Chapter 13 - Voluntary

 Zhao Yujiao seemed to be a little afraid of Ye Chuyan and shrank back into Pei Xiuyan's arms. Pei Xiuyan held Zhao Yujiao in his arms and looked at Ye Chuyan with a sharp look.

"This king asks you: Jiaojiao went to deliver something to you; did you not appreciate it and beat her and the housekeeper, Li Fu?"

Ye Chuyan said lightly, "Yes..."

Whenever it comes to Zhao Yujiao, Pei Xiuyan never gives her a chance to explain. Just like now, he just asks her if it is true, but not why.

Pei Xiuyan saw that Ye Chuyan's expression was indifferent, and she didn't seem to take it to heart. The nameless fire became stronger, and he went up and slapped Ye Chuyan in the face.

"Kneel down!"

Ye Chuyan turned her face and licked the blood in her mouth with her tongue. The fishy and sweet taste stimulated her to feel even more nauseous. She stood straight, with no intention of kneeling down.

"The prince lifted my house arrest in the morning, sent me new servants and precious medicinal materials, and everyone in the palace said that the prince was loyal and righteous. In the afternoon, he beat me for an unknown woman and an old servant in the palace. If it gets out, aren't you afraid that it will ruin your reputation as the Qing prince?"

"You..." Pei Xiuyan was choked suddenly.

He began to re-examine Ye Chuyan. Before Ye Chuyan went out, she put on a snow-white fox fur collar cloak. The snow-white fur collar made her originally pale face almost transparent like jade, and made her originally dark eyebrows and eyes look more heroic. Even though she was slapped just now, her icy eyes still shone with cold light, standing proudly in the room. Her beauty is different from Zhao Yujiao's. Zhao Yujiao is like a dodder, needing people to pity and care. However, Ye Chuyan is like a green bamboo, with vigorous vitality. As long as she wants, no matter how much wind and rain she goes through, she can bend, rather than break, and be noble and self-reliant.

Pei Xiuyan felt that the restless beast in his heart had begun to rush around again. He didn't like Ye Chuyan looking at him with such disgust and ridicule. She kept calling him Prince, but her eyes were full of disgust and indifference. Pei Xiuyan frowned; his face was complicated, and he pursed his lips without saying a word. No one knew what he was thinking, and the atmosphere in the room was weird for a while.

Li Fu raised his eyes slightly and looked at Zhao Yujiao. Zhao Yujiao understood and immediately cried out, rolled off the bed, and pulled Pei Xiuyan's sleeve.

"Prince, you must not hit my sister. If you hit my sister, it hurts my heart..."

Pei Xiuyan only then noticed that Zhao Yujiao had bitten her lips in a hurry, and the pink lips were stained with blood, like ripe berries, waiting for people to lick them.

He picked up Zhao Yujiao and asked, "When will you change your soft-heartedness?"

Zhao Yujiao looked up at Pei Xiuyan, tightly grasping Pei Xiuyan's sleeves, and begged, "Prince, can you promise not to hit your sister? If you don't promise, I won't let go."

Pei Xiuyan couldn't imagine that Zhao Yujiao was so soft-hearted and still pleading for Ye Chuyan, but Ye Chuyan was so cruel that she beat her face like this. Zhao Yujiao was still looking at Pei Xiuyan with pleading eyes, but Pei Xiuyan's brows were getting tighter and tighter. He finally couldn't resist Zhao Yujiao's plea and nodded slightly in response. Pei Xiuyan carried Zhao Yujiao back to the bed, walked to Ye Chuyan, and whispered in her ear: "Ye Chuyan, I promised Jiaojiao that I would not punish you, but your maid Baizhi once committed a crime, and the Qing Palace cannot tolerate her. For the sake of the maid Baizhi, are you willing to kneel in Jiaojiao's yard and beg for forgiveness from me?"

Ye Chuyan's face suddenly changed, clenched her fists, walked out of the door without saying a word, and knelt in the yard outside the house. Her voice was neither humble nor arrogant: "The maid Baizhi committed a crime, and it was my poor discipline. Please forgive me, Your Highness."

Pei Xiuyan said to the people in the room, "The princess had to kneel in the snow to punish herself for a maid who committed a crime. Do you remember it?" His voice was extremely cold.

The servants were silent and kept saying that they remembered it.

Zhao Yujiao said hurriedly, "Your Highness, please don't do that. My sister is not well yet. If she continues like this, she will definitely develop a chronic disease. You promised me that you would not punish my sister."

She was anxious and panicked. As soon as she finished speaking, she coughed several times. Pei Xiuyan brought the cup of water to her lips.

"She voluntarily begged me for Bai Zhi. It has nothing to do with you. You don't have to blame yourself, and you are not allowed to plead for her."

Zhao Yujiao wanted to speak again, but was stopped by Pei Xiuyan's eyes. She had no choice but to stir the corners of the quilt with both hands, as if she was worried about Ye Chuyan. When Zhao Yujiao lowered her head to drink water, she quickly exchanged glances with Li Fu. Li Fu had just analyzed the pros and cons for her and asked her to retreat. No matter how angry the prince was, she would fight to the death to speak for Ye Chuyan. The prince pitied her and would definitely double the punishment for Ye Chuyan. This trick really worked. It was freezing outside. If Ye Chuyan knelt like this all night, she would either die or be injured.

Pei Xiuyan drove everyone out and wanted to stay in the house to take care of Zhao Yujiao.

Ye Chuyan kneeled in the yard. The servants hurried past, and no one dared to say a word to Ye Chuyan. The time passed little by little, and the heavy snow came with the night, and the sharp, cold wind cut people's faces like a knife. Ye Chuyan looked up at the snowflakes in the sky and thought of the day when her father and brother were executed. It was the same. She reached out to catch a few snowflakes, and the icicles melted in her palm instantly, leaving a drop of water that seemed to be there and not there.

She fell in love with Pei Xiuyan at first sight on a snowy day when she was seven years old. Now she is nineteen years old. On this snowy day, she and Pei Xiuyan are separated by the pain of losing their child and the hatred of killing their father. From then on, love was gone with the wind, and hatred was frozen in her heart like ice. When she beat Zhao Yujiao today, she had thought of a way out, and she was sure that Pei Xiuyan would not punish her for the sake of his reputation. But she never expected that Pei Xiuyan would be so shameless as to threaten her with the only remaining Bai Zhi by her side.

The voice of the night watchman came from a distance, and it was midnight. She had been kneeling for five hours. From the initial pain all over her body to now, her body has long lost all intuition. She seemed to see her father walking towards her in a trance. Ye Jin was as calm as ever. He walked up to her and called out softly, "Ayan..."