What a masterful display of evasion, half-truths, and distortion of facts.
A faint smile touched Shen Xihe's lips.
"Your Majesty, that is not the case." Xiao Changgeng stepped forward proactively. "Fourth sister—"
"Your Majesty." Shen Xihe cut off the Twelfth Prince Xiao Changgeng's words. Adjusting her flowing shawl, she moved with lotus-like steps, her posture dignified and elegant. "What Yangling Princess said reflects what Yangling Princess witnessed. What Zhaoning says reflects what Zhaoning witnessed. The truth and falsehood, right and wrong—Your Majesty will naturally discern after hearing both accounts."
The Youning Emperor swept his gaze over the assembled figures. "Zhaoning, you may speak."
"Zhaoning entered the palace today to visit the Crown Prince. While leaving the palace, I passed by Wenxuan Pavilion when the Twelfth Prince came crashing down from the sky. Had Zhaoning not been accompanied by maids with some martial skill, not only would Zhaoning have been injured, but the Twelfth Prince would have been severely wounded or crippled."
As she spoke, Shen Xihe cast a faint glance at Yangling Princess. "When the Twelfth Prince fell from the roof, not a single attendant was present. Zhaoning was inwardly shocked and suspicious when I overheard Yangling Princess issuing arrogant commands from inside Wenxuan Pavilion."
Clearing her throat delicately, Shen Xihe repeated Yangling Princess's words verbatim: "Xiao Changgeng, have you fallen and knocked yourself senseless? If there's still breath in you, climb back up there and fetch it for me, now!"
Her words hung in the air. Yangling Princess turned pale, Xiao Changgeng lowered his head in a show of deference, and the Youning Emperor's expression darkened further.
"Father, your child—"
"Your Majesty, Father only has three children. Zhaoning and Brother have been separated from our half-sister, so we do not know if in large, flourishing families where siblings have different mothers, they typically exclude each other like this." Shen Xihe wore an expression of innocent confusion. "But the Fifth Princess's behavior truly lacks proper upbringing. The Twelfth Prince is somewhat younger than her—if she cannot cherish her younger brother, must she treat him as less than human?"
"Father says the imperial family sets the example for the realm, serving as models for all subjects. He instructed Zhaoning to observe the conduct of the various princesses upon coming to the capital, saying any refinement I might learn would be my blessing. But conduct like the Fifth Princess's—Zhaoning truly cannot emulate it."
"Shen Xihe, how dare you!"
"Silence!"
Yangling Princess's furious shout, born of shame and anger, was met with a sharp glare from the Youning Emperor. She fell to her knees with a thud.
"Your Majesty, please do not be angered. The Fifth Princess is likely still young and grew worried when the Prince did not respond for so long, fearing he might have been injured from the fall. However, it was Changling Princess's reply that truly opened Zhaoning's eyes."
Shen Xihe paused, then addressed the stony-faced Youning Emperor while imitating Changling Princess's words: "What are you afraid of? Even if he's injured, Father will only think him useless."
At this point, Xiao Changgeng displayed just the right amount of dejection and a bravely maintained smile.
"Your Majesty, Father often says even ten fingers differ in length. Back in the northwest, whenever I made a mistake, Father would invariably punish Brother as well—not out of favoritism toward me, but because an elder brother bears responsibility for caring for his younger sister. Zhaoning vaguely recalls the Twelfth Prince is the same age as these two princesses but several months younger. Why then must the younger brother yield to and care for his elder sisters?"
"Father doesn't particularly like our half-sister either, yet he never stints on her food, clothing, or provisions, and never permits Brother or me to bully her."
"Yet look at the Twelfth Prince. Could it be that raising children in the capital differs from how we do it in the northwest?"
Shen Xihe's question was posed with utmost sincerity, stopping just short of outright stating that the Youning Emperor didn't know how to raise his children.
Yet everyone present understood her implication perfectly—even when parsed phrase by phrase, her words couldn't be reconstructed to form that exact sentence, making it impossible to charge her with disrespect.Xiao Changgeng's heart was roiled by towering waves. He had long heard of Shen Xihe's name, but being young and holding no status in the palace, he had only caught a distant glimpse of her at the Empress Dowager's birthday banquet and never encountered her again.
