nycdaug Chapter 162 The Mighty Prince Duan
Chapter 162 The Mighty Prince Duan
Xie Jin angrily said, "How cruel you are! So many rules and regulations, turning the academy into a military camp. Are you deliberately trying to make things difficult for us? With such a cruel heart, no wonder you're already fifteen and still not engaged. In my opinion, you'll have a very hard time getting married in this lifetime!"
Hearing this from the side, Tu Sheng couldn't help but secretly groan. The Second Young Master's behavior was clearly too influenced by his mother!
Zisu sneered: "How dare you! I am the Princess of Yulin! This is insubordination! Believe me or not, I'll beat you up!"
Xie Jin seemed to have heard the biggest joke in the world: "Hit me? I am the prime minister's grandson. If you lay a finger on me, I will make my grandfather be ruthless to your father!"
Zisu: "Oh my, your grandfather is the Prime Minister? I'm so scared! It's a pity you're not the Prime Minister. I can hit you whenever I want! Guards, give him a good beating, twenty strokes of the cane! After that, send him to the Prime Minister's residence in the capital!"
Upon hearing this, Xiao Jin was stunned and stammered, "You, you really dare to hit me?"
Zisu: "Why wouldn't I dare? I am the dignified Princess of Yulin, while you, though the Prime Minister's grandson, are nothing but a commoner without any official rank. Now that you have offended me, it is only right and proper for me to beat you! Even if your grandfather were here, I would have a perfectly justifiable reason to beat you!"
Huh? She really dares to do that!
Xie Jin was terrified and immediately knelt down and kowtowed: "Princess, I was wrong, I apologize to you, please forgive me this once!" Being beaten was a small matter, but he was afraid that if his grandfather found out, he would be beaten again, and he might even be kicked out of the house, which would be terrible!
Without the Xie family, he was nothing; he even had trouble getting food.
Xie Yuan quickly pleaded for him, "Your Highness, please be magnanimous and forgive him this time! I will definitely discipline him properly in the future and prevent him from violating the rules again. Please forgive him this time, considering that he is young and doesn't understand things yet!"
Pan Yu quickly knelt down as well: "Princess, please calm down and don't hold it against him. From now on, we will keep a close eye on him and prevent him from talking nonsense!"
Zisu waved her hand: "It's not just him. Both of you need to study hard and obey the rules. Wuliping Academy will not tolerate students who corrupt the academy's atmosphere and discipline. I'll give you another three months to see how you behave. If after three months you're still acting like little rascals and still not studying hard, then don't blame me for being impolite!"
"At that time, you will definitely be expelled from school, and no amount of pleading will help! Everyone at Wuliping Academy, whether teachers or students, except for the three of you, is a kind and upright person. We can't let you ruin this good atmosphere. It's only a three-month observation period; I hope you'll behave yourselves!"
After saying that, Zisu strode away without looking back.
Xie Jin got up from the ground and watched Zisu's retreating figure until she was far enough away before he dared to mutter under his breath, "What's so great about her? Even if you're the head of the academy, you're still just a woman. Do you think you can become the top scholar? Humph! No matter what, we're qualified to take the imperial examinations, but you don't even have the qualifications to take them!"
Xie Yuan watched Zisu's departing figure, lost in thought. Hearing Xie Jin's words, he couldn't help but frown: "Alright, stop talking. What kind of man is it to gossip behind people's backs?"
This cousin has picked up his aunt's bad habit of gossiping, which often leaves him speechless.
Pan Yu added, "That's right! We've always been upright and honest, so let's not talk about others behind their backs! That would be beneath our dignity!"
Tu Sheng, who was listening nearby, couldn't help but mutter to himself: Wise? Oh dear, young masters, where is your wisdom? Infamy, that's more like it.
Upon hearing that his grandson had made things difficult for Zisu, Xie Gongming sighed deeply and sternly reprimanded his second son: "Look at your fine son! How dare he provoke Princess Yulin! Back then, she was only ten years old, forced into such a predicament by Shangguan Chengfeng's family. Yet, she managed to safely bring her pregnant mother back to Wuliping and raise her younger brother to be a successful person. Her intelligence, perseverance, patience, keenness, and wit are not to be underestimated. How dare Jin'er offend such an unparalleled woman? He's simply ignorant of his own limitations!"
Xie Feng was filled with shame: "Father, it was my fault for not disciplining you properly. I will definitely discipline you properly in the future and will not indulge you again!"
Xie Gongming: "In and out of the capital, in and out of the court, who doesn't praise Princess Yulin for her noble character, kind nature, and exceptional talent? Otherwise, why would the dignified Prince Duan, the third-ranked scholar, and the young general all be so devoted to her and insist on marrying her? Do you think her good reputation is all unfounded?"
"Yes, Father, I will personally go to Wuliping and give him a good scolding!" Xie Feng had no choice but to admit his mistake. As a father, he knew his son better than anyone else, and he was also more troubled by him than anyone else.
The next morning, he took the day off and went to Wuliping. When he saw his son, he originally wanted to give him a severe scolding, but to his surprise, his son was quite different from before. He seemed to have changed a lot, and was much more polite. Upon seeing him, he took the initiative to admit his mistakes, looking like he wanted to mend his ways.
Xie Feng didn't know what to say, so he encouraged his son, visited the headmaster, and then returned to the capital.
After Xie Feng left, the three of them became much more obedient. They no longer dared to cause trouble in class or bully their classmates. They also obediently followed their classmates in washing clothes, bathing, eating, and washing dishes, and dared not leave their clothes and dishes to the three poor children who had been instructing them.
