Disease rights policy

The words "two hours" popped out of Xu Shangjian's mouth. Qiao Ran looked at the rising sun and thought to herself, "I'll have to stand here until I die."

Standing is fine too, at least she doesn't have to learn those etiquette rules. She's too lazy to move anyway, and two hours is just a matter of gritting her teeth and it'll pass.

After Xu Shangjian finished dealing with Qiao Ran, he looked up and saw Liu Yun finally come out. She had been dawdling for a long time, and her hair was loosely combed.

She was about to scold her again when she saw Liu Yun's swollen face and realized why she had deliberately not combed her hair properly.

With a cold laugh, Supervisor Xu had certainly seen the world. This group of people all had their own skills, and on the very first day, they had already clashed to the point of slapping each other. There really wasn't a single one of them who knew any manners. If it weren't for the order from above, she wouldn't have wanted to personally teach these illiterate young ladies. Even though she was given this important task in a time of crisis, some of them still didn't respect her rules.

Supervisor Xu slowly spoke, “I think that today, none of you young ladies need to learn anything.”

Everyone could tell the difference between good and bad words, and they all looked up, puzzled.

Xu Shangjian walked up to Liu Yun, reached out and slowly lifted Liu Yun's face, "Who hit you?"

Liu Yun clenched her hands tightly. Although she was unwilling to admit it, she had to tell the truth. Then she thought that if Supervisor Xu could severely punish Qiao Ran for this, it would also relieve her anger.

"Yes……"

Liu Yun's eyes instantly reddened, and she looked towards Qiao Ran, sobbing. Just as she was about to accuse her, Kong Hanyan stepped forward and admitted, "Shangjian, it was me who hit her."

Liu Yun and the others widened their eyes, while Qiao Ran secretly gave Kong Hanyan a thumbs up, thinking she was a righteous person.

Kong Hanyan looked ahead with a calm expression. Xu Shangjian walked up to her again, and just when everyone thought she was going to punish her, she said, "It takes two to tango. This is the palace, not your private quarters. You should all keep your conflicts to yourselves. If you start a fight and disturb any noble person, I won't be able to save you."

Although Supervisor Xu spoke calmly, everyone felt a jolt down their spines and vaguely sensed something was amiss; Supervisor Xu seemed to be somewhat biased towards Kong Hanyan.

She's just an unloved concubine's daughter. Has Supervisor Xu lost his mind? What's the point of being nice to her?

Even though they had doubts, no one dared to ask them.

Yesterday's farce was about to end so easily. Liu Yun had suffered a lot of grievances, but now Supervisor Xu was not punishing her at all. How could she bear it? She immediately stood up angrily and said loudly, "Supervisor Xu, it was Qiao Xiaoran who hit me!"

Qiao Ran: "..."

Putting aside the fact that she's already being punished by standing in the corner, is Liu Yun an idiot?

Since Supervisor Xu is not pursuing the matter, it is obvious to anyone with eyes that he is biased towards Kong Hanyan. It would be best to let this matter pass. If Liu Yun is foolish enough to reveal the truth now, she will be pushing all the blame onto Qiao Ran. Will Supervisor Xu still be able to punish Qiao Ran severely for favoritism?

Wouldn't that make everyone know that she's unfair and favors Kong Hanyan?

This was tantamount to putting Supervisor Xu in a difficult position in front of everyone. Sure enough, Supervisor Xu frowned, and his eyes showed a hint of disgust.

Liu Yun kept saying, "Your Excellency, Qiao Xiaoran hit me in public, everyone saw it, please punish her severely!"

Xu Shangjian's expression was unpredictable. She was too lazy to criticize Liu Yun anymore, but she couldn't be unfair, so she asked, "You all saw it? Liu Yun was hit by Qiao Xiaoran?"

Everyone else stammered and kept their heads down, not saying a word. The situation was a bit unclear now, and the winds had suddenly shifted. It seemed that associating with Kong Hanyan would bring more benefits. Liu Yun not only had a bad temper, but she was also extremely stupid.

"Can't you hear me?!" Supervisor Xu suddenly raised his voice, insisting on getting an answer.

Unable to rely on anyone else, Qiao Ran had to speak up herself. She deliberately acted a little aggrieved and stammered, "Shangjian, it was...it was me who hit him."

Her frail appearance, placed on her snow-white face, actually made her look rather pitiful. Those who had seen her imposing manner yesterday were shocked, wondering how many faces she truly possessed.

Supervisor Xu: "One by one, you're all rushing to take the blame. Then tell me, why did you beat Liu Yun?"

Kong Hanyan: "Ask her yourself."

Qiao Ran: "Her mouth is dirty."

After the two finished speaking in unison, Supervisor Xu finally understood that Kong Hanyan and Qiao Ran had done this together, and she felt a headache coming on.

Liu Yun vehemently retorted, "Shangjian, they're talking nonsense!"

"?" Qiao Ran was really annoyed. She stopped standing as punishment and took a few steps to Liu Yun, startling Liu Yun so much that she stumbled. Qiao Ran pretended to be weak and helpless and pointed at Liu Yun, "Should you repeat what you said yesterday in front of Supervisor Xu? If you don't say it, I'll help you remember."

Liu Yun was surprised that Qiao Ran never played by the rules and stammered, unable to speak.

"You won't talk about it, huh?" Qiao Ran turned around and bowed to Supervisor Xu. "Supervisor Xu, it's not that I wanted to hit her on purpose, it's just that Liu Yun's words were too awful. It's one thing for her to curse me, but she also insulted my mother for no reason, calling her a vixen, a seductress, a slut... Before entering the palace, I didn't know her at all. How could I tolerate her saying such awful things as soon as she opened her mouth?"

