Your Highness, your wife has had her virginity mark applied and married someone else.

Even if Shen Mingshu's body can withstand these punishments, it will definitely arouse the suspicion of Old Madam Wei.

Wei Yuan stood protectively in front of Shen Mingshu and bowed to Wei Ziye, saying, "A gentleman should bear his own responsibilities. It was I who caused Mingzhu to stay up too late at night, which led to today's mistake. I am willing to take the punishment for her."

"How can a master be punished when his page makes a mistake? If everyone behaved like you, where would the rules of propriety be? Where would the hierarchy be?"

An arrogant voice rang out, and Shen Mingshu turned her head to look. She could only see that the person was dressed in luxurious clothes, but she could not recognize who it was.

But looking across the entire capital, only the eldest princess's people dare to meddle in the affairs of the Wei family without any reason.

Wei Yuan looked at Yan Jing: "Young Master Yan, you are mistaken. Mingzhu is not a slave. He has been with me until now and is a close friend. A gentleman acts only to have a clear conscience. I have no intention of criticizing others."

"Hmph, you think you can just say no and that's it? Why don't you go ask these lowly commoners?"

Yan Jing raised his hand, pointing at the group of pageboys: "Why are your pageboys so pampered and can't be punished? If they are punished in the future, will they blame us for not being as kind as you?"

Wei Yuan's expression turned colder: "Who can control what others think? They only need to do their job; what does it matter what they're thinking?"

"How can it be alright?"

Yan Jing, hands on his thick, broad waist, pressed on aggressively, saying, "If all the lowly people honestly guarded their own little plot of land, how would they dare to covet anything else? How would they foolishly dream of instigating unrest?"

"By breaking down hierarchical social classes, you are inciting them to harbor disloyal thoughts!"

Even a blind man could see his ulterior motives just by wearing that tall hat.

"Are you ever going to stop?"

A clear, crisp voice rang out, tinged with impatience: "Brother Yuan already said this is his close friend! A close friend, understand? Not a slave! Oh right, you don't even have any friends, so where would you get a close friend from?"

Shen Mingshu looked at the person who dared to provoke the princess in public with curiosity, and her expression instantly froze.

Lu Youyou?

Since Shen Mingshu's physical attributes couldn't be increased due to her disguise as a man, she could only adopt a more masculine and delicate appearance through makeup.

But Lu Youyou clearly didn't want to do that; apart from wearing men's clothing, nothing else changed.

Did the people from Qingyun Academy really not recognize him, or were they afraid to recognize him?

Clearly, Yanjing was the latter.

When he saw the person approaching, he was like a rooster with its neck being choked; he immediately shut his mouth and retreated back into the line.

He was completely different from before, acting like an honest man.

Shen Mingshu couldn't help but glance at Lu Youyou a few more times. Someone who is more arrogant than the troublemaker is not necessarily a person in power, but must be the apple of the eye of the person in power.

As a family that the emperor had personally supported, even if the eldest princess wanted to fight against the Wei family on behalf of the emperor, she would have to give way to Lu Youyou.

Wei Yuan's alliance with the Lu family truly made them a perfect match.

However, he was not happy at all. Instead, he looked at Shen Mingshu with some nervousness and explained in a low voice, "I'm sorry, I didn't know."

As for the little princess, she does whatever she wants, which Shen Mingshu understands.

Just as Lu Youyou didn't recognize her at this moment, but still smiled sweetly at her out of affection, Shen Mingshu was able to remain gentle and return the smile.

Wei Ziye took all of this in, raised an eyebrow slightly, and gave a mocking smile.

"In that case, you two will be punished together after class."

"What! Why?!"

Lu Youyou's expression changed in an instant. She immediately stood in front of Wei Yuan, hands on her hips, confronting Wei Ziye.

"Rewards and punishments should be measured, Brother Aye—cough! Doesn't Master Wei know that? It's just a little late, and none of us who were waiting in the sun said anything, so why did you have to cause trouble so early in the morning!"

Wei Ziye stared at her intently: "The three of you will be punished together."

"..."

Lu Youyou was so angry she wanted to yell, but Shen Mingshu quickly said, "Mingzhu, accept the punishment! Please, teacher, show mercy and don't delay the two young masters' studies."

Wei Ziye only said to run three laps, without setting a time limit or specifying how to run.

As for the cane, she didn't believe Wei Ziye would stand by and watch her spank him!

……

"what!"

A thin whip lashed solidly across the back of Shen Mingshu's leg, causing her to nearly jump up in pain.

