"Then do not blame the Cold King's manor for expelling you," Leng Ruo Li said coldly.
"Hmph! It is clearly you, this jealous woman, who brought us into the Cold King's manor to vie for the Prince's favor. You never intended to keep us. Could a manor as grand as the Cold King's manor, with so many assets, not support a few women like us?" the woman retorted indignantly, accusing Leng Ruo Li.
Upon hearing this, Leng Ruo Li was utterly dumbfounded. It was they who had begged her to stay in the Cold King's manor just moments ago. Now that she was trying to help them, her good intentions were being treated as a donkey's liver and lungs.
At this moment, Jun Mo Han, who was standing by, heard the woman's words. A sinister glint flashed in his eyes. He glanced at the woman and said coldly, "This Prince does not keep idlers. Guards, throw her out of the manor."
Ye Yi and Ye Er hurried to the woman's side and dragged her out.
"Your Highness, Your Consort, I was wrong. Please do not cast me out."
The woman begged for mercy as she struggled. As she was dragged away, her cries grew fainter.
However, Leng Ruo Li truly did not wish to save her. A woman of this character, if saved, would not be grateful; instead, she would bite the hand that fed her.
After the woman left, Leng Ruo Li continued to ask, "Do the rest of you still wish to stay? If you wish to stay, you must possess a unique skill that can support yourselves."
As her words fell, the remaining women began to whisper amongst themselves...
"Stop, stop..."
Leng Ruo Li immediately shouted at them.
"This Princess Consort and His Highness do not have much time to listen to your endless chatter!"
"If none of you have a skill to support yourselves, then you will all be expelled from the Cold King's manor."
Leng Ruo Li cast a casual glance at them, her almond-shaped eyes cold and sharp.
Finally, a woman with a plump, baby face timidly stepped forward, her head lowered, and said fearfully, "Princess Consort, my needlework is quite good. Could you allow me to stay?"
"Being skilled in needlework is also a talent. You may stay. Come and stand behind me for now."
Leng Ruo Li nodded with satisfaction.
Then, Leng Ruo Li asked the remaining women, "Are there any others whose needlework is good? You may all stay."
The women shook their heads.
"Then do not blame me for not keeping you in the Cold King's manor. Guards, escort them out of the manor," Leng Ruo Li said helplessly.
"No, Princess Consort! If you drive us out, we cannot return home. We can only wander the streets, or worse, be sold to brothels as prostitutes," several women said, kneeling and weeping.
"Then I can do nothing. You have no skills, and His Highness has already said the Cold King's manor does not keep idlers. I cannot make an exception," Leng Ruo Li shrugged.
A moment later, a group of women were escorted out of the manor by guards.
"Your Highness, I have driven those women out of the Cold King's manor. Are you happy now?"
Leng Ruo Li glanced at the silent Jun Mo Han beside her and raised an eyebrow.
"There is still one here, is there not?"
Jun Mo Han looked at the woman kneeling on the ground and said.
"Uh..."
Leng Ruo Li almost forgot there was still a woman on the ground.
"Her physical condition does not seem to be very good,"
Leng Ruo Li said calmly, looking at the woman on the ground, then turning to meet a calm, unruffled gaze.
"She is an informant planted in the Cold King's manor by the Empress. Last night, she attempted to ambush this Prince. When she failed, she tried to seduce this Prince,"
Jun Mo Han said to Leng Ruo Li, his gaze icy. He stood there like a statue carved from ice, emanating a chilling aura.
Those standing beside Jun Mo Han shivered from the cold radiating from him.
Only Leng Ruo Li was unafraid, confronting Jun Mo Han.
"My, you truly are audacious. Few women would dare to attempt seducing the Cold King without immense courage," Ruo Li clicked her tongue in admiration.
Jun Mo Han: "..."
Were women not supposed to be jealous? He had just told her that the woman kneeling on the ground tried to seduce him, and she showed no reaction?
Uh...
If Leng Ruo Li knew what Jun Mo Han was thinking, she would probably burst out laughing. What kind of logic did this man have? Why did he always expect her to be jealous of him?
"Your Highness, this is an assassin who attacked you. You may handle her as you see fit," Leng Ruo Li said speechlessly.
Hearing this, Jun Mo Han's face showed a hint of disappointment.
"Ye Ying, cripple her martial arts and send her to the army's red tents," Jun Mo Han said coldly, then turned and left with a darkened expression.
Leng Ruo Li, seeing Jun Mo Han's expression, was immediately puzzled. She didn't seem to have provoked him.
"Princess Consort, His Highness is likely angered that you do not take him seriously. Most women would be jealous upon hearing someone tried to seduce their husband, but you are utterly indifferent," the woman who had been allowed to stay due to her needlework suddenly interjected.
Immediately, the woman on the ground was dragged aside by two guards. Her martial arts were crippled by Ye Ying in just two moves. She desperately tried to cry out to Leng Ruo Li for help, but her acupoints had been sealed, rendering her mute. She could only shake her head incessantly, tears streaming down her face from the pain, unable to utter a sound. In less than a minute, the woman fainted from the agony and was then dragged away by the two guards.
Xing'er, Ling'er, and the woman who had stayed watched the scene with horrified expressions.
Especially the woman who had been allowed to stay for her needlework, she felt immensely fortunate. Fortunately, she had learned a little needlework from her concubine mother since childhood, otherwise, she would be in a terrible situation today. If she had been driven out of the Cold King's manor, she would truly have nowhere to go. She was merely a庶女 (shu nü - daughter of a concubine) from a fifth-rank official's family and was very unfavored in her household. Her father, in order to further his career, actually sold his daughter for personal gain, sending her to the palace to be a pawn for the Empress. Her concubine mother, in order to prevent her father from sending her into the palace to be a pawn for someone else, had crashed into a pillar and committed suicide as soon as she stepped out of the manor. After her concubine mother's death, she would never return to that home.
Lost in thought, Leng Ruo Li smiled and asked her, "Young lady, what is your name?"
The woman immediately snapped back to attention and bowed respectfully to Leng Ruo Li, "Replying to the Princess Consort, this humble one is called Mei Yue E."
Leng Ruo Li nodded and appraised her from head to toe.
"Which noble lady's household were you from before entering the palace?"
"Replying to the Princess Consort, this humble one is the eldest庶女 of Mei Wenzhong, a fifth-rank official in the Court of Imperial Sacrifices."
"Although your father's official position in the capital is not high, he would not go so far as to give you away as a gift."
As Leng Ruo Li spoke, Mei Yue E's expression turned sorrowful.
"Princess Consort, my concubine mother was not favored in the household, so my father sent me to the palace as a pawn."
Alas, another unfortunate woman! Since you are willing to stay, you will no longer be a concubine of the Cold King. You need to support yourself through your own labor. We can see if you prefer to remain in the manor as an embroiderer, or if I can arrange work for you elsewhere."
Leng Ruo Li said calmly, but she was testing the woman's character.