All curious and confused pair of eyes fixated on Xuan Cheng, waiting for her next move. Nobody knew how she would react in front of her father and brother, because they all still remember that time vividly when a maid was caned to death for disrespecting the deceased old princess.
Lifting her white robe, she put forward her feet, that was just above a sharp edgy piece of ceramic bowl, the servants inhaled a deep and worried breath, holding in their shock.
Imagining her next action, was something they could only imagine, if she really chose to do what they feared, the matter might be escalated beyond the horizon.
Stepping on the pointy piece of a broken bowl, she walked on the floor filled with harmful pieces that penetrated through her soft unblemished skin underneath of feet.
As she moved forward, leaving the servants and maids completely bewildered, her thick red blood was left behind on the pieces she stepped on.
With literally no emotion on her face, she appeared before her father and brother and met Duchess Wan and her mother-in-law, who had seen her bloody footprints on the carpet, exchanging glances full of shock.
She walked past them and ignored the astonished gazes of the four people, settling down on her centre seat, she placed her arm on the table beside her, leaning to support her weak body.
Even though the father-son duo went blank to see her blood prints but they still remembered how she had been disrespectful towards them by not greeting them and by ignoring their noble presence.
"Xuan Cheng? How dare you sit without your father's permission!" Her brother yelled at her as she raised her eyes to finally meet theirs.
"And what's up with the act?" he shouted at her.
"I heard I was summoned here for an urgent matter, so I rushed here and forgot to even put on my shoes," she responded in a low voice.
"You mean you ran here?
You have no sense!
Losing your composure like that!
So unladylike..." Xuan Wu scolded her.
"I sincerely apologize for disappointing you?" Xuan Cheng twisted her eyebrows and asked in a soft voice.
Innocence attached to her pale face; trails of tears were clearly visible to human eyes. One could say she had suffered a lot after her grandmother's death.
"Drop the act!
You think if you talk like this, Father shall forgive you?" Xuan Wu barked at her.
"I don't know what have I done wrong, why was I summoned here?" she asked turning to her father, who was quiet ever since she came inside.
If they were leaving, they should have done so without making any noise, why bother wasting time on trivial matters and asking her to meet?
They thought she had lost too much blood by hurting herself. But nobody knew of the blood that burned beneath her skin at the sight of her estranged family members.
"You accepted bribery from people giving them false hopes, no wonder you are living better than many third-rank princesses," he taunted her, accusing her of crimes she never imagined.
"People bribing me isn't the crime here, it's the false hopes I gave them, right?" Xuan Cheng immediately knew the reason behind her insults.
"I have lived with my grandmother for twenty years to be exact, and never for once have I crossed the threshold of the grand entrance.
Just a princess on paper, I have no prestige, no power and naturally no wealth of my own, what you see is all because of Madam Dowager's generosity.
Having nobody beside me during this bad time, I am already depressed.
Why must you accuse me of something so unbelievable?" Xuan Cheng sobbed, the pain she endured earlier came in handy in squeezing out some tears.
Her delicate and fragile body, her soft voice, and her pitiful face stunned her trusted aides, who exchanged glances with each other, puzzled as to what their master wanted to achieve.
Everyone was dumbfounded, the Prime Minister was at a loss for words too, they all watched her like logs of wood. Duchess Wan and her mother-in-law immediately realized what Xuan Cheng was doing.
"O, dear princess, how can you have such a sad fate?
You must be lonely and scared, having no one to lend his or her shoulder for you to cry and vent your agony.
Such a good flower withered like that, people can pass by after showing their sympathy but they must trample on you," Duchess Wan approached Xuan Cheng and expressed what she should have in that situation.
Moreover, she wasn't lying, all her words her true though her acting wasn't, but it did fool them.
She referred to Xuan Wu as people who were trampling on withering flowers, poor he, had no words to defend himself.
Those who didn't know Xuan Cheng closely would indeed find the accusations a nonsensical illusion of a mad person.
