Rejected Beauty Practices the Villain Play
Chapter 144 Provocation

Chapter 144: Chapter 144 Provocation

Duke Ning was so furious that he vomited blood and rushed to the palace to ask the Empress to uphold justice. The Empress herself had been gravely ill during the New Year and had just recovered. She nearly relapsed from anger upon hearing about the dispute over ten thousand silver taels between her father and son, which was utterly disgraceful.

Princess Huazhen, upon hearing the news, also rebuked Prince Kang for his cold-heartedness and lack of filial piety.

"Uncle pawned the deed, and I spent money to redeem it. If Grandfather wants it back, of course, he needs to exchange money for it. Why should I give it away for free? I don’t have mountains of gold and silver." Prince Kang’s tone was insolent, as if he had nothing to lose. "Sister, if you’re so filial, why don’t you take out ten thousand silver taels? I’ll give you the deed, then you can go ahead and fulfill your filial piety."

Princess Huazhen sneered coldly, "Where would I get the money for that?"

"Then stop standing there complaining when you don’t even want to pay real silver for your filial duty! Why demand it of me?" Prince Kang retorted nastily. He still bore a grudge from when Princess Huazhen had berated him over his scandal involving a palace maid, resulting in her death. Despite also being a victim, no one had spoken up for him at the time.

Both Princess Huazhen and Prince Kang could afford the ten thousand silver taels; neither was destitute. Yet it was no trivial amount—ten thousand silver taels could buy several grand residences in the Capital City. Neither wanted to cover the Duke Ning Mansion’s deficit. Moreover, both siblings detested Imperial Uncle Lv. If he hadn’t already passed away, they might have continued to heap insults upon him.

"You took a dozen Forbidden Army guards to Baofeng Bank to demand the deed, but ended up being coaxed into paying ten thousand taels by Fengyu’s few words. You tried to assert your status to pressure her, yet you feared Baofeng wouldn’t hand over the deed?" Princess Huazhen snapped, fuming. "You were greedy and got tricked by a woman, you fool!"

Prince Kang’s face reddened with embarrassment as he defended himself, "Are you being unreasonable? Debts should be paid; that’s common sense. Uncle was a compulsive gambler and borrowed so much money. Now that he’s dead, the debt still has to be repaid. Using status to pressure others won’t achieve anything. The next day, rumors will be swirling everywhere, saying that imperial relatives refuse to repay debts. The entire royal reputation will be ruined."

"We are descended from dragons and phoenixes; who dares challenge us?" Princess Huazhen mocked. "You were fooled by Fengyu—stop making excuses."

Prince Kang rolled his eyes to the heavens. "Descendants of dragons and phoenixes can supposedly do whatever they want. If that’s true, why couldn’t you force Xie Xun to marry you?"

"You!" Princess Huazhen was so livid she wanted to brawl with Prince Kang.

The Empress, fed up with the commotion, interjected with a headache, "Everyone shut up! Is bickering over ten thousand taels fitting for imperial conduct?"

Princess Huazhen and Prince Kang glared at each other, mutually disgusted by each other’s behavior. The Empress rubbed her temples, frustrated by her children’s antics. Princess Huazhen’s marriage remained unresolved—she refused to marry anyone but Xie Xun and had been spoiled by Emperor Jianming, used to getting whatever she desired. Prince Kang, meanwhile, had been plagued by endless squabbles since leaving the palace to establish his manor. Both siblings gave the Empress endless worries. In anger, she commanded, "Zhao’er, hand over the deed to your grandfather. The ten thousand taels, Mother will give to you. Your grandfather is old; stop infuriating him."

"Mother, all these years you’ve subsidized Grandfather and Uncle with so much silver, yet they remain insatiable, wasteful, and indulgent. No fortune could ever be enough to sustain their extravagance. Wouldn’t it be better to keep the money with me?" Prince Kang groused, feeling sorry for his mother, who constantly had to clean up the Duke Ning Mansion’s messes.

"Are you disobeying Mother’s commands now?" The Empress coughed furiously, and Prince Kang softened, mumbling, "Understood."

