The Slender Waist-Chapter 14 - 11: The Hand of the Empress Dowager_2

Chapter 14: Chapter 11: The Hand of the Empress Dowager_2

Now that I see her, the Empress Dowager really is the Empress Dowager, insightful.

If such a demoness isn’t eliminated, I’m afraid General Pei will have to yield his position to others.

Eunuch Fang straightened his expression and added a hint of cruelty, "Since the Feng Family’s girl doesn’t know what’s good for her, take her back to Central Capital and wait for Her Highness the Empress Dowager’s disposal."

He waved his hand to signal the guards to come and arrest people.

However, as two little Huangmen officials closed in, Ao Qi unsheathed his sword from an angle.

Without a word, he went straight for the kill. The lightning-fast blade pierced an unprepared Huangmen official, who clutched his arm and screamed out in pain...

Then, Ao Qi pulled Feng Yun behind him, grabbed another person with his long arm, and pushed them towards Eunuch Fang, making him stagger backwards and let out a pig-like cry of pain against the doorframe.

"How dare you! Ao Qi, do you dare to defy orders?"

Ao Qi snorted, "I am acting on the orders of the Great General."

Eunuch Fang, ablaze with anger from the collision, "Today I intend to take her away, what will you do about it?"

Ao Qi raised his long sword high, pointing it at Eunuch Fang’s face, and swept it across, "Your life is in danger!"

It was a slender ring-pommel sword, thick on the back but sharply pointed on the edge, bloodied in battle and used to kill without hesitation, steady and precise, perfectly slicing off a tuft of Eunuch Fang’s hair without being lethal.

"Ao Qi!"

Eunuch Fang, disbelieving, stared wide-eyed, touched his scalp, and saw blood flowing through his fingers, causing him to stutter on the spot.

"Do you have the Empress Dowager and the law in your eyes at all?"

Ao Qi frowned and glanced at his beloved sword, probably considering it unlucky, and reluctantly wiped it on Eunuch Fang’s body with an extremely arrogant demeanor.

"With the Great General governing Andu County, the Great General’s words are the law of Andu County."

Eunuch Fang’s face turned alternately green and white, filled with seething hatred yet helpless.

Pei Jue’s guards, each and every one of them brave and fiercely competitive, regarded human life as if it were a child’s play; provoke them, and they would kill without a second thought.

And in these chaotic times, the emperor’s power may not be greater than military power, and even the Empress Dowager and the Prime Minister must consider Pei Jue’s feelings.

Moreover, the Empress Dowager’s deep-rooted affection for Pei Jue meant that if things got too ugly, it would backfire on him, the scapegoat.

Eunuch Fang looked at his blood-drenched palm, loosened his clenched jaw, and put on a smiling face.

"I am carrying out orders; please extend your grace, Ao guard..."

Ao Qi rolled his eyes with a "I don’t care if you live or die" arrogance and simply said, "Under the General’s jurisdiction, we must follow the General’s rules. The person I want cannot be taken by Eunuch Fang."

Eunuch Fang’s blood rose to his head, "Ao guard..."

"Both of you!" Feng Yun, having observed the battle for a while, saw that the time was about right, gave Ao Qi a pacifying look, smoothed his feathers, then bent down and gave a bow to Eunuch Fang.

"I have a compromise to propose; would Eunuch Fang care to hear it?"

Eunuch Fang, caught in a dilemma, promptly responded, "What would you suggest?"

Feng Yun said, "I’ll take some of the Prefectural Officials with me and leave some for Eunuch Fang, so both you and Ao guard can report back satisfactorily."

Her tone was gentle, her demeanor soft, yet her words carried an irresistible force.

—

The prison in the governor’s mansion was dimly lit, the ground damp, emitting a musty smell.

Now, the majority of those imprisoned here were once the city’s administrators or the jail’s guards. Officials, prefectural officials, garrison soldiers, and their families who failed to escape crammed the cells to the brim. Curses, spitting, pleas, and wails echoed in the eerie depths of the prison, like the haunting cries from hell, exceedingly terrifying.

Feng Jingteng burnt down the granary in a feigned defection and escape; they suffered the disaster as scapegoats.

Therefore, they harbored extreme hatred towards the daughter of Feng Jingteng.

Feng Yun passed through them, her expression indifferent.

She wasn’t a Bodhisattva and couldn’t save so many; this was the tragedy of war. No matter how much anger and hatred there were, everyone had to accept their fate.

The prefectural officials and servants of the imperial governor’s office were locked up in Bingzi Prison, men and women alike, their eyes wide as Feng Yun approached. Some cried out in surprise and joy, whereas others, who had always followed Lady Chen and had been particularly harsh to Feng Yun, were scared out of their wits...

Feng Yun stood still, looking at those faces that were both strange and familiar.

"Suffering such an ordeal, everyone has had a hard time. I’ve come today to take you away. But before we leave, there are a few things I’d like to clarify..."

Everyone’s mouths were saying ’yes’, as their gazes uniformly landed on Feng Yun.

They had seen the legitimate eldest daughter of the governor before, but those smiling eyes that now held an icy chill were completely foreign to them, as if she had become a different person altogether.

"Lady Chen, using her natal family’s influence, covertly conspired with the senior branch, seeking to replace me and betroth Feng Ying to Xiao San Lang. Those who have knowledge of this, stand to the left."

"Lady Chen mistreated the people of Meixiang Pavilion and allowed her servants to humiliate me. Those who are aware, stand to the left."

"Lady Chen spread rumors saying that Shi’er Niang has suffered from hysteria since childhood, acting indecently and frivolously, without any decorum expected of a lady, making her unfit to be matched with Xiao San... Those who are aware, stand to the left."

Feng Yun inquired about many past issues with a calm tone, but her intentions were unclear.

But with every statement she made, people moved to the left.

Their thoughts were that Shi’er Niang wishing to know about these affairs would surely lead to detailed questioning, and by exposing the former mistress’s misdeeds, they could gain favor with the new mistress...

Unexpectedly, once Feng Yun finished her questioning, she counted the number of people and showed a satisfied smile.

"All right. Those on the left, eunuch Fang will take away for questioning. Those on the right, come with me."

Eunuch Fang: "???"

He had a bad feeling about this, but there was no alternative at this point; he could only sweep a cold glance at Feng Yun and summon the guards to take the prisoners away.

"Wuu..."

A loud wailing broke out in the cells.

Only then did they understand that Feng Yun was seeking revenge, yet they could only watch as she led away those who had feigned ignorance, crying and begging for mercy or cursing in anguish.

Feng Yun remained unmoved.

These people were either accomplices of the Chen family or petty villains.

Even if eunuch Fang hadn’t come, she wouldn’t have been lenient; now that he had taken over, it saved her the trouble...