"Very well! Slap your own face, slap your own face hard!" Consort Zheng sneered.
Xu Yuqing was a bit bewildered. She never expected that Consort Zheng's previous question was for her to slap herself.
That venomous old woman! Truly snake-hearted…
"Are you cursing me in your heart!" Consort Zheng guessed Xu Yuqing's thoughts from her eyes, her face turning cold. She didn't ask a question but stated a fact.
"No." Xu Yuqing dared not admit it and immediately shook her head violently, denying it loudly.
"I… I was thinking that I had already hit myself, slapped my own face, so there’s no need… to slap myself again." She absolutely refused to hit herself again.
"Grandmother, I know…" Xu Yuqing wanted to say she knew she was wrong and begged Consort Zheng to forgive her and not make her slap herself again, but before she could finish, Consort Zheng interrupted her.
"Striking the face and slapping the mouth are different. What you did earlier was striking your face, not slapping your mouth. Slapping the mouth is specifically to hit the mouth!" Consort Zheng's lips maintained a cold sneer, a smile that made one's hair stand on end.
"Do you know that there is a small paddle in the palace specifically for slapping mouths?" Consort Zheng's gaze shifted, sweeping across all her granddaughters-in-law, her sneer deepening.
All the granddaughters-in-law were petrified, none daring to speak or respond to Consort Zheng, especially Xu Yuqing, who had been asked to slap herself earlier.
This damned old hag was clearly trying to scare her with that question. What a hateful old hag!
Seeing that none of her granddaughters-in-law answered, Consort Zheng didn't blame them. Her gaze then turned to her granddaughter, her expression softening considerably.
"Yue'er, do you know?"
"I do." Huangfu Yue nodded. She had seen it in palace dramas.
"That small paddle specifically for slapping mouths is called a 'mouth-slapper.' Yue'er, can you find something that can serve as a mouth-slapper?" Consort Zheng's words were directed at Huangfu Yue, but her eyes were fixed on Xu Yuqing.
Anyone with half a brain could see what Consort Zheng wanted Huangfu Yue to find the mouth-slapper for.
When Xu Yuqing saw Consort Zheng asking Huangfu Yue for something to use as a mouth-slapper to hit herself, she was both angry and anxious.
"Grandmother, I know I was wrong. Please forgive me and spare me." Xu Yuqing quickly put on a pitiful look, begging Consort Zheng, and even managed to squeeze out a couple of tears.
Consort Zheng, however, turned a deaf ear, her gaze returning to Huangfu Yue.
Huangfu Yue glanced at Xu Yuqing with a hint of coldness in her eyes and nodded again, "Yes. I'll get it for you right away!"
Xu Yuqing's mouth really deserved a slap; it was indeed in need of a mouth-slapper.
Coincidentally, the supermarket had something that closely resembled a mouth-slapper, which could be used to teach Xu Yuqing a lesson.
Huangfu Yue immediately had the space deliver a small red wooden board that looked like a mouth-slapper and handed it to Consort Zheng.
Consort Zheng threw the small red wooden board in front of Xu Yuqing. "Slap yourself! Five times."
"Grandmother…" Xu Yuqing frowned and called out. Before she could even finish, Consort Zheng interrupted her.
"Ten times. If you refuse, I'll have someone else do it. When others do it, they won't be as considerate of your pain as you are, and they might hit too hard and knock out your teeth…
When I was in the palace, I once saw eunuchs punish palace maids with mouth-slappers, knocking out several of their teeth," Consort Zheng revealed another chillingly cold smile.
"Do you want to hit yourself, or do you want someone else to do it? You choose."
Xu Yuqing didn't want to choose. She didn't want to slap her mouth. Just looking at the small red board in front of her made her mouth ache.
This small red board was as thick as a finger; it would definitely hurt if slapped on the mouth.
She inwardly hated Consort Zheng and Huangfu Yue, who provided the small red board, especially Huangfu Yue.
She thought Huangfu Yue was clearly trying to frame her. If Huangfu Yue had said she couldn't find anything resembling a mouth-slapper, she could have escaped this ordeal.
"It seems you want someone else to do it. What a shame, I had intended to leave you some dignity and not have others hit you," Consort Zheng shook her head and sighed.
"Jiayi, you help me slap Xu Yuqing ten times." She extended her well-maintained, fair, and delicate hand, free of wrinkles or even fine lines, and pointed to the small red wooden board on the table.
Zhu Jiayi was somewhat taken aback. She hadn't expected Consort Zheng to ask her to hit Xu Yuqing.
"I'll do it myself." Xu Yuqing, before Zhu Jiayi could react, called out to Consort Zheng, her face filled with intense unwillingness, her brows furrowed with vexation and hatred.
She couldn't let Zhu Jiayi hit her!
She had just had a big argument with Zhu Jiayi earlier, and Jiang Shangyun had even injured several of Zhu Jiayi's maids while defending her. If Zhu Jiayi were to hit her, she would surely retaliate severely, hitting hard and possibly knocking out her teeth.
Consort Zheng, that damned old hag, was truly exceptionally malicious, even asking Zhu Jiayi to hit her, giving Zhu Jiayi an opportunity to take revenge…
No! It was possible that she had anticipated that Xu Yuqing would not let Zhu Jiayi hit her, and that was why she had asked Zhu Jiayi to do it, forcing Xu Yuqing to offer to do it herself.
