Chapter 83 Plucking Chestnuts from the Fire

Pan Miaoqian crawled on her knees for three steps and kowtowed frantically in front of the Empress Dowager. Due to the excessive force, her forehead was broken, and blood flowed all over her face. "Your Majesty, please spare my life! I have nothing to do with this!" The Empress Dowager just turned her gaze to the lake beside the horse - racing field. She stared expressionlessly at the sparkling lake surface, standing straight without the slightest sign of wavering.

Lai Changya had never seen such a cold - blooded Empress Dowager. In her impression, this Empress Dowager who had always sat firmly in the Kunning Palace had always been a smiling and kind old woman. But at this moment, she finally remembered that this seemingly kind old woman had gone through the most difficult times of the Northern Qi Dynasty as a widow and an orphan, and had personally supported the current Emperor to bring about the present era of abundance. And yet, she had been showing the arrogance of a noble lady in front of this decisive old woman all the time!

Pan Miaoqian cried pitifully. She struggled free from the warriors who came forward to arrest her. Meeting Pan Yueqing's cold gaze, she shivered in fear but still refused to accept the established situation. She stepped forward and hugged the Old Madam Zhao beside Pan Yueqing, "Grandmother! Grandmother, save me!!"

Old Madam Zhao's expression was as cold as the Empress Dowager's. Her gray squirrel fur robe was stained with the blood from Pan Miaoqian's face, but she still stood there motionless, leaning on her walking stick.

Pan Yueqing stood by the side. Seeing Pan Miaoqian's appearance, she couldn't help but chuckle softly, which was very abrupt at the moment when everyone held their breath. She didn't mean to hide it. She stepped forward and stopped in front of Pan Miaoqian. She lowered her gaze and slightly raised her chin to signal Luo Shui, the chief maid beside her, to pull Pan Miaoqian away. She sneered and said, "Grandmother? When did you ever regard her as your grandmother? Why didn't you show your eagerness on her birthday every year?"

As soon as Pan Yueqing said this, Lai Changya, who had originally had a trace of sympathy for Pan Miaoqian, unconsciously lowered her eyes. Although the Northern Qi Dynasty didn't distinguish between legitimate and illegitimate children as strictly as the previous dynasty, the legitimate children were still superior to the illegitimate ones, and the illegitimate children were supposed to respect the legitimate ones as their elders. These rules were even more so in their aristocratic families. But Pan Miaoqian had never shown any filial piety to her nominal grandmother...

Pan Miaoqian was filled with fear and admitted her mistake to Old Madam Zhao, "Grandmother! I was wrong! Please give me a chance to make up for my mistake! Please save me! I don't want to die! I don't want to die!!"

"Miss Pan San," Old Madam Zhao said slowly, "So far, no one has determined your crime yet. Don't talk about life and death lightly. However, the art of witchcraft has always been a taboo of the Empress Dowager, and I can't save you either."

But precisely because it was the Empress Dowager's taboo, so... she felt that she was surely going to die... Just as Yao Zhen had said when he plotted this, as long as this voodoo doll was put into Pan Yueqing's things, even if Pan Yueqing were a fairy, she would be hard to save... But she had never expected that what seemed to be a perfect plan would be ruined by the matter of the birth date...

Yes! The birth date! She raised her eyes and looked at Pan Lianshan and Pan Yueqing. Clearly, not everyone in the family knew the difference of her time - branch. She clearly remembered that her mother had told her: Don't tell anyone about the time - branch, because this birth date was the luck she borrowed from a noble person! But her mother hadn't told her whose luck she had borrowed.

Pan Yueqing smiled and glanced at Pan Miaoqian. She had never expected that Pan Miaoqian would use the birth date to harm her. The secrets contained in Pan Miaoqian's birth date had always been kept tightly by Madam Liu. If it hadn't been for Pan Miaoqian colluding with Qi Sicheng behind her back in her previous life, she wouldn't have known about this huge deception.

At that time, she had believed Qi Sicheng when he told her with a sad face: You are good, but you are not a good match. You are a lone star of heavenly punishment and a femme fatale, while Miao'er has the real destiny to be the empress! But she had never expected that when she was in excruciating pain from the poisoned wine, Pan Miaoqian was wearing a magnificent dragon and phoenix robe, with a triumphant smile. Her long fingernails scratched through her wretched appearance, and the cruel truth echoed shockingly.

"Ah, Second Sister, in fact, that so - called destiny to be the empress... is false," that victorious Pan Miaoqian had a twisted smile, and she no longer had the appearance of a gentle and talented woman. "The final time - branch is not mine..."

Pan Yueqing raised her eyes and met Pan Lianshan's gaze, who had lowered her eyebrows and remained silent. She had never expected that Pan Lianshan also knew this matter and knew it so clearly. It seemed that although Li Rou had been quiet for all these years, she was really not an easy person to deal with.

Pan Miaoqian's arm was grabbed by the warrior. With tears in her eyes, she no longer had the pretentious appearance. She bit her lower lip and looked around at the indifferent crowd. Finally, she turned to Pan Lianshan for help, "Fourth Sister! Fourth Sister! Please go and beg Father! Ask Father to save me!"

Pan Lianshan, like every innocent young woman who had never seen the world, shivered at Pan Miaoqian's hoarse shouting. She silently moved closer to Old Madam Zhao and mumbled something, but no one could hear clearly what she was saying. She just bumped into Su Ruoqing, who was standing behind Old Madam Zhao and Pan Yueqing. She looked up in a panic and apologized, and finally avoided everyone's sight.

There was no need to continue the horse - racing game. The Empress Dowager let out a deep sigh and beckoned to Li Shuran. She solemnly handed the phoenix hairpin, which was originally promised to be given away if the Buddha's head was won, to Li Shuran.

"You are a good girl," the Empress Dowager patted Li Shuran's hand. Li Shuran knelt down and respectfully took the phoenix hairpin, but then she turned and handed it to Qi Simeng. Blinking her eyes, before Qi Simeng could react, she hid behind the Empress Dowager. The Empress Dowager's cold face finally showed a trace of a smile. She reached out and took Li Shuran's hand, and then raised her eyes and ordered, "All of you, step back. Let us women talk."

Judging from the Empress Dowager's attitude, this old woman should be very satisfied with Li Shuran, her future granddaughter - in - law who hadn't officially married in yet.

Qi Sian stood up readily, bowed respectfully to the Empress Dowager, and then turned and left. Lai Changya also got up and took her leave. She excused herself by saying that it was time to go back, but it was obvious to everyone that the eldest legitimate daughter of the Lai family was surely going to chase after His Highness the Prince of Xiangyang.

Pan Yueqing couldn't help but pout. She quietly hid the thick bag of land deeds she carried with her. With this incident, even if Pan Haiyun knew nothing about it, he would surely be affected by Pan Miaoqian. In the next period of time, Pan Haiyun would probably be slightly excluded from the imperial examination by the people in the capital. So there was no need to use the Empress Dowager's hand to give away these troublesome matters. She was about to get up and take her leave when the Empress Dowager called her name, "Yue girl, wait a moment."

Pan Yueqing stopped in her tracks and turned around blankly to look at the Empress Dowager. Supported by Li Shuran, the Empress Dowager slowly sat on the soft couch. She looked around and asked everyone to leave. Only Pan Yueqing and the Empress Dowager, one sitting and one standing, were left on the viewing stand.

The Empress Dowager slowly raised her deep gaze. Against the light, it seemed that she saw Su Lan, who had been raised by her and taught by her more than twenty years ago. She let out a slight sigh, "Plucking chestnuts from the fire and standing under a dangerous wall are not smart choices for a young woman."