Yun Yueyin struggled, trying to break free.
However, she found, to her disbelief, that her strength was utterly insignificant before Yun Shu. She couldn't make Yun Shu loosen the hand gripping her neck at all.
"Second Miss, please let go of Mistress! Someone's going to die!" Wen Shu cried out in panic, trying to intervene.
But the moment she took a step forward.
She was met by a gaze from Yun Shu.
That gaze was intensely cold, arrogant, and powerful.
It startled Wen Shu into freezing in her tracks.
And Yun Yueyin, who initially felt she was in complete control, gradually began to sense the terrifying nature of Yun Shu before her.
The Yun Shu before her had completely transformed.
No longer the Yun Shu she could trample underfoot.
And certainly not the Yun Shu who could be slaughtered at will.
At such close proximity, Yun Yueyin saw Yun Shu's skin, so flawless and perfect it seemed to be blown by a gentle breeze, without a single blemish.
Yet, Yun Shu's hand alone seemed capable of snapping her neck.
A primal fear, deep within her soul, spread through Yun Yueyin's heart.
Yun Shu saw the fear welling up in Yun Yueyin's eyes.
"You, you, you!" Yun Yueyin became increasingly panicked.
A face riddled with scars, coupled with the current expression of terror, made her appear even more ghastly, like a vengeful spirit.
"If you dare to kill me, you... you won't be able to leave here either, and the Regent will not let you off! Yun Shu, I know you hate me, but you absolutely wouldn't dare touch me!" Yun Yueyin threatened with difficulty.
Yun Shu looked down at Yun Yueyin's pathetic state. "Yun Yueyin, letting you die easily would be too kind."
"You! Who do you think you are? To easily make me die? Yun Shu, don't talk so big." Yun Yueyin continued to struggle, but to no avail.
Yun Shu tightened her grip.
Soon, Yun Yueyin's eyes rolled back, and her tongue lolled out.
Wen Shu had been stunned by fear. When she finally reacted and saw Yun Yueyin about to be choked to death, she rushed forward.
"Xiao..."
At the very moment Yun Yueyin was about to die, Yun Shu released her hand.
Then she took a step back and took out a handkerchief to wipe her hand.
Yun Yueyin gasped for air.
Sweat poured from her head and body.
Her entire body trembled. In that moment, she truly believed she was going to die!
Yun Shu coldly observed Yun Yueyin's disheveled state.
The end was near.
Just one last step.
She wanted to kill two birds with one stone.
She absolutely could not leave with a hidden threat to her father remaining.
"You're not Yun Shu... you're definitely not Yun Shu... you're so cruel!" Yun Yueyin stared at Yun Shu, the terror in her eyes still evident despite her efforts to suppress it.
She had truly been on the verge of death just now!
That feeling of facing death was too terrifying!
And it was Yun Shu who had done this!
Yun Shu curved her lips slightly, looking at Yun Yueyin with a half-smile.
Suddenly, she felt that it was rather satisfying to watch Yun Yueyin fall from grace so spectacularly.
"Yun Yueyin, I'll give you another choice. As long as you admit to the world that the child in your womb is not the Regent's, I will help you heal your face and spare your father and mother. How about that?" Yun Shu was in a good mood at this moment, so she offered Yun Yueyin another option.
Yun Yueyin was stunned at first, then burst into laughter. "Yun Shu, do you take me for a fool? Besides..."
Then, her eyes flickered. "Besides, the child in my womb is the Regent's! You'll help me heal my face? You think you know medicine? Yun Shu, I underestimated you before today. From now on, I will never underestimate you again!"
Yun Shu's smile grew brighter. "Realizing you underestimated me is a good thing."
"What?" Yun Yueyin frowned deeply, finding Yun Shu's smile increasingly irritating.
What was so funny?
Yun Shu said no more and walked away directly.
Only after a moment did Yun Yueyin react.
She immediately looked at Wen Shu. "What did Yun Shu's smile mean just now? Was she mocking me?"
The shock on Wen Shu's face had not yet subsided. She shook her head blankly. "Your servant, your servant doesn't know either. I just feel that Second Miss is different from before. Mistress, we probably have to be extremely, extremely careful of Second Miss from now on."
"Careful of what? She's just relying on her father being a Great General! She dared to try and kill me just now, and her face has truly been healed. Her luck is simply too good. Who was the one who saved her back then? Whose medical skills could far surpass the Divine Physician? I must find that person!" Yun Yueyin tightly gripped the quilt, her fingers straining so hard that her hand appeared almost deformed.
"Second Miss definitely won't tell us who that person is," Wen Shu said.
Yun Yueyin narrowed her eyes. "It doesn't matter if she doesn't say. As long as that person exists in this world, I will find her! However..."
"However what, Mistress?"
Yun Yueyin's eyes flickered. She touched her neck, as if she could still clearly feel the terrifying sensation of her breath being constricted.
Why was Yun Shu so certain that the child in her womb was not the Regent's?
What did Yun Shu know?
Did she hold any evidence?
Her heart skipped a beat.
Her mind buzzed.
She had a chilling feeling that unseen hands were controlling everything from behind the scenes, leaving her with no room to maneuver, and even... even with the Regent's help, it seemed difficult to turn the tide.
This feeling was terrifying to the extreme.
"Mistress?"
"Mistress, is your face uncomfortable again? Or is the bite wound from the snake uncomfortable?"
Yun Yueyin came back to her senses. "It's nothing. You may withdraw. I want to be alone for a while."
"Yes, Mistress." Wen Shu obeyed and retreated.
The moment the door closed, Yun Yueyin's body went limp, and she collapsed onto the bed.
She lay there powerlessly.
She murmured softly, "The Regent is incompetent? He... he truly cannot impregnate women?"
Recalling their intimacy every time they were in bed.
It seemed...
He was inferior to that person.
Yun Yueyin, belatedly realizing the truth, became extremely stiff. So Zhan Ming knew the truth! But he admitted that the child in her womb was his, merely to quell rumors, and then...
He also needed a child?
Yun Yueyin's mind was in utter chaos for a moment.
...
The next day.
The sky was clear and blue.
Gentle sunlight, coupled with a soft breeze.
Indeed, it was a perfect day for an outing.
Yun Xiao Jing woke up early, before dawn.
Seeing Yun Xiao Jing up so early, Yun Changfeng asked a few questions.
He learned that Yun Xiao Jing and Yun Shu were going out of the city to play with Xiao Li and the others today, and was surprised for a moment.
"All of you are going?" Yun Changfeng asked.
Yun Xiao Jing, holding a steamed bun he had just gotten from the kitchen, nodded while eating. "Yes, Xiao Li and the others are all going too."
"The King of Night is also going?" Yun Changfeng frowned. He hadn't had a chance to see the King of Night yet!
The more he thought about this, the more indignant he became!