Chapter 458 Even your prince son doesn't dare to say it, do you?

The path leading up the mountain to the Duke of Chu's cemetery had already been repaired. The bluestone steps were neat and clean, and Pei Tinglan, supported by Su Yun, climbed each step. After walking for more than a quarter of an hour, the cemetery came into view in the distance. Pei Tinglan felt a surge of emotion, but she couldn't quite explain why.

Perhaps it was the resentment of being rejected in the past, or perhaps it was a desire to show Jiang Jinglan that she was doing well now, no worse than being the Duchess of Chu. Or perhaps it was that her years of hatred for Jiang Jinglan had become an obsession, and she might not be able to die in peace without seeing him one last time.

What puzzled her was that after walking for so long, they hadn't seen a single trace of the tomb keeper Su Yun had mentioned. She turned to Su Yun and asked, "Didn't you say there were two tomb keepers?"

Su Yun was taken aback for a moment, then smiled and said, "Maybe he was slacking off."

Pei Tinglan frowned slightly, feeling that this reason wasn't quite right. Just as she was about to say something, Su Yun added, "Your Highness, please hurry, we need to go back. If we're late, the Prince might find out."

Pei Tinglan nodded. Whether the tomb keeper of the Duke of Chu's mansion was slacking off or not was none of her business. All she needed to do was go to Jiang Jinglan's grave, talk to him, and feel a sense of triumph.

“Let’s go,” she said.

Su Yun silently breathed a sigh of relief and continued to support her as they walked forward. After walking for about fifteen minutes, they finally arrived. Two tombstones stood side by side beneath the pines and cypresses. The bluestone tombstones were spotless, and the lush pines and cypresses behind them created a peaceful and serene atmosphere.

"Tomb of the late Duke of Chu, Jiang Jinglan," Pei Tinglan read the words on the tombstone. A sudden wave of sorrow washed over her, making her nose sting and her eyes well up with tears. She remembered the first time she met him at the banquet years ago.

Back then, he was a handsome young man, his features refined and elegant. She was a young girl in the throes of first love, her eyes sparkling with life. Their youthful affection was genuine and passionate; they had both spent sleepless nights longing for each other…

Pei Tinglan reached out a trembling hand, wanting to touch the cold, blue stone tombstone, tears streaming down her face. "How could you...?"

"Pei Tinglan!"

Before Pei Tinglan's hand could even touch the tombstone, a cold and authoritative female voice rang out. She froze, turning her head in the direction of the voice, and saw Jiang Yu dressed in a black robe embroidered with gold, her face stern and authoritative, her gaze as cold as ice as she looked at her.

"You...I..." Pei Tinglan didn't know how to explain why she was here.

Jiang Yu walked towards her step by step, his steps steady and powerful, seemingly carrying a murderous aura. Pei Tinglan unconsciously took a step back. But she hadn't taken more than a few steps before Jiang Yu was already in front of her.

"I..."

"Smack!"

Jiang Yu didn't give Pei Tinglan a chance to speak, raising her hand and slapping her across the face. The force was so great that Pei Tinglan staggered and almost fell to the ground, her aged cheek swelling instantly.

"Jiang Yu, how dare you!"

Just then, an angry male voice rang out. Jiang Yu smiled and turned her head to look, only to see the Prince of Lingnan and Zhu Junning rushing over with their men. As they tried to take another step forward, a squad of over a hundred guards stepped out from the side, wielding gleaming broadswords, and blocked the father and daughter's path.

Meanwhile, Jiang Yu, still with a smirk on his lips, glanced defiantly at the King of Lingnan, then turned and raised his hand, slapping Pei Tinglan's wrinkled face with both hands.

The crisp sound echoed in the silent mountain, blending with the sound of the wind as the painter worked, making the King of Lingnan's eyes widen in fury. He stared at Jiang Yu with eyes that seemed to want to tear her to pieces, and roared, "Jiang Yu, you deserve to die?!"

Jiang Yu shook her slightly numb hand and smiled as she looked at the Prince of Lingnan without saying a word. But in an instant, she raised her foot and kicked Pei Tinglan in the back of the knee, and with a thud, Pei Tinglan knelt down in front of the old Duke of Chu's tombstone.

"Jiang Yu, I will tear you to pieces!"

The King of Lingnan roared, his face contorted in rage, and was about to charge forward. But then Jiang Yu kicked Pei Tinglan in the back.

"ah!"

Pei Tinglan let out a wail and collapsed to the ground. Jiang Yu, seeing the enraged, leopard-like King of Lingnan, placed one foot on Pei Tinglan's back. The King of Lingnan dared not do anything more; he didn't know how Jiang Yu would further abuse his mother if he did anything else.

Jiang Yu was humiliating him by abusing his biological mother right in front of him!

Seeing that he made no further move, Jiang Yu's eyes showed disappointment, and she said loudly, "The King of Lingnan is nothing more than this!"

The King of Lingnan was so enraged that his teeth were practically grinding to powder. His fists clenched so tightly they cracked, and every muscle in his body was tense, making him look like a furious lion. He glared at Jiang Yu through gritted teeth and asked, "Jiang Yu, what exactly do you want?"

Jiang Yu looked at him coldly and indifferently, "Revenge!"

These words left the King of Lingnan speechless. He knew better than anyone the extent of their hatred for the Duke of Chu's family.

“Jiang Yu, if you have a problem, come at me. What kind of skill is it to attack an old man?” King Lingnan said after a moment of silence.

"You can't wait?" Jiang Yu's voice was slow and deliberate, yet tinged with a obsessive madness. "Don't rush! I'll deal with the old man first, then I'll deal with you, the young one, and then..."

Her gaze fell on Zhu Junning, whose face was pale, causing Zhu Junning to flinch involuntarily. Jiang Yu raised the corners of her lips, looking unusually crazed. She withdrew her gaze from Zhu Junning, waved her hand, and two tables of offerings were brought over and placed in front of the tombstones of the old Duke of Chu and his wife.

Jiang Yu withdrew her foot from Pei Tinglan's back. Pei Tinglan struggled to stand up, but then Jiang Yu's calm voice rang out, "You are only fit to grovel before my grandparents. You'd better not get up, or the consequences will be something you don't want."

Pei Tinglan stared at Jiang Yu with venomous eyes, "Is this how you treat your elders?"

"elder?"

Jiang Yu chuckled mockingly, "Who do you think you are, elder? In terms of family background, your Pei family is nothing more than a poor family that rose to power by relying on women, compared to my Duke of Chu's mansion. In terms of status, do you, a concubine who rose to power as the Dowager Princess of Lingnan, have any right to speak in front of me, the Duke of Chu?"

The mere mention of a concubine's rise to power completely spurred Pei Tinglan into a rage. She sat up, glaring fiercely at Jiang Yu, and said, "Don't be so arrogant..."

"Shh!" Jiang Yu put her index finger to her lips, then smiled and said, "There are some things even your prince son wouldn't dare say, do you?"

"Bang!"

Jiang Yu kicked Pei Tinglan to the ground again, ignoring the King of Lingnan's furiously distorted face. She took the incense Xia He handed her, knelt before the Duke of Chu's tombstone, and respectfully kowtowed before placing the incense in the burner. Looking gently at the old Duke of Chu's tombstone, she said, "Grandfather, your granddaughter is about to begin her revenge."