Chapter 74 - Punish Her Is Me!
Ying Lili sat on the ground, which was covered with straw in the prison. Never once she had thought that she would end up like this. At least Sheng Li never treated her like this, but as soon as he got poisoned, her condition turned terrible. "Sheng li, please wake up. I will take this punishment because Juyan betrayed the Han Kingdom. You have to wake up and punish me as I lost to you, Sheng Li. My poor judgment endangered your life. You were right that this palace is far more dangerous than the battleground," Ying Lili thought in her mind as she placed her forehead on her arms, which were on her folded knees.
There were tears in her eyes. But what could she do now? She recalled how Sheng Li came to her rescue when she was going to be punished by the Empress the other day. If she would have let Sheng Li kill her uncle that day then this would not have happened. Tears were rolling down her eyes not because she was going to be hanged the next day, but the innocent people who were from the Juyan Regal Family would be hanged along with her.
Still, there was a tiny hope inside her heart that Sheng Li would wake up. She wanted to see Sheng Li's face before dying and wanted to apologize to him for the wrong she had done to him. "Your highness," General Xiao came inside the prison and bent on his knees. He had the glass of water in his hand as he forwarded that glass to Ying Lili.
"Please drink the water. The Crown Prince will get angry at me for not taking care of you in his absence," General Xiao said in a low voice.
Ying Lili lifted her head and looked into the eyes of Xiao Zhan. "Why would he get angry? This is the punishment I deserve. He will be happy to see me like this. Do not worry about me, General Xiao. Tell Sheng Li that I am guilty of trusting my uncle instead of him. I am apologetic that he had to suffer because of my silliness," Ying Lili plainly stated. The tone was filled with regret.
"Your highness, the Royal Physician has told you that without the antidote the Crown Prince's survival chance is minimal," Xiao Zhan in a broken voice informed Ying Lili.
"You shall have faith in your Crown Prince. Nothing can happen to him until he will become the next Emperor. He will wake up," Ying Lili affirmed with a faint smile on her lips. "You shall leave, General Xiao," Ying Lili proclaimed. Xiao Zhan put down the glass of water and stood up. He bowed his head and walked out of the prison.
The bloody horrible night passed quickly. In the early morning, Ying Lili was brought to the hanging ground. She was weak and her eyes were swollen. The glow had left her face. She looked around to just get a glimpse of Sheng Li, but he was not there. Her eyes turned teary. She lifted her hands, which were tied to a shackle, and brought them near her eyes. Wiping the tears off her eyes, she put them down. Jian Guozhi came to the Crown Princess. "Yingér, I will talk with my father," Jian Guozhi pronounced. Ying Lili lowered her eyes. "Brother Jian, thank you for your concern," Ying Lili stated. Yongzheng came towards them and whispered something in his ear. Jian Guozhi tightened his fist and walked away from there.
Ying Lili was told to get on her knees, which she did. Her head was lowered. She was still hoping that Sheng Li would come. After a while, the Emperor came with the Empress. They were standing on a high platform. "The Emperor is here," someone announced. Jian Guozhi, Yongzheng, and Rong Zemin to some extent were feeling bad for the Crown Princess.
Ying Lili lifted her head and looked towards the Emperor. "The Crown Princess is found guilty of poisoning the Crown Prince so she will be uncrowned and later will be hanged to death," Han Wenji pronounced.
Xue Yu-Yan smiled upon hearing the decision of the Emperor. Two maidservants came forward and removed the clips and hairpins from Ying Lili's head. She clutched her clothes as the hairpins were removed from her head. The crown was almost lifted from over Ying Lili's head when they heard a loud voice. "Stop!!"
The voice was familiar, as it was of the Crown Prince. Ying Lili was bewildered to hear his voice. She turned her head when she saw Sheng Li was coming towards her, followed by Lei Wanxi, Han Nianzu and Gu Jingguo.
Sheng Li's face was pale, but he seemed fine. Ying Lili did not blink her eyes even for a second. The people there were shocked to see the Crown Prince. Sheng Li halted as he came to the left of Ying Lili. The maidservants stepped back to see the Crown Prince. He gazed at Ying Lili and knitted his brows.
"Son!" Han Wenji was delighted to see Sheng Li. He descended the stairs, and the Empress followed the Emperor.
"The Crown Prince is completely fine," the Prime Minister delightedly stated. Sheng Li turned his gaze towards him and spoke, "In my absence, you dared to hurt my Crown Princess." Sheng Li's gaze turned to his father who was coming towards him. "Father, forgive me, but no one is allowed to decide the punishment for Ying Lili," Sheng Li declared. Han Wenji halted at his place upon hearing the statement of his son.
The Prime Minister stepped forward. "Your highness, the Crown Princess has schemed to kill you along with her family. That is why she is being punished. She will be hanged to the death for harming the Crown Prince," Wei Zhang Yong said with a bowed head. "Shut your mouth before I rip it apart. The only person who can punish her is me," Sheng Li loudly spoke. Ying Lili was staring at the Crown Prince who was defending her.
"If you would not be the nation's Prime Minister, then I would have killed you right at this moment for saying such a thing for the Crown Princess," Sheng Li vehemently pronounced. "Whoever planned to kill me..." Sheng Li stopped as he turned his gaze to the Empress and spoke, "... failed to understand that he has made the biggest mistake of his life."
Empress Wei was glaring at the Crown Prince. "I would love to see how you will punish the culprit, son," Empress Wei proclaimed.