The Reborn Princess Has Turned Evil

Chapter 289 Taking advantage of the topic

Seeing Lai Li lying weakly on the bed, Jing Anle knew that Princess Yongping would definitely use this as an excuse to make trouble later. Sure enough, a questioning voice came from outside a moment later, "Li'er, how is my Li'er?"

Then Yongping appeared in front of them. She walked quickly and carried a fragrance that Jing Anle had never smelled before.

"Auntie." Jing Anle and Jing Fengyao said in unison.

Yongping glanced at them, then quickly looked at Laili inside the tent.

“Aunt, there’s no need to worry. The imperial physician has already examined her. The princess is just temporarily weak and needs to rest.”

Hearing Jing Fengyao's words, Yongping's expression softened, and he questioned again, "A momentary weakness? What exactly happened? How did you fall into the water out of nowhere?"

"Your Highness, today the princess suddenly decided to go ice skating on the lake at Wangjiang Pavilion, but the lake wasn't frozen solid, so she slipped and fell in," Mu Ping replied concisely and respectfully.

Yongping glanced at Muping sideways, "Who are you?"

"This servant is Princess Anle's personal maid, Mu Ping."

"So, you were here today when Li'er fell into the water, Anle?" Yongping looked at Jing Anle, his tone rising.

"Since that's the case, and you're familiar with the climate of Jing Kingdom, and you know the lake wasn't frozen solid, why didn't you stop Li'er and instead let her fall into the water?"

Seeing the tense atmosphere, Mu Ping quickly said, "Your Highness, my master did advise against it at the time, but the princess insisted..."

"How dare you! Who do you think you are?" After saying that, Yongping slapped Muping hard across the face. The slap was solid, and Muping's face swelled up instantly.

Not only was Mu Ping somewhat bewildered, but Jing Anle also did not expect Yongping to actually hit someone. A flash of murderous intent crossed Jing Anle's eyes.

After saying that, Yongping continued, "I was speaking to Anle, and you dare to interrupt? How were you raised in the palace?"

This statement is pointed, implying that Jing Anle doesn't know how to manage her servants.

Jing Anle stepped forward, speaking respectfully yet firmly: "Aunt, although Muping is a maid, she is wholeheartedly devoted to her mistress. The princess insisted on going ice skating on the lake, and we tried to dissuade her to no avail. Moreover, Aunt, your act of hitting someone without even asking what happened is surely unbecoming of a royal figure."

Upon hearing this, Yongping's face grew even colder. "You little brat, how dare you lecture me?"

Jing Anle smiled slightly, "Anle wouldn't dare, but that's just how it is. If Aunt were to arbitrarily accuse Mu Ping today, it might damage Aunt's reputation if word got out later."

"A reputation for virtue?" Yongping couldn't help but sneer. She was once married off to the southern border and was granted the title of Princess Yongping, praised by thousands, but it was also her scar. Jing Anle was someone who would poke at her sore spot.

"Anle, I underestimated you." Her words were full of meaning.

Seeing this, Jing Fengyao quickly said, "This matter is indeed unrelated to Anle. Why don't we wait until the princess wakes up before discussing it?"

"In short, you must give me an explanation for what happened today!" Yongping persisted.

Just then, Emperor Jing arrived, accompanied by Lai Li's brother, Igor.

When Igor learned that Riley had fainted, he rushed over and happened to run into Emperor Jing at the door.

"What's going on here!" Emperor Jing's voice was authoritative even without anger.

"Brother!" In a moment, Yongping's eyes filled with tears, and he looked aggrieved.

Seeing Yongping's appearance, Emperor Jing's voice softened slightly, "What's wrong?"

Yongping could only wipe away his tears, shaking his head and unable to speak, a stark contrast to his previous aggressive demeanor.

Emperor Jing looked at everyone, glanced at Jing Fengyao, and finally fixed his gaze on Jing Anle. "Anle, you speak first."

Jing Anle bowed and recounted the whole story.

Igor frowned slightly after hearing this. He knew his sister's personality, and he was sure Jing Anle wasn't lying.

