I, Zhu Yunwen of the Ming Dynasty, resurrected Empress Ma at the start.

Inside the room, Zhu Yunwen casually leaned against the couch, crossed his legs, and slowly chewed on a piece of honey-preserved pastry that he had just brought from Kunning Palace.

His ears twitched slightly as he listened to the sounds outside the courtyard.

It was unusually quiet.

Even a fool would know that, given Lu's narrow-minded and vindictive nature, she must have already mustered her men and was rushing over here in a menacing manner.

Zhu Yunwen bit into the pastry, a cold glint flashing in his eyes.

All the grievances Zhu Yunwen had suffered in the Eastern Palace over the years, one after another, welled up in his mind.

In the dead of winter, with no charcoal in the house, I was frozen stiff.

He was forced to kneel in the ancestral hall as punishment, and he had to kneel there all night long. His knees became bruised and ulcerated, but no one cared.

Every aspect of their lives—food, clothing, and daily necessities—was shrouded in frugality, and those hurtful words were still vivid in my mind.

Zhu Yuntong slowly narrowed his eyes.

Zhu Yunwen endured it, but he couldn't tolerate even a little bit.

Let's settle both the old and new scores today.

He swallowed the last bite of his dessert, casually brushed the crumbs off his palm, and slowly stood up.

Just then, a jumble of footsteps approached from outside the courtyard, growing louder as they drew nearer.

"Her Majesty has arrived!"

"Your Highness, go out and greet him immediately!"

The eunuch's shrill voice pierced the silence of the courtyard.

Inside the room, Zhu Yunwen remained motionless.

Outside the door, Lady Lü, dressed in magnificent palace attire, stood at the forefront, her eyebrows furrowed and her face contorted with anger. Zhu Yunwen followed closely beside her, a barely perceptible hint of anticipation playing at the corners of his lips.

coming.

The real show is about to begin.

He had already envisioned that Zhu Yunwen would leave the house trembling with fear, be reprimanded by his mother in public, then be forced to kneel, be caned, and bow his head in apology.

To wipe away the humiliation suffered in the court today.

"Her Majesty has arrived!!! Prince Yunwen, come out immediately to greet her!"

The eunuch raised his voice and shouted it again.

Inside the door, all was still deathly silent.

Madam Lü's face grew increasingly grim, and she said coldly, "Shout again."

The eunuch took a deep breath and almost screamed:

"Her Majesty has arrived! Please, Your Highness Yunhu, come out to greet her!"

"Squeak—"

With a soft click, the door slowly opened.

Zhu Yunwen stood with his hands behind his back inside the threshold, lazily picking at his ear with an impatient look on his face.

"Why are you shouting so loudly?"

"I'm not deaf, I can hear."

His gaze swept over the large group of people outside the door, finally settling lightly on Madam Lü's face.

"Shouting and yelling at my doorstep, what kind of behavior is this?"

Lady Lü paused, her heart skipping a beat.

wrong.

This is not the Zhu Yunwen she knows.

In the past, Zhu Yunwen would lower his head and shrink his shoulders when he saw her, not daring to even breathe. He had never been so calm and aloof before.

She suppressed her surprise and doubt, adopted the demeanor of the Crown Prince's mistress, and spoke sternly:

"Zhu Yunwen, is this how you speak to me? Where has all the etiquette and manners you learned since childhood gone?!"

Zhu Yunwen suddenly smiled.

"etiquette?"

He took a step forward and stood on the threshold, looking down at people with an imposing aura.

"You came uninvited, barged into my courtyard, made a ruckus, and now you want to talk to me about etiquette?"

Have your manners been eaten by dogs?

Madam Lü's expression changed drastically: "You—"

Zhu Yunwen was also shocked, his face filled with disbelief.

Is this really the Zhu Yunwen who used to be so easily manipulated?

Lady Lü, her chest heaving with anger, pointed at Zhu Yunwen and demanded in a stern voice:

"I just sent someone to summon you, why did you disobey and refuse to come?"

Zhu Yuntong glanced at her, his tone as indifferent as ice.

"Why should I go?"

If you summon me, I'll rush over without hesitation.

Am I your slave, or your dog?

He glanced at Zhu Yunwen, a mocking smile playing on his lips.

