Han Ziqing, what are you doing?

She’d just saved someone—what did he think she was doing?

Seeing Jun Beiyue’s furious expression, Ziqing couldn’t even be bothered to spare him a second glance, turning to walk away at once—only for Situ Xin’er to shout sharply, “You stop right there!”

Ziqing simply ignored her, continuing to walk. As she passed by Jun Beiyue, he suddenly caught hold of her arm. “Wait.”

“Wait for what?” Ziqing asked coldly.

“Figure out what actually happened here,” Jun Beiyue said, his voice equally cold.

“No need.” Ziqing yanked hard to break free, but Jun Beiyue only tightened his grip further. “She’s just a young girl—there’s no need for you to hold this against her.”

“Hold what against her?” Ziqing shot back.

Jun Beiyue didn’t answer, instead turning a furious glare on Jun Beiyao. “What exactly happened here?”

“Miss Situ said she wanted to see the treasure, so I brought her along. We ran into assassins… as for Fourth Sister-in-law… Fourth Sister-in-law… I really don’t know what happened there,” Jun Beiyao explained.

“She’s in league with those assassins! If Beiyue-gege hadn’t arrived when he did, I’d already be dead! This woman is vicious!” Situ Xin’er immediately accused.

Ziqing said nothing. Hongyi, unable to bear watching this any longer, spoke up—she knew her mistress well enough to know she would never resort to such cheap, underhanded tactics. “Miss Situ, don’t go slinging baseless accusations before things are even sorted out—who knows what enemies you might have made on your own!”

The moment these words left her mouth, no one expected Situ Xin’er, clutching her still-aching stomach, to suddenly force herself upright and lunge forward in a single stride.

“Smack!” A sharp slap rang out, striking Hongyi hard across the face.

Hongyi froze, her mind going utterly blank with shock—in all her years serving her lord, she’d never once been struck like this!

“Who do you think you are, speaking to this young lady like that!” Situ Xin’er snapped furiously—her standing in Great Zhou was every bit as high as a princess’s! How dare a mere servant lecture her, speak to her so disrespectfully?

Striking a maidservant was hardly unusual, and no one present thought much of it. But to everyone’s shock, the instant Situ Xin’er finished speaking, Ziqing broke free of Jun Beiyue’s grip like something possessed, lunging straight at Situ Xin’er, knocking her to the ground and slapping her, “Smack! Smack! Smack!” in rapid succession!

“And who do you think you are, striking someone of mine!”

In that instant, Hongyi snapped back to her senses and rushed forward to pull them apart, while everyone present—even Jun Beiyue himself—stood frozen in shock, having never imagined anything like this would happen!

By the time they’d recovered enough to help Hongyi pull Ziqing off, Situ Xin’er’s once-lovely little face was already swollen and red as a pig’s snout.

“Ah—waaah!”

Situ Xin’er sat up and burst into loud, wailing sobs. “Han Ziqing, how dare you hit me! My own parents never once struck me my whole life, and you dare hit me!”

Ziqing, held back by Jun Beiyue, still leaned forward, fury blazing. “So what if I hit you? Touch Hongyi again and I’ll tear your face apart!”

Hongyi’s heart clenched tight, watching her disheveled, furious mistress—a wave of bittersweet emotion rose in her chest. When she’d first met her at the estate gates, she never could have imagined her lady would one day defend her like this!

“So what if I did touch her?”

Situ Xin’er shouted furiously, springing up at once and lunging straight at Hongyi. Hongyi didn’t flinch, didn’t back away either. Jun Beiyue immediately stepped between them, one hand holding Ziqing back, the other blocking Situ Xin’er, roaring without warning, “Have the two of you had enough?!”

“No!”

Both women shouted at once, Ziqing straining with all her might, Situ Xin’er straining just as hard. Jun Beiyue, caught in the middle, his handsome face going terrifyingly cold, fell silent.

“Han Ziqing, you shameless wretch, I’m telling you, this isn’t over—the Situ Family isn’t done with you! How dare you hit me!” Situ Xin’er kept shouting furiously.

