Shen Dingzhu's face looked very calm. She took out a handkerchief and wiped off the concoction on her cheeks and neck.
Zheng Erlan, who was standing in the corridor supervising her, immediately scolded her: "Kneel down well, otherwise, see how I tell the empress!"
Shen Dingzhu raised his eyes and gave her a cold look.
Her thin figure was like a plum tree standing in the cold night.
Just now, some of the potion flowed down his neck and wet the clothes inside. At this time, the autumn wind at night was cold, making Shen Dingzhu feel stiff and cold all over.
Her knees on the ground swelled, and soon they were like ants crawling, and a sore and numb feeling spread all over her body.
The tips of her dark, wet hair stuck to her fair cheeks, and Shen Dingzhu's lips gradually turned white from the cold.
Suddenly, there was movement behind them. A group of palace attendants held lanterns to light up the path for Princess Bo Yue and Major General Zhou. When they passed the Minghua Hall, they stopped.
"Eh?" Princess Puyue blinked her almond-shaped eyes and looked at the pretty figure kneeling in the yard with her back to them. "There must be another palace maid who has made my mother-in-law unhappy."
"But don't mind it, General Zhou. My mother-in-law is usually gentle to others and never criticizes the palace people harshly. Since you are here, why not go in and have a cup of hot tea?"
When Shen Dingzhu heard the voice, she didn't dare to look back and lowered her head, like a dumb porcelain beauty.
Zhou Luli glanced at the pretty figure a few more times and smiled warmly: "Thank you for your kindness, princess, but it's time for me to leave the palace. Otherwise, I will resign if I can't catch up with the key issue later."
Princess Puyue quickly picked up her skirt and followed her: "Major General, don't worry, I will see you off for a while."
Wuyangyang's group of people left again.
Shen Dingzhu heard the sound of footsteps going away, and the fingertips that clenched the corners of his clothes slowly loosened.
Half an hour later, her body had been blown away by the late autumn night wind and she had lost most of her consciousness. The tip of her nose was red from the cold, and her eyes were even more watery and black.
When the time came, Zheng Erlan couldn't wait to inform Concubine Xian.
Shen Dingzhu couldn't hold on any longer, so she leaned forward and put her hands on the ground. She opened her lips slightly and exhaled a thin, hot breath, which quickly disappeared into the cold night.
Suddenly, a strong hand grasped her arm and lifted her up.
Shen Dingzhu's legs were numb and she couldn't stand still. She staggered a few steps and fell directly into the broad arms of the visitor.
Xiao Langyan lowered his cold eyes: "Can I still leave?"
Shen Dingzhu shook his head feebly, and his pale lips trembled as he said: "Your Majesty, I'm so cold..."
Xiao Langyan took off his black cloak, put it directly on her shoulders, and then picked her up.
When Zheng Erlan took the eldest aunt beside Concubine Xian out, she saw Xiao Langyan and suddenly looked startled: "Your Majesty?"
The maids of honor hurriedly said, "His Royal Highness Prince Ning, Concubine Xian is waiting for you in the palace."
There was a dark look in Xiao Langyan's eyes: "It's getting late, if you have any questions, we'll talk about it when I enter the palace tomorrow."
He raised his voice and said to the main hall: "I'm sorry, my concubine, it's too late today, so I won't greet you, but I want to take Shen Dingzhu away."
As he said that, Xiao Langyan looked at Zheng Erlan with cold eyes: "You should also follow back to the palace."
Shen Dingzhu's arms were weakly hooked around his neck. She had a severe headache. Her vision was a little blurry. She could only see Xiao Langyan holding her and walking forward along the palace road.
When the lights were bright and they left the inner palace, Xu Shou and others were already waiting by the carriage.
Seeing Xiao Langyan, Xu Shou immediately helped lift the curtain. Shen Dingzhu glanced out of the corner of his eye and saw the Zhou family's carriage standing not far away.
Before even taking a second look, Xiao Langyan was carried into the carriage.
Xu Shou asked: "Your Majesty, Miss Zheng has also followed. She..."
The lights in the carriage were bright, illuminating the cold light deep in Xiao Langyan's thin eyes.
"Use horses to drag us along and go back through the streets."
