Chapter 173: At worst, I'll just flee far away

Qilin angrily scolded Xiao Yichen: "How are you still eavesdropping on our conversation?!"

"So you're really pregnant, Ah Zhi?" Xiao Yichen ignored Qilin, only looking at Mu Yuanzhi.

"Little Zhi, you... how did you get pregnant?" Gu Rongjin looked utterly bewildered.

Where did the child come from?

Could it be that Little Zhi was bullied without his knowing and didn't dare to speak up?!

Gu Rongjin was furious!

Mu Yuanzhi held her forehead: "No!"

Xiao Yichen: "But I clearly heard you say..."

Gu Rongjin looked complex, heartbrokenly gazing at Mu Yuanzhi: "It's fine, Little Zhi, tell me—I can bear it!"

"What do you mean? The child isn't Gu Rongjin's?!" Xiao Yichen was even more shocked.

So how many rivals does he have?

Qilin was speechless; these two men seem not very bright.

Mu Yuanzhi took a deep breath: "The pulse diagnosis was wrong—I'm not pregnant!"

"Really, Ah Zhi?" Xiao Yichen was overjoyed.

Great, Ah Zhi isn't pregnant!

Gu Rongjin also breathed a sigh of relief in his heart.

Fortunately, Little Zhi wasn't bullied!

"What's it to you?! Xiao Yichen, can't you stop coveting someone else's wife!" Gu Rongjin rudely stepped in front of Xiao Yichen: "You dare come to my wife's room—get out at once!"

Xiao Yichen and Gu Rongjin faced off, neither backing down; his demeanor didn't anger Gu Rongjin but made him laugh: "Senior Grand Secretary Xiao, your clingy, shameless pursuit of another's wife is truly pathetic and disgusting."

"I have something to say to Ah Zhi." Xiao Yichen tightened his jawline, the depth in his eyes undiminished.

Gu Rongjin: "Ah Zhi is what you call her? You're not even worthy."

Xiao Yichen didn't want to waste more words with Gu Rongjin; he looked at Mu Yuanzhi and said: "His Majesty's meaning is, wait until you return to the capital to confront Pei Yunxi face to face."

This was within Mu Yuanzhi's expectations.

"I understand. You can get lost." Mu Yuanzhi said rudely.

"Did you hear that? You can get lost." Gu Rongjin, fearing Xiao Yichen might not hear, repeated it.

Qilin also chimed in: "Please get lost this way, Senior Grand Secretary."

He also made a gesturing motion of invitation.

As the only uninvited guest in the room, Xiao Yichen didn't care; he only cared about Mu Yuanzhi's attitude toward him.

But even if her attitude toward him remained awful, he still persisted as always.

But he didn't overly cling; he believed the future was long, and someday he would win her heart again!

"I'll take Chu Chu back and keep her under strict supervision." Xiao Yichen promised.

Mu Yuanzhi scoffed: "Just strict supervision? Senior Grand Secretary, you're so protective of your own."

"She almost killed my senior sister!" Qilin snorted, "As an impartial enforcer of the law, Senior Grand Secretary, shouldn't you send your younger sister to the authorities for punishment?!"

Upon hearing that, Xiao Yichen furrowed his brows, looking at Mu Yuanzhi with concern: "Ah Zhi, how do you feel now?"

Qilin blocked Xiao Yichen's view of Mu Yuanzhi and answered first: "I escaped death! I almost drowned! Your Fourth Prince can testify!"

When Xiao Yichen arrived, he already knew the whole story from Pei Shangling's letter, but hearing it firsthand still left him shocked.

Fortunately, she appeared unharmed.

"This matter... the Fourth Prince will report it to His Majesty in full detail." Xiao Yichen said.

"So, whether it's you or not, you still mean to cover up for your sister, right? All right, Senior Grand Secretary, this is none of your business—please get lost!" Qilin said.

"I'm talking to Ah Zhi—can you not butt in?!" If it weren't for the fact that this person is Ah Zhi's junior fellow disciple, he would have been rude already!

Mu Yuanzhi glanced at Xiao Yichen, "Qilin's meaning is my meaning; I've already told you to get lost, Senior Grand Secretary—can't you hear?"

Xiao Yichen's eyes flickered with loss; he stared at Mu Yuanzhi for a while, then swallowed before saying: "I'll go first, take care."

Just as he turned and walked out of the room, the door slammed shut behind him with a bang, shaking the air.

Xiao Yichen glanced back, then vanished into the morning mist.

In the room, the annoying person had left, and Mu Yuanzhi felt the air was much clearer.

Gu Rongjin sat down to keep Mu Yuanzhi company; Qilin had learned not to be a nuisance and left silently.

"What Xiao Yichen just said scared me to death—I thought you'd been bullied and didn't tell me." Gu Rongjin gripped Mu Yuanzhi's hand: "Little Zhi, if anything happens, you must tell me right away."

"What could I possibly hide from you? On the contrary, you're the one hiding so much from me." Mu Yuanzhi said irritably.

Gu Rongjin immediately swore to heaven: "I'm wronged—there really is nothing now!"

"What are you planning to do, Rongjin? Are you going to be stuck in the capital forever? The emperor certainly won't let this rest." Mu Yuanzhi knew the emperor was lying in wait, and given time, he would surely cause trouble for the Pingnan Wangfu again.

Gu Rongjin also wiped away his playful smile, saying: "I know, I'm not idle either—I'm just trapped in the anguish of making a choice."

"What difficulty?" Mu Yuanzhi asked.

"..."

"Look, you said there was nothing to hide from me, yet you won't speak!" Mu Yuanzhi turned away angrily.

"Don't be angry!" Gu Rongjin pulled Mu Yuanzhi's arm, drawing her into his embrace: "Don't be angry, my wife—I'm torn up myself; let me sort it out first, then I'll tell you?"

Mu Yuanzhi remained unmoved: "Can't you just tell me what's troubling you? I can share the burden!"

He keeps everything from her, just like last time—only when something major happens does she find out!

Gu Rongjin sensed Mu Yuanzhi really seemed angry, and hurriedly hugged her to soothe: "Okay, okay, I'll say—let's discuss everything together, not just brood alone, alright?"

"That's more like it. Go on, I'm listening." Mu Yuanzhi, barely appeased, lifted her eyes to ask.

"You also know your Father Emperor—he seized the throne illegitimately; if he were a wise ruler, that would be fine, but if he's merely a foolish and corrupt monarch, I have no choice but to consider..."

What are you considering?

Gu Rongjin's hesitant words made Mu Yuanzhi's heart tighten for no reason; she always felt she already knew what Gu Rongjin wanted to say, causing her heartbeat to quicken unconsciously.

"But so far, he hasn't made me feel that he's so foolish and immoral as to be beyond redemption." Gu Rongjin said.

After all, the stability of the realm is more important than anything.

Mu Yuanzhi understood what Gu Rongjin was agonizing over; as an emperor, the Son of Heaven truly hasn't reached the point of being a foolish ruler, and under his governance, the Son of Heaven's reign is still prosperous and flourishing.

"At worst, we'll flee far away to a place where he can't find us, with vast skies and wide seas; if worse comes to worst, we can go to the far shore of the ocean! Or we could just stay in the Black Sea and never return!" Gu Rongjin said.

Mu Yuanzhi chuckled: "Wild imagination."