sbdcsierra Chapter 1442 Do I Have Any Other Path to Take?
Chapter 1442 Do I Have Any Other Path to Take?
Shen Zhinian's lips curled into a mocking smile.
Bingqiao cherishes her life very much and would never commit suicide.
"Go and bring Bingqiao to see me."
"Yes!"
Bingqiao was quickly taken to the inner hall.
She changed into a clean set of palace maid's clothes and combed her hair again. However, she deliberately left wet tear stains on her face, her eyelids were lowered, and her shoulders were slightly hunched, showing a fragile appearance of someone who had suffered endless humiliation and was trying to hold on.
Bingqiao knelt on the ground, choking back tears, and said, "This servant...this servant pays respects to Your Majesty, may Your Majesty be blessed with ten thousand years of happiness and peace!"
Shen Zhinian looked calmly at Bingqiao's feigned sorrow, without exposing it, and simply said, "Get up and answer."
"Thank you, Your Majesty..."
Tell me in detail everything that happened today, from when you left the waterside pavilion to when the incident occurred at the gazebo.
Bingqiao got up as instructed and began to repeat herself, her words not differing much from what she had said at Quhe Garden.
It wasn't until she mentioned delivering the hangover soup that she seemed to recall some details, and said with some uncertainty, "...When I was carrying the soup bowl past the artificial hill, I met two older sisters carrying flower pots."
“The flowerpot looked like it was about to fall, so they asked me to help them hold it up… I was afraid of being late, so I quickly left after I helped it up and didn’t linger.”
Shen Zhinian noticed this seemingly insignificant interlude, and her eyes suddenly narrowed: "Holding up the flowerpot?"
At such a critical juncture, any accidental contact would seem highly suspicious.
Bingqiao nodded and said, "Yes."
Shen Zhinian subtly gave Xiao Zhouzi a look.
Xiao Zhouzi understood and quietly withdrew from the inner room, clearly to check on the two palace maids who carried the flowerpots.
Shen Zhinian was weighing her options, trying to figure out how to deal with this hot potato in front of her.
Just then, Han Dan came over and announced, "Your Majesty, the eunuchs who serve in the Emperor's presence have arrived."
Shen Zhinian's eyebrows twitched slightly: "Let him in."
"Yes."
A fair-skinned eunuch bowed as he entered and respectfully gave Shen Zhinian a deep salute: "This servant greets Your Highness the Imperial Noble Consort. May Your Highness enjoy boundless blessings and peace!"
Shen Zhinian raised her eyes and asked, "Get up."
"But what are Your Majesty's orders?"
The eunuch still bowed slightly: "Your Highness, this servant has come on His Majesty's orders."
"Your Majesty said that Prince Jin has just reported that he was very ashamed and uneasy because he had behaved improperly while drunk, which damaged the reputation of Bingqiao, a palace maid in Yongshou Palace."
He paused here, his gaze seemingly sweeping over Bingqiao standing to the side, before continuing, "Prince Jin said he was willing to take responsibility. If Miss Bingqiao does not mind, he can take her as a concubine, giving her a place to settle down and make a living, which can be considered a small compensation."
"His Majesty instructed me to convey this message to Your Highness, stating that Bingqiao is ultimately a member of Yongshou Palace, and that Your Highness should make the final decision on this matter."
All eyes immediately turned to Shen Zhinian, awaiting her response.
After the eunuch left, Shen Zhinian turned her gaze back to Bingqiao, her tone revealing neither joy nor anger: "You heard what Prince Jin said too."
"He's willing to take you as a concubine and give you a formal status. What do you think?"
Upon hearing this news, Bingqiao was overjoyed beyond words!
She had always dreamed of escaping her lowly status as a palace maid and becoming a mistress.
Even if you are just a concubine, you will no longer have to be a slave or servant, you will no longer have to be obsequious to others, you will no longer have to be mindful of others' feelings, and you will even have the opportunity to climb up the social ladder step by step!
However, this joy quickly vanished...
Because today in Quhe Garden, in order to survive, she kept crying and claiming that she was forced by Prince Jin and had no power to resist.
As a result, the Prince of Jin was demoted from a noble prince to a county prince, his reputation was ruined, and he suffered all kinds of humiliation.
All of this, you could say, started because of her...
If she were to agree to enter the Prince's residence, wouldn't she be walking into a trap?
The Prince of Jin will not let her off easily. What awaits her in the future is probably not a life of luxury, but endless torment and revenge...
For a moment, Bingqiao felt as if she were facing an abyss ahead and a precipice behind. She was caught in a dilemma and couldn't find a way out.
Her face turned white then pale, then pale again...
Shen Zhinian did not urge her. She elegantly picked up the teacup beside her, gently stirred the floating leaves, and slowly savored the aroma of the tea.
The hall was eerily quiet for a moment.
An invisible sense of oppression weighed heavily on Bingqiao's heart, forcing her to make a choice.
Bingqiao's forehead was covered in a fine layer of cold sweat as she quickly weighed the pros and cons.
Having lost her chastity, there was absolutely no way she could stay in the palace. Forget about climbing into the emperor's bed; even continuing to be an ordinary palace maid was a pipe dream.
Looking around, she had no other choice but to accept the suggestion from Prince Jin to take charge...
At least she went to the Prince's mansion, where she was nominally a concubine, which was better than being expelled from the palace or dying quietly.
As for the future...
A ruthless glint flashed in Bingqiao's eyes.
We can only take it one step at a time and see how things go, and then figure out a way to save our lives!
Thinking of this, Bingqiao took a deep breath, as if she had made up her mind. Her expression was one of resignation and sorrow. She knelt down and choked out, "This servant...this servant is already a withered flower, but the Prince of Jin is willing to give this servant a place to stay..."
"This servant...this servant kowtows to thank Your Majesty for your grace, and is willing...willing to follow Your Majesty's arrangements."
She lowered her head, concealing all her true emotions, leaving only a weak appearance of someone with no other choice and forced to accept the situation.
Shen Zhinian didn't say much after hearing this, but nodded and said, "In that case, you may go and make the preparations."
Her tone contained neither pity nor rebuke.
Upon hearing this, Bingqiao's tense nerves relaxed slightly, and she kowtowed deeply, saying, "This servant obeys."
After she stepped back, Fuqu stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, when I saw Bingqiao crying and complaining before, I had a slight doubt that she might really be forced."
"But judging from Bingqiao's expression just now, although she tried her best to pretend to be reluctant, her true reaction could not be lied to; she was clearly willing."
"From this perspective, she is by no means entirely innocent in today's events."
Shen Zhinian said, "What I want to investigate is the hidden hand that is trying to drag Yongshou Palace down with it."
"As for Bingqiao... she chose her own path, so she must bear the consequences herself."
the other side.
Bingqiao returned to her bedroom to pack her belongings.
Xia Feng, his face filled with indignation, lowered his voice and said, "Prince Jin looks respectable on the surface, but he is actually so despicable inside!"
"Bingqiao, how could you... how could you agree to become his concubine after he treated you like that? Isn't that jumping into a fire pit!"
For Bingqiao, Xia Feng was no longer of any use, and she was too lazy to continue pretending.
As she packed her few personal belongings, she said indifferently, "Now that things have come to this, do I have any other options?"