Chapter 418: Chapter 418
"You... what did you say?"
On the waterside pavilion, the sounds of singing and dancing continued.
Under the watchful eyes of everyone, the Emperor at the head of the table suddenly stood up on his own. Without even having time to say a few words to the crowd, he hurriedly left with his entourage.
At the banquet, the officials and noble ladies who witnessed this scene all looked at each other, whispering amongst themselves but not daring to utter a single word of gossip.
However, Lady Jiang, glancing at the still-empty seat beside her, suddenly had a somewhat bad premonition.
Sharing Lady Jiang's sentiment were the two Zhou sisters, Zhou Yun and her sibling, who had just been subtly brainwashed by An Ning's words.
Fath... father... he... he wouldn't really go to a secret rendezvous with a lover, would he? And that expression on the Emperor's face just now...
Vaguely sensing that their entire nine clans might not be safe, the two sisters instantly paled. Fortunately, An Ning nearby promptly reminded them, so the sisters didn't completely lose their composure on such an occasion.
Their faces, however, were still quite unpleasant. Unfortunately, Lady Jiang's little premonition soon came true.
Within the carved sandalwood bed made of the finest purple sandalwood, draped with curtains of soft jade silk gauze, intermittent light moans of pain from a man could be heard from between the layers of silk curtains, along with the occasional swishing sound of a jade belt cutting through the air.
After who knows how long, the jade belt was tossed aside, and the faint moans finally ceased. Not long after, a strong, powerful arm stretched out from within the silk curtains. Upon closer inspection, above the joint of the arm, there remained some scars left by swords and blades.
Extending from the joint all the way up to the shoulder, they were hideous and terrifying. It was no exaggeration to say that if they were just a bit higher up, the entire arm might not have been saved.
As the woman on the bed rose, her exceptionally well-defined, athletic, and powerful physique was instantly exposed to the air. The only thing was, on this nearly perfect body, there were numerous scars, large and small, numbering more than a few.
Yet the person on the bed paid no mind at all, simply lifting a foot to rise from the couch, not caring in the slightest that her completely unclothed body was directly exposed to the air.
Outside, the little maid who had been waiting for a long time quickly presented a fresh change of clothes, her movements also efficient and neat. Her gaze didn't even linger on the couch for a moment, as if she was already completely accustomed to it.
In contrast, within the inner curtains of the bed, a man over eight chi tall with a handsome face was now curled up in a corner. The slightly reddened corners of his eyes still bore traces of tears, making him even more pitiable. His originally smooth, jade-like body was now covered in streaks and patches of red marks.
Even so, the man on the couch didn't forget to tightly clutch the remaining shreds of clothing, his face flushed, his eyes filled with fear yet also carrying an indescribable, dazed look.
It wasn't until the layers of silk curtains were fully opened that the little maid outside seemed to approach to help him tidy up. The moment she touched him, Zhou Baiyan instinctively shrank back for a moment. Only after seeing his situation clearly did he tremblingly begin to slowly put on the clothes presented by the palace servant.
Due to the excessive movement during the action, inevitably pulling at the wounds, intermittent hisses of pain came from the bed.
Such a delicate, pitiable beauty should have been extremely heart-wrenching. However, from beginning to end, the Grand Princess never once looked back. Only after being dressed by the maid beside her did she turn back with interest, giving his half-concealed, red-mark-covered body a once-over.
Then she said quite nonchalantly:
"Not bad! I never thought such a foolish, mediocre person could have such a passable set of skin."
Finally, she chuckled lightly:
"Still somewhat useful!"
The hand of Father Zhou holding the sash couldn't help but tremble again.
Under the escort of a group of attendants, this was the scene the Emperor saw when he rushed over in a hurry.
His imperial elder sister sat upright before the couch, sipping clear tea with a satisfied expression. The palace attire symbolizing her status as Grand Princess had long been changed. She now wore a neat, deep blue cloud-patterned brocade palace robe, looking efficient and unrestrained.
Not far away, behind a screen, a slender man was shrinking back, struggling to put on his clothes. Seeing the imperial carriage arrive, the man immediately stumbled out from behind the screen:
"Your... sub-subject pays respects to Your Majesty!"
