She remarried a cold-faced, powerful man, and the scumbag regretted it and cried his heart out.

Hearing the commotion, Wen Yin hurriedly turned around and ran over, only to be greatly shocked by what she saw.

Shen Jingshu stood by the pavilion, coldly glancing at the two struggling and calling for help in the water. Instantly, her expression changed to one of anxiety, and she shouted loudly, "Help! Miss Gu and Miss Xie have fallen into the water! Come and save them!"

Hearing the commotion, the palace maids and eunuchs rushed over and rescued Gu Shiyi and Xie Wanqing from the water without much effort.

In the palace, rescuing people from drowning was a skilled job.

The palace maid hurriedly ran to Qingyan Palace to inform the Empress, who felt a throbbing sensation between her eyebrows.

She was just a young girl, far too naive and foolish to cause such a scene at the palace banquet.

She summoned Song Wan and Jiang Shi, and instructed Jin Gu to quickly fetch the cloak. Then she took the two of them to the Imperial Garden.

After getting ashore, Gu Shiyi was soaking wet and looked disheveled, with her hair sticking messily to her face, her eyes filled with shame, anger, and resentment.

Her finger trembled as she pointed at Shen Jingshu, shouting angrily, "Shen Jingshu, how dare you push me into the water! What are you up to?"

Wen Yin was displeased. Her eyebrows furrowed and her pretty face was filled with anger. She shouted, "What nonsense are you talking about? Jing Shu and I were invited by my cousin Wan Qing to watch the fish. There was no one in the pavilion at all. How could you say that Jing Shu pushed you?"

Shen Jingshu also looked innocent. "Miss Gu, I was standing right here. It was clearly you who suddenly appeared and fell into the water. My cousin Wanqing and I tried to help you up, but we didn't have time. Instead, you dragged my cousin down with us. I also want to ask you, how did you come out of there?"

She had already chosen a spot, where the view was blocked by several pavilion pillars, so even if there were people nearby, they wouldn't be able to see what was happening.

Song Wan and Jiang rushed over and were shocked to see them in such a disheveled state.

Seeing her mother arrive, Gu Shiyi felt as if she had found her pillar of support and immediately cried out, "Mother, it was Shen Jingshu who pushed me! She deliberately tried to harm me!"

Upon hearing this, Jiang raised her hand to strike Shen Jingshu, but Song Wan quickly stepped forward to stop her.

The Empress's face darkened, and she roared, "I'll see who dares to lay a hand on me!"

Jiang was startled and her hand froze in mid-air. Not daring to disobey the Empress's order, she had no choice but to put it down.

The Empress's gaze swept over the crowd, and she said, "This matter has not yet been investigated. Anyone who dares to act recklessly will be punished without mercy. Such a farce has occurred at my small banquet; what kind of decorum is this!"

The Qingyan Palace was right next door. When the Empress suddenly left with two ladies, many people were curious about what had happened and came out to see.

The Imperial Garden was in chaos, with palace maids and eunuchs coming and going. Gu Shiyi and Xie Wanqing were soaking wet and sitting on the ground in a sorry state.

Seeing this, everyone whispered among themselves, speculating about what had happened.

Jin Gu brought over cloaks, and the palace maids quickly draped them over Gu Shiyi and Xie Wanqing.

"Take the two of them to the side hall to change their clothes first. I will make a decision after I have found out the reason for the matter."

After saying that, she turned to look at Shen Jingshu and Wen Yin, her eyes filled with scrutiny, "Tell me what exactly happened."

"Your Majesty, my lady-in-waiting and I were chatting in the palace when my cousin Wanqing came to invite us to see the koi carp that were a tribute from the Southern Cang Kingdom. I was curious, so I came to see them. But then Miss Gu suddenly rushed out from the side and fell into the water. Before I could even try to save her, my cousin Wanqing was also pulled into the water. I was also startled at the time. There was absolutely no pushing or shoving involved. I beg Your Majesty to investigate this matter thoroughly."

Wen Yin nodded repeatedly, echoing, "Your Majesty, everything Jing Shu said is true. We were talking so well at the time that we were completely unprepared."

