Wen Lingrao walked over and stood inside the threshold, looking out.
Chu Huan hadn’t left yet.
Supported by others, he leaned against the base of the courtyard wall. His face was black and blue, a trail of blood hung from the corner of his mouth, and his clothes were torn. He didn’t look like a steward in the slightest.
His few trusted confidants surrounded him, talking all at once as they tried to persuade him.
“Steward, let’s go back first and find a doctor to look at your injuries.”
“Yes, Steward. You can report this to the Old Madam later and let her seek justice for you.”
Chu Huan panted heavily and glared resentfully into the courtyard, meeting Wen Lingrao’s gaze head-on.
He froze, instinctively shrinking his neck, but then he forced himself to stand up straight, wanting to put on a tough front.
However, his face, swollen like a pig’s head, coupled with this expression, looked entirely comical.
Wen Lingrao suddenly smiled.
She stepped out of the courtyard gate and walked toward Chu Huan.
Chu Huan’s expression changed. He subconsciously took a step back, forgetting that he was leaning against the wall with nowhere to retreat.
His trusted confidants also grew nervous and stood in front of him, yet they did not dare to truly block Wen Lingrao.
“Princess Consort, what more do you want?” Chu Huan’s voice trembled. “This lowly one has already been beaten, are you still not satisfied?”
Wen Lingrao stopped three steps away from him, looked him up and down, and said unhurriedly, “Steward Chu, what are you saying? I just came out for some fresh air, happened to see you here, and came over to say hello.”
Chu Huan didn’t believe her, but he didn’t dare to contradict her either. He could only say dryly, “Then this lowly one appreciates the thought. Please return, Princess Consort. This lowly one must go back as well.”
As he spoke, he gestured for his confidants to help him leave.
Wen Lingrao didn’t move; she merely raised her hand and gently adjusted a stray lock of hair at her temple.
The movement was very slow, so slow that it seemed she was deliberately stalling for time.
Chu Huan didn’t know what she was up to, but he didn’t dare to leave rashly. He could only watch helplessly. His confidants were also stunned, unable to figure out what play this Princess Consort was putting on.
In her mind, however, Wen Lingrao was silently counting.
There was still time left on her Mind Reading skill.
She had come out just now to see if she could squeeze a few more “points” out of Chu Huan.
Didn’t the System say her participation level was low? Then she would personally participate and show them.
She lowered her hand, looked at Chu Huan, and suddenly took a step forward.
Chu Huan’s entire body stiffened.
Wen Lingrao leaned in a little closer and lowered her voice, “Steward Chu, I had people beat you just now. Are you feeling particularly hateful toward me in your heart?”
Chu Huan said nothing, but his eyes said it all.
Wen Lingrao smiled again, this time with a profound meaning. She raised her hand—
Chu Huan thought she was going to hit him, so he instinctively squeezed his eyes shut and shrank his head back.
But the slap never fell.
Wen Lingrao merely adjusted the hair on the other side of her head.
Chu Huan opened his eyes. Seeing her like this, the vigilance in his heart suddenly relaxed a bit.
He finally figured it out; this Princess Consort just loved to torment people, deliberately stringing him along for her own amusement.
All this talk about hitting and getting revenge was just to scare him.
He let out a sigh of relief and even wanted to squeeze out a smile.
Right at that very moment.
“Smack!”
A loud, resounding slap ruthlessly struck his face!
Chu Huan was completely dumbfounded.
He stared blankly at Wen Lingrao, his mind going entirely blank.
The slap had struck his right cheek with shocking force. Half of his face went numb, and his ears rang loudly.
Wen Lingrao withdrew her hand, shook her wrist, and frowned. “What thick skin. Hitting it actually made my hand hurt.”
Chu Huan finally reacted. Clutching his cheek, he stared at her in disbelief. “You… you…”
Wen Lingrao looked at his face and suddenly smiled again.
