Among the onlookers, there were many people who felt sympathetic to Zhou Shihui and wanted to uphold injustice for her.

  Seeing that Princess Fulu hit a vulnerable woman to the ground, they all scolded Fulu,

  “I have long heard that those princesses in Chang’an like bullying commoners, and now I know it’s true!

  “It must hurt for such a delicate girl to be whipped so hard!”


  Hearing the reprimands from the people, Fulu frowned. “Zhou Shihui, don’t play weak, okay? What are you crying for? You provoked me first. Do you want to be put into jail again?”


  “Even if you are a princess, you can’t bully people like this, right? You almost whipped this poor girl’s flesh to shreds and you still threaten to put her to jail?”


  “Junior Sister!”


  Several students of Qingming Academy saw Zhou Shihui and stepped forward to help Zhou Shihui up.

  These students all spoke out from a sense of justice. “Princess Fulu, Zhou Shihui is a student of our Qingming Academy. She is not the kind of person you can bully at will.”


  “You’ve always despised the commoners! Qin Shu wanted to kill Qiao Ruoyun just because you said Qiao Ruoyun had the bloodline of slaves. Now you want to bully my junior sister? No way!”


  “Luoyang is not Chang’an. The students in Luoyang won’t surrender to power! Don’t even think about putting on airs in Luoyang!”


  Fulu took a few deep breaths and was about to whip Zhou Sihui again when Qiao Jinniang held her hand.

  Fulu looked at Qiao Jinniang extremely aggrievedly and said, “Are you also going to help her?”


  Qiao Jinniang said, “Of course not, but the more you fight with her, the more you fall for her tricks.”


  Qiao Jinniang looked at the students who were defending Zhou Shihui and asked, “Are you students of Qingming Academy?”


  The students saluted Qiao Jinniang together.

  Qiao Jinniang smiled and said, “His Royal Highness has always said that Qingming Academy is the best academy in Datang, and that even the Imperial Academy is a notch inferior. Since you can be admitted to Qingming Academy, you must be very excellent.”


  The students hurriedly said, “We’re flattered”.

  Qiao Jinniang said, “Since you are all sensible people, I’d like to ask you the meaning of honesty and credibility in the Book of Rites.”


  One of the students cupped his hands and said, “Confucius said, a man without honesty is capable of nothing. Honesty and credibility are the school mottoes of Qingming Academy.”


  Qiao Jinniang laughed. “So you all know that honesty and credibility are your school’s mottoes. Then is Zhou Shihui honest and credible by disguising as a man and studying in Qingming Academy with so many men?

  “Qingming Academy, as the best academy in Datang, not only didn’t expel Zhou Shihui from the school, but even recognized her, the disgrace of Qingming Academy, as your junior sister?

  “It turns out that Qingming Academy actually has no principles!”


  The students of Qingming Academy all blushed in embarrassment and looked at each other in dismay.

  Zhou Shihui said, “It’s wrong for Qingming Academy not to accept female students. Although I am a woman, I was admitted to the school after going through numerous tests of Qingming Academy. I just don’t want to waste my talent. What’s wrong with it?”


  “You are also a woman. As a woman, I had to disguise myself as a man to get the chance to study in the academy, which is the tragedy of all women. But now you are blaming me for not being honest and credible instead of speaking out for all women?!”


  Hongling said, “Zhou Shihui, how dare you disrespect the Crown Princess?”


  Zhou Shihui snorted. “You have nothing to say, so you can only suppress me with your position of the Crown Princess? So is that all you can do?”


  Qiao Jinniang said in a cold voice, “Zhou Shihui, you don’t have integrity but are still making excuses. You said that you just want to get better education, but the Imperial Academy accepts female students, and there are not a few women’s academies in the world.

  “Since Qingming Academy has the rule of not admitting female students, if you feel that it is a waste of your talent not to study in Qingming Academy, you should persuade the teachers of Qingming Academy to accept you with sincerity!

  “If your literary talent can really surpass the men in Qingming Academy, can’t you let Qingming Academy change the rule of not accepting female students for you?

  “But you got yourself into the academy with deceitful means. That’s why I said you’re not honest and credible. If Qingming Academy does not punish you, how can they explain it to the world?”


  A teacher of Qingming Academy hurriedly came out, knelt down and said, “Your Highness, what you said makes sense. We will definitely punish Zhou Shihui properly.”


  Seeing Zhou Shihui turn livid, Qiao Jinniang smiled contemptuously.

  “Didn’t you look so vulnerable and pitiful just now? Why are you suddenly so energetic as if you are going to swallow me? You were whipped by Princess Fulu because you humiliated her first.

  “I don’t want to waste time on you. If you are still in my way, I will punish you with the imperial rules!”


  Zhou Shihui was pulled aside by her maid. Even if Zhou Shihui didn’t want to, she had to bow her head and let the Crown Princess’ sedan chair pass first.

  Fulu followed Qiao Jinniang into her sedan chair and said huffily, “I really want to kill her! Who does she think she is?! I’ve never suffered such grievances.”


  “If it weren’t for you today, I would definitely have fallen for her tricks!”


  “How dare she bully me?!”


  Fulu had never suffered such grievances. What irritated her more was that those onlookers blindly defended Zhou Shihui before Qiao Jinniang appeared.

  “I’m going to complain to the Empress Dowager.”


  Qiao Jinniang stopped Fulu and said, “What’s the point of that? According to law, she will be at most locked in the Heavenly Prison for a few days, and she has been in jail before.

  “I am afraid she dares to be so presumptuous because of her mother.

  “I heard that Zhou Shihui’s mother was equally unruly and arrogant when she was in Chang’an. Have you heard of Zhou Qinghe?”


  Fulu shook her head and said, “She had already left in Chang’an when I was born, and few people would mention her.”


  Qiao Jinniang shook the fan in her hand and said, “If you meet Zhou Shihui again, cry if she cries. You are prettier than her. If both of you cry, the onlookers will definitely help you!”


  Fulu snorted. “I don’t want to play weak and shed fake tears like her. I just need Qiao Lu to believe me.”


  As soon as they arrived at the Qiao Mansion, unlike normal girls who would be shy to see their fiances, Fulu trotted straight to Qiao Lu.

  Princess Shou’an couldn’t help shaking her head when she saw this. Now all her daughter could see was her fiance…


  Qiao Ruoyun came up to greet Qiao Jinniang. “Hi, Jinniang, there you are. Please take a seat.”


  Qiao Jinniang took Lu Xi’s hand and asked Qiao Ruoyun in a low voice, “Has Prince Wu got you the divorce letter?”


  Qiao Ruoyun nodded. “Yes.”


  Qiao Jinniang breathed a sigh of relief. “It seems that he is quite capable. What do you think of him?”


  Qiao Ruoyun said, “Now I just want to take good care of myself. I don’t want to worry about my future. Besides, he is Prince Wu, a prince… I don’t want to marry a man of high status anymore.”


  “Hey, why do you belittle yourself?” Qiao Jinniang said, “Don’t believe what Qin Shu said. Mom and Dad are nobler than anyone else in my heart. They are not slaves.”


  Qiao Ruoyun said, “I don’t mean that, but I am a divorced woman, and it is difficult for me to have a child…”


  Qiao Jinniang sighed. She was different from Qiao Ruoyun, so she stopped persuading her.