Chapter 44: Humiliation

It was the Fourth Prince who had arrived.

Normally, he was the one who bullied Xiao Jingheng the most, yet Xiao Jingheng had never once argued or bickered with him.

He was truly of humble status and slight influence now, and such occurrences were not once or twice. Nurse Zhao had only been startled at the very beginning upon hearing the commotion and being unable to see who it was.

Now, upon realizing it was him, Nurse Zhao was far less worried than she had been at first. After all, every time the Fourth Prince came, it amounted to little more than leaving behind a few harsh words.

In the beginning, when Xiao Jingheng fought back, the Fourth Prince would even have people beat him. Later on, however, Xiao Jingheng realized that he could only resist verbally at best, so he simply stopped paying attention to whatever the Fourth Prince said. Consequently, the Fourth Prince always felt as though he were punching a cotton ball, and gradually he stopped coming to trouble Xiao Jingheng quite as often.

Today, however, who knew if things had gone poorly for him elsewhere, prompting him to come here looking for a diversion.

Originally, Xiao Jingheng intended to ignore the Fourth Prince just as he had done before. But as the Fourth Prince drew closer step by step, his face written all over with "if you do not acknowledge me, I will beat you severely," Xiao Jingheng had no choice but to raise his head and play along with his words.

"It is merely some minor illness, hardly worth the Fourth Imperial Brother's concern."

"Hmph, wretched sickly ghost, born of a lowly palace maid, are you worthy of my concern? I was simply exchanging a few polite pleasantries with you, yet you actually took it seriously. Hahaha."

With the Fourth Prince's laugh, the servants trailing behind him began to laugh as well. The mocking sound was loud and grating, yet the expression on Xiao Jingheng's face remained completely unchanged, not even a wrinkle appearing on his brow. He looked as though he had long since grown accustomed to such circumstances.

Seeing that placid expression once more on Xiao Jingheng's face—as if nothing he said could ever stir the slightest ripple—the Fourth Prince walked forward with a perverted twist of mind, grabbed Xiao Jingheng by the face, and pressed his fingers down with vicious force. Only after leaving bright red fingerprints across Xiao Jingheng's face did he ruthlessly shove Xiao Jingheng's head to the side.

"Let me tell you, the only reason you are still able to live within the palace is because His Majesty is merciful, which is why he permits you to stay here. Do not imagine for a moment that there is any hope of you gaining His Majesty's regard! With your birth, you are not even worthy of carrying my shoes, yet you continually address me as Imperial Brother and yourself as younger brother—are you worthy? Go take a piss and look at yourself in the mirror. If you lack the water, I can urinate on your face so you may inspect yourself thoroughly!"

Having spoken, the Fourth Prince burst into loud laughter once more, trading filthy and obscene remarks with the eunuchs around him.

Lowering her head, Nurse Zhao seemed unable to bear it any longer as she spoke in an extremely faint voice, "The Fourth Prince's actions are inevitably somewhat excessive. Even if our Prince does not enjoy the Emperor's favor, he is still a proper imperial prince of the royal bloodline. How can he be subjected to such humiliation? Surely the Fourth Prince is not unafraid that these events today might reach the Emperor's ears, and that His Majesty will punish you?"

"Nurse!" Xiao Jingheng called out in a sharp, hurried voice, as though attempting to stop her. But Nurse Zhao was too quick of tongue, and Xiao Jingheng had no time to prevent it.

The words spoken could not be taken back, and Xiao Jingheng's heart leaped high into his throat, terrified that Xiao Yulei would make things difficult for Nurse Zhao.

Though Nurse Zhao's voice had been soft, her words were entirely clear and carried to the ears of everyone present. The Fourth Prince froze, seemingly astonished that anyone dared to talk back to him, before throwing his head back in laughter.

"Old hag, I suppose your age has clouded your wits as well? His Majesty will punish me for the sake of this lowly creature? Take a proper look—my birth mother is none other than Consort Qi! How could she ever compare to a scheming palace maid trying to climb into a master's bed? In my view, even if I were to beat him again, it would amount to nothing more than a few words of reprimand from His Majesty. As for you, at such an advanced age and yet blind in both eyes, you cannot even perceive the true worth of the Third Imperial Prince you serve, which is why you dare utter such nonsense. I shall not hold it against you. But when masters are speaking, where is the place for a servant to interrupt? Someone, drag this old hag away and give her twenty slaps across the face!"

Hearing this, how could Xiao Jingheng remain seated on the bed? Nurse Zhao was of such advanced age; if she were to endure another punishment, who could say whether she would survive it? How could he possibly let Nurse Zhao undergo such a trial?

