allonlinenovel In Chapter 25, Consort Shen and Eunuch Fu spoke in the same tone as Ruoxi.
In Chapter 25, Consort Shen and Eunuch Fu spoke in the same tone as Ruoxi.
Then, we saw that old man Fu walked towards Guan Yiju with brisk and steady steps.
When he arrived at the gate, the sight before him made him pause slightly – all the palace maids in the laundry department were standing neatly in the courtyard.
Standing at the front, Granny Gu reprimanded in a harsh tone, hands on her hips, "Listen up, all of you! From now on, anyone who dares to be lazy and shirk their duties like Ruoxi will suffer the same fate! This is the punishment for you ungrateful bastards!"
After saying that, her sharp, hawk-like eyes swept across the faces of each palace maid.
Eunuch Fu frowned slightly, thinking to himself, "This Granny Gu is getting stricter and stricter. And why was Ruoxi punished again? Is there some other reason behind this?"
The palace maids were all stunned. After exchanging bewildered glances, they all showed sympathy and their eyes fell on Ruoxi, who was kneeling on the cold ground.
Her petite and frail body trembled slightly, like a candle flickering in the wind, evoking pity. Everyone understood that because Guo Cui was Gu Mama's niece, Gu Mama had framed Ruo Xi to prevent Guo Cui from getting hurt.
"Ahem!" Eunuch Fu cleared his throat, took his whisk, and slowly walked in.
Seeing that Eunuch Fu was not impressed, Gu Mama still greeted him with a smile: "Eunuch Fu, what brings you to the laundry department? Does the Emperor need to change his clothes?" As she spoke, she secretly observed the changes in Eunuch Fu's expression with her shrewd eyes.
Eunuch Fu smiled slightly, but his eyes revealed a deeper meaning: "I've come to investigate the recent situation. I heard that there has been some minor trouble at the Laundry Department." He looked around, his gaze sweeping over Ruoxi kneeling on the ground, and then landing on Guocui, who looked uneasy to the side.
"Oh? A little trouble?" Granny Gu was secretly nervous, but she remained calm on the surface. "It's just a small misunderstanding. Ruoxi... she's just a new palace maid who doesn't know the rules."
"Is that so?" Eunuch Fu's lips curled into a cold smile. "I think this matter is not so simple. Tell me, how could Ruoxi have dirtied Consort Liang's clothes? Does she have such an ability?"
The palace maids were startled and lowered their heads, not daring to make a sound.
They knew that what Eunuch Fu said was true, and that Granny Gu's tricks were not very clever.
Granny Gu tried to remain calm, but found her voice trembling as she spoke, thinking to herself, "Although this Eunuch Fu is a eunuch, he is a favorite of the Emperor."
"I won't trouble you, Eunuch Fu. After all, Ruoxi is just a palace maid. I will handle this matter."
"Handle it?" Eunuch Fu smiled contemptuously. "Do you think you can just say a word and let this matter drop?"
As soon as he finished speaking, the atmosphere in the laundry room instantly became heavy. Everyone felt an invisible pressure.
Ruoxi was both afraid and angry. She knew she had been wronged, but she had no way to defend herself in the face of the powerful and influential Granny Gu.
I could only swallow my grievances.
Just then, a clear and firm voice broke the silence: "Please wait a moment!" Everyone turned around and saw a woman dressed in plain white with a beautiful and refined face walk in. It was Shen, who had just been promoted to the rank of Noble Lady.
“Noble Lady Shen…” Granny Gu’s expression changed drastically. She hadn’t expected Lady Shen to appear at this moment. Lady Shen slowly walked up to Ruoxi, her gaze gentle yet firm: “I personally witnessed Guocui handing over Consort Liang’s clothes to others for disposal. That was definitely not Ruoxi’s doing.”
These words struck like a bolt from the blue, leaving everyone present stunned.
Guo Cui's face turned pale, unsure how to refute. Meanwhile, Eunuch Fu raised an eyebrow slightly; he hadn't expected Consort Shen, who usually disliked meddling in other people's business, to step in.
"Consort Shen, what do you mean by this?" Granny Gu tried to calm herself down, but her tone sounded somewhat flustered.
“My meaning is very clear,” Madam Shen said, looking directly at Granny Gu. “I hope to restore everyone’s innocence, including Ruoxi.”
At this moment, Ruoxi, who had been wronged, finally felt a touch of warmth. She raised her head and looked at Madam Shen and Eunuch Fu, her clear eyes sparkling with gratitude and hope.
In the end, Guo Cui was given twenty lashes before the matter was resolved.
At this moment, Granny Gu blamed everything on Ruoxi, thinking about how to take revenge on Ruoxi after Consort Shen and Eunuch Fu left. Unfortunately, her plan was about to backfire.
"Raise your head!" Consort Shen said to Ruoxi.
At this moment, Ruoxi was feeling dizzy and lightheaded from kneeling for so long and not having eaten breakfast or lunch, which made her appear even more delicate and beautiful.
“She’s got the makings of a beauty,” he said, turning to his personal maid, Yuqing. “Arrange for her to work at Yuxiu Pavilion. I remember we need a maid to clean up supplies at Yuxiu Pavilion, right? Just assign her to that!”
The other maids in the laundry department all looked on with envy. Ruoxi was overjoyed to hear this and quickly kowtowed to express her gratitude. "Thank you, Your Majesty!"
Instead of feeling jealous, Yuqing quickly stepped forward to help Ruoxi up.
Just now, Eunuch Fu was thinking that if he were to bring the maid to see the Emperor, he would definitely make the Emperor arrange for her to go somewhere else. Even if she wasn't killed by someone else, she would be dealt with by this Granny Gu.
He had clearly seen the murderous look in Granny Gu's eyes just now.
Meanwhile, Xiao Jingchuan and his group on the road to exile were not at peace either, as Zhao Yun, a collateral relative of the Mu family, started causing trouble again.
With only a few days left until they reached Ningguta, Zhao Yun, bored on the road, gave Jia Yuan a good torment.
On the way, she would either be carried when she got tired, or she would become picky when it was time to eat, or she would ask Jia Yuan, a weak woman, to go find meat if she wanted to eat it.
Throughout the journey, Mu Jian's family didn't even glance at Jia Yuan. Mu Zhaoqi, in particular, wouldn't let Jia Yuan touch him, just like now: "Get away! You filthy, lowly woman, don't touch me with your dirty hands! How can someone as shameless as you have the face to live in this world!"
His face was full of anger, as if he was venting all his dissatisfaction on Jia Yuan.
Jia Yuan meant well by wanting to return the medicine to him, but he cursed and insulted her.
Jia Yuan felt a surge of grievance, tears welling in her eyes, but she dared not let them fall. She took a deep breath, trying to suppress her emotions, and whispered, "I just wanted to help you, how could you do this to me?"
Jia Yuan silently took a step back, ceasing her argument. She knew she couldn't change their minds no matter what, so she chose silence.
The loneliness and indifference along the way left her feeling utterly exhausted, and she had silently made a decision in her heart.
Zhao Yun said to Mu Zhaoqi, "When we get to Ningguta, you should divorce this shameless woman. Our family would never want a woman like that!"
Mu Zhaoqi had a gloomy expression and didn't say a word, keeping his mouth shut the whole time!
As night fell, a dark figure drifted by like a gentle breeze; it was Tian Qing who had come to gather information.