Everyone turned around and saw a girl in a lake blue dress striding towards them. Her eyes and eyebrows were lively, but her expression was very cold. It was Zhixia.

She stood in the center of the court with her hands on her hips, looking directly at Qi Che and his mother without fear.

"Master Qi, Madam Qi, have you forgotten who you are?"

Mother Qi's face darkened and she slammed the table and stood up: "How dare you, a lowly maid, talk to me like that?"

Zhixia sneered: "Why? Back then, you and your son ate my young lady's food and used my young lady's things, but now you're turning your back on me?"

"And you, when you were lying half dead in bed, did you forget who invited a miracle doctor to treat you and bring you back from the brink of death?"

"As for repaying a favor, my young lady no longer owes you the Qi family anything. On the contrary, she has worked hard for you and your son without complaint and served you and your son for three years. Qi Che is even less of a person. He failed to abandon his wife and married another, and he still wants to continue to use morality to kidnap my young lady and force her to submit. I ask you, where is your face?"

"Bitch, who are you? How dare you slander my son?" Qi's mother was furious when her shortcomings were exposed in public.

"Sir, this slave girl is disturbing the court. Hurry up and drag her away and give her a beating!"

Du Youwei lit a candle for Qi Che and his mother in his heart, and was hesitating about how to act, when suddenly -

"Pa!" A crisp slapping sound was heard, and the whole audience fell silent instantly.

Zhixia just walked up and slapped Qi's mother in the face!

"Mother!" Seeing this, Qi Che hurriedly stepped forward and supported Qi's mother.

Mother Qi covered her face with her hands, her eyes widened in disbelief: "You, you little bitch, how dare you hit me?"

Zhixia shook her wrist and sneered, "This slap is for my young lady. I want to get back all the grievances she has suffered over the years!"

Qi Che was furious: "Rebellion! Come, take this bitch down!"

The bailiffs hesitated whether to step forward and all looked at Du Youwei's expression.

Logically speaking, this is a court, and Qi Che has no right to issue orders here.

At this moment, a deep and cold male voice came from outside the courtroom -

"I, the general, don't know when this court became a private punishment room set up by the number one scholar."

Before he finished speaking, the crowd parted like a tide, and a figure as tall as a pine tree walked in.

The man was wearing a dark brocade robe, with a long sword hanging from his waist, and a dark red silk ribbon wrapped around the handle, making him look like a sharp sword drawn from its sheath. He had deep eyebrows, a high nose bridge, and a jawline as cold and hard as a knife. His black eyes were as frightening as cold stars, and a glance at them could make people's hearts shudder.

——It was the great general Pei Yuan!

Behind him, two teams of imperial guards stood solemnly, holding long spears and wearing cold armor.

What was even more shocking was that outside the court, the princess's ceremonial procession had already been set out - with canopies like clouds and guards standing in silence, it was clearly a display only for royal nobles!

Du Youwei was the first to react. His legs almost went weak as he hurried forward to greet him: "I didn't know General Pei was coming. I'm sorry for not welcoming him. I hope General Pei will forgive me!"

Pei Yuan glanced directly past Du Youwei and his eyes fell precisely on Chu Qingniang.

When I saw Chu Qingniang's face, which was as calm as water, my heart trembled!

After not seeing her for three years, she looked thinner than I remembered, but also more resilient. She looked like a piece of jade that had been polished, becoming more beautiful and charming.

Pei Yuan's hand holding the knife tightened unconsciously. He forced himself to look away, his Adam's apple rolling, and he suppressed all the surging emotions.

Then, under the gazes of everyone, Pei Yuan took three steps back and knelt on one knee in the direction of Chu Qingniang.

"Your Highness Pei Yuan——"

"Meet Princess Zhaoyang!"

This kneeling was like a thunderclap. Thousands of imperial guards outside the gate knelt on one knee in unison. The sound of armor colliding swept in like a tide.

"Greetings to Princess Zhaoyang. May the princess live a thousand years and a thousand thousand years!"

The voices of thousands of people resounded in the sky above Jiangnan City, piercing through the clouds and startling the birds under the corridor to take off!

The spectacular scene and the resounding sound made everyone present unforgettable, and it felt as if the blood in their bodies was ignited!

The silence in the crowd was completely torn apart in an instant. The people first stared at everything in front of them with their eyes wide open, dumbfounded. Then, everyone mechanically turned their heads and looked at Chu Qingniang in the court, not yet fully understanding what was happening.

Chu Qingniang raised her eyes slightly, and the sunlight shining through the window lattice cast a layer of gold around her body.

She raised her hand to take off the jade hairpin that tied her hair, and her black hair cascaded down like a waterfall, making her plain face even more beautiful.

Pei Yuan knelt straight, but dared not look directly at him.

After three years of fighting on the battlefield, he could remain calm in front of thousands of troops, but at this moment his heart was beating like a drum just because she raised her hand.

"General Pei, please stand up. All the soldiers, please stand up as well." Chu Qingniang's voice was as cold as jade, and her expression was still calm. It seemed that nothing could affect her mood.

Pei Yuan did not stand up immediately, but bowed deeply: "I came to your rescue too late, causing the princess to be humiliated, I deserve to die."

He rested his forehead on the cold tiles, his voice trembling with suppression.

The imperial guards outside the gate were still kneeling in an orderly manner, their armor shining coldly in the sunlight.

The people were so frightened that they fell to their knees.

There was total silence inside and outside the court, with only the rustling sound of fallen leaves on the ground caused by the wind.

Chu Qingniang walked forward slowly, stopped in front of Pei Yuan, and extended her hand to support him: "General, you are guarding the border and defending the country, what crime have you committed?"

Pei Yuan then stood up, but still took a half step back in a respectful manner.

My dear, there is more to this chapter. Please click on the next page to continue reading. It’s even more exciting later!