“That’s right! You jinx! You bullied my mother! If you hadn’t married into the Chu family, none of this would have happened on your wedding day. This is all your fault!” the middle-aged man with the thin mustache pointed at Hua Zhiyun, accusing her angrily.
It was obvious they were all in this together.
Seeing them causing trouble, Fifth Madam Chu prepared to leave with her two children. She was a widow with children to care for and didn’t want to get involved.
But Chu Lin’an couldn’t hold back.
“It wasn’t Sister-in-law’s fault!” he shouted. “It was the Emperor who deliberately framed us! He feared Big Brother’s growing achievements and falsely accused our family.”
“My elder brother did nothing wrong, and neither did Sister-in-law. The one at fault is—”
Before he could finish, the mustached man kicked toward him, intending to send him flying.
“You little brat! Adults are talking. Who gave you permission to speak?” he barked. “Your main branch has fallen. From now on, your family answers to ours. Anything good to eat or drink should be offered to my mother first!”
His foot never reached Chu Lin’an.
A stone and a thick vine shot through the air simultaneously.
The stone smashed into his leg with a sickening crack.
The vine wrapped around his neck.
The mustached man screamed miserably.
Everyone else hurriedly backed away in terror.
Bai Zhu instinctively stood in front of Chu Lin’an to shield him from the strange vine.
Bai Zhong rushed to protect Hua Zhiyun instead—
Only to be shoved aside by her in disgust.
Bai Zhong: “…”
He was a tall man weighing over a hundred and forty jin, yet she pushed him away with a single hand.
Wasn’t the Princess Consort supposed to be a delicate noble lady?
Her strength was unbelievable.
Even the female assassins in the Shadow Guard probably weren’t this strong.
The Princess Consort really couldn’t be judged by appearances.
He made a mental note to report this to the prince later.
The old matriarch, who had been rolling around on the ground moments ago, saw her youngest son being attacked and immediately scrambled to her feet, charging at Hua Zhiyun.
“Let my son go, you disaster!”
Hua Zhiyun copied the mustached man’s earlier move and kicked her squarely.
The old woman’s body crashed to the ground.
A series of cracking sounds echoed from her waist.
Her back was broken.
From this day forward, she’d need someone to care for her for the rest of her life.
If she was lucky enough to survive.
The old woman shrieked, “Murder! The Hua family’s daugh—”
Hua Zhiyun found her too noisy.
She casually twisted her wrist.
Crack.
The old woman’s jaw was dislocated instantly.
Her screams became nothing more than muffled “Ah-ba! Ah-ba!” sounds, like a fool babbling nonsense.
Meanwhile, the vine around the mustached man’s neck continued tightening.
His breathing became more and more difficult.
His face turned a frightening shade of purple.
Even so, Chu Linzhang showed no intention of stopping.
The man’s legs kicked wildly in midair.
It was obvious he was about to die.
The horrifying scene made all the adults cover their children’s eyes.
Only Chu Lin’an pushed Fifth Madam Chu’s hand away.
“I’m already twelve,” he said firmly. “I’m not a child anymore. He deserved to die.”
Fifth Madam Chu looked at her fearless son, her heart tightening.
She couldn’t decide whether his courage was a blessing or a curse.
After struggling for quite some time, the mustached man’s arms finally dropped limply.
His head lolled to one side.
He had been strangled to death alive.
Only then did the vine loosen and release his corpse.
The body hit the ground.
No one dared approach it.
Everyone stared in horror as the vine, seemingly alive, slowly retreated into the earth before disappearing completely.
They were all dumbfounded.
Was…
Was that some kind of demonic sorcery?
None of them had ever seen vines like these before.
They trembled in fear, terrified they would be next.
Not a single person dared even breathe loudly.
Only Hua Zhiyun applauded enthusiastically.
“Good riddance!”
She smiled brightly.
“Anyone else planning to bully me? Step forward. I’ll bury you all together.”
Those who had entertained such thoughts lowered their heads immediately.
None dared meet her eyes.
Forget stealing her food—
Just looking at her now frightened them.
The next moment—
They all dropped to their knees with loud thuds.
Slap!
Slap!
They repeatedly slapped themselves while begging for forgiveness.
“We were wrong!”
“We’ll never dare again!”
“Prince! Princess Consort! Please spare us!”
Chu Linzhang’s gaze turned icy.
