"Hmm, Xingxing sees the guest off." Anke wearily pinched her brow. She'd only just returned to the palace, and she was already feeling a bit annoyed.

Anyone with a modicum of sense should know that Anke is practically telling them to leave. They should just leave now; after all, it was their fault that the other person got hurt, so what's the point of staying here and disturbing their rest?

But there are always one or two who are blind to this.

"This servant will see you all out! You've seen everything. The princess needs to rest now." Having spent a long time by An Ke's side, Xingxing has also learned to speak frankly (straightforwardly).

At this moment, Erkang, who had been silent since entering the room, tugged at Xiaoyanzi's sleeve and gave Fifth Prince a wink.

Erkang thought he was hiding behind Yongqi and that no one had seen his little actions. Little did he know, Anke had witnessed everything.

Anke disregarded any notion of saving face and rolled her eyes quite conspicuously.

"Ah..." Little Swallow was the first to speak.

"Actually, we came here today for something else." Yongqi said hesitantly, after all, how could he say such a thing?

Qing'er glanced at An Ke and, seeing his expressionless face, knew he must be feeling annoyed and tired. She patted An Ke's hand reassuringly. "Fifth Prince, may I ask what else is on your mind?"

What else could it be? They wouldn't come to the temple without a reason!

"Could it be that you want me to plead for them before the Empress Dowager tomorrow?" An Ke really hated this back-and-forth. It was better to be direct and get straight to the point.

Yongqi's facial expression was relatively normal. After all, they had grown up together and he knew Anke quite well. But the others' facial expressions weren't so normal.

The others looked surprised. They probably thought that besides Xiao Yanzi, there was someone else who was just as direct as her. Xiao Yanzi, being oblivious, assumed that An Ke's words meant she wanted to help.

"Anke, you're such a good person," Little Swallow said, her eyes sparkling.

"..." Anke was inexplicably given a "friend zone" card.

Everyone else was also confused, wondering when Anke had agreed.

“Anke needs quiet rest, and all of you coming here is really disturbing her. Princess Huanzhu, Anke hasn’t agreed to anything you asked for. There are rules everywhere in this palace. You are a princess, that’s true, but Anke is a first-rank princess, receiving the salary of a prince. Therefore, Princess Huanzhu needs to pay her respects to Princess Yong’an. Moreover, a princess is a princess, and a princess is a princess; there’s no reason to address someone by their first name directly,” Qing’er said calmly.

She was already annoyed! Everything that happened since returning to the palace had been unpleasant. Even with Qing'er's good temper, she couldn't control her anger now.

Qing'er's sudden outburst of temper caught them completely off guard.

Even if Little Swallow was oblivious to everything, she could tell from the tone that the other person didn't like her. She immediately decided to turn around and leave.

Yongqi, who was originally somewhat reasonable, lost his temper after seeing Xiaoyanzi's actions.

“Qing’er, Xiao Yanzi didn’t do it on purpose. She’s feeling really guilty for hurting An Ke, so she came here to apologize. Besides, An Ke shouldn’t be seriously injured.” Yongqi’s words were imperious. But when he said the last sentence, he didn’t dare to look An Ke in the eye.

These words nearly ruined Qing'er's ladylike image. How could An Ke tolerate it? After all, she was extremely protective of her own.

"Ha, what a nice 'it wasn't intentional' statement." An Ke glanced at them with extreme sarcasm. "Can a simple 'it wasn't intentional' erase the mistakes she made? Can it make me come back to my old self? Besides, if she were truly filled with remorse, shouldn't she have been here the moment the accident happened? Why did she make me wait so long? And why did she have to come at night? Putting everything else aside, just look at the people who came to see me today, weren't their hands full of things? Even the Empress Dowager sent someone to deliver a table full of things. Forgive my poor eyesight, Princess Huanzhu's so-called worry and remorse are completely invisible to me."

His words thoroughly and completely exposed his flaws!

"As for my injury, it's not serious. But it's not as minor as the Fifth Prince claims. Anyone would be caught off guard in such a sudden situation! Not to mention, I know a bit of martial arts, I'm not used to wearing these flowerpot shoes and can't run like the wind. Fifth Prince, if you don't believe me, why don't you try them on and walk around? If you can't, I'll restore them for you for free." An Ke's words were extremely sarcastic.

Ziwei watched in stunned silence. How could this be? How could the Fifth Prince be pointed at and mocked without fighting back?

Ziwei was momentarily distracted and forgot to keep an eye on Xiaoyanzi.

Xiao Yanzi immediately started speaking without restraint. In her mind, you could talk about her, but not about the people around her. Yongqi was her good friend, and she wanted to seek justice for him.

“Princess Yong’an, I, Xiao Yanzi, will take responsibility for my actions. Yongqi shouldn’t have to suffer like this. I was initially afraid and didn’t dare to come to see you. As for the gifts, I’ll send them to you later. I apologize. But the Fifth Prince is the Emperor’s son. What rules were you talking about just now? Shouldn’t you have avoided speaking to Yongqi like that?” Xiao Yanzi looked at An Ke angrily.

Several times along the way, Qing'er was about to get up and kick them out, but An Ke stopped her. Although Qing'er was puzzled, she did as An Ke instructed.

An Ke remained still, waiting to see what kind of explanation she could come up with after she finished speaking.

After listening, An Ke slightly curled the corners of her mouth and clapped her hands. "Good, well said."

Xiao Yanzi thought An Ke was going to apologize. She instantly felt smug (See, they all dare not speak up, but I dare, and she even praised me. (Xiao Yanzi's inner monologue)).

"What are you standing there for! Clap your hands! Go and call everyone in the Cining Palace. Come and clap for Princess Huanzhu." An Ke said slowly, word by word.

Little Swallow was stunned! This was beyond her imagination.

"First of all, it was your fault. I haven't wronged you on that point, have I?"

Secondly, you said you were afraid to come see me. Ah, I heard that someone was quite the showman at the Shufangzhai today, even beating up the dignified Fifth Prince. What should we say about that?

Third, when you first arrived, did you offer any apology?

Fourth, this princess does not accept your apology. There's no statement that says this princess must accept your apology, is there?

Fifth, are you here to express your apology? You expect me, the princess, to plead for you tomorrow? Your apology is not genuine!

Sixth, even the Fifth Prince didn't say anything, so what's your position in saying this? Besides, if he hadn't come tonight, this princess definitely wouldn't have been able to mock him. So, he deserved it for coming all this way and getting a scolding. Serves him right! A prince of such high standing, with no class at all, provoked by just a few words?

Seventh, I, this princess, have the confidence, the right, and the strength to say these things. I am not afraid of you telling the Emperor; I am waiting for you!

Anke: Phew~ I showed off! Feels good, so satisfying! I love seeing people dislike me but can't do anything about it.