"Why can't I hit you? Even if you are Fang Ziyu's mother, I can hit you whenever I want."
Shen Yunjiao's voice was cool and languid, with a hint of nonchalance.
Pei Zhixuan happened to be there and overheard everything.
A surge of anger welled up in his chest.
Pei Zhixuan couldn't help but take a few steps closer.
"Bride, watch your step and walk slowly!" came a woman's voice from the other end of the corridor.
Pei Zhixuan was not the only one who came upon hearing this.
Fang Ziyu, dressed in a phoenix coronet and wedding gown, rushed over with the help of the wedding attendant. When she saw her mother's disheveled appearance, her legs went weak and she knelt down in front of Pei Zhixuan.
"My husband, please do justice for my mother." Tears streamed down her face, and against her fiery red wedding dress, she looked utterly tragic.
Upon hearing the sound behind her, Shen Yunjiao slowly released the other woman's restraints.
She turned around and happened to see Pei Zhixuan's gloomy and tense expression.
Pei Zhixuan helped the heartbroken Fang Ziyu up. When Madam Fang saw her daughter, she rushed to Fang Ziyu's side, weeping bitterly, as if she had found a lifeline.
"Shen Yunjiao, who gave you such audacity?"
Pei Zhixuan asked slowly, his eyes growing increasingly angry.
"Why did Your Highness come here to watch a play instead of waiting for the wedding ceremony?" Shen Yunjiao replied lazily.
She didn't even need to ask or look closely at Pei Zhixuan's expression to know that he must be very angry right now.
If you're angry, then be angry; it's none of her business.
Shen Yunjiao looked at Madam Fang and said with a smile, "Madam's face is so easily slapped. It swelled up like a steamed bun after just a few slaps. I wonder if you ever thought that you would be in this situation when you hit my maid?"
"You!" Madam Fang covered her face and glared at Shen Yunjiao.
Pei Zhixuan, unusually, lost his temper in front of everyone. He shouted at Shen Yunjiao, "Enough! Shen Yunjiao, you have no right to act like a tyrant in the Pei family!"
Why did I—
"No need for further words! Aren't you just jealous because you saw me marrying Ziyu?"
Before Shen Yunjiao could finish speaking, Pei Zhixuan interrupted her sharply.
His eyes were a pure black, brimming with malice. "You can blame me, you can resent me, but I never imagined you would drag innocent people into this."
"I thought you had changed, but you are still the same as before: domineering, ruthless, and aloof."
Pei Zhixuan squeezed his eyes shut, and when he opened them again, there was no warmth in them. “Shen Yunjiao has disrespected her elders and disregarded etiquette. She shall be confined to the ancestral hall for half a month.”
"elder?"
Shen Yunjiao raised her eyes and chuckled softly upon hearing this: "Your Highness is mistaken, isn't he? A concubine is still a secondary wife, and according to the rules, she is considered a servant."
“A servant’s mother is still a servant, so how can she be considered an elder?”
"Moreover, I am the matriarch of the Pei family. If I don't even have the right to scold or beat the servants, then I might as well not be in the position of matriarch."
Upon hearing this, Madam Fang's expression changed drastically, and Fang Ziyu bit her lower lip in embarrassment, her eyes reddening again and again.
She choked back tears and said to Chen Yunjiao, "I know you are the mistress of the house and have a noble status, but today is my wedding day with my husband. Do you really have to choose this day to humiliate me and my family?"
Shen Yunjiao raised an eyebrow and retorted sarcastically, "Why don't you ask what your mother did? Also, don't call me 'sister,' it's disgusting."
"Enough!" Pei Zhixuan coldly flicked his sleeve, his eyes fixed on Shen Yunjiao, and suddenly smiled mockingly, "You can be so arrogant just because you are the mistress, then it is only reasonable for your nominal master to punish you."
He glanced coldly at Ping An: "Ping An, take the young mistress to the ancestral hall. Don't give her any food or drink, and don't allow her to step out the door without my order."
"Don't touch me, I can walk by myself."
