Chapter 317

Chapter 317

The palace attendants had been trying to restrain the First Prince, but fearing they might worsen his leg injury, they hesitated and held back. Driven by fury, the First Prince defiantly pushed past his pain and made his way over.

Just before the First Prince could unleash his anger, "Don’t tell me you came here to yell at me… right?" Su Yi wore an indifferent, slightly weary expression. In reality, she was seething inside—she had to put on an act first, but she really wanted to turn him into red bean paste!

Here he was, dripping blood everywhere, yet still running around recklessly. And now he had the audacity to show up in front of her—did he even see what a dumbass he looked like?

Though the First Prince had stormed over intending to confront Noble Consort Rong, Su Yi’s question caught him off guard. Then, her look of sheer idiocy only stoked his fury further. "What’s that look for?! I came to ask you—was it because of you that my mother—"

Before he could finish, Su Yi had already risen and slammed a knifehand strike to his neck, knocking him unconscious.

It happened so fast that no one present could react in time. Su Yi wasn’t about to catch his dumb ass—especially not someone as irrational and covered in blood as the First Prince. So, he simply crumpled to the ground.

Normally, Su Yi might have had the patience to hear what nonsense the First Prince had to say. But right now, she opted to mute him the hard way first.

"Why the hell are you just gawking?" Su Yi asked sharply. "If you couldn’t stop the First Prince, at least summon the imperial physician to re-dress his wounds." She spoke sweetly, voice dripping with fake concern, as she stepped over the unconscious First Prince. She took Qinxin’s proffered hand for support, strolling leisurely as if nothing had happened. But no one present truly believed she was in a good mood.

After all, she had just coldly knocked out the First Prince with that same sweet demeanor—right before he collapsed, his expression frozen in shock!

The attendants who had been tasked with watching over the First Prince but failed to restrain him had no choice but to follow him here. They had never witnessed such a scene before and were instantly terrified. They hurriedly lifted the First Prince to carry him back, while the fastest among them rushed to summon the imperial physician.

"Wait."

The hearts of the attendants carrying the First Prince lurched at Su Yi’s sudden command.

"Since he’s already here, moving him around might worsen his injuries. Have the physician re-dress his wounds right here," Su Yi said lazily, sprawled on her divan, her tone considerate and thoughtful—as if she genuinely cared about the First Prince’s condition. But no one actually believed that was her true intention.

She was clearly holding the First Prince hostage. As soon as she spoke, attendants stepped forward under the guise of helping, but in reality, they were guiding the First Prince toward an empty space—where a small couch had already been prepared with astonishing speed.

It was no surprise that the attendants serving Su Yi acted so efficiently. They could anticipate her intentions from just a few words.

In situations like this, hesitation meant disaster. Those who acted swiftly might avoid misfortune, but those who lagged or resisted would inevitably suffer—especially when their mistress was in a foul mood. Her wrath was not something just anyone could withstand.

The First Prince certainly couldn’t.

To an outsider, no one would guess that the First Prince had stormed over in a rage to confront her. With that in mind, the attendants’ movements became even more forceful and decisive, their faces plastered with ‘helpful’ smiles—like a spider’s silk trapping flies.

The attendants who had intended to carry the First Prince back found themselves unable to leave, instead being pulled back.

Su Yi lazily fanned herself with a silk fan, the once-cool jade handle now heated from her grip.

"So many of you couldn’t even stop one injured First Prince, forcing me to trouble myself further. You’re really testing my patience."

Her delicate, beautiful face wore a performative pout, a touch of maidenly petulance. Her enchanting eyes glistened with faux distress, as if troubled by some unseen woe—enough to make one wish to ease her worries.

Then, the jade fan handle shattered with a crisp sound, the fragments scattering in all directions.

The attendants dropped to their knees in terror, but only those serving the First Prince dared to voice their pleas for mercy. The others remained silent, their fear palpable.

Su Yi flicked the broken fan away like trash. "You’ve earned your suffering."

To an outsider, it might seem like Su Yi was deeply concerned about the First Prince neglecting his injuries. In truth, she was furious that they hadn’t stopped him from barging in and making a scene. If he’d croaked somewhere else, she wouldn’t have lifted a finger.

