“You’re even being obstinate! Why are you not yelling anymore? Your flesh is thick so it doesn’t hurt when the cudgel hits your body right?” The palace maid continued to hit her forcefully as she taunted. The palace maid’s teeth were even tightly clenched in exertion.
Ruo Yuan bit her lips, every word that slipped out of her mouth feeling as if they had been squeezed out. “I’m not fat…and I’m not ugly either. My skin is not thick. I am going to face myself properly…”
“Wow, you’re even full of enthusiasm! I’ll thrash you to death!” The palace maid’s cheeks swelled as she raised the cudgel high up, about to land it on Ruo Yuan.
Su Xi-er nimbly bent down to pick up a large stone. With a flick of her finger, it shot forward to squarely impact the palace maid’s forehead.
Pow! The palace maid yelped in pain and let go of the cudgel in her hand. Thump! It happened to land right on her leg.
With how thick and long the cudgel was, its impact was much larger than that of the stone. The palace maid couldn’t help but suck in a breath of cold air before hollering, “Ouch! It really hurts! Which goddamned person mounted a sneak attack on me?”
Su Xi-er looked at the palace maid coldly. She picked up the cudgel beside her feet and raised it high up. Her eyes seemed to be plated with a layer of frost. “Just now, you were quite good at beating people. Seeing as how I haven’t beaten someone before, how about I try it on you?”
The palace maid was frightened by Su Xi-er’s demeanour and frantically shook her head. “Don’t hit me. Don’t.” Then, she noticed that although Su Xi-er’s clothes weren’t from the Laundry Service Bureau, they were coarse clothes. It looks like she isn’t a palace maid with status in the imperial palace.
“You’re not from the Laundry Service Bureau. What right do you have to hit me! Which palace are you from?” The palace maid ignored the pain and hooted arrogantly again.
Su Xi-er chuckled. “You don’t have to care about which palace I’m from. Tonight, I am simply going to beat you.” Not bothering to wait any longer, her hand raised the cudgel before landing it heavily on the unbridled palace maid.
For some people, you would feel it was unfair for you to hit them even once. On the other hand, for some other people, nobody would sympathise even if you beat them to death!
The thick and long cudgel hit the palace maid time and again. Her unbridled arrogance vanished, leaving her curled up like a frog with her hands and feet to try to block the blows as she cried out in pain.
Ruo Yuan was in extreme pain and felt that she was about to pass out but was brought back when she had heard Su Xi-er’s voice. She turned her head to take a look and her eyes widened.
It’s really Su Xi-er! She has come! She has come to save me!
“Su Xi-er…” Ruo Yuan called her weakly.
Su Xi-er turned around to glance at Ruo Yuan before she threw the cudgel to the ground and glanced at the palace maid coldly. “What crime did Ruo Yuan commit that caused you to beat her?”
The palace maid was beaten until she had no strength, but she suddenly remembered that Ruo Yuan was transferred from the Palace Side Quarters. This palace maid who suddenly appeared is someone Ruo Yuan knows from the past. In that case, she’s also a palace maid from the Palace Side Quarters!
Fury erupted in her heart when she thought of this. She glared at Su Xi-er ferociously. “She simply lacks a beating. Who asked her to be fat and ugly? Furthermore, the top instructed for us to purposely make things difficult for Ruo Yuan and torment her until she dies.”
The expression in Su Xi-er’s eyes became colder with each word that came from the palace maid’s lips. She raised her right leg and stepped on the palace maid’s hand. “No decent person lacks a beating. Only someone like you, who people wouldn’t mind being beaten to death, deserves such a fate.”
Increasing the force exerted by her foot, Su Xi-er watched as the palace maid’s breathing became increasingly laboured.
There was someone from the top who instructed the palace maids in the Laundry Service Bureau to deliberately punish Ruo Yuan? Is this true or fake? Who exactly instructed that? A probing look emerged in Su Xi-er’s eyes.
Ruo Yuan’s eyelid abruptly twitched. Unfortunately, she no longer had the strength to even speak anymore.
