Chapter 574: The Last Hope
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation | Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
The room was so quiet that one could hear a pin drop. Bai Shuang knelt on the ground and did not even dare to breathe.
Su Ying had told them before that they could have a kind heart, but a kind heart that overestimated their own abilities could very well become a sharp blade that would stab them in return.
“Your Imperial Highness, your servant knows her mistake.”
Su Ying’s face was emotionless. “Go and wait on one side. Wait for those two officials to come in. Let’s see what they have to say.”
Bai Shuang bit her lip and stood to the side.
Soon, two officials walked in.
When the official came in, he did not expect the Empress to be present and
could not help but feel a little timid.
“Your humble servant hereby greets Your Imperial Highness.”
Su Ying asked outright, “You may rise. I heard that you guys say there is a criminal in the villa. What criminal is it?
“Your Imperial Highness, this criminal’s behavior is abominable. Yesterday, your humble servant and the others were trying to capture him, but he escaped.”
“Oh?”
“Recently, I received a report that a suspicious man had been squatting outside the women’s academy, intending to lay his hands on the students of the women’s academy. Just yesterday, when the female students of the academy were leaving school, the criminal suddenly kidnapped one student, intending to take advantage of her. In the end, a passer-by discovered him and frightened him off, thereby saving the female student.”
Bai Shuang’s face became increasingly paler.
Su Ying’s expression also grew more frosty.
“What does the criminal look like? Is there a portrait?
“Yes, a passerby saw the criminal and the artist from the Capital Governor’s Office drew up his portrait. Please have a look, Your Imperial Highness.”
Su Ying took the portrait from the official’s hands and unfolded it.
Bai Shuang was standing beside Su Ying, so she could see the portrait clearly.
The portrait was drawn in a somewhat abstract manner, but Bai Shuang could still recognize it at a glance. This face was Si Chen’s!
She would never have thought that the person she saved was actually a lewd pervert!
Then the strangulation marks on his neck were probably caused when he was caught…
Zhou Qing secretly supported Bai Shuang to prevent her from collapsing.
“This person collapsed behind the villa yesterday. I thought that he was a commoner who had lost his footing and told the Imperial Guards to bring him back for treatment. I didn’t realize he was a criminal. Zhou Qing, take them to arrest him.”
“Yes, Your Imperial Highness.”
Zhou Qing led the two officials out of the main courtyard.
“Your imperial Highness, I implore Your Imperial Highness to let me go with them. If he is awake, I still want to scold him to vent the anger in my heart.
Su Ying looked intently at Bai Shuang but still agreed to her request. “Go ahead.
It is also a good lesson for yourself.”
“Yes, thank you, Your Imperial Highness. I will accept my punishment after I return.”
Bai Shuang took a deep breath, suppressed the anger in her heart, and quickly
left the main courtyard.
At this moment, Si Chen, who was lying on the bed, woke up gradually.
His eyes became alert after a moment of confusion. He subconsciously sat up on the bed, but the moment he moved, the wound on his body was so painful that his face became all contorted.
Just as he was about to speak, the door was pushed open and two officials walked in with ferocious faces.
Si Chen looked at the officials in surprise. Before he could figure out what was happening, the official said, “That’s him. Arrest him!”
The officials went up and took Si Chen down without another word.
Si Chen’s eyes widened in shock. He opened his mouth to speak, but he was almost strangled to death yesterday. His throat was injured, and no matter how hard he tried, he could not make a sound.
“Argh! Argh!” Si Chen opened his mouth and could only utter indecipherable sounds. He tried to gesture with his hands, but the official thought that he was trying to escape and punched him in the face. One of his eyes instantly turned blue-black.
“Damned lewd pervert, you actually dare to hide in the Imperial Family’s villa. Do you think we can’t catch you just because you hide here? Come with us obediently, or I’ll break your legs!”
The officials restrained him and led him out of the house.
As soon as they got out of the house, Si Chen saw Bai Shuang standing not far away.
When he met Bai Shuang’s disgusted and reproachful gaze, Si Chen panicked even more.
“Argh! Argh!” He wanted to shout at the top of his lungs, but no matter how hard he tried, he could not say a word. Si Chen once again felt despair!
Bai Shuang looked at Si Chen, and her chest was filled with anger. She could not resist rushing over to slap Si Chen’s face. “You lewd pervert! I didn’t expect you to do something like attempting to rape an innocent woman. I was really wrong about you. I thought you were a good person and that you were just down and out for a while! A lewd pervert like you should be slashed by the blade a thousand times!”
The more Bai Shuang spoke, the angrier she became. She almost wanted to pounce on Si Chen to beat him up.
The two officials knew that Bai Shuang was someone close to the Empress, so they did not dare to offend her. They could only stand at the side and watch. Si Chen was so thin and he was injured as well. Not surprisingly, he was not Bai Shuang’s match. In the blink of an eye, he was pushed to the ground by Bai
Shuang.
When the two officials saw this, they wanted to go forward to stop her, but they were stopped by Zhou Qing. It was obvious that Bai Shuang was really angry, so she allowed her to give vent to her emotions.
After a round of venting, the anger in Bai Shuang’s chest finally subsided. Panting heavily, she got up from Si Chen’s body and glared at him viciously. “You’d better not let me see you again. Otherwise, I’ll beat you up every time I see you!” With that, she left without looking back.
Si Chen was really badly beaten up by Bai Shuang, but his two eyes were still fixed intently on her back profile with a hint of hope.
“Miss, I selfishly hope that you can save me again…” His eyes implored wordlessly.
Bai Shuang returned to the main courtyard and closed the door behind her.
She opened her palm and saw a key lying on it. Si Chen had shoved it into her hand when she was hitting him.
For some reason, Bai Shuang did not throw the key away after sensing its existence. Instead, she held onto it tightly!
Perhaps… she could trust him one more time!
Bai Shuang changed into a clean dress and returned to kneel down in front of Su Ying.
“Your servant acted rashly and did not follow the Your Imperial Highness’s teachings. Please punish me, Your Imperial Highness.”
Su Ying gently leaned against the soft cushion. Her face was emotionless, making it hard for people to read her thoughts.
“Bai Shuang, I remember that you have always been a rational person.”
“I do not know why I made a mistake this time. It’s my fault. However, Your imperial Highness, just now when I was beating that criminal, he suddenly shoved a key into my hand.”
Bai Shuang brought the key to Su Ying.
Su Ying opened her eyes to look at the key. She frowned slightly. “It’s the storage pavilion’s key.”
“Yes, I could tell the moment I took it back.” The locks of the storage pavilion were specially made, so the keys were also different from ordinary ones. Ordinary locksmiths could not replicate them. It could be said that the locks and keys of the storage pavilion were unique.
Su Ying looked at Zhou Qing, who had just walked in. “As a bystander, you can see things more clearly.. What exactly is going on?