Her guards

Chapter 141 Can She Be Punished?

As dusk fell, the royal palace outside the capital was bustling with activity as dozens of imperial guards and seven or eight palace maids dressed in hunting attire escorted Princess Heisei back.

Several wild rabbits were hanging from the back of Princess Heisei's horse.

There was another horse carrying a deer.

The King of the East Sea laughed loudly and praised, "My sister has had a very fruitful day!"

Princess Heisei, dressed in a bright red hunting outfit, had her face red from the cold, but she was full of energy.

"Thank you for your guidance, brother. My horsemanship and archery skills have improved." She jumped off her horse and said with a smile.

The King of the East Sea looked even happier: "Isn't it better than being cooped up in the palace studying? You should come out and play more often from now on."

Princess Heisei laughed and said, "Then remember to take me out to play more often, brother."

The brother and sister entered the hall, which was already lit up, magnificent and warm as spring.

“Tonight we’ll enjoy my sister’s prey,” said the King of the East Sea.

As they were talking, a eunuch hurried in. Seeing the brother and sister laughing and talking, he hesitated for a moment before calling out, "Your Highness."

The King of Donghai is the crown prince and has already begun observing the political situation.

The messages that came and went involved court politics, and as a princess, she was polite and respectful, and did not violate any taboos.

Princess Heisei immediately stood up: "I'll go wash up and change first."

Seeing his younger sister's understanding nature, the King of the East Sea was more inclined to be a magnanimous older brother, and quickly waved his hand, saying, "No need to leave." He gestured to the eunuch, "Speak."

The eunuch glanced at the princess again, then bowed and said, "Your Highness, something has happened with the Empress—"

The King of the East Sea and Princess Heicheng were instantly shocked: "What?"

"Your Highness, do not panic. Her Majesty the Empress is unharmed. It is Yang Luo of the Duke of Ding'an's mansion who has disobeyed the Empress—" the eunuch hurriedly finished speaking in one breath.

Upon hearing the name Yang Luo, Princess Heisei froze.

She has already left the capital and hasn't been studying these days, so how could she still hear this name?

……

.......
As the morning light bathed the imperial city, decorations began to adorn the city as the New Year approached, adding a festive touch to its solemn atmosphere.

But the emperor, sitting in his bedchamber, showed no joy whatsoever.

He had slept well last night and didn't have to attend court this morning. Although he woke up early as usual, he was in a leisurely and cheerful mood, preparing to read and write, and then reward his officials during the New Year.

Then he received a request for an audience from Consort Li.

Logically, the lockdown hasn't been lifted yet, but it's the dead of winter, and I can't bear to let her kneel outside all the time.

If Doctor Li finds out, he will blame himself again.

"Letting Aqing marry Your Majesty was a favor we, the Li family, had taken advantage of. Whenever I think of this, I feel remorseful and ashamed before Your Majesty."

It's always better to feel guilty for taking advantage of someone's kindness than to feel smug about it.

The emperor lowered his eyes slightly, and Consort Li entered.

If it's a request for an early lifting of the confinement, then it's permitted, so that during the New Year, one can receive the worship of noblewomen and bring honor to oneself.

It turned out that Consort Li hadn't come to plead for herself, but for Yang Luo.

Consort Li, who was under house arrest, knelt before him and recounted the events with choked sobs.

"...They were all young and full of life, so it was inevitable that one would be proud and the other would be dissatisfied, leading to an argument..."

The emperor's expression was gloomy, and his eyes were somewhat unfocused.

They got into a fight with the Chai family's young lady.

again……

"Are you injured?" the emperor suddenly asked.

Consort Li was taken aback for a moment, then quickly said, "No, no, Miss Chai is fine. The Marquis of Yongwu was there and stopped it in time."

The emperor lowered his eyes and remained silent.

Consort Li continued cautiously.

"...When girls quarrel, they inevitably say hurtful things. Yang Luo is from the countryside, so she has no manners and doesn't know how to behave."

"...Although my elder brother cherishes talent, he also feels that this child is arrogant and should be taught a lesson, so he did not come to see His Majesty, but only told me."

"...My brother said that this child has no mother and is as good as having no father. He instructed me to take good care of Princess Wuyang and also to discipline this child more."

"But after thinking it over all night, I still can't bear it..."

She said this while kneeling forward, looking at the emperor.

"Your Majesty, I am not asking that you not punish her. I am asking that you punish her by making her write, copy books, or remove her from being a princess's study companion. Anything is fine, just please don't let the Empress beat her."

