The Abused Female Protagonist In The Angst Novel Is Actually A White Lotus - Chapter 35

The moment the Empress Dowager’s voice echoed, the eunuch knelt respectfully and replied, “Your Ladyship, Consort Yu of the Cold Palace has gone mad. Her symptoms closely resemble what common folk call demonic possession. The incident was sudden, and we couldn’t contain the news in time. It’s likely to be known throughout the Imperial Court by tomorrow.”

“Nonsense!” The Empress Dowager’s voice sharpened with anger. Though ancient beliefs in ghosts and demons persisted, such talk was strictly forbidden within the Imperial Palace. “Speak of such things again, and you’ll receive a beating yourself. Consort Yu is merely unhinged by her punishment. Shen Sijing will join this Dowager in chess tonight. You may attend to her later.”

Seeing the Empress Dowager’s intention to keep Shen Sijing, the eunuch didn’t press further. Instead, he turned to Ling Qingyi. “Then, Young Miss Ling, you’ll have to accompany this humble servant for now. My apologies for the inconvenience.”

Shen Sijing was about to speak up when the Empress Dowager interrupted her: “Very well, but remember, she is still a minister who merited recognition for her efforts in managing the Jiangnan Flood Disaster. Treat her with due respect.”

A matron then stepped forward and escorted Shen Sijing away, even physically guiding her.

Though puzzled, Shen Sijing didn’t dare resist, glancing back repeatedly. Ling Qingyi shook her head reassuringly, telling her not to worry. She straightened her posture and followed the eunuch accompanying the Empress Dowager into the Empress Dowager’s Palace.

Inside the palace, Shen Sijing saw the Empress Dowager seated on a couch, her robes draped over her shoulders, her face flushed with anger. “Excellent, excellent! So the Empress has indeed targeted Consort Yu. We had already restored her authority to oversee the Inner Palace—what more does she want?”

Shen Sijing stood frozen at the door, listening in bewilderment. She cautiously stepped forward, offering a tea bowl in an attempt to soothe the Empress Dowager. As Shen Sijing approached, the Empress Dowager’s expression softened. “This is clearly an attempt to find a scapegoat for her own scheme to harm Consort Yu. It would have been disastrous if you had foolishly gone earlier.”

A scapegoat…?! Shen Sijing thought. I didn’t go because the Empress Dowager stopped me, but Ling Qingyi did!

“Your Ladyship, why didn’t you stop Qingqing just now?” Shen Sijing asked, her face pale with shock. She couldn’t understand the Empress Dowager’s actions.

The Empress Dowager met her gaze, her eyes cold. “Do you think I would rather let a concubine-born daughter of the Ling family take the blame, or involve the Shen family in this scandal? Which do you think this Dowager would choose?”

The Empress Dowager had lived her life for the Shen family, and naturally, at this critical moment, she would act in their best interests. She held no deep affection for Ling Qingyi, so naturally she wouldn’t think to protect her.

But Shen Sijing couldn’t accept this. Tears welled up in her eyes. The Shen family had indeed been her benefactors, ensuring her material needs were met and granting her unparalleled status and glory. But… Ling Qingyi was irreplaceable.

Since her transmigration, every moment she had spent with Ling Qingyi, every emotion that had accumulated, made it clear to her. Perhaps such feelings were unsuitable for this world, but at least she could stand behind Ling Qingyi and silently support her.

Shen Sijing calculated the time. It seemed Ling Qingyi was being falsely accused right now. Collapsed on the floor, she frantically racked her brain for a solution.

Meanwhile, Ling Qingyi stood in the Empress’s Palace, a hint of trepidation in her eyes as she glanced around. Yet beneath the surface, a cold smile played on her lips—there would always be those who couldn’t tolerate her presence.

“You’ve arrived just in time,” the Empress said. “Hold this tea for me.” Ling Qingyi, bewildered by the sudden command, dared not defy it and took the teacup. She had been standing quietly with the cup when her fingertips brushed its scalding surface. Startled by the heat, she instinctively released her grip, and the delicate porcelain shattered on the floor.

The atmosphere in the room turned tense. A meddlesome consort spoke up, “What’s this about? Are you cursing the Empress? We hadn’t even dealt with the incense pouch incident yet, and you’ve already managed to draw our attention!”

The Empress’s expression darkened. Rising to tower over Ling Qingyi, she parted her crimson lips. “Kneel.”

Ling Qingyi knelt without hesitation, her knees landing directly on the shards of the broken teacup. The moment she bent down, blood seeped through her robes, staining the fabric and pooling on the floor.

The palace was already in an uproar over the recent incidents of demonic possession. Now, with blood pooling on the floor, the Empress and the assembled courtiers paled visibly.

“You’re the one who chose to kneel on the shards!” the Empress snapped. “I never ordered you to!”
“It was this humble servant’s fault for failing to steady the teacup and disturbing Your Ladyship,” Ling Qingyi replied, her voice measured and dignified, leaving the crowd utterly bewildered. Fudong, who had been standing by the door, knew that if Shen Sijing saw this, her heart would break again.

The Empress was about to press further with her interrogation when a resplendent figure stormed into the hall. Pearls swayed at her ears as she strode purposefully toward them. Ling Qingyi hadn’t intended to look, but she turned at the sound of the newcomer’s voice.

