C121

As the Eleventh Princess's voice fell, the emperor tightly furrowed his brows, but on his face, it was hard to tell if he was happy or angry.

When Yi Fei saw this, she was so frightened that she lowered her head. She didn't dare to make a sound and secretly scolded her brainless daughter in her heart.

If she had known she was so stupid, she wouldn't have mentioned it.

She was favored by the emperor. Most of the time, she would make a small mistake and admit her mistake to the emperor's ears.

However, that was only in the absence of the empress.

When His Majesty was still a prince, he married the direct daughter of the Prime Minister Jiang, and with the full support of the Prime Minister Jiang and the Empress, he ascended the throne.

The empress had a gentle personality, neither fighting nor stealing. She kept the imperial harem in order, with the emperor respecting the empress every day for ten years.

In front of the empress, when concubines did something wrong, they still had to be punished. The emperor would never pamper and shield you in front of the empress just because he doted on you normally.

Not to mention her, even the crown prince's birth mother, Imperial Concubine Li, didn't dare be disrespectful to the empress.

They were both jealous and resentful of the empress.

When the Empress saw that the Eleventh Princess had admitted it, the gentle expression on her face disappeared without a trace, and was replaced with a faint ridicule. Laughing lightly, she asked: "If that's the case, with Eleven slandering Ah Ling, does he want to marry the General Xiao?"

Pausing, she tilted her head to look at the Emperor by her side and asked gently, "What does Your Majesty think about the thoughts of Eleven?"

The emperor seemed to have thought of something and his face darkened. He once again looked at Eleventh Princess with a cold gaze.

Eleventh Princess's head was lowered, and his mind was a mess. Thus, he did not notice that the Emperor's attitude towards him had suddenly changed.

She'd been influenced by the empress's eyes and ears since she was young and harbored hatred for the empress for a long time. Now, hearing the empress nagging at her again and again, the hatred in her heart grew even stronger.

As if giving it her all, she suddenly raised her head and glared at the empress, speaking forcefully, "It is your servant's fault that I ordered people to spread rumors. Ke Er isn't slandering Mrs. Xiao either, who can prove that she was really unharmed during her disappearance? Empress, you cannot shield Qu Ling just because she is your niece! "

"Enough!"

The emperor, who had been silent all this time, suddenly slammed the table. A loud 'bang' resounded throughout the hall.

Everyone in the hall, excluding the empress, was shocked.

The empress's gaze swept across Yi Feifei and the Eleventh Princess without batting an eyelid. With a smirk, she said softly, "From today onwards, everyone in the Yutang Palace is grounded for a month. No one is allowed to step even half a step outside the palace without my and the emperor's permission."

When Yi Fei heard this, she heaved a sigh of relief.

Luckily, he didn't send her to the temple to eat and chant.

It was just a restriction, nothing much.

The emperor and the empress left the Jade Tang Palace together. The emperor suddenly stopped in his tracks and looked at his queen with a smile that was not a smile. "The empress really can't take even the slightest loss."

The empress's expression did not change as she said lightly, "Chenqie doesn't understand what the emperor is saying."

The emperor humphed in an inexplicable manner before leading Eunuch Xi towards the imperial study.

The empress stood still, a faint smile on her lips.

The mama waiting by the empress's side suddenly took a step forward and asked in a low voice, "Empress, are we just going to let it go as long as we're grounded?"

Earlier, she'd followed the empress to find the emperor in a rage. She thought the empress should have been angry, but she didn't expect her to just be grounded.

The empress looked away and replied carelessly, "Of course not."

Pausing for a moment, he tilted his head and whispered into the mama's ears.

When Mammy heard this, her wrinkled face broke into a knowing smile.

Qu Ling was playing with the poisonous creatures in the house when he suddenly heard voices arguing outside of the house. No one was around, so he asked: "Who is outside?"

Xiao Yi appeared at the door and said, "Madam, Xiao Er is here."

Qu Ling was startled, then said: "Let him in."

Just as she finished speaking, Xiao Er appeared at the door.

His injuries had healed, but he still looked pale.

Upon seeing Qu Ling, he immediately knelt down, and said: "A few days ago, this subordinate offended you, so please punish me."

He was not asking for forgiveness, but asking for punishment.

Qu Ling looked at him from head to toe, and suddenly asked: "How are your injuries?"

Xiao Er replied: "Sixty to seventy percent."

That meant he wasn't done yet.

Qu Ling thought for a moment, then said: "There's no need to punish them. If you truly feel sorry for them, you can go to the outskirts of the city and help me capture a hundred Bone Eating Insects."

Tomorrow, she would follow Xiao Jingyue and travel far away, but Murong Yan was not there. If she wanted to bring the Jade Scorpion with her, she had to think of a way to make some food for it.

Xiao Er answered without thinking: "Yes."

Then he stood up and turned to leave without the slightest hesitation.

Before Qu Ling even had the chance to ask him what the Bone Eating Insect was, he had already disappeared.

She couldn't help but mutter, "Why are you running so fast? Aren't your injuries still recovering?"

Xiao Yi replied, "It's common for us to be injured, and our flesh is rough. Even if Madam wants him to go up the mountain and chop firewood, he can do it."

Qu Ling, "..."

What the hell was that? Had they been there?

Just as he was about to ask, Aunt Tao walked in with a bowl of black medicine.

Compared to yesterday's heavy heart, the Aunt Tao today was beaming with joy, as if she had met with some happy event.

Qu Ling looked at her suspiciously and asked: "Aunt Tao, did you pick up any silver along the way?"

Aunt Tao laughed: "No, there isn't any silver in the General Mansion."

Qu Ling suddenly looked at Xiao Yi.

Xiao Yi's movements were faster than his brain. He took out a silver note from his sleeve and threw it at Aunt Tao's feet.

Aunt Tao: "..."

After realizing what he had done, Xiao Yi, "…"

Aunt Tao smiled helplessly, picked up the silver and returned it to Xiao Yi, saying, "Miss, please don't joke with this old servant."

Qu Ling bared his teeth and laughed: Then tell me, why are you so happy?

"This …" Aunt Tao immediately restored his expression of wanting to say something.

Qu Ling did not urge him either. With one hand on his cheek, he smiled and threatened: "When will Aunt Tao say it, and when will I drink the medicine?"

When the Aunt Tao heard this, he was afraid that she would not drink anymore medicine, so he immediately said: "Just now, this old servant went out to buy needle and thread to make Miss a hat, but I heard that the people outside said that the Eleventh Princess, because of admiration for the General, maliciously spread rumors and slandered the Miss, was found by the General Xiao.

Qu Ling asked again: "What are the rumors spreading in Eleventh Princess slandering me for?"

Aunt Tao suddenly did not say anything.

No matter how much Qu Ling threatened, he didn't utter a single word.

Seeing that, Qu Ling finished the pill in one gulp, then asked Xiao Yi: "You know about it right?"

Xiao Yi obediently nodded his head. "This subordinate understands."

"Speak!" If you don't say it, I'll punish you by going up the mountain and cutting down firewood! "

"…"

Half an hour later, the Aunt Tao hurried to the study room.

Before he arrived, he shouted towards the inside, "General! General! This is bad! Madame has gone out again!"

The door of the study was opened as Xiao Jingyue walked out, and asked: "Where did you go?"

The Aunt Tao said in fright: "He went into the palace, and said that he wants to fight to the death with the Eleventh Princess!"

Xiao Jingyue, "..."