Chapter 926: Chapter 880: Finale Arc (6) Heartless Mother

Zhao Shuo’s residence was some distance away from the outer study.

Wen Wan walked out of the study, with Prince Cheng following behind her.

"Your Highness, it would really be fine for a servant to take me there," she said, not wanting to stay with Prince Cheng for too long, especially when her visit to the Princely Heir wasn’t purely a simple meeting.

Prince Cheng easily saw through her little scheme and sneered, "Leaving me behind so you can tell all this to Shuoshuo?"

Wen Wan immediately retorted, "Could it be that the Princely Heir is completely unaware of it?"

Prince Cheng’s expression turned grim, and he scolded, "Enough with the nonsense!"

Wen Wan pursed her lips and asked again, "Your Highness, have you ever considered that if the Princely Heir knew you killed so many people for him, he would be burdened with guilt for the rest of his life?"

"Guilt?" Prince Cheng seemed to have heard a huge joke, "Hasn’t he eaten enough?"

These words made Wen Wan feel nauseous and sick, and her hairs stood on end.

Prince Cheng was just a mentally twisted maniac; reasoning with him was no different from playing the lute to a cow.

As she exited the courtyard and stepped onto the covered corridor, Wen Wan vaguely heard voices in the nearby garden. She instinctively looked over and saw several maids surrounding a "little girl." The "little girl" was dressed in fine cotton clothes, starkly contrasting with the opulence of the Prince Mansion, with her hair tied in a small bun and adorned with two fluffy flowers that were sold for three coins on the market.

The "little girl" was chatting with the maids and seemed to hear footsteps from this side, slowly turning around.

Seeing the "little girl’s" face, Wen Wan’s breath caught.

Upon seeing Wen Wan, the "little girl" blurted out one word, "Mother..."

A maid asked him, "What did you say?"

The "little girl" was none other than Jinbao, brought to the Prince Cheng Mansion by Song Wei.

Seeing his mother and Prince Cheng appear together made his heart ache, and he pursed his lips, plucking a flower from nearby and said gloomily, "Mother once said these flowers could be used to make rouge."

"So Little Flower likes rouge, huh?" one of the maids said cheerfully, "If you like, we can pick some flowers later and make some ourselves."

Jinbao turned away, not wanting to look at that heartless woman any longer, and ran forward on his short legs.

The maids’ faces changed, and they quickly chased after him.

Wen Wan only turned back her gaze when Jinbao’s figure disappeared.

Prince Cheng noticed something was off, half-narrowing his eyes suspiciously, "Do you know him?"

"I don’t know him," Wen Wan shook her head, "But such a pretty little girl, I’m sure any mother would adore her."

Prince Cheng recalled the undisguisable joy on his Princess Consort’s face when she saw Little Flower and did not refute Wen Wan’s words.

The two of them made their way to the Yilan Courtyard.

Upon entering, they saw a spacious courtyard with a lush Albizia tree in full bloom, the branches heavy with pink and white flowers, occasionally dropping a few at the wind’s behest.

Under the Albizia tree was a stone table and stools, with a slender youth seated on one stool, bearing a resemblance to Zhao Xi, but with a paler, unhealthy countenance.

He was holding a brush, writing something with a meticulous demeanor.

Hearing footsteps, the youth looked up at them, his gaze pausing on Wen Wan before turning to Prince Cheng, whereupon he stood up and bowed respectfully, "Greetings, Father."

Prince Cheng nodded and asked him, "Have you taken your medicine today?"

Zhao Shuo recalled the odd-tasting medicine, his brow furrowing slightly, "I took it once this morning."

Prince Cheng nodded and introduced him, "This is Princess Yong’an."

Zhao Shuo turned to Wen Wan and bowed again, "Greetings, Your Highness."

In terms of seniority, Wen Wan was his aunt, so he should indeed bow to her.

Wen Wan looked at the boy’s emaciated figure, feeling deeply conflicted inside.

From the first glance at Zhao Shuo, she could be sure that the young man was unaware of the vile deeds committed by Prince Cheng and was also ignorant of the ingredients in the medicinal soup he drank daily. If she were to bluntly tell him the truth, Zhao Shuo would undoubtedly be provoked into an illness.

If Zhao Shuo were to die, how would she be different from the heartless murderous maniac that is Prince Cheng?

Thinking of this, Wen Wan’s lips curled into a smile, "I’ve heard that the Princely Heir is to select a concubine tomorrow, and the Princess Consort has invited me to come and give my opinion. I couldn’t hold back, so I came by the mansion today to take a look at you."

She continued, "I noticed the Princely Heir doesn’t look quite well, are you feeling unwell?"

