Chapter 48 One Step Closer

In the deep recesses of the inner palace, discussions of ghosts and deities were strictly forbidden.

Xiao Ceyun roared with rage, his hair standing on end, "This is utter nonsense! Nothing but vile and filthy slander!"

By this time, Wei Yanqiao had completely lost control of her emotions. She cried out in a hoarse, piercing voice, "Your Majesty, you must believe this humble servant! Everything is truly my fault alone! The Buddha has grown wrathful and is descending punishment upon me! It is all my fault for losing my former piety and treating the sacrificial rites with careless perfunctoriness, thereby bringing such a terrible calamity upon the Empress!"

These words from Wei Yanqiao only fueled Xiao Ceyun's fury even further. His eyes bulged with rage as he shouted sternly, "Audacious wretch! How dare you speak such reckless nonsense here and delude the people with heterodox talk! Guards! Give her thirty hard slaps across the mouth!"

Immediately, two eunuchs stepped forward. One firmly pinned Wei Yanqiao's head, while the other wielded a thick wooden paddle, showing no mercy as he beat her fiercely across the mouth.

Crisp, successive smacks echoed through the air. Wei Yanqiao's lips instantly swelled to a grotesque size, tearing and bleeding in a horrifying manner. Bright red blood streamed down the corners of her mouth, dripping onto the floor to form shocking blossoms of gore.

A deathly silence enveloped the surroundings, broken only by the sound of the blows raining down upon Wei Yanqiao. Each falling paddle was accompanied by the sound of tearing flesh and Wei Yanqiao's muffled groans of agony.

Wei Yanqiao clenched her fists tightly, gritting her teeth to endure it all in silence. The intense pain caused her tears to burst forth like a broken dam, mingling with the blood spilling from the corners of her mouth and splattering in all directions.

Although her body had reached its absolute limit, she still clung tenaciously to her endurance, repeatedly telling herself deep in her heart: *I must hold on! I must survive this...*

Time seemed to freeze, and every single second was a form of torture for Wei Yanqiao. Finally, the long and cruel punishment of thirty heavy strikes came to an end.

By this time, Wei Yanqiao was utterly unrecognizable. Her once pretty and moving face was now swollen as large as a hog's head, mangled and bloody beyond description.

With a look of utter disgust, Xiao Ceyun commanded, "Drag her out!"

The two eunuchs seized Wei Yanqiao by the arms and dragged her away without a shred of mercy.

Wang Qianyang watched helplessly as Wei Yanqiao's once delicate body was now torn and bloodied. A tightness gripped his heart, and he instinctively wanted to rush forward. However, the words Wei Yanqiao had spoken to him before her departure suddenly echoed in his mind: *When I return, as long as I have a single breath left in me, you must act cold and utterly merciless.*

Though he truly could not fathom why Wei Yanqiao insisted on running before the Empress and the Emperor to court such humiliation, since she had made up her mind, there must surely be a profound purpose behind it.

The two eunuchs discarded Wei Yanqiao as casually as throwing away trash, heavily dumping her onto the ice-cold ground before turning and striding away without looking back.

Wang Qianyang walked forward with deep reluctance, carefully dragging Wei Yanqiao onto the bed. When he caught sight of her scar-ridden face, he could not help letting out a soft sigh.

Wei Yanqiao forced her heavy eyelids open, her eyes feeling as though they were weighed down by a thousand catties, yet she stubbornly refused to let them close. Even as waves of exhaustion washed over her like the tide, and pain gnawed at her body like a million ants, she gritted her teeth and persisted, not daring to relax even a fraction. She feared that once she closed her eyes, she would sink into an eternal slumber.

The fire in the side courtyard of the Jiaofang Palace did not spread to the main hall where Tang Yurong resided. Once the blaze was brought under control and gradually extinguished, Tang Yurong and Xiao Ceyun returned to the bedchamber.

The moment he stepped through the doorway, Xiao Ceyun's eyes caught a thick stack of scriptures scattered across the floor. Frowning slightly, he asked in puzzlement, "What are these things?"

Tang Yurong's heart tightened, but her expression remained as calm as unruffled water as she replied, "These are all scriptures copied by Wei Yanqiao."

"So many?" Xiao Ceyun asked, greatly astonished, his gaze falling upon the pile of scriptures. "Pick them up and let Me have a look."

Tang Yurong signaled Qingman beside her to step forward. Qingman cautiously gathered the scattered scriptures one by one and respectfully presented them to Xiao Ceyun.

With a calm expression, Xiao Ceyun picked up the mountain of copied scriptures and began to flip through them page by page. Compared with the scriptures Wei Yanqiao had previously copied with such care, these were worlds apart.

