"Yes." The eunuch took the order and brought people forward to drag the palace maid away to receive her punishment.
"Princess, have mercy, Princess... Imperial Consort, save my life... save me, Imperial Consort..." The palace maid shouted in fear.
But Consort Yu didn’t care about the palace maid at all and instead chuckled to An Jing, "That vile maid actually failed to recognize Mount Tai and mistook a Princess for a mere palace maid, which has surely made you the butt of the joke, Princess."
Without waiting for An Jing to speak, Consort Yu laughed again, "Why don’t you dress up a bit, Princess? I bet that vile maid didn’t even glance at your clothes and just looked at your hair."
At the moment, An Jing’s hair was adorned with only a jade hairpin and no other decoration. Consort Yu’s words were undoubtedly mocking An Jing for being a farmer’s daughter; even after becoming a Princess, she couldn’t shed her innate poverty-stricken mannerisms.
An Jing despised others who wore gold and silver. She liked simplicity. In her eyes, Consort Yu’s attire was no different from that of a nouveau riche, with her head covered in gold ornaments, dazzling to the eyes and heavy to wear.
An Jing heard Consort Yu’s mockery but didn’t let it show on her face; instead, she smiled politely and asked, "I come from a farmer’s background and have just entered the palace. I’m not yet familiar with everything here. May I ask which Imperial Consort you are and from which palace?"
Consort Yu merely maintained her Imperial Consort composure and didn’t introduce herself.
It was then that a eunuch standing behind Consort Yu spoke up, "Her Excellency is the master of Jing Xing Palace, Imperial Consort Yu."
An Jing feigned distress, "I haven’t heard of it..."
Pingjun Princess: "..."
As if she hadn’t seen Consort Yu’s barely restrained twitching lips, An Jing looked towards Pingjun Princess and smiled while appraising her. "This honorable lady’s attire is quite similar to mine, may I inquire who you are?"
Pingjun Princess, who had been called an honorable lady: "..."
She was still charming and youthful; how could she resemble an old lady?! Even Consort Yu wasn’t as well-preserved as her!
Every time she and her youngest daughter Linghe stood together, people would compliment them for looking like sisters. But today, this farmer’s girl had actually dared to call her an old lady! How preposterous!
Although Pingjun Princess was internally furious as the waves, she was bound by the fact that An Jing’s rank was two levels higher than hers and so respect was necessary. She had to bear it and still put on a polite smile, brushing her clothes slightly and saying with utmost respect, "I am the Official Consort of Pingjun and have met the Changsheng Princess."
"Oh, you know that I am the Changsheng Princess," An Jing feigned surprise, though she was holding back laughter internally.
It was then that Pingjun Princess realized she had fallen into a trap, and though she wished she could smack An Jing to vent her anger, she respectfully said, "I was far away just now and did not recognize you. It was only when you came closer that I recognized who you were, Princess."
An Jing curiously asked, "I wonder how Consort Queen recognized me as I do not recall having met you before?"
Pingjun Princess bit her lip but had to continue the pretense, "I entered the palace yesterday and happened to pass by Fenghua Palace, where I saw you, Princess."
"I see," An Jing nodded, pretending to understand, then added, "If you were passing by Fenghua Palace, why didn’t you come in and sit for a while? How could you not show that respect for me and my husband?"
Who would dare disrespect the King of Eternal Victory?!
Pingjun Princess was immediately frightened and repeatedly apologized to An Jing, "I would never dare disrespect Your Highness and the Princess. I was afraid of bothering you and the Prince."