even if it's outside the palace, you can go to Prince Li and his wife to make the decision."
Even among the common people, even if a daughter's parents have passed away, she still has the clan and can ask the clan leader and his wife to make the decision.
Gu's daughter will not allow anyone to humiliate her!
"The Queen Mother is right. We are still alive today." Princess Li also responded.
Queen Mother Yin looked around at everyone again and said, "We can't let the late emperor go and leave his daughters without anyone to rely on."
She deliberately said "helpless and helpless", which made the princesses feel very sad.
It's not easy to be a wife, who hasn't been wronged? Who doesn't want to stand up straight in front of her husband's family? The eldest princesses had red eyes and wiped their tears with handkerchiefs, and even several princesses were touched.
The atmosphere gradually became warmer, and everyone who had been a little nervous at first relaxed naturally, praising the Queen Mother with words such as "kindness", "leniency", and "fairness" one after another.
Chu Qianchen just nodded and didn't say another word.
Immediately afterwards, Empress Dowager Yin summoned the eunuch from Shouning Palace and asked him to draft an imperial decree. After she reviewed it, Nanny He presented her with the phoenix seal representing the Empress Dowager.
Empress Dowager Yin was a little distracted and did not move for a moment, frowning slightly. The phoenix seal in Nanny He's hand stopped in mid-air.
Princess Shun noticed that the Queen Mother looked strange, so she asked with concern, "Queen Mother, are you okay?"
Queen Mother Yin raised her hand and rubbed one of her temples, forcing a smile: "I'm fine, I just have a headache."
She managed to pull herself together, took the phoenix seal, and then firmly stamped it on the end of the imperial edict, and told the chief eunuch, "Go and pass on the edict."
So, on that day, a newly-issued imperial decree left Shouning Palace along with the divorce letter written by Jingle herself.
Normally, this imperial decree would naturally be sent to Princess Jingle's mansion, but today is the first day of the first lunar month, and the princes-in-law also followed the princess into the palace to participate in the celebration.
After the court celebration, the princesses were summoned by the empress to Fengluan Palace for a talk. Of course, the princes-in-law could not abandon the princesses and leave the palace, so they all gathered in Jingsi Hall to talk.
Lu Fangrui was wearing the formal attire of a royal consort, and looked handsome and dignified, except that the right half of his face had been splashed with hot tea by Jingle before. The swelling had subsided, but the burn had not healed completely. He could only apply white powder on his face to cover it. Otherwise, not only would it affect his appearance, but it would also be bad luck if he frightened the emperor and was punished.
Lu Fangrui had originally considered using illness as an excuse to not go to the palace to attend the court celebration today, but the Queen had already said that Jingle would definitely come to the palace today, so she would take this opportunity to teach Jingle a lesson and make Jingle apologize to Lu Fangrui.
The last time Lu Fangrui was beaten in public in front of Duobaozhai, he had been holding a grudge for a long time, and he wanted to retaliate. Today, he insisted on making Jingle apologize and make amends to him in public, and in front of the other princes-in-law present, he wanted to assert his authority as a husband.
He must let Jingle know what it means that the husband is the head of the wife, what the three obediences and four virtues mean, and what it means that men are superior to women!
Just thinking about that scene, Lu Fangrui felt very proud and comfortable all over. Even the sternum that was broken by the slave girl under the command of Princess Chen didn't seem to hurt so much anymore.
Lu Fangrui took a sip of tea and when he put down the cup, he was startled by the sudden approach of the Golden Consort. He wanted to lean back and ask what the other party was doing, but he heard the Golden Consort say uncertainly: "Brother Lu, are you applying powder?"
In the previous dynasty, white was considered beautiful. Not only women, but also men liked to apply powder and burn incense. They did not like to grow beards and were embarrassed to go out without putting on some powder. Since Emperor Taizu of this dynasty, there has been an intention to change this trend, but even so, there are still some people who admire some of the customs of the previous dynasty.
Prince Consort Jin thought that Lu Fangrui was the same.
But Lu Fangrui had a guilty conscience. He thought that Prince Consort Jin knew about Duobaozhai and was deliberately spying on him. His eyes suddenly became sinister.
Prince Consort Jin was totally unaware and continued, "Brother Lu, I think the powder you use is much better than the one from Jinfenzhai, it's delicate and natural..."
Prince Consort Jin flattered Lu Fangrui for a while, and gradually, Lu Fangrui realized that he was too sensitive, and his expression returned to normal.
He casually said a few words to the Golden Prince Consort, and couldn't help glancing outside the palace, thinking: It should be about time...
At this moment, there was a sound of chaotic footsteps outside the hall, as if several people were walking towards this side in a hurry.
