Hongling gasped and let out a terrified scream at the scene before her: "Miss!"
She rushed over and helped up Bai Ruoshui, who had been kicked flying by Chu Fengge.
Utterly weak, Bai Ruoshui leaned against Hongling, gazing at Mo Qianhan with tearful eyes: "Your… Your Highness, I never… never poisoned the Shizi. I would never… how could I poison the Shizi? The Shizi was poisoned… I… I would gladly… trade my own life… for his."
"Chu Fengge!" Mo Qianhan ground out through clenched teeth, word by word.
Chu Fengge felt a powerful wind sweep past her, and the next moment, a strong hand clamped viciously around her throat, leaving her no time to dodge.
"Do you really think this King wouldn't dare kill you? I haven't even settled the score with you over Zilou yet, and now you're picking on Ruoshui. You truly have a death wish!"
"Father, stop!" Mo Zilou ran over on his little legs and grabbed Mo Qianhan's arm. "She's the one who poisoned me—she admitted it herself…"
"Steward Wang, take the Young Heir back to Moyu Pavilion. From now on, the Young Heir is not to set foot in Peach Snow Courtyard again. If the Shizi escapes once more, you need not remain at the Prince Regent's Manor." Mo Qianhan warned Steward Wang in an icy voice.
Steward Wang's legs went weak with fear.
"Need not remain" naturally did not mean being thrown out of the manor—it meant being sent straight to the underworld.
With the Prince Regent's methods, he would never tolerate slip-up after slip-up.
How could Steward Wang have imagined that the Shizi would be so bewitched, protecting this mother and daughter? The Cousin was so kind to him, yet he refused to get close to her.
"I'm not leaving." Mo Zilou clutched Hua An's hand.
Mo Qianhan's eyes narrowed. "Then take them both away. Bring those two down."
"Mo Qianhan!" Chu Fengge gritted her teeth, her voice turning several degrees colder. She produced a silver needle laced with poison and swiftly jabbed it into Mo Qianhan's arm.
A numb sensation immediately shot through Mo Qianhan's arm, and soon he found himself unable to summon any strength.
His voice carried a dangerous chill: "You poisoned me."
"Your Highness, that question of yours is either stupid or foolish. If someone wants you dead, would you just lie there obediently and let them slaughter you?"
The murderous glint in his eyes deepened, and he channeled inner power to tighten his grip further, but it was no longer enough to harm Chu Fengge.
Because her drug was no less potent.
The two faced each other head-on, like fire and water, utterly incompatible.
Just then, Nanny Song entered from outside: "Your Highness, Consort Qi's palanquin has arrived at the manor gates. The messenger says His Highness is to bring the new Princess Consort to the front hall to receive Consort Qi."
Consort Qi was Mo Qianhan's birth mother, who had once saved the current Emperor's life.
After the new Emperor ascended the throne, he permitted Consort Qi to continue living in the palace, keeping Empress Dowager Liu company.
She occasionally stayed overnight at the Prince Regent's Manor to keep Mo Zilou company.
She had vehemently opposed the marriage between Mo Qianhan and Chu Fengge, but this time, the new Emperor did not heed her. Even Empress Dowager Liu said this was a match decreed by the Late Emperor during his lifetime and could not be changed.
This time, Consort Qi had clearly come for Chu Fengge!!
Mo Qianhan released Chu Fengge and stepped back. "Chu Fengge, think carefully about how you'll explain the trouble you've stirred up in this manor to my Imperial Consort Mother. Someone, escort the Cousin back to her courtyard to have her wounds bandaged."
"Yes, Your Highness." The servants all bowed.
Mo Qianhan clenched his numb hands and strode out of the courtyard with his back straight.
The moment he left, Hongling turned to Chu Fengge with a smug look on her face and said, "The Imperial Concubine dotes on the Cousin the most. Just you wait for your punishment."
Chu Fengge, holding Hua An's hand, raised a brow slightly and glanced at the wound on Bai Ruoshui's back. "If you don't hurry and have an Imperial Physician treat that wound, it'll get infected and leave an ugly scar. And when you're lying beneath the Prince Regent and he sees it, who knows if His Highness will still have the appetite…"
"You…" Bai Ruoshui's voice carried a tearful note of grievance, her eyes flashing with suppressed fury.
Mo Qianhan, who had just left the courtyard, came to an abrupt halt upon hearing Chu Fengge's words, gritting his teeth as he thought: That damned woman…