Chapter 4 — Calling Off the Wedding at the Shen Estate

It felt as though the very foundations of the Shen estate were trembling. Yan Shuo spoke at a leisurely pace, his voice cutting through the tension like a blade.

"I had originally intended to escort the Princess back to the palace to rest before dealing with the likes of you, you wretched filth."

"But why is it that there are always people so eager to rush toward their own deaths?"

A guard came stumbling and crawling into the hall, his face etched with terror.

"Old Matriarch! We are undone!"

"The entire Shen estate… it has been completely surrounded by the Northern Frontier Army!"

Before the words had even finished echoing, a sea of soldiers clad in impenetrable black armor flooded into the compound like a rising tide. Their long spears stood like a forest, the cold gleam of their iron breastplates reflecting the grim atmosphere. The Black Armor guards, whom the Shen family had taken such pride in, were disarmed in the blink of an eye and forced to their knees, creating a vast, trembling expanse of submission.

Yan Shuo lifted his hand, placing an ancient, coal-black military seal into my palm. The icy detachment in his eyes melted away, replaced by an unsettling, profound tenderness.

"Your Highness."

"Eighty thousand soldiers of the Northern Frontier Army await your command."

"As for these blind fools, does Your Highness wish for them to be slow-sliced to death, or would you prefer them torn asunder by five horses?"

"Even if I must act first and report later, I shall gladly carry out your will."

Shen Yan was already so terrified that the color had drained completely from his face. The coward who had always hidden behind the apron strings of the Old Matriarch now collapsed directly onto the floor.

"Your Highness! This servant knows he was wrong!"

"I was merely blinded by momentary confusion; I beg Your Highness for mercy!"

He scrambled toward me on his hands and knees, bowing his head repeatedly against the floor.

"I truly wish to marry you! I harbor no ill will regarding today's events, I swear it!"

My brow furrowed, a subtle gesture that barely registered. Yan Shuo caught the flick of my disdain and my utter loathing for Shen Yan instantly. Without even turning his head, he casually swung his leg and delivered a swift kick. *Thud!* The force sent Shen Yan flying through the air, his body slamming heavily into the floor several yards away. He lay there, unable to muster the strength to rise. Yan Shuo’s expression remained as calm and indifferent as if he had merely kicked aside a troublesome rat. I looked at him, feeling a touch of weary resignation, and reached out to tap his forehead lightly.

"I have told you many times before."

"You must not abuse private punishments; the Great Chu Empire has laws to deal with those who commit crimes."

Yan Shuo lowered his gaze to meet mine. Those brows, which had been as cold as hoarfrost just moments ago, were now deceptively docile.

"I am in the wrong."

Though his words were submissive, there was clearly not a shred of repentance in them. I sighed and scanned the room. It was only then that I realized Liu Yiyi, who had been standing in the corner of the wedding hall, had vanished. At that exact moment, a chorus of wailing and shrieking erupted from outside.

"Let go of me!"

"I am the eldest daughter-in-law of the Shen family!"

Two Northern Frontier soldiers, each gripping one of her arms, dragged the struggling cousin back into the hall. The child in her arms was crying until his face was streaked with tears and pale as parchment. It was clear she had been caught red-handed while attempting to flee. The soldiers bowed deeply.

"Princess, Lord Marquis."

"The culprit has been captured."

I nodded coldly, my gaze falling upon the child who was sobbing until he could barely draw breath.

"I only ask you this: who taught you to utter those slanderous lies against me?"

The child instinctively looked toward his mother. Liu Yiyi immediately covered the boy’s mouth and bellowed, "You are speaking nonsense! Why are you looking at your mother?"

Before the words could die away, Yan Shuo merely cast a single glance at the guards. A soldier’s blade flashed downward. Liu Yiyi’s hand, which she had used to silence her son, was severed cleanly at the wrist and dropped to the floor. Ignoring her child entirely, she clutched her stump and screamed in agony. Warm blood sprayed across the child's face. Terrified out of his wits, the boy burst into a fresh, piercing howl. He trembled and pointed a shaking finger at Shen Yan and Liu Yiyi.

"It was… it was my cousin and mother…"

"They said that if I repeated what they told me, the Royal Aunt would become a wicked woman, and no one would believe in her anymore…"

"They also said that without the Royal Aunt in the way, my cousin would become my father…"

Shen Yan’s face turned deathly white.

"Lies!"

"Children speak without thought!"

"Your Highness, this servant had no idea he would say such things!"

"It is all the fault of this poisonous woman!"

Shen Yan spun around abruptly. The hand that had previously been caressing Liu Yiyi’s waist with affection now tightened around her throat, choking her.

"Vile woman!"

"It is one thing that you taught this little brat to spout nonsense behind my back, but you dare try to drag me down with you?!"

The cousin, choked until her eyes were rolling back in her head, abandoned all pretense of concealment.

"It was clearly you who said the Princess’s status was too high, and that we had to destroy her reputation first!"

"And it was you who said that once the Princess lost her purity, she would have no choice but to marry you! You said you would use her dowry to marry me!"

"Now that disaster has struck, you push all the blame onto me?! Are you even a man?!"

"Shut your mouth!"

Consumed by shame and fury, Shen Yan raised his hand and struck her across the face. *Crack!* The cousin collapsed to the ground, blood spilling from the corner of her mouth.

"Still daring to lie! I will beat you to death!"

I watched them coldly as they tore at each other like rabid dogs, finding the spectacle utterly absurd. I issued my decree:

"Shen Yan has slandered the Imperial family and humiliated a Princess."

"Liu Yiyi has incited a minor to cause chaos and slander."

"The Shen family has knowingly concealed these crimes and harbored the guilty."

"Guards, arrest everyone in the Shen household and cast them into the celestial prison!"

"I shall report this to the Emperor, and we shall deal with them later!"

In the Imperial Study, the Emperor learned of my return, and a faint smile immediately touched his features.