It was a war between her and Yao Zheng. But Jin Xiaoxi had been implicated.
âIt must be Yao Zheng! She framed you! You are going nowhere, Xiaoxi. Iâll explain to His Majesty.â Auntie Lan urged her to stay.
âAuntie Lan, thereâs no point in explaining. The king hates me now. I would only be a thorn in his side if I stay.â
Upon saying that, Jing Xi let go of Little Grape and said, âYour Highness, promise me, without Auntie Xiaoxi you will still eat well and behave yourself. Listen to Grandma Lan. Will you? Now I have to go. Bye!â
âAuntie Xiaoxi, donât go, please! I wonât let you go!â
Little Grape cuddled on her leg again and refused to release her.
Jing Xi had no choice but to force his arms apart, and leave without looking back.
Jing Xi could still hear Little Grapeâs crying from quite some distance. She felt somewhat heartbroken. Since when did she become attached to this motherless child too?
If that was the case she would rather leave now. Otherwise, she might be sadder to leave when she became more attached to him.
Eventually, Jing Xi left the palace. But Little Grape kept crying. Auntie Lan had to bring him back and have someone look after him. Then she went to report to the king.
Auntie Lan entered the study with the kingâs permission. âYour Majesty! Why did you fire Jin Xiaoxi? Were you aware of what happened?â
âAre you questioning me?â
Huo Yunshen raised his head from the files and looked indisputably at the woman in front of him.
He had always trusted her. But what she did today was very disappointing.
âI heard about it, Your Majesty. Let me explain. I did not give the key to Jin Xiaoxi. It might have been Yao Zheng who stole the key and framed Jin Xiaoxi.â
Auntie Lan always kept the key in a certain place. Yao Zheng might have learned where she kept it and gone for it.
âWhy should she frame Jin Xiaoxi?â Huo Yunshen questioned.
âShe was not only trying to frame Jin Xiaoxi, but also pick on me...â
Huo Yunshen did not want to talk about it further. âEnough! Since you have been with us for a long while I wonât blame you this time. From tomorrow onward, give the palace keys to Yao Zheng. Iâll assign you somewhere else. Thatâs it.â
Huo Yunshen looked back at the files again and refused to have any further discussion.
âBut Your Majesty, Jin Xiaoxi is innocent! If you fire her, who could take care of His Highness?â
âEnough!â Huo Yunshen pounded on the desk and looked even harsher. âYou should know the result of breaking into that room. I am already being merciful for not having her sentenced. From now on, no one can talk about Jin Xiaoxi! I donât want to hear a word about her! Now get out!â
Auntie Lan could say nothing further. Seeing him outraged and aversive, she realized that it was the result of breaking his taboo.
He was indeed being merciful by merely firing Jin Xiaoxi and relocating her to a different position.
There was nothing to do now that he was in a fit of anger. She had to find a way to prove that it was Yao Zhengâs trick.
Auntie Lan thought it through and said nothing further. She bowed and stepped out of the study.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
After that, there was an adjustment in their duties.
Auntie Lan, who used to be in charge of the inner court, was relocated. And Yao Zheng took over her role.
Upon the handover, Yao Zheng took over the keys and seemed extremely satisfied. âAuntie Lan, did you ever expect this? Haha...â
...