The entire incident at the He An Hall had already spread throughout the harem. However, compared to Yu Jingchen's protection and favoritism towards Nan Zhiyun, they were more concerned about Consort De suddenly gaining a child.
Jade Luster Palace
Consort De frowned as she looked at the First Princess who had been brought to her. The First Princess was only six years old and was naturally a little nervous about being suddenly brought here.
"My Imperial Mother Consort? I want to find my Imperial Mother Consort." The First Princess was not timid at all; in fact, she was rather spoiled.
"Your Imperial Mother Consort is confined, and she is merely a low-ranking Bao Lin. You can no longer call her Imperial Mother Consort," Consort De said dismissively from her seat.
"I don't care, I want my Imperial Mother Consort! Take me to her!" The First Princess began to throw a tantrum.
"Presumptuous! What is your attitude? How dare you speak to me like that?" Consort De's face was displeased, and she was already growing impatient.
"I want my Imperial Mother Consort!" The First Princess was unresponsive and started to break things, which infuriated Consort De.
"Try throwing anything else here when you're having a tantrum!" Consort De stood up.
But the First Princess was not afraid at all. In the past, whenever she had a tantrum, everyone would be scared and try to appease her. At that time, no matter what she wanted to do, her Imperial Mother Consort and the palace servants attending her would grant it. Therefore, she still thought that way now.
So she continued to rage fearlessly, overturning everything and even physically lashing out at the palace servants around her. She even dared to hit and push Consort De. Could Consort De, with her fiery temper, tolerate this? She immediately slapped the First Princess across the face, though not with full force. However, because the First Princess was small, the slap still caused her to lose her balance.
The First Princess was stunned. When she came to her senses, she started crying and then pointed at Consort De, yelling, "You dare to hit me? I'll kill you!"
Consort De's brows furrowed upon hearing this. Such words from someone so young! As expected, the offspring of such a disreputable person would also be ill-mannered and wicked. What kind of upbringing had she given her daughter? And she was a princess of the imperial family, was this how an imperial princess should behave?
She hadn't cared before and hadn't had the right to intervene. But now that the Emperor had entrusted her to raise the child, Consort De wouldn't hesitate to be strict. If she didn't obey, she would be beaten into obedience!
And so...
"Guards, fetch me a ruler. If you can't find one, find something else suitable and bring it to me!" Consort De commanded.
Soon, a servant brought a ruler, two feet wide and an arm long. The First Princess looked at it with some fear. She knew what it was for.
"Apologize!" Consort De said to the First Princess.
"I won't! You can't hit me, I'm a princess!" the First Princess shouted.
Upon hearing this, Consort De pulled her over without a word, yanked her hand, and began to strike. The First Princess screamed in pain, crying out and cursing, "Bitch, bitch, I'll kill you!" She even tried to bite Consort De, and she actually managed to bite her.
"You little imp, haven't you learned your lesson? I'll beat you to death today if you don't admit your mistake!" Consort De released the First Princess's hand, then pulled her into her arms, lifted her skirt, removed her pants, and began to spank her, each blow heavier than the last.
Initially, the First Princess continued to curse, but eventually, she became too weak to do so and could only cry. Consort De showed no mercy. Everyone in the harem knew that Consort De had the most volatile temper among all the imperial consorts.
Finally, perhaps unable to bear the pain any longer, the First Princess admitted her fault, and Consort De let her go. A child's skin is delicate, and even though Consort De had held back, the First Princess's backside was bruised and severely swollen.
"Do you admit your mistake?" Consort De asked her again.
"I admit it, I admit it," the First Princess sobbed, gasping for breath.
"Let's see if I can't handle you. It seems that compared to reasoning, a beating is more effective. You have much to look forward to."
The sooner rules were established, the better. So Consort De struck while the iron was hot and immediately began to set rules.
"Stand properly for me!" Consort De struck the First Princess's hand with the ruler.
The First Princess immediately stood straight, no longer daring to cause trouble. Consort De was quite satisfied.
"I will now explain my rules to you. Since you will be staying here from now on, you must abide by these rules. Otherwise, you will face punishment."
"The first rule is to wake up on time every morning and come to pay your respects to me. For every minute you are late, you will receive five strokes of the ruler. The second rule is to eat meals on time. If you refuse to eat or are picky, you will receive ten strokes. The third rule is to watch your tone of speech. For any vulgar or rude words, you will receive five strokes per sentence, and they will be on your mouth."
"The fourth rule is that you are not allowed to hit anyone. If you dare to hit someone, you will receive twenty strokes. The fifth rule is that you must study etiquette with the etiquette nanny for one hour every day. I will ask you to demonstrate, and if you do not meet the standard, you will receive ten strokes."
"The sixth rule is to study with a tutor. I will ask you questions, and if you cannot answer, you will receive ten strokes. I will also assign you tasks and test you on recitation. If you cannot recite them, you will receive ten strokes."
"The seventh rule is lying. If I find out you have lied, it will be an unforgivable offense, starting with thirty strokes. The eighth rule is that if I say no, and you continue to do so, you will also receive thirty strokes. The ninth rule is evading punishment, which will result in fifty strokes. Do you understand?" Consort De asked.
"Yes, I understand everything," the First Princess no longer dared to argue.
"Good, then tell me what you did wrong today?" Consort De asked. She always believed that one should not be soft-hearted when disciplining children. Moreover, if it is a punishment, it should be memorable. Only unforgettable punishment could make them afraid. After all, they are children; they will not dare to repeat their mistakes if they are afraid.
"I shouldn't have cursed, I shouldn't have hit people, and I shouldn't have disobeyed." The First Princess continued to cry.
"What else?" Consort De asked.
The First Princess couldn't think of anything else.
"You tried to evade punishment just now, does that count as wrong?" Consort De asked her.
"Yes, I was wrong. I'll never dare to do it again," the First Princess cried.
"Since that is the case, how many strokes will that amount to? Ten strokes on the mouth for cursing, five strokes per curse. You cursed so many times, but I won't count them all, so let's just say ten strokes on the mouth. Then, hitting people is twenty strokes, disobeying me is thirty strokes, and finally, evading punishment is fifty strokes. So, in total, ten strokes on the mouth and one hundred strokes with the ruler."
"You already received a slap earlier, and I'll count that as settling the ten strokes on your mouth. You also received ten strokes on your palms and thirty on your buttocks. That leaves sixty strokes remaining. Since this is your first offense, I won't be too harsh. Thirty strokes out of the remaining sixty will suffice. Now, lean over here," Consort De pointed to a chair nearby with the ruler.
"No, I don't want to, I won't be hit anymore," the First Princess was terrified.
"I'll give you one last chance. Will you lean over by yourself, or will I have to come and do it, and recalculate how many strokes you'll receive?" Consort De's eyes were filled with warning.
The First Princess hesitated for a long time, then finally leaned over the chair herself. Consort De lifted her skirt again and brought the ruler down heavily.