Lu Fangrui's eyes lit up and shone with a strange light.
He thought Jingle had come and almost stood up, but he held himself back and held the armrest of the chair tightly with one hand.
A team led by a gray-haired old eunuch appeared outside the palace. They blocked the light from the main entrance, making the room suddenly darker and attracting everyone's attention.
The old eunuch walked up to Lu Fangrui with a clear purpose, bowed, and said slowly and shrilly: "I am here on the orders of the Empress Dowager to deliver the decree. Please accept the decree, Prince Consort Lu."
Lu Fangrui was confused and couldn't understand why the empress dowager would suddenly give him an imperial decree, but he immediately stood up and knelt to receive the order.
The chief eunuch took the imperial edict from a young eunuch beside him, opened it, and began to read it in a long tone: "The Empress Dowager Wende has issued an order: I have heard that Princess Jingle and her husband Lu Fangrui are not getting along..."
Other people around him also pricked up their ears to listen like Lu Fangrui.
When everyone realized that this was an imperial decree approving Princess Jingle's divorce from her husband, they were dumbfounded.
For a moment, there was silence in the Jingsi Hall.
Lu Fangrui: “!!!”
Lu Fangrui was stunned, and everyone was stunned.
In the Great Qi Dynasty, there had never been a divorce for a princess, let alone a divorce. This was the first time in more than a hundred years since the founding of the Great Qi Dynasty.
It is conceivable that once this news spreads throughout the capital, it will inevitably lead to a lot of criticism.
When the eunuch read out "From now on, men and women have nothing to do with each other in marriage", Lu Fangrui finally came to his senses, raised his neck, and said angrily in dissatisfaction: "Why?" Why did Jingle divorce him!
However, the chief eunuch ignored him for the time being and continued to read the imperial edict. The last sentence was: "Lu Fangrui was disrespectful to the princess and shall be caned thirty times." Since he had already been divorced, he certainly could no longer be called the princess's son-in-law.
Now, the imperial edict has been read out.
The chief eunuch waved his hand, and two capable middle-aged eunuchs came in briskly. They grabbed Lu Fangrui on the left and right and dragged him out roughly.
"Let me go!" Lu Fangrui struggled desperately.
However, these two eunuchs who specialized in punishment were all martial artists and were best at subduing disobedient people. Moreover, Lu Fangrui was just a fancy-pants warrior. No matter how he struggled, it was in vain. During the struggle, only the white powder on his face fell off.
The chief eunuch calmly closed the imperial edict and handed it to the young eunuch standing nearby. He stood with his hands behind his back and said to Lu Fangrui, "The Empress Dowager said that today is the first day of the new year, and since we are no longer married, there is no need for Master Lu to stay in the Princess's mansion to celebrate the new year."
"Just beat him up and kick him out!"
Before he finished speaking, Lu Fangrui's shrill wails were heard outside the hall.
The eunuch who was carrying out the punishment swung the stick while counting: "One, two, three..."
As the number increased, the other princes-in-law in the hall were all sweating profusely, and their temples were almost soaked with sweat.
The one being beaten now is Lu Fangrui, but these thirty strokes of the cane are clearly for them to see. The Queen Mother is killing the chicken to scare the monkeys!
Prince Consort Jin and other princes-in-law were all panicked, their hearts beating out of control.
Lu Fangrui humiliated Princess Jingle and caused an uproar in the city. The princes-in-law waited and watched for a while, and when they were sure that the palace really didn't care, they relaxed and lived a more carefree life.
But at this moment, listening to Lu Fangrui's screams outside, they felt as if poisonous needles were piercing their hearts.
Prince Consort Jin silently wiped the cold sweat with his sleeve. His face was pale without a trace of blood, and his legs felt weak.
He was just about to carry the person into the princess's mansion, but his brother persuaded him to bring it up during the New Year, so he delayed it for a few days. Otherwise, would he have been beaten with a stick together with Lu Fangrui? !
Prince Consort Jin secretly thanked his luck that he was a step slower.
"Fifteen, sixteen, seventeen..."
Outside the hall, the sounds of counting, beatings, and screams came one after another.
Lu Fangrui's shrill screams almost spread throughout half of the palace.
The commotion here was so loud that it naturally reached the ears of the emperor's eunuch Chen Su.
However, today is the first day of the Lunar New Year. After the emperor finishes the ceremony in the Hall of Supreme Harmony, he has to lead the princes and a group of clan members to the Fengxian Hall to bring the deity tablets back to the Taimiao. This is another cumbersome ceremony.
