Thinking this, Zhou Yong sobbed even more bitterly and sorrowfully.
The emperor, sitting on the throne, looked at her with disdain. A dignified man of seven feet tall, beaten like this by a mere woman, and yet he still has the nerve to come to the main hall to cry. Does he have no shame?
The ministers on both sides looked on with sympathy for Zhou Yong. Princess Bao Hui was really ruthless. Could she still be called a woman? She was simply a tigress who would bite anyone she could get her hands on! She had just castrated her husband a few days ago, and now she had beaten her daughter's husband.
While most ministers were just watching the show with a "don't mess with me" attitude, several others were secretly eager to make their move.
Princess Bao Hui is rampant in the capital, and many officials have suffered because of her. They don't usually have the chance, so why not take this opportunity to bite her?
Princess Bao Hui entered the main hall at this moment, and Zhou Yong cried even more bitterly upon seeing her.
Princess Bao Hui glanced coldly at Zhou Yong and bowed to the emperor.
“Bao Hui, Zhou Yong said you beat him up like this, and not only him, but also his eighty-year-old mother, who is now lying in bed and almost dying, is that right?”
The emperor's tone was inscrutable, and all the ministers in the hall listened intently to Princess Bao Hui's reply.
"Yes," Princess Bao Hui answered crisply, "They deserve to be beaten!"
Princess Bao Hui looked down at Zhou Yong with disdain, then raised the golden whip in her hand. "When my royal brother bestowed this whip upon me, did he say that I could use it to whip unfaithful men?"
The resounding words echoed in the hall, causing Zhou Yong to panic for a moment. However, thinking of Chao Yang, that simpleton, who would take his side if he was coaxed, he immediately calmed down.
"Your Majesty is wise! I have never done anything to wrong Princess Chaoyang. Princess Chaoyang and I have always treated each other with respect and affection!"
Zhou Yong was certain that Chaoyang would side with him, so he cried out his innocence with tears streaming down his face and spoke with righteous indignation, as if Princess Baohui were the villain who broke up the couple and slandered him.
Princess Baohui had never seen such a shameless person before. She questioned, "If you two are so respectful and loving towards each other, why is my son, Chaoyang, malnourished and his cold has turned into lung disease? Why, why is his body covered in bruises and welts!"
Princess Baohui grew angrier and angrier as she spoke, until she wished she could inflict all the wounds on Chaoyang on Zhou Yong, that beast. Her eyes glared hatefully at Zhou Yong.
If they weren't in the main hall, with the emperor and all the civil and military officials watching, Zhou Yong had no doubt that this madwoman would whip him again.
But now he calmed himself down and felt confident.
“How dare you slander me like that, Princess? My family is poor, and our food is certainly not as good as what you eat in the Princess’s residence, but we are far from malnourished. As for that lung disease, it’s just that the weather has turned cooler recently, and Chaoyang caught a cold. Besides, since Chaoyang caught the cold, I have taken good care of her every day, personally preparing medicine for her. How could there be any delay? As for the bruises and marks, Princess, that’s even more slanderous. Those are just…”
Zhou Yong looked embarrassed and unable to speak, "It's just a normal thing that ordinary couples do, how could the princess smear it like that!"
Princess Bao Hui was utterly shocked by this person's ability to distort the truth. She was so angry that her finger trembled as she pointed at Zhou Yong. "You, you, you're such a silver tongue!"
Seeing that Princess Bao Hui's face was flushed with anger, Zhou Yong seemed to have found his rhythm, and his thrusts became even smoother.
“I know that the princess has looked down on me from the beginning, but now that I have been married to Princess Chaoyang for a year, why is the princess still so aggressive!”
"Your Majesty, if you do not believe me, you may summon the Princess of Chaoyang County to testify!"
Zhou Yong kowtowed to the emperor, his expression sincere and earnest.