Situ Lin immediately leapt out from his hiding spot. He glanced at Su Xi-er, then looked at the arrogant palace maid who had been beaten until she passed out. “You beat the person until she passed out.”
Su Xi-er responded softly, “Mhm. I did beat her.”
“Why do I feel that you’re not scared at all. You’re not a master. You have the same status as them.”
Su Xi-er didn’t pay any attention to Situ Lin, but instead walked to Ruo Yuan’s side and comforted her softly, “I will bring medicinal powder to you that can assist in your quick recovery. I will also think of a way to transfer you out of the Laundry Service Bureau as soon as possible.”
Ruo Yuan raised her chubby face. She really wanted to speak, but her head felt increasingly heavy. Not long after, she had also passed out.
Situ Lin clicked his tongue. “Two fainted all at once.”
All of a sudden, the sound of footsteps accompanied by the voices of people talking could be heard from in front.
“It’s the middle of the night, yet you are howling and making a fuss. Are you seeking death!”
It’s the voice of an old woman. Perhaps the person coming is the old-maidservant-in-charge of the Laundry Service Bureau.
Su Xi-er creased her eyebrows. I still can’t let myself be discovered now.
Casting a glance at Situ Lin, she patted his shoulder. “I’ll hand this over to you. You’re not allowed to give me away.”
With that, she quickly disappeared into the thicket at the side of the courtyard.
Situ Lin looked at the Old-Maidservant-In-Charge who was getting increasingly closer and gnashed his teeth with hatred. In this world, it’s really the hardest to associate with women and vile people*!
The old-maidservant-in-charge of the Laundry Service Bureau, Old Maidservant Li, looked at the boy who had suddenly appeared in the Laundry Service Bureau and was perplexed.
Where did this child come from? For what purpose did he come to the Laundry Service Bureau?
On closer inspection, she discovered two palace maids who were passed out. Immediately, she looked at Situ Lin. “What’s with these two palace maids?”
Situ Lin put on a straight face and showed the dignity of an emperor. “This emperor hasn’t even asked you about the Laundry Service Bureau meting out punishment in private. What’s with the fat palace maid who has fainted?”
When Old Maidservant Li heard ‘this emperor,’ she was scared until she trembled. “Your…Majesty…”
“This emperor is asking you. Answer me honestly. Why did you hit the fat palace maid?”
Old Maidservant was still finding it hard to believe that the person standing in front of her was the reigning emperor.
How would His Majesty have the time to come out and stroll so late at night? Besides, the Empress Dowager also looks after His Majesty very strictly!
After contemplating for a while, Old Maidservant Liu mustered her courage. “You’re a child who just suddenly popped up for no reason, and you want me to believe that you are the emperor? Do you have a waist tablet**?”
Situ Lin was infuriated. However, he had never taken the waist tablet with him when he slipped out. In the Situ Imperial Household, every imperial prince would have a piece of jade hung at their waist. The Situ surname was carved on it, along with the ranking of the imperial prince.
“Since you have no waist tablet, go over to one side. You are disrupting the order in the Laundry Service Department. Unless of course, you were the one who tore apart some of the clothes here a few days ago?” Old Maidservant Li spoke more forcefully.
What she said was half correct. The clothes were indeed torn by Situ Lin, but he was indeed the emperor.
“This emperor orders you to treat this fat palace maid as quickly as possible. Otherwise, I’ll have you bear the consequences! As for the other palace maid…” Situ Lin lowered his head to look at the palace maid knocked out by Su Xi-er.
“Immediately order someone to drag her away. This kind of person is not fit to stay in the imperial palace. Randomly banish her as punishment.” His tone carried an imposing might.
However, Old Maidservant Li didn’t believe him.
Looking at Old Maidservant Li’s appearance, Situ Lin was about to fly into a rage. The imperial might is being challenged!
Suddenly, a eunuch’s voice sounded from the palace gate of the Laundry Service Bureau.
“Prince Hao has arrived!”
(* It originated from the Analects of Confucius.)
(* Carried by people with status as a representation of their power and position)
