Chapter 11 Flower Appreciation Banquet 3

These words struck like a thunderbolt from a clear sky, hitting everyone's heart hard!

Has she gone mad?!

Wait a minute, wasn't she just looking pitiful?

This is the real her, isn't it? This is Xie Sangning, the daughter of the General Who Protects the Nation!

Proud and unafraid of power!

Among the crowd, several people secretly glanced at Xie Sangning, their eyes filled with admiration and respect.

Xie Sangning gave Pei Mingyue no chance to breathe or argue. She took a step closer and locked her gaze on Pei Mingyue's face, which was speechless with shock.

"Your Highness, you keep talking about etiquette and the order of social status. Then I must ask you, which article of the Qing Kingdom's etiquette stipulates that a princess like yourself can interfere in the allocation of residences within another family's inner quarters?!"

"Did His Majesty grant you this power? Or did the Empress Dowager issue this decree?"

She pressed on, "If it is His Majesty's or Empress Dowager's decree, please produce the official edict! I will immediately kneel and receive it without hesitation! If not..."

"Then Your Highness, please retract that unreasonable, improper, and disgraceful order! I will make my own decisions regarding the family affairs of the General of the State!"

"My courtyard is built according to the regulations of the Duke's mansion, which His Majesty personally bestowed upon my father. It is the place where I was born and raised, and it is my only memory of my deceased mother! Let alone a collateral branch's daughter, Xie Wuyou, even if the Heavenly King himself came, he wouldn't let me move an inch of it!"

After she finished speaking, her gaze swept coldly over Xie Wuyou, who was slumped on the ground, and finally settled on Pei Mingyue's face, which turned from green to red, and then from red to purple.

Inside the warm room, you could hear a pin drop.

Only heavy breathing could be heard.

Pei Mingyue felt a metallic sweetness rush to her throat!

She had never! Never before had she suffered such a humiliating disgrace!

Xie Sangning's words, however, were all reasonable and piercingly insightful!

She couldn't produce the imperial edict!

She's just bullying people by abusing her power!

Now that Xie Sangning has torn away this fig leaf, her dignity as a princess has been completely trampled into the mud!

"Rebellion! Rebellion!"

Pei Mingyue was so angry that her vision blurred and her whole body trembled. Pointing at Xie Sangning, her voice became shrill and distorted, "Xie Sangning! You are rebellious! You have defied imperial authority! Guards! Take this away from me..."

"Your Highness, please calm down! Your Highness, please calm down!" The lady-in-waiting beside Pei Mingyue immediately stepped forward, having figured out the key point!

Why is Xie Sangning so confident in defying the princess?

She knew all too well that if the princess really forced herself on Xie Sangning in front of everyone, things would be completely out of control!

"Your Highness! Your Highness is of noble birth and precious health! Why bother arguing with someone so ignorant! What if you get sick from anger! She's the one who doesn't know what's good for her! Your Highness, please calm down! Please calm down!"

Hearing the female official try to dissuade her, Pei Mingyue suppressed her anger, her chest heaving violently.

Over the years, this lady-in-waiting has always been by his side. She rarely makes wrong decisions, which is why she has been deeply loved by her father, the emperor.

She must have her reasons for stopping herself.

But she was really angry!

I really want to tear that bastard Xie Sangning to pieces!

The female official gripped Pei Mingyue's icy wrist tightly and whispered in a voice only the two of them could hear:

"Your Highness! A small act of impatience can ruin a great plan! Think of His Majesty!"

"General Xie is about to return to the capital! Two hundred thousand elite troops on the border are all under his command! The Emperor's attitude towards the General's Mansion is at its most delicate and needs the most reassurance at this moment!"

"If you were here today, in full view of everyone, and punished the eldest daughter of the Xie family because of a personal grudge, no matter what crime you used... what would be the consequences if this reached the Emperor's ears?!"

"His Majesty will only think that Your Highness is being unreasonable, causing him trouble, escalating conflicts, and ruining his grand plan to appease his ministers and stabilize the army! Your Highness, if you really take action against Xie Sangning today, you may feel good, but you will lose His Majesty's favor and the opportunity to deal with him gradually in the future!"

