The palace servants stood on both sides, each holding a military stick, but none of them dared to make the first move.

Just kidding, this is the crown prince, who would dare to hit him?

Emperor Xiao was furious: "What? Are you all dead? Do I have to do it myself?"

The two palace servants looked at each other, and could only raise their military sticks high before gently bringing them down.

The force was exactly like Xiao Chengci's massage.

"Give me a good beating. Anyone who dares to slack off, I will immediately chop off their head."

The palace servants, seeing that it concerned their own lives, dared not show any mercy.

With a thud, Xiao Chengci let out a muffled groan.

Emperor Xiao walked up to Xiao Chengci and said, "When you have thought it through, I will make them stop."

"Your Majesty, I have thought it through. Just let them fight."

This is a power struggle between Xiao Chengci and Emperor Xiao.

Xiao Chengci could not back down; if he did, Pei Zhi's life would be the price he paid.

Xiao Chengci was certain that his father would never let him die.

"Fine." Emperor Xiao was so angry that his face turned red. He pointed at Xiao Chengci and didn't know what to say for a long time.

Emperor Xiao ordered, "Give me a good beating."

Inside Changqiu Palace, the Empress was checking last month's accounts.

Suddenly, the personal maid rushed in and said that the Emperor was punishing Xiao Chengci with a cane.

The Empress naturally didn't believe it. "What nonsense are you spouting?"

"Your Highness, please go and see! If this fight continues, His Highness the Crown Prince may be beaten to death."

The Empress hurriedly put down the account book and rushed towards the entrance of the Imperial Study.

When the Empress saw Xiao Chengci, he was lying face down on a bench, with blood on his back.

And those lackeys continued to beat him with military sticks.

The Empress immediately shouted, "Stop it, all of you!"

When the palace servants saw the Empress arrive, they breathed a sigh of relief, put away their batons, and dared not lay a hand on her again.

The Empress ran to Xiao Chengci and saw that he was sweating profusely from the pain and bleeding from his head. Her eyes immediately welled up with tears.

"My son, are you alright?"

Xiao Chengci endured the pain and said, "Mother, I am fine."

The Empress turned to Emperor Xiao and asked, "I wonder what mistake my son has made that would make Your Majesty so heartless as to beat your own son to death?"

Emperor Xiao put his hands behind his back and said, "Guards, take the Empress aside."

Xiao Chengci challenged Emperor Xiao's authority as an emperor, so no matter who came, Emperor Xiao would not back down.

The palace maids immediately stepped forward and pulled the Empress aside.

"Keep hitting him for me."

The Empress was surprised that even after she arrived, the Emperor still wanted to beat Xiao Chengci.

What exactly did Xiao Chengci do wrong to make the Emperor so angry?

The Empress hurriedly asked the palace servants beside her, "Do you know what His Highness the Crown Prince did today?"

"This servant was unaware that His Highness the Crown Prince had only been in the Imperial Study for a short while when His Majesty ordered him to be flogged."

The Empress rushed to Emperor Xiao and knelt down, pleading, "Your Majesty, no matter what mistake A-Ci made, please show mercy!"

Emperor Xiao remained unmoved, but his eyes were fixed on Xiao Chengci being beaten.

Xiao Chengci had never suffered such hardship in his life, but his pride prevented him from crying out in pain.

Xiao Chengci bit his lip tightly, occasionally letting out a muffled groan.

"Your Majesty, this is your and my child. You have raised him more than I have raised him since he was a baby."

The Empress grabbed Emperor Xiao's robe and said, "Your Majesty, have you forgotten that when Aci had a fever when he was little, you stayed up all night watching over him."

Of all his children, Emperor Xiao's fatherly love was truly focused entirely on Xiao Chengci.

He made Xiao Chengci the crown prince early on and personally tutored him.

This is why the concubines in the harem who gave birth to princes dared not harbor any ambitions to seize the throne from an early age.

"Your Majesty, Aci has made a thousand mistakes, all because I failed to teach him properly. Please forgive him and punish me instead."

Emperor Xiao sighed deeply and walked up to Xiao Chengci.

"Xiao Chengci, are you really going to disappoint your loving father and mother for the sake of a woman?"

Xiao Chengci endured the pain and said with difficulty, "Father, even if you want me to die, I will not say a word, except for her."

Emperor Xiao looked at Xiao Chengci, who was trembling all over in pain, and said, "Xiao Chengci, you are truly a good son whom I have raised."

No parent in the world can out-stubborn their child.

Even the emperor cannot be cruel to the child he raised from childhood.

Emperor Xiao ordered that Xiao Chengci be imprisoned in the Eastern Palace and not allowed to leave without being summoned.

Although the crown prince was not deposed, Xiao Chengci was confined to the Eastern Palace, where he was not allowed to attend court or interact with court officials.

Clearly, Crown Prince Xiao Chengci has lost the Emperor's favor.

The Empress didn't care about anything else and hurriedly ordered people to carry Xiao Chengci back to the East Palace and summon the imperial physician to treat him.

After dealing with Xiao Chengci, the Empress remembered to go see Emperor Xiao.

But Emperor Xiao had already locked himself in his bedchamber and given an order not to see anyone.

The Empress truly couldn't understand what terrible mistake Xiao Chengci had made to cause such a situation.

But no one in the palace could explain why.

The news that His Highness the Crown Prince had been flogged and imprisoned in the Eastern Palace spread quickly.

When Pei Minxue found out, he actually breathed a huge sigh of relief.

He knew that this meant his sister was going to survive.

Pei Minxue hurriedly drove to the East Palace; he needed to see the specific situation.

The Eastern Palace was heavily guarded, making it impossible for Pei Minxue to enter.

If Pei Minxue tries to force his way in, the Imperial Guards can kill him with a single blow.

Helpless, Pei Minxue could only stand at the door and sigh.

Pei Minxue sighed deeply. In his opinion, it would be best if he could secretly take Pei Zhi away.

Xiao Chengci is currently being punished because of Pei Zhi, and Xiao Chengci is the Crown Prince.

How long can Xiao Chengci stay with Pei Zhi? A month? Three months? Or a year?

Even Pei Minxue, an outsider, could see that the Emperor meant that if Xiao Chengci did not hand over Pei Zhi, Xiao Chengci would be imprisoned.

Pei Minxue was anxious but powerless to do anything, and was just about to head home.

"Young Master Pei, please wait."

De Shun came out from inside. The imperial guards had only been ordered not to let Xiao Chengci leave the East Palace.

De Shun was a servant who served others, and he was not restricted in his comings and goings.

"His Highness instructed me to give this to the young master."

Pei raised an eyebrow and took the book; it was actually a book?

"How is Your Highness now?"

De Shun sighed, "He was beaten with more than fifty lashes, his flesh was mangled and bloody, and now he can't even get out of bed."

Upon hearing this, Pei Minxue also gasped in shock.

Xiao Chengci would actually go to such lengths for Pei Zhi?

"His Majesty also smashed a big gash on his head, causing him to bleed a lot. We don't know if it will leave a scar."

Pei Minxue felt inexplicably ashamed, after all, Xiao Chengci's current state was all because of Pei Zhi.

The Crown Prince, for the sake of his sister, dared to defy the Emperor.

Of all the people in the world, only Xiao Chengci survived after disobeying the emperor.