Housekeeper Xu stood frozen in shock. "Execute nine generations of a family? That’s a special talent? Does she think she’s the Emperor? Even if she were, what Emperor considers executing entire extended families a specialty?" he wondered.
"Aunt?" Shi Changying cast a sideways glance at Xu Zhao Yu with a faint half-smile. "When did my dad get a younger sister? How come I didn’t know?" She had seen too many of these cheap tricks from petty families.
These words made Xu Zhao Yu’s tears flow even harder. Looking thoroughly distressed, she hastily stood up and wiped her tears haphazardly. "Mom, I should just leave. It’s almost time for Shuyan and Shuyu to finish school. I’ll go pick them up. I... I won’t come back today."
"I’ll say it one more time. You are my daughter, and no one can change that," Old Madam Xu said, firmly pressing Xu Zhao Yu back down. Then, her icy gaze swept over Shi Changying. "Such complete disregard for her elders! She must be disciplined with the family law!" She thought that if she didn’t beat some sense into Ming Chengli’s daughter today, the girl might eventually turn the entire Xu family upside down.
"Mom, no, please don’t!" Xu Zhao Yu stole a quick glance at Shi Changying and pleaded bitterly. "Fourth Brother only has this one daughter, whom he raised with blood, sweat, and tears for eighteen years. You can’t let my presence drive a wedge between you and him. After... after all, I’m the outsider here..."
This only infuriated Old Madam Xu further. "I am her grandmother! It is only right and proper for an elder to teach a junior a lesson. Servants!"
"Yes, Old Madam." Housekeeper Xu immediately fetched a whip, feeling a profound sense of vindication in his heart.
Shi Changying slowly stretched her back. "Excellent. Finally, something I am familiar with," she thought.
"Miss Changying, I told you before we arrived. Once you return to the Xu family, you must abide by their rules," Housekeeper Xu said with a dramatic sigh. "Tell me, why do you have to be so disobedient?" He raised the whip in his hand, his face twisting with unconcealed malice.
"CRACK!"
The whip split the air as a furious roar rang out. "What are you doing? Don’t you dare bully Changying! Otherwise, I’ll fight you to the death!"
Frantic footsteps approached. It was a middle-aged man with a few traces of silver at his temples. He was no longer young, and the corners of his eyes bore the fine lines carved by time, yet it couldn’t hide his handsome features. Ming Chengli barged in furiously, but the moment he took in the scene before him, he froze in his tracks.
Shi Changying was holding the whip, looking down at Housekeeper Xu, who was sprawled on the floor. "Your kneeling posture is incorrect. Kneel again."
"I am not satisfied," she thought.
Xu Zhao Yu was dumbfounded once again.
"Good... very good!" Old Madam Xu laughed out of sheer fury. "Chengli, take a look at the kind of daughter you’ve raised! The moment she comes back, the first thing she does is try to kick her own aunt out of the house!"
Ming Chengli pursed his lips. Rushing over in a few strides, he pulled Shi Changying toward him. "Sweetheart, are you okay? It’s all my fault for being too busy lately and neglecting you. What’s wrong? You’re... you’re burning up! Come on, let’s go to the hospital right now!"
Was this her father? Shi Changying brushed away the hand he had placed on her forehead. "I am hungry."
"Changying, I’ll buy you whatever you want to eat!" Ming Chengli let out a sigh of relief. "Having an appetite is a blessing, but we still need to go to the hospital first. What if my brilliant daughter, the smartest in the world, gets her brain fried into a fool by this fever?"
Seeing that he was actually going to take Shi Changying away, Old Madam Xu demanded sharply, "Chengli, what is the meaning of this? Are you... are you trying to anger me to death?"
Ming Chengli paused in his steps, his tone uncharacteristically firm. "Changying is running a high fever, and I should be the one asking you what the meaning of this is! Her temper might be a bit flawed, but she would never strike anyone without a good reason!"
Old Madam Xu was momentarily stunned. She opened her mouth to speak. "A high fever? I didn’t know. I..."
"Miss Zhao Yu!" Housekeeper Xu suddenly cried out in alarm.
Seeing Xu Zhao Yu clutching her chest in visible agony, Old Madam Xu instantly panicked. "Zhao Yu? Zhao Yu! Hurry, fetch her medicine! Take her to the hospital!" Her mind was completely consumed by Xu Zhao Yu, and she entirely forgot about Ming Chengli’s existence. The servants rushed in and out, completely ignoring the father and daughter as well.
Ming Chengli tightened his grip on Shi Changying’s hand and comforted her with a gentle smile. "Changying, let’s go. Don’t be afraid. Dad is here."
