Mu Yunjin forced a smile, feeling as if she were sitting on pins and needles. She wasn’t on the same wavelength as these officials’ wives.

So awkward…

Seeing that Mu Yunjin wasn’t speaking, someone nearby understood this wasn’t something that should be asked, so they shifted the topic to the brocade box in Mu Yunjin’s hands.

“What kind of gift is it? Open it and let us see,” one lady said.

At these words, everyone’s attention focused on the brocade box.

Mu Yunjin held the box and smiled at them, “I won’t open this here.”

The implication was clear—whatever was inside, she wasn’t going to show them.

Hearing this, the ladies exchanged glances and said nothing more.

“By the way, didn’t Princess Ning just order someone to be slapped?” an official’s wife who couldn’t stand Madam Yang boldly spoke up.

…

…

Madam Yang had thought that Zhang Kui’s interruption had made everyone forget about this matter, but she hadn’t expected someone to bring it up again.

The atmosphere in the pavilion darkened once more.

At this moment, Mu Yunjin stood up, wanting to leave the pavilion for some fresh air.

Since she was sitting at the innermost spot, when she left, she made a slight turn to the left.

Madam Yang happened to be standing on the left. Seeing this, she thought Mu Yunjin was coming over to slap her personally. Her heart sank, and she hurriedly knelt.

“Princess Ning, I spoke out of turn. Please spare me…”

Today was the Empress Enthronement Ceremony. If she had to attend with several handprints on her face, what would become of her dignity?

Mu Yunjin frowned, feeling somewhat bewildered. She walked around Madam Yang and headed outside the pavilion.

Madam Yang was stunned, not expecting that Mu Yunjin would simply walk away.

Watching as Mu Yunjin walked down the pavilion steps, Madam Yang breathed a sigh of relief. But at that moment, a ghostly female voice echoed in her mind—

“Push Mu Yunjin down!”

“Push Mu Yunjin down!”

This voice resonated in Madam Yang’s mind, repeating twice.

Suddenly, Madam Yang’s pupils became hollow, and she woodenly stood up.

Before anyone could react, she abruptly rushed toward Mu Yunjin, who was descending the steps, and violently pushed her in the back…

Mu Yunjin had only walked down two steps when a powerful pushing force suddenly surged from behind.

She hadn’t been wary of these powerless women in the pavilion. Now, suddenly pushed hard, she couldn’t react in time and her whole body pitched forward…

“Ah!”

“Heavens, help!”

The officials’ wives behind her were terrified, wanting to rush forward, but it was already too late.

As Mu Yunjin was about to fall to the ground, the red plum blossom on her forehead flashed with red light, followed by her entire body emanating red radiance.

“Clang, clang…”

A phoenix cry resounded.

Everyone around was drawn to the sight.

They saw a red flame phoenix fly out from Mu Yunjin’s back, and as she was about to fall to the ground, it used its wings to completely envelop her body.

Mu Yunjin didn’t tumble down the steps as expected but was wrapped in the red phoenix’s wings and gently placed on level ground.

“What happened?!” A furious and cold voice came over.

The next second, someone swept up Mu Yunjin, who was sitting on the ground, into his arms.

“Aooo…”

At this moment, a qilin’s roar also sounded.

Around them, many nobles and officials who had been waiting for the auspicious time in the square heard the commotion from this direction and rushed over.

Upon seeing the red phoenix and the ink qilin, they were all frightened and stepped back several paces.

They had seen the red phoenix before.

But what was this black creature?

The officials’ wives in the pavilion were all terrified by this scene, especially Madam Yang, who was standing at the edge of the pavilion with her hands still outstretched, now completely frightened out of her wits.

What had she just done?

Was she the one who pushed Mu Yunjin down?

No, what was going on…

Before she could figure it out, she only felt a flash of blood before her eyes, followed by an intense, heart-piercing pain in both hands.

“Plop…”

Two bloodied hands fell to the ground.

Nearby, the ladies in the pavilion retreated repeatedly, not daring to let out even the slightest scream, tightly covering their mouths and staring at Chu Li, who now resembled an underworld asura.

He had cut off both of Madam Yang’s hands…

“Aaaaah!” Madam Yang, coming to her senses, suddenly let out a shrill scream before her body went limp. She fainted in the pavilion and rolled down the steps to the feet of Chu Li and Mu Yunjin.

“Prince Ning, please spare her life!” Yang Yanqing, now a sixth-rank official, was terrified to see his wife’s hands cut off and immediately fell to his knees.

Looking at this scene, everyone understood without being told—it was the audacious Madam Yang who had pushed Princess Ning, six months pregnant, down the steps.

Now, Prince Ning had raged for the sake of his beauty, directly cutting off Madam Yang’s hands.

“Help… it hurts…” Madam Yang, who had fainted, was awakened by the pain. The agony of having her hands cut off was not something everyone could endure.

Now, Madam Yang was in so much pain that she was losing her senses, her eyes darkening and pupils dilating.

“Clang, clang…”

The red phoenix suddenly flapped its wings, sending Madam Yang’s body flying several meters away.

How dare she harm its master—truly courting death!

Seeing the red phoenix take action, the onlookers quietly retreated several more steps.

Many of them still remembered how this red phoenix had bitten through Fifth Princess Chu Qingqiang’s neck…

“What happened here?” Chu Ye walked over unhurriedly.