Seeing this, Yongping hurriedly said, "Brother, Lai Li is still young and inevitably lacks consideration in her actions. Now that this has caused trouble, it's all her own fault."

What a clever tactic of feigning retreat to advance! Jing Anle wasn't about to let her succeed. She turned to Yongping and said, "Aunt, don't worry. You just said you wanted an explanation. Now that Father has arrived, he certainly won't let you down."

After saying that, Jing Anle walked closer to Emperor Jing, her tone tinged with grievance, "Father, please punish Anle. Although I am only one year older than Princess Laili, I should have kept a closer eye on her. I should have pulled her back then, or even tied her up, so that things wouldn't have turned out like this."

Jing Anle was naturally beautiful, and her big eyes suddenly filled with tears, fluttering and making people feel sorry for her. It wasn't just Yongping who knew how to play the victim.

Emperor Jing was not unaware of the intricacies of the imperial harem, and moreover, he trusted Jing Anle.

"Alright, alright, I never said I was going to blame you. Why are you crying? It doesn't look good when you cry," Emperor Jing comforted Jing Anle.

This scene was particularly jarring to Yongping. The person she hated most in her life was Qin Yin, because she was Emperor Jing's most beloved woman. But now that Qin Yin was dead, the person she hated most was Jing Anle.

At this moment, Riley on the bed let out a faint groan, and everyone gathered around.

Lai Li opened her eyes and saw everyone. She looked up and saw Yong Ping. She sobbed softly, "Mother..."

Yongping grabbed Laili's hand, not concerned about Laili's condition, but pressing her for answers, "What happened? How did you fall into the water? Did someone push you? Tell me, did they?"

Lai Li was already feeling very dizzy, and Yongping's urgent questioning made her even more frightened. She glanced at Emperor Jing and Jing Anle's entourage standing around her and burst into tears, "Waaah..."

"Why are you crying?" Yongping felt a headache coming on.

“Aunt, the princess has just woken up and is probably not fully awake yet. Why don’t we let her rest properly?” Jing Anle said with a smile. How could she not know what Yongping was up to? She hoped that Lai Li would say something to accuse her, preferably that she herself was the mastermind behind it all.

When Riley opened her eyes and saw Yongping, she was happy. She thought that Yongping must care about her. But when she woke up, Yongping did not offer any comfort or concern. Instead, he kept questioning and accusing her.

As if in a fit of pique, Riley said calmly, "It was my own fault for not listening to advice and insisting on going ice skating. It has nothing to do with Sister Anle."

Yongping's eyes widened, but he was unwilling to give up. He shook Laili's shoulders hard. "Impossible! His Majesty is here. You don't need to be afraid. Just tell me who sent you to go ice skating. His Majesty will stand up for you."

Riley was dizzy from being shaken, but she still said, "It's me, it's me!"

Now everyone present understood clearly that it was Riley's own decision to go ice skating that led to the accident, and it had nothing to do with Jing Anle.

“Aunt, now that the truth is out, it’s not entirely the princess’s fault. Anle thinks the princess’s maid should be punished. She didn’t try to persuade the princess, and she didn’t even go down to save her when the princess fell into the water. Instead, she just watched. Aunt, what do you think? Should she be punished?”

Upon hearing this, those present understood the gist of the matter: either the maid was unfaithful, or it was done on purpose, since it was common knowledge that the people of the Southern Frontier were skilled in water-related matters.

Emperor Jing's face darkened immediately. At first, he felt somewhat guilty about Yongping's marriage to a distant place, but now he feared that Lai Li's drowning was related to Yongping.

"Then execute the princess's maid as a warning to others!" Emperor Jing said coldly, throwing down these words before strode away.

Riley panicked immediately. "No, Mother, please plead for me! Don't execute Yuna! Mother! I beg you, please help me!"

Yuna was Riley's maid. They spent every day together and were like sisters. They had a very good relationship. Yuna was always by Riley's side when Yongping was not around. Riley could not accept the idea of ​​executing Yuna.

Jing Anle coldly watched this scene; this was the price Yongping paid for slapping Muping!