The Queen sealed her heart and locked up her love, and the Emperor was trapped in the crematorium

Xie Yaoqing left, but the other concubines could not do as they pleased like her and had to stay and accept Xiao Chengxu's death gaze.

Xiao Chengxu's eyes slowly swept over every concubine present. There was no emotion in his eyes, as if these women were just insignificant existences. In his eyes, they were no different from flowers and trees, or perhaps even worse than flowers and trees. His voice was cold and mocking: "Are you all idle? Don't you have anything else to do? Do you think the Queen's Kunning Palace has become a place where you can drink tea and chat at will?"

When the concubines heard this, they all turned pale with fright. They hurriedly lowered their heads and said "We dare not" in unison, their bodies trembling slightly, obviously intimidated by Xiao Chengxu's majesty.

However, among this group of submissive concubines, there was one person who stood out from the crowd. That was Concubine Qi. She didn't seem to take Xiao Chengxu's question to heart. Instead, she raised her head and looked straight at him, because she still believed that she had a special place in Xiao Chengxu's heart. After all, there was a cousin relationship between them. This relationship might be Concubine Qi's biggest confidence.

Even though Xiao Chengxu had never shown a gentle look towards Concubine Qi, her heart and eyes were full of Xiao Chengxu. Those who are involved are often confused, while those who are on the sidelines can see things clearly, so her confidence always comes inexplicably.

When other concubines did not dare to speak, and Xie Yaoqing was not present, Concubine Qi was the highest-ranking concubine present, and she felt that it was time for her to stand up.

"Your Majesty, please calm down. We did not mean to disturb the Queen's rest. We sisters have not seen each other for a long time, so we are just chatting here for a while. There is no other intention..."

After a pause, Concubine Qi said with tears in her eyes and a sad face, "Your Majesty, you are a wise king. You must not be blinded by the Queen and disturb your mind. Since ancient times, it is common sense for the emperor to have three thousand beauties in the harem. If I and others leave the palace, we will really have nowhere to go. Is the Queen's move intended to force my sisters to death? I beg Your Majesty to have mercy and take back your order. Have mercy on me and my sisters..."

No matter what, Concubine Qi refused to believe that the dismissal of the harem was all Xiao Chengxu's idea. In her eyes, Xiao Chengxu was not only wise and brave, but also her ideal husband, so how could he be wrong? The only person who was wrong was someone else.

The reason why Xiao Chengxu acted so absurdly was definitely because he was bewitched by Xie Yaoqing.

As a result, Concubine Qi spared no effort in speaking nonsense in front of Xiao Chengxu, wishing to put all the blame on Xie Yaoqing.

She originally thought that by doing this, she would be able to successfully remove Xiao Chengxu from the matter without causing any negative impact on his reputation. Xiao Chengxu would certainly accept it with pleasure and cooperate with her.

However, Concubine Qi was too naive and stupid.

Xiao Chengxu never really fixed his eyes on her for even a moment, so how could he possibly collude with her and work together to commit crimes?

Especially now that Xiao Chengxu has the memories of his past life, he treats Concubine Qi even colder.

He knew very well how many bad things Concubine Qi had done under the instigation of the Queen Mother. She had framed Xie Yaoqing many times, both openly and secretly. Even Xie Yaoqing's death was "contributed" to Concubine Qi. If she hadn't arrogantly run to Xie Yaoqing to show off that she was about to replace her as the new queen, and "accidentally" leaked the news that the entire family of Yongchang Marquis was thrown into prison, Xie Yaoqing might not have been so disheartened that she chose to commit suicide.

Xiao Chengxu had already avenged this vengeance in his previous life. Although the current Concubine Qi was not as hateful as she would be five years later, whenever Xiao Chengxu thought of those past events, his anger would involuntarily transfer to Concubine Qi. Moreover, Concubine Qi had been targeting Xie Yaoqing since she entered the palace, and was clearly aiming for the throne of the empress. How could she be considered completely innocent? The reason why Xiao Chengxu had not yet gotten angry was simply because he had not yet remembered it. However, now that Concubine Qi was courting death, how could Xiao Chengxu tolerate it?

Xiao Chengxu ignored Concubine Qi's affectionate glances and angrily said, "Shut up! You, a concubine, can't make irresponsible comments about my queen. I think the Qi family's upbringing is just so-so. They don't even take the Queen Mother seriously. Come on, slap Concubine Qi fifty times and let her learn the palace rules."

Although there is only one word difference, the difference between a noble concubine and a noble lady is as huge as heaven and earth. It can be said that there is a world of difference between them. This is not only reflected in the rank, but also in the treatment in all aspects.

Concubine Qi, oh no, now she should be called Concubine Qi. She felt her eyes go dark, her legs go weak, and she almost collapsed to the ground. Her originally beautiful face turned pale as paper in an instant, without any blood at all. She was extremely anxious, and desperately crawled to Xiao Chengxu's feet, trying to defend herself and beg for mercy.

However, her efforts were in vain. Xiao Chengxu didn't even bother to look at her, and kicked her aside, as if she was some kind of filthy filth, with disgust on his face.

Then, several maids who were ordered to come quickly stepped forward and firmly grasped Concubine Qi. Two maids, one on the left and one on the right, took turns mercilessly slapping Concubine Qi's beautiful face. Every slap left a clearly visible five-finger mark. Concubine Qi could only cry helplessly and struggled desperately but to no avail.

From beginning to end, the other concubines said nothing and just watched coldly. After all, they had no friendship with Concubine Qi, and were not on good terms with her. In fact, they were even enemies. It was good enough for them not to add insult to injury, so how could they lend a helping hand? Concubine Qi could only endure fifty slaps in the face, not one missing.

By the time the slapping was over, Concubine Qi's cheeks were already swollen, red and swollen, with a trace of blood at the corner of her mouth. Her hair was disheveled and she looked extremely miserable.

"Do you know you're wrong?" Xiao Chengxu asked coldly.

The so-called thunder, lightning, rain and dew are all grace from the emperor. Not to mention just a few dozen slaps, even if you are beaten half to death or even lose your life, you must kowtow to thank the emperor before you die. If anyone dares to curse or show disrespect, then all nine clans will suffer a devastating disaster.

Concubine Qi was beaten to a bloody mouth and several of her teeth were loose. She kept knocking her head with blood in her mouth and said in a trembling voice: "I know I was wrong. Please forgive me, Your Majesty. I will never do it again..."

It's not that Xiao Chengxu had never punished Concubine Qi before. He had reprimanded her verbally and even confined her to her house. But he had never done it in public like today.

In front of many concubines, Concubine Qi was slapped. Not only was her position demoted, but her self-esteem was also greatly hurt. She felt extremely ashamed and humiliated, and she was so embarrassed that she wished she could find a hole to crawl into so as not to see the gloating indifference in the eyes of the concubines.