"Some people are used to obeying orders, but I can't learn that."

Zhu Yunwen's face flushed red instantly, both ashamed and angry.

Lady Lü shouted sharply to stop him, her eyes bloodshot as she stared intently at Zhu Yunwen:

"Zhu Yunwen! How dare you! Today, I will discipline you properly on behalf of your father!"

Zhu Yunwen crossed his arms and let out a cold laugh.

"Discipline me? By what right? By what status? What qualifications do you have? Am I someone you can control?"

Empress Lü trembled violently and roared, "I am your mother! Your elder! It is only natural for elders to discipline their juniors!"

Zhu Yunwen's laughter suddenly turned cold, his eyes sharp as knives.

"Empress Dowager? You dare to challenge me?"

He stepped forward, his gaze sharp and fixed on Lady Lü.

"I only have one birth mother, and that is the younger sister of the Prince of Kaiping, my father's first wife! A legitimate and rightful legal wife!"

He swept his gaze over Lady Lü from head to toe, his tone utterly contemptuous.

"You're nothing but my father's second wife, a concubine who was later elevated to the position of queen, yet you dare to call yourself 'Empress' in front of me? Who gave you the audacity? Who gave you the face!"

Lady Lü trembled all over from the scolding, her face turning pale and then red, her lips quivering, unable to utter a single word.

Zhu Yunwen rushed forward anxiously: "Zhu Yunwen! Shut up! How can you be so disrespectful to the Empress Dowager!"

Zhu Yunwen glanced at him coldly, his tone hard.

"Who do you think you are to speak here? A son of a concubine dares to interrupt his stepmother's affairs? Get out of here."

The words "illegitimate son" pierced my heart like a sharp blade.

Zhu Yunwen's face was as red as pig liver, his fists were clenched so tightly that his knuckles turned white, yet he dared not move.

The sight of Zhu Yunwen sent a chill down his spine.

Madam Lü pointed at Zhu Yunwen, so angry she almost fainted: "You...you..."

After a long while, he couldn't utter a single complete sentence.

Zhu Yuntong felt extremely pleased to see her so angry and exasperated.

It's ten times more satisfying than debating with ministers in the imperial court!

He took another step forward, closing in on Lady Lü, his tone flippant yet concealing murderous intent.

"What, speechless now? Weren't you just going to punish me? Come on. I'll stand right here and see what you can do to me."

Forced by his imposing manner, Lady Lü subconsciously took a step back, stumbled, and nearly fell.

The palace maids and eunuchs rushed forward to help him up.

Zhu Yunwen chuckled, took half a step back, and patted non-existent dust off his hands.

Seeing that Lady Lü was being forced to retreat repeatedly, her face turning red, Zhu Yunwen finally couldn't hold back and strode forward.

"Zhu Yunwen! You have truly dared to be so insolent!"

He pointed at Zhu Yunwen, his voice suddenly rising, his tone stern and harsh.

"Today in court, you spoke disrespectfully to your grandfather! And now you are so rude to your mother! You have absolutely no respect for your elders and are utterly lawless!"

He deliberately puffed out his chest, adopting the posture of a crown prince, and reprimanded from above:

"I am the designated Crown Prince, and this is how you speak to my second brother? This is how you speak to the future heir apparent?"

Zhu Yunwen was taken aback at first, then burst into laughter, laughing so hard he almost couldn't straighten up.

"The Crown Prince?"

He finished laughing, raised his hand to wipe away non-existent tears from the corner of his eye, and his eyes turned cold.

"Who are you talking about? You?"

"Zhu Yunwen, are you out of your mind, or are you daydreaming?"

He stepped forward, his gaze sharp as a knife, fixed on Zhu Yunwen's face.

"Was the investiture ceremony completed today? Was the imperial edict read aloud? Did you kowtow in gratitude? Was the golden seal bestowed upon you?"

"Not a single one!"

"Then who do you think you are, the imperial grandson? Did you appoint yourself?"

Zhu Yunwen's face suddenly stiffened, and he trembled with rage: "You—!"

"What do you mean, 'you'?"

Zhu Yuntang interrupted him coldly, his tone as contemptuous as dust.

"You dare to use an empty title that hasn't even been officially conferred to you to intimidate me?"

"What a show of power! What a big face!"