Though Lin Xiaowei would not cause them any trouble even if she clung to them, it was better to avoid unnecessary issues.
Furthermore, such a bothersome person, once entangled, would only bring about a foul reputation.
Lin Xiaowei heard the tone of Sima Zhu soften considerably, which made her feel a little happy, but her expression remained cautious. She secretly glanced at Sima Zhu, then quickly lowered her eyelids. Her voice, filled with undisguised joy and excitement, stammered, "I... I am a maid. My name is Lin Xiaowei. My family calls me Xiaowei."
Sima Zhu found Lin Xiaowei’s demeanor even more amusing and couldn’t resist teasing her, "Then, Xiaowei, what about your family? Why are you all alone? And how did you come to be by the side of Grand Princess Zande?"
"This maid..."
This time, Lin Xiaowei did not answer directly. She hesitated, as if contemplating something or perhaps facing a difficult situation.
Seeing Sima Zhu about to lose his patience, Lin Xiaowei quickly said, "Your Majesty, can I tell you this matter alone? Let it be our little secret between you and me, Your Majesty?"
After speaking, Lin Xiaowei looked at him expectantly, her large eyes moist and filled with trust.
Sima Zhu could even see his own reflection in her adoring eyes. For some reason, the reprimand that had been at the tip of his tongue took a detour. The words that came out were incredibly gentle, "Xiaowei still wants to have little secrets with me? Then I grant it. Tonight, I will listen to Xiaowei tell me everything."
Upon hearing this, Lin Xiaowei's face immediately flushed with embarrassment, and she lowered her head shyly.
The meaning in Sima Zhu's words was obvious: what couldn't be said during the day but had to wait until night? This was tantamount to saying that he wanted Lin Xiaowei to serve him tonight.
As for everyone else, Baili Ziyun was already enraged to the point of apoplexy.
What could be more embarrassing and humiliating than this?
Right in front of her, the Emperor was actually asking her maid to serve him tonight. Moreover, this maid had betrayed her. To dare to speak so boldly in front of her, who knew what she would say when it was just the two of them at night.
Baili Ziyun wanted to lose her temper, but she lacked the confidence.
Among those present, except for Sima Zhu and Sima Hao, everyone else was well aware of her situation.
Although she didn't know how Lin Xiaowei found out, she had indeed found out.
In such circumstances, she didn't even know how to begin to defend herself.
This made Baili Ziyun feel incredibly defeated. She never imagined that one day she would be suppressed by a mere maid to the point of being unable to resist.
On the other side, Sima Zhu was delighted with Lin Xiaowei's reaction and, for the first time, smiled at her again.
But when he withdrew his gaze and looked at Baili Ziyun, the smile on his face instantly vanished.
This slut dared to cheat on him.
He vaguely remembered the events of that night, unsure if she was still a virgin.
Furthermore, as they were outside and there was no maiden’s cloth, he couldn't explicitly confirm.
The mere thought that this woman might have had physical intimacy with another man made Sima Zhu's anger uncontrollable, wishing he could have her executed immediately.
However, this was not the right time. Not only was there no evidence, but even if there were, he could only endure it for now and keep it for later.
After all, he still needed the support of Grand Princess Zande at this moment.
Taking a deep breath, Sima Zhu forced himself to calm down.
He forced a stiff, light smile and softened his tone as he spoke to Baili Ziyun, "Ziyun, you should leave the palace first. I will discuss your matter with your mother. Although you cannot become Empress, based on our long-standing affection, I will ensure you have wealth and a life of comfort."
Baili Ziyun's last shred of hope vanished with Sima Zhu's words.
She had thought that Sima Zhu, at least for her mother Grand Princess Zande's sake, would proceed with the wedding.
But who knew that he would so bluntly declare his decision in front of so many people.
In an instant, Baili Ziyun's face became extremely ugly.
Sima Zhu saw Baili Ziyun standing there in a daze, having forgotten even to thank him. The faint smile from before vanished instantly.
Was she dissatisfied with his decision?
Even in her current state, she dared to negotiate with him?
If he were to truly anger him, even if he didn't take her into his harem, what could Grand Princess Zande do?
Just as Sima Zhu was about to speak, Lin Xiaowei crawled to Baili Ziyun's feet, straightened up, and pulled Baili Ziyun down to her knees.
The floor in the room was marble, both solid and cold. Even kneeling slowly would cause pain.
Moreover, Baili Ziyun was caught completely off guard by Lin Xiaowei's forceful action.
The moment her knees hit the ground, a muffled thud echoed.
Everyone present heard it clearly and instinctively looked at Baili Ziyun's face. Indeed, they saw Baili Ziyun's face turn pale, with large beads of sweat dripping from her forehead.
She bit her lip tightly from the pain, and blood began to seep out.
Such a Baili Ziyun evoked a feeling of pity. Naturally, the one who felt pity was Sima Zhu.
"Ziyun, are you alright?" Sima Zhu asked with concern.
Then, he frowned and looked at Lin Xiaowei, saying unhappily, "What are you doing? Look how much pain you've caused Ziyun."
Lin Xiaowei quickly kowtowed. After a few kowtows, she explained to Sima Zhu, "This maid saw that my young lady forgot to thank you and feared she would break the rules and be gossiped about. In my haste, I lost my composure. This maid deserves death..."
After speaking, Lin Xiaowei kowtowed a few more times.
Seeing her forehead turn red and almost bleed, Sima Zhu waved his hand to stop her, "Enough. You were just concerned for your mistress. I'll spare you this time, but you must be careful next time."
