Nanzhi pulled the corners of her mouth into a sarcastic smile, her gaze cold and detached as she spoke in the most even tone possible: “How does Father expect me to behave? Am I supposed to be grateful that Father personally delivered me onto the Crown Prince’s bed?”
Knowing that what he had done was dishonorable, Nan Huaimin felt a momentary pang of guilt. Softening his attitude slightly, he adopted an earnest, preaching tone: “Zhi’er, Father is only doing this for your own good.”
“Countless women bend over backward trying to catch the Crown Prince’s eye, yet he overlooks them all. But he took notice of you—what an supreme honor!”
The previous day, while accompanying the Crown Prince on an inspection tour, the Crown Prince had happened to catch sight of his daughter and casually offered a single word of praise. Seizing the opening, Nan Huaimin had instantly hatched this scheme to curry favor with the Crown Prince.
A growing smile crept across Nan Huaimin’s lean face. The moment he realized last night’s plan had succeeded and the Crown Prince hadn’t rejected her, the stone that had been weighing heavily in his chest finally dropped into place.
Just a moment ago, the Crown Prince’s men had sent word that he would be taking Nanzhi back with him, leaving Nan Huaimin so overjoyed he could practically fly.
Nanzhi met his gaze levelly, watching his beaming face as her eyes grew increasingly chilling. “When Father says ‘for my own good,’ you really mean sacrificing me and ruining my marriage to exchange for your own career advancement.”
Struck right where it hurt most, Nan Huaimin slammed his hand down angrily onto the table, glaring daggers at her as he raised his voice: “What absolute nonsense! I am steering you toward a higher path. The Crown Prince is the heir apparent, the future emperor! If you follow him, you will become an imperial noblewoman in the future, enjoying boundless glory and wealth!”
“Is that so? I’m afraid that is simply what Father wants.” Nanzhi lowered her gaze, her eyes dimming. “I want none of it.”
The room plunged into a heavy silence, thick with a suffocating, oppressive atmosphere.
“If Father has nothing else to say, I shall take my leave.” Casting a brief, dismissive glance at him, Nanzhi turned on her heel and started toward the door.
Seeing her attempt to leave, Nan Huaimin barked out a halt: “Stop right there!”
“The Crown Prince’s men just came by and said he will be taking you back with him. You are to follow the Crown Prince back to the capital. As for your marriage, I will naturally have someone annul it for you. From now on, you are to follow the Crown Prince wholeheartedly and stop dwelling on Wen Tingyue!”
“Father, your goal has been achieved. Are you satisfied now?” Nanzhi suddenly snapped her head up. Though her eyes burned red with emotion, not a single tear fell.
The memories she had deliberately buried clawed their way back to the surface. In her past life, her father had similarly traded her away for his own interests, trapping her inside a luxurious cage for three long years without a shred of freedom.
She had finally managed to escape, only to transmigrate into this unfamiliar era. She had thought her days would remain peaceful and that she would marry a decent man, but fate was playing yet another cruel joke on her.
How shockingly similar was this destiny? It felt as though an invisible, pitch-black net hung overhead, trapping her firmly within its mesh so that no matter how hard she tried, she could never escape.
Was there truly no escape?
Even though she had known in her heart all along that the Crown Prince would never easily let her go, hearing those words slip so callously from her father’s lips—devoid of a single shred of human warmth—sent a chill straight down to her marrow.
It was as though she weren’t his daughter at all, but merely a disposable tool to be stepped upon on his path to climbing higher.
At that exact moment, Nanzhi realized with painful clarity that her father had been utterly consumed by greed and ambition—or perhaps this was simply his true face all along.
While her father had never shown her much affection in the past, she had still maintained a baseline of respect for him simply because he was her father.
Yet his current behavior completely wiped away the last remaining shred of respect she had ever held for him.
Before Nanzhi could snap out of her daze, Nan Huaimin’s deafening roar echoed once more: “What kind of talk is that?! Countless people would kill to latch onto the Crown Prince’s coattails. I painstakingly planned all of this for you, yet you show no gratitude. Zhi’er, when did you become such a person? You are a tremendous disappointment to your father!”
“Father, I have never changed. The one who changed is you. It is you who harbor delusional fantasies, believing that a stunt like this will secure the Crown Prince’s favor and smoothly propel you upward?” Disillusioned to the core, Nanzhi discarded any remaining pretense of politeness.