"Your Majesty... this subject... this subject..."
As if unable to bear the humiliation, poor Earl Zhou heavily knelt on the ground, putting on the appearance of having suffered immense insult. Due to the excessive movement, his previously unfastened lapels inevitably fell open, revealing the inside of his body covered in red marks, seeming to carry a bloody aura.
Against his jade-like, delicate skin, it was particularly eye-catching. Both his wrists and ankles were bruised blue and purple, clearly bearing traces of earlier restraints.
Because his hair was disheveled and he kept his head heavily bowed, even though the Emperor before him didn't immediately see his true face clearly, he felt this figure was indeed quite graceful and charming.
Glancing at the other's chest, which clearly bore "wound" marks, the current Emperor awkwardly spoke after a moment:
"Minister Zhou, please rise first!"
Then he looked helplessly at the Grand Princess beside him, saying with a light reprimand:
"The ancestors of the Changping Earl's Manor were after all meritorious officials, not like those people from the Princess's residence before. They cannot be lightly humiliated. Imperial Elder Sister, you have truly gone too far this time!"
In the long hall, the voice of the current Emperor rang out, seemingly helpless yet mixed with some authority.
As the words fell, sensing the other had no intention of pursuing the matter, Father Zhou's heart instantly sank halfway. Immediately, with tears and snot flowing, he scrambled forward on hands and knees:
"Your Majesty, this subject... this subject..."
Heaven have pity, Zhou Baiyan was truly aggrieved right now!
Even now, he still didn't quite understand what exactly was going on. He just went to change clothes properly, but who knew on the way back he was brought here without any explanation.
And then... and then... just thinking about the scene earlier, Earl Zhou trembled and couldn't help but wish to die of shame and anger.
He, an eight-chi-tall man, how could he, how could he...
Heavens, just because he's become a bit more beautiful recently? How could he be so unlucky to get caught up in this mess!
They say beauty is a curse, but who would have thought that he, a majestic man, wouldn't escape this fate either. Thinking of this, Earl Zhou felt even more aggrieved:
"Your Majesty, this subject..." Unfortunately, before he could finish:
"Minister Zhou, set your mind at ease. Imperial Elder Sister acted improperly this time. This matter... I will naturally compensate the Earl's Manor afterwards."
This meant the matter ended here. Sensing the danger in the other's words, no matter how aggrieved and unwilling he was, Zhou Baiyan could only swallow down the endless bitterness in his heart.
As if finding the sight unpleasant, before long, palace servants came forward and took him to a side hall to wash and tidy up.
From beginning to end, the Grand Princess never said another word, as if arbitrarily humiliating a minister was just a trivial matter.
And obviously, in her eyes, a minor, powerless little Earl was no different from those previous "beauties."
Thinking of this, Father Zhou's heart grew even colder.
After the person "left," the Emperor's gaze soon returned to his elder sister before him, though his expression was inevitably much more complicated now:
"I could attain my position today largely thanks to Imperial Elder Sister's tireless support earlier. We are blood-related siblings. I assure you here, I have absolutely no heart of suspicion or betrayal. Imperial Elder Sister really need not be ..." Like what, he didn't say further.
Opposite, the Grand Princess then raised her eyes with a smile:
"Imperial Brother worries too much. It was merely a momentary intoxication and delight upon seeing beauty!"
Though she said so, the Emperor didn't quite believe it now. It was true Imperial Elder Sister loved beauty, but after all, Changping Earl was over thirty. What he usually looked like, didn't the Emperor know?
Though somewhat good-looking, he shouldn't be enough to make Imperial Elder Sister, who had seen countless men, lose control.
Due to preconceived impressions, and because the current Emperor had no fondness for these mediocre nobles who still consumed the national treasury all day, and also because Father Zhou, after his change, had only attended court once, and his position wasn't that prominent either.
The current Emperor naturally hadn't paid much attention.
"Ah, Imperial Elder Sister has ultimately grown distant from me!"
A moment later, gazing at the other's departing back, the current Emperor couldn't help but let out a deep sigh.