This time, she smiled very happily, her eyes curving like crescents, looking just like a little girl who had pulled off a mischievous prank.
“Steward Chu, were you just thinking that I was only trying to scare you and wouldn’t dare to actually hit you?” she said unhurriedly. “Do you know now whether I dare or not?”
Clutching his face, Chu Huan couldn’t utter a single word.
His confidants beside him were also stunned, standing perfectly still, unsure if they should step forward to protect him or quickly run away.
Wen Lingrao looked at the right cheek she had just struck, then at his left cheek which was already swollen, and nodded in satisfaction. “Now it’s symmetrical. It’s much more pleasing to the eye.”
She turned around and took two steps back, then suddenly stopped and glanced back at Chu Huan.
Her expression changed in an instant.
Her face was filled with confusion and innocence, as if she didn’t understand what had happened at all.
“Steward Chu, what happened to your face?” She blinked, her voice laced with surprise. “Wasn’t it perfectly fine just a moment ago? How did it swell up like this in the blink of an eye?”
Chu Huan opened his mouth, but not a single word tumbled out.
Wen Lingrao blinked again, then suddenly seemed to remember something and let out a soft “Ah”. “Could it be that I hit you? That’s impossible. I just came out for some fresh air and said hello to Steward Chu; I didn’t do anything at all.”
She turned to look at Banxia, who was following behind her. “Banxia, did you see me hit anyone?”
Banxia’s mouth twitched, but she still cooperated and shook her head. “This servant saw nothing. The Princess Consort was standing there talking the whole time and never even raised her hand.”
Wen Lingrao then looked at Cuiying. “Cuiying, did you see anything?”
Cuiying’s face was flushed red. Trying desperately to hold back her laughter, she also shook her head. “This servant didn’t see anything either.”
Wen Lingrao threw her hands up and said to Chu Huan, “You see, neither of them saw anything. So it definitely wasn’t me who hit you. Steward Chu, are you remembering it wrong? Or did you accidentally bump into something yourself?”
Chu Huan was thoroughly dumbfounded.
He had lived for decades, but this was the first time he had encountered such a person.
She hit someone with absolute righteous confidence, acted as if nothing had happened immediately afterward, and even dragged her maids into committing perjury!
Those few confidants also looked at each other in dismay, not knowing what to say.
Wen Lingrao smiled again, this time extremely gently, her voice soft and sweet. “Steward Chu, you’re so badly injured, you really should hurry back and apply some medicine. If the Old Madam asks later, just say you fell. You absolutely must not say you were beaten. Who in this estate would dare to hit you, right?”
After saying this, she didn’t spare Chu Huan another glance, turning around and heading back into the courtyard.
The courtyard gates shut with a loud clang.
Leaning against the wall and clutching his face, Chu Huan didn’t recover for a long time. The confidants around him didn’t dare to make a sound either, just standing there in silence.
After quite a while, one of them finally whispered, “Steward, shall we go back?”
Chu Huan finally snapped back to reality. He glared resentfully at the courtyard gate, but after glaring, he couldn’t help but shiver.
A lunatic.
This Princess Consort was absolutely a lunatic.
In all his years, he had seen the arrogant, the unreasonable, and the sinister, but he had never seen someone like this.
Stringing you along before hitting you to make you lower your guard, then instantly turning hostile and refusing to admit it after striking, all while pretending to be more innocent than anyone else.
He could not afford to provoke such a person.
Clutching his cheek, Chu Huan was supported by his confidants as he limped away.
Inside the courtyard, Wen Lingrao was sitting down, letting her maid massage her wrist.
“Princess Consort, that strike of yours just now was truly ruthless,” Banxia said while massaging. “It hurt this servant just watching.”
Wen Lingrao smiled. “Feeling sorry for him?”
Banxia hurriedly replied, “This servant’s heart aches for your hand. His skin must be so thick to have made your hand red from hitting him.”
Wen Lingrao laughed out loud, in an exceedingly good mood.