Chapter 1: Meng Changqing is Beaten

Chapter 1: Meng Changqing is Beaten

Late that night, the Meng residence was brightly lit, its gates thrown wide open.

The mistress of the back courtyard had been so worried she hadn't eaten all day.

It was for no other reason than her 'son,' who had entered the palace to serve as a study companion, had been locked up inside for two days.

Finally, the sound of a carriage echoed on the road near the house.

A servant who had been keeping watch at the gate hurried to the back courtyard to report, "Mistress! The young master is back!"

The mistress, sitting in the seat of honor, stood up with a start. "How is the young master?"

"He was given ten strokes of the cane; he can't even stand."

Hearing this, the mistress’s heart tightened. "Quick, call Dr. Hu! And hurry, find a door panel to carry him in!"

By the time Meng Changqing was moved onto the door panel, she had already fainted.

Her mind was hazy, drifting through thoughts.

She thought about her terrible luck, being reborn into a feudal society.

She thought of her hypocritical uncles and cousins; if she didn't survive this, she didn't know how badly they would bully her mother and her birth mother.

She thought about the moment she beat up the Crown Prince—the silly look on his face. As it turned out, those in power were just as fragile as anyone else.

Then she thought of the words the Emperor had spoken, and the sting of the cane against her body.

*Ah,* she couldn't think about the cane; the more she thought about it, the more it hurt.

"Ah!"

Meng Changqing woke up in pain, discovering she had been moved from the door panel to her bed, and her mother was sitting by the bedside applying medicine.

"You're finally awake. Drink this bowl of medicine quickly."

Seeing the pitch-black herbal concoction, Meng Changqing really didn't want to drink it; it smelled bitter enough as it was.

"You must drink it. Dr. Hu prescribed it; it will help the wounds on your back heal faster."

Meng Changqing grinned, trying to appease her. "I'll drink it when it cools down."

"You're still in the mood to smile!" Madam Wen pretended to pinch her ear hard. "You almost died in the palace! What on earth happened? We were worried to death out here. Why on earth did you show disrespect to the Crown Prince?"

"Ugh, that brat—I don't know where he learned it, but he wanted to play those 'male-favor' games with me. He reached out to undo my belt. Could I just let him do that? So, I gave him a beating."

Meng Changqing was a woman disguised as a man, a crime of deceiving the Emperor. If she had really let the Crown Prince take off her pants, disaster would have been inevitable.

Even if she were granted the Emperor's mercy and spared her life, she would have been forced to return to her female identity, which would surely mean losing the family estate. Her future would have been harder than death.

If she only beat the Crown Prince, while it was still a grave matter, given the Emperor's feelings for her family, she would at most suffer some physical punishment. As long as her identity wasn't exposed, everything would be manageable.

As it turned out, she had gambled correctly.

And here she was, back in one piece!

The estate was safe, and her life was spared.

As for why Meng Changqing had to disguise herself as a man, it was truly a matter of necessity.

She was the posthumous child of the late General Meng.

Old General Meng had died in battle, along with his three sons.

According to the clan laws of this dynasty, if there were no sons left, the family estate had to be returned to the clan or inherited by a nephew.

How could Madam Wen ever be willing to hand over the fortune her husband and sons had fought for to someone else?

Fortunately, at that time, Old General Meng’s concubine, Lady Liang, was pregnant.

If she gave birth to a son, Old General Meng would have a legitimate heir.

But if it were a daughter, the estate would still fall into the hands of outsiders.

Therefore, Meng Changqing had to be a son.

"What was the Emperor's judgment on you?" Madam Wen knew the rules of the palace. If Changqing dared to lay hands on the Crown Prince, the punishment would never be as simple as ten strokes of the cane.

"He exiled me to Liangzhou." Meng Changqing didn't look the least bit unhappy when she said this; she even seemed a little excited. "There is a place in Liangzhou called Beishan County. The Emperor ordered me to go there and serve as the county magistrate. He even gave me the official seal and the documents."