Zhao Shuo glanced at her gratefully, "Thank you, Commandery Princess, for your concern. This is a congenital ailment since birth, nothing too serious. Since the Commandery Princess is here, would you come inside for a cup of tea?"

Zhao Shuo spoke and called his servant over to brew tea for Wen Wan.

Wen Wan glanced at Prince Cheng, whose face was tense throughout, and shook her head, "I have other matters soon, so I won’t stay long. Farewell, Princely Heir, take care."

Once out of Yilan Courtyard, Wen Wan suddenly felt a blankness in her mind, yet her heart was exceptionally heavy.

Without realizing it, Zhao Shuo had been tied to the lives of so many children, and when the truth finally emerges, it would be devastating for him.

The voice of Prince Cheng from behind carried a threat, "You’ve seen him, Commandery Princess. When do you plan on starting?"

Wen Wan snapped out of it and looked back at Prince Cheng, "I have just seen your people, so what about my people?"

Remembering Jinbao, who was disguised as a little girl in the garden earlier, Wen Wan felt something was off, "Prince, you keep insisting that my husband and son are in your hands. If you want to threaten me, you must let me see the hostages first, otherwise, how can I wholeheartedly fulfill your demands?"

Prince Cheng’s eyes flickered, then his face darkened, "Are you trying to bargain with me?"

"I wouldn’t dare." Wen Wan’s tone was calm, "Since the Prince knows all of my secrets, you should be aware that wearing the bracelet of the Yun Family might have adverse effects, it could cost a life if I’m not careful. I am not one to make a loss-making deal. The reason I agreed to alter the Princely Heir’s fate is solely for my husband and son. If you lied just to force my compliance, then this transaction may be impossible to continue."

Prince Cheng chuckled, "Song Wei and your son went missing over half a month ago, you’ve not heard the news?"

Of course, Wen Wan received the news, for this reason, seeing Jinbao appear in Prince Cheng Mansion made her break out in cold sweat. But thinking carefully, it didn’t make sense; if he were truly a hostage, why would Prince Cheng allow him to run around freely?

"So, are they really in Prince’s hands?" Wen Wan stared at Prince Cheng unblinkingly.

Prince Cheng’s face remained unmoved; in his eyes, Wen Wan was just an ignorant little girl. He was capable of killing so many children without batting an eye, how could he possibly fear Wen Wan’s small gaze?

"The father and son are indeed in my hands." Prince Cheng’s face was sinister, "However, the matter of meeting them is decided by me. You just focus on preparing the fate alteration, once it’s ready, I’ll bring them to you, otherwise, if you continue to bargain, I wouldn’t mind bringing your young brother to the mansion for ’care’."

Wen Wan wouldn’t be foolish enough to assume Prince Cheng’s words were mere threats.

He could commit crimes right under the eyes of the Jinyi Guard, he must have a group of skillful subordinates; to abduct Lu Yanli, it might be just a matter of words.

"The bracelet poses a threat to my life, I need time to consider." Wen Wan said, "I suppose, Prince wouldn’t want me to die the moment I put it on, otherwise who would alter the Princely Heir’s fate?"

"You better not play tricks in front of me." Prince Cheng coldly threatened, "The last one to play tricks, that old monk Xuyun, is already dead!"

...

As she was leaving the mansion, Wen Wan had just reached the side gate when she saw Jinbao, dressed in a little skirt, hurriedly running towards her and then slipping, falling directly in front of her.

The little guy immediately started crying loudly.

Wen Wan quickly bent down to help him, and as she touched the little guy’s chubby paw, he suddenly squeezed a crumpled paper ball into her hand.

Wen Wan felt a stir in her heart, her eye catching the sight of several Prince Mansion maidservants appearing not far away. She swiftly tucked the paper ball into her sleeve, then carefully helped Jinbao up.

The ones who came were all maidservants from the Princess Consort’s courtyard; they were tasked by the Princess Consort to keep a close watch on this little girl, not expecting her to run around and now, fall.

Seeing that the child had been helped up by Princess Yong’an who patiently dusted off the dirt, the maidservants were full of gratitude, they curtsied to Wen Wan, "Sorry to trouble you, Commandery Princess."

Wen Wan reached out to wipe the forced tears off Jinbao’s face, smiling, "Little girl, you look so cute, if you cry, you’ll turn into a big flower cat, and no one will like you."

Jinbao stopped crying upon hearing this but couldn’t help but curse inwardly: Stupid mother! Bad mother! Heartless mother! Dad came to Prince Cheng Mansion for her, yet she’s with some wild man, deliberately trying to anger dad, hum!

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