Chapter 240: Kneel Down

Chapter 240: Kneel Down

"Princess, are you, are you alright?"

Lady Chen, hearing the news, rushed over, her hairpins askew.

But she was beyond caring about her appearance.

Lin Yunwan, holding Qi Zaijun, asked Lady Chen with an icy demeanor, "How could a man be allowed in during the Duke's banquet today?"

Lady Chen bit her lip, at a loss for words.

"A son-in-law is not usually considered an outsider."

"However, the Duke explicitly forbade her from publicly acknowledging Bao'er as her daughter."

"This..."

Lady Chen, gritting her teeth, approached Lu Zhengliu and scolded fiercely, "Have you lost your mind? How dare you barge into the inner quarters?"

"First, let's appease the princess."

The housekeeper cleverly interjected, "Princess, this man is the husband of our granny's younger sister's daughter..."

Cui Qin bluntly said, "What kind of relative is this in the Duke's residence? It's all very confusing."

The housekeeper's face reddened with embarrassment.

Lady Chen, knowing her explanation was inadequate, repeatedly apologized.

A servant from the front courtyard rushed in, whispering, "Madam, the prince has arrived."

Lady Chen's scalp tightened in fear.

"Why now of all times!"

Having heard this, Lin Yunwan prepared to leave with Qi Zaijun, instructing Cui Qin, "Go and inform the Crown Princess."

"There’s no need for us to stay at the Duke's residence, but we mustn't neglect the Crown Princess."

Cui Qin acknowledged with a "Yes."

In a panic, Lady Chen, with a forced smile, said, "Princess, please wait. The banquet hasn’t started yet. You should at least partake in the meal..."

Cui Qin turned back, her face stern, "Madam, are you trying to detain our princess?"

"No, no, no."

Lady Chen quickly waved her hands, not daring to imply such a thing.

Upon arriving at the Duke's residence, Qi Linghen immediately sent someone to find Lin Yunwan in the inner courtyard. Growing impatient with no news, his face darkened as he questioned the servants, "Where is the princess?"

The servant, having peeked at the second gate and seeing a potential conflict between the princess and their lady, dared not speak.

Qi Linghen was growing increasingly impatient.

Chen Er Ye hurriedly said, "Go and summon the attendants of the Princess Consort right away!" He then tried to pacify Qi Lingheng.

Unable to sit still any longer, Qi Lingheng spoke in a cold, firm tone, "Please lead me to fetch the Princess Consort myself."

Though he spoke politely, if the Chen family refused, it was likely that Prince Huan would immediately storm the Chen family's inner quarters.

Weighing the pros and cons, Chen Er Ye said anxiously, "...Please follow me, Your Highness."

He quickly signaled to someone to inform his mother, Madam Chen, of the situation.

Regardless of what had happened, they needed to appease the Princess Consort before Prince Huan lost his temper.

Meanwhile, Madam Chen, hearing from a servant that "His Highness is coming personally," knew at once that Prince Huan's intrusion into the Chen family's inner quarters was not for a casual visit.

She made a swift decision: "Hurry and invite His Highness in!"

She wanted to avoid embarrassment for the Xingguo Duke's residence, especially since the cause of the trouble was her ill-fated son-in-law. If her husband found out, who knew how things would end.

The crowd near the second gate was growing.

Lu Zhengliu gradually began to realize his precarious situation, feeling a pressure he could not withstand.

Madam Chen still tried to soothe Lin Yunwan, stepping forward to explain and speak kindly.

However, accustomed to being haughty in the capital, she struggled to be completely humble, thus speaking with a trace of dignity, "Princess Consort, it’s unseemly for you to be laughed at by the servants here. Perhaps we should move to the warm pavilion to talk."

Madam Chen spoke bluntly, pointing at Lu Zhengliu, "He is a relative from my daughter-in-law's maternal family. His first wife died, and he suffered from hysteria. As a lady of your stature, how can you stoop to argue with such a person? It would be beneath you and the Prince."

Lin Yunwan smiled.

Was the Duke's residence now blaming her?

Qi Zaijun couldn't stand it anymore. Climbing down from Lin Yunwan, he sternly scolded Lady Chen, "How dare you speak to my mother like that, you old woman?"

Lady Chen was already sweating profusely without Lin Yunwan having to say a word.

This was the imperial grandson speaking.

Everyone knew Emperor Jingshun favored Prince Huan and cherished the imperial grandson the most.

The situation seemed to have escalated beyond normal protocols.

Lady Chen hurriedly tried to placate Qi Zaijun, "Your Highness, you misunderstand. I meant no offense to the princess..."

"Whether I misunderstand or not, how dare you argue back!"

Qi Zaijun, infuriated, stepped in front of Lin Yunwan, declaring, "Mother, I'll take you out. Today, if anyone dares to stop us, I'll have her head!"

He took Lin Yunwan's hand and headed towards the second gate.

"What Duke's residence, I'm never coming here again!"

"I'll tell my imperial grandfather and have your family's assets confiscated!"

Despite the innocence of a child's words, Lady Chen was so frightened her legs went weak, and she would have fallen if not for the support of others.

Chen Er Ye arrived with Qi Linghen.

He looked at the crowd obstructing his wife and son, his expression darkening. He quickly walked over, shielding Lin Yunwan, and asked in a low voice, "Are you alright?"

Lin Yunwan shook her head.

It wasn't a serious matter; with so many servants around her, Lu Zhengliu couldn't harm her.

It wouldn't have escalated if Lady Chen hadn't overreacted, fearing that the princess's sudden departure would disgrace the Duke's household.

But she wouldn't casually dismiss it as nothing in front of Qi Lingheng.

In a voice neither loud nor soft, she said, "A stranger barged into the inner courtyard of the mansion, bumped into me. I wanted to return to the prince's mansion, but Lady Chen wouldn't let me and Jun'er leave."

Qi Zaijun nodded, "Father, it was Lady Chen and him— they offended Mother. Father, you must deal with them swiftly!"

The surrounding servants realized that the visitor was Prince Huan.

Qi Lingheng didn't look at the pale-faced Lady Chen. He slowly turned his head, looking at Lu Zhengliu with an indifferent gaze, as if looking at an insignificant ant.

The second master of the Chen family was also seething with anger.

Being a concubine's son, he couldn't intervene in his stepmother's affairs, but he and his elder brother detested the blood-sucking leech of the Lu family.

He frowned and said, "Kneel down."

As a non-official, though a noble scion, the second master Chen was a commoner.

He led by example and knelt down, "Prince, princess, and crown prince, please calm your anger."

With the master kneeling, the servants knelt even faster, forming a sea of kneeling figures, their voices uneven, "Prince, princess, and crown prince, please calm your anger."

Although Lady Chen had a status that exempted her from kneeling, seeing her family kneel, her heart had already softened.

Lu Zhengliu stood stiffly, like a rigid, lifeless tree.

He parted his lips, once firmly pressed together in cold hardness, now silent.

Qi Lingheng watched him expressionlessly and asked indifferently, "Who refuses to kneel?"

After a long silence, Lu Zhengliu knelt down.

"Prince, Princess..."

He bowed his head.

Qi Zaijun, with furrowed brows, said, "Father, let's go home."

They would have his imperial great-grandfather settle accounts with the Duke's family later.

Qi Linghen hummed in agreement, holding his son with one hand and leading Lin Yunwan with the other, they promptly left.

Lu Zhengliu remained kneeling, unable to lift his head.

Ge Baor, arriving late, didn't see her own biological son, Lu Changzong, hiding in the corridor, secretly witnessing everything.