Everyone's eyes narrowed instantly, and their gazes toward Mu Tao were full of mockery: his wrist was severely injured, he was a cripple, and he still had the mood to have an affair with a palace maid, what a refined taste.
Consort Shu's face turned pale, and she glared at Mu Tao with a look of disappointment. Initially, she planned to have the guards deflower Green Branch, but Mu Tao, whose tendons had been crippled, was agitated and impatient. Upon hearing about the plot against Shen Lixue, he volunteered to help and diligently took Green Branch as his own.
Who would have thought that Shen Lixue was more skilled and turned the tables on them, making it seem like Mu Tao and Lüzhi were having an affair, and that Consort Shu, in order to protect her nephew, intended to frame Shen Lixue. The Mu family was about to lose all face, and Consort Shu would be ridiculed in the harem and would not be able to hold her head up high.
"Your Highness, how should this matter be handled?" Shen Lixue asked the Consort Shu with a smile.
The clear, melodious voice, when heard by Consort Shu, was filled with sarcasm. Consort Shu gritted her teeth and said, word by word, "I have failed in my duty of discipline. I leave everything to the Prince of Yan to decide!"
She lost this round completely. She herself had made a mistake, so how could she have the right to punish others? The King of Yan was ruthless and would not show mercy, but she couldn't care less about anything else and could only sacrifice the pawn to save the king.
"Shameless servant, having an affair and daring to frame others, your character is despicable, take her away and behead her!" The Prince of Yan gave the order with sharp eyes.
The guards responded and dragged Green Branch away, lifting her up by their arms. Green Branch, as if waking from a dream, struggled desperately, crying hysterically, tears streaming down her face: "Your Majesty, help me! Save me..."
Consort Shu lowered her head slightly, ignoring her, her small hands clenched tightly, and a cold light flashed in her dark eyes. She was in a precarious situation herself and couldn't save anyone else. She hated this feeling of helplessness and powerlessness. She hated it very much!
"Young Master Shen, please spare this servant! I will serve you like a slave!" Consort Shu remained unmoved. Green Branch cried out and begged Shen Lixue instead, her beautiful eyes brimming with tears.
Shen Lixue sneered silently. If the Prince of Yan hadn't come, she would definitely be surrounded by guards and might already be dead. When she plotted to frame her, Lüzhi showed no mercy whatsoever, so why should she pity her? "I cannot accept Lüzhi's reward!"
"Please, help me..." Green Branch screamed in terror as the guards dragged her out of the Qianqing Palace. With a swift stroke of their swords, her cries came to an abrupt halt.
The Qianqing Palace was unusually quiet. The guards, Consort Shu, and Mu Tao were all silent, and the atmosphere was eerily still.
"General Mu Tao, disregarding etiquette and law, you have forcibly taken a palace maid from His Highness the Crown Prince, and even shirked responsibility and framed others. Your audacity is outrageous. Considering your meritorious service, you are hereby given fifty strokes of the cane, stripped of your generalship, and forever barred from serving as an official in the court. Do you accept this?" The cold voice of the Prince of Yan rang out once again.
"Thank you, Prince Yan!" Mu Tao's face was contorted, his large hands clenched into fists, his tiger-like eyes flashing with cold light. When he met Consort Shu's sharp, warning gaze, the angry words that were on the tip of his tongue were swallowed back down. After a long while, he finally spat out those words with resentment.
Forcibly taking over the Crown Prince's bed maid and engaging in sexual acts on his bed is a great disrespect to the Crown Prince. According to the law, Mu Tao should be beheaded. The fact that the Prince of Yan spared his life is already an act of leniency.
Mu Tao was once a border general. Although he was hot-tempered, he knew what was important and did not contradict the Prince of Yan again. He accepted the punishment as bad luck. The emperor valued the Crown Prince the most. If the emperor knew about the despicable things Mu Tao did in the Qianqing Palace, he would definitely punish him more severely.
He was demoted, flogged, and disqualified from holding office—all because of Shen Lixue! Mu Tao glared at Shen Lixue with fiery eyes: He would never let him get away with this!
"As for Consort Shu..." The Prince of Yan's gaze shifted to Consort Shu, his expression darkening. "She is a concubine in the harem, and I cannot presume to punish her. Let Consort De decide!"
Consort De has also come to the Qianqing Palace!
Consort Shu was startled and turned around abruptly. Consort De, gently supported by a palace maid, walked over gracefully. Her well-maintained face was full of smug sneers: "Sister Shu, you'll stop at nothing for your nephew, using every means possible, from scheming to framing him..."
"After all, they are blood relatives. How can I, as their aunt, stand idly by when Tao'er is in trouble!" Consort Shu was not one to back down. She schemed against outsiders for her nephew, thus gaining a reputation for caring for her juniors. She did not come away empty-handed.
"If Consort Shu truly cares for her nephew, she should teach him well instead of waiting for him to cause a great disaster and then going to great lengths to clean up his mess. Today you framed my nephew, and I, being magnanimous and kind-hearted, can let it go. But what if one day you frame His Highness the Crown Prince? How could His Majesty forgive you so easily?" Consort De, having lived in the inner palace for a long time, naturally knew what Consort Shu was thinking. She had harmed someone and still wanted to gain a reputation for virtue; what a pipe dream.
