Chapter 12: The Mu Fuxing Siblings Suffer a Humbling

“Sister, are you okay? I heard that the Crown Prince might not make it, and I thought you would be a widow, so I…”

Mu Fuxing’s voice abruptly cut off. She started shouting before even entering the hall, clearly intending to let more people know that Mu Ling was going to be a widow.

However, as soon as she stepped into the front hall, she found the current legitimate princess and King Jing sitting there. Realizing that her disrespectful words had likely been overheard, she was almost scared to tears, standing awkwardly in place, unsure whether to advance or retreat.

The little princess and King Jing remained silent, merely casting cold glances at the three standing there.

Mu Yao was the first to react. He grabbed his brother with one hand and his sister with the other and knelt down with a “thud.”

“Greetings to His Highness King Jing and the legitimate princess,” Mu Yao felt his heart racing.

The three knelt before Mu Ling, the little princess, and King Jing.

After a long pause, the little princess finally spoke slowly, “Oh, it’s the three esteemed ones from the Mu Family. However… I just heard someone say that my brother, the Crown Prince, might not make it, and that my sister-in-law may become a widow? Which one of you said such disrespectful things?”

The two young masters from the Mu family were stunned. What did the princess mean? Was she unable to discern who was speaking based on voice alone?

While they were still kneeling in confusion, King Jing took over, continuing, “No matter who it is, that’s a crime punishable by extermination of the family. Little sister, why bother finding out who said it?”

The little princess nodded vigorously, “Yes, yes, making such a racket in the Eastern Palace, spouting such disrespectful words, is indeed a crime punishable by extermination. Well then, someone! Arrest them and throw all of them into prison. As for when to exterminate their family? Let the emperor decide.”

“Little sister, what about these three? If they are also thrown into prison, that would be too lenient, right? They must be executed directly,” King Jing no longer appeared as the dashing young noble, but rather like a grim reaper.

“Your Highness, Princess, spare us! We know we were wrong, please spare us!”

“Spare us!”

Except for Mu Fuxing, who remained dumbfounded on the ground, Mu Yao and Mu Zhu kept bowing their heads and pleading for mercy.

“Imperial sister-in-law, what do you think?” The little princess looked at Mu Ling, her large watery eyes glistening with mischief.

“Yes, yes,” the two brothers seemed to have grasped a life-saving charm, crawling toward Mu Ling.

“Disaster… no, little sister, please plead for us! Let us off. Fuxing only came to comfort you; she meant well.”

Looking at the two brothers, Mu Ling couldn’t help but recall the previous life, when they had relentlessly humiliated her and the little princess for the so-called good luck. Those unforgettable scenes of filth flashed before her eyes like a revolving lantern…

“Imperial sister-in-law, what’s wrong? You look so pale!” The little princess was startled by Mu Ling’s expression.

Just a moment ago, she was perfectly fine; what had happened to make her look so white?

King Jing also noticed, “Imperial sister-in-law, are you feeling unwell? Or were you angered by these three? Imperial sister-in-law, don’t be upset; I’ll deal with them and make sure they never appear before you again.”

Mu Ling realized she was feeling a bit off and quickly relaxed her tightly clenched fists, smiling and shaking her head, “I’m fine, just… thinking of some past events. You don’t need to worry; it’s all in the past.”

The little princess felt even more distressed, believing that her imperial sister-in-law must be recalling the past of being bullied. Hmph! Then it was time for her to teach these beasts a lesson! Her imperial sister-in-law was such a good person, beautiful, saved the Crown Prince’s life, and even gave her gifts—how could she be bullied by others?!

“Brother,” Mu Yao crawled a few steps forward, disregarding the disaster’s thoughts. Right now, saving their lives was the most important thing. He had noticed that both King Jing and the little princess cared a lot about the disaster; if she could plead for the Mu Family, the two princes would definitely give her face.

“You disaster… no, little sister, please speak! You can’t just watch our family be exterminated, right? If you can save the Mu Family this time, we will consider accepting you again in the future.”

Even while kneeling there, he spoke to Mu Ling in a tone that was still condescending, wearing a look of condescension.

Mu Ling smiled at Mu Yao, looking at him as if he were a fool, and softly replied, “Young Master Mu, don’t forget, we’ve already severed ties. I don’t care for your ‘little sister’! As for whether the Mu Family will be exterminated, you shouldn’t be pleading with me; you should be pleading with your lucky star instead. I believe that Miss Lucky Star, who carries good fortune, will ensure the Mu Family’s safety.”

“You!” Mu Yao pointed angrily at Mu Ling.

The little princess was furious! How dare he be so arrogant before her imperial sister-in-law? He was simply disregarding her status as the legitimate princess!

“Someone! Break this ignorant fool’s finger! Imperial sister-in-law is now a member of our royal family; no one is allowed to point at her!”

As soon as the little princess finished speaking, a figure quickly rushed forward.

“Ah…!” A heart-wrenching scream followed, and the figure instantly vanished.

If it weren’t for Mu Yao clutching his hand in pain and howling, no one would even know someone had come. Mu Ling sighed inwardly; the lightness of ancient martial arts was truly impressive!

“Stuff that mouth of his! I’m tired of hearing it.”

“Big sister,” Mu Fuxing began her act, “How can you let someone break my brother’s finger? We are blood siblings! Now that my brother’s finger is broken, he… he must be in so much pain!”

The little princess, who thought she had seen everything, was stunned! This so-called lucky star… she truly dared to act! She was twisting the facts and could still be so audacious?!

The little princess was infuriated, “No, no, no! What I said was that it was this princess who ordered the breaking of your brother’s finger! What are you performing for my imperial sister-in-law? Also, if I didn’t hear wrong just now, those disrespectful words… should have been spoken by you, right? If you hadn’t stirred up this trouble, could your brother’s finger have been broken?”

King Jing chimed in, “Yes, little sister, since she disrespected the Crown Prince, let’s deal with her first. The rest can be left to the emperor.”

“Someone, drag this so-called lucky star out and execute her! Oh, and let it be done in front of the Eastern Palace so everyone in the capital can witness it.”

“No, princess, spare me! Brother, save me! I’m the lucky star who can bring you good fortune; don’t forget, the imperial examination is just around the corner…”

“Pfft,” Mu Ling had just taken a sip of tea when she spat it out, quickly apologizing, “Um… I’m sorry; I just heard the funniest joke. I couldn’t help myself; you all continue, continue…”

King Jing laughed heartily, “Haha, imperial sister-in-law, that truly is a huge joke. If I’m not mistaken, the young master from the Mu family has participated in the imperial examinations twice and hasn’t even made it to the rankings… This lucky star isn’t very lucky at all.”

Mu Yao and Mu Zhu were stunned, even Mu Yao rolled in dissatisfaction. Yes, they had participated in the imperial examinations twice; could it be that his sister’s luck was… fake? They both looked at Mu Fuxing with suspicion.

“Brother, that’s not how it is! If it weren’t for my lucky charm protecting you, you probably wouldn’t even have qualified to participate in the examinations. Brother, please save me… we can discuss everything else when we return home, okay?”

Having heard her brother’s words, Mu Ling couldn’t help but think she was hallucinating. How shameless could Mu Fuxing be to say such things? How had she not noticed that the Mu brothers were so hopelessly stupid?! Had their limited intelligence all been used on being callous and malicious?