Wei Ziye leaned against the door, arms crossed, staring intently at her: "Press her down."

"yes!"

"Wait! I'm not moving!"

Shen Mingshu touched the soft cushion on her buttocks, turned to the servant who was "executing" her, and said with a hint of pleading, "Could you please aim a little better? You just hit my inner thigh."

The servant chuckled awkwardly and scratched his head: "Sorry, I'm new here, you're the first one I've ever hit."

"..." Shen Mingshu's smile froze for a moment: "Then I'll come closer and call you."

The servant was about to thank her for her thoughtfulness when Wei Ziye simply reached out his hand: "Give it to me."

For you? For what?

Shen Mingshu subconsciously clutched the soft cushion on her buttocks, but when she turned her head, she saw the servant presenting the thin whip to Wei Ziye!

Shen Mingshu: "!!!"

"No!"

She immediately jumped into a corner, screaming, "His arm strength is incredible! He once drew a 120-pound bow three times! If he whipped me, I'd die!"

“Pah!”

Wei Ziye whipped the air, the tip of the whip tearing through the air at lightning speed, producing a crisp, deafening sound!

Shen Mingshu's eardrums vibrated, and her body suddenly shrank back.

"Breaking the record." Wei Ziqian smiled slightly and curled his lips: "Six times."

"..."

Shen Mingshu stood up straight with a serious face, pointed at the servant, and shouted, "I want to see the headmaster!"

The servant swallowed hard, silently mourned for Shen Mingshu for a second, and then immediately ran away!

"you--!"

"Come here." Wei Ziye stared coldly at Shen Mingshu. "Otherwise, bring out the cushions."

Realizing that Wei Ziye genuinely wanted to slap her, Shen Mingshu was furious: "Wei Ziye! You'd better stop! Don't get yourself into this act!"

"Okay." Wei Zishi put away the thin whip. Shen Mingshu's eyes lit up and she heard him say again: "Go to Shen's Mansion now."

"..."

Shen Mingshu lay on the bench and muttered a reminder: "Nine counts left."

The bench was thick and wide, and Shen Mingshu, lying on it, looked extremely petite.

Wei Ziye's eyes darkened slightly, and he slowly raised his hand before slapping down hard!

"Snapped!"

"Ugh!" Through the soft cushion, Shen Mingshu felt her buttocks go numb for a moment!

That bastard even tore the cushions! Just how much does he hate her?

"Crack!" Another lash struck, this time hitting her inner thigh. A burning pain shot through her, and Shen Mingshu was about to get up and yell at him for being blind.

"Snap!" The whip struck the same spot repeatedly, and Shen Mingshu instantly felt numbness in her right leg.

She let out a soft moan of pain in her throat, and belatedly realized that Wei Ziye was retaliating for the kick she had given him!

"Crack! Crack!" Two lashes landed on her left buttock, and Shen Mingshu clearly heard the crisp tearing sound of the soft cushion.

The cushion was completely ruined, and she dared not lie down any longer. Just as she was about to get up and call for a stop, another lash came down.

It wasn't a hard blow, but it landed on her sensitive right waist...

"Ugh!" Shen Mingshu's body went limp, and her upper body, which had just stood up, went back down.

Her pupils dilated for a moment, but she suppressed her heart pounding and immediately cried out, "No! I know I was wrong! Don't hit me—ah!"

The fine whip whistled around his right waist, accompanied by the occasional sharp cracks of the whip.

Shen Mingshu gritted her teeth, her nerves taut as she waited for the whip to fall.

But the more this happened, the more deadly the sensation of the whip falling was compared to the slight pain. Before long, fine beads of sweat appeared on Shen Mingshu's forehead.

"Enough, enough—"

Shen Mingshu reached out her hand, her slender knuckles turning bluish-white from clenching her fists. She grabbed Wei Ziye's hem and shook her head weakly.

"That's enough, stop fighting..."

This delicate cry finally shattered the cold mask on Wei Ziye's face, revealing countless emotions surging in his dark eyes.

He crouched down and gently took Shen Mingshu's hand in his.

A hoarse, low voice asked, "Do you know you're wrong?"

Shen Mingshu, panting, paused for a moment, then slowly nodded.

Her rosy cheeks made her look incredibly obedient.

Wei Ziye's lips curled into a smile she herself didn't even realize, the restlessness in her heart over the past few days was soothed at this moment, and her fingertips unconsciously began to caress her slender, white fingers.

Suddenly, his fingertips stopped abruptly.