His brows furrowed deeply, and a sharp, stern look entered his eyes as he asked in a low voice, "Were these truly copied by Wei Yanqiao?"

Showing a look of worry on her face, Tang Yurong softly replied, "Your concubine is also deeply astonished by this. With Wei Yanqiao's strength alone, how could she possibly have copied such a massive quantity of scriptures?"

Seemingly unintentional, Tang Yurong lightly brushed past the matter of increasing Wei Yanqiao's copying quota, while seamlessly directing everyone's attention toward Wei Yanqiao, implying that she must have found someone else to ghostwrite and complete the task for her.

Xiao Ceyun remained silent, staring at the scriptures in his hands as he fell into deep thought. Ever since he stripped Wei Yanqiao of her title as the Noble Imperial Consort, turmoil had risen repeatedly in the imperial court, and matters had gone awry. Among the common people, strange phenomena and consecutive disasters had occurred. Could all of this be related to Wei Yanqiao? Could she truly be, as the rumors claimed, a lucky star capable of bringing auspicious fortune?

A flash of ruthlessness crossed Xiao Ceyun's eyes as he gritted his teeth and said, "Hear My decree: let Wei Yanqiao continue copying! Unless her body perishes and her soul scatters, she is to keep copying for Me continuously, all the way until she copies herself to death!"

Having spoken with a gloomy expression, Xiao Ceyun fiercely slammed the scriptures in his hand onto the table, then turned and strode away without looking back.

His heart was filled with anger and disdain. Wei Yanqiao had merely been babbling nonsense; everything happening now was surely nothing more than a coincidence and could never be the result of losing the protection of a lucky star. There must be something fishy about this matter, and he would thoroughly investigate it to root out the mastermind behind the scenes and uncover the truth.

Tang Yurong hurriedly rose and bowed to Xiao Ceyun, saying, "This concubine respectfully sends off Your Majesty."

After Xiao Ceyun walked away, she slowly straightened her posture, a ruthless glint appearing on her face as she turned to command her personal maid, "Go quickly and see if that Wei Yanqiao is dead yet! If she is still breathing, make her continue copying the scriptures without resting for even a single moment!"

Now that the Emperor had made his stance clear, she naturally had no need for any further misgivings, hoping only for Wei Yanqiao to die as soon as possible.

"Your Ladyship..." Qingman's maid showed a troubled expression, hesitating as if she had more to say.

Tang Yurong said coldly, "What is it you want to say?"

Casting a cautious glance at Tang Yurong, Qingman mustered her courage and spoke, "Your Ladyship, this servant thinks perhaps we should let Wei Yanqiao copy the scriptures with sincere devotion in peace, and stop increasing her workload to an impossible amount. After all, no sooner had Wei Yanqiao arrived at the Jiaofang Palace than a sudden fire broke out. In some matters, it is better to believe they exist than to assume they do not. What if it truly provokes the deities and brings down some calamity upon us?"

Tang Yurong gently stroked her heavily protruding belly. In about three more months, she would give birth, and it was indeed unwise to become tainted with bloody matters at such a time. "Very well, let it be as you say. Let her copy with sincere devotion."

A subtle, almost imperceptible smile curled the corners of Qingman's lips. She respectfully replied, "Yes, Your Ladyship. This servant will go and deliver the message right away."

Without making a sound, Qingman quietly tucked away some burn ointment.

Before long, Qingman arrived at the place where Wei Yanqiao was imprisoned. With a calm expression, she said to her, "The Empress has given her word, ordering you to continue copying the scriptures. However, this time she demands that you write them with a sincere and devoted heart, and you need not rush for success or blindly pursue quantity."

Looking at the scarred and haggard Wei Yanqiao before her, a strong wave of guilt involuntarily welled up in Qingman's heart. Had Wei Yanqiao not stepped forward and successfully drawn the attention of both the Emperor and the Empress, this arson case would likely have been investigated to the very end.

With a soft sigh inwardly, Qingman picked up the jar of ointment and carefully applied it to the shocking wounds on Wei Yanqiao's body.

After applying the medicine, Qingman gently placed the precious jar of ointment on the table beside the bed, then turned and walked away in silence. The room plunged into a profound stillness, leaving Wei Yanqiao lying alone upon the pallet.

Wei Yanqiao, who had kept her eyes tightly shut, slowly opened them. At that moment, her gaze grew increasingly resolute and venomous, her hands clenched into fists so tightly that her nails dug deep into her palms, though she felt no pain at all.

She was one step closer to her plan... She just had to endure a little longer!