Shen Dingzhu lay on her side in the soft quilt of the carriage, her delicate body still trembling uncontrollably. Xiao Langyan hugged her and forcefully poured in two cups of hot tea.
"Ahem..." She choked uncomfortably, and the clothes on her chest got soaked.
The originally fair cheeks were now even more pale, and the tip of the nose and the ends of the eyes were red due to the cold.
No matter what her expression was, she looked a little pitiful at this moment.
As the carriage started moving, Shen Dingzhu vaguely heard screams, but soon, the sound went away from them.
Xiao Langyan rubbed her frozen cheeks with his hands, his voice was light and lazy, but his eyes were filled with frost.
"How many times do you want me to tell you to be tougher? Concubine Xian asks you to enter the palace, won't you refuse?"
"I have offended Concubine Xian, will the prince's life be easy?" Shen Dingzhu's voice was hoarse, and her dark and moist eyes seemed to contain a layer of frost tears.
After hearing her answer, Xiao Langyan sneered and forced another cup of hot tea into her mouth.
"Since you are afraid of causing trouble for me, you should be more forceful and offend me first. As for whether you can settle things, that's not a problem you should worry about."
On the way here, Xiao Langyan knew what happened.
He pinched her soft cheek and asked, "Did you drink all the medicine?"
Shen Dingzhu let out a cry of pain, and Xiao Langyan subconsciously let go of her hand, and heard her reply: "They held me back and choked a few mouthfuls, but I said, even if they want me to drink, I have to wait for the prince to speak. "
Xiao Langyan's thin eyes were narrow and deep, but it was not difficult to see his satisfied expression.
He likes people around him to be docile and obedient.
"This king will make the decision for you." This sentence is like a reward.
Shen Dingzhu was forced to drink hot tea, hugged the heater, and wore a thick cloak. At this moment, Shen Dingzhu finally felt that her limbs were alive again.
Her wet black hair stuck to the side of her bright face, and she said with an unclear expression: "How can the prince make the decision? Aunt Zhang is the empress's servant. It depends on whether the empress is willing to punish Zheng Erlan."
Xiao Langyan sneered: "If I want to punish the people in my palace, I don't need to look at anyone's eyes."
After that, he looked at Shen Dingzhu and asked with interest: "What should you do if I'm late?"
Shen Dingzhu sniffed and looked sideways at him. The cheeks he had rubbed just now were filled with a faint crimson color, making her bright eyes even more moist and shiny.
Her voice softened and she said: "What else can I do? All Concubine Xian wants is for me to drink Juezi soup. If I really can't wait for the prince to come, I will take the initiative to ask the empress for the medicine."
Xiao Langyan's eyes suddenly felt frosty, and they were dark and cold.
"After drinking Juezi soup and pleasing Concubine Xian, are you not afraid of offending me?"
"But if the prince doesn't come, do I have any other choice? Anyway, it doesn't matter whether I am alive or not." Shen Dingzhu sounded calmer than him.
Xiao Langyan had a stern look on his brows and didn't speak for a long time.
When she returned to the house, Shen Bi had already been ordered to wait at the door. When she saw Shen Dingzhu limping down, she stepped forward in surprise: "Miss... Shen Tongfang, what's wrong with you?"
Xiao Langyan was behind Shen Dingzhu, and Shen Bi had to change her tune.
"Help her go back first." He ordered, and Shen Bi quickly helped Shen Dingzhu back to Xiyuan.
After Shen Dingzhu soaked his knees in hot water and changed into clean clothes, faint cries and screams came from the yard.
Xiao Langyan opened the curtain and came in. His tall figure was like a heavy mountain.
"come out."
Shen Dingzhu was startled, but before she could move, Xiao Langyan strode forward and almost forcibly carried her out.
The cold wind blew, and she shrank into his arms. Shen Bi quickly followed and put the coat on Shen Dingzhu.
Turning his eyes, he saw a bloody man kneeling on the ground. Shen Dingzhu's heart skipped a beat. After looking carefully, he recognized that it was Zheng Erlan.
The parts of her calves near the ankles were bruised and bruised.
She cried and begged for mercy, kowtowing repeatedly: "Your Majesty, please have mercy on me, Your Majesty, please have mercy on me. I didn't want to tell the truth to the Queen Mother. Shen Dingzhu deceived me too much."
