Please Call Me Your Highness (GL) - Chapter 7

Although it was called the residence of a criminal official, it wasn’t shabby at all. There were several courtyards and even a small garden with a pleasant view. One could tell it had been hastily cleaned up for use—at least there weren’t any overgrown weeds.

Dong Xiaoning inspected the place thoroughly inside and out, then turned to the high-ranking palace lady who had followed her from Chengyou Hall. “Zhao Shanggong, are you responsible for all my expenses here?”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Zhao Minxi replied with calm respect, “Everything here will be managed by your servant.”

Dong Xiaoning glanced at the attendants and guards trailing behind her. She immediately understood the difference between this residence and Chengyou Hall—it was simply that one was inside the palace, and the other outside. From this, she could also grasp the Emperor’s intentions: suppression and protection in one.

“House arrest, is it?” she asked.

“You jest, Your Highness. Here, you are free to go where you please.”

“Oh?”

Dong Xiaoning’s tone rose slightly. That meant she could visit anyone at any time, and others could likewise visit her freely. However, anyone she saw and anything she said would likely be known—no secrets could be kept.

As expected, emperors who liked to play power games were never good people.

Dong Xiaoning wasn’t truly the Fourth Princess. The body was the same, but the soul inside was someone else entirely. She had her own will—and would live according to her own desires.

Recently, visitors bearing gifts had arrived in a steady stream. Carriages and sedan chairs had clogged the road in front of the estate. Some people complained that the Capital Prefecture was negligent, failing to maintain the roads, and even suggested tearing down the wall of the house opposite the princess’s residence to widen the street. But upon investigation, it was revealed that the house across the way also belonged to nobility, and so the matter was dropped.

However, that household somehow got wind of the situation and seriously considered tearing down their own wall, even sending word to the Princess’s residence about it. This frightened Consort Prince Ming Yuzhou, who quickly put a stop to the idea.

“Why are you so flustered? It’s only natural for others to flatter us,” Princess Ancheng said indifferently while sipping tea.

“We’re not even officially engaged yet, and you’re already so arrogant? What will it be like in the future?” Ming Yuzhou sat down heavily, fuming.

“What’s this? Are you losing your temper with me?” Princess Ancheng set down her teacup, her voice suddenly cold. “Do you know who I am? I am the biological daughter of the late Emperor and the younger sister of the current one. My daughter, naturally, has royal bl00d. What’s wrong with her inheriting the throne? Who dares object?”

“Have you lost your mind? Or are you just being foolish? The royal surname of the Great Yu is Dong. Zhexiu bears my surname—Ming. Surname means inheritance! Since when has the Ming family been qualified to inherit the throne?” Ming Yuzhou’s chest heaved with anger after delivering these words.

“…,” Princess Ancheng wasn’t foolish either. Hearing this, she finally calmed down a bit. But she was prideful—after raising her voice so high, she couldn’t easily admit defeat. So she said nothing.

At that moment, the voice of their daughter, Ming Zhexiu, came from outside.

“Daughter greets both mothers.”

In truth, Ming Zhexiu had overheard their quarrel and was greatly worried. Now that things had gone silent, she feared the argument had strained their relationship, so she spoke up.

“It’s Zhexiu? Come in, then,” Princess Ancheng called.

With that, Ming Zhexiu straightened her robes and stepped into the room with measured grace.

“Both mothers, Grandmother sent word that she is coming to visit. She’s likely already outside the gate,” Ming Zhexiu said respectfully.

“Oh? Then we must go greet her,” Ming Yuzhou rose at once, glancing at Princess Ancheng. Seeing her rise as well, he felt slightly reassured.

Madam Ming, who had many daughters, usually resided in the ancestral home and often visited her children. This time, she came with her daughters and granddaughters, an impressive procession that filled the street in front of the princess’s estate.

“Do you know whose carriage this is? Daring to block the way here—you’ve got a death wish!” Ming family servants shouted as they cleared the way, clashing with others.

“Ha! Why should I care who you are? We’re all lining up here. What—you think you can cut in line?” the opposing party snapped back fearlessly, their words striking a chord with the bystanders. Hostile eyes turned toward the Ming entourage.

“Blind fools!” cursed one of the Ming family servants, raising his horsewhip in anger. But before the whip could fall, the crowd suddenly stirred.

The once-packed street mysteriously cleared, making way for the chief steward of Princess Ancheng’s estate, who stepped forward with utmost respect and said, “Please, follow me.”

Under the guidance of the chief steward and guards of the Princess’s residence, Madam Ming’s carriage proceeded unimpeded to the front of the estate. There, Princess Ancheng, Prince Consort Ming Yuzhou, and several of their daughters were already waiting.

Madam Ming alighted from her carriage and, surrounded by attendants, entered the residence with a beaming smile.

Passersby turned to watch, murmuring among themselves.

Within moments, the already-crowded street became blocked once more.

