The man heard the word “madman” and his expression tightened instantly. He looked her over carefully from head to toe, and when he saw that she was unhurt, his face eased somewhat.

He had learned that she and Yan Shiyao had snuck out of the residence carrying a child, and fearing something might happen to her, he had rushed over immediately.

“Mm.” Xuan Yanyu lowered his gaze to Ye Chen. “Go bring A’Yao out. Whatever injury the madman inflicted on A’Yao, repay it — A’Yao must not have suffered in vain.”

Ye Chen replied, “Understood, Your Highness.”

“Wait — the Prime Minister’s carriage is outside the villa. Take the child in and hand him to Mu Rong.” Yan Yunning’s awareness was growing hazy with the pain.

“Second Young Miss Yan, there is no child in the carriage — only Chunyi, who has fallen asleep inside.” Ye Chen pressed his lips together and said gravely, “The child seems to have been taken by someone.”

Yan Yunning’s vision went dark. “Leave here first. Quickly go and get my sister and Second Young Miss Mu out.”

“Leave here?” Mu Rong, long sword in hand, dragged the unconscious Yan Shiyao along with him and tilted his head as he regarded them. “Where is my An’an?”

Yan Yunning bit her lip.

The man pressed the flat of his sword against Yan Shiyao’s pale throat, his gaze fixed on Yan Yunning with an icy, malevolent smile. “Where is An’an?”

“Where is An’an?” Xuan Yanyu drew the dagger at his waist, tilting his head with a faint smile.

He twirled the dagger between his fingers and exchanged a glance with Ye Chen. Before Mu Rong could react, the gem-encrusted dagger had been driven into his wrist, and the long sword was kicked aside by Ye Chen in the same instant.

The smile on Xuan Yanyu’s face grew more dangerously wicked. “Where is An’an? How does she know about An’an?”

Yan Yunning swallowed. A little madwoman had just met a big madman.

The man turned his gaze sideways and, with one fingertip, hooked her ear. “Don’t be afraid.”

The excruciating numbness in her hand beneath her sleeve surged, and Yan Yunning grew light-headed with pain. She gave a small, quiet “Mm.”

“Yan Yan, Mu Rong.” Mu Xi arrived and the moment she saw Mu Rong being pinned down in disarray by Ye Chen, her legs went weak beneath her.

She was frightened every time she so much as set eyes on Ye Chen now.

Could it be that Mu Rong had also said something unflattering about Xuan Yanyu and it had been overheard by one of his subordinates?

Ye Jian took Ye Chen’s place, lifted Yan Shiyao up onto his back from the ground.

“Sir, allow me to take First Young Miss Yan to see a physician.” Ye Jian spoke up.

His Highness had given no word about taking First Young Miss Yan to see a physician, and he was afraid that if they delayed any longer, she would lose too much blood.

“Mm.” The man gave a calm nod.

“A’Xi, they’re the ones who took An’an.” Mu Rong’s voice was low and hoarse as he shouted at Mu Xi. “Go and find An’an quickly.”

Mu Xi pursed her lips. “Mu… Mu Rong, why would they take An’an?”

“It was Mu Cheng. Mu Cheng put them up to taking An’an.” Mu Rong’s expression was dark and vicious.

If anything happened to An’an, he would not, he would not let Mu Cheng off.

“Cheng Cheng?” Mu Xi’s brow furrowed as she looked toward Yan Yunning. “Was An’an taken by your group?”

“Not by her.” Xuan Yanyu’s face bore no expression. “It has nothing to do with her.”

“A’Jie.” Mu Cheng, upon hearing Mu Xi’s voice, finally dared to step forward.

“Cheng Cheng? How did you get injured?” Mu Xi rushed forward to support her, her breath catching in her throat. “What happened? Why is there blood all over your sleeve?”

Mu Cheng convulsed with pain all over, her eyes reddening. “A’Jie, it was Mu Rong who stabbed me. An’an is Mu Rong’s child.”

Mu Xi’s mind reeled with a thunderous shock. “Mu Cheng, what are you saying?”

“A’Jie, An’an has gone missing, and he wounded me, wounded Yaoyao, and also Second Young Miss Yan — if An’an were not his child, why would he…”

“He wounded Yan Yunning?”

The low, furious roar startled the words right out of Mu Cheng, and she swallowed the rest of what she had been about to say.

