The Librarian and the Fox Princess: a Donghua Dijun and Bai Fengjiu story, V.I

Chapter 82 - Throw Down

She passively swallowed the wine that Shen Wu brought to her lips and leaned into his side as he comfortingly squeezed her arm. She was glad she had not been alone to hear those women talk. She could not understand how people could say such hurtful things about her and Qing Qiu. Besides Wen Yi, she had never met any of those female immortals. She had remembered previously trying to be nice to the Thunder God's niece and couldn't understand the venom she was receiving from her.

After Cheng Xi made them go back and repeat the greeting multiple times as words were dropped and missed here and there. He stepped forward towards Wen Yi who could be seen low-key fuming.

"Do you want to know why I choose not to spend time with you to instead enjoy the friendship of Her Highness?" asked Cheng Xi as he turned away from her with his hands held behind his back.

"She is not only infinitely more beautiful, she is witty, she is smart, she is brave, and most importantly, she is kind. I'm afraid you pale in comparison in all of those ways."

A growing crowd had begun forming around the garden where they were standing.

"Do you understand?" 

She said nothing. Her eyes flitted to the crowd while her rage simmered.

"I asked ... do you understand?" he said with a raised his voice.

"Yes ... Prince Cheng Xi ... I ... understand," she said through gritted teeth as her breathing became heavy and her fists balled up.

With a raised hand that was holding the wine gourd, Shen Wu pointed to the other three women. 

"Do you all also understand why she's never going to be Princess of the Western Mountains? I mean I know you're all afraid she'd going to thunder-smack you in the face but while we're here we won't let that happen."

"Yes ... Lord Shen Wu, we do. We understand ... we understand why she is not favored by Prince Cheng Xi," said the daughter of a Water Deity. "We should not have spoken ill about Her Highness Feng Jiu."

"Yes, in truth Her Highness has done nothing to us. We were ... just extremely jealous of the attention she was getting."

"We were wrong in slandering Her Highness. Wen Yi has been harping on about her and it was easy to just go along with it."

Shen Wu raised his eyebrows. One by one the other women admitted fault and spoke out against Wen Yi. 

"Well, look who's getting thrown under the palanquin," he said with mock surprise.

Wen Yi turned to her former friends and threw them all a condemning look. Now that she was abandoned by them she was seething more intensely and this was not lost on everyone watching the scene.

Xiao Jiu tugged at Shen Wu's sleeve. She shook her head. She was feeling bad about the public shaming. "I feel bad for her, let's just go," she said quietly.

"No," said Shen Wu firmly. "We stay, Your Highness, this isn't over."

Something in Wen Yi snapped in half.

"Don't try to act all high and mighty. You've turned them all into fools with your act. Who do you think you are? You're just a baby compared to all of us, do you think you can actually compete? You've made the Nine Heavens stink with the stench of a beast and the worst part is that you've taken advantage of Dong Hua Dijun!! Tuck your tail between your legs and leave with your brain-washed followers!!"

Something in the little fox princess came together.

She stepped forward. Her bells jingled softly as her nine beautiful white-tipped red tails manifested behind her from a rose gold pink shimmer.