ETERNAL LOVE : A LOVE STORY

Xie Mei's complexion turned pale when the thing fell out of the box. She tore her dress from the chair and walked towards Zhao Ming in large strides.

" You...how can you touch my closet without…." She was about to pick up that thing off the ground but Zhao Ming was faster than her. She squatted down and picked up the thing from the floor.

"-_-"

Xie Mei stared at Zhao Ming in nervousness and reached out to snatch the hairpin from her but Zhao Ming raised her hand higher. She glared at her with her icy cold gaze which caused her to froze at one place.

Zhao Ming stood up while holding the hairpin in her hand. Her hand trembled slightly as she couldn't believe in her eyes.

' The hairpin she was searching all along...was here. She found it.' 

The legendary hairpin that she has seen in her dreams and that picture, and in Zhao Ming's memories, is in her hands right now.

She looked at the exquisite jade hairpin whose round-shaped head was made of gold and has detailed embroidery on it.

She was dazed that she even forgot to deal with Xie Mei. Consort Xie Mei felt her palm sweaty as she sensed that her life was about to end. 

" Empress….this...is mine. Give it to me. This is given by my father. Please give…" she stretched her hand to take it back while stuttering in nervousness.

Zhao Ming knitted her brows and pulled her hand away from her. She scoffed and looked at her in disgust, " Consort Xie Mei, you still have a nerve to lie. You're saying that this hairpin is yours?"

Xie Mei pursed her lips and nodded hesitantly. " Yes, it's mine. So give it to me back." She tried to be shameless for the last time, hoping it would work.

~Pak~

Zhao Ming slapped her hand away with a force causing her to stagger back. She narrowed her eyes and scoffed, " What? Give it to you? You have the guts to lie in front of the Empress of Ji Dynasty?" she said while using her full title.

Xie Mei shuddered when Zhao Ming shouted at her. Her aura changed all of a sudden.

" Consort Xie Mei, you know that this hairpin is not just a casual hairpin that you can steal. It's a royal hairpin. It's a decree of the late Emperor which was given to me when I was betrothed to His Majesty and when I was crowned as the Empress of Ji Dynasty, that was the first time I wore this hairpin."

" How dare you call this precious royal treasure as your personal belonging?" Zhao Ming was exhilarated that she found the hairpin but the fact that Xie Mei was hiding it all along and was still lying made her furious.

She was going crazy to find this hairpin and here she was hiding it in her closet. 

" Your Majesty…" Xie Mei shivered upon hearing Zhao Ming's words which made her remember that it was a royal treasure and was as precious as the Emperor's crown.

She kneeled on the ground and sobbed, " Please forgive me. I didn't steal it. I..was just keeping it with me. "

Zhao Ming knitted her brows and picked up the silver box from the ground and carefully put the hairpin inside it. She held the box in her one hand and looked at Xie Mei with a frown.

-

 Zhao Ming was sitting on the chair while Xie Mei was kneeling on the floor in the room. Zhao Ming took a deep breath and asked, " Consort Xie Mei, where did you get this hairpin? It disappeared when I fell into the pond, did you find it near the pond?" She asked without delaying any further moment.

She remembered that Zhao Ming was wearing the hairpin that day since she used to wear it almost every day.

Xie Mei clenched her palms in a fist as her eyes turned misty. She swallowed her saliva and looked down. 

" Fine, if you don't want to say right now, then you can say it in front of His Majesty. Don't forget that you will not only be charged with stealing this royal hairpin but also the attempt to murder the Empress Consort. Because His Majesty knows that it was not suicide." Zhao Ming said coldly while looking at Xie Mei's shivering body.

" Don't…" Xie Mei reacted when she heard that she will be charged with attempt to murder. She can get away with stealing the hairpin once. At most, she will be given a few months of stay at the abandoned chamber or no budget for months. But if an attempt of murder of the Empress was added, then there won't be any punishment less than the cold palace.

Until now, no consort or concubines have been sent to the cold palace. All the consorts have heard the stories of the consorts or concubines sent to the cold palace in the past in cause of harming or the attempt to murder the royal trio who are the top three royals; Emperor, Empress, and Emperor Dowager and another category is the immoral conduct. That was the main reason for an exile to the cold palace mainly.

One can come back from the abandoned chamber, or even the wild forest but not from the cold palace. The stories of the cold palace are nothing but pure torture.

Zhao Ming's lips curled up as she tapped her finger on the armrest of the chair and said, " Then speak. I am giving you the last chance to speak. Otherwise, after this, it will be His Majesty who will deal with you. Then don't blame me for giving you a second chance."

.

Xie Mei bit her lower lip as tears rolled down her cheek. Her body shivered as she sobbed while trying to not be loud.

After a few minutes of silence, she finally spoke, " I...I found it near the pond. When you fell in the pond, I was there. I saw that the royal hairpin fell beside the pond and picked it up."

" I know it's value. That's why I took it away with me. Even though I can't become the Empress, I just wanted to take this hairpin with me. It was so beautiful that I couldn't think of anything for a moment." She said hesitantly.

Zhao Ming raised her brows and observed her actions. Her lips curled up as she said, " You were the one who pushed me into the pool right?" 

Xie Mei raised her head and shook it urgently. She was about to deny it when Zhao Ming spoke again.

" Lie to me again and I will cut your tongue right away. Don't take me so lightly Xie Mei, I always followed the rules and according to the convention of stealing the royal crown or hairpin, I can even sentence you to death. Cutting off your tongue will be the lightest punishment for you." The exile to abandoned chambers and budget cuts was the basic one. However, there are harshest punishments for stealing the royal hairpin as well, and extreme torture and death sentence is one of them.

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