"Raise your heads up. Ben dian has to admire your daring."

King Wan Li's voice was laced with cold sarcasm.

JuZi did as told but her gaze remained attached to the edge of wangye's clothes.

Her peripheral vision told her that her grandmother, Guo momo, was beside her. The others were probably other servant girls under her grandmother's command and guards including Guard Tang.

>The guard Juzi brought when Feng Yanyan sneaked out<

Guo momo was in charge of assigning heavy labor manpower to different courtyards. It was considered a middle to high position in the palace. She was a rank lower than the head palace momo. But since she didn't meet any of the Long family, few people wanted to snatch this role.

Long Xu Le stared at these people. There were less than twenty of them. Serving inside her palace while also belonging to another family.

"The punishment for disloyalty is death to third degree familial relations."

The room seemed colder now. The blood running in their veins slowed down and their skulls went numb.

Guo momo kowtowed gently and deeply. "Wangye is wise. Your servants are not afraid to die. However, wangye must know the Feng family only ever had one master."

JuZi heard her grandmother speak as she exhaled labored breaths.

She knew her family's history. They were a side branch of the Feng family who served directly under the royal family. To preserve the already lowly Feng family in Tanglin, they concealed this identity after the exile 16 years ago.

JuZi was four years old at that time. Both her parents perished during the harsh conditions of traveling to Suliang. There was danger everywhere but her grandmother fiercely protected her. The old woman didn't even have the time to grieve for her only son and daughter-in-law.

In time, nobody in the new wangfu knew the existence of the Feng family. After all, servants were registered under the family they were serving.

"The Feng patriarch once sent General Ting to your Highness' aid. This servant didn't contact the young general nor make our presence known in the palace. There was no need. These servants belong to the Long family. However, Feng patriarch reached out to this servant to take care of the young master Feng Yanyan.

Wangye, it was all the Feng family could do to protect this precious son. The point person was only me. This servant swears in her life that these other people have nothing to do with my selfishness."

JuZi tilted her head to look at her grandmother. The woman with graying hairs was still the same strong woman she knew.

"Are you now daring to preempt ben dian's rules?" King Wan Li's face was frost-bound. Not a drop of emotion could be felt from her.

Looking at them and looking at dead bodies were no different.

Their fault lied in the fact that they proactively hid their origins and made it seem they were doing something suspicious.

Any master would find this intolerable and see it as a sign of betrayal. Their heads could be cut today.

JuZi was shivering from the fear and other emotions but she didn't want to be useless. Her grandmother didn't deserve death.

Bit by bit, she raised her head.

"Wangye... this servant was born as a person of the Eastern Palace. My parents died during the exile to Suliang and my grandmother raised me by herself. All these years, this servant was cultivated to be loyal to wangye. We are all just like other maids and guards in the palace. With the only difference being tied to the Feng family who is only loyal to your Highness. Wangye, this servant doesn't want my grandmother to die... We never betrayed the wangfu."

She didn't know what she was saying at this point. Guo momo grabbed her granddaughter's wrist too tight but JuZi didn't feel this.

As her mind blanked, she suddenly remembered young master Feng scolding them one day. Jiao was sulking that time because of something the young master said.

"If you have something to say to me, say it clearly. I don't want to guess if my maids are angry at me for something. How will I know if I suddenly offended you?"

Those words were a wonder to her ears at that time. How would a master offend a slave? Never did she imagine that she would have the guts to use this on wangye. She could only lament in her head. It seemed young master Feng spoiled his maids too much.

Everyone in the hall heard a dangerous laugh from King Wan Li.

That one's mouth was bold just like the master she served. Trembling in fear but still running their mouths off.

"Then will you take the punishment in your grandmother's stead?" Her Highness taunted.

JuZi was resolute as she bit her cheek and nodded. "This servant will receive the punishment."

Without even blinking, Long Xu Le called. "Flog her twenty times. The rest will watch. If anybody hides something like this again... it won't stop with this."

Xiao Hao who was standing in the corner all this time observed Long Xu Le's face as her Highness left the hall. When he saw there were no traces of anger in her face, he ordered the servant who will enact the punishment to not hit too heavily.

