Chapter 196: Worse Than Death
This novel is translated and hosted on bcatranslation
“Why are you scaring Ning’er? Stop glaring at her!” Consort Xiao rebuked Madam Xu, her voice dripping with contempt.
Madam Xu, usually composed despite her turbulent past, was now visibly seething. “If anything happens to Chao Chao, I’ll make sure you regret it, even if it costs me my life!”
Consort Xiao scoffed, her disappointment barely concealed that the bear hadn’t harmed Lu Chao Chao. “Ning’er meant no harm. What’s the commotion about? The door’s open now; just go get her out.”
Madam Xu’s face darkened as she rushed to find Chao Chao. Suddenly, the previously subdued black bear, now in a frenzy, charged through the crowd towards Consort Xiao with terrifying roars.
“Guards, quickly!” Consort Xiao cried out.
The guards sprang into action, but the frenzied bear, its aggression heightened by drugs, brushed them aside effortlessly.
“Release the arrows!” Consort Xiao commanded, her voice trembling with fear as she felt the bear’s hot breath.
“Stop! Consider the nobles present. What if you hit someone?” Duke Xiao interjected sharply, his command halting everyone in their tracks.
Consort Xiao paled under her father’s stern gaze.
Unaffected by its wounds, the bear continued its relentless pursuit. [Lu Chao Chao is scarier than death!]
Panicking, Consort Xiao grabbed a nearby maid and thrust her towards the bear. The maid collided with the massive creature, blood spewing from her lips.
Xie Yi Ning screamed in terror, “Don’t eat me! Please, don’t eat me! Mother, save me!” In her panic, she pushed Consort Xiao, causing her to stumble directly into the bear’s path.
The ensuing chaos saw Consort Xiao fall, and the bear pinned her down, savaging her face so fiercely that it tore through skin to bone. The crowd gasped in horror.
“Ah!!”
“Father, save me!!”
“Ning’er!”
With each bite, the bear tore off more flesh, while Consort Xiao’s screams filled the air.
After the horrific act, the bear turned towards Princess Yi Ning.
Chao Chao, witnessing the gruesome scene, shook her head. “Why push Chao Chao? Why push Consort Xiao? Isn’t she your mommy?” she asked, pointing to the severely injured Consort Xiao.
Eventually, soldiers subdued the bear.
With tears in her eyes, Chao Chao whispered, “Chao Chao do bad? Why push Chao Chao?”
Touching her mutilated face, Consort Xiao howled in anguish. Then, hearing Chao Chao’s innocent question, she turned to her daughter.
Xie Yi Ning, pale and shaken, stammered, “Mother, it wasn’t on purpose. Ning’er was too scared.”
The physician arrived and examined Consort Xiao’s disfigured face, sighing deeply. Consort Xiao’s beauty was irreparably marred.
“Ning’er is only six, and she’s Consort Xiao’s only daughter…” Chao Chao sighed. “Surely Consort Xiao won’t blame her.”
Xie Yi Ning sobbed, trying to apologize, but Consort Xiao was unresponsive, her gaze distant.
Lu Chao Chao’s scheme had been ruthless. [If you hadn’t pushed me, you would’ve escaped this fate. Every brat has a pair of bratty parents, tsk tsk…]
The only person who had ever truly loved her, Consort Xiao, could now only despise her.
“Grandfather, Mother, I was wrong. Ning’er was wrong,” Xie Yi Ning wept.
Soon, Eunuch Wang arrived with a royal decree. “By the king’s decree, Consort Xiao, for allowing her daughter to endanger Princess Sunshine, is hereby banished to the Cold Palace.”
Consort Xiao wailed, “Your Majesty, I was wrong! Please, forgive me. It was Ning’er’s fault!”
“Ning’er, tell Eunuch Wang it was your idea to push the princess!” Her bloodshot eyes and bloodied face looked horrifying.
Xie Yi Ning remained silent, her head bowed, avoiding her mother’s desperate gaze.
Eunuch Wang, unmoved, announced, “The king has graciously permitted the physician to treat you, Consort. But know that your beauty is beyond restoration.”
“The king also decrees that Princess Ning will accompany her mother to the Cold Palace.”
Xie Yi Ning looked up, her face filled with shock and disbelief. “I am Father’s only daughter, the only princess. How dare you send me to the Cold Palace?”
“I must see Father!” she protested desperately. She couldn’t bear the thought of being confined with her mother, who valued appearance above all else and would now despise her for her role in the accident.
“I want to stay with Father, not with Mother. Eunuch Wang, please let me see Father!” Xie Yi Ning pleaded, tears streaming down her face, but Eunuch Wang simply ignored her plea.
Spoiled and unaccustomed to rejection, Xie Yi Ning was led away, her protests fading into the distance.
Consort Xiao, now a shadow of her former self, was carried off, her future a bleak expanse of loneliness and regret in the Cold Palace.
“Grandfather, save Ning’er. I promise I won’t do it again,” Xie Yi Ning cried out in vain as she was taken away. But no one stepped forward to help her.
Her past arrogance and cruelty towards palace servants and lesser consorts had not won her any allies. Now, her previous misdeeds haunted her, leaving her isolated in her hour of need.
Life in the Cold Palace was feared to be worse than death, especially with her mother’s looming hatred.
Duke Xiao felt a cold shiver run down his spine. Xie Yi Ning, once the apple of his eye, now brought him nothing but grief.
As she was forcibly removed, Xie Yi Ning finally realized the full extent of the king’s affection for Princess Sunshine.
Consort Xiao and her only daughter had fallen from grace, punished severely for their actions against the king.
In a secluded corner, Lu Jing Yao trembled. She had once been a close confidante of Xie Yi Ning, always ready with flattery and support. But now, facing the grim reality, she was overwhelmed with despair.
“Why? Why can’t I defeat her?” Lu Jing Yao whispered, nearly breaking down.