Her words, neither humble nor arrogant, and even subtly retaliatory, made Princess Yongjia's face stiffen. She hadn't expected Xin Jiuwei to dare to contradict her in public and then distance herself completely!
"You!" Princess Yongjia's face flushed with anger as she pointed at Xin Jiuwei. "What a sharp tongue you have! You think that just because you've hooked up with the Sixth Prince, you can really rise to the top? Don't you even know your own status? The daughter of a lowly official, you dare to..."
“Princess,” Xin Jiuwei interrupted her, her voice still calm but carrying an invisible force, “be careful with your words. Although my father’s official rank is low, he is still an official of the court, receiving the emperor’s salary. As a princess of noble birth, you should be even more careful with your words and actions, lest you lose the dignity of the royal family, and… tarnish your own status.” Her last sentence was full of meaning.
A collective gasp rippled through the crowd. This Xin family girl was incredibly audacious! How dare she reprimand the princess for her disrespect?!
Princess Yongjia had never suffered such humiliation, especially in front of everyone, to be so disrespected by a woman she considered worthless! Her anger exploded, and her reason vanished instantly. She took a sudden step forward, raising her hand, as if to slap Xin Jiuwei!
At this critical moment!
"Ouch!" Princess Yongjia suddenly let out an extremely exaggerated scream, her body falling backward at an extremely unnatural angle, and she crashed heavily into the icy Taiye Pool with a "plop!" Water splashed everywhere!
"The princess has fallen into the water!" "Quick, save her!" Chaos erupted on the pleasure boat, with shouts and screams filling the air. The noble ladies rushed towards the ship's side in a frenzy.
Xin Jiuwei stood rooted to the spot, watching Princess Yongjia struggle and thrash about in the water, her eyes icy cold. She had clearly seen Yongjia's deliberately slowed movements and the fleeting glint of ruthless calculation in her eyes when she lunged at her. A frame-up, so utterly clumsy!
In the chaos, Princess Yongjia was scrambled to her feet, soaked to the bone, her makeup ruined, her hair disheveled, and her golden peony palace dress clinging tightly to her body—she was utterly devoid of any princessly grace. Shivering from the cold, her lips turning purple, she immediately pointed at Xin Jiuwei and cried out in a hoarse voice, "It was her! She pushed me! Xin Jiuwei! How cruel you are! How dare you plot against me!"
All eyes instantly focused on Xin Jiuwei again, filled with suspicion, shock, and schadenfreude. Murdering a princess—that's a crime punishable by the confiscation of one's entire family's property!
Under the watchful eyes of countless people, Xin Jiuwei slowly walked up to Princess Yongjia, who was surrounded by the crowd and looked utterly disheveled. A small patch of water from the splashed pool had soaked the hem of her skirt, dark stains spreading across her light-colored fabric. She looked down at Yongjia, who lay on the ground drenched like a drowned rat, her face showing no panic, but rather a calm that bordered on pity.
"What did the princess just say?" Xin Jiuwei's voice rang out clearly, drowning out the surrounding noise. "That Jiuwei is 'adept at currying favor'?" She tilted her head slightly, as if seriously considering it, and then, under Princess Yongjia's resentful gaze and the astonished stares of everyone, a very faint yet extremely cold smile curved her lips as she spoke, word by word, with perfect clarity:
"The princess is right. For example, clinging to someone who has fallen into the water?"
As soon as she finished speaking, the entire pleasure boat fell into a deathly silence! Everyone was stunned by this shocking irony! Not only did she not deny it, but she also turned the tables on Yongjia, using the words Yongjia had used to humiliate her! This was not an admission of guilt; it was using the sharpest knife to stab back at Princess Yongjia's framing and previous insults! It implied that Yongjia was willing to jump into the water herself in order to curry favor with and frame her!
Princess Yongjia was so angry that she trembled all over. She pointed at Xin Jiuwei and stammered, "You...you..." She couldn't utter a single word for a long time. Finally, her eyes rolled back and she fainted from anger! The painted boat immediately descended into even greater chaos.
Inside the elegant pavilion on the top floor of the pleasure boat, a carved wooden window was half-open.
Xiao Xun stood with his hands behind his back by the window, taking in the whole farce unfolding at the stern of the boat. From Yongjia's provocation to falling into the water, and then to Xin Jiuwei's earth-shattering statement about "climbing into the water"... his expression remained unchanged, as if he were watching a play that had nothing to do with him.
However, when Xin Jiuwei's cold, sharp words rang out clearly, his hand, which was behind his back, clenched tightly! His knuckles turned white instantly from the force, even making a slight "crack" sound, as if he had crushed something invisible. The delicate celadon teacup he held in his palm shattered with a sound! Sharp shards of porcelain instantly pierced his palm, and bright red blood immediately seeped from between his fingers, dripping onto the carpet and spreading into a small, dark flower.
Despite the excruciating pain, Xiao Xun didn't even flinch. It was as if the flesh that had been cut wasn't his own.
His gaze pierced through the chaotic crowd, fixed on the slender yet ramrod straight back at the stern of the boat. The dark water stains on her skirt were glaringly obvious in the autumn sunlight. She stood there, alone, facing the malice and framing of the entire capital, yet her spine stood as straight as an unyielding bamboo in the wind and snow.
A strange, surging emotion, like a flood bursting its banks, violently assaulted his heart, which had been frozen for many years. It was not merely the sharpness of a chess piece; it was a resolute determination to destroy everything, a madness that was unafraid to shatter all rules!
Just then, a trusted eunuch quietly and quickly approached him from behind, lowered his voice, and hurriedly reported: "Your Highness, news has just arrived from the palace. The Empress Dowager is unwell, and His Majesty is worried. He has issued an imperial edict, in order to expedite the selection of an auspicious day to ensure that, before the Empress Dowager's birthday, a suitable consort is chosen for each of the eligible princes!"
The eunuch's voice, though low, was like a thunderclap, resounding throughout the elegant room.
Xiao Xun's body stiffened almost imperceptibly. He slowly loosened his tightly clenched, blood-dripping hand, letting the blood-stained shards of porcelain fall in a soft patter. He continued to gaze out the window, at Xin Jiuwei's solitary figure, the last vestige of hesitation in the depths of his eyes shattered by this sudden news.
He spoke, his voice low and hoarse, as if tempered with cold iron, carrying a resolute determination of making a desperate gamble. He uttered only two words, yet they weighed a ton:
"Return to the residence."
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