He knew of all Shen Xihe's deeds, but experiencing firsthand her sarcastic remarks toward His Majesty was still indescribably shocking.
What made it worse was that she wasn't aggressive yet remained reasonable and well-grounded, leaving His Majesty unable to retaliate and forced to endure her ridicule. Today, she not only mocked His Majesty but didn't spare the two princesses either.
"Zhaoning, why did Changling break her nose?" The Youning Emperor, despite his cultivated demeanor, found it hard to maintain composure as a sovereign and issued a veiled warning.
Shen Xihe showed no fear, her expression unchanged: "The Twelfth Prince, fearing Zhaoning would be wronged, hurried to report to the Fourth Princess. Unexpectedly, he collided with the Fourth Princess who had grown impatient and come looking. The Fourth Princess fell to the ground in an undignified manner.
Zhaoning did not wish to approach, lest the princess misunderstand and think Zhaoning was observing her disgraceful state, so she walked straight ahead. The Fourth Princess then halted Zhaoning and accused her of disrespect, claiming she failed to greet the princess properly, and moved to slap Zhaoning."
At this point, Shen Xihe's gaze turned chilly: "Setting aside that Zhaoning refrained from approaching due to prior conflicts with the Fourth Princess and fear of misunderstanding.
Even if Zhaoning truly failed to greet the princess properly, the princess had no right to slap her. How could Zhaoning simply endure it? Having learned some self-defense techniques, she flicked a bead to strike the princess's knee, causing the princess to fall!"
Shen Xihe wasn't trying to shield Xiao Changgeng; she wanted to make it clear to Changling Princess that even if His Majesty knew it was Shen Xihe who caused her broken nose, this privileged princess could only accept it.
After Shen Xihe finished speaking, the hall fell silent.
The Youning Emperor looked stern, his gaze cold and heavy: "Yangling, is this true?"
Under the Youning Emperor's imposing stare, the Fifth Princess Yangling felt her heart pounding like a trapped rabbit, barely controllable: "Father..."
She was utterly flustered—initially angered by Shen Xihe's words, then ashamed and irritated. Suddenly questioned by His Majesty, her mind went completely blank, unsure how to respond.
As she recalled Shen Xihe's account, she realized it was all factual, leaving no room for rebuttal.
Shen Xihe wore a faint smile. She had spoken at length not only to mock the Youning Emperor but also to psychologically pressure the princess, preventing her from making excuses.
After all, she was a princess and the aggrieved party. If she persisted with unreasonable arguments, the outcome would likely be a fifty-fifty blame assignment—not the result Shen Xihe wanted.
Princess Yangling stammered incoherently, her face flushed red, unable to form a response.
The Youning Emperor had no choice but to ask Xiao Changgeng: "Is it as Zhaoning said?"
Since Shen Xihe had taken the blame for injuring Changling, Xiao Changgeng naturally couldn't refute it; otherwise, Shen Xihe would be guilty of deceiving the sovereign: "Your Majesty, it is indeed so."
"Yangling, as the elder, lacks virtue and shows no compassion for her younger sibling. She is sentenced to three months of confinement in her quarters. I will dispatch a Female Historian to instruct her morning and evening."
Princess Yangling turned pale. Being instructed by a palace Female Historian meant admitting her lack of upbringing, and such instruction required kneeling from sunrise to sunset.
"As for Changling, considering her injury, she is only confined to the palace to recuperate. Any future offenses will incur severe punishment!"
Shen Xihe thought to herself, His Majesty truly dotes on Changling Princess. But since her goal was achieved, she said no more.
There are no secrets in the palace. Soon, the entire court knew of this incident. Upon hearing the news, Tianyuan specifically sought out the physician attending to Changling Princess: "Be sure to treat Her Highness's injury properly. Once she is healed, His Highness will reward you handsomely.""What reward? A reward of fainting before him? He cannot bear that."
The physician, who feared the Crown Prince might faint in front of him, nodded vigorously: "This humble official understands."
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