Going back to her parents' home to complain? The prince's "wicked scheme" succeeds.
After being rebuffed by the emperor, Zhao Jingyi realized that he would probably never be able to match his princess in the skills of "reasoning" and "feigning helplessness." Hard tactics failed, soft tactics backfired, and his attempt to appeal to the emperor resulted in a reprimand. Prince Zhao Jingyi's life plunged into an unprecedented low.
However, Prince Yi's greatest strength was his perseverance and his ability to find alternative solutions.
Since it's impossible to get through to my father, then... what about my in-laws' house?
On a sunny afternoon, Zhao Jingyi appeared alone at the Qin residence's gate, looking dejected, without any attendants. He looked like a wilted eggplant or a young wife returning to her parents' home to complain about a great injustice (although he himself firmly denied it).
Minister Qin had just returned from court when he saw his esteemed son-in-law, a prince, squatting beside the stone lion at the entrance, sighing heavily. Minister Qin was startled and quickly went forward: "Your Highness? What are you doing here alone? Please come in, please come in!"
Zhao Jingyi raised his "haggard" face, forcing out a mixture of vulnerability, grievance, and a forced smile: "Father-in-law... I'm feeling down and have nowhere to go, so I've come to bother you and mother-in-law..."
This tactic of feigning retreat to advance proved remarkably effective. Upon seeing this, Minister Qin was alarmed! He quickly invited the man into the flower hall and sent for his wife and eldest daughter.
Madam Qin and Qin Shuhua rushed over and were shocked to see Zhao Jingyi looking so distraught.
"Your Highness, what's wrong? Is it He Yuti...?" Madam Qin asked cautiously.
Zhao Jingyi was just waiting for this line! He immediately switched into his dramatic persona and began his passionate "accusation":
"Father-in-law, mother-in-law, young lady... you must stand up for me!" He pounded his chest and stamped his feet (uh... the movements were a little exaggerated), "Yu Ti... ever since she returned to the Prince's mansion, she has increasingly disregarded me, her husband!"
"I just wanted to get up early to read a book, but she complained that I was disturbing her sleep, so she punished me by making me sit in the cold wind until dawn!"
“When I eat, she specifically picks out the foods I don’t like and says it’s for my own good, forcing me to eat them!”
"I...I just spoke a few truths to Father, and she acted like she was the most aggrieved person in front of him, making me look like an unreasonable villain! Father gave me a severe scolding..."
He downplayed the seriousness of the matter, distorted the truth, and portrayed himself as a pitiful victim suffering from the bullying of a "wicked wife." When he got to the part about "getting emotional," he even managed to get his eyes red (though no tears came), and his acting was just as good as Qin Yuti's line, "Will love disappear?"
The Qin couple were shocked, angry, and heartbroken. They were shocked that their daughter was so "fierce"; angry that she didn't know how to use gentleness to overcome strength; and heartbroken that their precious son-in-law, a prince, had suffered so much "injustice" without their knowledge!
"Outrageous!" Minister Qin slammed his hand on the table. "This girl has been spoiled rotten by me! Your Highness, rest assured, I will give her a good talking-to when she returns home!"
Madam Qin chimed in, "Your Highness has been wronged. Yu Ti is a bit stubborn, but she has a good heart. Please be lenient with her... I'll talk to her about it later!"
Even the gentle Qin Shuhua couldn't help but speak up: "Little sister has indeed gone too far. The prince treats her so well, how could she act like this?"
Zhao Jingyi laughed inwardly, but his face showed even more bitterness: "Father-in-law, mother-in-law, Miss, please don't blame Yuti too much. Perhaps... perhaps I really did something wrong and annoyed her..." He used this tea talk of retreating to advance with consummate skill.
Sure enough, the Qin family felt even more sorry for him and comforted him, promising to educate Qin Yuti.
Just then, Qin Yuti, remembering her mother's cough a few days ago, returned home to deliver some newly acquired lung-nourishing ointment. Upon entering the flower hall, she saw her parents and sister surrounding Zhao Jingyi, all looking distressed and indignant. Meanwhile, Zhao Jingyi, that scoundrel, was secretly giving her an extremely irritating, provocative, and smug look!
"Yu Ti! You've come at the perfect time!" Minister Qin said sternly. "I have something to ask you!"
Qin Yuti's heart skipped a beat, and she instantly understood what was going on. "You, Zhao Jingyi, you've come all the way to my family's house to complain!"
For the next half hour, Qin Yuti experienced the most humiliating "criticism session" of her life. Her parents took turns speaking, earnestly lecturing her, from "female virtue" to "womanly appearance," from "submissiveness" to "the husband is the head of the household," the central idea being: the prince is heaven, the prince is right, you must listen to the prince, and you cannot be disrespectful to the prince!
Qin Yuti tried to defend herself several times, but her parents glared at her with a "you still have the nerve to talk back?" look. Zhao Jingyi, on the other hand, would occasionally "kindly" advise, "Father-in-law and Mother-in-law, please calm down, it's all my fault..." He was a master at adding fuel to the fire.
Finally, amidst her parents' repeated admonitions that she must serve the Prince well in the future, Qin Yuti was almost forced to grit her teeth as she was "escorted" back to Prince Yi's residence.
Inside the carriage, Zhao Jingyi finally dropped his pretense, grinning from ear to ear. He leaned close to Qin Yuti and said in an infuriating tone, "How about it, my beloved concubine? Aren't your parents-in-law very reasonable? See, I told you, you should be gentler~"
Qin Yuti looked at him coldly, then suddenly smiled, a smile that sent a chill down Zhao Jingyi's spine.
"Your Highness is indeed skilled," Qin Yuti said calmly. "I have learned a great deal."
Zhao Jingyi, do you think you've won?
Hehe, just you wait.
This princess will show you what it means to be one step ahead of the devil!
This seemingly successful scheme of returning to her parents' home to complain has, unbeknownst to her, completely ignited the fighting spirit of Princess Yi. The days to come at Prince Yi's residence are destined to be anything but peaceful.
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