Chapter 5 It's simple for me to grant your wish: drink this glass of wine!
Inside the Zhennan Prince's Mansion, all the servants and guards knelt on the ground. The Third Prince, Zhou Ruyuan, protecting the woman in his arms, knelt among the servants. The entire mansion was surrounded by Imperial Guards; the whole place was silent, and no one dared to utter a sound!
Shen Lanxi returned to the bridal chamber without anyone noticing. Along the way, Nu Bai kept reporting news until she stepped into the bridal chamber, at which point he stopped.
"Chunxiao, has the Prince returned?" she called out softly.
Chunxue immediately pushed open the door and entered: "Miss, the Prince hasn't returned yet. Would you like to wash up?"
There would be plenty of time to wash up later, Chen Lanxi's eyes fell on the nuptial wine on the table.
Has anyone come in?
Chunxue shook her head: "This servant has been guarding outside the whole time, and no one has come in!"
Nu Bai's voice rang out: "Master, master, the Imperial Guards have all withdrawn. Zhou Ruyuan is heading this way with that woman!"
"Chunxue, I'm hungry. Tell the kitchen to send some food over!"
Why are you behaving so strangely, young lady? Aren't you going to do your hair and makeup first?
Chunxue left with her questions in mind.
She had already received basic treatment, and the artificial blood on her feet had been washed off in her spatial dimension. She could play the victim, but she wouldn't actually hurt herself!
Just as she found the clothes she needed to change into, Zhou Ruyuan violently kicked open the door.
"Shen Lanxi..." A cold, sharp voice accompanied by a lithe and handsome figure came into Shen Lanxi's view.
Zhou Ruyuan was surrounded by a violent aura, and his voice was filled with angry accusations.
"Shen Lanxi, did you tell Father Emperor on us?!"
Shen Lanxi's eyes flickered, and a stunning smile appeared on her face!
"Your Highness, what are you saying? I don't understand."
Zhou Ruyuan's eyes were dark with burning anger: "Just because I brought Qingling back, you're going to viciously have Father Emperor order her to be killed?"
Shen Lanxi sat down calmly, her hands clasped together, her back straight, her every move revealing the rigorous upbringing she had received from her aristocratic family.
She glanced at Zhou Ruyuan, then at Bai Qingling.
"Is she your mistress?"
Zhou Ruyuan was instantly provoked by her calm demeanor: "She is not a mistress, she is the one I love!"
Bai Qingling wasn't particularly beautiful, but she knew how to dress, which gave her a certain air of heroism.
"Sister Chen, please don't misunderstand. The Prince and I don't have that kind of relationship!"
Shen Lanxi raised an eyebrow and sneered: "So what kind of relationship do you two have? Is it the kind where you spent your wedding night in my room and I called for water three times in one night?"
Zhou Ruyuan immediately became furious: "If it weren't for the Emperor's decree of marriage, the position of Princess Consort would belong to Qingling. If Qingling hadn't kept advising me not to disobey the imperial decree, do you think I would have married you?"
Shen Lanxi said with a mocking look, "If I had known beforehand that you were having an ambiguous relationship with such a person, would I have married you?"
“Shen Lanxi…” Zhou Ruyuan pointed angrily at Shen Lanxi. Seeing that the two had turned against each other, Bai Qingling quickly pulled Zhou Ruyuan away.
"Your Highness, His Majesty's decree is absolute. To disobey it is to defy the decree!" Bai Qingling advised Zhou Ruyuan, and then immediately advised Shen Lanxi.
"Your Highness, I'm not here to compete with you for the title of Your Highness. You are the Your Highness, bestowed by imperial decree, and you are Ru Yuan's wife. You have a powerful maternal family to rely on, while I am just a commoner. You don't need to worry about me surpassing you. Ru Yuan is our husband. Let's work together to support Ru Yuan and help him achieve greater things. From now on, shall we live in peace?"
Shen Lanxi watched Bai Qingling's speech and curled her lips into a mocking smile.
