"How could that be? The guards at Prince Duan's Manor are the most law-abiding people I know. They never start fights."
"I saw how arrogant he was, showing no respect for Prince Duan's Manor and blocking our gates with so many people. I was worried he'd beat up my father, so I called the guards to protect me."
"I was scared to death! Thank goodness the guards were there, or Gu Chengyang would have beaten my father and me to death."
As Gu Chengyang listened to her twist the truth, his anger made his wounds ache even more.
"I, the third son of the Gu family, greet Your Majesty. Please, Your Majesty, see the truth!"
"I only went to Prince Duan's Manor today to retrieve a runaway slave of the Gu family. I never intended to offend the Prince or the Princess."
"The Princess protected our runaway for no reason and refused to hand him over. I tried to reason with her, but she ignored my words and ordered her guards to beat my servants and me!"
With a calm expression, Ye Qiong looked at him. "You say I stole your slave? Where's the proof? Without proof, you're just being a hooligan."
Gu Chengyang pulled out a contract. "This is the bill of sale for that slave. His name is A Nu. He's a thief who stole from the Gu family and ran away. I tracked him for days before finding out the Princess had snatched him into her manor!"
Ye Qiong glanced at the paper in his hand. "That doesn't even have an official government seal. What kind of contract is that? Besides, there's no one named A Nu in my manor!"
With a face turning from blue to white, Gu Chengyang felt a rush of panic and rage.
In families like theirs, servants were as numerous as hair on an ox. Did every single contract really need a government seal? As long as the paper was in his hand, they were Gu family property, regardless of whether the seal was official or private.
Besides, he had bought A Nu from the fighting pits. Slaves from those places were undocumented "black households." How could there be any official paperwork?
Just as he was reaching his wit's end, a young eunuch entered to announce that Consort De requested an audience.
Gu Chengyang felt a wave of relief knowing his aunt had arrived.
As the announcement ended, Consort De walked in with a dignified air, dressed in magnificent palace robes. A young woman followed her, wearing equally exquisite clothing with features that closely resembled Gu Chengyang. This was his older sister, Gu Qingyu.
Consort De curtsied to the Emperor and Empress. She scanned the atmosphere of the hall and quickly guessed what was happening.
She immediately looked at Gu Chengyang. "Who beat you like this? How could you be so badly hurt?"
Like he'd finally found someone to lean on, Gu Chengyang said with a miserable face, "Aunt, Sister, Princess Zhaoyang... she stole my slave, denied it, and then had her guards beat me."
Seeing her nephew covered in bruises, Consort De looked at Ye Qiong with a flash of anger, though she held it back in front of the Emperor and Empress.
"I wonder how this child offended the Princess so badly that she would strike him so ruthlessly."
Ye Qiong scoffed and ignored her, turning instead to the Emperor and Empress.
"Uncle, Aunt, they're framing me! He was beaten by his own servants. Everyone in The Capital saw it."
Ye Qiong looked confident. She had coached the manor guards well on who to hit and how to make others do the work for them. The guards were very disciplined; they shouted loud slogans but rarely swung first. However, the Gu family servants were hot-headed. When they saw a crowd of guards charging at them while screaming about protecting the Prince at all costs, they lost their cool and lunged forward.
"You!" Gu Chengyang's chest heaved with rage.
Those guards were shameless. They yelled at the top of their lungs but spent the whole fight hiding behind him. His own stupid servants had ended up raining clubs and fists down on his own back.
The Emperor rubbed his temples and looked at the eunuch standing nearby. "Fu Hai, tell me. What actually happened outside Prince Duan's Manor?"
Fu Hai bowed quickly. "Your Majesty, when I arrived, the two sides were already fighting. I saw the Gu family servants chasing the manor guards with clubs. The guards were hiding behind Gu Chengyang, and the Princess was so scared she was wailing while hugging her two maids."
"As for why it started... I asked the local witnesses. They said Gu Chengyang blocked the gates of Prince Duan's Manor with a group of armed thugs and threatened to kill Prince Duan."
With a sharp look, the Emperor turned toward Gu Chengyang.
"Your Majesty!" Gu Chengyang scrambled to defend himself. "I was wronged! I only went there to get back a runaway slave. I would never dare offend Prince Duan. And those clubs—my men didn't bring them!"
"The manor guards must have shoved them into my servants' hands!"
Ye Qiong looked at him in disbelief. "Am I crazy? Why would I give you weapons to hit my own father?"
Hearing the Princess repeatedly claim that Gu Chengyang tried to assault a Prince, Consort De felt her blood boil.
"Princess, stop talking nonsense! This boy was raised strictly by the Gu family and has always been respectful. How could he do something so absurd as attacking a manor? You're slandering him because you think the Gu family has no one left to defend him."
With a hurt expression, Ye Qiong clutched her chest and looked at Consort De. "You... you're insulting me?"
Consort De was stunned. "When did I insult you?"
Ye Qiong looked devastated. "You just said I have no upbringing!"
Consort De ground her teeth, speechless.
Did this idiot not understand how palace politics worked? Normally, someone would use subtle hints to argue back. Who would just bluntly ask if they were being insulted? Was this Princess still a nursing child?