Ziqing said nothing, kicking out at once. Even Jun Beiyue couldn’t hold her back, and finally let go entirely. But Situ Xin’er, emboldened only by Jun Beiyue’s presence, immediately scrambled far out of reach the moment he let go, hurling insults. “Han Ziqing, you shrew—you’re not fit to be Prince Yao’s consort! You’re the real unnecessary woman at Beiyue-gege’s side, nothing but a worn-out pair of shoes, an eyesore to look at!”

The moment these words left her mouth, Ziqing froze abruptly, every motion coming to a dead halt—and to everyone’s utter astonishment, Jun Beiyue suddenly spun around and seized Situ Xin’er’s chin in a grip so fierce it instantly wiped away every trace of her earlier arrogance, leaving her face awash with sheer terror.

“Still want to keep this up?” Jun Beiyue’s voice wasn’t raised in anger—it was worse, cold enough to be genuinely terrifying.

All of Situ Xin’er’s bravado drained away at once. Looking into his icy eyes, a chill ran straight down her spine, and she shook her head hastily.

“Yingzi has already gone in pursuit of them. As for what actually happened here, everyone will wait for this king’s judgment,” Jun Beiyue said coldly, finally releasing his grip roughly.

Everyone present was thoroughly cowed by his display—yet, of all people, Ziqing refused to back down, suddenly lunging forward and grabbing Situ Xin’er by the collar, fury blazing. “You explain yourself right now—what exactly did you mean by ‘worn-out shoes’?”

The moment these words left her mouth, everyone froze—this was an extremely sensitive subject.

Ever since the “unmatched beauty” scandal had broken, no matter how many people had cursed her name, Han Ziqing had never once responded directly. This was the first time she’d ever spoken up about it at all.

What did she mean by “worn-out shoes”!

Jun Beiyao watched coldly from the side, thoroughly delighted to see such an entertaining scene unfold—whether or not he managed to successfully frame Han Ziqing, at the very least, the situation now looked exceedingly difficult for Jun Beiyue to smooth over!

The Situ Family’s influence was hardly weak, and Jun Beiyue had always maintained close ties with them—if this incident damaged that relationship, the cost would be considerable indeed.

Situ Xin’er froze, not even daring to meet Ziqing’s now bloodshot eyes—she had no more defiance left in her, no more resolve, her tear-filled eyes turning pleadingly toward Jun Beiyue for rescue. But Jun Beiyue remained utterly unmoved.

“Speak! What did you mean by ‘worn-out shoes’!” Ziqing demanded furiously, tightening her grip further—ever since the negotiations, a simmering rage had had nowhere to go, and now Situ Xin’er, of all people, had to go and provoke her at the worst possible moment.

The whole world had called her a worn-out pair of shoes—well, today she wanted a clear, thorough explanation of exactly what that meant.

“Let go of me, or the Situ Family will never let this go!” Situ Xin’er warned through gritted teeth, her whole body visibly trembling.

To her shock, Ziqing simply slapped her again, hard. “Speak!”

“You hit me! Waaah… Beiyue-gege! Beiyue-gege, save me!”

Situ Xin’er wailed loudly. Jun Beiyue watched coldly, and no one could tell what emotion lay behind his eyes in that moment, nor whether his gaze was fixed on Ziqing or on Situ Xin’er—he made no move at all, throughout.

“Smack!” Another slap. “Speak!”

“I don’t know, I don’t know anything!” Situ Xin’er sobbed, nearly begging for mercy.

Finally, just as Ziqing raised her hand for another slap, Hongyi rushed forward urgently to stop her. “My lady, that’s enough, enough! Don’t waste your energy on someone like her!”

Hongyi was frantic—if this kept up, forget about what damage might result; even setting that aside, if the Situ Family came seeking retribution, it wouldn’t just be their lord who’d face trouble, but her lady too, and serious trouble at that!

But there was no way Ziqing would listen. “Let go!”