Chapter 55
Upon hearing Cui Wuyang's shocking speech, Luo Yan tripped over her own foot with her left.
Fortunately, Zhu Yun chose to help someone over killing them. She steadied herself, took the opportunity to hug his arm, and said in a low voice, "You let Qin Yan drink so much alcohol, it's normal for him to talk nonsense."
Zhou Bo had been hiding in the shadows, intending to lend a helping hand in times of crisis. But upon hearing his young master's cry, he hurriedly revealed himself and dragged the man back with him.
Cui Wuyang's eyes were glazed over. He only came to his senses after entering the guest room and immediately got up to leave.
"Calm down for a while, my sir." Uncle Zhou pressed him down and earnestly advised, "It's an indisputable fact that Miss Biao and Young Master Shangguan got married. I've inquired in the village. Miss Biao moved here a little over a month ago, and the two of them have been living together ever since. They have a deep affection for each other."
"It's my fault." Cui Wuyang slammed his fist on the table, his eyes red. "If I had come to pick up my sister earlier, what would have happened to him?"
Zhu Yun was in a hurry to enter Luo Yan's room, but Jinzhan symbolically stopped him.
"Your Highness, Miss Luo Yan seems to be feeling unwell and is not available right now."
Seeing that Luo Yan's face was pale, she guessed that she might be menstruating.
Zhu Yun, with a cold face, grabbed Jinzhan's neck with one hand.
"While I was away, where did Luo Yan go? Tell me!"
Jinzhan's eyes rolled back, and her legs kicked out straight.
"Your Highness, spare me! Your Highness, spare me!"
Finally, Zhu Yun released her. She bit her lower lip and knelt on the ground in humiliation.
"It was Jinzhan's dereliction of duty that led to the oversight of the young lady's whereabouts. Please, Your Highness, spare my life."
She breathed rapidly, her eyes red, wondering if the prince had sent other guards to follow Luo Yan.
While Jinzhan was still in a daze, Zhu Yun had already strode in to settle accounts with Luo Yan.
She couldn't help but let out a long sigh of relief. It would be best if the prince didn't notice her neglect of duty; let him vent all his anger on Luo Yan.
Luo Yan lay on the bed with a pale face, tear stains on her face, and the tear troughs under her eyes were even deeper. Her eyes were sad and lifeless, her lips were dry and cracked, and she was trembling slightly.
"Zhu Yun, what are you doing here..."
She cried for a while, her voice becoming hoarse.
Zhu Yun had originally come to settle scores with Luo Yan in a fit of anger, but seeing her like this, he had no choice but to back down. He went to find the beeswax-infused lip rouge that Luo Yan was used to using and applied it to her lips by hand.
The hard, chapped skin on her lips brushed against his fingertips.
"What's wrong... why do you look so listless?"
He wondered if he had misjudged her that day, and that the woman on horseback was not Luo Yan, and that he had wronged her.
Zhu Yun held her slender wrist in his hands.
Where did the bracelet I gave you go?
Luo Yan shook her head.
"The golden cup has been put away..."
He held her in his arms, cradling her cheek with one hand.
"Why are you so listless... I will not marry Yang Ruoyun, please cheer up."
Zhu Yun thought Luo Yan was still worried about his upcoming marriage.
Luo Yan placed a slender, bony hand on Zhu Yun's neck, imagining strangling him to death.
The thought of death haunted her. She really wanted to kill Zhu Yun; she wanted to kill him to vent her hatred, and also to punish herself for the love she had once had for him.
He embraced her, and Luo Yan's eyes became somewhat confused. Did he even realize that she was embracing someone who wanted to kill her?
The thought of her carrying his child filled Luo Yan with a sense of desolation.
How could he be so gentle with her on one hand, and yet do such cruel things to her on the other?
Unmarried women, whether they are still young and waiting to be married or are maids or servants, will quickly fall into a situation where they are at the mercy of others once they become pregnant.
