Ying Zi quickly said: “Don’t blame Ji Lan sister, I was just careless…” Her eyes glistened with tears, appearing extremely fearful and helpless. She lowered her head, seeming afraid the situation would escalate. Anyone else watching would think she had suffered some great injustice she dared not speak of.

Han Yan silently laughed coldly in her heart. Though Zhuang Han Ming hadn’t seen it, she had seen clearly that Ying Zi had deliberately pinched Ji Lan, causing her to spill the tea in pain. Such a clumsy trick, yet it could only fool a child-like Zhuang Han Ming.

“Ming’er,” Han Yan spoke calmly, “how can you talk about dismissing people before understanding what happened?”

Ji Lan had now realized what happened. Being naturally spirited, she wouldn’t quietly accept such false accusations. She immediately shouted: “She pinched me, that’s why I spilled the tea!”

“Nonsense!” Zhuang Han Ming was furious. “Why would Ying Zi pinch you for no reason? Are you suggesting she deliberately hurt herself?”

“Whether there was a pinch or not, Ming’er, you can see by looking at Ji Lan’s hand,” Han Yan said, her body still weak but her gaze cold as ice and voice hard as steel.

“Yes!” At Han Yan’s prompting, Ji Lan quickly extended her left hand, showing a stark red fingernail mark with broken skin on the back of her hand.

“It wasn’t me, really wasn’t me…” Ying Zi was so upset she began crying, dropping to her knees, and repeatedly kowtowing to Han Yan. “Young Miss, it really wasn’t me, I didn’t do such a thing.”

In his confusion, Zhuang Han Ming said: “Clearly this maid is framing Ying Zi. How hard is it to frame someone? She could have pinched herself to make such a mark!”

He’s become clever, Han Yan thought as she stared at her unfamiliar brother, feeling as if overnight, a thousand mountains and rivers had come between them. She spoke slowly: “So, you don’t believe Ji Lan’s words?”

Ji Lan hadn’t been present during Zhuang Han Ming and Han Yan’s previous argument, didn’t know about it, and had never met Ying Zi. Now seeing Zhuang Han Ming disbelieve Han Yan and herself for the sake of a strange maid, she felt both angry and wronged. Forgetting her injuries, she lunged at Ying Zi: “You liar! I didn’t deliberately spill water on you, what are you scheming?” Though small in stature, she was clever and usually quite strong. When she pounced, Ying Zi fell to the ground. Before Han Yan could stop her, as Ji Lan moved to act again, Zhuang Han Ming stepped forward and kicked her. A man’s leg strength naturally exceeded a woman’s, and poor Ji Lan, already covered in wounds from yesterday, was kicked back a foot by Zhuang Han Ming and spat out blood.

Zhuang Han Ming didn’t stop, moving to strike again. The silent Shu Hong, seeing this, pushed Ji Lan away and took Zhuang Han Ming’s blow herself, falling to the ground.

Everything happened too quickly for Han Yan to intervene. Seeing both Ji Lan and Shu Hong severely injured by Zhuang Han Ming, she felt a sweetness in her throat as a trace of blood welled up.

As the situation grew increasingly serious, Zhuang Han Ming showed no sign of stopping. At this critical moment, a figure appeared in mid-air, exchanging a palm strike with Zhuang Han Ming. Caught off guard, Zhuang Han Ming stumbled back several steps before barely steadying himself. Looking up, he saw the person helping Shu Hong up was dressed as a guard. Han Yan breathed a sigh of relief, knowing Mu Yan had arrived. After Han Yan had dismissed the servants, if Zhuang Han Ming had truly become violent today, likely no one could have stopped him.

“Who are you?” Zhuang Han Ming asked suspiciously. The man bowed to Han Yan with clasped hands: “Princess Consort, this servant arrived late.”

Zhuang Han Ming’s expression changed: “You’re a servant of this household? How dare you treat me this way?”

“Zhuang Han Ming.” It was Han Yan who spoke, slowly standing up.

Zhuang Han Ming was startled and turned to look at Han Yan. She had always been gentle with him, rarely this serious. Today her gaze was cold and fixed. Though she wasn’t angry, somehow Zhuang Han Ming felt inexplicably guilty. He knew Ji Lan and Shu Hong were Han Yan’s maids, her beloved servants. But that maid had been too bold and presumptuous.

“So you came here today not to check on me,” Han Yan lowered her eyes, her tone unnervingly calm, “but to settle scores.”

Zhuang Han Ming was shocked – she knew! Indeed, today’s incident with Ji Lan was no coincidence. Since bringing Ying Zi back, she hadn’t been as happy as he’d imagined, often hiding away to cry. Growing suspicious, he had questioned her. At first, Ying Zi wouldn’t speak, but when Zhuang Han Ming threatened to expel her from the residence if she didn’t tell the truth, she revealed everything. The maids often gathered to gossip about her, calling her a seductress who had caused discord between the Han Yan siblings. He had investigated who started these rumors and discovered it was Ji Lan. He had wanted to punish her but couldn’t directly confront her as Han Yan’s maid. Today in Prince Xuan Qing’s residence, when Ji Lan had again mistreated Ying Zi and tried to frame her, he finally couldn’t contain his anger and acted.

Whether publicly or privately, he had intended to deal with Ji Lan this way eventually but hadn’t expected Han Yan to see through it.

Zhuang Han Ming’s face showed embarrassment: “Sister, this maid doesn’t respect you at all, and is bold and tyrannical, relying on her position to bully others. Punishing her now is understandable.”

Han Yan looked at him with a bland expression, saying nothing as she picked up the teapot from the stone table and poured herself a cup: “Relying on position to bully others?” She laughed lightly, looking mockingly at Zhuang Han Ming: “She relies on my position, so why don’t you say I’m the one bullying people?”

Zhuang Han Ming felt Han Yan’s words carried infinite meaning. Though hesitant, he still felt indignant for Ying Zi and said angrily: “Sister, if you want to protect your maid, I must also protect mine.”

“Ji Lan has served me for over ten years.” Counting her previous life, it had been twenty years: “Your maid, how long has she served you?” Han Yan asked.

Hearing Han Yan speak this way, Zhuang Han Ming instinctively felt uncomfortable. He didn’t know why Han Yan always suspected Ying Zi. He knew Han Yan had grown calculating from constantly guarding against the Zhou sisters and Concubine Mei in the Zhuang residence, but had never imagined she would one day suspect those close to him. Ying Zi was just an unfortunate person – why did Han Yan always pressure her so?

Thinking this, Zhuang Han Ming resolved to protect Ying Zi to the end: “I believe her!”

Han Yan stood straight. Ying Zi was curled up on the ground, sobbing continuously, looking truly pitiful. Han Yan smiled slightly: “Since you believe Ji Lan hurt her, that I hurt her, how can I contradict you?” With that, she raised her hand and poured a cup of scalding tea directly onto Ying Zi’s head. Ying Zi screamed in pain, immediately covering her face and shrieking.