"You dare not disobey the imperial decree, huh? Then why are you still alive?"
Zhou Ruyuan's brow twitched.
Bai Qingling clenched her hands tightly under her sleeves.
"And you still say you know nothing?" Zhou Ruyuan said aggressively.
Shen Lanxi looked at Bai Qingling: "Let me guess why she's still alive? On the wedding night of the prince and princess, a mistress seduced the princess, causing her to spend her wedding night alone, becoming a laughing stock of the whole world and a scandal for the royal family. This is a serious crime, enough to warrant being executed by slow slicing. Why isn't she dead yet? It certainly isn't because of her appearance, nor could it be because of her commoner background. There's only one possibility: she's a royal heir!"
A flash of panic crossed Bai Qingling's eyes.
Zhou Ruyuan grabbed her wrist, his tone icy and stern: "What have you done?"
Shen Lanxi was not afraid of Zhou Ruyuan, and her face turned icy cold with each word she spoke!
"The fact that a concubine has a child before the principal wife has even entered the family is a great disgrace to the royal family. The moment the child in her womb is born will be the day she dies!"
Zhou Ruyuan was stunned for a moment before Shen Lanxi easily broke free of her restraints.
Shen Lanxi was grateful to Eunuch Wang Bao for not revealing that the Shen family's property had been confiscated, which allowed her to be arrogant in front of the despicable couple for a while.
"You dare to sit on equal footing with me, calling me 'sister'? Should I ask my father to open the ancestral hall and add your name to it?"
Bai Qing turned to Zhou Ruyuan for help.
"Your Highness, that's not what I meant!"
Zhou Ruyuan felt a shadow fall over his heart as he recalled disobeying the imperial edict earlier, and his tone became impatient and perfunctory.
"Qingling is kind-hearted, don't misunderstand her meaning. When you go to the palace to pay your respects later, tell Father Emperor to bestow upon Qingling the title of concubine." With a title, Qingling will not die, and it's perfect for Shen Lanxi to ask for this decree!
Shen Lanxi slapped Bai Qingling across the face with such force that Bai Qingling stumbled and fell onto Zhou Ruyuan.
"What are you doing?" Zhou Ruyuan reached out to grab Bai Qingling and hit her back.
"You dare touch me!" Shen Lanxi glared at Zhou Ruyuan. "If you lay a single hair on my head, I'll have His Majesty, my uncle, have this woman executed by slow slicing. If you touch me twice, I'll have the Empress Dowager exterminate her entire family!"
Zhou Ruyuan's eyes burned with raging anger as he angrily rebuked, "Your heart is black, your soul is rotten to the core! Qingling isn't even trying to take it from you, why don't you have any tolerance at all?"
Shen Lanxi laughed arrogantly: "Did you ask me beforehand that I can't tolerate people?"
Zhou Ruyuan choked.
A flash of fierceness crossed Bai Qingling's brows, but the next second her face changed to one of worry: "No matter what, this is a family matter of the Zhennan Prince's Mansion. You can't tell His Majesty and let him reprimand our Prince!"
Zhou Ruyuan immediately glared coldly at Shen Lanxi.
"Who are you? A mistress who can't be seen in public, do you even deserve to be called a member of the Prince's Mansion?" Shen Lanxi sneered.
"I'll go to the palace right now and report to my uncle and the old ancestor, and have them execute you by slow slicing and grind your bones to ashes!"
Bai Qingling glanced at Zhou Ruyuan, and in a moment of quick thinking, knelt down.
"Your Highness, I truly love the Prince. I am willing to risk my life for him. Please grant my wish!" Bai Qingling pressed her forehead to the ground, her hands digging into her palms.
Shen Lanxi was deeply moved!
"I've never seen a woman so devoted to a man. Giving you a chance isn't out of the question!" She pushed the shorter wine glass toward Bai Qingling.
"It's simple for me to grant your wish: just drink this glass of wine!"
(End of this chapter)
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