From within Prince Liang’s manor came the heart-wrenching roar of Prince Liang: “Fourth Brother became Crown Prince? Impossible, absolutely impossible!”

His face contorted with fury as he ran outside, only to be blocked by the manor’s Chief Administrator: “Your Highness, calm down!”

Hearing the address “Your Highness,” Prince Liang jumped as if pricked by needles and raised his hand to slap the Chief Administrator across the face: “Get out of my way!”

The Chief Administrator who’d been struck covered his face, unable to hide the humiliation in his eyes.

Manor Chief Administrators were mostly people the prince trusted, even teachers. Though their rank wasn’t high, they wielded real power and could earn the prince’s respect. Yet he, this Chief Administrator directly assigned to Prince Liang by the Emperor, not only had to endure Prince Liang’s periodic fits of madness but also had to suffer being slapped.

For an instant, the old Chief Administrator even wanted to step aside and let Prince Liang run before the Emperor to seek his own death. Ultimately reason stopped him: “Your Highness, you mustn’t act rashly. If you go make trouble on such a joyous occasion, it won’t benefit you—”

“Move aside!” Consumed by fury, Prince Liang’s strength was particularly great. He shoved the Chief Administrator to the ground and ran out.

“Your Highness—” The manor servants wanted to stop him, but meeting those bloodshot eyes they couldn’t help but shrink back. In just that moment’s hesitation, Prince Liang had already run far away.

Prince Liang’s manor wasn’t far from the Imperial City. Prince Liang ran wildly the entire way, rushing in one breath to the palace gates.

The palace guards hurriedly blocked him.

“I want to see Father Emperor!” Prince Liang’s expression was savage, his breathing labored.

Compared to the courtesy when Prince Liang had just been deposed and came to demand an audience with the Emperor, the guards were now much colder and harder: “If Your Highness wishes to see the Emperor, it requires announcement.”

“Then announce me!” The blow of the heir’s replacement had caused Prince Liang to lose his reason as he shrieked at the guards.

“Your Highness, please wait.” The guard concealed the contempt in his eyes and passed the message inside.

Emperor Tai’an was in his study reading memorials from the north. Hearing the report, he didn’t even lift his eyelids: “Tell him to go back.”

Soon Prince Liang learned the reply from the palace attendant: “The Emperor is currently busy. Your Highness, please return.”

Terrifying fury erupted in Prince Liang’s eyes: “Did you fail to tell Father Emperor?”

The attendant lowered his eyes, each word clear: “The Emperor said for Your Highness to return.”

“You dog slave, you dare deceive me!” Prince Liang’s eyes were round with rage, like a maddened wild beast about to devour someone.

“This servant would not dare falsely transmit an imperial decree.” The attendant suppressed his anger to finish speaking, then turned and walked away.

“Stop right there!”

Prince Liang lifted his foot to chase but was blocked by a guard’s horizontal blade: “Your Highness must stop.”

“You damned thing—”

“Your Highness, let’s return to the manor.” The manor servants who had caught up saw that Prince Liang hadn’t even managed to see the Emperor’s face. Not daring to let him continue making trouble, they half-pulled, half-dragged him away.

The gate guards exchanged glances. Though no one spoke, they didn’t hide their disdain for Prince Liang.

With Prince Liang in such a deranged state, clearly he could never make a comeback.

Walking on the road back, Prince Liang finally stopped making trouble, allowing the manor servants to breathe a sigh of relief. Suddenly he stopped in his tracks, his eyes fixed deadly in one direction.

“Your Highness?”

This call seemed like a reminder. Prince Liang forcefully shook off the person supporting his arm and rushed in that direction.

It was Second Miss Lin!

In how many nights after being deposed had Prince Liang tossed and turned, countless times recalling why things had become this way, until he actually puzzled out a conclusion: it was precisely after he developed feelings for Second Miss Lin that his luck grew worse and worse, until he lost his position as heir!

This demon had harmed him!

Lin Hao watched Prince Liang running toward her with towering fury, finding it completely baffling.

The dog Crown Prince—oh, now it was dog Prince Liang—actually still had the energy to bite people.