A forgotten powerless princess who doesn't even cross her father's mind when he visits the place, she lives in.
A delicate and perhaps foolish princess locked inside her house can never have that street smartness or cleverness of a princess who grew up in the Imperial Palace.
There was no logic in the accusations, Prime Minister Xuan finally realized what senseless thing his son was talking about, and knowing how time was slipping like sand, he had to reach the palace before the burial ceremony.
He decided not to pursue this matter. However, he didn't blame his son, because he was misled by his subordinate.
After a long while, he turned to his son and smacked his back too hard that the general groaned in pain.
"We can't delay your grandmother's funeral, let's go," he yelled biting his lips angrily.
"But she is involved in corrup-" Xuan Wu felt extremely wronged, beaten in front of so many pair of eyes.
"What corruption? does it even make sense to you?" Xuan Wei scolded him, putting an end to the matter.
"Huan, respectfully see them out," Xuan Cheng commanded, wiping the corner of her eyes with her handkerchief, "Have a safe journey!" she addressed her father and brother.
Xuan Wei rolled his eyes annoyed and exhausted and didn't bother himself, he left before his son, Madam Dowager and Duchess Wan along with the maids followed him out.
Xuan Wu stayed behind and gave a murderous look to her, "Xuan Cheng, it may be true that you are framed, however, this mannerless behaviour of not even greeting us let alone seeking permission to sit from your elders is unacceptable," he yelled at her.
"Brother Xuan Wu, you are so funny...How can the hostess seek permission from uninvited guests just to sit at her own home?
Unrecognized and forgotten...but I am still a princess after all, if you want to follow the rules, there is no way I can greet you first, if you had and I didn't reply then you could have objected.
And, I? I would not speak a word to defend myself..." she responded, her pitiful and delicate face changing its colour.
Restoring her usual demeanour that terrifies people who offend her in any way. Unknowingly, Xuan Wu trembled as she looked straight into his eyes, he had seen many ladies pretending to be nice and sweet while hiding their fiery and unkind personalities.
However, it was his first time being unconsciously scared of a lady and someone changing her expressions in such a manner that it made him perplexed.
Which of Xuan Cheng's was the real one? The delicate and pitiful one or the scary and short-tempered one? He even doubted that the one before him and the one before everyone else were not two different people.
"Still! You were disrespectful to our father!" he pointed out after a long internal debate.
"Look at your audacity!" She left her seat and walked up to him, after staring into his eyes for a while, she realized she could not access her brother's memory even if she wanted to, the memory wall was protecting his past.
"There is no way Duke Ying's family can maintain your languishing expenses, I will surely find out your connection with Grand Empress Dowager and let you be the caged master of this mansion for the rest of your life," he threatened her.
SLAP!!!!!
Printing her fingers across his face, Xuan Cheng gasped, her blood boiling over from fury. Her crimson eyes and thundering voice warned him, "Don't you ever dare to implicate Her Majesty Grand Empress Dowager for your mere intuitions!
I don't know how have I ever offended you but whatever hatred you have, keep it between us only.
Do you want to make me your enemy?
Be my guest!"
Xuan Wu could not even react; he was jolted to get a slap from his sister he had not seen in fifteen years. He turned to leave hastily as someone called his name from outside.
"Young Master, we are leaving!"
Just as he was leaving, Xuan Cheng pointed her index finger and rotated it in the air, soon a circle of bluish energy was formed.
Spiralling towards Xuan Wu's back head, the energy grabbed something and pulled it out of his head, and holding a reddish ball, the spiral energy stayed where it was.
Xuan Wu continued walking without looking back, and as soon as he left, Xuan Cheng traced his path and took the reddish ball in her hand, closing a fist, she opened it again. There was a red pearl placed on her palm in place of the reddish ball of energy.
"What a nuisance he is!" she scoffed glancing at the entrance.
Watching her so-called brother leave the main hall, she breathed a sigh of relief and returned to her seat.