I'm a humble concubine. My acting skills are off the charts. You can check my performance.

Zhao Fangyu was speechless and turned around to salute silently.

The eldest prince shut up quietly the moment he saw her face clearly. The woman in the round-necked robe with floral patterns beside him saw that the eldest prince no longer followed her words, and the look in her eyes when she looked at Zhao Fangyu also became a little gloomy.

"From your attire, you are a palace maid. How dare you neglect your duties like this? What do you think of the palace rules and regulations?"

The clothes Zhang Yingying wore were very different from those worn by Zhao Fangyu. Her clothes had a round collar with round flowers, unlike Zhao Fangyu's clothes which were almost the same as those worn by ordinary palace maids.

Zhao Fangyu also has similar clothes, but he only wears them when attending important meetings.

Zhao Fangyu had spent several months of comfortable life in the palace and had relaxed his vigilance. Unexpectedly, he happened to run into this pair of devils. He felt stiff as if he had been struck by lightning.

It's also her fault that few people come to the Sutra Hall, but it's not completely empty. She still has to pretend to be there in the future.

Without waiting for Zhao Fangyu to speak, Zhang Yingying punished her.

She was punished to kneel here for two hours and then receive five beatings with the board.

As soon as the others left, a young palace maid came out from the Sutra Hall and tried to secretly put a cushion under Zhao Fangyu's knees, but Zhao Fangyu shook his head to refuse.

This is the heroine...

Really good, it’s obvious that she is a good material for modern female competition.

Zhao Fangyu knew that she might have already put up a good fight in front of Zhang Yingying, and was afraid that she would find out later that someone had helped her when she was punished to kneel, and would vent her anger on the girl.

After all, she has a father of the third rank behind her and a beautiful cousin of the fourth rank at her doorstep. Even if Zhang Yingying wants to torture her, she has to find her fault first.

"Help me carry the kettle of boiled water to the back of the hall, and take the stove with it."

Zhao Fangyu was reluctant to part with the pot of boiled water. After all, she had to kneel for two hours to get it. She had to have a sip, otherwise she would not let Zhang Yingying go even in her dreams tonight.

Not long after he knelt, a shadow suddenly appeared in front of him.

Zhao Fangyu thought it was still the little palace maid who felt sorry for her just now. She even took a closer look and saw that what fell next to her was a pair of white-soled black boots!

When I looked up, it was Pei Yan who had changed his clothes.

When I saw him before, he was usually wearing a black flying fish suit. Now there is some red on his clothes. It must be... a promotion?

In addition to Pei Yan, there were also young eunuchs from the Ministry of Internal Affairs who came with sticks and benches to carry out the executions.

"Madam Zhang doesn't know the palace rules, and you don't know them either?"

The young eunuch had never seen the Jinyiwei many times. He only saw that Pei Yan was wearing red clothes, but couldn't tell his rank, so he was already trembling with fear.

The two aunts each have their own backers, especially the aunt in the Sutra Hall, whose cousin lives right in front. Who dares to really take action? Now there is a Jinyiwei...

The young eunuch was shaking all over and wished he could kowtow to Zhao Fangyu.

Zhao Fangyu's knees were sore and painful. Even though he had tried his best to distribute the strength to the entire calf that was in contact with the ground, his knees were still the most seriously injured.

Pei Yan remained calm and blocked Zhao Fangyu's figure to talk to the young eunuch. Zhao Fangyu took the opportunity to rub his knees. They were so numb that he couldn't move. When he touched them, it felt like he had pulled a tendon with his bare hands. Half of his body ached.

"Madam Zhang is a female official in the Shanggong Bureau. The Sutra Repository is under the Shangyi Bureau. They are of the same rank, but there is a difference between the two bureaus. How can she have the power to punish?"

When the young eunuch heard this, he immediately nodded rapidly. Several people dragged their things and ran away, fearing that they would be caught up by Pei Yan.

They are the Imperial Guards! How many good people are there in the Imperial Guards?!

"Can you get up?"

Zhao Fangyu shook his head and rejected the hand extended by Pei Yan. Pei Yan was not angry. He left the umbrella handle and went straight to the Sutra Hall.

