Chapter 272 Punishment
After Xiu'er finished speaking, the maids and old women surrounding her all laughed and pointed at Mengxi and his servant.
Xiang Ping's face turned red with embarrassment. She wanted to say something, but when she met Concubine Xiu's hateful look, she closed her mouth and looked at the young lady.
Mentioning Xiao Jun's oath and recalling all the past events, Mengxi felt a sweet sensation in her heart and a smile appeared in her eyes. She raised her eyes to meet the aggressive Xiu'er. The Xiao family's property was ransacked because of her. Her smile faded and she said nothing. She just watched the maids and old women talking indifferently.
After chattering for a long time, they felt that the atmosphere was not right. They noticed that Mengxi was looking at them with a hint of mockery on her lips. They subconsciously closed their mouths and looked at the princess.
Seeing that everyone finally stopped talking, Mengxi smiled faintly at Xiu'er and said slowly:
"The princess has said this before. Back then, the princess cried and shouted that she wanted to share a husband with Mengxi, and she even offered to be a concubine with the body of a dignified imperial censor. How could Mengxi not fulfill the princess's loyalty? So she chased after her to fulfill her wish and share a husband with her. Mengxi wanted to marry the Prince of Yan just to fulfill the princess's wish and follow in your footsteps."
"you……"
Feeling the surprised gazes of the crowd, Xiu'er felt her cheeks getting hot and her heart was burning with anger. She only said the word "you" and could not utter another word. The servants behind her were all from the palace. Except for Bingxin and Yuxin who came with her as a dowry, they did not know about her relationship with her cousin and her life in the Xiao Mansion. Today, Mengxi had exposed the secret in public and it reached the ears of Prince Yan and the Queen. She was afraid that she would suffer. Thinking of Prince Yan's inhuman punishment, Xiu'er felt a chill.
He stood there, pointing at Mengxi for a long time before coming to his senses. He took a step forward, looked at Mengxi and said with gritted teeth:
"Li Mengxi, don't be too proud too soon. You are a divorced woman, a broken flower and a withered willow. Do you think the King of Yan really likes you? He is just looking for something new in July. The wedding for you was held secretly in this villa. Even the Queen Mother Situ didn't know about it, let alone anyone of status attending... The King of Yan has already promised me that when he has had enough of you, he will sell you to a brothel. Then your cousin can enjoy music and dance every night. But by then, your cousin will probably have to sing herself, ha! ha! ha..."
Xiu'er burst into laughter after she finished speaking. Mengxi's face turned cold. Just as he was about to speak, he caught a glimpse of a white figure coming towards him. A light flashed in his mind, and his face immediately changed to a look of shock. He bowed to Xiu'er and said:
"Thank you, Princess, for telling Mengxi all this, otherwise Mengxi would have thought that the prince married Mengxi because he loved her, and would have been happily waiting for a good day. My cousin's words woke me up from my dream. How could a divorced woman, a broken-down woman, be worthy of being the prince's concubine? Although Mengxi is of humble status, she cannot be looked down upon. Mengxi can only repay my cousin's kindness in the next life..."
After Mengxi finished speaking, he turned around suddenly, went to the dangerous railing, climbed onto the railing, and jumped into the pond to commit suicide.
Xiu'er on the side was stunned. Based on her understanding of her cousin's wife, she loved her life too much. How could she commit suicide just because of a few words?
Just as she was wondering, she saw a white shadow flash by and Mengxi was held in the arms of King Yan. Seeing that King Yan had saved her, Mengxi was about to cry and said:
"Since the prince is not ashamed of Mengxi's body, why did he lie to her? Thinking of the humiliation in the future, Mengxi would rather die!"
After Mengxi finished speaking, she struggled to jump into the pond again, but was helplessly held tightly by King Yan and could not move.
Looking at Mengxi, whose face was covered with raindrops, King Yan's heart trembled, and he felt a pity he had never felt before. He glanced at Xiu'er grimly, lowered his head and said gently:
"Xi'er, why do you say that? I am an upright person. When have I ever lied to Xi'er?"
