Allure of a Country Maiden
Chapter 1096 - 1093_1

Chapter 1096: 1093_1

Fu Ranhui was equally shocked by these words and raised her head to look at Shangguan Xuanyi. Was she going to be slapped as well? In truth, Fu Ranhui was filled with guilt. Had she not raised her voice against Zhao Youwei that new year’s day, the whole affair would not have been brought into public knowledge.

This uproar has made both families lose face, being the butt of jokes, and she deeply regretted it.

The most important thing was that Zhao Youwei secretly had feelings for Xiao’er, but Xiao’er was unaware of it. She and Shangguan Xuanyi were deeply in love, and she and Xiao’er were very good sisters. Now she didn’t know if this would affect their marital relationship, but the presence between herself and Xiao’er would definitely be awkward in the future.

Although Fu Ranhui was filled with guilt and regret, she had never expected Shangguan Xuanyi to resort to slapping her. This form of punishment, usually reserved for servants who had erred, was extremely humiliating to her.

Shangguan Xuanyi noticed Fu Ranhui’s gaze, his cold, aloof eyes lightly fell on her. "Do you find it humiliating? But you had the whole city laughing behind our backs, isn’t that humiliation for us?"

Xiao’er was falsely accused of seducing men, as if she was a frivolous woman. Wasn’t this humiliation?

Furthermore, who would feel at ease hearing that his wife is seducing other men? An ungrounded accusation of infidelity was forced upon him, didn’t he feel humiliated?

If it wasn’t for the sake of the eldest princess and her father, did she think she would only need to slap herself today? Shangguan Xuanyi had been trained in martial arts since childhood by the eldest princess’s consort, and because of this, he only punished Fu Ranhui by making her slap herself.

Fu Ranhui was taken aback after hearing this. Right, she had caused shame for others, and in return, was humiliated. Wasn’t this the consequence she should face?

Fu Ranhui sadly smiled and then proceeded to slap herself.

Mrs. Zhao looked at her incredulously. Then, she lifted her gaze to Shangguan Xuanyi, only to find his icy gaze staring straight at her.

Without realizing it, Mrs. Zhao raised her own hand to slap herself too.

"Mrs. Zhao, do you find it hard to put enough force?" Shangguan Xuanyi’s voice rang out above her head, cold and indifferent.

Mrs. Zhao stiffened for a moment, then gritted her teeth and forcefully slapped her own face.

Zhao Youwei had his head bowed, he didn’t dare to look at them. He feared that if he looked, he wouldn’t be able to resist pleading for mercy, but it would be useless and would only infuriate Prince Rui more.

Moreover, he grew up in the military camp and believed in receiving retribution for one’s actions, and following orders was unquestionable. Therefore, he didn’t think there was anything wrong with Shangguan Xuanyi punishing them this way.

But Fu Ranhui and Mrs. Zhao didn’t see it this way.

Being punished in front of Zhao Youwei, the son she had spoiled, made her wish she could find a hole in the ground and hide. Mrs. Zhao felt she had lost all face and dignity. She would never be able to hold her head high again!

Shangguan Xuanyi sat quietly in his chair, watching them indifferently.

It was only when their faces were red and swollen did he finally speak. "Enough."

The two stopped their self-inflicted punishment. The burning pain on their faces reminded them of how grotesque they looked. This made them lower their heads in shame, not daring to look up.

"Mrs. Zhao, the way you spoke those words, is the same way you’ll take them back! If I hear that anyone still believes the lies you spread, be ready to offer your head in apology!" Shangguan Xuanyi’s tone was neither high nor low, blandly uttered. But inexplicably, Mrs. Zhao felt the threat in them, as if she will be beheaded if she couldn’t satisfy this demand.

After saying these words, Shangguan Xuanyi turned to Zhao Youwei: "Since ancient times, it’s a basic principle to cultivate oneself and manage one’s family well. Since you can’t even manage your own family, manage it well before serving the Imperial Court. Guarding the frontier does not allow for negligence. On the battlefield, swords have no eyes. Only when you can devote yourself completely, without any worries, can you talk about it."

General Youwei saluted, accepting his command. He had anticipated such a result before coming, but he couldn’t hide his disappointment. He would rather be beaten or slapped dozens of times than lose his qualifications to lead the troops into battle this time.

However, Prince Rui has always been strict, punishing those who have offended him severely. This time, he had been negligent and could only accept the punishment.

...

After the three returned to the Commander’s Mansion, Mrs. Zhao, covering her face, ran directly back to her courtyard, shut the door, and began to cry. How could she not cry! She had to go door-to-door, explaining with a grotesque face, not only had to make people believe Princess Rui didn’t seduce her son, but also admit she intentionally slandered Princess Rui. How would people view her afterwards? Wasn’t this an additional slap to her own face?

Fu Ranhui, dismounting the carriage, held her head low as she rushed back into her courtyard. She planned on locking herself away in her room, too embarrassed to be seen by others. Zhao Youwei watched as she wiped away her tears and disappeared into the room. Seeing a princess, his wife, suffering such a grievance, knowing that he was to blame stirred a feeling of tenderness in his heart. He followed her into the room.

Regardless of what had happened, they were husband and wife. It was a long journey ahead in their lives together. If possible, Zhao Youwei still hoped he and Fu Ranhui would respect and cherish each other in the days to come.

Just like his mother, despite her intolerable actions sometimes, his father always put up with her.

It was unclear what exactly Zhao Youwei and Fu Ranhui talked about, but Fu Ranhui seemed to have untied the knots in her heart. Later, she felt she was indeed acting unreasonably, leading to Zhao Youwei’s suspension and house arrest, only adding to her guilt.

After their heart-to-heart talk, Fu Ranhui got along better with Zhao Youwei.

Once the redness and swelling on Fu Ranhui’s face subsided, she especially sought out Xiao’er to apologize. Xiao’er did not hold onto the grudge. She could feel that Fu Ranhui’s apology was sincere, and so she forgave her. Though, returning to their past intimate relationship would require time.

As for the matter of Xiao’er seducing Zhao Youwei, Mrs. Zhao privately went door-to-door to explain everything. She admitted she slandered Xiao’er out of spite due to the Marquis Shengping’s family’s disdain towards her son when they first arrived in the capital.

When everyone heard this, they recalled that the affairs of Marquis Shengping Mansion had indeed reached court, and it seemed to be related to the Zhao Mansion. So they believed her explanation.

However, they viewed Mrs. Zhao as extremely repulsive and held a strong grudge. After all these years, she was still holding onto old grievances. They decided to interact less with her in the future to avoid unintentionally offending her and inexplicably suffering retaliation. They couldn’t force someone to knock on their doors and personally apologize or go to each household to explain - unlike Prince Rui!