The young palace maid helped Zhao Fangyu up with a smile on her face. She was sincerely speaking up for Zhao Fangyu: "That lady official Zhang is so unreasonable. She doesn't take care of the work of the Shanggong Bureau all day long. Instead, she walks around the palace, afraid that others don't know that the person standing next to her is His Royal Highness the Prince."

Zhao Fangyu walked with difficulty. He felt pain all over his body with every step he took. His knees were extremely weak and he had to rely on his willpower to support himself, otherwise he would not have been able to stand.

In the past, at home, it was just a minor fight, copying books and being put in solitary confinement, but it was nothing like here? It was often a beating or kneeling punishment.

Zhao Fangyu didn't have the strength to cover her mouth, his face turned pale: "She has a backer, let's just wait and see, why bother to say it outside, don't let her hear it, and get you into trouble again."

The little palace maid was called Hongzhu, one year younger than Zhao Fangyu, with a round and childish face. "I'm not afraid. No one has come to our Sutra Repository for eight hundred years. It's because she has nothing to do that she has to go through all the palaces. Otherwise, why would it be our turn?"

Zhao Fangyu couldn't persuade her. Normally, he would have to reason with her, but today was really bad. She felt so light-hearted after kneeling for the entire day.

When he entered the hall, Pei Yan picked up two books and sat on a chair in the hall to read them.

Zhao Fangyu limped in and was helped to the couch by Hongzhu. The teacup at hand contained the boiled water that she had been punished to drink before.

The life of female officials was only slightly better than that of palace maids. Their daily meals came from the imperial kitchen. If they wanted to do something on their own, they had to establish connections with people in the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

It was rare for Zhao Fangyu to drink boiled water. When he thought of the scene at home, and then thought about how he had to be sneaky now to drink a glass of boiled water, he didn't know which one was better given the huge gap between the two.

Hongzhu went to clean the house, while Zhao Fangyu was drinking tea in the hall. Pei Yan saw that there was no one around, so he said to Zhao Fangyu, "Madam Zhang may come to the eldest prince's mansion. You should avoid her on weekdays."

Pei Yan no longer follows the eldest prince and only concentrates on the duties of the Jinyiwei, but he has heard a lot about the romantic affair between the eldest prince and the female official Zhang.

To be honest, most men looked down upon Ms. Zhang's behavior. She was very flattering and could hook people's hearts, but she kept them hanging, and was always so distant. She said she didn't love you, but at the same time she smiled at you with narrowed eyes, trying to refuse but also to welcome you. She was just like someone who works in a brothel.

It just so happened that several princes just fell for it, and Pei Yan was also surprised.

But things are different now. Pei Yan looked at the white on his wrist and couldn't help but smile bitterly.

If his father had not suddenly encountered an accident, he would have been able to protect Zhao Fangyu in the deep palace.

Back then, when he was in Longxi, he owed her a favor, and he was able to repay it. But now, even if he wanted to repay her, he was powerless.

Thinking of the mess in the Southern Pacification Office, Pei Yan couldn't help but have a headache. Seeing that he couldn't continue reading the book, he simply stopped reading it, put it back in its place, and said to Zhao Fangyu: "That female official Zhang has a special style and doesn't like women very much. If you can avoid her, avoid her. If you can't, send someone to inform your cousin. If it's inconvenient, you can send someone to the duty room of the Southern Pacification Office to find me."

Meng Yanzhen is a concubine after all, so she might be cautious when meeting an adult prince, especially the eldest prince.

That's why Meng Yanzhen had to avoid Zhao Fangyu when he was punished this time.

After all, Pei Yan was the eldest prince's study companion when he was young. Although his father had died, he and the eldest prince still had some friendship as classmates, and they could still talk at critical moments.

Zhao Fangyu stood up with difficulty to thank him, asked Hongzhu to see Pei Yan off, and sat back on the couch.

I just hope that after this matter is over, Zhang Yingying will not come to the Sutra Hall anymore. It would be best if they don’t interfere with each other.