Chapter 82
Mu Yulu frowned again, unable to hide her irritation.
How does this person know everything? Does he have people watching her every single hour of the day?
Seeing that Mu Yulu was hesitant to answer, Mu Qinhan's gaze darkened, and then he suddenly accelerated, running along the eaves and rushing straight towards the towering side wall of the library.
The brick wall of the library rapidly enlarged before her eyes. Just when Mu Yulu thought he was really going to crash into it with her, he suddenly sank down and stepped on the bricks to rush upwards again at an angle.
A familiar feeling of weightlessness instantly washed over her body; it was the same feeling she had when she and Sanzhou Jinse were fleeing for their lives that night. Mu Yulu was so frightened that she tightly closed her eyes.
The two of them flew past the tightly closed carved wooden window on the top floor of the library, then disappeared back into the night of the capital.
Only when the wind in her ears subsided did Mu Yulu cautiously open her eyes.
She thought indignantly to herself, "It was intentional, Mu Qinhan must have done it on purpose."
At this moment, Mu Qinhan's voice rang out above her head: "You really are selfless. The evidence you found today is enough to kill the entire Mu family hundreds of times over."
Hearing him change the subject and finally stop bringing up Sanzhou Jinse repeatedly, Mu Yulu breathed a sigh of relief. Then she asked Mu Qinhan, "What do you plan to do with them next?"
“Treason alone is enough to warrant the execution of the entire Mu family, not to mention that Master Mu has done many other things in secret.” Mu Qinhan glanced at her with his head down. “But for your sake, I can spare their lives.”
He continued, "All the male members of the Mu family will be exiled, but the female members can continue to live in the capital. The house will also be left to them, but only an empty house. The court will confiscate all the gold and silver belongings of the Mu family. What do you think?"
Mu Yulu said noncommittally, "Your Highness can make the decision himself. There's no need to make an exception for me."
Mu Qinhan glanced at her again, "Is my princess so righteous?"
Mu Yulu pursed her lips, not wanting to speak.
Even without her, Mu Qinhan would have been able to find evidence; it was just a matter of time.
According to the timeline of his previous life, the Mu family was executed four years later, and Mu Qinhan in his previous life should have gathered all the evidence around that time.
Because of her rebirth, the timeline of this life has changed again.
In her past life, the entire Mu family, including the women, was wiped out. In this life, Mu Qinhan was actually showing leniency towards the Mu family out of consideration for her. Then she thought, once the Mu family suffered, Mu Qinhan would have all the evidence. How could the Third Prince continue to be so arrogant? Being demoted to a commoner was already a light punishment. What about Mu Wanyi, who married the Third Prince as a concubine in her past life?
Will her fate also change?
In her previous life, Mu Wanyi was indeed quite glamorous after becoming the Third Prince's concubine. She even visited Mu Yulu, who was a concubine of the prince, at the Prince's residence. However, the so-called visit was fake; the real purpose was to mock and ridicule her.
Seeing that Mu Yulu was not doing well while she held a high position, she was immediately in a good mood and happily rewarded Mu Yulu with a lot of gold and silver jewelry.
In her previous life, when the Third Prince's crimes were exposed, Mu Yulu had already been tortured to the point of wishing for death by Mu Qinhan. Not long after, she hanged herself with a white silk ribbon. Naturally, she did not know what became of Mu Wanyi as the Third Prince's concubine.
The outcome of this matter in this lifetime was brought forward by several years. At this time, Mu Wanyi had not yet married the Third Prince. The fact that the women of the Mu family were spared and could continue to live in the old house must have been a blessing in disguise for Mu Zhaoshi and Mu Wanyi.
After gathering all the evidence and returning to the Prince's Mansion, Mu Qinhan dealt with these people with swift and decisive measures. In a short time, some had their homes confiscated, others were exiled, and no fewer than a hundred high-ranking officials and nobles throughout the court and the country were uncovered through the investigation.
So much so that later, rumors circulated among the people that Mu Qinhan had gone on a killing spree in the capital, with rivers of blood flowing through the streets that could not be washed away for days and nights, and the stench of blood lingering for days.
This was, of course, an exaggeration, but Mu Qinhan himself didn't care. For him, it was far more realistic to make the world fear him than to gain so-called respect from them.
During the period of purging the court and the countryside, he rarely came to the backyard, and didn't even have time to have dinner with Mu Yulu. The only time he took the initiative to come to see her was for matters concerning the Mu family.
"The Emperor has shown considerable pity for the Third Prince. I can deal with the rest of the court officials as I see fit, but the Third Prince has asked to be spared." Mu Qinhan spoke candidly about court affairs to Mu Yulu: "I came to ask you, how is your sister's marriage to the Third Prince going to be resolved?"
He said directly, "Since the Third Prince is not dead, his punishment is only to be demoted to a commoner, and he doesn't even need to be confined. He can live in the mansion in the capital. Logically speaking, his marriage agreement with your sister should continue to be fulfilled."
Mu Yulu asked him in a calm tone, "If that's the case, why are you telling me all this?"