The Empress nodded, pondering to herself, but did not reveal her expression.

Side hall.

After changing her clothes and wringing out her hair, Gu Shiyi was filled with uncontrollable anger. When she saw Xie Wanqing come out, she rushed up to her without saying a word and slapped her twice hard.

Two crisp "slap" sounds echoed in the side hall, and two clear handprints instantly appeared on Xie Wanqing's cheeks.

She was so shocked by the blow that she saw stars and staggered back a few steps, her face full of astonishment.

Gu Shiyi gritted her teeth and cursed, "You bitch, how dare you conspire with Shen Jingshu to scheme against me!"

Xie Wanqing covered her face, tears welling up in her eyes, and hurriedly explained, "Sister Gu, I don't know how things could have turned out this way. I absolutely did not collude with her to harm you."

Gu Shiyi refused to listen and was about to make a move again. A palace maid saw this and quickly stepped forward to pull her back, advising, "Miss Gu, don't be impulsive. Her Majesty the Empress is still waiting. If you continue to make trouble, it may be bad for you."

Gu Shiyi then suppressed her anger, glared fiercely at Xie Wanqing, straightened her clothes, and turned to walk towards the main hall.

Xie Wanqing harbored resentment in her heart, but could only silently follow behind.

At the banquet, no one was in the mood for fun. Everyone had been sitting there for more than half an hour. The Empress sat upright on her phoenix throne and said slowly, "What do you have to say about what happened today?"

Just as Gu Shiyi was about to speak, Gu Shile quietly reached out and, using her wide sleeve as a cover, squeezed her hand.

She choked for a moment, then reluctantly said, "I was so frightened by the incident of falling into the water that I lost my composure. I was in such a hurry to see the koi that I was careless and didn't pay attention to my step, which is why I accidentally fell into the water."

When Consort Shao noticed Xie Wanqing's swollen cheeks, she deliberately asked, "What happened to Miss Xie's face? She looked perfectly fine just now."

Xie Wanqing quickly lowered her head, covering her swollen cheek with her sleeve, and stammered, "Your Highness, I accidentally tripped and fell in the side hall and bumped my face. Please forgive me."

Consort Shao said meaningfully, "Oh, I see."

The Empress raised her eyes, looked at Xie Wanqing, and then at Gu Shiyi. She already knew the truth of the matter.

The disputes among the women may seem trivial, but if investigated further, they could lead to discord and infighting between different households, which would be detrimental to both the court and the harem. In that case, it would be her fault as the empress.

Gu Shiyi has already admitted in the palace that she accidentally fell into the water, which is enough for the Empress. What Gu Shiyi says after leaving the palace is none of her business.

She coughed lightly and said, "So, today's events were just an accident. Today is my birthday celebration, and I shouldn't let such trivial matters spoil my mood."

The ladies present were all mistresses of high-ranking families, and they had used all sorts of tricks to deal with concubines in their daily lives. After hearing the Empress's conclusion, they all praised her for being wise.

After this commotion, the small banquet was drawing to a close, and everyone prepared to head to the Wende Hall to attend the real palace banquet.

Song Wan looked at Xie Wanqing, feeling very disappointed.

She had raised the child herself, so how could she not know her temperament? But she always thought that this was her sister's orphan and wanted to treat her well.

She walked side by side with Xie Wanqing, her gaze fixed straight ahead, and said, "Wanqing, if there are things you don't want to say, your aunt won't force you. If you want to marry into the Cheng family, then marry into it. I've prepared your dowry. You're all grown up now, and your aunt only hopes that you can live a good life, do you understand?"

Xie Wanqing sneered inwardly.

When Madam Lü saw that her daughter was involved in such a matter, she was afraid and was telling Wen Yin to try not to get too close to the Pingyang Marquis's residence in the future. However, when Wen Yin saw Shen Jing Shu walking alone behind, she immediately broke free from Madam Lü's hand and chased after her.

She leaned close to Shen Jingshu and whispered, "Jingshu, did you really not push her?"

Shen Jingshu blinked. "It's me."

Wen Yin: "..."

"However, I only rejected Xie Wanqing."

"……Row."