Dong Yanning and Dong Muning arrived on horseback, just in time to see Madam Ming entering the residence from a distance. As they drew nearer, they became entangled in the jam of carriages and sedan chairs, unable to move forward.

Dong Muning gave orders to a servant, “Inform the Princess’s household to clear a path, just as they did earlier.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

The servant ran ahead, disappearing into the crowd. After a long while, he returned, face stricken. “Your Highness, this servant is useless—I couldn’t even meet with the steward. A minor official said the Princess is currently receiving guests and has no time to see anyone else. We were told to wait outside, and if we couldn’t wait, it would be taken as a sign of insincerity.”

Dong Muning flew into a rage. “Did you not tell them who I am? Which servant dares to be so insolent?”

“I did, Your Highness, but the man replied that the Princess had given orders not to receive any visitors today. He claimed his earlier words were merely polite, and that I was being unreasonable by pressing further—so he gave me an ugly look.”

Speechless with fury, Dong Muning cracked her whip in the direction of the Princess’s residence, her eyes burning with anger. In the end, she lashed her horse instead.

“Sister, I have other matters to attend to. I’ll be leaving first!”

Watching Dong Muning gallop away, Dong Yanning made no attempt to stop her. She too stared in the direction of Princess Ancheng’s estate, thought for a moment, then turned her horse and rode off in another direction.

“Good child, let Grandmother have a proper look at you.” Madam Ming grasped Ming Zhexiu’s hands, examining her with such joy it seemed her smile smoothed away her wrinkles.

At that moment, the sitting room was filled with members of the Ming family—all bl00d relatives—except for Princess Ancheng herself. The atmosphere was harmonious, nearly every face beaming with joy. Upon closer inspection, a hint of flattery could also be discerned.

As Madam Ming smiled and laughed, she suddenly grew emotional. “Ah, such a wonderful child… thinking of how, before long, you’ll be calling someone else ‘Grandmother’—oh, it breaks my heart!”

Clutching her chest dramatically, Madam Ming’s words struck Ming Yuzhou like a hammer to the head. His mind buzzed, and he quickly reminded her, “Mother, please be cautious with your words!”

Princess Ancheng, however, remained utterly composed, unfazed. The younger generation of the Ming family didn’t even grasp the inappropriateness of Madam Ming’s comment.

Madam Ming glared at Ming Yuzhou. “What? You think I spoke out of turn? Tell me—what did I say wrong? Go on, let everyone judge.”

Everyone knew Madam Ming was difficult to deal with. Even Princess Ancheng didn’t wish to argue with her, let alone the others. Ming Yuzhou, frustrated and helpless, wanted to reason with her but couldn’t find the right words—sweat beaded on his forehead.

“Yuzhou, you’re the Empress’s sister, Princess Ancheng’s prince consort, mother of all these children. You’re not some nobody off the street, always worrying about others. That commotion outside—I’ve heard all about it, and now I’ve seen it with my own eyes. Such prestige and honor—what more could you want?”

After that, Ming Yuzhou thought it might be best just to remain silent.

“His Majesty has already sent that disgraceful girl out of the palace—not even back to her former residence, but to a place once owned by a criminal. And with tight security, practically house arrest. What does that tell us? It tells us His Majesty no longer cares whether that wretch lives or dies. In his heart, he’s already accepted Zhexiu.”

At this point, Madam Ming gently patted Ming Zhexiu’s arm, her face radiating affection.

When Dong Yanning arrived at Guiren Ward, it was far quieter. After the late Emperor’s death and the fall of the Ji clan, many noble households in the area had been implicated. Many mansions remained vacant, including Dong Xiaoning’s former residence.

Even a casual glance from the street revealed the scene inside—half the gate had collapsed, and waist-high weeds choked the grounds. During the confiscation, the residence had been thoroughly ravaged, with even the floor tiles pried up under the pretext of searching for evidence of the Fourth Princess’s rebellion.

Naturally, no such evidence was found. Instead, twenty-seven charges of overstepping imperial boundaries were listed. Some even claimed the estate carried the “aura of emperors,” capable of producing sovereigns, and that the destruction was aimed at dispelling this royal energy.

As Dong Yanning recalled the past, she couldn’t help but wonder: perhaps the stories about imperial aura were true.

That residence, once home to the Fourth Princess, had once been filled with visitors, yet even then it couldn’t compare to the spectacle Dong Yanning had witnessed outside Princess Ancheng’s estate earlier.

Comparisons truly do vex the heart.

Perhaps noticing Dong Yanning’s lingering gaze, one of her attendants gently reminded her, “Your Highness, the Fourth Princess no longer resides here.”

“I know.”

Dong Yanning pulled herself from her thoughts. She had arranged to visit Ming Zhexiu with Dong Muning today at Princess Ancheng’s residence to strengthen their ties. Now, that plan was best left unspoken.