*

As it turns out, Chi Yan's guess was correct.

The next morning at court, Emperor Chongde naturally selected the two of them.

"I heard you two were fighting in the street?"

Chi Yan and Chi Jingyu each took a step forward.

Chi Jingyu cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, I know I have made a mistake. Please punish me."

Chi Yan frowned, looking quite unconvinced, but still honestly replied, "Your Majesty, this is indeed the case."

Emperor Chongde gave him an ambiguous look, then sneered, "You're quite self-righteous, aren't you?"

Compared to Chi Jingyu, he certainly seemed to have a lot of confidence.

Chi Yan pursed his lips, looking rather listless: "Your Majesty, I know I was wrong."

Emperor Chongde's gaze swept over the two men, and he sighed, "Very well, you two are both pillars of the state and brothers, so don't let a small matter ruin your harmony! Since you have already been punished, I will not punish you further, but if there is a next time, I will not let you off lightly!"

Chi Yan lowered his eyes and respectfully agreed, thinking to himself:

That sounds nice, but if he really had a close, brotherly relationship with Chi Jingyu, His Majesty would be unhappy!

——

Chi Yan looked depressed and locked himself in his study when he got home.

Shen Tangning hesitated at the door several times before summoning Ba Liang for questioning again: "Are you sure His Majesty really didn't punish him?"

Ba Liang looked puzzled, even more bewildered than her: "I've never heard of that!"

A look of confusion flashed across her eyes: "Then why is he like this?"

She had little hope for Ba Liang, who knew nothing about the matter, and went up to knock on the door: "Husband, what happened?"

A muffled voice came from inside: "It's nothing, I just want to be alone."

Shen Tangning frowned, hesitated for a moment, then turned and left with an inscrutable expression.

Xueqing sensed something and cautiously asked, "Miss, are you really not going to care about your son-in-law anymore?"

She narrowed her eyes and said indifferently, "If he doesn't want to see me, why should I go out of my way to see him?"

Shen Tangning was also filled with many thoughts. Could it be that someone was gossiping about him in front of him, making him unhappy?

It's hard for her not to suspect Shang Chi Jingyu.

Even if she and Chi Jingyu had some connection, that was in their past life. They had no connection in this life, so how could she be blamed?

After a while, she got a little annoyed and went back to her room with a cold face.

Eight ounces crept up to the study door: "Young master, the young mistress is gone, and she looks very angry!"

The door was suddenly pulled open, and Chi Yan frowned, completely bewildered: "What's she angry about?"

Ba Liang shook his head blankly: "I don't know!"

Chi Yan rested his chin on his hand in deep thought. Had his plan already been discovered?

That's impossible!

"Go and buy me a few jars of wine!"

Ba Liang looked at him with exasperation: "Young Master, the young mistress is angry, and you're still in the mood to drink?"

Chi Yan rolled her eyes at him: "What do you know, a man without a wife like you!"

Eight ounces: "..."