It's all ruined, who cares about the chastity arch

He pursed his lips and squeezed out two words from between his teeth: "It tastes terrible!"

These two words were like an ice cone, striking the Toffee's heart directly. The elegance she had tried so hard to maintain almost collapsed in an instant. Her eyes trembled slightly, her hands shook slightly, and she suppressed the surging emotions in her heart.

"Go back."

Emperor Xuan waved his hand indifferently.

Concubine Pei bent over stiffly, lowered her head, and bowed deeply, her tone revealing desperate obedience: "Yes, Your Majesty."

As he watched the figure turn away, Emperor Xuan glanced sideways, unwilling to look at him again.

Just as the concubine was about to leave quietly, Emperor Xuan's voice sounded again, and it seemed to have a subtle change.

"Toffee."

Hearing the slightly softening tone, Concubine Pei's tense nerves relaxed a little. She turned around and responded softly, "Your Majesty."

Emperor Xuan's eyes were deep and unfathomable, locking onto her unreadable eyes, and he said in a cold voice: "The Concubine Dowager had a deep friendship with my late mother, so she naturally loves my sister very much. My sister has just returned to the palace, so she will inevitably become the focus of gossip. Can you take care of her more?"

These words made the concubine's face even gloomier. She had thought that every step she took was well planned and no one would notice, but at this moment, she felt an inexplicable uneasiness in her heart.

Emperor Xuan's words contained irrefutable warnings and pressure, adding another layer of invisible storm within the palace walls.

Concubine Pei raised her eyebrows slightly, suppressed her inner dissatisfaction, and forced a smile on her face, with an imperceptible tremor in her voice: "Yes, Your Majesty."

The corners of Emperor Xuan's mouth rose slightly, and a hint of coldness flashed in his eyes: "This is very good. If the princess makes any mistakes in the future, I can directly hold the Concubine accountable, which saves a lot of red tape."

These words were like a heavy hammer, hitting Concubine Pei's heart, and conveyed a clear and unmistakable message - if anything happens to the princess, all the responsibilities will fall on her shoulders.

Faced with this heavy pressure, even though she was extremely reluctant, she could only grit her teeth and pretend to be calm and responded: "Your Majesty, don't worry. Ling'er and I are as close as sisters, and her flesh and blood are like my own flesh and blood. The princess will be safe here with me."

Hearing this assurance, Emperor Xuan nodded slightly and waved his hand, indicating that she could leave.

Walking out of the palace gate, Concubine Pei's pace gradually quickened, and she almost broke out of the depressing atmosphere.

As they got further and further away from the emperor's palace, the warmth on her face gradually faded, replaced by a thick gloom.

Returning to her familiar bedroom, that layer of false gentleness instantly collapsed.

Concubine Pei slammed the door shut with a bang, then waved her hand and the exquisite tea sets on the table fell to the ground one after another. The shattering sounds were like the venting of her anger.

"Humph! You immature brat! How dare a mere emperor boss me around and act so condescending!"

She said angrily, her eyes full of disdain.

"What the hell! You said my tea tastes bad? Pah! Making tea for you is my gift, and you don't even know how to be grateful!"

She shouted angrily, her voice filled with dissatisfaction and resentment.

"You want me to protect the princess? Are you afraid that I might harm her? Oh, you are such a thoughtful boy! It's ridiculous to be so wary of me!"

Her words came like a rapid fire cannon, mercilessly venting her long-pent-up anger.

Since entering this palace, such unbridled venting has almost become a luxury.

After a round of scolding, her emotions seemed to calm down a little.

Having been a concubine for more than a decade, the humiliation she endured today was particularly severe.

Especially when thinking of Emperor Xuan's obvious favoritism towards Su Wanyu, he felt mixed emotions.

When the night was quiet, her dreams for several days in a row always revolved around Song Yuling, the woman covered in blood, standing beside her bed, whispering to her in a faint voice.

Whenever she woke up in the middle of the night, she would break out in a cold sweat, fearing that Song Yulin's ghost would come to collect the debt.

"I should have known the truth of cutting the grass at its roots and shouldn't have kept this kid. Those two brats should have been dealt with early to avoid endless troubles."

She secretly regretted it in her heart.

At that time, facing the young Emperor Xuan, Concubine Pei did have the idea of ​​getting rid of him, but was hindered by Lord Pei's repeated dissuasion.

As a childless concubine, she knew very well that if other princes came to power, her position in the harem would be in jeopardy.

Therefore, she chose to lie dormant, planning to wait until Emperor Xuan got married and gave birth to the Pei family bloodline before taking the next step.

However, this wait lasted for many years, until Gu Linjun rose to power and the little emperor grew stronger.

Even though she had many clever plans, she could not predict the precarious situation of the dynasty.

With anger burning in her chest, Concubine Pei paced back and forth in the room for several circles until her emotions subsided a little. Then she put on the mask of gentleness and virtuousness again.

She instructed the maids around her: "I cannot bear to see Princess Pingle suffer so much from wandering. Please pick out some excellent gifts for me and send them to the Su Mansion. At the same time, please take the trouble to find out what the princess likes."

After saying this, she squeezed out a few tears and wiped her eyes with a handkerchief, as if she was filled with grief: "Ling'er's child, how can I, as an aunt, not love him? We finally found him, we must take good care of him."

When the palace maids saw this, they were all moved by the concubine's kindness and affection, and they all withdrew.

After everyone left, Concubine Pei's expression suddenly changed. She threw away the handkerchief she had just used to wipe her tears in disgust and whispered to the personal guard beside her: "Tell the eldest son that His Majesty does not approve of Qingzhi and Luo Wenxuan's marriage, and tell him not to insist. As for the second young lady, let her experience the real 'life after death'."

"Yes, Lady Toffee."

The guards obeyed the order and withdrew respectfully.

"Death to survive?"

Pei Chi'an chewed these four words over and over in his mind.

At this time, Yuan came in hurriedly, looking anxious: "What do you mean? Does your aunt want Qingzhi to die?"

Pei Chi'an raised his hand calmly and said soothingly, "Mother, don't worry. I think my aunt's intention is to fake Qingzhi's death."

"suspended animation?"

Yuan looked confused.

Pei Chi'an nodded in confirmation: "Yes, faked her death. Let the second sister pretend to hang herself, and then secretly send her out of the house and change her identity. When the storm subsides, take her back as an adopted daughter, and she will still be the daughter of the Pei family."

Yuan fell into deep thought: "Send it out quietly? Where is it safe to send it to?"

Pei Chi'an thought for a moment and said, "We must find a family that has nothing to do with the Pei family. Why not send her to Zizhou and temporarily place her in a poor farmer's family?"

"Poor peasant family?"

Yuan shook her head repeatedly, "How can that be possible? Qingzhi has been spoiled since she was a child, how could she possibly endure such hardships?"

Pei Chi'an's brows flashed with helplessness: "Mom, do you want the Pei family to become the laughing stock of the capital? I haven't married yet, so which family would be willing to marry their daughter to the Pei family, a family at the cusp of the storm?"