Mu Qinhan raised an eyebrow. "The Third Prince was greatly affected by this incident, which has caused a drastic change in his personality. His temper has become unpredictable, and he is probably no longer a good person. I am telling you this because I am afraid that you will resent me for throwing your sister into the fire pit in the future."
“The Third Prince’s temperament isn’t very good to begin with. He’s always been unpredictable, even without any setbacks,” Mu Yulu said sullenly. “And my sister isn’t a good person either, she…”
She paused for a moment, seemingly hesitating about something, before finally saying, "If Your Highness could decide to cancel this marriage, it would be a good thing."
Her attitude suddenly changed, and Mu Qinhan looked at her with some confusion: "Didn't you say she wasn't a good person? It seems she's bullied you quite a bit in the manor. Why do you still want me to help her cancel this marriage?"
Since Mu Yulu needed his help, she didn't hide anything and answered him frankly: "I'm not asking you to help my sister, but a pitiful woman who has no choice in her marriage. Just think of it as me feeling sorry for her. If she really marries the Third Prince who has been demoted to a commoner, her life will be over before she knows it."
Mu Qinhan asked meaningfully, "You're not just talking about her, are you?"
His tone carried a hint of danger, but Mu Yulu seemed oblivious, saying nonchalantly, "Your Highness can think whatever you want. I was just saying it casually."
Mu Qinhan looked at her deeply one last time, then turned and left without saying a word.
Although their final conversation was not pleasant, Mu Qinhan still agreed to Mu Yulu's request and took it upon himself to cancel Mu Wanyi's engagement with the Third Prince.
Three days later, when everything had settled down, Mu Yulu hadn't seen Mu Qinhan at all. She didn't know if he was genuinely too busy to step into the backyard, or if he was still hurt by their last conversation and didn't want to see her again for a while.
In short, he hasn't shown his face for the past few days, which even Tanxiang finds strange: "Even when the prince is busy, he has never gone three or five days without coming to see you. What's wrong with him?"
Mu Yulu wondered to herself, "What happened? Maybe he finally succumbed to the poison and died."
After pondering this, Tanxiang offered Mu Yulu a suggestion: "Since the prince isn't coming to see you, you can take the initiative to see him. Or, how about I accompany you?"
Mu Yulu remained silent, and not only did she not speak, she also told Tanxiang to shut her mouth: "Alright, it's very late, you should go and rest."
She was afraid that if this girl kept mentioning Mu Qinhan, she might actually bring this living Buddha to her attention.
Unfortunately, what she feared most came to pass. Just as Tanxiang closed the door and left, the door was opened again a short while later, and Mu Qinhan entered, draped in night dew.
At that moment, Mu Yulu was humming a little tune in a good mood because she hadn't seen Mu Qinhan for several days. When she turned her head and saw him standing at the door with a sullen face, she immediately shut her mouth and swallowed back the tune she hadn't finished humming.
Seeing her reaction upon seeing him, Mu Qinhan's expression darkened further. His gaze fell upon her, scrutinizing her, yet also seemingly mixed with other emotions she couldn't decipher.
The next second, he closed the door and strode towards her.
Mu Yulu stood up as if facing a formidable enemy. In her panic, she tried to make conversation to divert Mu Qinhan's attention: "Your Highness, are you only just finished with your work? How are things going at court? What about those remnants of the Third Prince's faction...?"
Before she could finish speaking, Mu Qinhan, who had rushed over, grabbed her wrist. She instinctively tried to take a step back, but was instead pulled into his arms.
He pressed his lips to her ear, almost gritting his teeth as he asked, "If I don't come to see you these past few days, will you not come to see me either?"
Mu Yulu didn't bother to answer his question; she just placed her hand on his chest and frantically tried to push him away.
He didn't move an inch, but instead tightened his arms, holding her even more tightly in his embrace.
His warm breath brushed against her ear, making Mu Yulu's face burn. She wanted to stomp on him, but then she heard his deep voice sound again: "Don't move. If you move again, I won't be as restrained as I am now."
A threat, this is a naked threat.
Although Mu Yulu was furious, there was nothing she could do. She could only freeze in his arms and let him hold her.
Through his clothes, she could feel the warmth emanating from him, which seemed to be a bit higher than usual.
She looked up, about to ask him if he was feeling unwell, when he suddenly picked her up and threw her onto the bed. Before she could even get up, he pinned her down.
She trembled all over: "Mu Qinhan, you...you can't..."
He took in her panic and fear, stared at her intently for a while, and then lowered his head to kiss her tenderly.
He first kissed her forehead, then her eyelashes, and continued down her body until he stopped at her collarbone.
His breathing gradually became long and heavy, and his voice became extremely hoarse: "These past few days I've been having dreams, dreams of some very strange things. They clearly never happened, yet they feel so real, as if I had done them myself."
He asked her, "Do you hate me because I imprisoned you, treated you badly, and finally sentenced you to death with a white silk ribbon?"
Mu Yulu instantly stopped resisting, her eyes filled with misty tears.
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