What a masterful display of evading the main issue, distorting facts, and twisting reality.
Shen Xihe’s lips curved into a slight smile.
“Your Majesty, that’s not quite right.” Xiao Changgeng stepped forward voluntarily. “Fourth Sister—”
“Your Majesty.” Shen Xihe cut off the Twelfth Prince Xiao Changgeng’s words. She gracefully adjusted her silk shawl and moved with elegant steps. “What Princess Yangling said is what Princess Yangling saw, and what Zhaoning said is what Zhaoning saw. As for right and wrong, Your Majesty will make your judgment after hearing both sides.”
Emperor Youning swept his gaze across everyone present. “Zhaoning, you speak.”
“Zhaoning entered the palace today to visit the Crown Prince. When leaving, I passed by Wenxuan Pavilion where the Twelfth Prince fell from above. If not for Zhaoning and her attendants having some martial skills, not only would Zhaoning have been injured, but the Twelfth Prince would have been either crippled or severely wounded.”
As Shen Xihe spoke, she cast a cool glance at Princess Yangling. “When the Twelfth Prince fell from the roof, surprisingly no one was following him. While I was still shocked by this, I heard Princess Yangling’s imperious voice from within Wenxuan Pavilion…”
Clearing her throat, Shen Xihe repeated Princess Yangling’s words: “Xiao Changgeng, are you stunned by the fall? If you still have any breath left, climb back up and get it for this princess!”
As soon as she finished speaking, Princess Yangling’s face turned ashen, Xiao Changgeng lowered his head in submission, and Emperor Youning’s expression grew even darker.
“Father, I—”
“Your Majesty, Father has only three children. Zhaoning and my brother are separated from our half-sister, so I don’t know if, in large, prosperous families, half-siblings typically treat each other with such hostility,” Shen Xihe said with feigned innocence. “But the Fifth Princess’s behavior truly shows a lack of proper upbringing. The Twelfth Prince is somewhat younger than her—even if she doesn’t want to protect her younger brother, treating him as if his life holds no value…”
“Father says the royal family sets the example for all under heaven, a model for the common people. When Father asked Zhaoning to come to the capital, he said that whenever I was unsure of something, I should observe the princesses’ deportment, and learning even a fraction would be my good fortune. But behavior like the Fifth Princess’s—Zhaoning truly cannot bring herself to learn such ways.”
“Shen Xihe, how dare you!”
“Silence!”
Princess Yangling, burning with shame and anger, had barely finished her rebuke when Emperor Youning’s stern glare sent her dropping to her knees with a thud.
“Your Majesty, please don’t be angry. Princess Yangling is likely still young and was perhaps worried when the Prince didn’t respond for so long, fearing he might be injured. But it was Princess Changling’s response that truly opened Zhaoning’s eyes…”
Shen Xihe paused, then repeated Princess Changling’s words to the stern-faced Emperor: “What are you afraid of? Even if he’s injured, Father will only think him useless.”
At this point in Shen Xihe’s narration, Xiao Changgeng displayed a perfectly calibrated mixture of dejection and forced smile.
“Your Majesty, Father often says that fingers are naturally of different lengths. In the past in the Northwest, if I made a mistake, Father would always punish my brother as well—not out of favoritism toward me, but because an elder brother must look after his younger sister. Zhaoning vaguely remembers that the Twelfth Prince is of the same age as the two princesses, just a few months younger—so why must the younger brother yield to and care for his sisters?
Father also doesn’t favor our half-sisters, but he never deprived them of food, clothing, or necessities, and forbade my brother and me from bullying them.
Looking at the Twelfth Prince’s situation, could it be that the way of raising children in the capital differs from our Northwest?”
Shen Xihe asked with utmost sincerity, coming just short of explicitly stating that His Majesty doesn’t know how to raise children.
What made it particularly clever was that while everyone understood her implication, the words themselves couldn’t be pieced together to form such an accusation, making it impossible to charge her with disrespect.
