Chapter 68: An Unpeaceful Day
At this moment, Fenghe Hall was so quiet one could hear a pin drop.
Li Xuanyue sat up high, drinking the tea Silver Core brewed for her, looking lazy.
Her gaze occasionally drifted toward Li Lan.
Anyone who didn’t know better would think there was something dirty on Li Lan.
The stare made Li Lan feel creepy all over.
“Is this how you act as a master in Shanren Hall?”
Li Lan was stunned by Li Xuanyue’s question.
“You don’t know how to resist when you’re bullied?” Li Xuanyue said calmly.
Li Lan’s face turned red.
“I’m sorry, Princess. Li Lan has shamed the Phoenix Clan.”
He looked very embarrassed when he said this. His tone was also filled with self-blame and guilt.
After hearing this, Li Xuanyue frowned. Her younger brother seemed too weak.
In her previous life, he had died of illness in Shanren Hall before he even had a chance to appear in the story. It was likely related to his weak character.
“Do you think what This Palace wants is your apology?” Li Xuanyue asked testily.
“You are the Third Prince of the Phoenix Clan. You are their master.”
Li Xuanyue emphasized this specifically in front of him.
“Why didn’t you resist when they humiliated you? Why didn’t you punish them?”
She asked indifferently, “Instead, you aided the wicked, encouraging their joy in bullying their master?”
If everyone were like Li Lan, wouldn’t the Phoenix Clan fall into chaos in the future?
Li Lan pressed his lips together and remained silent.
Who said he didn’t resist?
But everyone knew how awkward his status in the Phoenix Clan was.
Resisting once or twice might work. But over time, who would take an unfavored prince seriously?
So what if he resisted? What if he didn’t? In the end, he would still become a joke in the eyes of all the maids.
Li Xuanyue couldn’t guess exactly what Li Lan was thinking. But seeing him bury his head in silence, she roughly understood that his lack of resistance was caused by his current situation.
For a moment, she had mixed feelings.
“Silver Core, immediately send someone to Shanren Hall to summon all the managers and maids who usually take care of the Third Prince.”
She ordered in a deep voice.
These maids and managers who ate royal food but bullied their master should pay the price for their past wrongdoings.
“Is the Princess planning to stand up for the Third Prince and punish those maids and managers?”
Jun He, watching the situation from the side, understood what was happening and asked hesitantly.
No matter what, Li Lan was the Third Prince of the Phoenix Clan.
For these maids to disregard him so flagrantly was a slap in Li Feng’s face. Li Xuanyue respected Li Feng so much; how could she allow such a thing?
Li Xuanyue looked sideways at him. “Do they not deserve punishment?”
Her tone was light but allowed no doubt.
She wanted to use this incident to tell them that Li Lan was a Prince of the Phoenix Clan, not someone these little maids could humiliate.
Secondly, she hoped Li Lan could use today’s event to stand on his own feet.
She could help him for a moment, but not for a lifetime. Ultimately, it depended on himself.
However, from today’s events, Li Xuanyue realized a truth.
Whether it was Li Lan or Jun He and the others… One was born in the Phoenix Clan, and the others were forced to marry into it.
But without the protection of Li Feng and herself, their lives in the Phoenix Clan would be difficult.
It was clear that simply giving them freedom and respect was not enough.
From time to time, she had to put on a show of doting on them in front of everyone so that the people of the Phoenix Clan wouldn’t look down on or despise them.
Before long, the managers and maids serving Li Lan in Shanren Hall all arrived at Fenghe Hall.
When they saw Li Xuanyue, their hearts hung in their throats.
They all lowered their heads and knelt to greet her.
“Slaves greet the Princess.”
Uneasy voices echoed throughout Fenghe Hall. Among them, the teeth of two maids were chattering.
Li Xuanyue stopped fingering the emerald and pearl necklace on her left wrist.
“Do you know why This Palace called you here?”
She asked without even lifting her head, as if asking about the weather.
Hearing this, the managers and maids buried their heads even lower.
They naturally knew why Li Xuanyue called them. But did they dare to stand up and say it? The answer was naturally no.
They could only kneel there honestly, quietly, and motionlessly, listening.
Seeing their silence, Li Xuanyue knew these bullies were afraid. Her brow raised slightly.
“Mother Empress sent you to Shanren Hall to take care of the Third Prince.”
She said sternly, “But instead of respecting him, you humiliated and oppressed him in various ways.”
“Did you think This Palace was gone, or that Mother Empress wouldn’t punish you after learning of this?”
“Princess, we know our mistake. We beg the Princess for forgiveness and a chance to turn over a new leaf.”
Seeing the situation, the head manager knew that if they didn’t speak up, they would be severely punished, so she hurriedly took the lead in admitting fault.
She hoped Li Xuanyue would be lenient seeing they admitted their mistakes and spare them this once.
Li Xuanyue had no intention of letting them off easily.
If everyone was like them—bullying their master and then just moving their lips to beg for mercy to survive—then wouldn’t all the maids in the Phoenix Clan hold onto this shred of luck whenever they did wrong in the future?
Li Xuanyue’s heart sank, and her eyes narrowed slightly.
“Men, drag them all out and behead them.”
Her order was swift and decisive, giving them no chance to react.
By the time the manager and maids realized what was happening, the guards who entered from outside had already dragged them to the hall entrance.
“Princess, we know we were wrong! Princess…”
Today was destined not to be a peaceful day.
From the Imperial Garden to Fenghe Hall, there hadn’t been a moment of rest.
Li Xuanyue was either on her way to order beheadings or in the process of ordering them.
It was enough to numb the onlookers.
However, Li Xuanyue’s gaze continued to scan everyone in the hall. Seeing their pale faces, she knew this served as a good warning. She stood up immediately.
“From today on, anyone who dares to offend their superiors will share their fate.”
Her words were not just a warning to the people in her palace.
It was a reminder to those who wanted to bully their masters: if they dared to act like the people of Shanren Hall, they should wash their necks clean and prepare to lose their heads.
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