Therefore, Chen Su only dared to wait at the gate of the Taimiao. Only after the ceremony was over and the emperor came out of the Taimiao did Chen Su step forward and tell him about the Empress Dowager Yin's decree, Xu Jingle's divorce and Lu Fangrui's thirty beatings.
"How bold!" The emperor was stunned at first, then he became furious. The twelve colorful jade beads on the crown shook constantly, making his face look gloomy.
He felt that Queen Dowager Yin was clearly challenging his authority as emperor.
How outrageous! How outrageous! Did Yin think she was still the empress of the previous emperor?! The emperor was furious, as if something had exploded in his head. He spoke without thinking and blurted out, "The empress dowager is too tactless. Don't you know how to stop her? Let her do whatever she wants!"
The emperor did not lower his voice when speaking, and his voice was clearly heard by the princes, royal princes, crown princes and other clan members behind him.
The crown prince and the other princes just looked embarrassed, but the clan members felt that what the emperor said was a bit inappropriate.
Queen Dowager Yin was the late emperor's second wife and legal wife, which meant she was the current emperor's mother, by all rights and authority. Even her title of Queen Dowager was bestowed upon her by the late emperor's will.
The dignity of Empress Dowager Yin is beyond doubt. A stepmother is also a mother. If the emperor is disrespectful to his stepmother, that would be unfilial.
Some older princes of the royal family looked at each other, most of them frowning.
They also had a good impression of Queen Mother Yin.
When the previous emperor was in power, Empress Yin was a famous and virtuous queen with a good reputation.
Later, when the current emperor ascended the throne, Queen Mother Yin did not seize power, but stayed quietly in Shouning Palace. Even the ninth son she raised was a promising one and had made great contributions to the royal family.
Over the years, these princes of the royal family all knew very well that the emperor was using Queen Dowager Yin to control Prince Gu Jue, but they turned a blind eye. After all, there can't be two tigers in one mountain, and it is natural for the emperor to be afraid of his younger brother Gu Jue. Such incidents have been quite common since ancient times.
At least the current emperor is quite respectful to Queen Mother Yin and takes good care of her.
Nothing can be perfect, and as long as things look acceptable on the surface, for the sake of peace in Da Qi, these clan members didn't say much.
However, now the emperor was in a rage and he was blurting out things like saying the empress dowager was "bold", "unmeasured" and "nonsense", which was not in accordance with etiquette.
"Your Majesty," Prince Li took two steps forward from behind the emperor and walked to his side. Then he turned sideways to face the emperor, bowed, and advised, "Please be careful with your words."
The other clan members were whispering, making rustling sounds.
"..." The emperor then realized that he had just spoken out of turn. The veins on his forehead throbbed and his face looked extremely ugly.
Prince Li continued, "Your Majesty, I have also heard about Jingle and the prince consort's affairs. Your Majesty may not know about it yet. People outside are saying that the prince consorts' favorite game is 'Drunken Beating of the Golden Branch'."
"..." The emperor's face became even more gloomy, and his breathing became heavy, obviously he was very angry.
Prince Li looked the Emperor in the eye without fear, without flinching or hesitation, and said, "The Queen knew about this a long time ago, but she didn't support the princesses. The Queen Mother supported Princess Jingle. Is there a problem?!"
"Or does the emperor want to watch the eldest princess being bullied to death by her husband? She is the daughter of the late emperor and the emperor's biological sister!"
Prince Li's words were so righteous and passionate that many other clan members around him nodded in agreement, feeling sympathetic.
To most people, Prince Li was not scolding the emperor but the empress. It was the empress who was short-sighted and insisted on marrying Jingle to her cousin. The Lu family was taking advantage of the situation and even bullied the royal family!
Not only did the emperor look unhappy, but Chen Su beside him also had a gloomy expression. He had a vague premonition that the queen was in big trouble this time.
Regarding Jingle's matter, the Queen was wrong and the Emperor was also wrong. The Emperor was wrong in that he did not care about the princesses. However, it was impossible for the Emperor to admit his mistake, so the one who was wrong could only be the Queen.
Chen Su's back was covered with cold sweat, soaking her inner garment. Prince Li was still speaking slowly in her ear: "Your Majesty, even in the common people, if a sister is severely bullied by her husband's family, her brothers from her natal family will come to the door together to seek justice."
emperor:"……"
The emperor was a little confused by Prince Li's scolding and couldn't say a word in reply.
He never cared about the affairs of his younger sisters. After all, there was the Queen in the harem. The Queen was the mother of the country and the eldest sister-in-law was like a mother. Therefore, the affairs of the eldest princesses naturally fell under the Queen's jurisdiction.
And the Queen is in charge like this? ! ! (End of this chapter)
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