Xiao Changgeng’s heart surged with shock. He had long heard of Shen Xihe’s reputation, but due to his young age and lack of status in the palace, besides catching a distant glimpse of her at the Empress Dowager’s birthday celebration, he had never met her in person.
He knew of all Shen Xihe’s actions, but experiencing firsthand her subtle mockery of His Majesty was indescribably shocking.
Yet she wasn’t aggressive—her words were reasonable and well-supported, leaving His Majesty unable to rebuke her, forced to endure her sarcasm. Today she had not only mocked His Majesty but hadn’t spared the two princesses either.
“Zhaoning, how did Changling break her nose?” Emperor Youning, despite his usual composure, couldn’t maintain his dignity as an emperor and issued a veiled warning.
Shen Xihe remained completely unfazed, her expression unchanged: “The Twelfth Prince, fearing I would be bullied, hurried to respond to the Fourth Princess, but unexpectedly collided with the Fourth Princess who had impatiently come searching. The Fourth Princess fell to the ground in an undignified manner.
Zhaoning did not wish to approach, lest the princess think I was mocking her unseemly state, so I walked straight ahead. The Fourth Princess stopped me, berating me for being disrespectful and not showing proper courtesy to a princess, then moved to slap me.”
At this point, Shen Xihe’s eyes grew cold: “Setting aside that Zhaoning’s reluctance to approach was due to previous friction with the Fourth Princess, fearing she might take offense—even if Zhaoning truly had shown disrespect, the princess has no right to slap Zhaoning. Zhaoning would not meekly accept such treatment. Having learned some self-defense, I struck the princess’s knee with a bead, causing her to fall!”
Shen Xihe wasn’t trying to protect Xiao Changgeng, but rather wanted to make Princess Changling clearly understand that even if His Majesty knew it was she, Shen Xihe, who had caused the princess’s broken nose, this precious princess would just have to accept it.
After Shen Xihe finished speaking, the hall fell silent.
Emperor Youning’s face was stern, his gaze cold: “Yangling, is this what happened?”
Under Emperor Youning’s intimidating gaze, Princess Yangling’s heart pounded like a frightened rabbit, beating uncontrollably: “Father…”
She was now completely flustered. Initially angered by Shen Xihe’s words, then embarrassed, and suddenly being questioned by His Majesty, her mind went completely blank, unable to form a response.
As she tried to recall Shen Xihe’s earlier words, she realized they were all true, leaving her no room for argument.
Shen Xihe maintained her faint smile. She had said so much not only to mock Emperor Youning but also to psychologically pressure this princess, preventing her from making excuses.
After all, she was a princess, and there was an injured party—if she were to make a scene, it would likely end with both sides being punished equally, which wasn’t the result Shen Xihe wanted.
Princess Yangling stammered, her face red, unable to speak.
Emperor Youning could only turn to Xiao Changgeng: “Is it as Zhaoning says?”
Since Shen Xihe had already taken responsibility for injuring Changling, Xiao Changgeng naturally couldn’t contradict her, or else Shen Xihe would be guilty of deceiving the emperor: “Yes, Your Majesty, it is exactly so.”
“Yangling has failed in her duty as the elder, showing no care for her younger brother. She is confined to her palace chambers for three months, and I will send female scholars to instruct her day and night.”
Princess Yangling’s face paled. Having palace scholars instruct her was an admission of her poor upbringing, and such instruction was received kneeling, from sunrise to sunset.
“As for Changling, considering her injury, she will only be confined to the palace while she recovers. If this happens again, the punishment will be more severe!”
Shen Xihe thought to herself that His Majesty indeed favored Princess Changling, but since her goal had been achieved, she said nothing more.
There are no secrets in the palace. When Tianyuan learned of this incident, which was known throughout the palace, he specifically sought out the physician responsible for Princess Changling’s care: “Treat the princess’s injuries well, and when she’s healed, His Highness will reward you generously.”
What reward? Perhaps the reward of fainting in front of him? He couldn’t accept such an honor.
The physician, fearful of the Crown Prince fainting before him, nodded repeatedly like pounded garlic: “This humble official understands.”