“We haven’t proven the brocade pouch belongs to Ling Qingyi. Isn’t it unwise to punish her so hastily, Your Ladyship?” Shen Sijing’s voice brimmed with suppressed fury. Had this not been the Empress, the mother of the nation, but some ordinary young miss, Shen Sijing would have lunged forward and slapped her across the face.

The moment Ling Qingyi turned, she met Shen Sijing’s gaze. She shook her head slightly, her face pale from the pain. Shen Sijing’s heart ached at the sight.

“Your Majesty, Ling Qingyi is a great meritocrat in the Emperor’s governance of Jiangnan’s post-disaster reconstruction. She is also the daughter of an official family. Isn’t it unwise to treat her so harshly without any evidence?”

Before the Empress could respond, Shen Sijing anxiously continued, “Your Majesty—”

The Empress, flustered, slammed her hand on the table, her voice rising in anger. Yet she struggled to maintain the maternal dignity befitting the Empress of a nation. “Shen Sijing! Silence! Do you think you have any right to question how I govern the Inner Palace? Do you forget that I am the Empress of this nation? Is this how you should address the reigning Empress?”

The Empress had originally intended to punish Shen Sijing, but remembering that even the Emperor harbored reservations about the Shen family, she restrained herself, settling for these harsh words.

Understanding that direct confrontation would only worsen her situation, Shen Sijing dropped to her knees, tears streaming down her face. “Your Majesty, my earlier outburst stemmed from panic over seeing my only true friend punished so severely. I spoke without thinking, unfairly blaming you. I beg Your Majesty’s boundless mercy and forgiveness for my insolence.”

Seeing Shen Sijing’s swift realization of her mistake, the Empress didn’t press the matter further. She sat down, took a few sips of tea to steady herself, and forced a smile. “Since Young Miss Shen insists on evidence, let’s begin by questioning Third Young Miss of the Ling Family. The sooner we clear her name, the sooner we can release her.”

Shen Sijing nodded. Convinced that the brocade pouch couldn’t possibly belong to Ling Qingyi, she felt confident in playing along. However, Ling Qingyi looked up and signaled, whispering, “That brocade pouch is indeed mine, but the cursed object inside wasn’t. It must have been placed there later.”

Now aware of this crucial detail, Shen Sijing found Ling Qingyi’s theory plausible. But… if events unfolded as they did in the original text, wouldn’t Ling Qingyi inevitably face imprisonment?

Shen Sijing suddenly questioned her purpose for being here. It seemed nothing could truly stop this course of events; at best, she could only offer Ling Qingyi small acts of kindness.

“I believe you! I believe you!” Shen Sijing nearly sobbed in anguish. She didn’t understand how things had come to this. She had initially believed her transmigration was meant to help Ling Qingyi, but now everything felt like a tangled mess.

If someone had deliberately orchestrated this, how could they possibly fail to find evidence? Shen Sijing’s eyes darkened as she watched the eunuchs emerge, clutching bizarre objects they claimed were necessary for Ling Qingyi’s temporary stay in the Imperial Palace. Among them were paper figurines, cinnabar, and other items that looked downright sinister when gathered together.

“These… are Young Miss Ling’s, aren’t they?” The Empress’s expression now held a smug satisfaction as she smiled and gestured for her servants to lay out the items before Ling Qingyi. Shen Sijing had just helped Ling Qingyi sit up when the latter sharply raised her head to glare at the eunuchs.

The eunuchs recoiled in fright, retreating several steps. “Young Miss, your schemes have been exposed! Don’t take your anger out on us mere servants!”

Shen Sijing found the eunuch’s chatter irritating and waved him aside. As she stared at the objects, a chill ran through her.

“Regardless of how it happened, we have both witnesses and evidence. Ling Qingyi, you’ve recklessly plotted against palace concubines and practiced witchcraft and sorcery. What punishment do you deserve?” The Empress needed only Ling Qingyi’s acknowledgment of guilt to summon the executioner and order her beheading at noon the next day.

How could Ling Qingyi possibly be mistaken? Shen Sijing stepped forward, placing herself between Ling Qingyi and the Empress. She knelt on the shattered fragments, her knees bleeding. “Your Ladyship, I beg you to give Ling Qingyi more time. These items were likely planted in her chambers by someone else.”

Ling Qingyi’s eyes turned crimson as she noticed the blood seeping from Shen Sijing’s knees. She knew firsthand the pain of kneeling on broken glass.

“Oh? So Young Miss Shen is willing to vouch for Ling Qingyi?” The Empress’s eyes gleamed with amusement as she sipped her freshly brewed tea, watching Shen Sijing.

Only then did Shen Sijing remember her own status. Ignoring the pain, she straightened her back and declared, “I, Shen Sijing, solemnly pledge the supreme honor of the Shen family. I beg Your Ladyship the Empress not to execute Ling Qingyi immediately. Grant us more time to investigate. If we fail to uncover the truth, I willingly forfeit my noble status and accept demotion to commoner rank, awaiting Your Ladyship’s commands.”

As soon as these words were spoken, all sound in the Empress’s Palace froze. Ling Qingyi stood rooted to the spot, her blood running cold.

“Sister Shen…” Ling Qingyi mouthed silently. Yet the unwavering resolve in Shen Sijing’s eyes left no room for doubt.

Support