"Could it be...could it be that I should just let her humiliate me like this?!" Pei Mingyue's voice was hoarse, filled with deep resentment, and her eyes were red.

"Your Highness! There's plenty of time in the future!"

"What Xie Sangning said today may be outrageous, but it makes sense. If we take action now, we will be in the wrong!"

"The only way is to swallow this anger for now. Once the Emperor is no longer wary of the General's Mansion, crushing a mere woman from the inner quarters will be as easy as crushing an ant. Your Highness, a small act of impatience can ruin a great plan! Please reconsider!"

A feeling of pent-up frustration filled Pei Mingyue's chest, making her almost suffocate.

She bit her lower lip hard, and after a long while, she finally nodded.

The female official breathed a sigh of relief.

Everyone in the warm pavilion looked at Pei Mingyue cautiously, secretly observing her.

She was expressionless, staring blankly ahead, as if the conflict had never happened.

However, when her gaze swept over the empty seat in the most secluded corner, her pupils contracted almost imperceptibly.

Pei Mingyue took a deep breath, forcefully suppressing the metallic taste that surged in her throat again.

"I have indeed made a mistake in my arrangements... Guards, move Miss Xie's seat to the front."

This action is tantamount to slapping oneself in the face in public!

They were essentially submitting to Xie Sangning!

A collective gasp filled the warm room.

This most unreasonable second princess... actually gave in?!

The palace servants quickly made room for a spot, laid out a brand-new brocade cushion, and set out exquisite tea and snacks.

Xie Sangning was invited over. She raised an eyebrow, showing no surprise whatsoever.

She walked gracefully to the new spot, and Ru Chun immediately laid out her own soft cushion and replaced the snacks with her own pastries.

This action caused Pei Mingyue's hand holding the teacup to tighten suddenly.

She gritted her teeth and managed to stop herself from splashing the scalding tea over there.

The atmosphere at the banquet was extremely strange.

The sounds of string and wind instruments resumed, and the noble ladies forced smiles and chatted among themselves, but their eyes kept involuntarily glancing at Xie Sangning and the princess in the main seat.

Inside the warm pavilion, Xie Wuyou was indignant. Why did Her Highness the Princess give in?

She quietly crept up to Pei Mingyue's side.

Kneeling on the footstool, under the guise of pouring tea for the princess, he offered his suggestion in a very low voice, so low that only the two of them could hear:

"Your Highness...please calm down. It's not worth getting sick over such a vulgar person. Xie Sangning is just relying on her uncle's power. What is she anyway? She was abandoned and raised in that godforsaken, desolate place called Xihan since she was a child. How many words could she possibly know? What does she know about music, chess, calligraphy, painting, poetry, or songs?"

Her eyes gleamed with malice, and she lowered her voice even further: "Your Highness, how can a flower-viewing banquet be without poetry?"

"Later, you only need to suggest that all the sisters compose a poem on the theme of the beautiful flower in front of them, to enhance the elegant atmosphere... Hehe, then she will be embarrassed in public, her face will turn red, and she won't be able to utter a single word. Wouldn't that be more satisfying than beating or scolding her? Wouldn't that make her lose face and become the laughing stock of the entire Jinling? Let's see how arrogant she can be then!"

A glint of light suddenly flashed in Pei Mingyue's previously stagnant eyes!

That's right! Power can't touch her for now, but in the area she's least skilled at, we'll make her lose face in front of all the noble ladies in the city in the most elegant way!

This solidified her reputation as an "incompetent fool" and "vulgar"!

Isn't this the perfect revenge?

Moreover, this perfectly aligns with the refined taste of a flower-viewing banquet, and no one can find fault with it!

Thinking about this, Pei Mingyue felt less depressed.

She looked down at Xie Wuyou's obsequious face and found it more pleasing to the eye.

She chuckled softly, casually slipped a jade bracelet off her wrist, and tossed it into Xie Wuyou's arms like a dog's bone.

"Hmm, you're quite clever. Here you go."