"Enough! If the Fourth Imperial Brother has any grievances, take them up directly with me. Why torment Nurse Zhao? She is so old, how could she possibly withstand the punishment of twenty slaps?"

Xiao Jingheng sat up from the bed. Rising too hastily, he could not suppress a couple of coughs. To his surprise, seeing him in this sickly state only heightened the Fourth Prince's amusement. Turning around, the Fourth Prince waved a hand to signal that Nurse Zhao should be released.

Once freed, Nurse Zhao scrambled up from the floor in a hurry and retreated to Xiao Jingheng's side.

For all these years, Xiao Jingheng had swallowed his pride and endured humiliation simply to live a slightly easier life. In truth, frail and delicate as he appeared on the surface, he was actually well-versed in martial arts. It was only because Emperor Xiao Zheng disliked him that he dared not expose his martial prowess to others, fearing it would only deepen Xiao Zheng's aversion.

Even though Xiao Zheng had ignored him completely over the years, he was, after all, Xiao Jingheng's biological father. To say that Xiao Jingheng had never yearned for paternal affection would be entirely false. Yet those were matters of his childhood; nowadays, he harbored no real hopes regarding Xiao Zheng. The only reason he lived such a cowardly, cowering existence now was simply to wait until he reached the appropriate age to be granted the title of a prince, leave the palace, and establish his own estate. From then on, remaining aloof from worldly affairs, he would simply live out his days as an idle prince.

The Second Princess had already been sent away for a diplomatic marriage. Once a precedent like this was set, it proved that the Emperor was nearly ready to let the rest of them leave. Having endured through so many hardships for so many years, Xiao Jingheng was all the more reluctant to let all his forbearance go to waste at the final hurdle. That was why he had never argued with Xiao Yulei.

He had not expected, however, that Xiao Yulei would become increasingly insatiable and push his luck further with every concession.

If today the Fourth Prince truly dared to humiliate him and Nurse Zhao here, he would say nothing on the surface, but when night fell, Xiao Yulei would find himself with no peaceful days left!

"Since the Third Imperial Brother shares such deep affection with this blind nurse, why not have the Third Imperial Brother endure these twenty slaps in the nurse's stead? After all, showing disrespect to a superior is no minor crime, and the Third Imperial Brother shares the blame as well. Who told you to fail in disciplining your subordinates?"

The notion of an imperial prince taking a punishment on behalf of a servant was unprecedented not only in the Da Jing Dynasty, but throughout successive dynasties as well—it had never happened before.

The Fourth Prince dared to make such a demand simply because Xiao Jingheng lacked favor, and moreover, he did not believe Xiao Jingheng would actually cast aside his dignity for the sake of a nurse to be trampled ruthlessly into the dust. Thus, speaking thusly was merely a means to torment Xiao Jingheng.

Yet Xiao Jingheng nodded without the slightest hesitation. Staring straight into the Fourth Prince's eyes, he said, "If the Fourth Imperial Brother insists upon this course, then I have no choice but to take the punishment on Nurse Zhao's behalf. I only hope that if this matter eventually reaches His Majesty's ears, the Fourth Imperial Brother can remain as unconcerned as you are now. I trust the Fourth Imperial Brother will not regret it then, for I myself shall harbor no grievances."

Unfavored though Xiao Jingheng might be, such an occurrence was utterly explosive no matter where it took place, let alone within the imperial family.

Furthermore, regardless of everything else, Xiao Jingheng was still a legitimate prince of the imperial lineage. Even though he had never enjoyed the glory and distinction that came with his status as a prince over the years, one could never overlook the undeniable fact that he was indeed the Emperor's biological son, merely disliked by his father.

In an ordinary household, such a situation could never arise. It only occurred within the imperial family, where the Emperor's will superseded all else.

The Fourth Prince was nonetheless greatly shocked by Xiao Jingheng's response.

He knew that this blind nurse had always attended to Xiao Jingheng's daily life, yet he had never imagined that Xiao Jingheng would agree to such humiliation.

However, he was someone who had always cared deeply about his own face. Although he had initially been certain that Xiao Jingheng would refuse, he had not expected Xiao Jingheng to consent without a moment's hesitation. Now, while he had not originally intended to go this far, he found himself riding a tiger and unable to dismount easily. Coupled with the fact that Xiao Jingheng had just invoked the Emperor to pressure him, anger flared within his breast, and he resolved to teach him a harsh lesson.

Since things had reached this point, he might as well go all the way and show no mercy!

