RWNEFE -Chapter 350 Beating Shen Yuantang’s Governess to Death with Clubs

Under Shen Lanxi’s gaze, Shen Yuantang avoided eye contact, her eyes shifting uneasily.

“Elder Sister, I just feel awkward… and distressed,” she said.

Shen Lanxi asked, “How so?”

Lowering her eyes, Shen Yuantang said, “If you hadn’t divorced Prince Zhennan, I would have had to call him brother-in-law. Now that I’m marrying Zhou Ruyuan, outsiders will surely say unpleasant things.”

Shen Lanxi let out a faint laugh. “Unpleasant things? Such as sisters serving the same husband?”

Shen Yuantang’s heart sank. Her expression stiffened, and she quickly lowered her head to hide it.

“There are many people who would gladly have such a connection with me, Shen Lanxi. If you don’t want to marry, another sister in the family can take your place. I believe many of them would be willing.”

Shen Yuantang looked up in disbelief. What kind of absurd words were these?

“Elder Sister, my marriage to Prince Zhennan was decreed by the emperor. If we did that, wouldn’t it be deceiving the throne and defying an imperial order?”

Shen Lanxi said coldly, “No. At that time, the outside world would only know that Shen Yuantang suddenly died of an acute illness on the night before her wedding. When an unmarried bride meets with misfortune, replacing her with another bride is not unheard of.”

In an instant, Shen Yuantang’s face turned deathly pale as she stared at Shen Lanxi in disbelief.

“Elder Sister, you’re just scaring me, aren’t you?”

Shen Lanxi replied, “I’ll ask you one more time—are you marrying or not?”

Shen Yuantang trembled violently, fearfully murmuring, “I’ll marry… I’ll marry.”

Shen Lanxi smiled. “I knew you were willing. I heard that after you returned to the capital, the family arranged a governess for you.”

Old Madam Shen, afraid Shen Lanxi might say something improper again, quickly added, “They were governesses sent from the palace.”

“Were all the girls in the family given one?” Shen Lanxi asked.

Old Madam Shen nodded. “All of them. They’re all governesses who have taught princesses in the palace for many years.”

“Bring them all here,” Shen Lanxi said. “Let me see them—and perhaps they can teach me something too.”

Old Madam Shen hurriedly sent someone to summon them.

Eight meek, downcast governesses, their manners and bearing as if cast from the same mold, were brought before Shen Lanxi.

“Which of you are Shen Yuantang’s governesses?”

Two stepped forward and answered softly, “We are.”

Shen Lanxi didn’t ask who had sent them. She only said, “You’ve taught her for three or four years—how did you manage to teach her into a madwoman who defies her elders and makes unreasonable scenes?”

The two governesses were so frightened that they immediately knelt and begged for mercy.

“Please show mercy, my lady. We taught exactly as princesses are taught in the palace. We did not dare slacken in the slightest.”

“So you mean,” Shen Lanxi said coolly, “that she is by nature an unfilial, unreasonable fool?”

Shen Yuantang’s eyes reddened. How could her elder sister ruin her reputation like this?

“Elder Sister, if you want to punish someone, punish me. It has nothing to do with the governesses.”

Ignoring her, Shen Lanxi looked at the two women and said, “I grew up in the palace, and the Empress Dowager had governesses teach me as well. The palace rules state that when masters commit mistakes, their personal servants are punished in their place. You’ve all served in the palace for many years—you must know this rule.”

The two governesses stiffened all over.

“Guards—fifty strokes each. Life or death does not matter,” Shen Lanxi ordered coldly.

The two governesses hurriedly begged Shen Yuantang and Old Madam Shen for help.

“Old Madam, tomorrow is Miss Yuantang’s wedding day. Even if we must be punished, please wait until after it!”

“Tomorrow is her wedding—she shouldn’t see blood today!”

“Please show mercy…”

Shen Yuantang clenched her fists inside her sleeves. “Elder Sister, I’m getting married tomorrow. Seeing blood today is indeed inauspicious. Besides, it was my own moment of foolishness—it has nothing to do with the governesses. Please don’t punish them.”

Shen Lanxi turned to Old Madam Shen. “Grandmother, you are the elder. Do you think my punishment is reasonable?”

Old Madam Shen thought to herself that it was indeed reasonable—Yuantang had gone too far these past days.

But…

Looking at Shen Yuantang, she hesitated. Although her granddaughter had repeatedly defied her, tomorrow was still her wedding day. If blood were shed beforehand and it affected her future life, she would feel uneasy.

“Lanxi, perhaps we should wait until after Yuantang’s wedding before carrying out the punishment,” Old Madam Shen suggested.

“I’ll follow Grandmother’s decision,” Shen Lanxi said.

Old Madam Shen let out a sigh of relief, afraid that her granddaughter might refuse to give her face.

Shen Lanxi then addressed the governesses: “I don’t care who sent you. In the future, you must properly admonish the daughters of the Shen family. If any of them behave improperly, the punishment will be doubled upon you. If the matter is serious, your families will also be implicated.”

The governesses were so frightened that they all knelt silently on the ground.

“Bind these two governesses. After Yuantang leaves tomorrow, beat them to death with clubs.”

The two governesses collapsed in terror and were dragged away by the servants like dead dogs.

Shen Yuantang secretly glanced at Shen Lanxi and felt a chill spread through her entire body. She no longer had the slightest thought of comparing dowries with her.

After the governesses were dragged away, Shen Lanxi smiled. “I picked out some good items from the storeroom to add to your dowry.”

Shen Yuantang forced a smile. “Thank you, Elder Sister.”

In a gentle tone, Shen Lanxi added, “You are the first daughter in the family to marry. In the future, whenever any daughter of the Shen family marries, I will also give a generous addition to her dowry.”

The unmarried girls of the Shen family all had restless thoughts, glancing from time to time at the boxes Shen Lanxi had brought.

When a secondary consort entered the household, protocol did not require Zhou Ruyuan to personally come to fetch the bride.

On the Shen family’s side, however, they sent Shen Yuantang off using the highest standard allowed for a secondary consort.

That night, Shen Yuantang cried all night. When she woke in the morning, her eyes were swollen as if she had been punched twice.

“Miss, the man you’re marrying is the War God of Great Zhou—and very likely the future Son of Heaven. Such a good marriage is hard to find even with a lantern.”

“After you enter the household, if you can quickly bear a child, rising from secondary consort to principal consort will be easy. Then you’ll be Princess Zhennan. No matter how capable the eldest miss is, she still won’t compare to you…”

That day, gossip rose again.

“Do you think he’ll spend the wedding night in a concubine’s room again?”

“That concubine must be very capable. Why haven’t we heard of her in the prince’s rear court before?”

“Hmph. A woman who clings to a man on his wedding night—what good could she be? Can such a person be kept?”

“True, true…”

Bai Qingling stood among the crowd, watching darkly as the small sedan chair carrying Shen Yuantang was brought into the prince’s residence through the side gate. She clenched her fists so hard her palms nearly bled.

What was Shen Yuantang worth? Did she think marrying the prince meant she would gain his favor?

Dream on.

The women of the Shen family were all shameless creatures who liked stealing what belonged to others. What woman in the world would willingly accept her husband keeping another woman in his heart—especially when that woman was her own elder sister?

Bai Qingling’s eyes were filled with venom as she curled her lips into a sinister smile. She remained standing by the side gate of the prince’s residence until the onlookers dispersed, then slipped away with the departing crowd.