Wang Xiting was sent flying and landed on the ground, blood trickling from the corner of her mouth.
She looked up at Emperor Ye Yao in disbelief. "Your Majesty?"
His Majesty had actually struck her? Just for some lowly woman confined to the cold palace?
Emperor Ye Yao didn't even glance at her, his footsteps not pausing as he reached the bedside. "Xue'er? Are you alright? Let me see quickly."
"A'Yao?" Liu Lanxue was also somewhat surprised, her mind momentarily frozen upon seeing the man.
Emperor Ye Yao looked at her pale, weakened face, his heart twisting with pain, wishing he could kill Wang Xiting on the spot.
Wang Xiting, sprawled on the ground, watched Emperor Ye Yao fuss over Liu Lanxue, her heart burning with indignation. She cried out, "Your Majesty, why treat this concubine so?"
"It was this slut who seduced Your Majesty! If not for her, why would Your Majesty suffer the wind and cold?"
For the dignified Son of Heaven to lower himself for a discarded concubine was simply a laughingstock for the world.
Emperor Ye Yao, who had been focused on Liu Lanxue's injuries, turned sharply at Wang Xiting's words.
A flicker of cold ferocity crossed his eyes in that instant, and an almost imperceptible killing aura emanated from him.
"What did you just say?"
Slut?
Wang Xiting was startled by his gaze. "Your Majesty?"
It was the first time she had felt a tremor of fear since entering the palace. But seeing Liu Lanxue cradled in his arms, this panic was instantly swallowed by jealousy.
She straightened up and, unafraid of death, shouted, "Did this concubine speak incorrectly?"
She was absolutely not wrong; it was all Liu Lanxue's fault!
*Slap!*
Another fierce slap, this time with all his might.
Wang Xiting was sent skidding half a meter, her body colliding with a table.
The teapot on the table fell, smashing onto her head and immediately splitting her scalp open.
Blood gushed forth!
"Ah!!!" Wang Xiting clutched her head and screamed in agony.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, I'm bleeding, I'm bleeding!" she shrieked, the pain in her head even eclipsing the pain in her face.
She cried and wailed, hoping to elicit pity from the man.
But Emperor Ye Yao looked at her coldly, his eyes devoid of the tenderness he usually showed her.
At this moment, the man's eyes held only an endless chill.
Emperor Ye Yao looked at her with disgust and said, word by word, "No one dares to disrespect Xue'er in front of me. Moreover, you are nothing more than a plaything."
The words 'plaything' stunned Wang Xiting into silence, and she stared at the man in shock and confusion.
At this moment, Yi Zuo and Yi You entered from outside and knelt in the outer chamber.
Before Wang Xiting could comprehend, Emperor Ye Yao coldly commanded, "This slut disrespected Consort Liang. Drag her out and give her fifty heavy planks!"
Wang Xiting's face instantly turned ashen.
The punishments in the palace were already harsher than those outside. Fifty heavy planks—wasn't that trying to beat her to death?
"Your Majesty, please don't! I beg you, Your Majesty, this concubine knows her mistake!" Wang Xiting crawled forward and grabbed the man's ankle, seeking forgiveness.
She couldn't understand why the man who had doted on her just days ago would be so heartless today.
Even if she had indeed broken palace rules, her crime was not deserving of death!
Emperor Ye Yao kicked her away with disgust, as if even her touch felt defiling.
Wang Xiting looked at the coldness in the man's eyes, her heart aching even more. "Your Majesty, this concubine merely slapped her. Do you truly intend to abandon this concubine for her?"
His Majesty had doted on her so much before, and Liu Lanxue was just a woman he had discarded!
Why, why on earth!
Emperor Ye Yao narrowed his eyes dangerously, his brow furrowing slightly. Finally, he uttered his first words after her pleas, as if bestowing a favor.
"You are not worthy to mention Xue'er. If you dare to speak disrespectfully again, I will have your tongue cut out!"
Wang Xiting froze, her entire body feeling as if her blood had turned to ice.
Yi Zuo and Yi You stepped forward and dragged her away.
She was so terrified that she forgot to resist.
Emperor Ye Yao turned back to stroke Liu Lanxue's face. From this angle, the man's sleeve conveniently covered half of her face.
Wang Xiting suddenly realized that Liu Lanxue, with her eyes obscured, bore a slight resemblance to herself.
No... perhaps it was that she, with her eyes obscured, resembled Liu Lanxue.
'Plaything.'
The man's words suddenly exploded in her mind.
Wang Xiting finally understood the reason for his favor, and why he had always covered her eyes whenever he favored her.
"Hahaha... so that's how it is, so that's how it is!"
So all along, the one who was favored was never her, but Liu Lanxue!
Wang Xiting laughed in pain, feeling as if she had been utterly trampled underfoot, an overwhelming sadness washing over her.
Yi Zuo and Yi You, seeing her both crying and laughing, were perplexed. But they said nothing and proceeded to drag her out for the beating.
Soon, the sound of planks striking flesh and Wang Xiting's cries echoed from outside.
She was still begging for mercy, though her words had changed.
"Your Majesty, spare this concubine, I dare not again."
"This concubine regrets it, I will never dare to touch Consort Liang again, Your Majesty!"
Emperor Ye Yao frowned, finding her noisy. He then dispatched Eunuch Chang to drag her outside the cold palace to administer the planks.
"After the beating, throw her back to the Wang family and let Wang Yi discipline her properly," the man's words were cold and ruthless.
Eunuch Chang seemed to have anticipated this outcome and was not overly surprised. He bowed and retreated.
The room quieted down, leaving only the two of them.
Only now did Emperor Ye Yao finally have the time to look at Liu Lanxue.
A hint of complexity crossed his face, and his eyes held a trace of subservience. "Xue'er, I'm sorry."
He apologized with a touch of panic, blaming himself for favoring a woman who did not understand the rules.
The man's demeanor was completely devoid of the imposing pressure he had shown towards Wang Xiting earlier.
Liu Lanxue lowered her gaze, covering her face with one hand and biting her lip gently.
She opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but a thousand words ultimately turned into a sigh, a sigh that couldn't even escape her lips, only to be contained within her chest.
This was the first time they had truly spent time together since Liu Lanxue had regained her memories.
Both of them felt a slight awkwardness.
Emperor Ye Yao, concerned about Liu Lanxue's injuries, was relatively at ease.
Liu Lanxue, however, dared not even look at him. She remembered Wang Xiting's words, thinking about how this man would gaze at her from outside the cold palace every night.
The image that formed in her mind made her feel even more distressed.
"Don't be afraid, I won't do anything to you. I just want to look at your injuries," Emperor Ye Yao, suppressing his heartache, tentatively reached out to touch her face.
Liu Lanxue's hand, however, tightly covered her bruised face, and she shook her head with downcast eyes. "Your Majesty, please don't look. It will dirty your eyes."
Emperor Ye Yao's body stiffened abruptly, a surge of bitterness rising within him.
He slowly withdrew his hand, filled with immense pain. "You still hate me, don't you?"
Liu Lanxue bit her lower lip, ultimately lacking the courage to look up at him. "No, this concubine merely feels that such matters should be handled by the servants."
The previous woman had hit her with great force. Even without looking, she knew what her face must look like now.
Even if they could no longer return to their past, she did not want him to see her unsightly appearance.
As for hate?
What was there to hate? Whether it was before or now, she knew very well that the fault was not truly his.
Or rather, she had never hated him; she loved this man.