Chapter 415: Establishing the Child's Authority

Gu Jiu Ling coldly cut off Ying Gu's words, staring fixedly at her; Ying Gu, stared at by Gu Jiu Ling, felt a bit creeped out and actually closed her mouth out of guilt.

Li Cheng saw something was wrong and hurried to speak, but Xiao Yin, standing nearby, spoke first.

He had gathered his old subordinates here; tonight he had some words to convey.

Xiao Yin raised his hand; the guards behind him dragged a few blood-soaked people forward to face these people.

Each of them was beaten until bloody, seeming to have only exhalation and no inhalation.

Ling Feng walked over, pulled off the hoods covering their heads, and threw them to the ground.

Those people lifted their bloodied faces to look at Xiao Yin, begging for mercy.

Ying Gu, upon seeing their faces clearly, turned deathly pale, opened her mouth but could not utter a word.

Xiao Yin ordered a chair brought for Gu Jiu Ling to sit first; Gu Jiu Ling raised her brow, slowly sat down, and coldly observed everything before her.

Xiao Yin then spoke: "Yang Song, as a second-rank commander of the Prince Rui mansion's dark guards, you actually neglected your duties, colluded with Li Ying Gu, let the Bei Di outsiders in, betrayed from within—it's true..."

Xiao Yin fixed his gaze on the trembling Ying Gu and said, word by word: "Deserve death!"

As the word "death" left Xiao Yin's lips, the guard behind him strode forward and thrust a blade hard into Yang Song's chest; Yang Song's plea for mercy cut off, he slowly collapsed.

The remaining few were bawling for father and mother; they had previously followed the Li family, later gained Xiao Yin's favor and served as dark guard commanders at his side.

In this plot to murder Gu Jiu Ling, these people were all involved, but the mastermind was Ying Gu.

Shrieks and pleas for mercy came in waves, accompanied by a heavy smell of blood.

Gu Jiu Ling furrowed her brow, signaling Jiu Yue and Yun Duo to cover the children's eyes.

Yun Duo and Jiu Yue quickly turned away to avoid the bloody scene; the two little ones had already fallen asleep, completely unaware that their father had flown into a rage and killed someone.

The vast training field fell into utter silence, especially the Li family members, each deathly pale and frightening.

They had followed the Prince for so long; the Prince had entrusted and rewarded them, they had muddled through these years, to the point that everyone present had forgotten that Xiao Yin was once the world's top assassin.

The lion merely retracted its claws temporarily; that does not mean it will sleep forever.

Li Cheng and the others lay flat on the ground, motionless.

Actually, anyone with clear eyes sees that Ying Gu was the mastermind; the accomplices have all been hacked to death—could the mastermind expect any good outcome?

Xiao Yin's sharp gaze swept over slowly, and he said coldly, word by word: "These days I, the Prince, have also heard some rumors."

He paused, his eyes flickering slightly.

"They say my Prince Consort's maternal grandfather was the perpetrator of the Qi Sha Gu case, but when Du Yushan was doing evil, my Prince Consort was still an innocent young lady unaware of worldly affairs."

"If you insist on pinning this sin on her, today I, the Prince, will take the blame for her."

Having said that, Xiao Yin drew the merit-rewarding dagger he had prepared earlier and suddenly stabbed himself in the ribs.

"Prince!"

Suddenly, exclamations rang out all around.

With a crash, Gu Jiu Ling's teacup fell to the ground and shattered.

She sprang to her feet and rushed toward Xiao Yin.

Gu Jiu Ling raised her hand to help stanch Xiao Yin's bleeding, but he stopped her; he slowly turned to look at the son and daughter who had been startled awake nearby.

Then he drew a deep breath; the intense pain turned his face pale, his body trembled slightly, yet he remained standing firm, showing no sign of weakness.

Standing below were his longtime trusted followers, who now harbored various reservations about his marriage to Gu Jiu Ling.

Little did they expect that Xiao Yin's stab would nearly knock their souls out.

Xiao Yin is the soul of these people; only if he lives can they overturn the wrongful case of Qi Sha Gu.

If Xiao Yin died, they would have nothing; all their faith and years of persistence would come to nothing.

Xiao Yin drew a breath, endured the pain, and continued: "Moreover, some say I, Xiao Yin, raise other people's sons and enjoy it."

"Even if they are not my own flesh and blood, having come to my home, I must fulfill my duty toward them."

"Besides, they are my own flesh and blood—the young Heir Apparent and young Commandery Princess of the Prince Rui mansion. You may gossip behind my back, but to aim your schemes at a pair of infants?"

"This matter..." Xiao Yin gasped from pain, "this matter I cannot tolerate."

Xiao Yin coldly glanced at the kneeling Li family members, gave a soft laugh: "Someone! Bring two bowls of clear water; tonight, right before your eyes, I will make things clear!"

Xiao Yin had Ling Feng prick his fingertip with a silver needle and drip two drops of blood into the bowl of clear water.

Then Ling Feng and another guard carried the bowl to Jiu Yue and Yun Duo.

Jiu Yue, seeing the sharp silver needle before her, felt distressed and wanted to cry; she held the child and instinctively stepped back, but Ling Feng forced her to face it and whispered, "Better a short pain than a long one; after tonight, no one will speak nonsense."

Jiu Yue's eyes turned red; although she was a servant, she also understood that tonight the Prince was again establishing authority for the young master.

We cannot forever let those people doubt the young master's lineage; when the children grow up, how will they establish their own influence in the Prince Rui mansion?

Xiao Yin wants these people to understand: these are his children; no one dare think of overstepping!

Immediately, the two children's loud cries rang out; Gu Jiu Ling's heart ached, making her tremble, and she nearly lost control and wanted to slap Xiao Yin to death.

Everyone stared fixedly at the two jade bowls; the blood droplets inside slowly merged together.

Then came another silence.

Xiao Yin stared steadily at his followers and said slowly: "The debt of the Du family patriarch is to be settled with the Du family; no matter how you calculate, it cannot be charged to my son and daughter."

"They are your young master; if even the young master dares to plot harm, surely one day there will be no room for me, the Prince Rui."

Upon hearing this, everyone around knelt down in unison.

Xiao Yin's glimmering peach-blossom eyes slowly narrowed, his gaze finally settling on the kneeling Li family members before him.

"These years I thank the Li family for your efforts; you saved my life, and that blade just now I have repaid you."

Li Cheng burst into tears, suppressing his sobs, and said: "Your subordinate deserves death ten thousand times!"

Xiao Yin drew a breath: "Li Cheng, I know you dote on your daughter, but Ying Gu is utterly lawless."

"Two paths: first, I, Xiao Yin, will protect your son and the Li family's wealth and honor."

"These years I, Xiao Yin, have not shortchanged the Li family either; from a closed-off small village, you have grown to become the mainstay of the entire Jiangnan circuit, and the Li family have made plenty of money."

"So you leave this wealth behind, but…"