Shen Xihe's words made the usually steady Wang Zheng abruptly lift his head, his sharp gaze fixed intently on her.
The rules and disciplines of noble families were known only to their own members. Far from concealing these precepts, they actively publicized them to showcase their adherence to propriety and profound cultural heritage.
Children born into such families grew up immersed in these norms, accepting them as natural. Outsiders, however, often viewed them as excessively strict. Apart from noble descendants or ambitious commoners aspiring to emulate aristocratic ways, few would delve deeply into these family regulations.
That Shen Xihe—a young lady not yet of age—possessed such thorough understanding of noble codes and their severe consequences for violations, inevitably unsettled Wang Zheng.
The princess speaks timely words. The Wang family will certainly punish any offspring who breach clan rules severely," Wang Zheng inclined slightly toward Shen Xihe with a smile.
His firm tone implicitly conveyed that even if Wang Yuhui had violated family rules, it remained an internal affair—punishment would be administered behind closed doors.
This epitomized noble families. The world often criticized them as rigid and pedantic, bound by excessive rules that made life suffocating. Yet few understood that everything has its merits and flaws. The abundance of outstanding talents among noble houses was no empty boast—certain fine traditions and virtues indeed took deeper root within these lineages.
For instance, while Chen Zhong and Hu Zhengyang would openly blame their children, Wang Zheng would shield his. Noble families taught their children to present a united front externally while enforcing strict discipline internally.
When Wang Zheng spoke of punishing Wang Yuhui, it was neither empty rhetoric nor face-saving after being exposed by Shen Xihe. From beginning to end, he intended to administer severe punishment behind closed doors—though Shen Xihe's intervention would now make the penalty harsher.
Having achieved her purpose, Shen Xihe refrained from further comment.
After brief deliberation, the Youning Emperor declared: "Marquis Xuanping and Vice Minister Hu shall be penalized one year's salary for lax supervision, with ten days of reflection and written repentance."
Pausing, he addressed Wang Zheng: "Regarding the Wang daughter's improper speech, We trust Minister Wang will enforce strict discipline."
"Grateful for Your Majesty's divine grace," Chen Zhong and Hu Zhengyang promptly kowtowed.
"This subject will surely impose severe punishment to rectify family conduct," Wang Zheng pledged.
"National stability and peaceful times remain Our shared aspiration with all ministers," the Youning Emperor scanned the assembled officials. "This achievement relies on each fulfilling their duties—civil and military officials alike contribute to this prosperous era. We expect united efforts to benefit the people."
"The Sage Emperor is wise. This subject humbly obeys Your Majesty's divine will," Wang Zheng responded.
Other ministers echoed this pledge in unison.
"Let us set aside such matters during this rare leisure time," the Youning Emperor smiled at the gathering. "Where is Our Golden Guard Commandant?"
The Golden Guard—one of the dynasty's twelve guard divisions—served as the imperial guard, overseeing capital patrols and night curfews. The Emperor had appointed Bu Shulin to the Golden Guard with the respectable rank of Commandant.
As everyone glanced around without spotting Bu Shulin, Princess Anling rushed in with reddened eyes. Noticing the crowd, she immediately composed herself and approached to pay respects to the Emperor.
Before so many officials, the Emperor refrained from inquiring why his daughter had been crying—naturally, no one would dare offend the princess, so it must be some other distress. The Youning Emperor dismissed the ministers to continue flower viewing while escorting Princess Anling to a side chamber.Shen Xihe was well aware of her motives for targeting Hu Yingrao. While it was true that Hu Yingrao didn't dare bully her directly but used her name to harass others, another reason was to create an opportunity for Bu Shulin through this incident.
Before leaving the garden, she had sent a message to Cui Jinbai. She lured everyone away and had people from the Northwest King's residence in the palace guide Princess Anling to the scene.
It seemed Bu Shulin had seized the chance, making Princess Anling witness her "adulterous" affair with Cui Jinbai.
However, Shen Xihe hadn't expected Bu Shulin to be so wild. As she walked out of the main hall with Tao Zhuanxian, she saw Cui Jinbai approaching, his jaw bearing two faint tooth marks...
Cui Jinbai's face was dark enough to drip water, and no one dared approach him casually.
"Youyou, if you dislike such occasions, you may return first." Tao Zhuanxian's eyes turned gloomy at the thought of those who had joined forces to ostracize his granddaughter earlier.
While mentally planning how to deal with the fathers and brothers of those ignorant young ladies, Tao Zhuanxian completely overlooked that his precious granddaughter hadn't suffered the slightest loss...
"Youyou will take her leave now." Having accomplished what she set out to do and secured the three thousand Fine Armors, Shen Xihe had no desire to waste energy staying here.
Tao Zhuanxian escorted Shen Xihe to her carriage outside the garden, watching it depart before turning back to attend to the emperor.
"Success?" As soon as Shen Xihe entered the carriage, she saw Bu Shulin lying inside.
"With me handling it, how could it fail?" Bu Shulin raised an eyebrow.
"Sit up," Shen Xihe ordered.
Reluctantly, Bu Shulin sat up, revealing a bruised purple patch on the inner side of her face that had been hidden. "You... what happened to you?"
"Xihe, you didn't tell me that Cui Jinbai would resort to violence!" Bu Shulin exclaimed angrily, wincing as the movement tugged at her sore face. She gave Shen Xihe a resentful look.
"He knows martial arts?" Shen Xihe genuinely didn't know that Cui Jinbai, coming from a noble family, practiced martial arts. She was aware the imposter had considerable skills, but it was rare for scions of prestigious families to train in martial arts—especially to the extent of injuring Bu Shulin, who had trained since childhood.
"He caught me by surprise," Bu Shulin pointed at the bruise on her face. "Otherwise, could his mediocre skills have hurt me?"
Bu Shulin spoke truthfully. Shen Xihe had paved the way for her, and Cui Jinbai came as agreed, thinking Bu Shulin had summoned him. Before Princess Anling arrived, Bu Shulin needed to delay him, never expecting the man to possess some martial skill and catch her off guard.
However, she subdued him within moments, pinning him beneath her. As Cui Jinbai struggled stubbornly, Bu Shulin heard footsteps—likely Princess Anling, since this was Shen Xihe's scheme, and she trusted it would be flawless.
She intended to pretend to kiss Cui Jinbai, but he resisted fiercely at that moment. While restraining him again, her head dipped, and her teeth accidentally scraped his jaw—just as Princess Anling witnessed the scene.
"Though there were complications, it still succeeded," Shen Xihe nodded after listening.
"Is Cui Jinbai truly reliable?" Bu Shulin still felt somewhat uneasy, as the slightest misstep could expose their grave crime of deceiving the emperor."Rest assured, you still have your uses." Shen Xihe comforted Bu Shulin with words that stung. "I won't harm you."
Bu Shulin: ...
While Shen Xihe felt thoroughly satisfied here, news of what had transpired at Hibiscus Garden reached Xiao Huayong's ears the moment she departed.
After hearing the full account, Xiao Huayong summarized it in one sentence: "The Chen, Hu, and Wang families—they bullied her."
Tianyuan: ...
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