The Empress glanced over and immediately understood what was happening. At this moment, she absolutely could not favor her own daughter. With so many people watching, she had to be a just Empress who upheld righteousness over kinship.
Moreover, she absolutely could not afford to offend the Dong family.
The Empress's gaze suddenly sharpened as she looked at Xin Yao and sternly demanded, "Xin Yao, tell me, what is going on!"
Princess Xin Yao's expression was defiant, and her tone was indignant. "Dong Xuerou plotted to frame this princess, causing me to be disfigured. This princess merely administered a small punishment, stripping off her clothes!"
Madam Dong's face darkened. She wrapped the clothes around Dong Xuerou and looked at the Empress, respectfully saying, "Your Majesty the Empress, it is indeed true that my Xuerou erred first. Although Your Majesty is merciful and has spared her this time, Princess Xin Yao's anger is understandable. This humble woman will take Xuerou back to educate her properly. Princess Regent, please forgive this humble woman for taking my leave early."
The Princess Regent's expression was gentle, and she nodded.
"You few, quickly carry the young lady to the carriage!" Madam Dong commanded her servants in a low voice.
"Madam Dong, please wait a moment," the Empress suddenly said. "If I say Miss Xuerou is forgiven, then she is truly forgiven. This time, Yao'er was wrong. Yao'er, quickly apologize to Madam Dong and Miss Dong."
Xin Yao glared furiously at the Empress and shouted, "Mother! Why? Why should this princess apologize to them? This princess is the Fifth Princess of Great Xia! After being disfigured by these lowly women, I am still expected to apologize to them? Then this princess's status is worse than that of a commoner!"
The Empress closed her eyes, suppressing her anger, and sternly repeated, "A prince who breaks the law is the same as a commoner! Yao'er, apologize."
"I won't! I absolutely will not!" Xin Yao screamed hysterically.
"Slap!" The Empress raised her hand and slapped Xin Yao.
"You—you hit me?" Xin Yao covered her face, looking at the Empress in disbelief, then scanned the crowd. Wailing, she ran away.
The onlookers' eyes widened in shock. The Empress had actually slapped the Fifth Princess in front of everyone!
The Princess Regent immediately stepped forward and whispered, "Imperial sister-in-law, please calm your anger. So many people are watching."
The Empress adjusted her emotions and looked at Madam Dong. "Madam Dong, please take Miss Dong back. In the future, this Empress will naturally provide an explanation to the Dong family."
Madam Dong respectfully said, "Thank you, Your Majesty the Empress. This humble woman will take her leave for now."
After turning around, Madam Dong tugged at the corner of her mouth, a smug look on her face.
The Empress smiled at the Princess Regent. "Imperial sister, I'm truly sorry. Xin Yao is young and foolish and disturbed your skirt-drawing banquet."
The Princess Regent said gently, "Imperial sister-in-law, you are too kind. It's just children being temperamental; it will be fine in a few days. You shouldn't think about it too much."
After a few more pleasantries, the Empress left the skirt-drawing banquet.
Upon returning to the palace, she walked directly to Xin Yao's sleeping quarters, her face filled with anger. The palace maids and nannies following behind dared not make a sound.
"Greetings, Your Majesty the Empress," the palace maid Lü Qin curtsied.
The Empress asked angrily, "Where is Xin Yao?"
Lü Qin's expression was fearful, and she respectfully replied, "Reporting to Your Majesty the Empress, the Princess is crying heartbrokenly in the inner chamber."
"Crying? She still has the nerve to cry?!" The Empress strode inside.
Xin Yao was lying on the bed, sobbing. The Empress walked to the bedside and said sternly, "Xin Yao, you were too reckless today!"
Xin Yao pushed herself up. Her pitted face was streaked with tears, and she gritted her teeth, hating. "What? Has Your Majesty the Empress come to this princess's sleeping quarters to demand an explanation for that lowly woman?"
The Empress closed her eyes, trying her best to be patient. "I have told you many times, your maternal grandfather's clan was exiled to the northern borders. Your imperial brother and I can only rely on the support of the Dong and Zhou families. Without them, whether your brother can secure the position of Crown Prince is still uncertain."
Xin Yao cried out hoarsely, "The throne! The throne! All you care about is the throne! I, your daughter, am nothing! My brother is already the Crown Prince. As long as you don't do anything to anger Father Emperor, who will contend for the throne with him? Your current situation is of your own making! You brought this upon yourselves!"
"Presumptuous!" The Empress roared, her body trembling with anger. "Do not think that because you are my daughter, I will indulge you indefinitely! I tell you today, in front of your brother's position as Crown Prince, you are nothing! If you dare to jeopardize your brother's future, I will hold you accountable! You, take care of yourself!"
With that, the Empress turned and left in anger.
Xin Yao wailed loudly, threw the pillow off the bed, then threw the quilt off the bed. She smashed everything breakable in the inner chamber until it was in ruins.
"Dong Xuerou, Zhou Yanran, this princess will definitely not let you off!" Xin Yao slumped onto the quilt, her tear-filled eyes burning with hatred.
Originally, she thought her mother doted on her. Now she finally understood that for her brother, for his throne, she was merely a pawn.
The informants reported everything that happened at the skirt-drawing banquet and in Princess Xin Yao's sleeping quarters to Lu Ye.
Lu Ye suddenly became interested in one of the individuals.
This person was the Princess Regent.
Skirt-drawing banquets were generally held in March. It was already May. After a two-month delay, the Princess Regent still insisted on holding it now, and she invited the Fifth Princess, Zhou Yanran, and Dong Xuerou.
It was obvious that these three were enemies of each other, and their reunion was bound to cause conflict.
Given the Fifth Princess's behavior at the banquet, it was highly likely that the Princess Regent had indulged her, deliberately using the Fifth Princess's savage and overbearing nature to escalate the conflict between the Zhou and Dong families and the Empress.
It was said that the Princess Regent had been married for five or six years. Although she was extremely favored by the Emperor, she had always kept a low profile and rarely participated in court struggles. Now, why would she...?
It was unknown if the Princess Regent's birth mother and the First Prince's birth mother were the same person. If they were, many issues would become clear.
Lu Ye planned to ask his third uncle.
The third uncle said, "The birth mothers of the Princess Regent and the First Prince are indeed the same person. It is said she was an orphaned woman of humble status, beautiful, and possessed an exotic charm. When the dog emperor was still a prince, he went out to play and fell in love at first sight with that orphaned woman, bringing her back to the palace. However, the old Emperor and Empress at the time did not allow him to marry that orphaned woman, so she could only be made a concubine. After the dog emperor ascended the throne, he only bestowed upon her the title of 'Liang Ren' (Good Person). Although the First Prince was the eldest son of the Emperor, due to his mother's low status and lack of backing in the court, he was naturally excluded from the position of Crown Prince. When the First Prince was eight years old, his mother passed away, and the Princess Regent was five that year."
Lu Ye's doubts were resolved.
He dispatched the Embroidered Uniform Guard to investigate the situations of the First Prince and the Princess Regent in detail, and also sent informants to monitor these two individuals constantly.
Since the Jiang family had lost power, and the Empress and the Crown Prince were declining, the court situation had become increasingly bizarre and complicated.
Lu Ye had no interest in who became emperor. He only wanted to vindicate his maternal grandfather's family and then protect his loved ones.