Chapter 91 Even harming one's own child

Seeing the child gazing at him expectantly, the Seventh Prince inexplicably thought of the raccoon dog he kept in Aunt Lan's courtyard. His hands itched, and he really wanted to ruffle Xie Mianmian's hair.

He nodded regally, "Alright."

Led by the Seventh Prince, the group of people made their way through a maze of twists and turns to the lotus pond.

Unlike the lotus ponds Xie Mianmian had seen before, this pond was... too big! It was more like a lake!

A very special kind of lotus leaf floats on the water. It is very large, like a big round plate, several times larger than a futon.

"Is this a lotus?" Xie Mianmian had never seen such a huge lotus leaf before. It looked like you could lie on it and sleep.

"This is a giant water lily." His father had told him this when they came here before.

"Where is the crane?" Xie Mianmian looked left and right but couldn't find any trace of the bird.

"Perhaps deep within the lotus pond."

"Oh? What should we do then?" Xie Mianmian frowned as she stared at the lotus leaf. Suddenly, an idea struck her. She stepped onto the lotus leaf by the pond and said, "Do you think this lotus leaf could be used as a small boat?"

The old woman behind her quickly reached out to grab the child, but the child was too fast and she couldn't catch him. The old woman was even about to jump down to rescue him.

But they discovered that Xie Mianmian was standing steadily on the lotus leaf. This variety of lotus leaf was extremely special; it could support a child.

Xie Mianmian was sitting on it excitedly when she suddenly felt a sway and her vision was slowly receding. It was the lotus leaf beneath her that was floating, and the child was about to float away!

While everyone was at a loss, the Seventh Prince stepped onto a lotus leaf and then floated away.

Eunuch Li and the others were furious; none of them could swim.

"Hurry, go find Xiaozhou!"

"Hey, don't go! This lotus leaf can't support you!"

"Seventh Prince and Miss, please be careful!"

Are you leaving like this? Will you be back for dinner tonight?

Xie Mianmian felt a surge of curiosity. "Seventh Prince, will we go to where the cranes are?"

The seventh prince sat swaying on the lotus leaf, feeling as if he was about to fall into the water. "Let's just go with the flow. Perhaps they are at the end of the flow."

"Okay." Xie Mianmian lay back on the lotus leaf, letting the water carry her away to an unknown place.

She gazed at the strangely shaped white clouds in the blue sky, and then at the lotus flowers emerging from the water, their pink and white petals blooming in layers, revealing the fluffy yellow stamens in the center.

These two magical lotus leaves carried the child around a bend, where a shallow beach lay at the end.

Seeing the flock of birds here, Xie Mianmian was dumbfounded. "These birds do look somewhat like cranes."

But these are a flock of fiery red birds!

Their slender legs were stuck in the water, and their bright red necks were bent into a beautiful arc, occasionally dipping into the water, probably to peck at food.

Xie Mianmian scratched her head. "Do these birds bring good fortune? Mianmian wants to ask them for help. The auspicious beasts will fly to the side of good children, so that Mianmian won't be an unlucky bad child."

As they were talking, the lotus leaves had already reached the shore, and the flamingos made way for them.

The Seventh Prince was the first to reach the shore, and then he reached out his hand to the child. He sighed inwardly, realizing that Xie Mianmian had actually heard those unbearable rumors.

"Their colors are so beautiful and captivating; they must be auspicious."

Xie Mianmian nodded in agreement, took the Seventh Prince's hand, and gazed at the flock of birds in amazement. They looked like clusters of brightly colored fiery clouds, making it impossible to look away.

Both children were safely ashore. Xie Mianmian walked to the side of the most beautiful and robust bird. "Hello, pretty little bird. Can you help Mianmian with something later?"

The chief said, "Sure, but you have to do us a favor first. Little Orange is the youngest child in our tribe, and I just discovered it's missing. Can you help us find it?"

"Hmm? Little Orange?" A flamingo not far away emerged from the water. "It seems to have said it's going to check out the two-legged beasts' feast and will be back in a bit."

"Why didn't you say so earlier? You even let it go!?" The leader pecked the bird hard, then said to Mianmian, "Please bring Xiaoju back. In the meantime, we'll try to gather some of our kind to help you, don't worry."

Having received the flamingo leader's promise, Xie Mianmian excitedly pulled the Seventh Prince towards the banquet.

"Seventh Prince, where do you think Little Orange is? I haven't seen it along the way. Its fiery red color should make it easy to spot at a glance."

Yes, it was bright red and very eye-catching; Lin Ruoxue spotted it immediately.

She pointed with her delicate hand and commanded the palace servants, "Grab it."

And so, the flamingo, Little Orange, who was screaming in agony, was caught. "You wretched two-legged creatures, let me go, goose!"

"Let it go!" Xie Mianmian rushed over.

"Oh, Little Fairy is here." Lin Ruoxue said those three words heavily, staring at the child with a sinister look. She was just in time to save herself the trouble of going to find her.

"Your people are hurting Little Orange. Let it go right now."

"Okay, come and get it."

Xie Mianmian looked around and found that this place was not remote; there were still people coming and going not far away.

The child was about to walk over when the Seventh Prince stopped him. He shook his head at Xie Mianmian and said, "Don't go. Be careful, it might be a trap."

However, Xie Mianmian couldn't just stand by and watch Xiao Ju die, so she walked over with firm steps, and the Seventh Prince had no choice but to follow.

When they were about the right distance, Xie Mianmian turned to face her sideways, spread her legs, moved her right foot toward Lin Ruoxue, and then stretched her right hand toward her.

He looked at Lin Ruoxue as if she were some kind of filthy thing.

"Third Princess Consort, please give Little Orange to Mianmian." The child was practically pinching his nose in protest.

"Heh!" Lin Ruoxue picked up Xiao Ju, walked towards the child, and gestured for her to extend her hand.

Would a bad woman be so kind? Xie Mianmian suspiciously reached out her hand, watching as the hand holding Xiao Ju drew closer and closer.

Suddenly, Lin Ruoxue released Xiao Ju, grabbed Xie Mianmian's wrist unexpectedly, and pulled her towards herself.

"Ah! My child!" Lin Ruoxue fell heavily to the ground, clutching her stomach with both hands.

A palace servant nearby shouted, "Help! This demonic child dares to plot against the royal heir!"

After the loud-voiced palace servant shouted, the people in the distant waterside pavilion heard it and rushed over.

Xie Mianmian stood there helplessly, "No, Mianmian didn't, it was her..."

Lin Ruoxue is the one who wants to hurt her child, that terrible, wicked woman!