A palace maid offered the Empress tea, allowing her to catch her breath. She then remarked solemnly, "Your uncle may have borrowed the money, but this debt has nothing to do with the Duke’s mansion. The man is dead, and the debt should be erased altogether. You brought the Forbidden Army to claim the deed, yet when you met Fengyu, you failed utterly. Your sister is correct; you were blinded by her beauty, tricked into foolishness."

"Mother, I wasn’t!" Prince Kang’s face flushed crimson. "I’ve seen countless beauties—how could I be deceived by Fengyu?"

"Then why are you blushing? If you truly like her, have your father issue an imperial edict to make her your secondary consort. The Feng Family is wealthy enough to rival nations; you’d never want for money again." Princess Huazhen interjected. She believed Feng Wan’s marriage to Prince Duan was a climb, as her brother was the legitimate heir, meaning Fengyu could only ever be a secondary consort.

Prince Kang had indeed hoped to make Fengyu his secondary consort, feeling tempted by the idea. However, remembering Feng Shu’s warnings, he hesitated and sneered, "The Feng Family forbids its daughters from becoming concubines; it’s their family rule."

"Does she dare dream of becoming your primary consort? She should take a look at her own status!" Princess Huazhen scoffed. Her impressions of Fengyu were faint—years ago, while in Ningzhou, she had been on reasonably good terms with Feng Shu and Feng Wan but barely knew Fengyu, who always kept to herself, trailing behind her sisters like a shadow.

A decade separated them now, and whatever ties they once shared had long since faded.

The palace feast had brought Fengyu to prominence thanks to the incidents involving Prince Kang. Meanwhile, Consort Xie’s open protection of Fengyu had alienated Princess Huazhen, who disliked Consort Xie for stealing their mother’s favor. Her resentment extended to Fengyu. Now, coming to light that Prince Kang had been duped into paying ten thousand taels, Princess Huazhen’s disdain for Fengyu had only deepened.

"Xie Xun backs her, so naturally, she wouldn’t want to marry me."

Princess Huazhen reacted as if struck by lightning, shocked and angry. "Why would Xie Xun support her?"

Prince Kang, fed up with Princess Huazhen’s temper, answered coldly, "You forced marriage on Xie Xun, yet he doesn’t even want to look at you. Do you know why? He likes the delicate and pitiful type, the kind like Fengyu. You have no chance."

"What did you say!" Princess Huazhen’s expression shifted drastically. She rose abruptly, glaring at Prince Kang. "Xie Xun likes Fengyu?"

Lin Yu Yan, summoned by Princess Huazhen to a restaurant, arrived perplexed. Though Princess Huazhen frequently interacted with Lin Yushu and Lin Yunong, she had spent little time with Lin Yu Yan thanks to her long years in the palace.

Wasting no time on pleasantries, Princess Huazhen bluntly questioned, "At the archery banquet, you injured Fengyu, stirring up a public scandal. Is it true that Xie Xun helped Fengyu best you and Lin Cheng?"

Lin Yu Yan had always been proud and domineering, but facing the even more arrogant and higher-ranking Princess Huazhen, she faltered. Unable to deny the truth, she nodded. Had Fengyu not provoked her, she would never have drawn her blade.

"I heard Xie Xun likes Fengyu?" Princess Huazhen demanded icily.

"Impossible!" Lin Yu Yan’s voice spiked as she denied the claim outright. Observing Princess Huazhen’s displeasure, she grew uneasy. She recalled Mrs. Lin mentioning that Princess Huazhen had once pleaded with the emperor for an edict to marry Xie Xun, only to face rejection. Now, hearing rumors of Xie Xun liking Fengyu must have hit a nerve.

Suddenly inspired, Lin Yu Yan realized she didn’t need to personally deal with Fengyu. If she could incite Princess Huazhen, the princess could act as the perfect weapon—unchecked and unstoppable.

With newfound resolve, Lin Yu Yan said, "Your Highness, the Young Marquis rarely associates with noblewomen. That day, he helped Fengyu because she had seduced him in the garden. The Young Marquis is a seasoned warrior, known for his disinterest in women, but Fengyu’s striking beauty tempted him just this once. That day, I injured her because she boasted recklessly, claiming that one day the Young Marquis would bow at her feet, completely under her control."

"Shameless wench!" Princess Huazhen burst out furiously, enraged by such filth. "Did she really say that?"