Chapter Two: A Battle of Words and Wit

"Father, I admit my mistake. I shouldn't have left the manor without permission."
Before Master Shen and Lady Shen could react, Shen Zhining dropped to her knees with a resounding thud at the entrance of the hall.
This startled Master Shen, who had been furious moments before. His once unruly daughter suddenly appeared so disciplined and proper.
The two elders were momentarily speechless, but Lady Shen was the first to smooth things over.
"Ning'er, you haven't even reached your coming-of-age, yet you left the manor alone. If nothing happened, all would be well, but if something had gone wrong outside, what would your father and I do?"
Indeed, at this age, Shen Zhining had not yet turned sixteen, and the journey to the capital was long and arduous. In her previous life, she had sought only freedom and acted recklessly, never considering the dangers she might face on the road to the capital.
If she had been abducted halfway by bandits, it would not only have cost her life, but would also have left her parents heartbroken, forced to bury their child before their own time.
"Mother's lesson is right. I know my error. I was careless and will not make the same mistake again."
Kneeling on the ground, Shen Zhining bowed her head, a few strands of her black hair falling over her shoulders, making her appear pitifully fragile.
Master Shen sighed deeply, uncertain how to punish her.
After all, she was his child, and as long as she hadn't committed an unforgivable crime, he was inclined to let matters pass with only mild discipline.
"Ah... very well. Since that is so, I will punish you to kneel in the ancestral hall for two hours. It will serve as an explanation to our ancestors."
"I accept the punishment. Thank you for your mercy, Father."
Shen Zhining breathed a quiet sigh of relief. She had managed to escape this calamity.
"Uncle, I believe this is inadequate,"
Pei Zhi, who had stood silently to the side, now spoke coldly.
Everyone from the Shen family turned to look at him in surprise, and Shen Zhining drew a sharp breath.
This damned Pei Zhi! What on earth is he up to?
"Oh? And what do you suggest, nephew?"
"The teachings for women say that a girl must first learn to conduct herself properly. Only then can she be considered worthy. My cousin's actions today were meant to deceive her family, which is a sign of filial disrespect. In my opinion, she should be subjected to family discipline, with an additional twenty lashes."
"Pei Zhi, you—!"
Shen Zhining was furious. It was as if the emperor was calm while the eunuch was anxious!
She leapt to her feet, only to be blocked by Pei Zhi's personal attendant, Luoxue.
"Defying your elder brother warrants another ten lashes."
The atmosphere became unbearably awkward. Lady Shen anxiously signaled Master Shen several times.

Her Ning'er had always been cherished, held dear lest she wither, protected lest she fall. Even a scrape from playing in the garden as a child had pained her for days. Thirty lashes—who knew how much suffering her daughter would endure?
"Nephew's reasoning is not without sense, but Ning'er is a young woman. So many lashes might be too much for her to bear..."
Pei Zhi stood unmoved, not picking up the thread his uncle extended.
"My cousin is growing older. If she is not strictly disciplined now, greater troubles may arise in the future. Uncle, surely you do not wish to be accused of failing to raise your daughter properly?"
With one sentence, he changed the course of the discussion.
As Shen Zhining pondered her next move, Yuzhu suddenly dropped to her knees before everyone.
"Young master, it was all my idea. It had nothing to do with Miss."
She promptly knocked her head several times before Master Shen.
"Master, if punishment must be given, let it fall on me. Miss's body is precious. If she is injured and scarred, what would become of her?"
Shen Zhining was deeply moved, inwardly giving Yuzhu a silent thumbs-up. To shoulder blame for her mistress—well done!
Though Yuzhu was a maid, after so many years together, Shen Zhining already regarded her as family.
Especially in her previous life, after losing favor in the palace, Yuzhu had helped with all matters big and small. Even when she faced execution, it was Yuzhu who stood in front of her, ultimately dying at the hand of Pei Zhi's attendant.
Gazing at the small figure kneeling before her, Shen Zhining felt a pang of sorrow.
"Yuzhu... you need not plead for me. Your mistress is not so delicate."
She lifted her head, her gaze locking onto Pei Zhi.
It was only a whipping. In her past life, she had suffered far worse at his hands.
Perhaps Pei Zhi sensed the intensity of Shen Zhining's stare, for he averted his eyes, his brows furrowing ever so slightly before smoothing out again.
"Since you knowingly allowed Miss to err, you too should be punished—twenty strokes."
Shen Zhining had not expected Pei Zhi to be so ruthless.
At this point, the Shen elders could neither agree nor refuse, caught in a difficult position.
Especially the question of who should administer the lashes—a thorny issue indeed.
"Then we shall follow nephew's suggestion. Let the manor steward carry out the punishment."
This was the most compromising solution Master Shen could think of. The thirty lashes would be delivered perfunctorily by the steward—at worst, some superficial wounds that would heal in a few days.
"Uncle, for an outsider to discipline my cousin would harm her reputation. Pei Zhi is willing to act as steward and administer the punishment himself, so that she may learn her lesson. As for Yuzhu, let a servant deliver the twenty strokes."
Having reached this point, Master Shen had no grounds to object.
He stroked the few hairs on his chin, patted Lady Shen's hand, and nodded slightly, agreeing to Pei Zhi's proposal.

"Let us proceed to the ancestral hall, cousin."
Shen Zhining hadn't expected that even in a second life, she would not escape this fate.
The Shen family's ancestral hall had suffered a fire two years prior, so to avoid further disaster, few candles were kept inside.
As she pushed open the door, Shen Zhining surveyed the dim surroundings and the neatly arranged ancestral tablets on the table, feeling a chill seep into her bones.
She instinctively adjusted her collar and looked at the man before her, regal as a deity, unable to resist a mocking remark.
"Cousin, what a clever scheme. With a few words, you managed to have me whipped thirty times."
Pei Zhi was accustomed to dignity. In the capital, he was the legitimate son of Grand Tutor Pei, heir to the Pei family, and all the nobility fawned over him with flattery and sycophancy.
Faced with Shen Zhining's attitude, he was slightly vexed.
"I am helping you learn proper conduct. How is that scheming?"
For the first time, his usually emotionless eyes showed a flicker of feeling as he looked down at Shen Zhining.
"It is indeed clever. Whenever I err, you seize upon it and never let go... Could it be, cousin, that you are just like those ordinary men, trying to attract my attention?"
Shen Zhining was about to continue her ridicule, but the man before her suddenly grew grave.
"What did you say?"
The air fell silent.
Though he showed no anger, merely looking down at her, Shen Zhining turned pale with fear.
Because he was Pei Zhi.
And she was merely Shen Zhining, not yet sixteen.
Even when she later became empress, recalling her cousin's methods would still bring nightmares in the night.
In her previous life, Shen Zhining would never have dared defy Pei Zhi, not even with a hundredfold courage.
She took a deep breath.
No need to be afraid...
The man before her was not yet the powerful Lord Pei who dominated the court, and she was no longer the naive, youthful Shen Zhining.
She smiled disdainfully, slowly stepping closer. "Cousin, your concern for me is nothing more than a desire for my attention. So the paragon of virtue you always claim to be is just empty words, after all."