Lin Hao’s expression didn’t change. She planned to see what Prince Liang wanted to do.

Baozhu’s protective instincts were fierce. Seeing a vicious-looking man charging at her mistress, she positioned herself in front of Lin Hao and raised her leg to deliver a kick.

Prince Liang’s body had long been ruined from taking the Five-Color Powder. His fierce appearance was merely because the manor’s people didn’t dare confront him directly. Taking Baozhu’s kick, he went down face-first in a dog-eating-shit sprawl on the ground.

“Your Highness!”

Several people came rushing over in a flurry, helping Prince Liang up with all hands.

Caught completely unprepared, Prince Liang was left dizzy and disoriented from the fall. Holding his forehead, he couldn’t speak for quite a while.

Seeing him like this, a manor servant angrily rebuked Baozhu: “How dare you! You actually dared lay hands on our prince!”

Baozhu couldn’t help but look toward Lin Hao, her expression somewhat nervous.

She seemed to have caused trouble for her mistress. Just now worried about her mistress’s danger, she hadn’t bothered to see clearly who it was.

Lin Hao signaled Baozhu to step aside, her gaze calm as she looked toward the confrontational manor servant.

The manor servant recognized Lin Hao: “So it’s Second Miss Lin.”

The future Princess Consort of Prince Jing’s heir.

Despite recognizing Lin Hao’s identity, the manor servant didn’t let the matter rest: “Second Miss Lin, your maid just injured our prince. What do you say should be done about this?”

They were people of Prince Liang’s manor. Even if they privately felt Prince Liang was a pile of rotten mud, they couldn’t allow outsiders to show disrespect to Prince Liang, or else in the future anyone could step on their heads.

“Was His Highness injured?” Lin Hao looked at Prince Liang’s emaciated, skeletal form and only felt satisfaction.

The former caution, the inability to shake him—today he was finally no longer a threat.

“Regardless of whether he was injured or not, your maid kicking our prince is an offense by an inferior against a superior.”

Lin Hao raised her eyebrows: “Oh, why did my maid kick your prince?”

“This—” The manor servant faltered.

Why? Wasn’t it because the prince suddenly charged at Second Miss Lin like a madman?

But this reason was completely unspeakable…

As the manor servant struggled, Prince Liang recovered from his dizziness. Looking at Lin Hao with eyes that seemed ready to devour her: “You’re the one who harmed me!”

Lin Hao completely ignored conversing with Prince Liang and asked the manor servant in surprise: “Is your prince… all right?”

As she spoke, her slender fingers pointed at her head, the meaning couldn’t be clearer: did Prince Liang have a problem with his brain?

The master’s face was the servants’ face. With Lin Hao asking this way, the manor servants couldn’t even be bothered to pursue Baozhu kicking Prince Liang anymore, saying awkwardly: “Second Miss Lin, don’t misunderstand, our prince—”

Before finishing the sentence, they were frightened by Prince Liang’s sudden violent outburst.

“You people-harming demon, quickly reveal your true form!” Prince Liang shouted loudly, drawing his folding fan to strike at Lin Hao.

With manor servants blocking him, Lin Hao easily retreated two steps, her face full of sympathy: “It seems His Highness’s illness is quite severe. In this condition he should properly recuperate at home. How can you allow His Highness to run into the streets seeing people and shouting about demons, wanting to use a folding fan to catch demons?”

Several manor servants felt greatly embarrassed and dragged Prince Liang away half-pulling, half-hauling.

This commotion caused quite a few people to stop and watch the excitement. Seeing Prince Liang leave, they all sighed: “That was the deposed Crown Prince, right? Who’d have thought he’d actually gone mad, seeing beautiful women and thinking they’re demons.”

“He hasn’t gone mad!” An agitated voice rang out, particularly jarring amid the chorus of sighs.

People looked toward the speaker.

Wen Rusheng’s lips trembled with the excitement of finally finding a kindred spirit.

He’d said A’Hao was a demon, and even his own son didn’t believe him!

“How are you so certain?” someone asked.

Just at this moment, Lin Hao casually glanced in this direction.

Wen Rusheng’s entire body tensed. With difficulty he forced out a smile: “I, I was just talking nonsense.”