Chapter 437: A World Full of Malice (Three)
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Jiang Shanshan’s mouth gaped in horror. She wanted to scream, but someone quickly covered her mouth; she wanted to struggle, but her limbs, including her head, were held tightly. She was still a woman after all. In her former body, she might have put up a fight, but with the delicate body she had been pampering for nearly twenty years, she was powerless.
She could only watch as Yuwen You’s horse blade trailed with lingering shadows, viciously hacking down towards her legs. The blade penetrated bone, emitting a dull sound, and she only felt a chill, then nothing at all.
Frantically struggling, she wished she had a hand grenade to blow up this malicious world and everyone in it.
“Let her go.” Yuwen You casually tossed the horse blade to the chief guard Shen Nan, smiling as he sat back, quietly observing Jiang Shanshan’s misery. He was sitting in a direction close to Suiyu Pavilion, and for some reason, he felt a kind of madness emanating from his seat. He couldn’t recall where he had smelled this scent before, yet it felt very familiar, a lonely and maddening scent.
After the numbness wore off, waves of excruciating pain flooded over her. Jiang Shanshan stared at her severed legs and finally let out a beast-like wail, “My legs, my legs…”
She had never imagined that the world could be so terrifying, filled with so much malice. Why? Wasn’t it said that Yuwen Chu’s original wife was the legitimate daughter of the Marquis of Changxing? While others could command the winds and rains, why was she so unlucky? It was all because of Fu Mingzhu.
“Let’s see how you run now? Aren’t you capable? You can ride horses, swim, make pots, draw, kill, and do business. You can feign innocence, speak Wusun language, and scheme one after another. Now that I’ve cut off your legs, let’s see how you stir up trouble!” Yuwen You laughed heartily, feeling quite satisfied with his clever trap.
Everyone treated his mansion as their own playground, doing whatever they pleased. Whether it was Jiang Shanshan, Empress Dowager Min, Yuwen Chu, or Fu Mingzhu, they all regarded him as a fool, as someone spineless. But they didn’t know that even a spineless person, when exerting all their strength, could still achieve something. He really wanted that bed crossbow diagram, he dreamed of it, and he was willing to sell his soul for it, let alone commit murder.
There was a sudden noise outside, and Shen Nan walked out, his face stern, loudly ordering the guards of Linan Wang’s Mansion, “There’s a thief! Hurry and patrol to catch the thief!”
Soon, the noise subsided.
Jiang Shanshan finally fainted from the pain. Yuwen You leaned against the window, coldly watching Jiang Shanshan’s legs bleeding profusely, casually instructing his subordinates, “That’s enough. Bandage her wounds and stop the bleeding, don’t let her die.”
The Changshi of Linan Wang’s Mansion, Ruan Qingshang, whispered outside the pavilion, “Your Highness, the Wangfei has sent someone to ask why you haven’t returned yet.”
“Tell her I’m coming.” Yuwen You walked out of the warm pavilion, unable to help but look back again. He felt a bit bewildered. Why did tonight’s warm pavilion give him such a strange feeling? He asked Ruan Qingshang, “Why is this lock broken? Did you find out?”
Originally intending to watch the spectacle here, he only discovered after coming over that the lock on the warm pavilion had been tampered with. He had thought someone was hiding inside, but it turned out to be empty. Fortunately, luck was on his side, and Jiang Shanshan fell into his trap.
Ruan Qingshang whispered, “Ying Wangfei has been here before. Probably after Your Highness’s departure and return.”
What was she doing here? Yuwen You fell silent, then turned fiercely and strode towards the new house. The Wusun Princess had already prepared herself, sitting on the bed, looking shyly at him and softly saying in halting Mandarin, “Is Your Highness going to entertain the guests outside?”
In fact, according to the tradition of the imperial wedding in this dynasty, after the wedding ceremony, the groom did not need to greet the guests. There were specialized people in charge of this. After the guests gave their gifts and had their meal, they would leave on their own, and the Changshi would handle the aftermath neatly.
Yuwen You didn’t know if the Wusun Princess knew these rules, but since she took the initiative to find an excuse for him, he wouldn’t refuse. He smiled and walked over to the Wusun Princess, asking her softly, “What’s your nickname?”
The Wusun Princess shyly replied, “My family calls me Xuanxuan.”
“Xuanxuan, what a nice name. Can I call you that from now on?” Yuwen You reached out to touch the Wusun Princess’s face, and she closed her eyes. He closed his eyes too.
He would turn all his disadvantages into advantages. Yuwen Chu, Fu Mingzhu, Yuwen Chu, Fu Mingzhu, one day, I will look down on you, trample you under my feet… He repeated these two names in his mind over and over again, waving to lower the bright red wedding canopy.
The wedding banquet was nearing its end. Mingzhu handed Fu Zifei back to Lady Qian, who had attended the wedding. Lady Qian also knew about her sudden departure and couldn’t help but ask her softly, “Are you okay?”
Mingzhu shook her head with a smile, “Just feeling suffocated, so I went out for a walk. Didn’t expect these people to be so jumpy, always trying to find fault in any way they can.”
Lady Qian smiled, “You’re quite eloquent.” The mother and daughter Min Baoyun were really infuriated by her, but there was nothing they could do.
Fu Zifei asked solemnly, “Is Madam Pengcheng Marquis always like this?”
Mingzhu also answered seriously, “Yes, she always is. You don’t need to be afraid of them. But if you can’t be as unreasonable as I am, use other methods to deal with them. After all, they are surnamed Min, the Emperor’s maternal relatives, and you’ve done too much to them. I think you understand what I mean and can do it.” If you can’t be as unreasonably as I am, resort to sneakier methods, otherwise you’ll end up like a tiger drawing a bad hand, and Fu Zifei might be defeated by Empress Dowager Min.
Fu Zifei lowered her head, not saying whether she could do it or not, nor did she say she didn’t understand Mingzhu’s meaning.
“Your Highness.” Lady Qian suddenly called out respectfully, bowing.
The faint and cool scent of agarwood was particularly long-lasting on this chilly night. Mingzhu didn’t need to turn around to know that Yuwen Chu was standing behind her at this moment. She felt awkward, really didn’t want to turn around, really didn’t want to pay attention to him. Reason was one thing, emotions were another. She just wanted to know if Yuwen Chu had touched Jiang Shanshan earlier.
Seeing the expressions of Yuwen Chu and Mingzhu, Lady Qian tactfully took her leave, “It’s late, we will leave first. Your Highness and Wangfei should return early as well.”
Mingzhu blinked innocently, “Sister-in-law, I’ll go back too.”
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