Mengxi glanced and said resentfully:
"Your Highness just wanted to have enough fun with Mengxi and then sell her to a brothel, right? Fortunately, Concubine Xiu remembered their past relationship and told Mengxi. Otherwise... Mengxi would rather die than be humiliated in the future. Your Highness, let Mengxi go and let her die!"
Mengxi said this and began to struggle desperately again.
After hearing Mengxi's words, Xiu'er's face turned pale. Facing the cold and gloomy gaze from King Yan, she couldn't help but tremble and called out softly:
“Your Majesty…”
"Princess Xiu, as a concubine, has actually forgotten her noble status and imitated that gossipy woman in the market, making trouble out of nothing and disturbing the peace in the backyard. Come, slap her in the face ten times!"
As soon as he finished speaking, two old women came forward, held Xiu'er down, and started beating her.
Seeing Mengxi looking at her mockingly in the arms of King Yan, with a smile on his face, Xiu'er, who had been punished, felt hatred surging. She had long forgotten King Yan's viciousness and said to King Yan despite Bingxin's obstruction:
"Your Highness, Mengxi is the divorced wife of the Xiao family. She is an unclean person who does not abide by the code of conduct for women. However, she is involved with the Crown Prince and now she is trying to seduce you. She is even more fickle. The Xiao family and the Crown Prince have been eyeing you covetously. If they know that you have married her, they will definitely not let you go. Your Highness, please put the overall situation first and do not be seduced by her beauty and make mistakes!"
Feeling the beauty in his arms trembling and choking, the King of Yan's face turned cold and he said coldly:
"Princess Xiu is becoming more and more unruly. Someone, send Princess Xiu back to Pingyang!"
"Your Majesty, beauty has always been a disaster. Everything Xiu'er does is for your own good!"
"Your Highness, Princess Xiu is right. Mengxi is an unclean woman. I don't want you to become enemies with the Xiao family and the Crown Prince because of Mengxi. Mengxi will repay your kindness in the next life!"
Mengxi struggled hard as she spoke.
I clearly saw her smiling smugly at me just now, but now she is so tearful . I have never realized that my cousin is so good at acting. Seeing Mengxi like this, Xiuer was so angry that she broke free from the two maids who were trying to drag her out and shouted to King Yan:
"Your Majesty, you promised Xiu'er that if you caught my cousin's wife, you would send her to a brothel and let..."
"Shut up! Princess Xiu disregards her status and speaks nonsense. Come, slap her in the face twenty times and send her back to Pingyang to be disciplined by Princess Situ!"
Before Xiu'er could finish, the King of Yan shouted. Xiu'er shuddered violently and swallowed the rest of her words. She looked at the King of Yan with resentment. Two old women came forward and slapped Xiu'er twenty times in the face. They dragged her away forcibly. From a distance, they could hear Xiu'er shouting:
"Your Majesty, you promised Xiu'er, Your Majesty..."
Bingxin and Yuxin were so frightened that they covered Concubine Xiu's mouth and walked out of the pavilion together.
Ignoring Xiu'er's shout, King Yan lowered his head and gently coaxed the trembling Mengxi, saying:
"Xi'er, don't listen to Xiu'er's nonsense. I love you so much, how could I bear to let you suffer any injustice? Didn't Xi'er see that the wedding hall has been set up? I want to marry you in a dignified manner..."
"Mengxi didn't believe it at first, but after thinking about it carefully, it's just as Concubine Xiu said. Not even Concubine Situ knows about tomorrow's wedding, let alone a respectable guest... Why did the prince lie to Mengxi when she didn't understand? Tomorrow's wedding is just a secret celebration in the inner house..."
She had been kidnapped for several days, and neither the prince nor Ouyang Di came to rescue her. Mengxi didn't believe they would give up on her. There was only one possibility, that is, they simply couldn't find where she was hiding. Since she couldn't escape, she could only try to make the wedding a big deal. Once the news got out, she would have a chance of being rescued.