It looks like her Highness only wanted to see the formal punishments through and not really carry them out with heavy hands.

He didn't know what happened.

Betrayal had always been Wan Li Wang's sore spot. On normal days, these few people wouldn't survive even if they were part of the Feng family her Highness was indebted to.

Hiding connections to the outside world was a heavy crime for palace servants. It didn't matter if the intention was good or bad.

It was also a relief that wangye was the first to discover this. Her highness could fully control the matters surrounding this and hush everyone that needed to be hushed.

Xiao Hao was even more surprised that Beauty Feng escaped this unscathed. It seemed the young man was even ignorant of the event.

Maybe, he should ask her Highness for permission to look at the full report later.

---

After greeting Wan Li Wang, Feng Yanyan didn't see JuZi the whole day.

Pu Tao said the first-ranked palace maid was helping her grandmother to a certain task entrusted by wangye.

The next day, JuZi was still nowhere to be found and Feng Yanyan couldn't sit in place anymore.

He would usually hear JuZi's nagging. Without her, the house was too silent. Pu Tao and Jiao were also reticent.

Just after lunch, Feng Yanyan stood up.

"Lead me to Zizi's grandma." He was confident he could sweet talk the old lady into releasing his palace maid.

That task given by wangye was too suspicious. What if it was just someone wanting to scheme? Zizi would be pitiful.

It seemed Beauty Feng became a little paranoid after what Junzhu had done to him.

He marched out of the yard. The two following after him were trying to dissuade him.

"Young master, you can't disturb sister Zizi at the moment as it is a task by wangye." Pu Tao reasoned with him.

Feng Yanyan just waved his hand. "I'm not going to disturb eh? I'll just drop by and then go back. Let's go!"

He pulled the two by the wrist so they won't protest anymore. Before long, they arrived at the palace servant quarters.

Beauty Feng learned from the two what kind of grandma Guo momo was in the short period of time of walking under the covered corridors of the palace. He needed information to try and please the old lady and leave a good impression. So she would let him get away with Zizi.

That was the technique he used on his grandmother all the time.

They reached the housing. It was still around noon time so a lot of people were busy and didn't linger here. Feng Yanyan didn't have to sneak in like a thief.

He directly knocked on the door.

A hearty and plump elderly opened it and was shocked silly to see a pretty man outside her house.

"Y-young master Feng?" There was a flash of resentment in her eyes.

If the patriarch didn't ask for the favor to protect this grandson of his, Guo momo's family wouldn't end up in this state. There was only her and JuZi in this world. Her granddaughter was everything to her. She wanted her to marry and live a good life outside the palace before she dies.

But things were looking tough right now because of a willful kid, Feng Yanyan.

From what she understood, Beauty Feng registered himself to be one of the beauties. And the Feng patriarch could only try to influence things behind the scenes so he would end up in a safe place which is Suliang.

The person who caused all these trouble didn't even have an ounce of knowledge about it.

Feng Yanyan was caught off guard by the faint animosity the old woman was radiating.

His head tilted. "Greetings to Guo momo, I heard Zizi is here? Can I see her for a bit?"

"What does Beauty Feng need from Xiao Zi?" It was obvious the old lady was guarded.

Feng Yanyan felt odd and his suspicion rose. "Did something happen?"

It was Guo momo's turn to be surprised. Just now, gentleman Feng's eyes sharpened and reminded her of General Feng Ting. But it was gone the moment she blinked.

His face was too soft to carry a heavy aura. Instead, he looked like an angered fox.

Seeing the old lady wasn't speaking, Feng Yanyan held her arms on both sides. "Guo momo, I am someone who is hated by a lot of people because of this face."

His index finger pointed to his nose with a serious look. "So if something happened to Zizi because of me, I have to take responsibility."

---

Again, this is not my fault that it's a cliffhanger. I waive all my responsibility...

Here's the update schedule we'll follow. All dates are following Philippine Standard Time

Edited: Feb. 14, 2023