Time Travel: Pampered by the Aloof Prince-Chapter 347: Has the Emperor Father Made Things Difficult for You?

Chapter 347: Chapter 347: Has the Emperor Father Made Things Difficult for You?

Li Mingjue pushed open the grand doors of Yangxin Hall just in time to hear Shi Zhou’s remark.

There was a brief moment of astonishment on his face, but he quickly realized who Shi Zhou was referring to as "mother."

The action of him pushing the door open made everyone inside turn to look at him, Qi Yu was not surprised that the Prince would come rushing; she just did not expect him to arrive so swiftly.

"What are you doing here?" Li Tianze, who was still in shock, had his thoughts suddenly interrupted by the sound of the door opening, his expression somewhat unprepared.

Li Mingjue had already dismissed the people guarding outside the hall and did not close the door again.

He stepped forward slowly, first performing a courtesy, then said, "This son was anxious, I hope Father will forgive me."

Li Tianze no longer had the patience to ponder why he had arrived so quickly and waved his hand irritably, "Stand up."

Li Mingjue rose to his feet as instructed, walked beside Qi Yu, and whispered, "Has Father made things difficult for you?"

Qi Yu shook her head slightly, "No, the Empress was the one speaking just now."

Li Mingjue was relieved and then turned his gaze towards the Empress.

The Empress, with a sword pointed at her and receiving that cold look from Li Mingjue, felt like needles were on her back, not daring to move an inch.

Shi Zhou lifted her chin with the blade, gazed directly into her eyes, and repeated the question she had just asked.

Almost every word she didn’t say caused the Empress’s heart to tremble.

The tip of the sword pressed against her throat made her afraid to even breathe heavily.

After a long moment, she stammered, "It’s well-known that Li Hanyan fled from her marriage."

Shi Zhou snorted lightly; had it not been for needing this woman to clear her mother’s name, she would have pierced her throat with the sword a long time ago.

Such a person was only a menace to keep around.

Qi Yu stepped forward, patted Shi Zhou’s shoulder, and whispered, "Put away the sword for now."

After all, they were still inside Yangxin Hall, and it would be problematic to see bloodshed.

Shi Zhou had originally intended to frighten the Empress and, upon hearing this, she sheathed her sword without any hesitation.

The clanking sound of the sword returning to the scabbard made the Empress involuntarily step back.

Shi Zhou coldly said, "Back then, my mother didn’t want to marry that useless scholar and pleaded with you to speak to the Empress Dowager on her behalf, to seek mercy. Little did we know, you had already conspired with Xue Hongwen, only to push my mother into a pit of fire."

The Empress turned pale with these words, a flicker of fear passing through her eyes.

Shi Zhou, seeing her guilty expression, continued, "Once you learned my mother was unwilling to marry, you colluded with Xue Hongwen to tarnish her chastity on the eve of her wedding, making it impossible for my mother to refuse the marriage. After my mother realized, she struggled desperately to escape his clutches. Afraid that she would report this to the Empress Dowager, Xue Hongwen then sought to kill her."

At this point, a rage was building in her chest, and she wanted nothing more than to tear the Empress apart.

The horror on the Empress’s face became increasingly evident, even Li Tianze noticed something was off about her.

"Is this true?" He too was shocked by Shi Zhou’s words, his pupils shook, and he asked the Empress.

The Empress shook her head repeatedly, crying out, "Your Majesty, please investigate, I truly did not commit these deeds, she is slandering me!"

Qi Yu, who knew well the Empress’s propensity to distort truth, snorted lightly, walked up to her, and sneered, "Do you think just because Xue Hongwen is not here, you can deny it all?"

"What... what do you mean?" The Empress, taken aback by the cold light in her eyes, stumbled back, her voice faltering.

Qi Yu, looking at her face which though not stunning was still easy on the eyes, felt disgusted to her stomach, replied with a frosty tone, "Men do, heaven watches. Do you think you can still escape?"