Lin Xiaowei was overjoyed and tears welled up, "Thank you, Your Majesty. This maid will be careful next time."
Baili Ziyun, enduring the pain, listened to their conversation. She had been waiting for Sima Zhu to punish Lin Xiaowei, but instead, the outcome was this. At this moment, Baili Ziyun felt pain in her heart, liver, lungs, and spleen.
Naturally, this was from anger.
"Your Majesty, this lowly maid clearly did it on purpose. Ziyun's knees are numb, and you still won't punish her? Ziyun is not convinced."
Sima Zhu looked at Baili Ziyun with concern. Seeing her wronged expression, he felt a pang of sympathy.
But when he looked at Lin Xiaowei, her large eyes were full of hope as she gazed at him, as if she had entrusted her entire being to him. This also made him reluctant.
Seeing Sima Zhu hesitate to speak, Baili Ziyun said angrily, "Does Ziyun mean less to Your Majesty than this lowly maid? Ziyun is the Empress Your Majesty has chosen, the legitimate daughter of Grand Princess Zande!"
After speaking, she slightly raised her chin, looking very proud.
But she didn't realize that these two sentences caused Sima Zhu's sympathy for her to completely disappear.
Sima Zhu sneered and said coldly, "So what if she is Grand Princess Zande's daughter? I already said that you lost your virginity before marriage and were improper. You cannot become Empress. As for whether you can enter the palace, it is I who decides. Now, you are shouting at me and dictating to me. Who gave you the audacity?"
Hearing Sima Zhu's words and seeing his stern face, Baili Ziyun crouched on the ground in fear.
All along, the Emperor she had seen had always been kind to her.
Although he was very ugly, he had at least always been smiling. If he were a little fairer, he would truly resemble a Maitreya Buddha.
But now, Sima Zhu was acting like this for Lin Xiaowei and speaking such harsh words.
This was something Baili Ziyun had never expected.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty..."
For a moment, Baili Ziyun could say nothing but these two words.
Sima Zhu looked at the terrified Baili Ziyun and knew he had spoken too harshly. However, as the ruler of a nation, it was impossible for him to apologize.
Therefore, Sima Zhu only softened his expression slightly before continuing, "Ziyun, you should leave the palace. I will discuss your matter with my aunt."
By referring to her as "aunt," he was indirectly telling Baili Ziyun that he would not hold the previous incident against her.
Baili Ziyun was not stupid and understood the meaning behind Sima Zhu's words. But it was precisely because of this that she felt even more wronged.
She, the legitimate daughter of a princess, the legitimate granddaughter of the Empress Dowager, and the Emperor's cousin, had been wronged by a mere maid.
But no matter how wronged she felt, she could say nothing at this moment.
Because as soon as she opened her mouth, she saw Sima Zhu's gaze grow colder by three points.
Unwillingly, she closed her mouth and lowered her eyes, looking at Lin Xiaowei kneeling beside her, her eyes filled with increasing venom.
It was all this slut's fault; if not for her, would she be like this?
Looking up again, Baili Ziyun's face now wore a bright smile, though her complexion remained pale.
"Your Majesty, Ziyun spoke incorrectly. Xiaowei meant well for me and did not do it on purpose. I will not hold it against her. Since the Grand Tutor and the Fifth Prince have arrived, Ziyun will not disturb you further and will take her leave."
After speaking, Baili Ziyun rose gracefully and was about to exit.
After taking a few steps back, she saw Lin Xiaowei still kneeling upright, showing no intention of getting up.
"Xiaowei, let's go. You don't need to kneel anymore. His Majesty will not blame you."
Baili Ziyun's voice was gentle and smiling.
But to Lin Xiaowei's ears, it sounded like venomous tongues hissing, causing her spine to feel cold and goosebumps to rise all over her body.
However, Lin Xiaowei did not respond. She merely turned her head to look at Baili Ziyun, then quickly turned back, her face showing fear and her eyes pleadingly looking at Sima Zhu.
Her appearance was already delicate, like a pale flower.
This posture at the moment only made people want to protect her.
And Sima Zhu, who considered himself the foremost man in the world, had his sense of responsibility overwhelmingly heightened.
Cherishing and protecting flowers was his favorite thing to do.
"Ziyun, I will send someone to escort you back. As for Xiaowei, she will not be going with you."
Baili Ziyun's expression changed slightly upon hearing this, but she quickly regained her composure, smiling, "Is Your Majesty still angry with Xiaowei? Xiaowei did not do it on purpose. Your Majesty, please spare her. I will take her back and teach her a good lesson."
Baili Ziyun's words were laughable, and Yi Zixie on the side couldn't help but let out a stifled laugh.
Hearing the laughter, Baili Ziyun's face instantly turned red.
But she still forced herself to look at Sima Zhu, thinking that Sima Zhu wouldn't embarrass her for the second time.
However, she was too confident.
Sima Zhu waved his hand and said with a chuckle, "Ziyun, go back. I thought you were worried about something else. You silly girl, how could I make things difficult for Xiaowei? After all, she is now my woman. I will first grant her the title of Noble Lady. Her rank cannot be too low, otherwise, it would be a loss of face for you, wouldn't it?"
In essence, what was just a "lowly maid" moments ago had instantly become a Noble Lady personally conferred by the Emperor.
In terms of status and rank, this was higher than Baili Ziyun.
The smile on Baili Ziyun's face could no longer be maintained.
Her chest heaved violently a few times, but in the end, she said nothing and slowly withdrew.