Wu Ciyun felt like a peach freshly plucked from a tree—one moment being yanked this way, the next moment dragged that way, and she had absolutely no way to communicate with this bunch of wild monkeys.
The wild monkey Chu Mingyi squawked loudly, “Wu Ciyun, my elder brother would never be your shameful concubine! You must drive out that fox spirit and the madwoman!”
The wild monkey Rong Tan jabbered, “A Yun, do you think I’m a fox spirit? Hurry and tell them that we’re the real family!!”
The wild monkey Xiao Wan chirped nervously, “Brother Ciyun, say something! Brother Ciyun, are you really going to watch me and my child die together?!”
The little wild monkey cradled in her arms was babbling away, but Wu Ciyun couldn’t understand a word.
So tired. Her ears hurt so much.
Wu Ciyun thought the worst decision she had made today was stepping out of the hall.
If she hadn’t stepped out of the hall, Xiao Wan wouldn’t have clung to her, refusing to let go.
If Xiao Wan hadn’t clung to her, she wouldn’t have bumped into Chu Mingyi.
If she hadn’t bumped into Chu Mingyi, she wouldn’t have happened to meet Rong Tan passing by.
If she hadn’t met Rong Tan passing by, she wouldn’t have been made a laughingstock by Wen Guanyu.
Taking a deep breath, she tried to interrupt the quarrel.
“General Chu, listen to me. Actually, I never knew who your elder brother really was…”
“You don’t know who my elder brother is? What a joke! Are you really planning to completely abandon my elder brother over this fox spirit and that mother and child?!”
“Your elder brother is obviously a fool, and A Yun doesn’t like children either. Can you stop clinging here so stubbornly!”
“Who’s clinging stubbornly? When I first met Brother Ciyun, you guys didn’t even know where you were! Barren old rooster, what right do you have to act so recklessly here!”
Wu Ciyun thought, I kind of want to die, but there are others more deserving.
Seeing the farce drag on endlessly, with the group pulling and pushing each other shamelessly, Wen Guanyu couldn’t stand it any longer.
With a cold face, he strode forward.
His left hand pulled Chu Mingyi aside, his right hand dragged away Rong Tan, and he forcibly pried Xiao Wan off Wu Ciyun, who hadn’t yet reacted.
Before she could realize it, Wen Guanyu snatched the child from Wu Ciyun’s arms and handed him directly to Miss Liu standing nearby.
“Hey!”
Chu Mingyi wanted to protest, but Wen Guanyu cut him off coldly.
“Chu Mingyi, you are an envoy to the Sheng Dynasty, not a street thug to be cursing around.”
Rong Tan sneered upon hearing this, mocking, “Don’t try sending every filthy, smelly, silly, stupid person to our mansion—do you even know who you are?”
Wen Guanyu glanced at him and said calmly, “You’re nothing but a servant. How dare you talk back to your master here? Do you not understand respect, or are you simply overstepping your bounds?”
Rong Tan frowned, suspecting Wen Guanyu was deliberately retaliating, but fearing his own status might be exposed, he reluctantly fell silent.
Xiao Wan, seeing both of them bested, felt greatly relieved and even found Wen Guanyu a bit more agreeable, but before she could say anything, Wen Guanyu turned his gaze to her.
“Princess, if you’re pulling and tugging with external officials inside the palace, I’m afraid it won’t sound good if word gets out.”
“I don’t care.”
Xiao Wan looked a little guilty but pretended to be indifferent.
“Brother Ciyun and I are straightforward. What’s there to hide!”
Wen Guanyu’s expression didn’t change as he said lightly, “You may not care, but those associated with you will have their reputations ruined—at best becoming gossip, at worst being impeached by the Imperial Censor, stripped of rank, and dismissed from office.”
Xiao Wan was momentarily frightened.
She glanced at Wu Ciyun anxiously, nervously clutching her sleeve, standing there without daring to say more.
Wu Ciyun had barely escaped that pack of monkeys and felt utterly despondent.
Wen Guanyu helped smooth out her disheveled clothes and scolded, “You’re young but you don’t take care of your body, indulging in debauchery all day. Didn’t the Teacher ever teach you to restrain yourself and observe propriety?”
Wu Ciyun was bewildered by the accusation and wanted to retort, but feared that continuing to argue would only make Wen Guanyu dredge up old grievances, so she bit back her words.