“If anyone doesn’t wish to survive until we reach the place of exile…”
“…this prince doesn’t mind cleaning house.”
At his words, countless vines burst from the earth and wrapped themselves around everyone’s ankles.
The crowd nearly lost their minds from terror.
One after another—
People fainted on the spot.
Those still conscious weren’t much better.
What kind of evil cultivation technique was this?
Terrifying.
Absolutely terrifying.
Even Bai Zhong and Bai Zhu stared at the vines in complete disbelief.
They had doubted before.
Now they were certain.
The vines really were under their prince’s control.
The prince is incredible!
The two men looked at Chu Linzhang with stars practically shining in their eyes.
Unfortunately…
Chu Linzhang had overexerted himself.
He almost coughed up a mouthful of blood.
Hua Zhiyun smirked.
“You alright?”
He calmly shook his head, signaling that he was fine.
At the same time, he subtly motioned for Bai Zhu to wheel his prison cart away.
He couldn’t let everyone see him vomiting blood.
Otherwise, all the intimidating display he’d just put on would have been for nothing.
His goal had been to establish his authority.
To let everyone know that even crippled, Chu Linzhang was not someone to be bullied.
The objective had been achieved.
The price, however, wasn’t small.
His chest throbbed painfully.
His head buzzed.
His ears rang.
It was obvious he’d exhausted too much of his newfound power.
The mustached man was dead.
The old matriarch was paralyzed.
Their branch of the family carried both of them away.
Not long afterward, news spread that the old woman had died as well.
Hua Zhiyun raised an eyebrow.
With proper care, the old woman shouldn’t have died so quickly.
Either she had chosen death herself…
Or someone had decided she was too much of a burden to keep alive.
Whichever it was…
It had nothing to do with her.
The old woman had never been a good person.
She deserved her fate.
Hua Zhiyun wasn’t kindhearted enough to mourn someone like that.
There was no need.
When night fell, several bonfires were lit to provide light and keep insects away.
With no roofs overhead, every family simply lay down on the bare ground.
One group here.
Another group there.
Near Hua Zhiyun and Chu Linzhang, only Fifth Madam Chu and her two children dared stay close.
Everyone else kept their distance.
Chu Lin’an wasn’t a bad kid.
He could distinguish right from wrong.
He knew who deserved his loyalty.
By now, Chu Linzhang already regarded him as someone under his protection.
After taking his medicine, Chu Linqing’s fever had completely broken.
Before bedtime, Hua Zhiyun had him drink another dose to make sure it stayed down.
Fifth Madam Chu was endlessly grateful.
After hesitating for a while, she secretly handed Hua Zhiyun a gold leaf she’d hidden away.
Hua Zhiyun had always followed one principle—
If someone willingly gave her something, she’d take it.
If they didn’t, she wouldn’t ask.
She happily accepted the gold leaf.
Then she reached into the carriage and tossed several cold white steamed buns to Fifth Madam Chu.
Holding the buns, the woman’s stomach growled loudly.
Embarrassed, tears filled her eyes.
“I’m sorry… I didn’t stand up for you and the prince before.”
“I’m not a good person.”
“Scram.”
Hua Zhiyun wasn’t interested in emotional speeches.
If she kept talking, she’d lose the right to eat the buns.
Fifth Madam Chu froze.
Then she realized Hua Zhiyun wasn’t truly trying to humiliate her.
Only someone who had experienced exile understood how precious food really was.
As for dignity…
The moment they had been chased through the streets, pelted with dog droppings, and drenched with horse urine and cow dung…
Their dignity had already disappeared.
Now, Fifth Madam Chu had only one wish—
To keep her two children alive until they reached the place of exile.
Nothing else mattered.
As she left carrying the buns, she failed to notice—
Not far away…
Within the pitch-black darkness…
A single eye gleamed with a cold, sinister light.
Listening to the faint sounds in the distance, Chu Linzhang smiled to himself.
He knew Hua Zhiyun had a cold exterior but a warm heart.
If she truly didn’t care about Fifth Madam Chu, she would never have given away those buns.
Food was desperately scarce now.
White steamed buns were especially precious.
She had given them away instead of eating them herself because she knew the wild vegetable cakes the mother and her two children had shared that evening weren’t nearly enough.
She really is kindhearted.
Just as he was quietly admiring her…
His expression suddenly darkened.
He had sensed something moving nearby.