Before Ji Fengyao could speak after hearing Xique's words, Tinglan cried out, "Your Highness, Tinglan had no disrespectful intentions towards you. Tinglan only wanted to teach Lü'er a lesson, but Sister Xique misunderstood..."

"If it's a misunderstanding, why did you come all this way, crying and begging to apologize to me?" Ji Fengyao sneered, a smirk playing on her lips.

The magpie was too naive to see the intricacies of the situation; her twenty years on Earth in her previous life hadn't been wasted.

With just this one sentence, Tinglan was speechless.

Ji Fengyao didn't urge her. She turned around and glanced at the four dishes and soup on the small square table, then asked Xique, "The dishes today are more refined. They don't seem like what you made."

"Miss, this was all made by Lü'er. Lü'er has such skillful hands; this dish is incredibly delicious," Xi Que praised enthusiastically.

Ji Fengyao glanced at the timid and submissive Lü'er, and smiled noncommittally: "Where did you pick up such a clever and skillful girl?"

This question made Tinglan tremble.

Xi Que, however, said with a magnanimous expression: "This afternoon, Ting Lan said that Lü'er was trying to climb a high branch, so I let Lü'er climb this high branch. Miss, you should take her in. Anyway, when we go to the Prince's Mansion, we will need someone to clean and serve us. With my skills, I won't make things difficult for you, Miss."

Ji Fengyao stood up, and Shang Xiye "considerately" helped her up from behind, lazily tossing the strands of hair that fell over her shoulders, looking quite satisfied and content, which was very suggestive.

Upon catching sight of the prince's raised, slender neck and delicate, smooth chin, Ji Fengyao's eye twitched.

If this guy were sent to a performing arts school, he'd at least be a doctoral supervisor.

This impromptu physical performance was so captivating and masterful that anyone who didn't know better would have thought they'd been up to something all day in the car.

“Xi Que, this girl is a hundred times smarter than you. I’d like to take her in.” Ji Fengyao straightened her clothes, a faint smile playing on her lips and eyes as she glanced back and forth between Tinglan and Lü’er.

Tinglan and Lü'er's expressions changed simultaneously, and they both tensed up, wondering what Ji Fengyao meant.

"But I dare not accept such a clever girl," Ji Fengyao said with a faint smile, looking steadily at Lü'er. "Please thank Consort Jia for her kindness, and also tell her that if she wants to send me anything in the future, she can just send it directly. I like fighting and killing, and I don't like riddles. If I happen to be in a bad mood and accidentally ruin her gift, that would be bad."

"Your Highness, this servant..."

"And you!" Before Greenie could defend herself, Ji Fengyao interrupted her, her icy gaze fixed on Tinglan: "You know perfectly well that the Prince is unwell, yet you still make a ruckus and disturb his rest. Even in our Vulture Stronghold, we don't have such a disrespectful servant. If I don't punish you today, others will think we bandits are unruly. Sparrow, twenty slaps to the face."

Tinglan: "!"

She never expected that in front of so many people, this female bandit would start a fight without a word. And she even had the audacity to call it bandit rules—what a joke! A bunch of bandits, what rules could they possibly have!

Tinglan knew all too well what kind of skills Xique possessed. If Xique had slapped her twenty times, she probably wouldn't have been able to keep her face.

Thinking of this, Tinglan hurriedly knelt down and kowtowed, pleading loudly with Shang Xiye: "Your Highness, I only wanted to apologize to the Princess Consort. I didn't mean to disturb your rest. Please have mercy, Your Highness!"