His eyebrows twitched violently, and he quickly stepped forward, pressing his ear against the wall to listen carefully. He lowered his voice, sounding worried: "Young master, are you alright?"
Chi Yan grimaced, clutched his backside, got up, and limped away.
——
East Courtyard.
Shen Xiwei knelt on the ground, massaging the legs of the Lady Hou. Her outward appearance was respectful and humble, but in her heart, she cursed the Lady Hou again and again:
That old hag, she calls her over to set rules all the time. The rules are so strict, you'd think her family was royalty!
She pretended to be nice when the prince was around, but he had to go to the palace to work, so how could he be by her side every moment?
Lady Hou had this figured out perfectly. Whenever she summoned her to the main courtyard, she would either stand or kneel, with a prayer cushion under her knees so that no one could see the difference. She couldn't even cry to the young master about her plight!
Shen Xi lowered her brows slightly, Shen Tangning's words flashing through her mind, a dark and ambiguous light passing through her eyes:
If only this old hag were truly so sick she couldn't get out of bed.
Lady Hou glanced at her below, knowing that Shen Xiwei must be extremely dissatisfied, and said leisurely, "Don't blame me for making trouble. When the Crown Prince's wife enters the mansion, there will be many things you will need to serve. I'm just letting you get used to it in advance."
In his words, he truly treated her like a servant.
Shen Xiwei bit her tongue, trying to stay awake, and said timidly, "Madam is right, I have learned my lesson."
As they were talking, a nanny came in and whispered, "Madam, the one from the west courtyard has climbed over the wall and run away."
Lady Hou's eyes were playful, and a mocking smile curled at the corner of her lips: "I thought he had truly changed his ways, but it turns out he's still a hopeless case, never going to amount to anything! It's laughable that the second wife is still dreaming that her son will come back as the top scholar in the imperial examination!"
The second wife carried things into the courtyard in a grand manner, making quite a commotion, which could not be kept secret.
Therefore, the matter of Chi Yan being forced to study by Shen Tangning caused a great uproar throughout the entire household, but most people just watched it for fun.
After all, Chi Yan had failed the exam three times, so no one believed that he could suddenly have an epiphany!
The old woman covered her lips, suppressing a smile in her eyes: "The second young mistress was just grasping at straws in her desperation. She gave up being a perfectly good princess consort and insisted on marrying a good-for-nothing scoundrel out of spite. Now she must be regretting it to the core!"
Mentioning Shen Tangning, a cold glint flashed in Madam Hou's eyes: "She brought this on herself. She wouldn't take the opportunity to save face, and insisted on fighting with me. Let's see if that piece of trash in her hands can be turned into a gold nugget!"
She was originally very satisfied with Shen Tangning. Her family background, talent, appearance, and character were all excellent, making her qualified to be the heir apparent's wife.
But ever since Shen Tangning slapped her in the face without any mercy on their wedding night, she has harbored resentment towards her.
Her son was also an outstanding member of a prominent family, and Shen Tangning thought she could find someone even better?
Hearing this, Shen Xiwei finally calmed down her resentment. At least this proved that her initial choice was not wrong.
Being Chi Jingyu's concubine is better than marrying Chi Yan as his legal wife; otherwise, Shen Tangning's today will be her yesterday!
Her older sister is also a bit dim-witted; becoming a top scholar isn't that easy.
Even ordinary scholars may not achieve success after ten years of hard study, let alone a playboy like Chi Yan who only knows how to eat, drink, and have fun.
A prince who becomes the top scholar at the age of seventeen is one in a hundred, and she felt a sense of superiority.
However, at the same time, Shen Xiwei couldn't quite understand why the Lady of the Marquis was so concerned about the movements in the West Courtyard.
Could Chi Yan, an ignorant and incompetent playboy, possibly cause any trouble?
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