If they were ruthless, they would drive the woman out, leaving her to wander the streets, where she could be beaten, killed, or sold at the mercy of others. If they were more kind, they would at most keep her as a mistress outside the home.
"Zhu Yun, will you kill me?"
She looked at him helplessly.
"Why bring this up out of the blue? I, He Yun, have threatened to kill you before."
Zhu Yun kissed her forehead.
Jinzhan stood furtively outside, peeking through the hole poked in the window paper, and was horrified by what she saw.
Good heavens, Zhu Yun stormed in, why didn't he vent his anger on Luo Yan?
Oh, he can't bear to part with it, right?
Jinzhan sneered inwardly. Hmph, he was unwilling to touch Luo Yan even a hair, but the more he thought about it after they came out, the angrier he became, and eventually he vented his anger on her.
She's just a maidservant, at the mercy of being beaten or killed. What will become of Lord Yun?
Instead of waiting for Zhu Yun to decide what to do, it's better to take the initiative and tell him what you've seen...
However, we should leave some room for interpretation and not make definitive statements.
But based on her experience, she knew that around this time, the two of them would be about to start another live sex show.
What if Zhu Yun calms down after he finishes his work and treats Luo Yan with a haughty attitude, while I, Zhu Yunhou, step forward to sow discord? Wouldn't that be adding fuel to the fire?
Jinzhan decided to keep quiet for the time being.
"Luo Yan, where did you go while I was away? I think I saw you on the street?"
Doubts clouded his mind, but Zhu Yun couldn't help but speak up.
"Which street?"
Luo Yan glanced at him listlessly. There was no future for her and Qin Sizhao. So what if he saw her? It wasn't a big deal.
"Willow Branch Street is not far from the Prince's Mansion."
"What, can't I go out alone?"
Luo Yan said, feeling wronged.
"I'm not saying you can't go out alone, I'm asking you, when I wasn't around, who did you go out with?"
Seeing Luo Yan remain silent, Zhu Yun directly called Jinzhan in.
"Golden Cup, kneel down!"
Jinzhan had no choice but to kneel down obediently and humbly.
"Where did Luo Yan go during the days I was away?!"
She gritted her teeth, thinking that she had no choice but to tell the truth this time. After cursing Zhu Yun eight hundred times in her heart, Jinzhan said meekly:
"Your Highness, please forgive me. When Miss Luo Yan went out, I made a point of secretly following her... I dared not be negligent... I saw her go to the theater to watch a play, so I followed her in as well."
She glanced at Luo Yan's face, which was ashen, and said:
"Miss Luo Yan was watching a play with a young man who looked somewhat effeminate, chatting and laughing... This servant dared not watch any longer..."
Luo Yan, however, remained calm, leaning against Zhu Yun with a hint of weariness.
"Luo Yan, if you ruin your reputation, people will only say that I didn't manage my household well, and that will bring shame to the Prince's Mansion. What do you think I should do with you?"
Zhu Yun felt genuinely angry that Luo Yan was meeting with other men, but since he and Luo Yan had no official relationship, he had to put on a magnanimous act.
He suppressed his voice and forcefully controlled Luo Yan's arms. Her hot body pressed against him, making him both angry and inexplicably hot.
Luo Yan simply rested her head on his shoulder, remaining silent and sullen.
"I saw you riding a man on horseback on Willow Branch Street with my own eyes. Quickly tell me who that man is?"
He grabbed Luo Yan's hair, and she raised her chin, revealing a sharp curve.
"If you associate with shady characters, it will only ruin the reputation of the Prince's Mansion... Besides, without my intervention, why would anyone be willing to marry you? They just want to play with you. Tell me quickly, who is that person?"
"Yang Ruoyun".
Luo Yan lowered her head and said:
"Yang Ruoyun said she would teach me how to ride a horse. I thought it was inconvenient because I was wearing a ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress), so she just carried me onto the horse... The person you see is her."
"But how did you end up getting involved with her?"
Zhu Yun frowned. Yang Ruoyun had once intended to marry him. The two of them should have been at odds with each other, or even plotting against each other. How could they be riding horses together?
