"No matter how old and frail I am, I am still the Emperor's birth mother. The Emperor would never be so stingy as to not even give me this little bit of money for medicine." The Empress Dowager became more and more agitated as she spoke, and finally roared, "Aunt Sun, give the Empress and the Lady of Chen State two thousand taels of silver to return it. I am not so shameless as to steal my family's things!"
"Yes, Your Majesty," Aunt Sun replied, and told the head maid beside her to go in and fetch it.
This time, not only did the Empress look embarrassed, but even the Duke of Chen and Chen Ziying sensed something was wrong and looked panicked.
Ji Fengyao covered her face halfway with a handkerchief, looking extremely aggrieved.
Her gaze subtly pierced the Duchess of Chen, while silently provoking Chen Ziying.
With the Empress Dowager having such a high combat index, wouldn't it be a waste to fight only the Empress?
Although Lady Chen was so angry she was holding back her blood, she had experienced decades of trials and tribulations and knew that she could not act recklessly in front of the Empress Dowager.
Chen Ziying simply couldn't hold back any longer.
Before Lady Chen could stop her, Chen Ziying rushed up to Ji Fengyao in front of everyone in the room and slapped her across the face: "I'll beat you to death, you shameless, lowly bandit! You emptied our family's treasury, yet you turn around and accuse us of being the villains!"
"Miss Chen, what are you doing?" Ji Fengyao pretended to be startled and raised her hand to block.
She had been wearing the sleeve needle that Black Owl had given her but hadn't had a chance to use it, and now it came in handy.
Chen Ziying's slap was swift and powerful, leaving her hand covered in thorns.
"ah!"
"ah--!"
Two screams rang out in succession, and Ji Fengyao, along with her chair, fell backward into the arms of Xi Que and Lin Shuang.
Chen Ziying immediately took two steps back, clutching her hand which was now covered in thorns, and squatted on the ground, screaming in agony: "Ah, my hand! You damned bandit! How dare you hurt me in front of my Empress sister! Empress sister, kill her!"
"How dare you!" The Empress Dowager finally snapped and smashed the teacup beside her.
The shards of the teacup nearly splashed onto Chen Ziying's face, startling her so much that her hysterical scream seemed to be choked in her throat. Only then did she remember that this was not the Duke's mansion where she could run wild, but the Empress Dowager's Cixi Palace.
"Whom do you want the Empress to kill in front of me? She is the Ninth Prince's Consort, bestowed by the Emperor himself, and the Princess Chonghe, whose title was approved by the Emperor himself! I am not dead yet, the Emperor is still in his prime, and the Ninth Prince is still young. Whom do you want to kill?!" The Empress Dowager stood up and angrily pointed at the Empress.
The Empress immediately knelt down to beg for forgiveness, feeling bitter inside, and even wanted to tear Chen Ziying apart.
I knew she was reckless and willful, but I never expected her to be so stupid!
"Your Chen State Duke's Mansion is so arrogant now. If the Crown Prince really ascends the throne one day, won't this world change its surname to Chen?" The Empress Dowager was so angry that she felt dizzy and spoke even more harshly.
Upon hearing this, Lady Chen knew things were going badly. She rushed to Chen Ziying's side, took her hand, which was riddled with thorns, and knelt before the Empress, trying to gain sympathy through her pitiful state: "Your Majesty, please calm down. The Chen family has absolutely no ill intentions towards the Great Zhao. Ziying only spoke carelessly because her hand was injured, and young girls can't bear the pain. Your Majesty, you may punish her however you wish, but please don't upset yourself."
"What the Duchess says makes no sense. Those were needles brought by our Princess Consort for the Empress Dowager's acupuncture. Even if Miss Chen doesn't get along with our Princess Consort, she can't take advantage of our Princess Consort's filial piety and the Empress Dowager's leg ailment to make a fuss. She was the one who started it, and now it's our Princess Consort's fault?" Lin Shuang half-supported Ji Fengyao, on the verge of tears, feeling extremely aggrieved.
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