The headmaster, observing this, couldn't help but nod in approval. "Heh heh, Princess Yulin is truly resourceful; she lives up to her reputation as a remarkable woman."
When the Prime Minister received the headmaster's letter, he was greatly comforted and even ate an extra bowl of rice that evening. Moreover, his face was full of joy, which puzzled his wife.
"Husband, is there some good news?" the wife couldn't help but ask.
The Prime Minister happily pulled out a letter from his robes: "Take a look for yourself! Our three troublemakers have been disciplined by Princess Yulin and are no longer the three scourges of the academy! Even the headmaster wrote to me saying that these three children have a good chance of becoming good kids!"
The lady took the letter and read it, then burst into tears of joy: "Great! That's wonderful! When these three children grow up, they won't become real scoundrels! Oh, now I can finally put my mind at ease! Otherwise, I wouldn't be able to eat or sleep properly!"
Ultimately, she spoiled all three children. Now that they have a chance to improve and succeed, she is happier than anyone else.
"Thank you, Princess Yulin! Thank you so much! She's a lucky star! No wonder so many fine men want to marry her. No wonder Prince Duan defied the imperial decree and his own mother to marry her!" The lady murmured to herself, tears streaming down her face.
Everyone was happy except for Liu Yuan, the younger sister of the second wife, who happened to be visiting.
Upon hearing her elder sister mention Zisu, Liu Yuan's eyes seemed to hold countless daggers coated with deadly poison, viciously stabbing at her sister several times, and she angrily said, "Elder sister, what's so good about that lowly servant girl? A lowly servant girl who grew up in the countryside and was exiled, she's not even worthy of carrying my shoes!"
The second wife was extremely annoyed and said irritably, "She is the dignified Princess of Yulin. She's not even worthy to carry your shoes. Do you think you're the daughter of the Jade Emperor?"
Every time she came to see her, she would slander Princess Yulin. After one, two, three times, she was fed up. Besides, her son was now studying at Princess Yulin's academy, right under Princess Yulin's nose. Anyone with a brain wouldn't agree with her sister and speak ill of Princess Yulin anymore.
Otherwise, if the Princess of Yulin found out, her son would be in deep trouble. Who knows, something unexpected might happen, and her son's life would be over! Growing up in a family rife with intrigue and scheming, she always tended to think things through seriously. In short, she would never do anything that would harm her son.
Upon hearing this, Liu Yuan was furious: "Big sister, you're making it sound like I'm some terrible person. Who's your sister here? Me, or Princess Yulin?!"
Second Madam: "You should leave now. Don't keep coming to see me. I only have one son, and I don't want anything to happen to him!"
Liu Yuan laughed instead of getting angry, and said with great interest, "If she dares to lay a hand on Jin'er, then I, the eldest sister, will seize the opportunity and file a complaint with the Emperor. That way, Prince Duan will see her ugly face and won't marry her! At that time, with my beautiful appearance and kind personality, as long as the Prime Minister speaks on my behalf, Prince Duan will definitely marry me!"
"Yes, the best thing for you now, eldest sister, is to provoke her and make her lay a hand on Jin'er. If she dares to lay a hand on Jin'er, she'll be in big trouble! Eldest sister, once I become the Princess Consort of Duan, your status in the Xie family will rise accordingly!"
The second wife, unable to bear it any longer, slapped her across the face: "Get out of here! I don't want a sister as vicious as you! Kindness? Someone like you, you call yourself kind? If you're a kind person, then there's no one in the whole world who's a bad person!"
After saying that, he grabbed a feather duster and started hitting Liu Yuan on the head and face. While hitting her, he said to his personal maid, "Go and tell the gatekeeper that if anyone comes in the future, don't let her in!"
Liu Yuan fled in a sorry state.
Xie Feng had been standing outside the window for a long time, watching Liu Yuan's departing figure. He finally felt a little comforted. His wife, at least, could still be saved; she hadn't completely lost her mind. Today, if she had uttered even a single word in agreement with Liu Yuan, he would have gritted his teeth and divorced her.
Madam Xie was unaware that she almost faced being divorced.
Outraged, Liu Yuan instructed her wet nurse to bribe a dozen beggars to spread a rumor. The gist of the rumor was that Princess Yulin was ruthless, cruel to scholars, and even dared to poison the Prime Minister's child; she was a femme fatale. The rumor also claimed that Princess Yulin was shameless, having affairs with several men simultaneously.
In less than three days, such rumors spread like wildfire throughout the entire capital.
When Madam Yu heard this, she was so angry that her chest ached and she couldn't even eat.
Upon hearing this, Shangguan Mufeng's smile vanished, and he became furious when he saw Prince Duan.
Prince Duan was puzzled: Had I offended him?
Back at Qinyuan, he ordered his guards to find out what he had done to offend General Shangguan. Upon hearing their report, he was furious: "Outrageous! Who has the audacity to spread rumors about Zisu! Continue investigating and find out who started this rumor!"
The final investigation results were in, and all the evidence pointed to Liu Yuan, the most beloved younger sister of Liu Cai, the deputy commander of the Imperial Guards. The evidence was irrefutable. Even the exact words Liu Yuan had spoken were thoroughly investigated by the secret guards.
Without saying a word, Prince Duan rode his horse into the Liu residence, into Liu Yuan's boudoir, and smashed it to pieces.
The entire Liu household was terrified, and several maids and servants who had helped spread the rumors were trembling with fear.
Prince Duan strode toward the maids and servants who were clearly guilty, and kicked each of them in the chest, sending them flying.
Upon hearing the news, Liu Cai rushed back. Seeing the scene, he was furious: "Your Highness, what is the meaning of this? How did my sister offend you? She just likes you and wants to marry you, what crime is that?!"