Liu Yun's face was pale. The words Qiao Ran spoke were clearly even more offensive than the insults she had hurled at her yesterday. She saw Xu Shangjian's expression darken further as she tried to deny it, saying, "I didn't."

Qiao Ran, however, refused to give up. "The Imperial Supervisor can ask the young ladies in this courtyard. They'll know for sure whether it's true or false. Liu Yun is, after all, a daughter of an official. Her foul language is unbearable even for someone like me from a poor, remote area. I think it's right for me to hit her."

She spoke with such conviction that she even pretended to wipe away fabricated tears at the end, a move that truly astonished Liu Yun.

Xu Shangjian was a proper palace maid, and her knowledge and refinement were no less than those of the men in the palace. After listening to Qiao Ran's words, she began to re-examine Liu Yun. These were not words that a lady from a respectable family could say.

For a moment, she was so angry that she was speechless, and could only turn her back and pat her chest to catch her breath.

After a long while, she turned around and said angrily, "It seems that Miss Liu is the first to learn these rules properly. Her language is so vulgar that it would tarnish the reputation of the ladies-in-waiting in my palace!"

These words were too harsh. Liu Yun became frightened and cried until her voice was almost hoarse. The others remained silent, not daring to make a sound.

Qiao Ran smiled inwardly, appearing fearless. She was a vengeful person, and Qin Huai had repeatedly described her as vindictive. She then spoke softly.

"Shang Jian is right. Trouble comes from the mouth. The person who speaks may feel good, but how much time will it take to calm down the hurt caused by those words? I sat on the bed all night last night thinking about it, but I still couldn't figure out what I did wrong, what I did to offend Miss Liu and make her insult me ​​like that. I finally fell asleep just before dawn and even had a nightmare because of it."

She rattled off a whole bunch of things, even shifting the blame for her sleeping in onto Liu Yun, making Liu Yun want to kill Qiao Ran for a moment.

After listening, Xu Shang's slightly furrowed brows relaxed a little, but he remained stern and said, "In the palace, rewards and punishments must be clear. Qiao Xiaoran will be punished by standing for one hour for sleeping late, and Liu Yun will be punished by standing for two hours for speaking ill of others. The rest of you, come with me to Fengxing Pavilion for your first lesson."

"Yes, Supervisor."

The two hours were reduced to one hour. Qiao Ran didn't know whether to be happy or sad, but having someone by her side made her feel much better.

Liu Yun was still crying and sobbing, unable to stand properly. She cried out that her face hurt, and the female official in charge of watching them showed no mercy by hitting her with a ruler to make her stand up straight. She said, "After the punishment of standing is over, we will ask the doctor to take a look at the young lady."

Liu Yun was punished with a ruler, and she was extremely embarrassed.

In contrast, Qiao Ran stood quietly. Although she was not up to standard in any way, she was obedient and quiet. After about half an hour, the sun gradually got hotter, and she was covered in sweat after standing for a while.

By the time Qiao Ran had stood for almost an hour, the sun was already making her skin hurt. Liu Yun next to her had gradually stopped crying. Qiao Ran turned her head to look at her and saw that her face was pale, sweat was dripping down her forehead, and she was swaying unsteadily. She didn't know if she was faking it.

Anyway, when the hour was up, Qiao Ran felt like she had been granted a pardon. She breathed a sigh of relief and began to stretch her muscles. Then she heard a "thud" and looked over to see Liu Yun lying flat on the ground, unconscious.

The female official calmly went over, squeezed her wrist, and touched her forehead, saying, "Come and lend a hand, let's carry her inside."

Despite her aching back and waist, Qiao Ran went over to help lift Liu Yun and throw her onto the bed. She didn't care about anything else. She went back to her room to wash up, and by noon, hearing voices in the courtyard, she knew that Kong Hanyan and the others had returned.

Qiao Ran pushed open the door and saw the once vibrant young ladies, one by one, hanging their heads and sighing, being helped into the courtyard, as if they had been tortured all morning.

She felt a chill in her heart; what exactly had Supervisor Xu done to them?

Kong Hanyan was relatively well-behaved; instead of going back to her room to lie down, she walked over to Qiao Ran. Qiao Ran smiled at her and welcomed her into the house.

This was the first time the two had been in close proximity. Qiao Ran had a good impression of Kong Hanyan and offered to pour her water. "Did Supervisor Xu torment you?"

Kong Hanyan took a big gulp before saying, "Their behavior and mannerisms have kept everyone coming all morning; it's because their health is too poor."

Qiao Ran smiled gently and looked closely at Kong Hanyan. Beneath her brows were bright, phoenix-shaped eyes with thick, curled eyelashes. Upon closer inspection, her eyes were clear and beautiful, a face that Qiao Ran liked.

So Qiao Ran felt more at ease in front of her. "Why did you come to the palace? You don't seem to like it here."

"Don't you hate this place even more than I do?" Kong Hanyan asked bluntly.

The two looked at each other and smiled.

Qiao Ran said, "There's no other way. We're already here, let's figure out another way to get out."

"Didn't Supervisor Xu say that if you fail the exam in three months, you'll be sent back?" Kong Hanyan lowered her eyes. "Even if you really don't want to stay, you have to endure it for three months."

Qiao Ran smiled bitterly, fearing that she wouldn't even be able to stay for three months. She was not Qiao Xiaoran at all. She didn't even know who was messing with her like this. There were even more dangers here, and she dared not take any chances.