He sneered repeatedly: "You dare to do it but not admit it? Are you even human?!"
Su Wanwan was stunned when she saw the memorial.
Lu Xingjian could no longer suppress his anger. "Does this kind of person deserve to be a father?!"
Su Wanwan placed her hand comfortingly on Lu Xingjian's shoulder.
Lu Xingjian hugged her waist tightly, buried his face in her chest, and closed his eyes in pain.
Memories from his childhood, those seemingly loving father-son relationship that actually concealed deadly intent, flooded his mind.
Everyone thought he was the crown prince, showered with love and enjoying all the riches and honors.
But only he himself knew how many holes lay beneath that magnificent brocade robe.
When I was six years old, the frozen surface of Taiye Pond looked as smooth as a mirror.
He was just curious and reached out to touch the thin layer of ice... but suddenly a huge force pushed him from behind!
The icy lake water instantly filled my mouth and nose, and the feeling of suffocation was like an iron clamp strangling my throat.
In the fading chaos of his dying moments, he could vaguely see his father's figure under the covered walkway on the shore through the shimmering water.
He stood there, hands behind his back, gazing at the small figure struggling in the Taiye Pool from afar. His face showed neither fear nor anxiety, only a kind of... indifferent scrutiny.
The screams and cries of the maids and servants on the shore sounded distant and distorted, as if seen through a thick, blurry layer of glass.
The icy lake water, the immense force that pushed against my back, and my father's detached, indifferent gaze...
At this moment, those six words from the report resounded: That was not an accident! It never was!
Later, the Empress Dowager refused to take him and Wanwan boating on Taiye Pond or to Xiyuan Garden, and rarely allowed him to leave Qingning Palace.
Another winter hunt took place, and he was twelve years old.
The new saddle, bestowed upon me by my father, is exceptionally beautiful.
But after galloping for only half a day, a sharp and strange stinging pain came from the inside of his right leg, as if countless red-hot needles were frantically stabbing into his flesh.
He endured it, his inner garment soaked with cold sweat.
After dismounting and removing the saddle, the personal servant was horrified to discover that several poisoned steel needles had been cleverly embedded in the leather lining!
Its location is tricky; it will only puncture the skin after prolonged riding and friction.
Upon hearing the news, the Emperor rushed over, his face displaying just the right amount of shock and anger, and sternly punished the stable staff.
But as he was tormented by excruciating pain and curled up on the bed, his consciousness fading, he seemed to hear his father's deep, calm voice coming from outside the screen, speaking to the imperial physician.
"...After all, he is young and doesn't know any better. His riding skills are not good, and he is greedy for speed. It's possible that he bumped into things... He needs to be carefully examined and treated."
The nonchalant tone of the words easily attributed a premeditated murder to a child's "ignorance" and "eagerness."
Each and every one of those wounds, once explained away as "accidents" and "carelessness," later shed its disguise, revealing the ferocious, venomous fangs beneath.
Each time he miraculously survived, it wasn't luck, but rather a check and balance set up by his great-grandmother, which made his father temporarily give up on harming his only son.
Without the protection of his great-grandmother and the unwavering support of Wanwan, he wouldn't have been able to endure those painful childhood memories until now.
Some people, though they have become fathers, are not worthy of being fathers.
"He doesn't deserve it, he doesn't deserve it!"
The pain that had been suppressed in his heart for many years and seemed to have been forgotten was now brought back to his mind, and Lu Xingjian roared in agony.
Su Wanwan gently stroked his hair, kissed his forehead, and whispered, "If you look at it from his perspective, you should be able to understand him."
Lu Xingjian shook his head, "I would never harm Yan Ge'er! I would rather die myself than harm my son!"
Only after becoming a father himself did he slowly reconcile with the past.
It was the late emperor's problem, not his.
Su Wanwan paused slightly, looked into his bloodshot eyes, and said gently, "But what if Yan Ge'er wasn't born to me, but to Ma Ji?"
“There is no such if!” Lu Xingjian said firmly.
Su Wanwan sighed softly, "Imagine that Yan Ge'er is the child you had with Ma Ji in one night, and in a fit of anger, I eloped with Xiao Bin."
Will you still like Yan Ge'er?
Lu Xingjian frowned and looked scrutinize her eyes: "I knew it, you've had this in mind all along!"
"You will never forgive me if I ever touched Maggie!"
"Yes," Su Wanwan readily admitted.
"Hmph." Lu Xingjian was even angrier.
Su Wanwan said, "If that's the case, when you see Yan Ge'er, you'll think that I left you because of him and Ma Ji. Will you still like Yan Ge'er and Ma Ji?"
Lu Xingjian finally fell silent.
After a long silence, he finally spoke, "So, the late emperor disliked my mother, which is why he hated me and took his anger out on me."
"I think so," Su Wanwan said.
Setting aside this issue, Lu Xingjian realized a more important one.
He pinched her chin, forcing her to look into his eyes: "I've never liked Maggie."
Su Wanwan paused for a moment before saying, "That's why I used her as an example."
Having experienced so many people and so many things, Maggie's situation was a thorn in my side back then.
It has long since been lost in the long river of time.
Lu Xingjian could tell that she was speaking with great reluctance.
Forget it, let's not talk about it.
Back then, I don't know who was so jealous.
After Su Wanwan's interruption, his frustration dissipated considerably.
Lu Xingjian suddenly felt enlightened.
He is much happier than the late emperor.
He married the woman he loved most, and she gave birth to such a lovely and sensible son.
This is much better than the late emperor who had someone he loved but dared not openly pursue him, and who could not remain chaste for his beloved.
Yan Ge'er came over, still confused, and asked, "Father, Mother, what's wrong?"
Lu Xingjian smiled faintly.
"If you find a girl you like in the future, try your best to win her over. Don't wait until it's too late to regret it."
Yan Ge'er hugged Su Wanwan tightly, "I don't have a girl I like, I only like Mother!"
Lu Xingjian laughed in exasperation, "So you don't like your father anymore?"
"Daddy isn't a girl!"
"..."
Su Wanwan chuckled.
This kid is smarter than his father.
"How do you plan to handle the case of Prince Lu?"
Lu Xingjian had mastered the art of ruling the world. “Since the Prince of Lu has meticulously woven this net to frame his own son, I will weave it even tighter and stronger, turning it into a noose that strangles him.”
Yan Ge'er didn't understand at all and asked in surprise, "What do you mean?"
Lu Xingjian adopted the posture of patiently educating his son.
"For someone like Prince Lu, death is too good for him."
"It is more painful than death, it is a long torment, it is disgrace and alienation from everyone. Let him also taste what it is like to be pushed into the abyss by his loved ones and rejected by the whole world."
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