Chapter 206 Zhou Ruyuan's Inner Demons!
Shen Lanxi met his gaze without flinching: "Father, do you dare to expel me from the Shen family in front of His Majesty?"
A flash of ferocity crossed Shen Congwen's eyes, but he quickly concealed it, flicked his sleeves, and strode to the front.
Shen Lanxi felt nothing, but Ban Sicao cursed incessantly after getting into the carriage.
"Your dad is such a scoundrel. Has he always been like this?"
"Should I give him some medicine? I guarantee he'll recover from his illness very naturally after taking it!"
Shen Lanxi twitched her lips. This person shouldn't talk about feeding medicine as naturally as feeding someone a meal.
"No need, at most he'll just say a few harsh words."
Ban Si Cao doesn't think so.
"You're ruthless on the battlefield, how come you're so soft-hearted when it comes to family matters?"
"The more you do this, the more they'll go too far. I heard from people in the barracks that you like to behead your relatives before going into battle as a sacrifice to the flag. Why haven't we seen you behead them?"
Shen Lanxi glanced at him but did not answer.
Ban Sicao said smugly, "Even so, you still can't compare to me. When I came out, I gave my dad two packets of medicine. That amount is enough to keep him bedridden for two years!"
Shen Lanxi regretted bringing Si Cao out of the class.
They soon arrived at the palace.
The welcoming banquet was held at the horse farm behind the palace, which was decorated with many precious flowers and plants in the style of the imperial garden.
Hearing the neighing of warhorses coming from not far away, Shen Lanxi's eyes flashed, and she nonchalantly followed the maid leading the way to sit in her seat.
Many people had already arrived, and their gazes swept over Shen Lanxi, both openly and subtly.
Some were bold and kept staring. Others were more timid, taking the opportunity to talk to someone, glancing quickly at the subject, then looking away for a moment before turning back to continue watching.
Shen Lanxi sat down calmly and stood confidently in front of everyone.
It was only then that the women realized that Shen Lanxi was sitting in a different spot than them.
She was not assigned to a position for the women.
Those who were far away started whispering among themselves.
When Zhou Ruyuan arrived, whether intentionally or unintentionally, the two were seated together.
Zhou Ruyuan had dressed up specially today, a stark contrast to his dusty and weary appearance when he entered the city that day.
Dressed in a four-clawed prince's python robe, with a jade crown on his head, and brocade clothes and a jade belt, apart from his slightly dark skin, he was simply a dashing and handsome prince!
When Zhou Ruyuan saw Shen Lanxi, his eyes darkened. After greeting a few colleagues, he walked towards his seat.
Ban Sicao used the excuse of needing to use the restroom to leave shortly after arriving.
"Lanxi!" Zhou Ruyuan greeted Shen Lanxi.
She ignored him, so Zhou Ruyuan called out again.
Seeing that Shen Lanxi still didn't reply, his expression turned somewhat unpleasant.
"Lanxi, even though we're divorced, we're still family!"
Shen Lanxi tapped the table lightly with her fingers, and Qiu Shuang quickly poured tea.
"Zhou Ruyuan, don't force me to throw tea at you!"
Zhou Ruyuan's eyes were dark, and his hands under the table were clenched tightly.
Why did Shen Lanxi have to make him lose face in front of so many people?
"Feelings can't be forced. I did wrong you in the past. My father has already demoted me. If you really hate me and want to throw tea at me, I'll take it. I only ask one thing of you: please stop pursuing Qingling!"
Shen Lanxi's eyes flashed with astonishment. What nonsense was this idiot talking about?
"As long as you promise to let Qingling go, I will talk to my father and ask him to remarry you as my principal wife!"
She almost burst out laughing.
"Is being your principal wife such an honorable thing? Is it worth using that as bait to lure me in?"
"Zhou Ruyuan, are you still dreaming, haven't you woken up from your sweet dreams? Why would I give up a perfectly good position as the Grand General who quelled the rebellion to become some damned Empress? Do you think I care?"
"And then there's Bai Qingling. I haven't seen her since I returned to the capital. I know you're still upset about the scandal that was exposed on your wedding night, but you can't blame me just because some random cat or dog in your household got into trouble."
"Like I said, it wasn't me who made you spend your wedding night in a concubine's room. If you're so upset that people found out you called for water three times in one night, you should go and settle accounts with those who spread the news, not come to me!"
Zhou Ruyuan's face turned red and black from Shen Lanxi's words, and his heart was churning with anger and blood.
He called for water three times that night, a phrase that had been swirling in his mind like a curse for over two years.
Whenever he was alone, this phrase would pop into his mind.
This sentence has become his inner demon!
"Shen Lanxi, shut up!" Zhou Ruyuan said angrily.
Shen Lanxi sneered: "The one who starts it is the one who's shameless. You came to cause me trouble first, and after you realized you were in the wrong, you got angry and told me to shut up. Zhou Ruyuan, where do you get the nerve to be angry?"
Zhou Ruyuan stared intently at Shen Lanxi, using all his willpower to suppress his raging fury.
"Shen Lanxi, do you really have to say this in front of everyone?"
How did she become like this?
"I, Shen Lanxi, have a clear conscience, and I do not regret a single word I have said! I dare to swear on my words and deeds with my blood, do you dare?"
Zhou Ruyuan met Shen Lanxi's sharp gaze, but quickly retreated and turned his head to the side.
"I just want you to let Qingling go. She has followed me without any official status and has already suffered a lot in order to bear children."
Shen Lanxi: "Her suffering isn't my fault. I didn't make her follow you without a title or status, or bear your child. Her suffering has nothing to do with me! If you truly loved her, you should have thought it through before you slept with her. Since you can't give her a title, you should mind your own business." Hypocritical, what a jerk.
Zhou Ruyuan stared intently at Shen Lanxi: "So, in the end, you just won't let her go, is that it?"
Shen Lanxi's eyes were full of mockery; "You can shout even louder and let His Majesty and the Empress help you clear your head."
Zhou Ruyuan gave a disdainful sneer: "I really don't know how someone as petty as you can lead an army to quell a rebellion."
Shen Lanxi's eyes were icy: "According to you, aren't you even less magnanimous than me? At least I led the army to quell the rebellion and reclaimed most of Dongchuan's territory, while you in the Northwest didn't even manage to reclaim a single city!"
Zhou Ruyuan was hit where it hurt, and became furious, glaring fiercely at Shen Lanxi.
"What do you, a woman, know about the bigger picture?"
“Our Great Zhou is negotiating peace with foreign tribes to ensure the peaceful lives of the people in the Northwest. But all you know is fighting and killing. What’s the difference between you and a butcher?”
Shen Lanxi: "Some people can't argue with me, so they start attacking my identity as a woman. As far as I know, when the Wei family army was guarding the Northwest, they never knew what peace talks were."
Zhou Ruyuan's face flushed red, and he slammed his fist on the table in anger.
"Shen Lanxi, you've gone too far!"
"Insolence!" Emperor Renxiao's voice came from not far away.
Shen Lanxi and the other ministers rose and bowed.
Emperor Renxiao, his face dark, strode up to Zhou Ruyuan, his eyes blazing with anger as he glared at him.
"Third Prince, do you have any dignity befitting a prince?"
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