Princess Baohui believed that her daughter would definitely side with Zhou Yong, which is why she didn't bring her daughter with her but instead had her kept at home under close watch.
Princess Bao Hui was so angry her nose almost crooked, but she had never seen such a shameless person as Zhou Yong, who could turn black into white, and she was so angry she couldn't speak.
"Since Princess Baohui and Zhou Yong both have their own versions of events, why not call Princess Chaoyang over? She is a party involved and must know the facts."
At this opportune moment, Imperial Censor Liu Zhangmin stepped forward. As a censor, he had been keeping an eye on Princess Baohui for a long time. Suppressing his excitement, he strongly suggested...
Princess Bao Hui glared at her, her face turning even darker.
The emperor sighed silently. Although he wanted to favor his sister, with so many eyes watching, he couldn't be too obvious about it. He could only summon Chaoyang first.
"Huang Qi, go and summon Chaoyang to the palace."
The chief eunuch beside the emperor bowed and accepted the order. Just as he was about to take a step, Princess Baohui, whose face was as black as the bottom of a pot, suddenly spoke up.
"Since you're going to summon Chaoyang, why don't you summon two more people, Your Majesty?"
"who?"
The emperor asked in confusion, and the ministers all looked at Princess Bao Hui.
"The Marquis of Changxing and his granddaughter whom he just recognized a few days ago."
After Princess Bao Hui finished speaking, everyone was stunned. These two people didn't seem to have anything to do with this matter.
It wasn't entirely unrelated. Suddenly, everyone remembered that Marquis Changxing had vouched for Zhou Yong's character. But wouldn't bringing Marquis Changxing over just give Zhou Yong an ally? Was Princess Baohui being stubborn?
Furthermore, why bring the granddaughter of the Marquis of Changxing here? What does a country girl who has only been back in the capital for a few days have to do with this matter?
However, only one person understood Princess Bao Hui's intention, and that was Chuan Hai, a civil official.
Chuan Hai looked down at his feet, ignoring the glances that his colleagues were secretly casting at him, his heart filled with a mixture of worry and anticipation.
Who could hear Chuanwen's innermost thoughts? He was still eager to know, and wondered if the person above him could hear them. But was it really a good thing that the emperor could hear Chuanwen's innermost thoughts? Chuanwen didn't know they could hear her thoughts. What if she cursed the emperor in her heart? Maybe, perhaps, probably—Chuanwen wouldn't curse the emperor in her heart, but what if she did? That would be no fun.
The Emperor, unaware that Chuanhai was lost in thought, fixed his gaze on him, his brows furrowing slightly. Although he didn't know what his sister was planning, the Emperor ultimately said nothing, nodded, and the head eunuch departed to carry out his orders.
When the chief eunuch arrived at the Marquis of Changxing's residence, Chuanwen was happily gnawing on a pig's trotter.
Although they offended Princess Bao Hui at the last banquet, after hearing Chuan Wen's heartfelt words, Princess Bao Hui rushed to Yuqing and should have already rescued Princess Chaoyang, so Princess Bao Hui should not come looking for trouble with them.
However, this incident served as a reminder to Lady Changxing that if she wanted to get along well with the officials' wives in the capital, she still needed to learn the rules of Chuanwen and Xu Yan.
This put Xu Yan and her daughter Chuanwen in a difficult position.
Fortunately, thanks to Chuanwen's reasoned arguments, there was a half-hour break after every hour of study.
At this moment, Chuanwen was gnawing on a pig's trotter that Marquis Changxing had just bought from West Street, while looking at Chuanyu across from him with a puzzled expression.
Chuan Yu held her face in her hands, curiously watching Chuan Wen, who had an enormous appetite but didn't look fat at all, munching on a pig's trotter.
"for you."
Chuanwen handed Chuanyu a pig's trotter, feeling incredibly sorry for her. These past two days, Chuanyu had been watching her eat constantly, smiling happily, which made Chuanwen's skin crawl.
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