Transmigration: From Farmer To Empress
Chapter 892 - 894: The Downfall of Jin Guifei (3)

Chapter 892: Chapter 894: The Downfall of Jin Guifei (3)

Yan Meiren had been favored by the Emperor these past few days, and her spirits were inevitably a bit heightened. Moreover, being young and hot-blooded, she lacked the discretion to endure in silence; thus, when publicly humiliated by Jin Guifei, it was unavoidable that she felt some indignation. As a result, she retorted to Jin Guifei with lines such as "If the Emperor wishes to favor me, what can I do about it?" This infuriated Jin Guifei to the point where her nostrils flared with anger. Without a second word, she ordered that Yan Meiren be slapped twenty times and then, in front of all the other concubines, made her kneel and recite "The Doctrine of the Mean" ten times as a warning to others.

It would take some time to recite "The Doctrine of the Mean" ten times; Jin Guifei didn’t have the patience to wait around for so long. After watching lazily for a while, she smugly supported herself with Li Shanggong’s hand and retired to the inner room to rest.

None of the other concubines dared to leave without Jin Guifei’s command, so they all had no choice but to sit there, listening to Yan Meiren recite over and over again. Chief Eunuch Li Hai supervised, demanding that any poorly read passages be repeated. Often, just as she was about to finish one recitation, Li Hai would claim it was not good enough and require a repetition. As a result, this torment continued until Xu Hour, and still she hadn’t completed even five recitations.

Although Yan Meiren had come from palace maid origins, ever since she was granted the title of beauty and had her son by her side, she was also nurtured daily in luxury. How could she endure such torment? Upon hearing Li Hai’s another cry of "Not good enough, recite again," her eyes rolled back, and she collapsed on the ground and fainted!

Seeing this, Li Hai didn’t dare to make a decision on his own and hurriedly went in to report to Jin Guifei.

By this time, Jin Guifei had already gone to bed. Too lazy to get out of bed and see for herself, she simply ordered that Yan Meiren be revived, gave her a cup of tea to drink, and then allowed her and all the other concubines to return to their quarters temporarily, saying they would deal with the matter tomorrow morning.

The concubines had been sitting until their waists were sore, their backs ached, and their legs cramped. They were filled with resentful thoughts, but none dared to speak out. Thankfully, they were finally allowed to return, each one supporting her aging waist with one hand and leaning on the hand of a palace maid with the other as they left falteringly.

Yan Meiren had knelt for an entire afternoon. Her knees were swollen and red; no longer able to walk or even stand. After being revived, her personal palace maid, Chun Xiao, helped her drink a cup of tea. Then she sent someone to call over two young eunuchs. Yan Meiren was lifted onto a small sedan chair by the young eunuchs and carried back...

In the middle of the night, Jin Guifei was sound asleep when suddenly a burst of crying came from outside the palace gate, intermittent and, although not particularly clear, loud enough to wake Jin Guifei from her sleep!

She opened her eyes, sat up angrily, and just as she was about to question who was so bold as to cry and make a fuss outside the Brocade Palace at night, Chief Eunuch Li Hai hurried in breathlessly and reported, "Your Highness, terrible news—Yan Meiren has passed away!"

Jin Guifei was instantly stunned, "How could a perfectly healthy person just die like that?"

Li Hai knelt down and wept, "The messenger reported that it was, was... she died of poisoning!"

Jin Guifei’s face went pale. Yan Meiren had been with her the entire night, enduring all sorts of torment at her hands. Now that the woman was dead from poisoning, Jin Guifei knew she would have a tough time explaining herself!

"Summon someone, quick! Help me dress. I must see for myself..."

Jin Guifei’s heart raced with worry. She only meant to chastise that insolent Yan Meiren this one time, but she truly hadn’t poisoned her. Even if she had wanted to poison her, she wouldn’t have chosen this time to do it!

But would the Emperor believe that?

When she hurriedly arrived at Yan Meiren’s Cuiwan Palace, the concubines from all the palaces were already there. As the Emperor was also present, these concubines were displaying great grief, sobbing continuously with handkerchiefs in hand, as if the person who had died was not a rival in their battle for favor but a dear sister of their own. In the heavy atmosphere, Emperor Jin Ming also appeared exceedingly somber and reserved.