“Where are you injured?” Xuan Yanyu looked Yan Yunning over carefully.

Her lips had gone rather pale — he had assumed it was simply from fear.

“It is not very serious.” Yan Yunning frowned and raised her hand.

Xuan Yanyu’s gaze dropped to the sleeve soaked through with fresh blood, and his heart seized. He carefully pulled the sleeve back. The sword wound was still bleeding, and her fingers had swollen up.

“Yan Yunning, not serious?” Xuan Yanyu’s throat tightened. He bent and lifted her into his arms, his gaze falling upon Mu Rong with dark, oppressive coldness. “Bring him.”

Yan Yunning looked at the coldness in the man’s eyes and felt her heart contract. She had no way of shaking him loose now.

What came after could be dealt with when it came. He would not let go, and no matter how many times she argued with him, it was useless. She no longer wished to keep quarreling with him in the days ahead.

When he was displeased, she was unhappy too. However long she could remain here with him — she would keep him company for that long.

Xuan Yanyu held Yan Yunning and ran anxiously all the way to the inn.

Ye Chen dragged Mu Rong along, panting, behind them.

“We could have taken the carriage,” Yan Yunning said, smoothing the hair that the wind had blown into disarray.

She had tried to say something several times along the way, and each time he had said, “It’s all right, don’t be afraid. We’ll be at the inn soon.”

After a while she had given up saying anything and let him run.

She was not tired in any case.

“……” The man fell silent.

“Urgh.” Mu Rong’s head lolled and he vomited all over Ye Chen.

Ye Chen’s body went rigid, his fists clenching tight.

Xuan Yanyu cast them a look of distaste, turned, and carried Yan Yunning into the side room.

“Your Highness.”

“Your Highness.”

Ye Jian and the imperial physician Wen bowed in greeting.

“This Palace can see A’Yao’s injuries are not grave. Treat Yan Yunning’s wound first.”

Ye Jian glanced at Yan Shiyao lying unconscious on the bed, then looked at Yan Yunning — still fairly alert in Xuan Yanyu’s arms — and regarded his Highness with a look that said much without saying anything.

Xuan Yanyu lowered his gaze to Yan Yunning. “Do not overthink it. This Palace is simply concerned that A’Yao, upon waking, would blame this Palace — after all, A’Yao is quite fond of you as a younger sister.”

Yan Yunning gave a cooperative nod.

“Please attend to my sister’s injuries first…”

“Are you not coming over?” Xuan Yanyu’s gaze turned cool. “If A’Yao were to wake and find Yan Yunning collapsed from excessive blood loss, how would this Palace answer to her?”

Imperial Physician Wen’s mouth twitched. Wake up? Given how severely First Young Miss Yan was wounded, she would surely remain unconscious through the night.

“Second Young Miss Yan, extend your hand.” Imperial Physician Wen took a clean cloth and gently wiped the blood from around the wound.

“Hiss…” A stifled grunt escaped Xuan Yanyu’s throat, and a fleeting look of helplessness crossed his eyes.

Yan Yunning quietly withdrew the hand that had unconsciously clamped into the man’s waist from the pain.

Ye Jian pressed his lips together. Second Young Miss Yan had not made a single sound of complaint. What exactly was His Highness hissing about?

Could it be… he was hurting on her behalf?

Once the wound had been dressed, Xuan Yanyu settled Yan Yunning onto a wooden chair, made sure to instruct Imperial Physician Wen to restore Yan Shiyao to full health, and then followed Ye Jian out of the side room.

Imperial Physician Wen’s face was creased with worry. If First Young Miss Yan’s wound had been fatal, there would have been no need to treat her at all by now.

As evening approached, Yan Shiyao had still not regained consciousness and had even developed a high fever.

Imperial Physician Wen decocted another dose of medicine and had Yan Yunning feed it to Yan Shiyao.

Looking at Yan Shiyao lying unconscious on the bed, Yan Yunning let out a long sigh. “Fafa, who took Mu Rong’s son away?”

Fafa replied: “The Prefect. In the book, this child — on the very day of Mu Xi and Mu Rong’s wedding — was taken away by the Prefect and quietly raised at a farmstead. Because he looked down on the handmaid Xiao Yi’s lowly status, he believed that only a child born of the Minister of Revenue’s legitimate eldest daughter, a woman of noble standing, would be worthy of being the Prefect’s legitimate heir.”