Chapter 107

Chapter 107: Blind and Deaf

When Sheng Zhi Wan entered the palace, An Zhi and Ting Lan stayed outside.

Walking alone toward the palace gate, she suddenly heard a familiar voice behind her.

“Nanny Xiu?”

Sheng Zhi Wan was startled.

“Princess, the Empress Dowager asked this maidservant to relay a message,” said Nanny Xiu.

“Please speak, Nanny.” Sheng Zhi Wan pressed her lips together.

“The Empress Dowager said when you were three, you made a mistake that was settled with thirty strokes of the paddle. But now, if the same thing happens again, even she wouldn’t be able to protect you. She also said you must remember clearly what she told you that day.”

Having delivered the message, Nanny Xiu cast a sympathetic glance at Sheng Zhi Wan, curtsied, and left quietly.

Sheng Zhi Wan stood motionless, watching Nanny Xiu’s departing figure.

When she was three, she first entered the royal school with her Third Imperial Brother, Sheng Yuan Hao, who was six months older. It was then she discovered her talent for remembering everything she saw or heard just once.

Books that Sheng Yuan Hao couldn’t understand, she grasped immediately. Explanations he struggled with, she could comprehend effortlessly.

Proudly, she showed off to her grandmother but received only a painful punishment of thirty paddle strikes.

She cried bitterly, but her grandmother showed no mercy.

That was the first time her loving grandmother had been so harsh. Afterward, her hands were swollen so badly she couldn’t hold a brush or chopsticks.

She was furious, demanding why her grandmother punished her.

Yet, as grandmother gently applied medicine, she warned, “You are only a princess. Always stay behind, never stand out. Otherwise, Grandmother will never see you again.”

That small child had been terrified.

Her grandmother had always been her closest family. She could bear no praise, but never her grandmother’s absence.

So, from that day, she began hiding her talents.

Day by day, year after year.

As she grew older, she repeatedly asked, but her grandmother always evaded answering clearly.

That was Grandmother’s way.

Whatever she wished to hide would never be revealed.

But Sheng Zhi Wan wasn’t foolish. She once didn’t understand, but later she just didn’t dare to.

This time, surely Grandmother sensed something and sent Nanny Xiu to warn her after she was scolded.

Sheng Zhi Wan closed her eyes with a bitter smile. When she opened them again, determination filled her gaze.

She knew her grandmother meant well.

Yet, she had retreated far enough. If she continued stepping back, would that person ever let her go?

In her past life, she had endured silently, ending in tragedy.

In this life, she would never retreat!

Whoever wronged her would pay dearly!

Her Imperial Father pushed her down, yet she vowed she would become someone he could neither suppress nor dismiss!

If Sheng Yuan Hao could reach that seat, if every prince could compete, why couldn’t she—a princess—also claim her place?

Taking a deep breath, Sheng Zhi Wan didn’t look back again.

Just as she stepped out of the palace gate, An Zhi and Ting Lan hurried forward anxiously.

“Princess! Just now, maidservant saw Meng Yang leaving the palace with the Heir Apparent! Did His Majesty not seek justice for you?” Ting Lan asked in confusion.

Sheng Zhi Wan briefly explained the palace encounter.

“How could this be? His Majesty did not punish Meng Yang but instead punished you? Is His Majesty—”

“Ting Lan!” An Zhi sharply interrupted, silencing Ting Lan instantly.

When the carriage stopped outside the Duke’s manor, before Sheng Zhi Wan stepped down, a sweet, soft voice drifted over.

“I never imagined Brother Zhang Da would misunderstand my intentions,” Meng Yang spoke bitterly. “To be honest, when I heard Princess was in danger, I wanted to rescue her alongside the Heir Apparent. But with my pregnancy, I feared I would only slow them down…”

Among the crowd, Su Qi Nian quickly agreed.

“Indeed! That’s what I thought too. Miss Meng is kind-hearted and noble—she would never be so vicious.”

“Clearly, Zhang Da Hu was guilty himself, and thus tried to drag Miss Meng into the mud!”

Meng Yang shook her head softly. “No, Scholar Su, you’re mistaken. Brother Zhang Da is loyal and grateful; he committed his mistake out of gratitude. Though the kidnapping of Princess wasn’t my intention, it did happen because of me.”

While speaking, Meng Yang suddenly saw Sheng Zhi Wan descending from the carriage.

Biting her lip, Meng Yang rushed forward, disregarding her pregnancy, and knelt heavily on the ground.

“Princess, please believe me! I would never collude with bandits to harm you. I swear to Heaven!”

“If I lie, may lightning strike me down!”

Meng Yang paused. Seeing Sheng Zhi Wan remain silent, she bowed her forehead sharply onto the ground with a loud thud.

Instantly, a deep crimson bloomed on her fair skin.

“Miss Meng!” Su Qi Nian frowned deeply. “Miss Meng meant no harm. Princess Ning, haven’t you ever complained privately to your family before?”

“How could you blame Miss Meng for Zhang Da Hu’s crime?”

Sheng Zhi Wan glanced briefly at Su Qi Nian, who respectfully awaited her response.

However, Sheng Zhi Wan turned away, ignoring them as she walked past Meng Yang.

Su Qi Nian froze. He was a top scholar, talented and handsome, yet this Princess Ning did not even spare him a glance.

Was it because he came from a humble background?

Suddenly filled with resentment, he blurted, “Princess Ning, must you be so harsh? Even His Majesty didn’t blame Miss Meng, proving her innocence!”

“If Miss Meng loses her child because of you, will your conscience rest easy?”

Sheng Zhi Wan halted momentarily, causing Su Qi Nian to clench his fists tightly.

But Sheng Zhi Wan didn’t look back, only softly mocking, “If she kneels, it’s because she knows she deserves to. Scholar Su, at your young age, you are already blind and deaf. If you became an official, how many unjust cases would you judge wrongly?”

Su Qi Nian froze speechlessly.

He wanted to argue, but Sheng Zhi Wan had already entered the manor.

“Scholar Su!” Meng Yang secretly rejoiced. Sheng Zhi Wan didn’t even try to win hearts. Su Qi Nian was someone the Third Prince valued, yet she so easily offended him.

“Scholar Su, I’m sorry I implicated you,” Meng Yang apologized sincerely.

Su Qi Nian finally snapped out of his thoughts and shook his head. “It’s fine.”

He was talented and knowledgeable, and no woman’s words could overshadow him.

“I just hope Princess won’t hold this against you,” Meng Yang said gently, standing up slowly.

Then she announced loudly, “There’s one more thing. Today, His Majesty reprimanded me for being eager to save lives without seeking the army doctor’s help, thus delaying several soldiers’ treatment. I deeply regret it and wish I could exchange my life for theirs.”