The Obsessive Crown Prince Can't Let Me Go
Chapter 116 - 114: The Wife is an Honest Woman

Chapter 116: Chapter 114: The Wife is an Honest Woman

Celebrating father’s birthday should have been lively and joyful, but Yin Shanshan, of all people, chose to spout those hypocritical principles in front of everyone!

What now? Is she implying that every time the Shen Family celebrates a birthday, the commoners of the realm would be displaced, suffering from cold and hunger?

Among the aristocratic families in the Capital, who doesn’t go all-out for birthday celebrations? Why is the Shen Family not allowed to do the same?

She shouted sharply, "Hurry up! Get rid of all this rotten fish and shrimp, and bring out several better dishes!"

Yin Shanshan protested, "Your Highness, you never paid a deposit. This banquet was organized using money I borrowed from others. I’m scraping the bottom of the barrel, and the kitchen has no surplus ingredients left."

Shen Yunxi’s cheeks burned, and her lips twitched with anger: "You ruined the banquet like this and still expect me to pay for it?! You’re dreaming!"

"Your Highness, are you planning to renege on payment?! Who could have imagined that the dignified Crown Princess Consort would be such a debtor!"

"Is this reneging? I am simply dissatisfied with the quality of your banquet!"

"Your Highness didn’t even pay the deposit and still expects abalone and bird’s nest soup?!"

"You impudent little wretch! I haven’t even begun holding you accountable for the mishap with the White Jade Buddha Statue’s birthday gift, and now you dare confront me!"

"..."

The two of them bickered back and forth in front of everyone, leaving the gathered guests completely astonished.

The elder General of the General Mansion finally had enough of the absurdity and waved his hand dismissively, saying, "In all my years, I’ve never seen such a bizarre birthday banquet! Shen Duke, I suddenly remembered that the gate at home wasn’t locked. I’ll take my leave now!"

Shen Yunxi hurriedly called out, "Don’t leave! Even if there’s no food, you can still appreciate the art here! The paintings on the walls are post-modern abstract works, unique to this place; aren’t you interested in admiring them?!"

Post-modern abstract works? None of the guests had ever heard of such absurdities and simply found the claim preposterous!

The more she tried to retain the guests, the faster they fled.

Soon, the once lively banquet hall was left with only a sparse few.

Shen Yan felt utterly humiliated, covering his face with his sleeve and muttering to Mrs. Qin: "Look at the fine daughter you’ve raised!"

Mrs. Qin replied awkwardly, "Even if Xi’er was at fault, was that Gao Family concubine any less to blame? The banquet was poorly organized, and how dare she even ask for money?"

The quarrel between Shen Yunxi and Yin Shanshan ended with Shen Xinghan stepping in and paying two thousand taels of patterned silver to settle the matter.

Shen Xinghan coldly glanced at Shen Yunxi: "Today’s banquet turned our entire family into a laughingstock. From now on, stay out of the household’s affairs and think about how to give birth to an heir for the Crown Prince as soon as possible."

Shen Yunxi protested, "All my efforts were for what? Wasn’t it to make Father’s birthday banquet more magnificent?"

Shen Xinglei secretly ground his teeth: "Today’s disaster wasn’t Xi’er’s fault; it’s all because of that wretched Shen Yinning! If not for her gossiping, Miaonang and Fange’er would have long been taken away by the cousin from Lunan—none of this would’ve happened afterward!"

"Three years ago, I told you all that we needed to utterly uproot our elder uncle’s family. But for the sake of amusement, you insisted on sparing Shen Yinning, this calamity," Shen Xinghan murmured gravely, "In my opinion, we must eliminate her quickly while her wings remain unformed."

Shen Yunxi tugged Shen Xinghan’s sleeve, pleading coquettishly: "Brother, she’s just the wife of a minor official. What kind of storm could she stir up? Instead of killing her, why not keep her alive in the Capital and slowly torment her? Life in the Eastern Palace is dreary, but having her as a source of amusement might be quite entertaining."

Shen Xinghan warned, "She is no ordinary person. A tiger kept alive may eventually harm its keeper."