For once, Shi Changying did not refuse. She found it bewildering that this father of hers would still try to comfort her when he was clearly the one suffering such grievances. He was a completely different breed from her previous father, who had actively tried to kill her.
Ming Chengli hailed an express cab. Upon arriving at the hospital, he got out of the car and crouched down. "Changying, are you feeling dizzy? Hop on, Dad will carry you on his back."
Shi Changying refused. "I can walk."
"I am the majestic Emperor, the ruler of the heavens. Do I need someone to carry me just to walk? What a joke," she thought.
"Alright, alright, Your Majesty the Emperor, you can walk." Ming Chengli coaxed her in the same gentle, accommodating tone he had always used. "Let’s get your illness looked at first, and then we can go eat."
"Alas, my daughter still hasn’t kicked her habit of pretending to be the Emperor," he sighed inwardly.
An hour later, with an IV drip hooked up to one hand, Shi Changying followed Ming Chengli to a small food stall across from the hospital. She fell silent as she stared at the bowl of beef noodles in front of her. Before being struck to death by lightning, she had been fighting in a war for four months. The only motivation sustaining her return to the Sheng capital was the prospect of dining on imperial cuisine prepared by the Eight Imperial Chefs. After all, marching into battle, trekking across ice, and sleeping in the snow meant the conditions were unimaginably harsh. Merely having a bite of hot food was a rare luxury.
Ming Chengli looked extremely guilty. "Sigh, Dad is just an archaeologist without a single bone of business acumen in his body. We don’t have any money."
Shi Changying asked, "Where is the place that keeps the money?"
Ming Chengli didn’t understand why she was asking this, but he answered in confusion, "At the bank. There’s one right around the corner."
Shi Changying nodded, then turned on her heel and started walking.
Holding up her IV bottle, Ming Chengli hurriedly chased after her. "Changying, where are you going? At least eat the noodles first to fill your stomach!"
Shi Changying replied casually, "To the bank to get money." She didn’t know what a bank was, but wherever the money was, that was where she would go.
Ming Chengli turned pale with fright. "Robbing a bank is breaking the law!"
Breaking the law? Empress Taichu didn’t quite comprehend those words. Wasn’t she the law herself? "What crime could I possibly be guilty of?" she mused.
"Changying, we may be poor, but we absolutely cannot do anything illegal!" Ming Chengli began to sob uncontrollably. "You are my only remaining family! If I ever find your mom in the future, how could I face her?"
Seeing his tears flowing freely once more, Shi Changying massaged her temples. She returned to the noodle stall, sat back down, and picked up her chopsticks again. The modern era was fundamentally different from antiquity, and she figured it would be best to familiarize herself with this world four hundred years in the future first.
"Sweetheart, just wait a little longer. Once Dad earns some money, I promise to take you out for a feast," Ming Chengli said, wiping his tears. "I’ve let you down. I haven’t saved much money myself over the past few years; I put it all into archaeology. And archaeology... really burns through cash."
Shi Changying looked at him. "Do not cry."
Ming Chengli immediately stopped crying. "...Oh." He wondered why his daughter was still as fierce as ever, not having changed a bit over all these years.
Shi Changying finished her food at lightning speed, but she wasn’t full. "I am still hungry," she declared.
Ming Chengli promptly asked the stall owner to boil another bowl of noodles. Noticing the strange looks the surrounding diners were giving their table, he hesitated for a moment before saying, "Changying, we’ve moved to the city now, so things are different. Dad is perfectly fine treating you like the Emperor, but whatever you do, please don’t refer to yourself like that in front of others. You’ll be laughed at and called mentally ill."
Shi Changying picked up a slice of beef, completely ignoring his advice. "Those who criticize my faults to my face shall have their entire extended families executed. Those who submit written memorials admonishing my mistakes shall suffer the ultimate penalty. Those who mock and slander me in the streets, should it reach my ears, shall be hunted down and destroyed, no matter how far they run."
Ming Chengli was rendered speechless. "With a behavioral style like that, she would have undoubtedly gone down in history as an infamous tyrant if she actually lived in ancient times!" he thought.
Meanwhile, outside a VIP ward at Jianghuai First Hospital.
Having just finished his training, the Second Master of the Xu family, Xu Yunfan, rushed over. Upon learning that Shi Changying had hurt Xu Zhao Yu so badly that it triggered her heart condition, he let out a laugh born of pure anger. "Mom, Third Brother and I share the exact same stance. It’s fine if you bring Fourth Brother and his daughter back, but we absolutely will not allow Zhao Yu to suffer any grievances!"