"Shut the noise," Su Yi remarked offhandedly.

Qinxin immediately stepped forward with a signal, and attendants swiftly moved to deliver efficient, stinging slaps—one each, quitting the second they shut up. After all, slapping was also noisy. If they lagged, Su Yi might take matters into her own hands—and then they’d end up like His Highness: floored.

The beaten servant dared not make another sound, realizing why the attendants around Her Highness were so unnaturally quiet. Any further noise would only worsen her already displeased mood, so they quickly shut their mouths, not daring to even touch their face or breathe heavily.

"Find out who delivered such 'good news' to the Eldest Prince." Su Yi found it hard to believe that someone hadn’t deliberately "informed" the Eldest Prince.

With her order given, there was no need for Su Yi to elaborate further. Qinxin swiftly divided the servants, sending them in separate directions to find out who had dared to incite the Eldest Prince to trouble Her Highness.

The imperial physician, not daring to delay when it concerned a prince, arrived quickly. Yet, the moment he saw the scene, he got a bad feeling—one that seemed unrelated to the Eldest Prince’s injuries.

Even after re-dressing the Eldest Prince’s wounds without incident, the physician still felt uneasy, wondering if he was just overthinking due to age. But the moment he stepped out to report to Her Highness behind the screen, his eyelids twitched violently. Trying to stay calm, he informed her that the Eldest Prince’s wounds had been properly treated, though he should avoid moving.

"Physician, the Eldest Prince was too agitated earlier to converse properly. Now that he should be calmer, I’d like you to wake him. Let’s settle this matter today—my heart won’t be at ease otherwise." Su Yi’s gentle request made the physician break out in cold sweat.

So that's why the Eldest Prince was unconscious here—not from exhaustion, but from being knocked out?! And now she wanted him to wake the prince so she could settle scores?!

The physician hesitated, sensing disaster, but Her Highness pressed on, "What, is this beyond your abilities?"

A dangerous question—one wrong answer could be disastrous.

"Your Highness, it's possible." The physician reasoned that merely waking the prince wasn’t harmful. Perhaps it was better to let them resolve their misunderstanding.

"Good. Thank you for your trouble." Su Yi spoke courteously, her demeanor warm, belying her earlier unyielding smile.

"It is my duty." The physician laughed nervously, preparing his silver needles. He planned to excuse himself the moment the prince awoke, to avoid getting caught in the middle.

His movements were swift, eager to leave.

When the Eldest Prince came to again, he felt pain shooting through his neck. As he reached to touch the sore spot, memories flooded back. His eyes snapped open—only to meet those smiling eyes he hated. He struggled to sit up. "You dare strike this prince—"

Before he could finish speaking, he was out again—this time struck on the side of his neck.

The physician, who had been waiting to slip away, stared in shock. So this was how the prince had been knocked out before! And Her Highness’s technique was alarmingly skilled!

The prince had barely regained consciousness before being knocked out again. The physician swallowed dryly, glancing at the servants, who remained unnervingly calm—was he the only one unsettled?!

Then came Her Highness’s sweet but threatening voice, "Physician, I must trouble you to wake the Eldest Prince once more." She added with feigned concern, "He moved too much upon waking—what if his wounds reopen?"

Physician: !!

Was this really her reason for knocking him out?!

Not because he was being unreasonable again?!

Just manually forcing him to calm down?!

So brutally straightforward—couldn’t she at least let him finish one sentence?!

Having already done this once, the physician couldn’t pretend he didn't know how now. Her Highness *would* act—and his old neck couldn’t take a hit. Bracing himself, he apologized silently: *Forgive me, Your Highness.*

He could only pray the prince would stay still this time. A wise man knows when to yield—lest Her Highness "worry" about his agitation worsening his injuries.

When the prince came to again, his memories returned faster—but the pain in his neck was worse, freezing him in place. As he adjusted, those smiling eyes met his once more—unchanged, just as infuriating!

The prince’s eyes widened with naive outrage. "How dare you—" His head fell to the side. Out cold again.

Struck on the other side—three times now.

"Physician, thank you for your trouble." Su Yi’s tone was practiced.

The physician was numb. Now he understood—every word had been completely serious.