Chapter 122: Are You Concerned About Me?

Pei Shangling left the Imperial Court of Justice and immediately went to find Mu Yuanzhi.

The Grand Empress Dowager's condition had stabilized, the Qilin left the palace gates, and Mu Yuanzhi also returned to the princess's residence, so he went to the princess's residence.

Upon arriving, he learned that Pei Yunxi wasn't there, and recalled that she had been placed under house arrest.

Usually he was the first to worry about how his little sister was doing, but now he simply had no time to spare for her.

His release proved that the "culprit" had been found, yet this "culprit" didn't exist at all, which could only mean that the Father Emperor already knew what was going on.

He also heard that from Changle Palace they had seized jars that once held Southern Border red spiders, as well as some scorched, exploded soil; all the signs showed that his little sister's attempts to frame Mu Yuanzhi were not just a one‑ or two‑time thing.

Pei Shangling couldn't understand why such a kind‑hearted little sister would act this way—was it merely unease and jealousy?

He used to think it was the opposite—that Mu Yuanzhi was jealous of his little sister……

Just thinking that he had once scolded his own sister because of this misunderstanding filled Pei Shangling's heart with unbearable anguish.

Pei Shangling also recalled many other incidents, such as the kidnapping at the Lantern Festival—was that really a coincidence? The jade pendant matter, the dye matter—were those coincidences too?

He no longer knew whether he should trust his little sister.

But Pei Shangling believed his little sister's true nature was not bad; she merely wanted to scare Mu Yuanzhi, to let her suffer a bit, not actually to take a life.

Yet Mu Yuanzhi said that his little sister wanted a life for a life……

A life for a life—was that why his little sister had placed gu poison on the Qilin?

Pei Shangling dared not think further; if that were true, the only word for it was vicious.

Yet wasn't Mu Yuanzhi's last blood exchange a near‑death experience?

But that time should have been an accident; he couldn't believe anyone would be foolish enough to poison themselves with an untreatable toxin just to harm another.

Just as Pei Shangling was torn in his inner turmoil, Xiao Yichen suddenly appeared before him.

Pei Shangling felt as if he had seen a savior, lunged to grab Xiao Yichen, and demanded: "You're married to my little sister—you should know her best. Tell me, is she evil?!"

Xiao Yichen's deep gaze fixed on Pei Shangling as he pulled away his hand, saying: "I don't know her. She's your sister—you're the one who claimed to know her best."

"Aren't you husband and wife?!" Pei Shangling's voice rose a few notches. "Don't you even know your bed‑partner?"

"We are only husband and wife in name," Xiao Yichen corrected. "We've never even shared a bed."

If this were any other time, Pei Shangling would have already exploded, grabbing Xiao Yichen's collar to demand answers—but now he felt nothing of the sort.

He knew Xiao Yichen couldn't give him an answer, and perhaps no one could.

The more this went on, the more he suffered, as if he had fallen into a vast abyss.

One is the sister he has doted on for over a decade; the other is his own blood‑sister. By rights they should both be dear to him—so why must he now choose to believe one and abandon the other?

He could never abandon his little sister; she would surely reform. Certainly she would, so he wouldn't need to agonize—he'd just need to think about how to make amends to Mu Yuanzhi.

Pei Shangling consoled himself inwardly.

"Are you here to see Mu Yuanzhi?" Xiao Yichen asked.

"Of course—did you expect me to come see you?" Pei Shangling said, in a bad mood and giving Xiao Yichen no pleasant expression.

He always thought that his falling out with Mu Yuanzhi was also partly Xiao Yichen's fault—Xiao Yichen said he preferred the little sister, Xiao Yichen didn't want to marry Mu Yuanzhi, and having this person around influenced him, throwing his judgment into utter chaos.

Pei Shangling the more he thought, the more it made sense, and he shifted the blame for his own mistakes onto Xiao Yichen.

Xiao Yichen felt the same way: he believed that Pei Shangling, as his brother, had first failed to distinguish right from wrong, which affected him, so he had previously viewed Mu Yuanzhi unfavorably, and now he regretted it beyond remedy.

The two of them mutually disliked each other, and Mu Yuanzhi's arrival broke the eerie atmosphere in the air.

Seeing that Mu Yuanzhi was willing to come see him, Pei Shangling was delighted; he took this as his chance, convinced his sister could never truly hate him.

"Mu Yuanzhi!" Pei Shangling ran over, eyes eager, more so than ever before.

The only reason Mu Yuanzhi came out to see Pei Shangling was to check how he had fared after leaving the Imperial Court of Justice.

"How is the Fourth Prince's spirit?"

Too bad—he's not half‑dead, half‑alive.

"Are you concerned about me?" Pei Shangling said happily.

"It seems the jailers of the Imperial Court of Justice still dare not lay a hand on the Fourth Prince," Mu Yuanzhi said sarcastically.

Pei Shangling immediately snorted: "Those dog‑lackeys who dared to torture me have all been made to face the board‑beating!"

"Torture? What kind of torture?" Mu Yuanzhi asked, interested.

Pei Shangling didn't notice the gleam in Mu Yuanzhi's eyes; he only played the victim, rolling up his sleeve to show his whipped arm: "Here, and all over my body are whip wounds!"

Those damn jailers!

Mu Yuanzhi leaned in to look; Pei Shangling thought she would feel sorry for him—after all, his whip wounds were truly shocking. If this had been before, she would have burst into tears, feeling worse than if she herself had been hurt.

"Is that all?" Mu Yuanzhi said disappointedly, thinking the injuries on his body weren't that bad either.

Why not just flay him until his skin split and flesh tore?!

The Imperial Court of Justice does have methods that can flay a person until skin splits and flesh tears, but perhaps they held back because Pei Shangling is a prince, and the Minister of Justice couldn't gauge the emperor's intent, so they just applied a light punishment—anyway, they could always find someone to take the blame later.

Upon hearing this, Pei Shangling lifted his gaze to Mu Yuanzhi; all he saw in her eyes was regret, and his heart instantly turned cold.

Yeah, she wouldn't feel sorry for him now……

Pei Shangling lowered his sleeve; he wanted to gather the courage to apologize to her, but because Xiao Yichen was present he couldn't bring himself to lose face.

Damn it, why won't Xiao Yichen just leave?

Xiao Yichen had no sense that he was being a nuisance; he wanted to see Mu Yuanzhi, but she wouldn't see him at all in the princess's residence—no matter how many times he paced outside her courtyard, he couldn't catch a glimpse of her.

The gossip in the princess's residence meant nothing to him; all he wanted was to see her.

Mu Yuanzhi had long noticed Xiao Yichen's fiery gaze; aside from the beginning, when she gave him a bit of her peripheral vision, she had no spare attention left to bother with him.

She came over just to see how much Pei Shangling deserved it; the outcome was disappointing, so she abandoned any thought of staying longer and turned to leave.

"Mu Yuanzhi!"

Pei Shangling and Xiao Yichen both called out to detain her. After speaking, each glanced at the other, their eyes clearly saying "don't get in the way".

Mu Yuanzhi pretended not to hear and walked straight away.

They wanted to chase, but Xiao Nianzi and Xiao Yunzi didn't know from where they popped out and blocked their way.

"Bold! You dare block this prince?!!" Pei Shangling immediately put on airs, threatening these two slaves.