Shen Yunjiao brushed away Ping An's outstretched hand and walked straight toward the ancestral hall.
As she passed Pei Zhixuan, she casually tossed out a remark: "Your Highness had better divorce me now, or I'll have plenty of more days to make a scene!"
Shen Yunjiao's words reached Pei Zhixuan's ears like a gust of wind.
He opened his eyes and watched her departing figure, but remained silent.
Since he remained silent, Fang Ziyu couldn't really retaliate.
She wasn't sure if Pei Zhixuan would do anything else after locking that bitch up in confinement.
Fang Ziyu did not ask Pei Zhixuan any further questions, but instead turned to face Madam Fang.
She gently wiped the blood from her mother's lips. "Mother, from now on, if you see the Crown Princess, please take a detour. I've already suffered a lot with her."
Madam Fang also shed tears and murmured to herself, "The young mistress is really going too far. Yu'er, you will have to make a living under her in the future. It really breaks my heart to think about it."
Pei Zhixuan withdrew his gaze and then looked steadily at Fang Ziyu. "Ziyu, don't worry, I won't let this matter go easily."
Shen Yunjiao intentionally injured someone on his wedding day, and he could not and did not want to cover it up.
But if we were to ask him to divorce...
Pei Zhixuan's hands, which were hanging by his sides, suddenly clenched into fists.
He refused.
But he will naturally punish Shen Yunjiao properly!
"I understand. You are my husband, and you will definitely help me get justice." Fang Ziyu wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes and gently nestled beside Pei Zhixuan.
"The auspicious time is approaching, Your Highness, why don't you put on your wedding attire first?" The matchmaker glanced at the sky, anxiously waved the red handkerchief in her hand, and asked cautiously.
Outside, gongs and drums resounded, and firecrackers crackled.
At this moment, someone outside the courtyard shouted three times, "The Crown Prince has arrived!"
Pei Zhixuan's expression was not good at the moment. He tried his best to suppress his agitated mood and replied in a deep voice, "Then hurry up and prepare. Don't keep the Crown Prince waiting."
-
The Ningguo Duke's mansion was filled with joy at this moment. Red lanterns hung high, vermilion satin adorned the beams, and double happiness symbols were embroidered on the windows. The entire mansion was filled with a scene of springtime happiness.
Pei Zhixuan wore a black-gold double-winged hat and a bright red robe, looking every bit the handsome groom.
He stood at the entrance of the Pei residence, bowing and kowtowing, awaiting the arrival of His Highness the Crown Prince.
The imperial guards escorted the imperial carriage, which came to a stop in front of the vermilion gate of the Duke's mansion in a grand procession.
Everyone bowed in worship. A few bolder girls glanced up and stole a few glances, but their attention was captivated by the man who came down from the carriage.
The prince was extremely tall and elegant, with his black hair tied up high with a jade crown, deep phoenix eyes, a high and straight nose, and thin lips.
Their extraordinary birth is like the bright moon in the sky.
The groom was already quite handsome, but when the crown prince arrived, he was overshadowed.
Many people, seeing such a handsome man for the first time in their lives, are so amazed by his beauty that they are completely captivated.
"Get up."
Xiao Huaijin smiled and gestured. He glanced around and found that men, women, and children of the Pei family were all kneeling at the door to welcome him, but he did not see the figure he had been longing for.
Why isn't Shen Yunjiao here?
He raised an eyebrow slightly and glanced casually at the eaves.
They then followed the attendants onto the laid-out red carpet and entered the Pei residence.
"The auspicious time has arrived."
The old eunuch, dressed in his official robes, saw the crown prince take his seat and hurriedly called out in a high-pitched voice.
Dressed in a bright red wedding gown and wearing a red veil, the bride, led by the matchmaker, stepped over the threshold and walked gracefully to the tall and handsome groom.
Pei Zhixuan looked at the bride in front of him, whose face was obscured by the red veil, and for some reason suddenly thought of his wedding scene two years ago.
The day he married Shen Yunjiao.
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