“Your Majesty, I tried it last time. The Empress’s caning is really severe. The child can’t take it. If he is really beaten, he will be crippled.”

She said this and bent over the ground and cried.

Before the emperor could say anything, a cold laugh came from outside the door. "Consort, that caning last time wasn't harsh at all."

Queen!

Consort Li trembled, knelt, turned around, and kowtowed towards the doorway: "Your Majesty."

The emperor was also a little nervous. He stood up and looked at the empress who walked in from outside the door. Behind him, the eunuchs had their heads bowed.

"Your Majesty, please don't blame the eunuchs. I heard that Consort Li was here, so I came here specifically to eavesdrop and see if she had said anything bad about me," the Empress said.

The emperor was amused by this directness.

Although she can be bad-tempered at times, Ah Feng has always been honest and straightforward with him.

In Ah Feng's eyes, he was not only an emperor, but also a husband.

The emperor laughed and said, "No one dares to speak ill of you in front of me, and I will not allow it."

The Empress smiled at the Emperor and walked over to look at the trembling Consort lying on the ground.

“Last time Yang Luo did a good job, and I only hit her for show, so it wasn’t really hard,” she said. “This time when I hit her again, Consort, you can try it and you’ll know I’m not lying to you.”

Consort Li raised her head, tears streaming down her face, and pleaded, "Your Majesty, please have mercy! She's just a child..."

“Precisely because they are children, they need to be strictly disciplined; otherwise, they will become even more unruly in the future,” the Empress said, looking at the Emperor. “Does Your Majesty agree?”

Logically, the emperor nodded as if he was about to say something, and Consort Li knelt up and grabbed the empress's robe.

"Your Majesty, her mother is dead. Please be magnanimous. Put yourself in her shoes. If Heisei made a mistake, would you bear to punish her...?"

Before she could finish speaking, the Empress's expression changed drastically, and she raised her hand to slap Consort Li.

"You bastard!" she shouted.

Consort Li cried out in pain and collapsed to the ground, blood seeping from the corner of her mouth.

The Empress was still furious, pointing at Consort Li: "What does her mother's death have to do with me? What is she anyway, to be compared to my Heisei!"

Consort Li knelt down, weeping, and said, "Your Majesty, I was wrong."

The emperor's face was also grim. He shouted, "Get out! You are not to come out again without my order!"

Consort Li dared not cry anymore. She covered her face, got up, and stumbled out.

The Empress did not reprimand him further, but stood in the hall with her chest heaving violently.

"What does this have to do with me? What does this have to do with me?" she murmured repeatedly.

The emperor held her hand and gently comforted her, "It's alright, it's alright, it has nothing to do with you, Ah Feng, don't be angry, don't be angry."

The Queen looked at him: "May I punish her?"

The emperor looked at her.

"Ah Feng, sit down first," he said, taking her hand. "Have some tea; your hands are cold."

The Empress forcefully pulled her hand away: "Don't worry about my hand. I'm just asking you, can I issue a decree right now to punish her?"

The emperor's lips moved, and he said, "Yes."

The Empress smiled at him and said, "Very well, thank you, Your Majesty." Then she called for someone to come.

The eunuch outside the door entered with his head bowed.

"Draft an edict for this palace: Yang Luo of the Duke of Ding'an's mansion has committed treason and disobedience; he shall be punished with thirty strokes of the cane..."

Thirty strokes of the cane—for a girl like that, she'd probably be crippled. The emperor's lips moved again...

"Father—I'm back—"

A woman's voice suddenly came from outside the palace gate again.

A young girl dressed in red hunting attire strode forward in the morning light, carrying two wild rabbits in her hands.

"...I've brought you some game, oh? Mother!"

Princess Heisei looked at the Empress and smiled with delight.

"The Empress Dowager is with the Emperor. I have already sent the game to your palace."

He paused for a moment after saying that.

Are Father and Mother busy? Have I disturbed you?

Before the empress could speak, the emperor had already beckoned to her.

"No rush, no rush," he said excitedly. "Heisei, why are you back at this time? Aren't you cold?"

Her father was always happy to see her, because she was his most beloved daughter.

But today's joy is greater than ever before, probably because she was able to solve Yang Luo's problem.

Does that mean the Emperor was happy because of Yang Luo?
Princess Heisei pursed her lips, dismissed the absurd thought, and smiled.

“I’m not cold,” she said. “I’ve caught some prey and I want to present it to my father and mother immediately so they can be happy for me.”

(End of this chapter)