The princess regretted it.

Chapter 324 Qiu Wen "Being Beaten"

In the harem, Jiaoyu had been completely lost since returning from the Second Prince's visit, looking profoundly depressed. She had locked herself in her room, not even stepping out for the entire day. Silence reigned in the room, broken only by her occasional sobs.

Since then, Jiaoyu has given people an even more gloomy impression. Everyone in the Jiaoyu Palace feels the same way. From that moment on, Jiaoyu seemed completely enveloped in a gloomy haze, emanating a cold and oppressive aura. Her entire demeanor has become increasingly gloomy. Although she used to have a somewhat fiery personality, she still had a certain amount of life in her. But now, that life seemed drained out, leaving only a cold and sinister demeanor. Treading on thin ice.

In Jiaoyu Palace, everyone, from the head aunt to the maidservants, walked with extreme caution, as if treading on thin ice, fearing that the slightest mistake would bring disaster. On weekdays, when Jiaoyu was in the palace, no one dared to breathe, walking with light steps and speaking in low voices, for fear of disturbing the aunt.

Once, a young palace maid's hand accidentally trembled while serving tea, causing some of the tea to spill, soaking Jiaoyu's skirt. The maid's face paled with fear, and she fell to her knees with a thud, trembling all over, and kowtowed repeatedly, begging for mercy. Jiaoyu gave her a cold glance, a look that seemed to freeze anyone, so frightened that the maid's cries choked in her throat.

"Drag her away and give her twenty slaps." Jiaoyu's voice was cold as she was dragged out by two burly maids. Soon, the sound of slapping and the maid's cries could be heard from outside the hall. The other palace servants inside were terrified, their heads lowered, not daring to even look.

Another time, Xiangcao was reporting the detailed expenditure of the monthly allowance to Jiaoyu. When she hesitated for a moment about a number, Jiaoyu suddenly threw the teacup in her hand at her. Xiangcao was so scared that she quickly knelt on the ground with her forehead pressed against the ground, and cold sweat kept coming out of her forehead.

"If you can't even handle such a small thing, what's the use of you?" Jiaoyu scolded angrily. Xiangcao was so scared that she dared not breathe and could only kowtow repeatedly to apologize.

Under this high-pressure atmosphere, the palace servants in Jiaoyu Palace lived in fear every day, and they communicated less with each other. Everyone was busy with their work, just hoping to get through each day safely.

However, Jiaoyu was immersed in her own world, turning a blind eye to the fear and anxiety of those around her, and she was sinking deeper and deeper into the gloomy quagmire, unable to extricate herself.

Concubine Zhang had been growing increasingly restless lately, a lingering unease clinging to her like a maggot. The people she had previously instructed Qiu Wen to contact had vanished without a trace, leaving no trace of news. Furthermore, Jiao Yu, who usually frequented her palace, had also been missing for several days, further exacerbating Concubine Zhang's anxiety.

And no one knew what had happened to Yunji the day Jiaoyu was sent to see him. Jiaoyu herself hadn't come, nor had anyone sent to inform him. During this time, she had Qiuwen also inquire about the palace. Besides the Imperial Guards still investigating, there was nothing unusual, nothing special had happened.

But Zhang felt something was not right, but she could not leave. The days of anxiety had made her unable to sit still any longer, so she told Qiu Wen to find a way to make arrangements. She had to go out, she wanted to go to Jiao Yu to see what was going on.

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the harem, Concubine Cen was also having a rough time. After Mingyue's disappearance, she seemed to have vanished from the face of the earth, with no further news of her. Those who had previously been in secret contact with her also vanished like kites with their strings cut.

She always felt that this matter was closely related to Concubine Zhang. After years of working in the harem, she knew Concubine Zhang's methods very well. Concubine Zhang was deep-minded, ruthless, and would do anything to achieve her goals.

Although Concubine Zhang is currently under house arrest and confined to her own palace, not allowed to step out of the palace, Concubine Cen knows that Concubine Zhang has worked hard in the harem for many years and has a complex network of contacts. No one knows how many spies she has planted and how many followers she has cultivated in the harem.

As the saying goes, "A lean camel is bigger than a horse." Even though Concubine Zhang is in a difficult situation now, if she is determined to harm Concubine Chun, with her ability, she will definitely be able to come up with a way and find an opportunity to do it.

When she told Jin'an the news she knew, she specifically pointed to the Zhang family. She believed that Jin'an would be secretly watching Concubine Zhang's actions.

Facts proved that Concubine Cen's guess was correct. Not only did Jin'an indeed arrange for people to keep an eye on Wuqiu Palace, but even the emperor had sent people to secretly watch. However, Jin'an arranged for secret guards, and the emperor had the Imperial Guards to arrange the arrangements.

That day, Jiaoyu entered Concubine Zhang's Wuqiu Palace, her every move being observed. Later, those who left Jin'an and the emperor's men were secretly following her. However, the emperor's men couldn't follow too closely, as they would easily be discovered. Therefore, the information they obtained was far less detailed than that of Jin'an's secret guards. They only knew that Jiaoyu later went to the Second Prince's residence, but knew nothing about the specific details of her journey.

In the evening, as usual, it was time to collect dinner at Wuqiu Palace. As usual, Qiuwen would appear on time, but today she was unusual. She had reportedly complained of feeling unwell in the afternoon, and even though it was past dinner time, she still hadn't shown up.

At this moment, the guards outside the palace heard Concubine Zhang's sharp and fierce shouts from within, shattering the silence within the palace walls. Then, the sound of shattering objects echoed through the empty palace. Then, a crisp and resounding "pop" sounded, abrupt and unexpected in the quiet evening.

After a while, Qiuwen was seen with her head down, one hand tightly covering her face, and the other hand frantically wiping her eyes with a handkerchief. She was trembling and sobbing as she walked out of the palace quickly.

The guards were shocked and looked at each other, and they all saw the same guess in each other's eyes - the sudden sound must have been someone being slapped, and from the current situation, the slap was most likely on Qiuwen's face.

When the guards saw this, a trace of barely perceptible embarrassment flashed across their faces, and then they shifted their gaze elsewhere somewhat unnaturally, pretending to be fully focused on their duty and pretending not to notice Qiu Wen's embarrassed appearance.

Little did they know that it was this deliberate avoidance that made them miss a key detail - Qiu Wen's figure today seemed slightly different from the past, her steps were a little shaky, and her posture seemed to have subtle changes, but all these slipped past their eyes quietly when the guards pretended to ignore them.

Qiu Wen kept her head down all the way, covering her face with a handkerchief, sobs leaking out from between her fingers. She walked away from Wu Qiu Palace in a hurried and somewhat panicked manner.