"If you've been making things hard for me, why shouldn't I do the same to you? If something happens to Big Brother because of what you said, do you think you'll still be alive for long? Don't forget, no matter what, he's still the eldest young master of the Shi family."
Her sudden reminder gave Qingqing quite a start.
Right! How could she have forgotten? Shi An could cause all sorts of trouble and it wouldn't affect him at all, but she was just a low - ranking maid. If things went wrong, she might even lose her life today.
"Your Majesty, it's not that this maid is unwilling to talk. It's just that if I tell this today, I'm afraid I won't see the sun rise tomorrow."
"Really? Then I can make sure you won't see the sunset today. Xiao Xiao, was the dagger used to kill someone the other day cleaned properly? I've never killed anyone before. I don't know how it feels. I wonder if it's pleasing to the eye to see the white blade go in and the red blood come out?"
Xiao Xiao curled her lips and took out a dagger from her body.
"This dagger has been cleaned. Of course, I can't let it dirty Your Majesty's hands. How about I do it myself?"
As she said, she slowly approached with the dagger in her hand.
When Qingqing saw the dagger glinting with cold light, goosebumps rose all over her body.
"Your Majesty, you mustn't kill me. If Miss Qiao sees that I'm gone later, she'll surely cause trouble for you. I'm sure this isn't what Your Majesty wants to see, right?"
"What? Do you think you can threaten me with this?"
"No, I just want to remind Your Majesty."
"You're not up to the mark. Since you're unwilling to learn your lesson, I'll have to teach it to you myself."
As she said, she blinked her eyes, and Xiao Xiao directly drew the dagger across Qingqing's face.
Blood spurted out. Even the others who witnessed this scene couldn't bear to look.
In this dynasty, if a woman lost her face, her life was over. She'd end up living a miserable life.
Qingqing felt the hot blood flowing on her face and tears streamed down her cheeks.
"Please spare me. I really won't dare again. You might as well just kill me. I can't live without this face."
Hearing this, Shi Muwǎn clicked her tongue twice. "You can't live without your face. Then what about my Big Brother's reputation? I'll give you one last chance. If you're determined to be loyal to your master behind the scenes, don't blame me for being ruthless."
Since she had said so much and Qingqing had already suffered, and Qiao Meng definitely wouldn't come to rescue her at this moment. Since Shi Muwǎn had planned to deal with her from the beginning, she must have made fool - proof preparations.
After thinking about all this, Qingqing finally made a decision.
Just as Xiao Xiao was about to make the second cut, she hurriedly spoke up.
"I'll talk. I'm willing to tell everything. Please spare me."
"Good. Have you thought about what to say?"
"All this was instigated by Miss Qiao. As for the reason, I really don't know."
Her voice was choked with sobs, as if it were really the case.
Shi Muwǎn knew it was time to take the next step.
"Will you still say the same thing later?"
"Does Your Majesty want me to testify?"
"Otherwise, do you think I've gone through all this trouble just for nothing?"
"If Miss Qiao and the national master know about this, I won't be able to keep my life. Your Majesty, please don't make things difficult for a lowly maid like me."
She looked embarrassed. It had already been quite an effort for her to say so much.
However, Shi Muwǎn didn't come here today just to hear so little from her.
"If you don't listen to me, I can't guarantee that you'll be able to leave here alive."
"What good will it do Your Majesty to make things difficult for a maid?"
"Isn't all this because of you? If you hadn't been so bold as to frame my elder brother, I wouldn't have made things difficult for you."
After she finished speaking, she twisted her wrist. "I'll count down from five. This is your last chance."
"Five, four, three, two..."
Before she could count the last number, Qingqing interrupted her in a panic.
"I'm willing to testify for Your Majesty. I only hope that Your Majesty can protect my safety afterwards and let me leave here."
"I never treat obedient people badly. Alright, Xiao Xiao, take her to change clothes and summon everyone."
"Yes."
When Qiao Meng received the news and rushed over from the pavilion in the middle of the lake, she saw the person kneeling in the front hall.
She was all too familiar with that figure.
Seeing this, she panicked a little. Had the things she had done been discovered?
No, maybe it was because this maid had accidentally made a mistake behind her back and was thus caught. She mustn't panic, or all her efforts would be in vain.
Thinking of this, she slowly calmed down.
"What's going on? Why does Your Majesty make my maid kneel here? She's always been very obedient. She shouldn't have done anything wrong."
As she said, she tried to help Qingqing up from the ground, but the person on the ground refused to get up no matter what.
"Miss, stop pretending. Your Majesty already knows."
"What? Qingqing, what are you talking about? I've always treated you so well. Do you still want to frame me?"
"Miss, aren't you tired? Your Majesty has promised me that as long as you tell the truth, she won't make things difficult for you."
Qingqing tried to persuade her while constantly glancing at Shi Muwǎn.
Yes, she had been taught to say all this by Shi Muwǎn.
She must make the person in front of her admit what she had done today. Otherwise, she might lose her life here after today.
Qiao Meng had seen through her little tricks from the beginning and wouldn't follow her words.
After catching a glimpse of a figure approaching from the corner of her eye, Qiao Meng immediately rushed over and started wiping away her tears.
"Your Majesty keeps asking the eldest young master to apologize to me, but still won't let me go. Brother, what on earth did I do wrong to be so deliberately targeted? Do I have to die for Your Majesty to spare me? I'm really afraid that they'll come after you next time."
With her tear - filled eyes, she looked so pitiful that Cui Qizhou's heart softened when he saw her.
"Don't be afraid, Your Majesty. Your ability to say one thing and do another is truly unparalleled. I originally thought you had really found evidence that someone else had framed the eldest young master and came here to help you subdue that person. But I didn't expect that you'd try to pour the blame on my sister for the sake of your elder brother."
Shi Muwǎn rolled her eyes in her heart.
They weren't even real siblings. They said it so often that they even seemed to believe it themselves.