Who was the Prince Regent? He was the notorious King of Hell in Bianjing City. Only someone tired of living would dare summon him for an audience: “What nonsense are you spouting? I never said any such thing!”
“Didn’t Third Uncle say those very words himself? What, now you don’t dare own up to them the moment they leave your mouth?” Xia Jianxi stood there, tall and graceful, her very bones exuding aloof pride.
“Elders are speaking—how dare a junior interrupt? Is this the kind of discipline your General’s Residence upholds?” Seeing Xia Jianxi’s aggressive stance, Third Uncle had no choice but to fall back on propriety.
“The rule in our General’s Residence isn’t that whoever has higher seniority gets to spout nonsense!” Xia Maoshan slammed his teacdown heavily.
Seeing Xia Maoshan’s anger, Third Uncle grew somewhat timid but still stiffened his resolve and said, “Maoshan, I know you dote on your daughter, but some things can’t be hidden just because you wish it. Jianxi was abducted by bandits for an entire night. Even if she returned, how could she possibly remain pure?”
“Our Jianxi was personally escorted back by Grand Imperial Concubine Song. Even several figures in the palace know of this matter. Third Uncle, you can’t slander our Jianxi with baseless accusations!” Xia Madam fumed.
“Maoshan’s wife, if it were truly as you say—that Jianxi is still a pure, untouched maiden—then why would you abruptly call off such an advantageous marriage alliance?” Third Uncle said coldly. “Your General’s Residence is powerful and determined to clear your daughter’s name. There’s no one you couldn’t invite!”
“The elders certainly think too highly of our General’s Residence. The Prince Regent, the emperor’s own kin, has become someone you claim we can casually summon in your words!” Xia Jianxi couldn’t help but sneer.
“No need for your sarcasm here. You were forcibly taken by several burly men—the sisters who accompanied you all witnessed it. How could you possibly still be pure?” a woman standing nearby muttered under her breath.
“Exactly! Rescued? Sounds noble, but who’s to say she wasn’t sneaking off to meet a lover and just happened to get caught by bandits? Otherwise, why was she the only one abducted when several sisters went out together?”
“In the end, she lost her own good marriage and refuses to loosen her grip and let our clan relatives have a chance!”
“Precisely! In matters like this, you decide what’s black and white all by yourselves!”
“Besides, we all share the Xia surname—we’re of the same lineage. Honor and shame affect us all. If your reputation is ruined, your parents will find ways to cover it up. But what about our daughters? Because of you, matchmakers won’t even come to propose marriages for them. Shouldn’t you compensate us?”
A woman crossed her arms, looking Xia Jianxi up and down with utter contempt. “If it were my daughter in such a situation, she’d have ended it long ago with a white silk rope—how could she still have the face to walk around here!”
“How dare you!” Xia Madam was livid and rushed forward to tear the woman’s mouth, but Xia Maoshan held her back.
In contrast to Xia Madam’s fury, Xia Jianxi beside her remained terrifyingly calm. She merely watched the people around her with cold eyes, as if their words had nothing to do with her.
“Maoshan’s wife, you can’t stop people from speaking the truth!” The woman snorted, then looked toward Second Madam Xia in the corner. “Isn’t that right, Maochuan’s wife!”
Second Madam Xia, squeezed into the corner, remained stubbornly silent. Instead, it was Xia Yuruo beside her who wore the smug expression of a petty person succeeding, grating on everyone’s nerves.
Xia Jianxi looked at the mother and daughter hiding in the corner, well aware that these two must have been stirring trouble regarding the marriage arrangement. She stepped forward, slightly lowering her gaze to the woman half a head shorter than her, and said coldly, “Auntie means that those who have lost their purity should die. Then if I am still pure, should those who gossip behind my back die in my place?”
“How dare you speak to your elders like that, you little wench!” Third Uncle immediately scolded.
“Third Uncle!” Xia Maoshan shot him a cold glare.
Xia Maoshan was a man who had fought battles for half his life, his hands stained with who knew how much blood. Though the old man felt his seniority gave him authority, he didn’t dare push Xia Maoshan too far—after all, a general who had killed carried killing intent in his bones.
Xia Jianxi walked up to Xia Yuruo, her gaze icy as she stared down at her. “You claim you saw with your own eyes those bandits dragging me away. Then did you also see with your own eyes them stripping my clothes and violating my purity?”
“I… If you were pure, why didn’t you return that night? When you came back the next day, your clothes and jewelry were all changed—even your favorite golden hairpin was gone! Elder Sister, though I respect you, I absolutely cannot lie for you!” Xia Yuruo stiffened her neck, enunciating each word clearly while Ting Wan yanked her hair backward.
Xia Jianxi coldly surveyed everyone present, then before all their eyes, she violently tore the sleeve of her left arm.
On her pale upper left arm, a vivid crimson cinnabar mole stood out starkly—Xia Jianxi’s shougongsha!
Xia Yuruo, whose hair was being fiercely pulled by Ting Wan, momentarily forgot to scream. She stared blankly at the shougongsha, her eyes filled with shock. “How… how can you have a shougongsha? How did I never know about this?”
“Because this was personally applied by the Empress Dowager’s palace maid when I entered the palace for ceremonies after my birth! Of course you wouldn’t know—after all, you never even qualified to enter the palace!” Xia Jianxi’s cold gaze toward Xia Yuruo carried a faint hint of killing intent.
“See, she already admitted she changed her hair ornaments and clothes. How could that be false…”
“Then if I can prove my purity, what will you elders do?” Xia Jianxi interrupted the woman. “Will you die in my place?”
“Xia Jianxi, how dare you speak like this…”
Xia Jianxi couldn’t be bothered with that so-called Third Uncle. She suddenly reached out, grabbed Xia Yuruo’s hair, and amid Second Madam Xia’s screams, dragged her directly to the center of the crowd.
Second Madam Xia tried to rush forward to pull Xia Yuruo back, but Yao Zi firmly blocked her path.
“Since Xia Yuruo speaks with such certainty, today I’ll let you all see whether I truly remain pure or not! If I am innocent and have not been dishonored, then today I will cut out the tongues of Xia Yuruo and all those who spread these lies!” Xia Jianxi shoved her to the ground.
Just as Xia Yuruo tried to speak again, Ting Wan grabbed
Xia Yuruo’s face was filled with disbelief. She instinctively stepped forward to wipe off the shougongsha, but was shoved away by Xia Madam: “If you all still don’t believe it, General, why not invite Wang Ye to come and see how the Xia clan relatives no longer even regard the imperial family with respect!”
At that moment, Xia Jianxi suddenly grabbed the scissors used for pruning plants from a nearby vase, pounced on Xia Yuruo, and pinned her down while raising the scissors to stab: “I’ll cut out your lying tongue right now!”
“Heavens, stop her! Someone stop her!” Second Madam Xia turned pale with fright, rushing forward to grab Xia Jianxi’s hand.
Several maids hurried over to intervene as well, and the entire hall instantly descended into chaos.
“What a… spectacular scene!” A cold, composed voice suddenly sounded from outside the front hall.