SBCEJM -Chapter 46 You Dare Touch My Big Brother? Then Taste What It Means to Lose Your Bloodline.

Big brother? Wasn’t Scholar Feng an only son?

Where did this “big brother” come from?

Vice Censor-in-Chief Feng Huai’an was known for his upright character. He had only one wife, and no one had ever heard of him keeping a mistress.

Could it be… a sworn brother?

And what exactly was this “ultimate bombshell”?

Everyone’s curiosity was eating them alive as they watched that slender figure swiftly leave the banquet and head toward the washrooms.

A few young noblemen who couldn’t suppress their curiosity exchanged glances, quietly got up, and sneakily followed from afar like thieves.

Emperor Xiao Juechen cast a glance into the shadows. A palace guard silently disappeared behind the crowd and followed as well.

Feng Zexuan gave them no chance to share the gossip feast.

She slipped behind an artificial rock formation, confirmed no one else was around, and with a thought, vanished from the spot.

Anxious, she forgot to activate the mental communication link with her brother. Instead, she directly chose the shared-space access channel and stepped inside.

The light dimmed before her eyes. A nauseating stench of sweat and cheap powder hit her face. Then a pockmarked face covered in pus-filled bumps rapidly enlarged in her vision. A lewd grin hung on the man’s thick lips as he practically lunged toward her handsome face.

【Holy shit!】

Her body reacted faster than her mind. Killing intent flashed through her eyes. Without thinking, she delivered a furious flying kick straight between the man’s legs.

“AAARGH—!”

An inhuman scream tore through the dim room.

The pockmarked man flew like a rag sack, smashing heavily into the wall three meters away. He froze there for a moment before sliding limply to the floor in a heap.

Both hands clutched desperately at his groin. His whole body convulsed in pain, and he couldn’t even make a sound anymore.

Only then did Feng Zexuan properly look around.

It was a dark side room filled with the smell of mold.

Her brother, Feng Zekai, sat slumped unconscious in his wheelchair. His clothes were still neat enough, but his eyes were tightly shut.

Her heart clenched.

She rushed over in three quick steps and checked his breathing.

Steady and calm.

The tension in Feng Zexuan’s body finally eased. Thank goodness—he was only unconscious.

But the lingering fear turned into icy killing intent, and the way she looked at the trash in the corner was like staring at a dead man.

【System, what happened to my brother?】

The system answered immediately:

【Don’t worry, Host. Your brother only inhaled a little knockout incense. The dosage wasn’t strong. He’ll wake up naturally after sleeping for two hours.】

At that moment, the pockmarked man finally recovered enough to realize things had gone terribly wrong. Scrambling on hands and knees, he tried to crawl toward the door.

Feng Zexuan’s eyes turned cold. There was no way she would let him escape.

She lunged forward. With a light tap of her toe behind his knee—

Crack!

The man had just started to rise when he crashed back to the floor. One leg twisted at a horrifying angle.

“AAAAAHHH!”

The agony made him roll wildly across the floor.

Feng Zexuan planted one foot on his remaining good leg and slowly ground down.

Her voice carried no warmth whatsoever.

“You dared touch my ‘little sister’? You’ve got guts…”

She increased the pressure slightly, listening to his pig-like screams, her gaze growing colder.

“Talk. Who sent you? Why target my ‘little sister’? If even half a word is fake, I’ll cripple this leg too.”

The man trembled violently from the pain, teeth chattering, eyes darting around in panic.

“H-Hero, spare me… I-I’m just a kitchen worker delivering vegetables into the palace… I-I saw this young lady was beautiful and got carried away for a moment… it has nothing to do with anyone else! Please show mercy and spare this worthless dog’s life!”

【System, verify if he’s lying.】

【Host, his heart rate has spiked and his pupils are dilated. He’s lying. The person who instructed him was a eunuch serving Third Prince Xiao Mingrui.】

The Third Prince?

Consort Shu’s son. The Third Princess’s biological brother.

【What did my brother ever do to him?】

【Host, did you forget? The “Gu Suppressant Pill” you gave away indirectly saved the Crown Prince’s life. The Third Prince saw the crown slipping from his grasp, while his mother got thrown into the Cold Palace. Of course he started hating you. When he learned your ‘little sister’ had entered the palace too, he came up with this disgusting scheme. Ruining your sister’s innocence was his way of taking revenge on you and destroying both your reputation and the Feng family’s honor.】

【Damn him!】

Feng Zexuan’s eyes turned icy as she pressed down harder with her foot.

“AAAH—I’ll talk! I’ll talk! It was a eunuch serving His Highness the Third Prince! He gave me fifty taels of silver and said there was a girl here who offended an important person, and told me to… to ruin her innocence… I’ve confessed everything! Please spare me, Hero!”

Feng Zexuan struck several acupoints, leaving the pockmarked man unable to move or make a sound. Then she brought her brother into the space with her.

She settled Feng Zekai onto the sofa in the apartment.

The angrier she became, the calmer she forced herself to be.

And the best way to calm down was surrounding herself with familiar smells.

She didn’t rush out. Instead, she turned into the kitchen, twisted on the faucet, and set water to boil.

With practiced movements, she tore open two 400-gram packs of luosifen, dumping the noodles, dried bamboo shoots, pickled beans, fried tofu skin, and all the other toppings into the pot.

Finally, she took out the soul of the dish—that packet of concentrated snail broth.

Without hesitation, she squeezed it into the pot.

Five minutes later, a tyrannical sour funk mixed with chili oil fragrance rapidly conquered the entire apartment.

She then took two eggs from the refrigerator, cracked them on the edge of the pan, and fried two golden sunny-side eggs with crispy edges and runny yolks.

She ladled the springy, soft noodles into two large bowls and topped them with the eggs.

When her brother woke up, he could just heat his portion in the microwave.

Holding her own bowl, she stared at the golden peanuts, the tofu skin soaked with broth, and the rich aroma so intense it practically hit the brain directly.

Her mouth instantly watered.

Feng Zexuan picked up her chopsticks and happily slurped down a huge mouthful of noodles.

Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed the remote control on the coffee table. Casually grabbing it, she switched on the TV and tuned it to the banquet scene in the Imperial Garden.

Every expression on the screen was crystal clear.

Perfect. This top-tier matchmaking reality show was ideal background entertainment while eating.

On-screen, the Crown Princess candidates were still competing for attention, while the noble sons toasted one another.

With her sharp eyes, Feng Zexuan noticed Crown Prince Xiao Mingxuan had somehow woken up at some point. Yet he still lounged lazily on the couch pretending to sleep, apparently trying to avoid the matchmaking event.

The Emperor and Empress sat above, clearly aware of it, but too lazy to expose him.

Feng Zexuan had barely finished half her bowl when a little palace maid came tumbling into the scene. With a loud thump, she knelt on the ground, head bowed deeply, voice trembling yet loud enough for everyone present to hear clearly.

“Y-Your Majesty! Your Majesty the Empress! Something terrible has happened!”

“Th-this servant just saw Scholar Feng’s younger sister secretly meeting a man from outside the palace! And later the two of them… they…”

The maid trailed off as though too ashamed to continue, but the unfinished implication gave everyone endless room for imagination.

Empress Liu Mengli frowned, phoenix eyes sharp with authority.

“And then what? Why are you stammering? Explain yourself clearly! Where are they now?”

The little maid trembled even harder.

“I-It’s in the innermost side room of the West Corner Hall… This servant didn’t dare get too close. I only saw the window slightly open… and there were… sounds coming from inside…”

Everyone present was an expert at reading between the lines.

The implication was obvious the moment they heard it.