The four words'Son of a Treacherous Minister' echoed in Han Qingyue's ears like a clap of thunder.
She turned her head and saw Qing Chen's Face immediately darken. Han Qingyue panicked and quickly said, "My younger siblings are ignorant and speak without thinking. Please don't take it to heart."
"Don't worry, I'm not that irritable." Qing Chen gently patted the back of Han Qingyue's hand, which was gripping his arm.
He then walked towards the pavilion where the princesses and princes were.
Han Qingyue had no choice but to follow him.
Seeing Qing Chen walk towards them, the princes and princesses, who had just been righteously indignant, now showed expressions of worry and fear.
They had heard how arrogant and overbearing Qing Chen was.
They knew that simply being a prince would not deter him.
Half a month ago, a prince was slapped twice by Qing Chen in front of many ministers for offending him.
Although the royal family's Face was severely damaged, the Martial Emperor only punished Qing Xiong with half a year's salary for lax discipline.
As for Qing Chen? He received no punishment at all.
And that half-year's salary was not even a drop in the bucket for a powerful minister of Qing Xiong's caliber.
This further proved how astonishing the power of the Qing family father and son was in the Great Han Dynasty; even when a prince was beaten, the Martial Emperor could only turn a blind eye and deal with it leniently.
Returning to Qing Chen, as he was about to step onto the pavilion's steps, a figure suddenly appeared.
"The princesses and princes are still young and do not know how to speak properly. I ask Young Master to be lenient."
Qing Chen was unfamiliar with this middle-aged man who spoke while cupping his hands, having never seen him before, but he immediately recognized him as a Cultivator at the Peak Foundation Establishment Realm, likely a guard secretly protecting the princesses and princes.
"A mere Foundation Establishment Realm Cultivator dares to block my path? Get lost!" Qing Chen released his pressure.
"Golden Core Realm?!" The guard was greatly shocked.
He never expected that the rumored good-for-nothing, unlearned Devil King was actually a Cultivator.
Not only that, at such a young age, his cultivation actually surpassed his own, who had Cultivated for decades!
The guard was powerless to resist Qing Chen's pressure; it was as if an invisible mountain pressed down on his shoulders, his knees buckled, and he knelt with a thud before Qing Chen.
'Golden Core Realm?!'
Upon learning Qing Chen's current cultivation Realm from the guard, not only Han Qingyue, but also the princes and princesses, were equally shocked and afraid.
This was completely different from the'son of a treacherous minister' they knew, who only relied on his father!
Among these princes and princesses, only one possessed cultivation talent, and even with the support of vast royal resources, he was currently only at the third level of Qi Refining Realm.
Yet, Qing Chen, who was clearly only a few years older than him, had already entered a cultivation Realm he could not hope to reach!
Thinking about how he had just considered Qing Chen a useless person who only relied on his father, he felt his cheeks burning with pain, as if he had been severely slapped by an invisible hand.
He asked himself, 'If he is useless, then am I not even worse than useless?'
Qing Chen's figure swept past the guard, who was still suppressed by his pressure, and came before the princes and princesses. "What did you say about my wife just now?"
...Everyone lowered their heads, not daring to answer.
"You find her pitiful? Ridiculous? Deplorable? Then who among you knows that if she hadn't compromised with me, a hundred thousand iron cavalry would have broken through the city gates today, stormed into the capital, and annihilated your Han clan?" Qing Chen asked again.
Hearing these words, Han Qingyue's heart trembled.
Only then did she realize that Qing Chen wasn't angry about being called the'son of a treacherous minister,' but rather angry that her reputation had been slandered, and he wanted to seek justice for her.
[Successful Wife-Pampering! Congratulations, Host, you have received a random reward: Shadow Puppet +10!]
'Ten Shadow Puppets with Peak Soul Emergence Realm strength!'
Qing Chen showed a look of surprise, truly not expecting such a generous reward this time.
That's right, the reason he staged this was because he considered that his wife Han Qingyue's reputation had been insulted, and as her husband, stepping forward to defend her and protect her reputation was naturally a form of wife-pampering.
Facts proved his idea was correct.
As for his own reputation? That didn't matter. Qing Chen only wanted to pamper his wife and get rewards, so he could achieve the cultivation of a Great Emperor as soon as possible.
He firmly believed that as long as his strength was sufficient, there would naturally be great scholars to debate his Dao.
After Qing Chen's explanation, the princes and princesses finally realized how much their elder sister, Han Qingyue, had sacrificed for them, for the entire Great Han imperial family, and for the future of the nation.
They couldn't help but blush and feel ashamed.
"This time, for Han Qinyue's Face, I won't bother with you. Behave yourselves!" Qing Chen, seeing his objective achieved, had no interest in continuing to fool around with these young princes and princesses. He turned and left.
At the same time, he withdrew his pressure, making the kneeling guard feel much lighter. However, he dared not rush to get up, willingly remaining on his knees.
As a Cultivator, how could the guard not know the Dao of respecting the strong?
"Madam, there are many beautiful sights in this imperial garden. Shall we go explore other places?" Qing Chen came before Han Qingyue and suggested.
"Madam?" Seeing Han Qingyue remain silent, Qing Chen raised his hand and waved it in front of her eyes.
"Okay!" Han Qingyue suddenly snapped back to reality and agreed.
She left the pavilion with Qing Chen and walked away.
Along the way, she would occasionally steal a glance at Qing Chen with her Phoenix eyes.
She suddenly felt that the whole world had misunderstood Qing Chen, truly deceived by his exquisite acting skills.
Not only was he not a profligate, but he was also extremely shrewd, knowing how to conceal his brilliance and develop discreetly.
Although Han Qingyue had not been exposed to much about the cultivation world, she knew that for Qing Chen to reach the Golden Core Realm at his age, talent and effort were both indispensable!
The more she looked, the more she felt she couldn't see through Qing Chen, as if gazing into an abyss, a sense of powerlessness permeating her entire being.
It was hard to imagine where the future of Great Han would head if Qing Chen continued to grow like this.
Thinking of this, Han Qingyue hesitated, her mind wavering about whether she should leave Qing Chen when Xiao Feng returned in the future.
She didn't think Xiao Feng would be Qing Chen's opponent.
At that time, if Han Qingyue were to abandon everything, disregard the survival of the imperial family and Great Han, and elope with Xiao Feng to wander the world, she absolutely could not do it.
Han Qingyue was weighing her options. Based on Qing Chen's attitude towards her these past few days, if she was willing to stay by his side, she could at least buy more time for the continuation of the Great Han Han clan.
At least she could persuade Qing Chen not to rebel with Qing Xiong, start a war, and create a cruel situation where the people suffered.
As long as she sacrificed herself, she could preserve so many people. In Han Qingyue's view, it was definitely something worth considering.
After a brainstorm and weighing the benefits, Han Qingyue ultimately firmed her resolve to stay by Qing Chen's side, sacrificing herself to preserve the lives of countless others.
'Brother Feng, you and I are fated to be without a connection in this life. It is destined that we will only meet again in the next life!'
Qing Chen could not read minds, so he naturally had no way of knowing Han Qingyue's inner thoughts.
He caught a glimpse and thought of a new way to pamper his wife and get rewards.