Ying Zi hаstilу intеrjесted, "It's not Sister Ji Lаn's fаult, it was my оwn carеlеssnеss..." Неr еyes glistеned with tears, filled with utter feаr аnd helрlessnеss. Аs shе sрokе, shе lоwеrеd her hеad, looking аs thоugh she fеared the situаtion would еscalаtе bеуоnd соntrol. Anуоne еlsе wаtching wоuld havе thоught she had suffеrеd somе grave injusticе but dared not sреаk of it.
Нan Yan inwardlу snееred. Zhuаng Наnming hаdn't sееn it, but she hаd witnеssed it сleаrly—Ying Zi had рinchеd Ji Lаn, аnd in pаin, Ji Lаn hаd sрilled the teа all over herself. Suсh a clumsy triсk, yet it hаd foоlеd onlу Zhuang Hanming, who was still a child.
"Brother Ming," Han Yan spoke calmly, "Without even clarifying the matter, how can you talk about sending someone out of the estate?"
Ji Lan, having regained her composure, was naturally not one to let such false accusations slide. She immediately cried out loudly, "She pinched me, and that's why I spilled the tea!"
"Nonsense!" Zhuang Hanming was furious. "Why would Ying Zi pinch you for no reason? Did she deliberately hurt herself?"
"Whether she was pinched or not, Brother Ming, just look at Ji Lan's hand and you'll know," Han Yan said. Her body was still weak, so she didn't stand up, but her gaze was as cold as ice, her tone as sharp as iron.
"That's right!" At Han Yan's reminder, Ji Lan quickly extended her left hand. On the back of it was a glaring red nail mark, stark and vivid.
"It wasn't me, really it wasn't..." Ying Zi was so anxious that tears fell. She knelt on the ground, kowtowing repeatedly to Han Yan. "Miss, it really wasn't me. I didn't do such a thing."
Suspicious, Zhuang Hanming said, "Clearly, this maid is trying to frame Ying Zi. What's so difficult about framing someone? Just pinch yourself, and you can do the same!"
He's grown clever, Han Yan thought, staring at this unfamiliar younger brother. It was as if, overnight, a vast distance had opened between them. She slowly asked, "So, you don't believe Ji Lan's words?"
During Han Yan and Zhuang Hanming's last argument, Ji Lan hadn't been present. She didn't know about the incident and had never met Ying Zi before. Now, seeing Zhuang Hanming side with a stranger over Han Yan and herself, she felt both anger and resentment. Forgetting her injuries, she lunged at Ying Zi. "You liar! I clearly didn't spill water on you on purpose. What kind of scheme are you plotting?" Though petite, Ji Lan was agile and had some strength. Ying Zi, caught off guard, fell to the ground. Before Han Yan could intervene, Ji Lan was about to strike again when Zhuang Hanming stepped forward and kicked her. A man's leg strength was far greater than a woman's, and poor Ji Lan, already covered in bruises from the day before, was sent flying a foot away by Zhuang Hanming's kick, spitting out a mouthful of blood.
Without pausing, Zhuang Hanming swung his palm fiercely. Shu Hong, who had remained silent until then, pushed Ji Lan aside and took the blow squarely on her back, collapsing to the ground.
Everything happened too quickly for Han Yan to stop it. Seeing both Ji Lan and Shu Hong severely injured by Zhuang Hanming, she felt a sweet taste rise in her throat, and a faint trace of blood seeped into her mouth.As the situation escalated toward an increasingly severe outcome, Zhuang Hanming showed no intention of stopping. At the critical moment, a figure suddenly appeared from mid-air, exchanging a palm strike with Zhuang Hanming. Caught off guard, Zhuang Hanming was forced back several steps by the blow, barely steadying himself before looking up. The person was helping Shu Hong up from the ground, dressed in the attire of a guard. Han Yan breathed a sigh of relief, knowing it was Muyan who had arrived. After Han Yan had dismissed the servants of the mansion earlier, if Zhuang Hanming had truly taken action today, there would likely have been no one to stop him.
"Who are you?" Zhuang Hanming felt both startled and uncertain, but he saw the person bow toward Han Yan with a fist salute: "Princess Consort, this subordinate has arrived late."
Zhuang Hanming's expression shifted: "You are a servant of the mansion? How dare you treat me this way?"
"Zhuang Hanming." It was Han Yan who spoke, slowly rising to her feet.
Zhuang Hanming was taken aback, turning to look at Han Yan. She had always been gentle and amiable toward him, rarely so stern. Today, her gaze was cold and sharp, and though she showed no anger, for some reason, Zhuang Hanming felt an inexplicable sense of guilt. He knew that Ji Lan and Shu Hong were Han Yan's personal maids, cherished by her. Yet, that maid had truly been audacious and arrogant.
"So you came here today not to visit me," Han Yan lowered her eyes, her tone calm and unruffled: "but to demand an explanation."
Zhuang Hanming was startled—she already knew! Indeed, the incident with Ji Lan today was no accident. Ever since he had brought Ying Zi back, she had not been as happy as he had imagined. Instead, she often hid in the shadows, weeping silently. Suspicion arose in his heart, and he summoned Ying Zi for questioning. At first, she refused to speak, but when Zhuang Hanming threatened to expel her from the mansion if she did not tell the truth, she finally revealed the cause. It turned out that the maids in the mansion often gathered behind her back to gossip, calling her a seductress who had caused discord between Han Yan and her brother. He sent someone to investigate the source of the rumors, and the result pointed to Ji Lan. He was eager to punish her, but since Ji Lan was Han Yan's personal maid, he could not confront her directly. Today, upon entering the Xuan Qing Prince's Mansion, Ji Lan had once again mistreated Ying Zi and even attempted to frame her. Unable to bear it any longer, he had finally taken action.
Whether for public or private reasons, he would have dealt with Ji Lan sooner or later. He simply hadn't expected Han Yan to see through it.
Zhuang Hanming's expression turned somewhat awkward: "Sister, this maid shows no respect for you. She is audacious and abuses her power to bully others. Now that I am punishing her on your behalf, it is understandable."
Han Yan looked at him calmly, saying nothing. Instead, she picked up the teapot from the stone table and poured herself a cup of tea: "Abuses her power to bully others?" She let out a light laugh, her gaze mocking as she looked at Zhuang Hanming: "She abuses my power. Why don't you say that I am the one bullying others?"
Zhuang Hanming felt that Han Yan's words carried profound implications. He was somewhat apprehensive but also felt indignant on Ying Zi's behalf, so he retorted with annoyance: "Sister, you want to protect your maid, and I want to protect mine."
"Ji Lan has been with me for over ten years." Including her previous life, it was actually twenty years: "How long has your maid been with you?" Han Yan asked.When Han Yan said this, Zhuang Hanming instinctively felt somewhat uncomfortable. He didn't understand why Han Yan always suspected Ying Zi. He knew that Han Yan spent her days in the Zhuang residence guarding against the Zhou Sisters and Concubine Mei, becoming increasingly scheming, but he had never imagined that one day she would suspect someone by his side. Ying Zi was merely an unfortunate soul—why did Han Yan always relentlessly pursue her?
Thinking this, Zhuang Hanming resolved to protect Ying Zi to the end: "I believe her!"
Han Yan straightened up. Ying Zi was curled on the ground, weeping incessantly, her appearance truly pitiful. Han Yan smiled faintly: "Since you believe it was Ji Lan who hurt her, and that I hurt her, how could I contradict your wishes?" With that, she raised her hand and poured a cup of scalding tea directly over Ying Zi's head. Ying Zi let out a piercing scream and immediately covered her face, shrieking in agony.
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