This damned old hag was truly insidious and wicked!
"You chose to do it yourself, so why are you still standing there? Get to it!" Consort Zheng ignored Xu Yuqing's resentful gaze, looked at the small red wooden board in front of her, and tilted her chin.
Xu Yuqing's guess was correct. Consort Zheng wanted to force her to hit herself.
Xu Yuqing's gaze fell back on the small red wooden board. Her hands under the table clenched into fists. She gritted her teeth, hesitated for a long time, and then forced herself to reach out, pick up the small red wooden board, and slap her own mouth.
She hit very lightly, but it still hurt, making her wince and cry out.
But Consort Zheng was not satisfied. "Didn't you eat breakfast? Hitting so lightly! Hit harder… Until your mouth is swollen and bleeding, keep hitting, don't stop!"
Hearing this, Xu Yuqing's expression was one of disbelief. This damned old hag was too cruel! Was she even human!
Zhu Jiayi, Zhong Liangshu, and Yang Wanqian, as well as Huangfu Yue, all showed surprised expressions. None of them had expected Consort Zheng to be so ruthless.
"Why aren't you hitting? Do you want someone else to do it and knock out your teeth?" Consort Zheng raised an eyebrow as she saw Xu Yuqing glare at her hatefully, her voice so cold it made one tremble.
"..." Xu Yuqing desperately wanted to pounce on and beat Consort Zheng, but she didn't dare.
Tears welled up again, this time filled with helplessness and despair.
What should she do?
If she didn't swell her mouth and make it bleed, this super wicked old hag would have her teeth knocked out by someone else!
After much deliberation and weighing the pros and cons, Xu Yuqing knew she still had to choose to obey Consort Zheng and swell her own mouth and make it bleed.
A swollen, bleeding mouth could still be healed, but once teeth were lost, they couldn't be put back in.
For a great beauty like herself to lose her teeth, causing her mouth to flap open, would be truly horrifying. Just thinking about that scene made her want to go mad.
Losing her teeth would undoubtedly be disfigurement. She would rather die than that!
"Have you decided how to choose?" Consort Zheng saw Xu Yuqing's pained expression as she made a difficult decision, a hint of contempt flashing in her eyes.
What a spineless creature, forcing her hand!
Xu Yuqing nodded, steeling herself, she raised the small red wooden board in her hand and forcefully slapped her own beautiful red lips…
"Ah—it hurts so much!" Xu Yuqing's tears streamed down her face from the pain. Her red lips instantly swelled up, turning slightly bruised.
"Grandmother, I truly know I was wrong. Please forgive me and spare me!" Xu Yuqing blinked her teary eyes at Consort Zheng, her expression as pitiful as possible, hoping Consort Zheng would take pity and let her off the hook.
But Consort Zheng's face was cold and merciless. "Keep hitting. Remember what I said earlier: until your mouth is swollen and bleeding, keep hitting, don't stop! I don't want to repeat myself!"
"...Wuwu..." Xu Yuqing was filled with despair. She could only curse Consort Zheng in her heart while mercilessly forcing herself to continue wielding the small red wooden board, hitting her own mouth. The pain caused tears to flow profusely, and she wailed in agony.
"Watch carefully, remember this scene well!" Consort Zheng surveyed the other granddaughters-in-law, looking at each one. Pointing at Xu Yuqing, she said, "Anyone who dares to act like her earlier will receive this punishment."
Zhu Jiayi, Zhong Liangshu, and Yang Wanqian nodded quickly in fear. The usually timid Yang Wanqian looked terrified, her eyes already moist, her body trembling slightly.
A person's mouth is very delicate and fragile. Xu Yuqing's mouth was quickly swollen to a terrifying degree, and it was bleeding profusely, a truly gruesome sight.
Consort Zheng saw Xu Yuqing's face turn pale green with pain, her features contorted with agony, and finally called out, "Stop."
"You can stop."
Xu Yuqing felt as if she had been granted amnesty. She quickly stopped, threw away the small red wooden board, reached out to touch her mouth, and let out a pained "hiss."
Help! It hurts so much… I'm going crazy from the pain!
She shot a hateful glare at the small red wooden board, wishing she could burn it immediately. However, Consort Zheng reached out and took the small red wooden board, handing it to Huangfu Yue.
"Yue'er, take good care of this small red wooden board. From now on, this small red wooden board will serve as a mouth-slapper, specifically as a tool for punishment."
As she said the last sentence, Consort Zheng glanced at Xu Yuqing, perhaps intentionally.
Xu Yuqing immediately trembled in fear, her hair standing on end.
Huangfu Yue glanced at Xu Yuqing, a glint of a smile in her eyes, and took the small red wooden board with both hands, saying, "Yes."
She was happy to help her grandmother keep this "mouth-slapper."
"Xu Yuqing, do you know why you are being punished like this?" Consort Zheng took a sip of her iced tea and looked at Xu Yuqing again.
"I know, your granddaughter-in-law made a mistake." Xu Yuqing grudgingly nodded, opening her mouth, which was stained a deep red with blood, and replied with a trembling voice, her voice shaking.
"What mistake did you make?" Consort Zheng took another sip of her iced tea.
It was truly delicious!