Meng Changqing propped up her upper body and pulled something from her robes.

"Look, these are the documents and the official seal." She handed them to Madam Wen as if presenting a treasure.

"Liangzhou..." Madam Wen’s fingers traced the characters on the paper. "That is the border of the Great Liang, where three nations meet. The Yan people are cruel and barbaric, and the Jiewan are always waiting for an opportunity. Your father and brothers died in battle there.

Most of the soldiers guarding that place now are remnants of the Meng Army.

Why would the Emperor send you to Liangzhou?"

"Who cares why."

Meng Changqing still possessed the open-mindedness of her past life. "At least it's a chance at survival. Mother, go pack our luggage. We leave at once."

"Now?" Madam Wen held Meng Changqing down. "Tell me the truth, what else did you do in the palace?"

"I didn't do anything," Meng Changqing promised. "I really didn't do anything. It’s just that the kick didn't land in the right place."

Madam Wen understood.

"You really are..."

Forget about sleeping tonight; they had to run.

"Bafang, go notify Lady Liang. Tell her to pack up all the gold, silver, and valuables in the house. Then have someone prepare carriages, horses, and provisions. We leave as soon as everything is ready.

Oh, and! Tie up Dr. Hu and bring him along too."

Inside the Imperial Palace.

The Emperor sat in the main hall of the Eastern Palace, a very young eunuch kneeling before him.

Taking advantage of the Emperor's distraction, the little eunuch shifted his weight from one buttock to the other.

"You have knelt long enough," the Emperor said. "Tell me, why did the Crown Prince and the Meng heir get into a dispute?"

The little eunuch pressed his forehead against the floor tiles. "Reporting to Your Majesty, this servant truly does not know. I was not by their side when the Crown Prince and Young Master Meng began their dispute."

The Emperor was imposing without even raising his voice. "You are the Crown Prince's personal attendant."

"Your Majesty, please forgive me. It is not that this servant was lazy; the Crown Prince ordered that he had something to say to Young Master Meng in private, so he drove us all out."

The Emperor leaned back. "In that case, you no longer need to serve the Crown Prince."

The little eunuch began to tremble. "Your Majesty, spare me! Your Majesty, spare me!"

"Send him to hard labor."

The little eunuch wailed and begged, "Your Majesty, please forgive me! Have mercy on this servant!"

The guards beside the Emperor didn't care about his howling; they grabbed his arms and dragged him out.

The Crown Prince, inside the inner chamber, heard the noise and, in his anxiety, jumped out of bed barefoot, shouting toward the room outside, "Father, spare Taozi! He doesn't know anything!"

The imperial physician guarding the inner chamber hurried to stop him. "Your Highness, your wounds require rest. You must not move about!"

"Let go of me!"

The Crown Prince pushed the physician away.

The physician was not sturdy; with one push from the Crown Prince, he rolled onto the floor and stayed there.

Now it was the turn of the guards on duty to act.

These guards obeyed only the Emperor.

They immediately hoisted the Crown Prince up and pressed him back onto the bed.

The Emperor, having dealt with the eunuch, heard the commotion inside and frowned. He really wanted to give this good-for-nothing a beating.

"I will ask you one last time: why did Changqing hit you?" The Emperor's anger was about to boil over.

The Crown Prince was too scared to make a sound.

"Speak!"

"How would I know?" The Crown Prince's guilt was written all over his face. "He has always had a violent temper."

"I watched him grow up; I know exactly what his temper is like. Tell the truth, or I will make you taste the cane as well."

The Crown Prince bit his lip and refused to say a word.

The Emperor, mindful of his injuries, couldn't actually beat him.

"Do you not know who Meng Changqing is?" the Emperor said sternly. "His father and brothers died defending this country. Now, because of a good-for-nothing like you, I have had him beaten. How are the old ministers in the court supposed to look at me!"