Having said that, she glanced at Li Mingjue, who got the hint and immediately said to Li Tianze, "Son thinks that the only course of action is to send someone to the Scholar Residence and invite Lord Xue to discuss the decision."

Ever since Shi Zhou spoke those words, Li Tianze had felt stifled with frustration.

His face ashen, his eyes cold, he glanced at the Empress before calling the imperial guard.

A quarter-hour later, Xue Hongwen was escorted to the hall, kneeling on the ground, his expression frantic as he said, "This official greets Your Majesty. I know not... why Your Majesty has summoned this official?"

Li Tianze gazed at him with a chill in his eyes, his tone heavy, pausing between each word, "I ask you, did you collude with the Empress years ago to persecute my sister, Princess Zhaoyang?"

Xue Hongwen was staggered by this barrage of questions. It took him a moment to process before he replied, "To Your Majesty, that never happened! This official does not know who has been slandering to Your Majesty. I adored Princess Zhaoyang wholeheartedly back then; why would I persecute her?"

He repeatedly kowtowed, his demeanor frantic as he tried to prove his innocence.

Li Tianze was not interested in hearing his nonsense and stopped him from continuing to kowtow, "Enough!"

Xue Hongwen then tremulously raised his head, the forehead already bruised, looking somewhat pitiful.

Shi Zhou stared at this man with hatred in her eyes, wanting nothing more than to stab him with her sword at the thought of how he deceitfully charmed her mother and sought to take her purity.

Xue Hongwen, catching a glimpse of a cold stare fixed on him, turned slightly to look at Shi Zhou.

But as soon as he saw her face, he fell to the ground in fright, pointing at her, trembling, "You... who in the world are you?"

Shi Zhou, disdainful of speaking with such a person, rolled her eyes and ignored him. ƒree𝑤ebnσvel-com

However, Qi Yu smiled and said to the already terrified Lord Xue, "Does Lord Xue find her somewhat familiar?"

Xue Hongwen, trembling all over, still stubbornly said, "I was mistaken just now; I am not acquainted with this young lady at all. How could she be familiar?"

Qi Yu raised an eyebrow, continuing to press him, "If you are not familiar, then what is Lord Xue afraid of?"

Xue Hongwen swallowed, struggling to rise from the ground, and scoffed coldly, "Princess Qi is joking, when has this official ever been scared?"

Qi Yu gave a quiet snort and said no more.

She stepped back a few paces, signaling Shi Zhou with her eyes.

Just like she had done previously with the Empress, Shi Zhou drew the Qiyun Sword, pointing it at Xue Hongwen, and coldly said, "It was you who harmed my mother. Today, I demand your life in return!"

Xue Hongwen, legs going soft from fear, still struggled to retort, "You... stop slandering me! I don’t even know you, when have I ever harmed your mother?"

He felt that he was incredibly unlucky today, having never expected that after so many years, the daughter of Li Hanyan would suddenly emerge, seeking to kill him.

Seeing him continuing to argue, Shi Zhou moved her sword forward another inch, piercing Xue Hongwen’s lower jaw, causing a trickle of fresh blood to slowly seep out.

Xue Hongwen gritted his teeth in pain, but each movement of his face pulled at the wound, making him inhale sharply from the agony.

Seeing that Shi Zhou was about to commit murder right before him, Li Tianze had no choice but to intervene, "Let him finish speaking first."

He too was startled by Shi Zhou’s rough handling; he silently shook his head — truly the daughter of Shi Fuyou.

The thought had barely formed when he frowned unhappily again — why should that bandit leader reap all the benefits!

Shi Zhou, unaware of his thoughts, knew she had to temper her actions, so she silently sheathed her sword. Before doing so, she took the trouble to wipe the blade with a cloth, finding the blood distasteful.

Xue Hongwen had hoped that Li Tianze would reprimand this reckless girl, but Li Tianze merely spoke softly, not even inquiring about his injuries.

Exchanging a glance with the equally stunned Empress, Xue Hongwen’s vision darkened — this time, he was utterly doomed.

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