“What absolute nonsense are you spouting! You unfilial wretch! I raised you all these years, and this is how you think of me!” Driven to fury by her words, Nan Huaimin abruptly raised his hand, making a motion to strike Nanzhi across the face.
Seeing his hand descending toward her, Nanzhi showed not an ounce of fear. Instead, she let out a light laugh, her voice soft yet laced with a hidden threat: “Father, the Crown Prince is exceedingly fond of this face of mine.”
Nan Huaimin’s expression froze, his hand halting mid-air. Weighing the implications of her words, he resentfully pulled his hand back, forcing a smile onto his face once more. Relenting his stance, even his tone turned coaxing and gentle: “Zhi’er, Father was merely acting on impulse just now. Do not hold it against me; Father apologizes to you.”
“Just be a good girl and follow the Crown Prince obediently.”
Mindful of his intention to continue using her, Nan Huaimin temporarily swallowed his anger, donning a benevolent expression as he lectured earnestly: “What Father did was wrong, but it was ultimately for your own good, Zhi’er. Father would never harm you.”
Shifting his tone abruptly, he added: “If you truly are unwilling, Father can go beg the Crown Prince right now—only I fear the Crown Prince’s wrath would bring disaster down upon the entire Nan estate. As for myself, I care little; losing my official post and my life matters not. I merely worry that your mother would be dragged down to suffer along with me.”
Nanzhi sat with a look of absolute indifference, watching his performance from the side. Listening to his sanctimonious words, observing his hypocritical mask, and hearing him use her mother as a bargaining chip to threaten her—it all filled her with unmitigated disgust.
Lacking the patience to listen to another word of his drivel, she stood up and left behind a single sentence before walking out of the room: “I understand, Father. Daughter still wishes to visit her mother, so I shall take my leave first.”
This time, Nan Huaimin did not fly into a rage. Staring at her retreating back, he instantly dropped his mask, a look of triumph gleaming in his eyes.
Zhi’er cared above all else for her mother. Even if it were solely for her mother’s sake, she would willingly submit and leave with the Crown Prince.
Just to be safe, he walked out to the doorway and issued an instruction to Steward Fu: “Go keep an eye on the young miss. Do not let her escape.”
“This slave understands,” Steward Fu replied with a practiced, flattering smile.
Nanzhi naturally caught the underlying meaning in her father’s words. His deliberate mention of her mother was nothing more than a warning: if she acted recklessly and tried to flee on her own, the Crown Prince’s fury might very well implicate the entire Nan estate.
She cared little for what happened to her father, but she could not bear the thought of her mother suffering on her account. She could not run away.
Her father had calculated every single move, keeping her firmly pinned in place by holding her mother over her head.
Reining in her turbulent thoughts, Nanzhi made her way back toward her own courtyard.
The moment she stepped outside the gates, she spotted a small, adorable maidservant dressed in peach-pink attire, sitting anxiously by the entrance and peering around with a worried look.
The moment the young maid Hongzhu caught sight of Nanzhi, she sprang to her feet in joyous relief, hurrying forward with hurried steps as she cried out excitedly: “Miss! You’re finally back!”
“Sob, sob, sob~ Miss, I am so glad you’re safe. This slave has been worried sick all night long.” As she spoke, Hongzhu’s lower lip quivered, and tears cascaded down her cheeks like unstrung pearls, plop after plop.
“There, there, stop crying, Hongzhu. I am alright.” Pulling out a handkerchief, Nanzhi gently wiped away the tears, softly patting Hongzhu’s cheek and soothing her in a tender whisper.
Hongzhu was two years her junior, only fourteen this year, and loved sticking close to her like a shadow.
Years ago, when Nanzhi first crossed paths with Hongzhu, the young girl was being hunted down by her own family, who intended to sell her off to a brothel. Touched by a momentary wave of pity, Nanzhi had purchased her freedom.
Having not seen her all night, seeing the little maid’s tear-swollen eyes made it obvious she had spent the night worrying and secretly shedding plenty of tears in private.
“Alright, let’s head inside first.”
“This slave obeys whatever Miss says.” Sniffling and stopping her tears, Hongzhu trailed closely behind Nanzhi like an obedient little duckling as they entered the courtyard.
“Sister Zhuyan! Miss is back!”