Luo Yan sneered:
"Zhu Yun, do you really think you're some rare commodity that everyone wants to snatch? Yang Ruoyun came to me specifically to stop this marriage because she doesn't want to marry you."
"So you were asked to stop me from marrying her..."
Luo Yan nodded and said:
"That's exactly right."
Noticing Zhu Yun's unusual expression, Jinzhan quickly seized the opportunity to back down.
"Yes, yes, yes... It's Miss Ruoyun... The young man I saw looked exactly like a young lady. At first, I didn't realize who it was, but now that you mention it, I remember—it's Miss Ruoyun!"
Luo Yan couldn't help but laugh until tears streamed down her face, and she wiped them away with a handkerchief.
"Has Your Highness's suspicions been dispelled?"
She exchanged a glance with Jinzhan.
"Get out!"
These words were spoken by Zhu Yun to Jinzhan.
Jinzhan quickly withdrew, leaving only Zhu Yun and Luo Yan in the room.
A greater anger welled up in his heart. It turned out that Luo Yan was only stopping him from marrying Yang Ruoyun because she was asked to do it by someone else, not because of him.
With her hopes dashed, Zhu Yun no longer wanted to treat her with any gentleness and only gave her a cold glance.
It's ridiculous that I had genuinely considered marrying Luo Yan before; she's not worthy of me at all.
What's so great about her? His gaze swept over Luo Yan from head to toe, looking disdainfully at the small patch of skin exposed by her slightly loosened neckline.
She was nothing more than using her beautiful appearance to seduce him and using a hot-and-cold attitude to keep him hooked; there was nothing special about it.
She's not special at all; she's just a vain and beautiful woman. There are plenty of women like her out there, so how could he have ever seriously considered marrying her?
He gripped her chin with one hand, forcing her to look him in the eye. Her eyes were cold and beautiful, like a small snake in the forest.
It's ridiculous that he would care whether a toy loves him or not.
But he was uncontrollably concerned about whether she loved him. Whenever he saw her cold eyes, he would almost obsessively demand love from her.
He was genuinely angry at himself for being like this.
"Luo Yan, you can give up now. I will not marry you."
His fingertips traced her collarbone, a mixture of humiliation and provocation.
Zhu Yun sneered:
"I can easily play with you by spending a small amount of money to support you, so why bother marrying you and making you my wife? You don't even deserve to be my concubine."
He stabbed her with cold words while simultaneously reaching his hand inside her collar.
Luo Yan wasn't angry; instead, she sighed.
"I knew it all along."
She turned her head away, not looking at Zhu Yun.
"What else can I do?"
He forced her face to turn and kissed her. Luo Yan did not respond or resist; she remained cold, which further enraged Zhu Yun.
"Luo Yan, have you been drinking the contraceptive soup properly?"
Her face was deathly pale, afraid that he would reveal the truth about her pregnancy.
Zhu Yun sneered:
"You wouldn't be thinking of secretly getting pregnant and having my child, would you...? Do you really think that giving birth to the eldest son will make you powerful? If you dare to tamper with my offspring, I'll secretly poison you and dump you in a mass grave..."
"Anyway, you have no one left in your family, no one will stand up for you, and eventually there won't even be anyone to shed a tear for you."
Snap—
A slap landed on Zhu Yun's face, and Luo Yan's face turned pale and pitiful.
Instead of getting angry, he laughed, grabbed her wrists with one hand, and pushed her down onto the bed, while skillfully untying her belt with his other hand.
"You always tie your belt the same way, it's so unoriginal and boring."
"I know you're tired." Zhu Yun gently rubbed her shoulder. "Lie down quietly, I'll try to hurry."
It is impossible to know exactly how much time has passed.
Luo Yan was so exhausted that she could barely open her eyes. She heard him whisper in her ear, "If you're sleepy, go to sleep."
She mumbled sleepily, "I'll wait for you."
After saying that, he fell asleep.
Zhu Yun smiled and shook his head: "Little liar."
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