Seeing the scene before him, his brows furrowed deeply as he surveyed the surroundings.

A small eunuch who had witnessed everything approached and said, “Just now, as Princess Ning was leaving the pavilion, this Madam Yang rushed over and pushed Princess Ning down from the upper steps…”

At these words, the nobles and officials nearby, who had been somewhat unclear about the situation, also came to understand.

Yang Yanqing’s face turned deathly pale, wishing he could kick that good-for-nothing wife of his to death first.

He had already heard about the hairpin incident last time, which had also caused him to offend the Li family. Now things were even worse—she had done something so outrageous…

What sin had he committed in his previous life to marry such a woman!

Hearing the small eunuch’s words, Chu Ye took a deep breath and looked at Chu Li and Mu Yunjin standing nearby.

Fortunately, Mu Yunjin was unharmed; otherwise, with Chu Li’s temperament, he might have slaughtered the entire palace.

“Sixth Brother, take your wife to rest in my chambers for a while. I’ll summon an imperial physician to check on her condition. I’ll handle the situation here,” Chu Ye said.

Chu Li nodded, tightening his arms around Mu Yunjin, then looked at Chu Ye, “Fourth Brother, I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright,” Chu Ye said, then turned to Eunuch Lu nearby, “Take Prince Ning and Princess Ning to rest.”

Eunuch Lu understood.

Chu Li carried Mu Yunjin and turned to leave.

The red phoenix and ink qilin also followed behind them, not concealing themselves.

After Chu Li and Mu Yunjin left, Chu Ye summoned several guards, “Clean this up. Everyone else, go attend the Empress Enthronement Ceremony.”

With that, Chu Ye walked toward the banquet venue.

Some officials nearby no longer dared to continue watching and followed Chu Ye away.

The remaining ladies still in the pavilion glimpsed the bloody mess on the ground and began to vomit in disgust. Each one disregarded propriety and climbed over the pavilion railings rather than using the proper entrance.

Among these officials’ wives, Madam Yan was the most frightened.

Although she disliked Mu Yunjin, she was thankful that her mind hadn’t heated up enough to do something so inappropriate.

This Madam Yang had truly lost her mind and courted death.

…

“Princess Ning has suffered some shock, but the child in her womb is fine. I will prescribe some medicine to stabilize the pregnancy, which she should take right away,” an imperial physician carefully spoke after checking Mu Yunjin’s pulse.

Mu Yunjin was reclining on the bed, her heart still pounding heavily.

If the red phoenix hadn’t appeared in time just now, she might have suffered greatly again.

Chu Li stood nearby with a dark face. Hearing the physician’s words, his tense heart relaxed slightly, but his expression remained unchanged.

After completing his examination, the physician immediately withdrew to prepare the medicine.

After the physician left, Chu Li sat on the edge of Mu Yunjin’s bed and held her tightly in his arms, his voice carrying a hint of trembling and fear.

“Yunjin, it was my negligence.”

Hearing these words, Mu Yunjin felt a sourness in her heart, and her eyes grew warm. She reached out to embrace Chu Li, “Why would you say that? This is not your responsibility.”

This silly man always took all responsibilities upon himself.

The more Mu Yunjin thought about it, the more her heart ached. She pressed her lips together tightly, afraid she wouldn’t be able to hold back her tears.

Chu Li said nothing, just held Mu Yunjin tightly, unwilling to let go for even a moment.

Thankfully, nothing serious had happened, otherwise, he would have blamed himself for a lifetime.

From now on, he couldn’t let her leave his sight again…

“Your Highness…” Ding Xian’s voice sounded from the doorway.

Hearing Ding Xian’s voice, Chu Li paused momentarily, then gently released Mu Yunjin, smoothing the loose strands of hair on her forehead, “Rest here for a while. I’ll step out briefly and return soon.”

Mu Yunjin nodded.

…

Outside the door.

“Your Highness, I went to investigate just now. I don’t know if that Madam Yang has gone mad or what, but she kept muttering that when she pushed the Princess, someone was controlling her mind,” Ding Xian said.

Chu Li maintained his grim expression, clenching his fists with displeasure in his eyes, and said flatly, “Understood.”

“Your Highness, I’ve had men patrolling in secret all day and didn’t notice anything unusual,” Ding Xian added.

“Mm,” Chu Li gave a slight acknowledgment.

At this moment, Zixiang came over carrying the freshly brewed medicine. Seeing Chu Li and Ding Xian, she bowed to them.

Seeing Zixiang, Ding Xian’s eyes darted thoughtfully, “Zixiang, what happened in the pavilion today that made Madam Yang push the Princess?”

Reminded of this, Zixiang became angry, “Today, the Princess was chatting nicely with a group of ladies, and then we met National Mentor An from Southern Court on the way, and he came over to greet us.”

“Later, someone was curious about how National Mentor An and the Princess knew each other, and that Madam Yang spoke thoughtlessly, saying our Prince Ning’s Residence and Southern Court… well, you know. Then the atmosphere turned sour, and I ordered Madam Yang to be slapped…”

After finishing, Zixiang suddenly fell to her knees in terror, “It was all my fault! If I hadn’t taken matters into my own hands, perhaps this Madam Yang wouldn’t have been provoked…”

“Hey, get up quickly. It’s not your fault,” Ding Xian, seeing the little maid overthinking, hurriedly pulled her up.

At this moment, National Mentor An walked in…