The four people who had just been in an uproar now stood quietly and obediently.
The System watched in amazement.
Wow.
So Wu Ciyun’s former lover was a disciplinarian.
Wen Guanyu’s overly familiar attitude and intimate gestures made Chu Mingyi, who already knew of their acquaintance, feel suspicious.
Rong Tan quickly stepped in front of Wen Guanyu, carefully adjusting Wu Ciyun’s cloak as if he were just an ordinary servant.
“I have business. I’ll be leaving first.”
Wu Ciyun didn’t want to waste any more time here. Seeing her prepare to leave, Rong Tan naturally followed closely behind.
Chu Mingyi also wanted to follow, but Wen Guanyu’s offhand remark about avoiding suspicion stopped him in his tracks.
Xiao Wan didn’t care about such things.
She hurried to catch up with Wu Ciyun and asked with concern, “Brother Ciyun, are you alright?”
She gathered her words carefully, not wanting to hurt Wu Ciyun’s pride.
“Actually, this kind of thing… isn’t a serious illness. You’re just too tired. Rest well, and you’ll be fine.”
Xiao Wan suddenly felt enlightened.
No wonder no matter what tricks she used, Wu Ciyun never took the bait. Now she understood the reason.
“Princess, this is my personal matter. Please don’t trouble yourself.”
Wu Ciyun’s steps faltered slightly. She turned to Xiao Wan and finally said, “I hope the Princess will not forget what I said today.”
Xiao Wan was taken aback, standing there watching Wu Ciyun walk away, suddenly feeling a complicated mix of emotions.
Miss Liu saw Xiao Wan’s expression darken and thought she was worried about Ciyun, so she whispered, “Princess, should we ask the Imperial Physician to examine Lord Wu…?”
Xiao Wan gently stroked the child’s cheek in the swaddling clothes and asked curiously, “Why summon the Imperial Physician?”
Miss Liu looked a little embarrassed and said softly, “You said Lord Wu wasn’t feeling well just now. The palace doctors are skilled—they might be able to cure Lord Wu’s illness.”
“Cure him, and then he goes back to the Liang Capital only to be dragged through the Red Wave? I’d rather not.”
Xiao Wan snorted lightly. She wasn’t a fool. If she cured Wu Ciyun today, who knew who would benefit from it tomorrow?
She refused to be the one planting trees for others to enjoy the shade.
Wu Ciyun was unaware that Xiao Wan secretly wished for her failure. She cursed her ill fortune silently—she had just stepped outside when all this nonsense happened.
Rong Tan knew he had messed up today.
After much thought, he whispered, “A Yun, I’m sorry. Actually, today I…”
“You’d better shut your mouth now.”
Wu Ciyun cut him off coldly.
She still needed Rong Tan for now and didn’t plan to act against him yet. If he was sensible, this was the time to keep quiet and not provoke her further.
Rong Tan was even more flustered and silently stopped speaking, inwardly wishing he could tear Chu Mingyi apart.
Originally, he only wanted to pull Xiao Wan away—after all, Wu Ciyun said she was afraid of being entangled by Xiao Wan and had brought him to the palace banquet for that reason.
But who would have thought that despicable Chu Mingyi would immediately accuse Wu Ciyun of infidelity?
Enraged, Rong Tan argued back, resulting in this humiliating scene.
Wu Ciyun did not return to the hall for a long time.
Prince Rui originally intended to watch the spectacle but saw no sign of her and lost most of his interest.
He hastily ordered attendants to search everywhere.
Several attendants circled nearby for quite a while before spotting Wu Ciyun’s figure.
Seeing that she was heading out of the palace, they quickly blocked her path.
“Duke Protector of the State, so you’re here.”
The attendants respectfully said, “The palace banquet has not yet ended. The Regent asks that you return to the banquet.”
Wu Ciyun’s expression was indifferent as she calmly replied, “Please convey my apologies to the Prince. Tell him I’m unwell and must return to the mansion first.”
The attendants exchanged a glance, clearly troubled.
They wanted to stop her, but could not, so they watched helplessly as Wu Ciyun turned and left.
The lead attendant hurried back to report to Prince Rui.
Seeing Wu Ciyun dodge him so blatantly, Prince Rui refused to let it go and ordered his subordinates to bring her back at all costs—to wipe out the humiliation of today.