First-rank palace maid Su Jixiang

"General Wei, you understand me! I'm only interested in men. I feel unlucky when I meet women!" Sun Laoliu spat at Su Jixiang, then bowed to Wei Ling and said, "I saw that the two of them looked sneaky and didn't look like good people. It just so happened that the fire corps needed two people to identify the ingredients, so I brought these two people out. I had no idea that they were actually spies disguised as men! General Wei, the imperial kitchen is such an important place. If a spy sneaks in and poisons the generals' food, wouldn't that be a disaster!"

"Sir, you are really good at confusing right and wrong!" Su Jixiang snorted coldly, "We are indeed women disguised as men. Before the Fengtian Army entered the palace tonight, the refugees and rebels in the capital also broke into the palace. We are women, and you can see what the consequences would be if we didn't disguise ourselves as men. How many palace maids have been raped and killed outside? We disguised ourselves as men just to save our lives and maintain our innocence! Besides, it was you who brought us to the imperial kitchen. If we were spies, wouldn't you have given us a chance? Could it be that you are our accomplice?"

"You little bitch, are you itching for trouble? You're so sharp-tongued! I'm going to knock out your teeth one by one right now, and then I'll see how you can keep on biting me!" Sun Laoliu knew that he was in the wrong, and originally wanted to make a accusation to prove that the two women were spies. However, he didn't expect that he would meet someone who was not afraid of death and dared to argue in front of him.

Sun Laoliu raised his sword and rushed forward again, but was blocked by a sword that came across.

He turned around and saw that it was Wei Ling.

"Sun Chou, no matter what you have done before, before the Fengtian Army entered the palace, didn't I say in front of the Xuanwu Gate that anyone who commits rape or looting will be beheaded?" Wei Ling asked in a cold voice with a chill on his face. His tone was not loud, but it carried an unquestionable majesty.

Sun Laoliu's mouth twitched, and facing Wei Ling's gaze, he finally lost his temper, "General, I did say that."

“Then how dare you attack the old palace servants?” Wei Ling asked in a gentle voice.

"Your subordinate... Your subordinate thinks that eunuchs are neither men nor women!" Sun Laoliu was stunned for a moment, then argued cunningly.

"Oh. You really know how to talk. Who is not born by their parents? Who is born a eunuch? Eunuchs are neither men nor women, but they are also living beings! The banner of the Fengtian Army is to act in accordance with the will of heaven, to help the poor and the needy, to rise up and eliminate harm for the people! If the eunuchs were not so poor that they had no food to eat, who would be willing to enter the palace to be neither male nor female? Are they harm? They are just poor. Why do you want to abuse them when they have already humbled themselves to the dust!" Su Jixiang scolded. "We just disguised ourselves as men to survive. You have to label us as spies. What have we done? She and I are both registered in the palace. There are documents to check. Once we check, we will know whether we are spies or not! Two women who don't even leave the palace, who assigned them? What can they do?"

Although Wei Ling didn't look at Su Jixiang, the coldness in his eyes deepened a little, "Sun Chou, do you understand?"

Sun Chou’s face turned pale, “General Wei, you can’t kill me!” His legs went weak and he knelt down in front of Wei Ling.

Su Jixiang was right. Both she and Concubine Mei were registered citizens, and their identities would be known with just a simple check.

Wei Ling said that the old people in the palace should not be touched in order to maintain the banner raised by the Fengtian Army.

I think this is not only Wei Ling's intention, but also the meaning of the above.

The country was still unstable, and although Emperor Jing of Daxie had fled with the empress and imperial concubine, he was not dead yet. If the Fengtian Army did not do a good job at this time, it would be shooting itself in the foot.

Just for this, Su Jixiang feels confident.

Wei Ling's eyes flashed, "Come here! Take Sun Chou away. Sun Chou intended to rape an old lady in the palace. Although he failed, his intention was obvious. He can be spared the death penalty. He will be beaten with 100 military sticks as a warning to others."

When the firemen saw this situation, they were also a little confused.

"General Wei, although Sun Laoliu made mistakes, he still failed. Can you please let him off the hook?" The leader of the fire army quickly knelt down and begged. "One hundred military sticks will kill him!"

"Yes, General Wei, we are all brothers who came out of Mangcheng together. Can you show some leniency since we have fought side by side over the years? Fight less." The others also knelt down.

"Military orders are as heavy as a mountain. The Fengtian Army can have the current momentum because of its iron discipline." Wei Ling looked around at the people kneeling on the ground and said slowly, "You can beg for mercy, but you cannot violate military law! Take them away! Beat them!"

"Wei Ling, you little pretty boy, my uncle saved you!" Sun Laoliu said anxiously, "In the battle of Menggu Mountain, you were attacked from both sides, and it was my uncle who led the troops to support you! You must be grateful! There are only a few people left in our Sun family who have died for the Fengtian Army! You are going to make our Sun family extinct!" Not many people can survive fifty military sticks, let alone a hundred military sticks. It would be more painful than killing him with a knife!

"Let's put it this way!" Wei Ling said coldly, "Drag him away and execute him!"

Seeing Wei Ling's determination, no one else dared to say anything and could only watch Sun Chou being dragged out by Wei Ling's personal guards.

"What about these two women?" asked the fireman worriedly.

"Keep them here first." Wei Ling glanced at Su Jixiang and Mei Fei, then got up and went out.

Su Jixiang and Concubine Mei were thrown into the corner of the imperial kitchen.

"Hey, it's really cold today!" A younger fireman added a handful of firewood to the stove, and the heat from the stove made the whole kitchen warmer. The winter in the capital was cold, especially when it snowed outside.

"Boss, cook something for everyone later." He asked as he warmed himself by the fire. "We have been fighting the palace all day and haven't had anything to eat!"

"I tell me, what's in the storehouse of the emperor's imperial kitchen?" The head of the fire department was named Xu. "There are a lot of miscellaneous things inside. They look hard, but there's not a piece of meat! Not even rice or flour! Is the emperor so poor that he has to sell his pants?" He cursed as he searched the storehouse.

Su Jixiang and Mei Fei looked at each other. If it weren't for the awkward situation they were in, they would have laughed.

When Emperor Jingdi fled the palace, he was clear-headed and knew that food was the most important thing on the road to escape, so he ordered people to take away the rice, flour, meat, and some storable fruits and vegetables in the imperial kitchen warehouse. The things he did not take away were those that were difficult to soak and pack.

"Forget it. These are things we don't recognize and we don't know how to cook them. So, let's just tear up the pancakes we brought, cook them into a paste, and share them among everyone." Tou'er Xu said to the others.