"Sister is absolutely right, I have learned a lot!" Consort Shu said with a gloomy face and gritted teeth. It was just one defeat, nothing serious.
Seeing Consort Shu's miscalculation and frustrated expression, Consort De chuckled inwardly, but sighed helplessly, "Supporting relatives and plotting against others has a very bad influence. If this is not punished, my sisters will follow suit, and the harem will likely descend into chaos..."
"Since Consort De is in charge of the six palaces, just say how you want to punish her!" Consort Shu lowered her eyelids slightly, her beautiful eyes flashing with cold light. She would let Consort De be smug for a few days, and then teach her a lesson once she had power.
Consort De smiled slightly: "I am very pleased that my younger sister is so sensible. I will punish her by making her stay in Chang Le Palace for half a year to reflect on her mistakes and copy scriptures a thousand times..."
The women in the harem were confined to the palace all day long and could not go out. Their lives were extremely depressing. Taking a walk in the garden to relax was their greatest pastime. Consort De punished Consort Shu by confining her to the palace for half a year to reflect on her mistakes. It seemed ordinary, but in fact, Consort Shu wanted to keep her cooped up in Chang Le Palace for half a year. She would not leave the palace for half a year and would not have any contact with outsiders. I wonder if Consort Shu would go crazy from being bored.
Consort De's methods were ruthless, leaving no trace. Consort Shu's methods were ruthless on the surface. Given that Shen Lixue was a man, if Consort Shu's plan had succeeded, Shen Lixue would have either been killed or severely punished. Consort Shu successfully eliminated this formidable enemy, successfully sowed discord between Shen Lixue and Ye Qianlong, and even took the opportunity to plot against Consort De for lax palace management, thus regaining control of the six palaces. It was a brilliant plan that achieved three goals at once.
Women in the imperial harem are indeed no simple characters!
As night deepened and the matter was resolved, Consort De and Consort Shu returned to their respective palaces. Mu Tao was also escorted back to the Duke of Mu's mansion by the guards. Prince Yan returned to his study to see the Emperor and Ye Qianlong, while Shen Lixue left the palace and rode a fast horse back to the Marquis of Zhenguo's mansion.
The night was cool and still, the streets were quiet and deserted, not a soul in sight. A gust of wind blew by, carrying a chilling cold. The sound of Chen Lixue's horse hooves was particularly clear in the silence.
Shen Lixue had only recently learned to ride a horse. As she rode forward, she dared not go too fast. With the night wind blowing, her thoughts became increasingly clear. Consort Shu was imprisoned, Mu Tao's wrist was crippled, and he was stripped of his official position, unable to cause trouble anymore. In the short term, she should be free from any more trouble!
Suddenly, a strange aura wafted through the night wind. Shen Lixue's gaze sharpened: such intense killing intent. Listening closely, she heard light, hurried footsteps getting closer and closer. A cold smile crept onto her lips. Someone wanted to kill her!
"Whoosh!" In the pitch-black night, a sharp arrow pierced the sky, heading straight for Shen Lixue on her fast horse...
---Aside---
(*^__^*) Hehe... Happy National Day, everyone! Mwah...
<......
Chapter 176: Rolling down the slope, endless ambiguity.
Shen Lixue watched the flying arrow, her clear, cold eyes calm and unwavering. With a flick of her wrist, her cyan whip drew a graceful arc in the air and lashed the arrow hard. The unstoppable black arrow was instantly shattered in two and fell to the ground.
With a flick of her slender hand, a red signal soared into the dark night sky, radiating a dazzling light. This was the signal Dongfang Heng had given her; she was to set it off if she encountered danger, and he would come to her rescue as quickly as possible.
"Whoosh whoosh whoosh!" Countless black feathered arrows flew in from all directions, their momentum fierce and murderous. Shen Lixue looked at the dark night in the distance, a cold smile on her lips. Someone had set up an ambush here, wanting to kill her.
Killing her won't be that easy!
With a leap, her slender body soared into the air, her cyan whip lashing out relentlessly, protecting her tightly in the center, and knocking down all the approaching arrows.
Arrows rained down relentlessly. Shen Lixue narrowed her eyes. Alone in the open, she was outnumbered and outmatched. The assassins, in groups, lurked in the shadows, ready to ambush her. For a short time, she had the upper hand, but as time went on, her strength would be exhausted, while the assassins, rested and full of energy, would become fish on a chopping board, at their mercy.
She cannot passively take the beating; she must break out of the encirclement and take the initiative.
With a turn of her body, Shen Lixue landed back on the horse and spurred it to gallop at high speed.
Arrows rained down on her, but none of them touched her; they were all knocked to the ground when they were within arm's reach.
Far away, a sharp arrow silently aimed at her back, carefully adjusting the most accurate position before suddenly releasing the bowstring.
"Whoosh!" The arrow, carrying a sharp gust of wind, shot towards Shen Lixue with lightning speed.