bookrebus Chapter 488 ***It stinks
Chapter 488 ***It stinks
Several ministers immediately hung their heads in shame.
Especially Minister Kong, because of what happened that day, he wanted to find a rat hole to crawl into all the time.
He had never realized it before, but now he finally understood the consequences of not educating his descendants well, which would cause endless trouble and bring shame to them.
Knowing that the emperor had deliberately named the ministers, Gu Jianchu did not hesitate and lowered his head to drink the chicken soup and bird's nest that Xie Ci'an had sent him.
After Gu Jianchu drank it, Xie Ci'an immediately brought another small spoonful, and repeated this process over and over again. After a while, the whole bowl of chicken soup and bird's nest was eaten by Gu Jianchu. Seeing that Gu Jianchu had drunk it all, Xie Ci'an felt a little relieved.
In addition to ordering the ministers, Xie Ci'an's main purpose was to get Gu Jianchu to eat more. It was true that Gu Jianchu's appetite had decreased since she became pregnant. Instead of gaining weight, she had lost a lot of weight. How could one not feel distressed?
Mu Yao, who was sitting next to the wife of the Prince of Pingxi, couldn't help but show envy when she saw the subtle interaction between the emperor and the empress.
She and Kong Lin had been in love before, but she had never been as envious as she was with the emperor and empress.
Kong Lin and she were just a fairy couple in the eyes of others, but in private, they had never been so affectionate and affectionate. Moreover, the emperor's eyes showed his strong love for the queen, which she rarely saw in the eyes of other couples. Although there was respect and corresponding responsibilities, there was no such strong love.
No wonder the emperor was willing to expel his concubines from the palace.
You see, very few men in this world can do this. They care more about their own interests.
It is no exaggeration to say that he is a role model.
Just as they finished their meal and drank a cup of tea, Yunhe came to report that *** had returned.
Gu Jianchu asked someone to invite Xie Qingzhi in quickly.
When Xie Qingzhi followed Yunhe in, his face was rosy when he left, but it turned pale when he came back. He pressed his fingers on his chest as if he had vomited. Even his steps seemed a little weak, and he even needed Xiazhi's support.
The hair on her temples was a little messy, and there was an unpleasant smell on her clothes. It was not obvious at first, but it could be clearly smelled when she got closer. Because she was a prostitute, no one dared to show it too obviously.
Behind Xie Qingzhi were dozens of women in tattered clothes. They were all dirty. Their originally bright clothes were covered with dirt and dust, and some were stained with blood. Their fair faces were covered with black, unknown dirt, and their hair was a mess with straw mixed in. Some obvious scars could be seen on their exposed wrists. It seemed that these were women who had just been captured and had been beaten for being disobedient.
Even though they followed behind Xie Qingzhi, they supported each other and huddled together. They seemed to not trust anyone, especially when they saw so many people, there was a strong sense of fear in their eyes.
Xie Qingzhi smelled really bad, and Zhuxi was afraid that she would make the queen vomit, so he specially helped her move another stool and placed it a little further away from Gu Jianchu, and also brought her a cup of hot tea.
After Xie Qingzhi sat down and drank a cup of hot tea, without waiting for Gu Jianchu to ask, she said like pouring beans, "Your Majesty, you haven't been to the scene to see how hateful Cao Li is."
"He locked up all the captured women in a pigsty, eating and drinking together. There was a very strong foul smell in there." Xie Qingzhi couldn't help wanting to vomit as she spoke, but luckily she hadn't eaten anything, so she was able to hold it back. If she had eaten anything, she would have been unable to vomit.
"Besides that, there were women chained up. They were like dogs on leash, with chains around their necks. Food was just thrown carelessly on the ground, and the water nearby was frozen. When they were thirsty, they had to chew on ice chips. He wanted to tame these women into obedience and use them for his own purposes, so he had no choice but to use this method. If they disobeyed, they would be beaten every day. Many of them had their necks rubbed raw by the chains, and their bodies were covered in wounds. Even those with strong wills resisted even after being given medicine, so they were beaten especially hard."
"These are just the beginning. There are even more extreme cases. He would chop off the hands and feet of useless or disobedient women and throw them into the pigsty, leaving everyone to watch as their blood slowly drains from their bodies or they get infected from the filth. Just thinking about it makes me want to vomit."
Not only did Xie Qingzhi feel like vomiting, but all the ministers and their families present also felt like vomiting when they heard this.
They had never seen such a tragic scene. Even the torture methods used by the Imperial City Bureau were not so cruel. They only made people live a life worse than death, but they never cut off anyone's hands or feet and let them watch their blood flow.
After hearing this, Gu Jianchu clenched his fingers into fists under his cloak. He was already feeling miserable and angry when he heard the system's description, and he felt even more miserable after hearing Xie Qingzhi's description. After all, the cold words were far less than what he had experienced.
Gu Jianchu's eyes were filled with intense coldness, and his body was filled with the aura of impending storm. The ministers were all too familiar with this scene. They had seen it more than once on the emperor, and they didn't expect to see it on the queen as well. The auras of this couple were really becoming more and more similar, and it was unclear whether it was a blessing or a curse.
Gu Jianchu slapped the table in anger, and his sleeve accidentally swept across the teacup, causing it to fall to the ground and break into two pieces. This frightened the women who came with Xie Qingzhi, and they shrank back instantly, taking a few steps back to the side, trying to find a safe place to hide.
Noticing the actions of these women, Gu Jianchu remembered that they were already extremely frightened and it was not appropriate to frighten them again. She gradually restrained her aura and her eyes fell on Xie Qingzhi again. Even her tone of voice became much gentler. "How many people are there?"
Xie Qingzhi drank another cup of tea before he barely suppressed the urge to vomit. "Fifty people were found in that courtyard. All fifty were given the obedient drug that Hong Qiao mentioned. According to Doctor Lin, it's actually an addictive poison that needs to be taken regularly. If you don't take it, the effects will be extremely uncomfortable. Forty of the fifty people are already addicted, mainly because they've been taking it for too long. The other ten are not very addicted and should have been newly captured."
"Five others had their hands and feet chopped off. Doctor Lin said they could be saved, but they'd be crippled for the rest of their lives. Ten more were new arrivals, and because they weren't heavy addicts, they were exposed to Cao Li's poison every day, causing some serious skin injuries. The other thirty-five were locked up in a dark pigpen. They'd become addicted to the obedient drug, so Cao Li's control over them was lax. He wouldn't beat or scold them for no reason. But when they didn't go out on weekdays, they were locked up there."