Consort Zheng Pin left.
Noble Concubine Shih’s gaze then fell on Consort Yun. Today, Consort Yun was dressed in a bright goose-yellow palace attire, with a complete set of gold-inlaid gemstone hair ornaments adorning her head. She looked very bright and pretty, without losing the dignity of her consort status. Given her usually lively nature, the outfit complemented her quite well. Unfortunately, Noble Concubine Shih did not like it.
Noble Concubine Shih glanced disdainfully, and before she could even speak, Consort Yun’s face showed embarrassment.
"This consort... suddenly feels unwell!"
"Empress, Noble Consort, this consort asks to be excused first..."
Noble Concubine Shih curved her lips in a satisfied smile.
"Go ahead!"
Consort Yun hurriedly left without another thought.
This was a complete disregard for the Empress. If the Empress were to remain unaffected by this, she would indeed appear too weak. However, while the Noble Consort could throw her weight around, the Empress could not.
The Empress swept a glance below. Consort Ning and Consort Hui Pin dared not say anything. Consort Zheng Pin and Consort Yun had already left. The three Honored Ladies were so frightened that their faces turned somewhat pale, and they did not dare raise their heads.
The Empress lost interest. "Enough. I am tired today. You all may disperse!"
As she said this, the Empress rose to leave. The others also prepared to leave, but Noble Concubine Shih suddenly snorted coldly. "The Empress may be tired, but I am not. I want to see who dares to leave!"
With that, she glanced at the Empress, commanding with satisfaction, "The dance of these Female Dancers is not pleasing enough! Ying Yue, bring another group! We don’t need this one! And this feast on the table, it sickens me just to look at it. Remove it all and bring new dishes! Oh, right! They must be better than these!"
Ying Yue dared not object and could only agree to each command.
The Empress was shaking with rage! "Noble Concubine Shih, I do not owe you anything! Who are you performing this act for?"
Noble Concubine Shih suddenly laughed. "Haha, of course the Empress owes nothing! After all, my Imperial Son died from illness, didn’t he?"
"You!" The Empress stared at her furiously. "What do you mean by that, Noble Consort?!"
Noble Concubine Shih suddenly stood up. "What do I mean? Empress? You think that without evidence, I don’t know it was you?"
As she spoke, she slowly closed in on the Empress. Her gaunt eyes, sunken into their sockets, suddenly flashed with an intensely sinister light.
"Empress, how vicious you are! Are you so jealous of others, so unable to bear seeing others well off? He was still so small, still in the womb! How did he obstruct you?! AH?!"
Noble Concubine Shih’s veins bulged, presenting a terrifying sight.
The Empress turned ashen, trembling all over. "Rebellious... This is treason!"
"Noble Consort, do not slander people here!"
The Empress also lost control of her emotions. Shaking, she pointed at Noble Concubine Shih, her back ramrod straight.
"I tell you, whatever happened to your child has nothing to do with me! It was your own misfortune! I will not accept blame for things I haven’t done! No one can pin this on me! If you continue your slander, I will not be lenient with you! Yu Lan, let’s go!"
With that, the Empress departed in a grand procession.
Noble Concubine Shih was so infuriated she wanted to chase after her and fight, but Ying Yue desperately held her back.
"Calm down, Your Highness! You mustn’t!"
"Your Highness!"
Noble Concubine Shih struggled in vain and, in her agitation, she struck out with a backhand slap. The five-finger imprint on Ying Yue’s face quickly swelled.
"Your Highness!"
Yet Noble Concubine Shih showed no remorse and still wanted to give chase. But seeing the Empress receding into the distance, she did not pursue further. A sliver of rationality still remained in her mind.
She sat back down in her seat angrily. Seeing that the items on the table still hadn’t been cleared, the Female Dancers hadn’t left but were all kneeling on the ground, and no new dancers had arrived, her anger flared anew.
"This Palace said to change the feast and the dancers! Is everyone taking This Palace’s words as the idle chatter of the wind?"
As she spoke, an impulse surged within her. She shouted, stood up, and yanked the tablecloth. Instantly, the cups, plates, bowls, and dishes on the table went CLATTERING to the ground.
"AH!!!"
She screamed wildly, smashing tables and chairs—smashing everything that could be smashed! No one dared to dissuade her.
Like a madwoman, she wanted to hit someone. Picking up a chair, she hurled it towards where the Female Dancers were kneeling! The Female Dancers didn’t dare to dodge, and several of them were knocked to the ground. Two were even struck on the forehead and began bleeding profusely!
Seeing blood, Noble Concubine Shih was not frightened; instead, she became even more agitated. At that moment, an even more terrifying thought sprouted in her mind, proliferating wildly.
"This Palace wants you to pay with your lives for my Imperial Son! Pay with your lives!"
As she spoke, she picked up the chairs, one after another, and with all her strength, hurled them at the group of Female Dancers.
The others had already knelt. Xia Ruqing was no exception.
Her heart pounded! People were going to die! She had to get help!