Gifted Bride of the Sinned Prince

236 Injustice to my Wife’s Family

In the evening, Qiu Zedong came to check on Prince Lóng Wei. He was accompanied by his Queen and two Consorts.

“Did Prince Lóng Wei not wake up yet?” Qiu Zedong asked.

“No, Your Majesty,” Li Hua answered.

“Surprisingly, Li Hua saved Prince Lóng Wei. Did she learn acupuncture? It seems she is good at many things.” Zhu Liling was desperate to know what Li Hua was like. What more skills did she possess?

“I learned it from my late father, Your Majesty,” Li Hua answered.

“That’s good. Because of your skills, my son is alive,” Qiu Zedong answered and smiled widely. “Physician Peng had almost given up on my son,” he remarked.

“Inform us when Prince Lóng Wei wakes up,” Qiu Zedong told Li Hua. However, before leaving, he walked up to the bed and checked on his son. He placed his hand on his forehead.

“His body temperature is high,” Qiu Zedong worriedly said.

“That’s because of the potion, which is supposed to remove the toxins from His Highness’ body,” Li Hua answered. Qiu Zedong stood straight and asked Li Hua to keep treating his son.

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“Take the help of Physician Peng too,” he suggested to her.

“Your Majesty, I will do it alone,” Li Hua affirmed.

Qiu Zedong ended up smiling and nodding at her. He looked at Xiaoming and Mingquan. “Go and take twenty floggings each at the punishment house,” he told the two princes.

Zhu Liling widened her eyes in bewilderment and asked the King why he was talking about floggings out of the blue.

“His Majesty is punishing the princes because they both violated the command. Being the Crown Prince he must remain loyal to the King not to a rebellious prince,” Noble Consort Xiuying remarked and smirked. She had gotten another opportunity to humiliate her because of her son.

“Your Majesty, please don’t punish Crown Prince Xiaoming and Prince Mingquan. They both tried to help Prince Lóng Wei and Li Hua. If there is someone who should be punished, then they are the ones who must accept this,” Zhu Liling requested Qiu Zedong while putting the entire blame on Li Hua and Lóng Wei.

“We both brothers accept the punishment,” Xiaoming said, asking his father not to listen to his mother or any other. “I went against the command of the King, so I must realize my mistake,” he proclaimed.

“Your Majesty, I, as the Queen request-”

Qiu Zedong cut her words in the middle, “I don’t want to hear anything regarding my judgment. If I don’t punish them, then they will keep doing this. They must know that this punishment isn’t merely because I want them to feel what the rules are but also not to lie to their father.” He explained it to everyone present inside the chamber.

“Now, I don’t want to hear anything. Prince Lóng Wei is still in his unconscious state,” Qiu Zedong said, and he glanced worriedly at his son once more.

“Gao Bing, take both the princes to the punishment house,” Qiu Zedong ordered his personal servant. Eunuch Gao Bing stepped up and humbly asked the two princes to follow him.

“I don’t allow it,” Zhu Liling objected to it. Qiu Zedong stepped up to speak.

“Eunuch Lianying, take the Queen to her manor. Since she also decided to object to my decision, she will stay inside her chamber for three days,” Qiu Zedong affirmed. Everyone was shocked to hear the King.

Xiuying could not hide her happiness and ended up saying, “The Queen should not intervene in the path of justice.”

“Noble Consort Xiuying, leave! I already said that I don’t want any noise here. You aren’t supposed to humiliate the Queen. I won’t stop myself from punishing you as well,” Qiu Zedong seemed angry and burst it on his Noble Consort.

Xiuying apologized and immediately left the chamber along with Ruoxi. Xiaoming and Mingquan left with Gao Bing, while Zhu Liling silently went to her manor.

Xu Zifan and Li Hua were the only remaining people in the chamber apart from the King and the Sixth Prince.

Qiu Zedong decided to stay in the chamber and asked Li Hua to take a seat.

“Until His Majesty remains standing, I cannot sit down,” Li Hua said. Qiu Zedong smiled and went to the broad chair to take a seat.

“Lóng Wei did every sort of mischief, but he never let himself get harmed,” Qiu Zedong said. Li Hua understood his remark and sincerely apologized. Xu Zifan also asked for forgiveness.

“I gave you the task of bringing him on the right path, yet you are supporting him in all such acts.” He could not hold his anger. Earlier, he remained quiet because Monk Yuze calmed him down, but seeing his son’s face, he once more turned furious. Moreover, the troublesome thing was that she included two more princes in that.

“The Crown Prince never violated my orders. No matter what the situation was, he never took a step that could make me punish him. The same with Prince Mingquan. They are both judicious, unlike my other sons. However, for a woman, they decided to go to this extent,” Qiu Zedong’s words clearly showed that he was infuriated by Li Hua.

“I am willing to take the punishment for this, Your Majesty,” Li Hua stated. Xu Zifan found this a helpless situation. Because if he tried to speak, then the King might go for severe punishment for Li Hua. He understood why his father was adamant about not making her marry royalty. The palace rules were strict.

“I have decided to punish Shui Xiaoqing and Feng Lao to death since they are the reasons that my son took this deadly shot,” Qiu Zedong affirmed.

Li Hua looked into his eyes, but then lowered them. Xu Zifan didn’t stay quiet and said, “Your Majesty, Shui Xiaoqing knows the enemy who killed people in our family. Let him confess first.” He got down on his knees and pleaded with the King.

“If he had to confess, then he would have from the morning. However, Shui Xiaoqing refused to speak,” Qiu Zedong replied. “I cannot let such people live who become a danger to my son’s life,” he affirmed. Li Hua lifted her head to look at the King and found the King’s gaze on her.

“Royal Father cannot make such a decision,” Lóng Wei’s deep voice fell on their ears. Li Hua immediately turned to look and found Lóng Wei had already sat up on the mattress.

“I didn’t take this shot because I wanted him to be dead. I want the name of the person who did injustice to my wife’s family,” Lóng Wei pronounced.