Farm Girl's Manor

Xiao Ruiyuan lowered his eyes, masking the coldness within them, and after saluting the several Princes, he finally addressed Prince Qi, "It is this official’s dereliction of duty. I will take the Thirteenth Prince back to the temporary palace and personally plead guilty to The Emperor."

Upon hearing this, Prince Qi angrily retorted, "Are you implying that this Prince has no right to punish you, to seek justice for Seventh Imperial Brother?"

Xiao Ruiyuan remained silent, obviously acquiescing to Prince Qi’s accusation.

"You—Xiao Ruiyuan, don’t think that this Prince truly doesn’t dare to punish you!" Prince Qi angrily pointed at Xiao Ruiyuan, the rage in his heart so intense he wished he could use his bow and arrow to pierce a hole through this infuriating man right there and then.

Xiao Ruiyuan didn’t even blink, completely ignoring Prince Qi’s threat.

Witnessing this, Prince Qi almost choked on his own frustration; the surging anger nearly engulfed him. His face turned red, and he repeatedly used phrases like "dereliction of duty," "disrespectful," and "audacious" to violently curse at Xiao Ruiyuan, but he didn’t dare to actually lay hands on him. Otherwise, upon his return, he would surely be the first to be punished.

The others, watching Prince Qi curse like a fishwife and without any Imperial dignity, wished they could find a crack in the ground to crawl into. They dared not calm the volatile and quick-to-anger Thirteenth Prince, nor did they dare to ask the death god-like Xiao Ruiyuan to take a step back. They could only hang their heads low, hold their breath, and pretend to be non-existent.

Once Prince Qi finished his vitriol, Xiao Ruiyuan stepped past him, looking straight at the Thirteenth Prince hiding behind him and said coldly, "Your Highness, please accompany this official back to the temporary palace, so as not to worry The Emperor."

The Thirteenth Prince shuddered with fear, glanced at Xiao Ruiyuan, and stammered, "No... This prince doesn’t want to. This prince wants to go with Seventh Imperial Brother and the others into the Savage Beast Forest, to... to hunt tigers."

Xiao Ruiyuan’s brows furrowed and his piercing gaze turned to the Thirteenth Prince. In a tone that brooked no resistance, he commanded the guards behind him, "Bring over His Highness the Thirteenth Prince. This general will escort him back to the temporary palace and personally plead guilty to The Emperor."

Upon hearing this, the hearts of the guards sank. But comparing displeasing the imperial progeny to disobeying General Xiao, they preferred not to defy the latter’s order. Thus, they unwillingly made their way toward the fearfully indignant Thirteenth Prince.

"No, I don’t want to go back, you dog servants let me go, let me go right now!" The Thirteenth Prince, while being seized, struggled fiercely and called out to Prince Qi for help, "Seventh Imperial Brother, please save me, save me!"

It was unclear whether these cries for help were to escape the "clutches" of the guards or to avoid the impending punishment that would be meted out by Emperor Huian.

Prince Qi was equally shocked by Xiao Ruiyuan’s audacious actions. He had always known that this man was not only cold in demeanor but also stone-hearted. Beyond The Emperor and the sickly Crown Prince, no one mattered to Xiao Ruiyuan, and nobody could touch him. Yet, Prince Qi had never imagined that Xiao Ruiyuan would dare to "seize" an imperial prince in front of so many witnesses. It was simply outrageous!

Regaining his composure and watching Xiao Ruiyuan turn to leave, Prince Qi’s expression soured to the extreme, "Xiao Ruiyuan, how dare you! Are the Princes of Great Chu someone you can just seize at your whim? Do you even regard the Imperial Family and The Emperor at all?"

Given that Xiao Ruiyuan was already aware that today’s events were filled with suspicious circumstances, he was eager to leave this trouble-filled place and had no intention of heeding Prince Qi’s irrational interrogation. Thus, without looking back, he quickened his pace and walked even faster.

Just then, a panic-stricken elk bolted out, pursued by none other than King Heng, bow and arrow in hand. Not far behind him were two other adult Princes.

With this, aside from the underage Sixteenth Prince who had been sent back and the confined King Jing and King Kang, all the Princes had gathered. freёwebnoѵel.com

King Heng was the first to spot Xiao Ruiyuan and Prince Qi’s party. He immediately ceased his pursuit, a look of surprise flashing across his face, "Why are you here?" Seeing the Thirteenth Prince caught by the guards and causing a fuss, he couldn’t help frowning, "What is going on here? Has the Thirteenth Imperial Brother done something wrong?"

Before Xiao Ruiyuan could answer, Prince Qi leaped forward, as if having found someone to rely on. As he embellished the story, he indignantly accused Xiao Ruiyuan of heinous disloyalty and declared that he would report to the Emperor and have him punished for his disrespect towards the Imperial Family.

After hearing this, King Heng did not echo the sentiments; instead, he rebuked Prince Qi, "This was clearly Thirteenth Imperial Brother’s fault. General Xiao is taking the Thirteenth Prince back to the palace to apologize to the Emperor. Where is the wrong in that? Even if you are distressed over the Thirteenth Imperial Brother, you must not muddle right and wrong."

Upon hearing this, a trace of grievance flashed across Prince Qi’s face. Just as he was about to argue, he caught a meaningful glance from his Imperial Brother and abruptly recalled something, promptly closing his mouth.

King Heng sighed with relief inwardly and turned to the stern-faced Xiao Ruiyuan, his face breaking into a gentle smile, "General Xiao, the Seventh Imperial Brother is naturally candid and impulsive. He spoke harshly out of concern for his brother. If he has caused any offense, I, on his behalf, offer an apology to General Xiao and hope that you will not take it to heart."

This humble and sincere demeanor, witnessed by all, only served to raise King Heng’s reputation as the "Virtuous King." When compared with the frowning Xiao Ruiyuan, the scales of public opinion tilted in favor of King Heng. People felt that Xiao Ruiyuan was acting erratically and arrogantly, relying on his military exploits and the trust of Emperor Huian, to the point of not even respecting a Prince which was improper.

As for those accusatory glances, Xiao Ruiyuan hardly regarded them. Observing the pretentious King Heng, he grew even more certain that something was amiss with the Thirteenth Prince’s unexplained departure.

Now, all he wanted was to extricate himself from this place as quickly as possible and return to protect Chu Heng. Thus, he bowed politely to King Heng and said, "Your Highness, I dare not delay! I must take the Thirteenth Prince back and report. I cannot stay longer; please excuse me."

Without waiting for King Heng’s response, he gestured for the guards to take the Thirteenth Prince away.

Seeing his lack of tact, King Heng’s amiable expression twisted briefly, then he stepped forward to block Xiao Ruiyuan. Appearing to ignore the chill in Xiao’s eyes, he smiled and said, "We are right in the Savage Beast Forest. General Xiao, why not stay and show us your archery skills? Have the guards return to report to the Emperor. I have long wished to witness General Xiao’s equestrian and archery skills. Today provides such an opportunity; would you join me for a bout, General?"

Xiao Ruiyuan, gazing solemnly at the seemingly harmless King Heng, was about to decline without hesitation when he was abruptly silenced by what King Heng said next.

"General Xiao, the security of the entire hunting grounds is under your charge. This place is the Savage Beast Forest, and the dangers are clear without my saying more. If anything were to happen, I fear General Xiao would find it difficult to explain to the Emperor, wouldn’t you?"

As King Heng said this with a smile, the subtle threat in his words turned Xiao Ruiyuan’s expression completely cold...