A first-rank lady of the Prime Minister’s household, clad in nothing but a single undergarment, was being throttled by her own concubine-born daughter and dragged all the way to the front gate of the estate. Such a scandalous scene immediately threw the whole city into an uproar.
At this moment, the gates of the Han Prime Minister’s residence were packed with people, as noisy as a marketplace, everyone buzzing with gossip.
Ziqing gripped Madam Han’s neck with one hand, pinning her against the vermillion-lacquered main gate of the residence, standing ramrod straight. Her petite frame was wrapped in nothing but an outer robe, yet beneath the solemn, towering gate she seemed anything but small—instead, she carried an aura impossible to ignore, her cold eyes so intimidating that not a single guard nearby dared take a step closer.
She said coldly, “I’ll count to three. If you don’t get Han Xi’er out here, don’t blame me for being rude.”
Rude?
Everyone present couldn’t help but suck in a breath of cold air. Wasn’t what this girl was doing already the height of rudeness?
If she got any ruder, what exactly did she intend to do?
Madam Han, choked so hard her chest felt crushed and she couldn’t speak, kept casting terrified glances at the guards—clearly begging for rescue.
Just beyond the gate, behind the stone-carved screen in the main hall, Han Xi’er was pacing anxiously, her long brows knitted tightly together.
“Young Miss, the Second Miss says if you don’t go out, she’ll show no more mercy to Madam!” a guard rushed in to kneel and report.
“Useless!” Han Xi’er kicked him aside and snapped angrily, “You can’t even handle one little girl—what use are you lot to me?”
The guard hurriedly explained, “Young Miss, she’s holding Madam hostage. We’re afraid of hurting Madam if we act! If you don’t go out, Second Miss really will harm her!”
Han Xi’er had no time to dwell on why Han Ziqing had suddenly changed her temperament so drastically, her skills now so sharp and ruthless. This matter had already stirred up the whole city—if she stepped forward now, that wretched girl would surely drag her down into the mess with her. She was the top candidate to become Prince Yao’s consort; anything that might damage her reputation, she absolutely had to avoid.
But if she didn’t step out now, Han Ziqing might really harm her mother—and that would mean losing face for the entire Prime Minister’s household in front of the whole city! Not to mention Han Ziqing kept shouting her name, which would damage her image all the same!
That vile girl—she should have finished her off back at the Splendor of the Nation banquet and been done with it!
“Is Father still at the palace?” Han Xi’er asked coldly.
“Court hasn’t been dismissed yet. I’ve already sent someone to wait at the palace gates,” the guard reported anxiously.
Han Xi’er hesitated no longer. “Go out there. Stall for as much time as you can until Father returns!”
“Young Miss, we can’t stall much longer. You didn’t see it yourself, but Second Miss is like a completely different person! If we wait any longer, Madam will surely—”
Before the guard could finish, a scream of terror rang out from beyond the gate—Madam Han crying, “Ah… no… I don’t want this!”
“Young Miss!” the guard cried in alarm.
“Which matters more—becoming Prince Yao’s consort, or one middle-aged woman? Get out of my sight! Tell them I’m not at the estate!” Han Xi’er said coldly, and strode off through a side door without a second glance.
Meanwhile, at the front gate, as Madam Han wept and screamed herself hoarse, Ziqing’s cold eyes remained composed and focused. With one hand, she bound Madam Han’s wrists tightly behind her back, pinning her firmly against the gate; with the other, she methodically sliced the undergarment to shreds strip by strip from behind. In no time, Madam Han’s top had been cut into an open lattice of ribbons, the bright red underbodice beneath fully exposed.
“It’s actually bright red!”
Amid the clamor, someone suddenly cried out in surprise, immediately drawing a wave of suggestive snickers.
“Let go of me, Han Ziqing! If you don’t release me this instant, the Prime Minister will have you killed!”
“Han Ziqing, you unfilial wretch, you’ll die a terrible death!”
“Han Ziqing, even as a ghost, I will never let you go—never!”
…
Madam Han tried to shield her body, but with her hands bound she couldn’t move. The moment Ziqing’s blade drew away, she flailed desperately—only for that struggle to tear her already-shredded top completely apart, baring everything in an instant!
“Ah… no… don’t look!”
Madam Han shrieked in shock, but even her own household guards couldn’t help but stare—let alone everyone else.
A cold smile curved at the corner of Ziqing’s lips as she ignored the cries entirely, the blade slowly lifting the thin strap of the underbodice.
Madam Han flinched violently, her scream cutting off abruptly.
But Ziqing’s blade did not stop. It hovered, inch by inch, against the taut strap, ready to sever it at any moment.
For a moment, the entire crowd fell silent. Even the guards held their breath, staring at that flash of red against the blade’s edge. Everyone knew—if that strap snapped, the consequences would be unthinkable.
Madam Han, her body rigid with tension, finally broke down and screamed, “Xi’er, come out! Mother knows you’re in the house—hurry and come out! Xi’er, come save your mother! Xi’er, you can’t abandon your mother like this!”
The moment those cries rang out, the crowd erupted in astonishment. So this really did have something to do with the Eldest Miss Han?
Just then, the distant, urgent clatter of hoofbeats approached. The crowd hastily parted—it was Prime Minister Han himself, riding in on horseback…