"Even if it goes all the way to His Majesty's presence, I shall explain it to him myself, so the Third Imperial Brother need not trouble yourself. Since the Third Imperial Brother has said as much, if I were not to grant your wish, it would make me appear utterly ruthless, insisting upon punishing an elderly nurse well past fifty. Seeing that the blind nurse is indeed quite advanced in years, I fear her body truly could not withstand such a punishment. Since the Third Imperial Brother regards this blind crone like a mother and possesses such filial piety that you wish to take the punishment for her, how could I possibly stand in your way? Someone, drag the Third Imperial Brother down from the bed and make him take the punishment in place of this blind nurse!"

"Your Highness, you must not!"

Nurse Zhao dropped to her knees once more, scuttling forward on her knees until she reached the Fourth Prince's feet. Knocking her head against the floor, she wailed in entreaty, "Fourth Prince, this old slave is guilty, it is all this old slave's fault! This old slave should not have spoken out of turn; I beg Your Highness to show mercy and spare our Prince! This old slave is willing to take the punishment herself, this old slave is willing!"

With that, Nurse Zhao began to strike her own face, blow after blow landing against her cheeks, making her already aged countenance appear all the more pitiful.

His Third Highness was frail in health and a true prince of the imperial blood—how could he possibly be allowed to suffer a punishment in her stead?

Originally, if it had merely been a matter of Nurse Zhao receiving those twenty slaps, the servants would have been eager to step forward. After all, executing a punishment upon an old nurse while Xiao Jingheng was weak meant he would certainly not dare to avenge her and cause trouble for them; to do so would not only offend the Fourth Prince, but likely displease Consort Qi as well, making the trade entirely unprofitable.

Moreover, it would serve as an opportunity to show their faces before the Fourth Prince, and the attendants serving him were all too willing to scramble for such a task.

Yet now that the intended victim of the punishment had shifted to the Third Prince, they hesitated, not daring to step forward.

No matter what, Xiao Jingheng was still an imperial prince; how could they dare to strike him? If something were to go wrong, the Fourth Prince might be all right—after all, he was the Emperor's own flesh and blood, and even if the Emperor scolded him, he would never take his life, confining him at most for a period of time. But the same could not be said for lowly servants like themselves.

What if the Emperor grew enraged and executed every last one of them? What would they do then?

For a moment, the several eunuchs looked at one another in dismay, exchanging glances, and not a single one dared to step forward first.

The Fourth Prince waited aside for quite some time without seeing anyone move, and a wave of irritation rose within him.

"Can none of you hear what this Prince has commanded? Are you all deaf? If that is the case, I suppose none of you have any further need for your ears since you cannot hear anyway, nor is there any reason for you to remain by my side. The Ministry of Punishments has plenty of empty cells; sending a few of you over there will merely add a few more mouths to feed. Though more people will be eating, there is plenty of work to be done in the Ministry of Punishments, and I imagine they would be more than willing to receive you."

Hearing Xiao Yulei utter such words, no matter how reluctant they were to act, they had no way out. The men gritted their teeth until one of them—a small, cunning-looking eunuch—finally stepped forward.

After all, terrified though he might be of facing the Emperor's retribution later, that was a matter for later; perhaps the Fourth Prince would find a way to protect them. But if they failed to act now, the Fourth Prince might drag them out and execute them the very next second.

Death was death either way. Dying while executing orders for the Fourth Prince might at least prompt the Fourth Prince to remember their loyalty and treat their families outside the palace kindly.

Besides, dying a little later was always better than dying right now.

Therefore, the little eunuch gritted his teeth and stepped to the front, though his hands trembled so violently that he hardly dared to touch Xiao Jingheng, a sight that ignited yet another wave of nameless fury in the Fourth Prince's heart.

What was the meaning of this? Was it truly so difficult for him, the dignified Fourth Prince, to punish a prince born of a mere palace maid? Besides, one only had to look at who her mother was compared to Xiao Jingheng's mother. His own birth mother was the deeply favored Consort Qi; though Consort Qi's favor was dwarfed by Noble Consort Cheng's, she still secured an audience with the Emperor every single month.

Furthermore, the Emperor had always been relatively lenient toward the two of them—why would His Majesty ever hold him accountable for such a trivial matter? Besides, His Majesty never liked Xiao Jingheng anyway.

Perhaps Xiao Zheng figured that this son of his lacked any grand prospects, which was why he never bothered to be strict with him. The Fourth Prince simply did not realize that the Emperor merely pitied him and feared he would strain himself, which was why he had never set lofty goals for him or demanded that he read extensively.

Seeing the palace attendants standing about, staring at one another while the little eunuch who had tried to step forward remained hesitant and reluctant to strike, Xiao Yulei grew thoroughly enraged. He strode forward and delivered a vicious kick to the small eunuch, who tumbled to the ground completely off guard, striking his head heavily against the corner of a table and instantly losing all breath.