"Spared?" Jin Fengzhao sneered, "This woman thinks she’s above everyone, bumping into me in my own palace. If I spared her, wouldn’t that mean any random Tom, Dick, or Harry could disrespect me? Do you think I would not punish you, too, you lowly maidservant, if you test me?"
Pale-faced, Auntie Li addressed Gu Youyou, "Auntie Li, thank you, but pleading with such a person is futile. Youyou has caused trouble; please don’t get involved, Auntie Li, lest you get dragged down with me."
Auntie Li looked at Gu Youyou worriedly and dared not speak further.
Gu Youyou’s words had enraged Jin Fengzhao, her face turning a shade of iron blue. She slapped Gu Youyou across the face, cursing, "A lowly female doctor dares to speak to me in such a way? Hmph, as for a reason, don’t say you offended me today; even if you had said nothing at all, since when does my judgment require a reason? I can punish whomever I wish without justification. Take her away."
Gu Youyou’s cheek burned with pain. She had never felt so infuriated since her arrival in this era.
It was the first time in both her lives that she had been slapped and humiliated.
It was bad enough coming from true royalty, but to add insult to injury from an imposter?
Gu Youyou was taken to a palace hall by Jin Fengzhao. The splendid Zhaoyang Hall had been her residence before her marriage; as Zhuzhao Country’s most beloved princess, she retained the palace even after her wedding, returning for brief stays whenever she pleased.
Upon seeing Gu Youyou taken away by the Princess, Auntie Li hurriedly reported the incident to the Empress Dowager.
The Empress was about to leave when Auntie Li’s panicked arrival startled her.
Auntie Li quickly paid her respects to the Empress Dowager and Empress, "Empress Dowager, Empress, bad news. Doctor Gu encountered the Princess on her way to Liuying Hall, and the Princess has taken her away."
Both the Empress and Empress Dowager were stunned; as far as they knew, there was no animosity between Gu Youyou and Jin Fengzhao.
"What happened? Explain clearly," the Empress Dowager commanded.
Auntie Li replied, "It might be because of the clothes Doctor Gu is wearing today. The Princess seemed very angry at the outfit, even hitting Doctor Gu, and now she has been taken away."
"Oh no," the Empress said, realizing, "Youyou is wearing the latest design from Manxiu Building. The Princess adores Manxiu’s work; with her temper, she cannot stand to see someone wearing something she doesn’t yet possess."
The Empress Dowager also grew anxious, urging, "Then go quickly, check on her at Zhaoyang Hall. Feng Zhao has a fierce temper; don’t be too late, or the girl might not be there anymore."
The Empress acknowledged quickly and scurried off to Zhaoyang Hall with her attendants.
Still uneasy, the Empress Dowager ordered a Palace Attendant, "I’ll go too. Only I can rein in Feng Zhao’s temper."
Gu Youyou was held down by several matrons, as they stripped her clothes and gagged her.
Because Gu Youyou was particularly biting with her words, Jin Fengzhao, though not afraid of her, refrained from arguing with a commoner and simply ordered her mouth to be gagged.
This time, Gu Youyou was truly enraged. Being slapped and stripped in public was more humiliating than when Yu Jizi had broken her ribs.
An imposter indeed. As long as she survived today and made it out of this palace, she would make sure the woman’s true colors were revealed.
Stripping her clothes? It was madness!
For a Princess to behave like a common street thug, such acts were befitting only of the riff-raff from the streets.