Chapter 106 Abandonment
Every word was like a heavy hammer, striking Pei Mingyue's heart hard!
Her face turned deathly pale in an instant! Her expression was filled with disbelief!
Why did Father Emperor side with that vile Xie Sangning?! Why did Father Emperor punish me? Xie Sangning rejected the princess; shouldn't she be the one punished?!
Pei Mingyue swayed, almost losing her balance! Penalty! Extended confinement! No visitors allowed! Half the allowance! This was worse than death for her!
She was used to extravagance, to being fawned over, and to being the center of attention!
This is practically trapping her in a cage to death!
"No... Father! Father wouldn't do this to me! I'm his most beloved daughter! Eunuch Desheng! Did that bitch Xie Sangning slander me?! I want to see Father! I want to explain myself to his face!" Pei Mingyue screamed, lunging forward to snatch the imperial edict.
Desheng took a step back expressionlessly, avoiding her grab. Two imperial guards stepped forward like iron towers, their cold gazes locking onto her.
Hmph, how dare she call the young lady a slut! She's the slut!
If she weren't a princess, what would she be? The emperor has so many children; what difference would it make if he changed his favorite?
Desheng looked coldly at the hysterical second princess in front of him, his eyes filled with undisguised contempt.
He slowly raised his hand and gestured to another eunuch behind him.
The eunuch stepped forward and said:
"His Majesty also issued an edict: Pei Mingyue, listen carefully! This time, I have already shown leniency out of consideration for our father-daughter relationship! If there is a next time—"
"Demoted to commoner status!"
Boom—!
It was like a thunderclap exploding in Pei Mingyue's ears!
Degrading the common people!
These three words shattered all her pride, all her reliance, and all her fantasies!
The color drained from her face instantly, and her body felt as if all her bones had been removed. She staggered back a few steps and fell heavily to the ground with a thud!
common people?
Her father… the father who once cherished her so dearly… actually said… he wanted to demote her… to a commoner?!
Why...why...Father has changed.
It's all because of Xie Sangning!
Why did the Emperor choose Xie Sangning...?
Despair, like a surging tide, instantly overwhelmed her!
When he looked up again, his eyes were filled with resentment and venom!
"Xie Sangning—!!!"
"It's all your fault! It's all your fault, you bitch!!"
She pounded the ground frantically, screaming, "Why did you come back?! Why did you take everything that was mine?! Before you came back! I was Father Emperor's most beloved daughter! I was the most dazzling jewel in the capital! The moment you returned… everything changed! Everything was destroyed! I hate you! I hate you! I want you dead!!!"
She cried and cursed wildly, tears streaming down her face, looking like a madwoman.
Her exquisite makeup was now a mess, and her gorgeous palace dress was covered in dust and debris. The once proud and noble second princess was now nothing but a disheveled mess, resentment, and hysteria.
Desheng coldly looked at the distraught princess on the ground, without a trace of pity in his eyes. When he heard her words, his eyes became even colder.
"Your Highness, the decree has been issued. Please... take care of yourself."
He bowed slightly and left the princess's residence with his guards.
He was afraid that if he stayed any longer, he would hear Pei Mingyue cursing the young lady and he would be unable to resist kicking her a couple of times, ruining the young lady's important plans!
I must also remind you, Miss, that Pei Mingyue is probably driven mad with hatred, so please be careful.
Who knows, next time, the second princess, having lost her mind, might be after the eldest young lady.
Now, it's time to go to the General's Mansion to deliver the Emperor's appeasement gifts.
The thought of going to the General's Mansion soon and being able to talk to the young lady made Desheng so excited that his mouth was practically stretched to his ears!
Turning around, he found that his apprentice, Decai, was also very excited, his eyes shining.
Desheng slapped Decai on the forehead: "We're here to get things done, what are you so happy about! Is this a job you can be happy about! You idiot."
——
Inside the Fengzao Palace, Empress Xiao Fengyi held a brush with her wrist suspended. She had just written the last stroke of the character "deep" on the plain white Xuan paper when her personal maidservant approached in quick steps: "Your Majesty, Bai Qing from the Second Princess's residence requests an audience."
"Let her in."
When Bai Qing entered, his steps were heavier than usual.
She performed a deep bow with great respect, her head bowed very low, her exposed neck taut.
“Your Majesty,” Bai Qing’s voice was tinged with weariness and tension, “The Second Princess… has been punished by the Emperor again.”
Xiao Fengyi picked up the teacup beside her, gently scraping the rim with the lid, without saying a word.
Bai Qing took a deep breath and recounted in detail how Pei Mingyue failed to persuade Xie Sangning and was instead caught in a compromising situation, how Xie Sangning dragged her "ill body" into the palace to file a complaint, how the emperor was furious and punished her by deducting her salary, extending her confinement, and finally issuing the decree to "demote her to a commoner."
Finally, she kowtowed deeply again: "This servant... has failed Your Majesty's trust and was unable to persuade Your Highness. I am willing to accept punishment."
The hall was deathly silent.
The only sound was the scraping of the teacup lid against the porcelain rim, one scrape after another, sending chills down one's spine.
After a long while, Xiao Fengyi gently put down her teacup and sighed.
"When will she finally grow up and understand things?"
Xiao Fengyi's voice was weary, as if she were asking Bai Qing, but even more so as to herself, "Why... why can't I see the situation clearly? Why do I insist on running headlong into the knife's edge?"
Now, anyone with half a brain knows that Xie Sangning is someone who will die if they touch her.
Her foolish daughter, on the other hand, went to catch it once or twice.
Xie Zhenting is still holding the reins of power in the Northwest. His daughter suffered a slight injustice in Nanjing. Who knows how many knives he will be carrying when he returns to the capital?
The emperor could control the number of soldiers entering the capital, but he couldn't control how many people were brought back from outside the capital.
Those were Xie Zhenting's own soldiers; this was a trap left for the emperor by the previous dynasty.
In Daqing, the soldiers only obeyed those who possessed the tiger tally.
The tiger tally in Xie Zhenting's hand was personally given to him by the Emperor to comfort and encourage Daqing when it was besieged on both sides and in a difficult situation.
If the capital is surrounded by Xie Zhenting's troops, how can the emperor sleep peacefully at night?
Of course, Xiao Fengyi wasn't worried about whether the Emperor could sleep well. What she was worried about was that if Xie Zhenting were to... then her son would never be able to ascend the throne and would only become cannon fodder in the change of dynasties.
Therefore, Xie Sangning must become one of our own!
She must marry into the royal family!
Whether it's the eldest or the third!
As long as she agrees, Xiao Fengyi will risk her life to help whoever she marries to that position!
But... but Pei Mingyue keeps blocking this path to the death! She's offending Xie Sangning to the core!
Thinking of this, Xiao Fengyi swayed, her head throbbing slightly.
The palace maid standing nearby reacted quickly and helped her sit down.
Bai Qing remained kneeling on the ground: "Your Majesty..."
"This servant...this servant is incompetent...in the Princess's residence...truly..."
She couldn't continue speaking, and only kowtowed heavily once.
She'd rather be punished than go back to that madman!
She can't do this job!
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