Uncle Zhang and the others got to their feet and moved to stand protectively around Jun Wan.
Hidden in the shadows, Ye Ying had slipped into the Prince’s Manor the moment the imperial guards stormed in. Since Jun Wan had not summoned him and she did not appear to be in immediate danger, he had remained concealed.
Seeing this, Dou Kong’s expression darkened.
“What? Are you planning to rebel?”
He looked toward Jun Wan. Seeing that she stood there in silence, seemingly stunned, he assumed she had been frightened into submission and finally relaxed.
Even Uncle Zhang and the others thought Jun Wan had been scared, which was why they had stepped forward to shield her.
In reality, Jun Wan was thinking about how to ensure that Nanny Lin and Linglan could accompany her into exile.
The moment Nanny Lin and Linglan heard that they were to be sold off, they immediately dropped to their knees and kowtowed.
“Please, my lord! Let us accompany our mistress into exile!”
Only then did Jun Wan speak, her face cold.
“This Princess Consort believes that my husband would never flee in the face of battle. There must be some misunderstanding.
Since His Majesty, my imperial uncle, has decreed that we be exiled, then we shall go into exile. The truth will come to light sooner or later. But my wet nurse and my maid came with me from the Silver Wolf Kingdom as part of my dowry. No matter where I go, I will take them with me.”
At that moment, she deliberately referred to herself as “This Palace” (ben gong), making it clear to Dou Kong and the others that she was not merely the War Prince’s consort—she was also a princess of the Silver Wolf Kingdom, sent here in a political marriage. Strictly speaking, exiling her was already a violation of protocol.
Dou Kong had no desire to argue over such a trivial matter. They were only two women, and letting them accompany the exile would make little difference. Besides, the new emperor had even provided a carriage for the War Princess Consort, so he would probably not object to two servants tagging along.
“Fine. They may accompany you.”
Then he signaled to his men.
“Strip them of everything valuable they have. Search every courtyard again and bring back anything you find.”
With even the imperial treasury having been robbed, he was determined to seize whatever he could.
At that moment, several imperial guards tossed bundles of coarse hemp clothing before them.
“If you don’t want us to do it ourselves, then change into these obediently.”
Jun Wan had no intention of causing further trouble. She simply instructed Linglan to fetch three sets of the rough clothes.
“Commander Dou, please allow us to find a room to change,” she said.
Dou Kong waved his hand dismissively. Mo Yan still had not been found, and he did not want unnecessary complications.
Jun Wan led Nanny Lin and Linglan away to change. The other women quickly grabbed their own sets and followed, terrified that the soldiers would strip them by force.
Before long, everyone emerged dressed in coarse prison garments.
Meanwhile, the imperial guards had searched the servants’ and concubines’ quarters, uncovering quite a few valuables. Yet they found absolutely nothing in Jun Wan’s or Mo Yan’s rooms.
Seeing his men return empty-handed from Jun Wan’s residence, Dou Kong’s face turned grim.
“Did the thieves even clean out the princess’s chambers?”
Jun Wan answered calmly, neither humble nor overbearing.
“Shouldn’t you be asking the imperial guards who surrounded the manor?”
“Hmph!”
Dou Kong snorted coldly.
“Princess, please. The carriage is already waiting outside.”
His tone dripped with sarcasm as he turned to the guards.
“Take them away.”
At once, the muffled sobs throughout the War Prince’s Manor erupted into loud cries.
These women had all been dancers gifted to the War Prince by various officials. They had dreamed that one day they might catch his favor. Even becoming one of his concubines would have guaranteed them a lifetime of luxury and wealth.
Who could have imagined that they would instead end up being sold as slaves?
Their lives were over.
Jun Wan, however, paid no attention to Dou Kong’s mockery. Holding little Jingchen in her arms, she headed toward the gate with Nanny Lin and Linglan beside her.
“Stop!”
One of the imperial guards suddenly barked.
“Leave the blanket behind.”
Jun Wan’s temper flared. Her gaze turned icy as she looked at the guard before shifting to Dou Kong.
“Commander Dou, do you truly intend to take my son’s little blanket as well?”
The guard was frozen in place by the sharpness of her eyes.
Nanny Lin and Linglan also glared at him angrily. Was he even human? He would not spare even an infant’s blanket?
Jun Wan secretly thought that if Dou Kong insisted on confiscating it, she would make a scene. After all, Mo Cheng still intended to use her and her son as bait to capture Mo Yan; surely they would not kill them now.
Her son had only recently been born, his skin delicate and tender. Those rough hemp clothes could never be wrapped around him.
Besides, she could not conveniently take anything out of her storage space right now.
She silently cursed them.
They’ve truly gone mad from greed. They won’t even spare a baby’s blanket.
Dou Kong looked at the blanket. It was only made of cotton, and even if he confiscated it, it would not be worth much.
“Forget it. You may keep the blanket.”
Jun Wan nodded.
“Thank you.”
Inwardly, she thought, At least you still have a shred of humanity.
Without another glance at the guard who had demanded the blanket, she turned and carried little Jingchen out of the manor, with Nanny Lin and Linglan hurrying after her.
The guard finally snapped out of his daze and stared venomously at Jun Wan’s retreating figure.
He had actually been intimidated by such a foolish woman.
Silently, he marked her for revenge.
The moment Jun Wan stepped out of the estate, everyone else in the manor was also herded outside.
Apart from the three officially recognized concubines, all the servants and singing girls of the War Prince’s Manor were sent to the slave market, while Uncle Zhang and the others were shackled with cangues and leg irons and escorted to prison.
Sure enough, an old, dilapidated carriage waited outside the gates.
Fortunately, it had a canopy that could at least block the cold wind.
To protect Jun Wan, Linglan had been trained in martial arts since childhood. Driving a carriage was effortless for her.
She walked over, lifted the curtain, and helped Jun Wan climb aboard while carrying little Jingchen. Nanny Lin followed behind.
Just as Linglan was about to lower the curtain, the three women behind them saw it closing.
One of them, a delicate-looking beauty, called out softly,
“Elder Sister, we haven’t gotten on yet.”
“Enough.”
Jun Wan cast them a calm glance.
“My father is the Emperor of the Silver Wolf Kingdom. My mother is its Empress. I also have a full-blooded elder brother. How is it that I never knew my mother had given birth to younger sisters for me?”
“…”
The three women flushed with humiliation and lowered their heads.
The imperial guards behind them shouted impatiently,
“Hurry up! Stop dawdling! If you delay the schedule, you’ll all suffer the consequences!”
Linglan lowered the carriage curtain without even looking at the three women. Taking up the reins, she drove the carriage after the imperial guards leading the way.
“Move!”
A guard behind them shoved the delicate woman roughly.
She stumbled forward, nearly falling, but managed to steady herself. Dragging the heavy shackles around her ankles, she hurried after the carriage, with the other two concubines close behind.
Too afraid to vent her anger on the guard who had pushed her, she glared hatefully at Jun Wan’s carriage.
“What are you acting so proud for? Even if you’re a princess, you’re still being exiled just like us. Just you wait—you’ll have your share of suffering.”
Although Jun Wan sat inside the carriage, under the circumstances she was paying close attention to everything outside.
She heard every single word.
The corners of her lips curled into a scornful smile.
Wait and see?