A Foodie Transmigrated into the Palace

Chapter 544: Slap in the Face

Alone in the inner chamber, she let out a loud cry!The Eldest Princess turned pale with fright and was quickly taken away by her Wetnurse Nanny!

Lan Xiang was so scared that she cried and kept pounding on the door outside.

"My lady! Please open the door!"

"My lady! Don’t frighten your servant!"

Consort Ning, while crying inside, thought about throwing away the hairpin given by the Empress, but she dared not. Listening to Lan Xiang pounding on the door, she remained indifferent, lying on the bed, tears streaming down her face.

She felt that she had no more good days ahead.

Even if she had a Princess, so what?

If the Princess is not favored, the Emperor does not often come to see her.

She had plenty of things, but it wasn’t an excessive amount!

Consort Xian Pin was different; she had favor, she had a Prince, and now, the Empress began to show partiality towards her as well.

What did she have that could compare with her!

Truly, she felt utterly hopeless!

Consort Ning closed her eyes, letting her tears fall.

"My lady! Please open the door!"

"Lady Yu Lan from the Empress’s side has come! My lady, please come out quickly!"

Consort Ning suddenly opened her eyes.

Lady Yu Lan? Thinking of this, she quickly got up.

She wiped the corners of her eyes with a handkerchief and picked up her powder puff to touch up her makeup slightly. Once the redness around her eyes diminished, she went to open the door.

"Lady Yu Lan!"

"Greetings, Consort Ning!"

"Please rise quickly!"

Consort Ning personally welcomed Yu Lan inside.

Yu Lan expressed her thanks. Then she presented a brocade box that she carried to Consort Ning.

"Consort Ning," Yu Lan said with a smile, "the Empress knows what’s weighing on your heart!"

"This pair of agate bracelets is specially reserved for you. They can be adjusted to be loose or tight; you will definitely like them!"

As she said this, she opened the box.

On the golden velvet cloth inside lay a pair of exquisitely luxurious rouge-red agate bracelets. The beads were large and smooth, as big as a little finger. Each bead was lustrous and translucent, reflecting the light that came through the window and emitting a warm, jade-like rouge glow.

"How beautiful!" Consort Ning’s eyes lit up.

She had many possessions, but not many fine items. This was the first time she had ever seen such agate bracelets!

Yu Lan smiled and said, "This is a tribute from Duoluo Country, specially kept for you by the Empress! This is called... Rouge Jade."

Consort Ning finally broke into a smile through her tears. "I thank the Empress greatly!" Thıs text ıs hosted at novel_fіre.net

Yu Lan smiled, carefully handed the item to Lan Xiang, then coughed lightly twice before conveying the Empress’s instructions.

"Her Majesty the Empress has this to say: Consort Xian Pin is currently favored, so do not compete with her. You are raising The Eldest Princess; the Emperor and Her Majesty will not mistreat you. What is destined to be yours will be yours; what is not, you cannot obtain by force. Do not ruin your own future, or that of The Eldest Princess, over a moment of pique. The Emperor is already aware of this incident. Her Majesty has given you a lesson and will not pursue it further. If such a thing happens again, let alone the Emperor, even Her Majesty will not spare you!"

After hearing this, Consort Ning felt as if she had survived a great calamity and seen the light of day once more. She knelt on the ground, tears of gratitude streaming down her face.

"The Empress’s great benevolence! This subject will never forget!"

Seeing her reverent attitude, Yu Lan’s smile grew wider. "Consort Ning, please rise quickly! Regarding this Rouge Jade, Her Majesty the Empress intends for you to understand it in your heart. There is no need to speak of it to others."

She added, "If there’s nothing else, this servant will take her leave."

Consort Ning bowed her head. "Please tell Her Majesty the Empress that this subject knows what to do. Lan Xiang, see Lady Yu Lan out!"

Lan Xiang hurriedly grabbed a purse and, smiling, accompanied Yu Lan to the palace gate before returning.

「...」

The lesson had finally come to an end.

Xia Ruqing finally let out the breath of resentment she had been holding in.

The incident of Consort Ning being publicly ridiculed by the Empress was promptly reported to Zi Yue by Zi Su.

Zi Yue’s face was pale as she lay on the bed, drifting in and out of consciousness. Listening to Zi Su and Zi Ning’s incessant chattering, she opened her eyes groggily and said intermittently, "The mistress is straightforward by nature, but how can you two also... be so reckless? You two, instead of advising the mistress to calm her anger, why are you still... why are you still... letting the mistress do foolish things! What kind of person is Consort Ning? And what am I... COUGH COUGH... in comparison! To be able to shield my mistress from disaster and help her vent her anger... that is... COUGH COUGH... my honor! No need... there’s no need..."

Zi Su quickly stopped her. "Sister Zi Yue, rest assured. Our mistress hasn’t done anything, and we haven’t encouraged her to do any foolish things! Last night, when the Emperor came, our mistress didn’t say a single word of complaint!"

Upon hearing this, Zi Yue mustered a difficult smile. "Really?"

Zi Su smiled again. "Of course, it’s true! Our mistress knows what she’s doing!"

Zi Yue nodded, a faint smile gracing her lips, and finally, her mind was at ease.

As they were talking, Qiu Ye came in from outside with a basin of clean, hot water. Over her shoulder, she carried freshly sun-dried cotton cloth.

"It’s time to change Sister Zi Yue’s dressing!"

Zi Su and Zi Ning nodded and stepped forward to help. First, they lifted the thin quilt covering Zi Yue. Then they began to remove her undergarments.

When Qiu Ye lifted Zi Yue’s undergarment, Zi Su and Zi Ning turned their heads away, their eyes redder than the other’s. Qiu Ye bit her lip to keep her tears from falling and continued with her task.

"Zi Su, stop crying!" Qiu Ye said. "You too, Zi Ning. After all, we’ve gotten our revenge!"

With that, they wiped their tears and turned back.

The undergarment was completely lifted. Zi Yue’s body, from the lower half of her back, across her buttocks, and down to the back of her thighs, was covered in lines of bloody welts. Her thighs were swollen, the skin broken in many places. Covered with the herbal paste, the wounds looked horrifyingly mangled!

"Damn it!" Zi Su cursed. "She’s just a young woman, yet they struck her so brutally!"

Zi Ning tugged at her sleeve. "That’s the Punishment Department for you. Those people there are ruthless!" After saying that, she added, "Quick, come and help!"

They needed to use the cotton cloth to clean off the ointment applied the previous day, then wait for the wounds to dry before applying fresh ointment.

Qiu Ye said, "The Female Doctor also said we must use strong liquor to wipe all the wounds; otherwise... they will fester!"

"Strong liquor!" Zi Su’s eyes widened, and Zi Ning was also shocked.

Her wounds are so bad, and they want to use strong liquor? How painful would that be!

Qiu Ye stated firmly, "No matter how painful, we must wipe them. Otherwise, if they fester, Sister Zi Yue’s legs will be ruined!" With that, she took a bottle of prepared strong liquor from the side. "Here!"

Zi Su and Zi Ning both gasped.

Just then, someone knocked on the door from outside.

"Zi Su, Zi Ning, Qiu Ye!"

"It’s Xiao Xizi!" one of them exclaimed.

The three opened the door, and Zi Su went out.

Xiao Xizi was holding a box of ointment. "This is a reward from the mistress. She says it can promote blood circulation and remove blood stasis! You don’t need to apply the herbal paste from the Female Doctor anymore. Use this from now on!"

Zi Su took it. It was a small bottle made of white jade. A few characters were written on it, but she couldn’t quite recognize them.