"Then pluck out her fangs and claws! Let’s see how she could still hurt anyone!" Shen Xinglei clenched his fists, "Brother, rest assured, with me to back Xi’er, Shen Yinning won’t dare act against her! That wench ruined our family’s alliance with the Xue Family. I’m simmering with rage and desperately need an outlet—I can finally vent it all on her!"

Seeing his brother and sister eager to act, Shen Xinghan had little more to say.

He pondered momentarily before speaking solemnly: "I’ve heard her return to the Capital this time was due to her husband Lu Ying’s appointment as Ministry of Justice Evaluator. From what I know, the appointment was personally arranged by the Crown Prince. Is there perhaps a connection? Could it be that the Crown Prince appointed Lu Ying purely for Shen Yinning’s sake?"

Shen Yunxi turned pale: "That’s impossible, isn’t it?"

Back when she was in the Heavenly Prison, Shen Yinning had been assaulted by those prison guards.

Later, she was exiled to Gan State and became Lu Ying’s wife.

How could the Crown Prince possibly like such a sullied woman?

Lianxin whispered cautiously, "Your Highness, over the past year, the Crown Prince has been entangled with some vixen outside the palace. Could that vixen actually be Shen Yinning? By the timeline, it coincides with Lu Ying’s reassignment to the Capital."

Shen Yunxi’s complexion grew even paler: "Impossible... impossible... Where is the Crown Prince now? I must go and confront him!"

Meanwhile, Lu Ying was seated inside Lu Jiazhe’s carriage.

Lu Jiazhe, terrified of his elder cousin, obediently made room for him and Shen Yinning in the carriage while he perched outside.

Shen Yinning, in an unusually good mood, leaned into Lu Ying’s embrace proactively: "Your Highness, please take it out for me... I’m feeling terribly uncomfortable..."

"All I see are your sharp tongue and divisive instincts; I don’t see discomfort at all."

She placed a hand on Lu Ying’s broad shoulder, pouting coquettishly: "How am I sharp-tongued? I just speak the truth. Unlike my second uncle, I’m an honest person..."

Honest person?

Lu Ying chuckled lightly.

He harbored no doubt that today’s appearance of Sun Miaonang and her son had been a deliberate arrangement by Shen Zhaozhao herself.

The Xue Family, being officials aligned with the civil servant faction, had now lost any chance of an alliance through marriage. Moreover, any respectable family wouldn’t dare offer their daughters to Shen Xinglei after today’s incident.

Shen Yunxi’s absurd and ridiculous birthday banquet had offended every guest, led by Elder Lady Chen, completely alienating the Crown Princess Consort. Even if Shen Yunxi bore an heir, it was unlikely that court officials would endorse the mother and son in the future.

The Shen Family, in essence, had severed its own arm.

As for Shen Zhaozhao...

She had not only utilized her status as "Madam Shen" to stage an impeccable debut upon returning to the Capital, earning Elder Lady Chen’s admiration, but she had also used Bai Shuangshuang’s "gift" to drag Zhang Cuichun back to the prison, avenging her mother and clearing her name.

And that wasn’t all—she had even won over the loyalty of those close to him.

Take Xue Ling, for example—he had held antipathy towards Shen Zhaozhao before. Yet Xue Qingqing, to whom Shen Zhaozhao had indirectly helped escape from Shen Xinglei’s clutches, remained his biological sister. That favor, Xue Ling would not overlook.

In addition, Shen Yunxi’s insults against Xue Ling and his staunch advisors as "lapdogs" would likely push them to develop warmth and goodwill toward Shen Zhaozhao.

When it came to playing with human emotions, even combining Shen Yunxi and Shen Xinglei’s manipulation couldn’t hold a candle to Shen Zhaozhao.

Lu Ying traced the plump, rosy curve of the young woman’s lips with the rough pad of his finger.

With that very mouth, Shen Zhaozhao had perfected the art of "sowing discord" and "winning hearts."

His intrigue piqued, he abruptly pulled her down.

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