Tianliangyuan

Chapter 121 Firing, Slapping, and Repentance

A few days later, Princess Leyang invited several friends to go horseback riding and playing football, and naturally, Princess Qingping was mentioned.

"Oh, my half-sister, she's really got wild ambitions. There are witnesses and physical evidence, yet she still tries to deny it. Someone even dared to go to the woodshed to silence her that very night! Luckily, my mother was prepared, otherwise, my father wouldn't have believed her completely."

That Lady Kong was always very obedient in the Prince's mansion. In my mother's words, I always thought she was a weak woman who put her husband first. I never expected her to be so ruthless!

The fact that she could raise a daughter with Qingping's temperament shows that she herself isn't a good person. The people sent to silence her were her subordinates, but she certainly wouldn't admit it.

Wang Wenxiu asked with curiosity, "The facts are undeniable, how can she deny them?"

Princess Anhe laughed and said, "Sister Wenxiu is too honest. Since Madam Kong is the concubine of Prince Qi, she must have some background. Her insistence on not confessing is just to put forward a scapegoat. If I remember correctly, Madam Kong's father is a fourth-rank official."

Princess Leyang nodded: "That's right. If it weren't for having such a father, Lady Kong would never have been promoted to the rank of Lady. But even so, over the years, my father still holds the highest position in my mother's heart. Lady Kong was nothing more than a plaything to pass the time when my mother was unwell."

Hearing these words, Xu Zhaozhao, who came from the future, still felt somewhat uncomfortable.

However, she remained silent. She was the daughter of a marquis, and she had to adapt to this identity.

Moreover, Princess Leyang was born into wealth and privilege, possessed the status of a royal princess, and was favored by the emperor. It is only natural that she would have such thoughts.

Xie Yun nodded slightly and then said, "Although she doesn't confess, I think Your Highness will surely have a way to punish her if you want to."

Princess Leyang smiled and nodded: "Of course!"

Wang Wenxiu, standing to the side, asked with clear but somewhat bewildered eyes, "What does this mean?"

Seeing her like this, Xu Zhaozhao couldn't help but laugh twice.

“Cousin, in the Prince Qi’s mansion, the one with the most say is the Prince. Even if Madam Kong is scapegoating a dead man, she must be someone connected to her. So, whether she confesses or not is not important. As long as the Prince wants to punish her, no one can say it’s unfair.”

Moreover, this matter involves the Princess's reputation, and it was the Princess's birthday banquet that day. Furthermore, Princess Qingping caused Lady Hua to miscarry. With all these factors intertwined, whether Madam Kong pleads guilty or not will not affect the Prince's judgment.

Princess Leyang nodded: "That's right. Originally, my father wanted to make her pay with her life, but my mother considered that the Prince's mansion only had this one lady. If she were to die, my grandmother would have to arrange for someone else to come in, which would be troublesome. So she spared her life."

Wang Wenxiu was still in a daze, wondering why Princess Qingping hadn't been punished for the people she had harmed, but instead, Madam Kong was being punished the most.

“My father ordered that Lady Kong be flogged twenty times and slapped twenty times, and that she not be allowed to step out of the courtyard before the end of the year without his order. At the same time, he also ordered her to copy Buddhist scriptures and burn them for the unborn child on the first and fifteenth of each month.”

Xu Zhaozhao sighed. The Prince and Princess Qi were a loving couple, but they never mistreated the illegitimate sons and daughters of the Prince's Mansion.

Moreover, it is said that the inner quarters of Prince Qi's mansion have always been very harmonious. Now that Princess Qingping has caused such a scene, it is actually equivalent to Prince Qi and his wife losing face.

The punishment that King Qi gave to Lady Kong was still quite harsh.

Her daughter harmed the Hua family's child, so let Madam Kong, the mother, repent.

That was a really ruthless move!

This incident may erode some of the mother-daughter bond between Madam Kong and Princess Qingping.

Wang Wenxiu finally seized the opportunity to ask again, "What about Princess Qingping?"

Princess Leyang's lips curled up even higher when she heard her name.

“My father ordered someone to slap her palms twenty times, and then made her kneel in the small Buddhist hall of the Prince’s Mansion for two hours every day. In addition, she had to be vegetarian until the hundredth day after Hua’s miscarriage. Apart from that, she was also confined to her home.”

For a princess, such a punishment was actually quite severe.

But Wang Wenxiu felt it wasn't enough. If such a situation were to occur in the Wang family, the illegitimate daughter would likely face even harsher punishment, and the concubine would probably lose her life.

But the Wang family was clearly different from the Qi Prince's Mansion.

Moreover, the concubines in the Prince Qi's mansion were proper, high-ranking secondary wives, not ordinary concubines.

Xu Zhaozhao thought of Princess Qingping being granted the title of princess last year, and then of the letters Xie Zheng sent her back. She could roughly guess why Prince Qi had punished Princess Qingping so lightly.

"Princess, your half-sister won't be able to stay in the capital for much longer, will she?"

Princess Leyang looked surprised: "How did you know?"

Xu Zhaozhao smiled and said, "My second brother is in the military camp, so I know some of the news."

Xie Yun, standing to the side, asked with a teasing look in her eyes, "Oh? Did Second Young Master Xu tell you, or did my Third Brother tell you?"

Her words drew laughter from everyone, and Xu Zhaozhao blushed.

"Hey, let's get down to business!"

Princess Anhe laughed as she asked, "We're talking about serious matters! But why is Zhao Zhao's face so red? Are you thinking about something inappropriate?"

The group chuckled again, but Xu Zhaozhao was displeased: "Hey, what inappropriate things am I thinking about? Second sister-in-law, could you remind me?"

The moment Princess Anhe was addressed as "Second Sister-in-law," she was stunned. Then, seeing the others laughing so hard they were doubled over, her face instantly turned even redder than Xu Zhaozhao's.

"You little brat, how dare you make fun of me? I'll teach you a lesson."

Xu Zhaozhao turned and ran, and the two chased each other, making the atmosphere more and more lively.

"Alright, enough fooling around. It just so happens that we've all come together today, and I have something to discuss with you."

"What's the matter?"

After tidying up, Xie Yun even patted her cheek lightly, feeling like she was laughing so hard she was stiff.

“My fruit orchard will be producing a batch of strong liquor in a few days. I had my father and elder brother try it before, and they said it tastes good, has a rich aroma, and is quite strong. It's not like the weak fruit wine we usually drink, and it's much better than the cloudy liquor we've had before.”

Xie Yun keenly caught a word: "Cloudy wine? Could it be that what Sister Zhaozhao brewed wasn't cloudy wine?"

Xu Zhaozhao gave her an admiring look; this girl reacted quite quickly.

"You'll find out then. Give me some advice: should I organize a wine tasting event, or should I send some wine to each of you individually?"

After hesitating for a few moments, Princess Anhe suggested, "We are all women. If we are holding a wine tasting event, it would be best if men were to represent us. How about one of the young masters from the Marquis's mansion sends out invitations? What does Zhaozhao think?"