"this……"
After hearing this, King Yan was really stumped. What Mengxi said was true, he did not invite outsiders to tomorrow's wedding, only people from other courtyards and his confidants. It was not that Mengxi's identity as an divorced wife embarrassed him, after all, he was the one who robbed Mengxi, and it was not easy to publicize it.
Seeing King Yan hesitate, Mengxi began to struggle hard. King Yan hugged her tightly and coaxed her:
"Xi'er, don't listen to Xiu'er's nonsense. Princess Situ is in Pingyang and can't come over for the time being. When we get back to Pingyang, I will personally take Xi'er to serve her tea. I have invited my friends in Jinyang to come and congratulate you. If Xi'er doesn't believe me, just wait and see tomorrow..."
After hearing what King Yan said, Mengxi also realized the principle of knowing when to stop, so he nodded meekly and said no more.
Seeing that Mengxi had stopped making trouble, King Yan let her go, took her hand and said:
"The tailor has just delivered the wedding dress. Xi'er, please go back with me to try it on..."
…
Xiu'er, with red and swollen cheeks, was forced to leave Jinyang. Before her eyes, she saw the scene of Prince Yan gently holding Mengxi in his arms. She felt crazy. She didn't want to leave Jinyang. She wanted to make a scene at Prince Yan's wedding and let all the guests tomorrow know that Mengxi was just a divorced wife and a jinx. The Xiao family had fallen into decline because of marrying her. She wanted to see her being spurned by all the guests and see Prince Yan kick her out of the house.
Unfortunately, the Prince of Yan's Mansion is not the Censorate's Mansion, and she cannot disobey the Prince of Yan's dominance. This is the sorrow she tasted after her marriage. She is just one of the many women around the Prince of Yan, like a piece of clothing, which she will not cherish after wearing it.
For the first time, Xiu'er began to doubt whether it was right or wrong to choose to marry King Yan.
Thinking of the cousin she had seen in the prison cell, even though he was in poverty, he still had a strong character. Xiu'er had an impulse to smash the carriage and tore off the curtains. Bing Xin, who was standing by, saw this and hugged Xiu'er, saying:
"My queen, calm down and don't be so impulsive. This is on the street and there are the prince's people outside. If the prince finds out, you will be punished again."
Hearing the word "punished", Xiu'er shuddered and stopped what she was doing, but her teeth were still chattering as she sat there gasping for breath. Bingxin took the curtain that Xiu'er had torn off and tried to hang it back up. Otherwise, if she returned home with the window exposed, someone would report it to Princess Situ, and her own queen would have to punish her again.
: The rules of the prince's palace are very strict, which cannot be compared with those of the Censorate. What's more, ever since the prince was reprimanded in person by the His Majesty and punished because of Cuiping's false accusation, the queen has not only lost favor in front of the prince, but has also become a public enemy in the palace. Not to mention that the concubines unite to squeeze her every day, just the torture of Princess Situ every day is enough to make them unable to take care of themselves. Fortunately, this time the prince took the queen south alone in order to confirm the identity of the second wife, so that she could gain some face in front of the other concubines. She was not happy for a few days, and now she was beaten black and blue by the second wife and sent back to the palace in disgrace. I don't know how much trouble is waiting for her to suffer, and they, the servants, are no exception.
Bing Xin was complaining in her heart while re-hanging the curtains. Through the window, she suddenly saw the familiar figure on the horse coming towards her, and she subconsciously called out:
"Second Master!"
Xiuer was shocked when she heard this and cried out:
"Where is my cousin?"
Hearing the empress calling her cousin, Bingxin realized that she had said something wrong and quickly covered her mouth. Unfortunately, it was too late. Xiu'er and Yuxin both came over and saw several horses coming towards them. On the large maroon horse in the middle was none other than Xiao Jun. He was wearing a dark blue long gown and a turban on his head. His wide clothes fluttered in the wind. After not seeing him for many days, he looked even more lonely and unruly.
Seeing her cousin again, she no longer felt the miserable life in prison. All the grievances she had felt suddenly came to her mind. Xiuer hurriedly shouted:
"parking!"