Chapter 68

Chapter 68

"Someone has taken the child! She's chasing after them..." The princess had never experienced anything like this before; she was almost incoherent, repeating what had just happened.

Liang Yun's brow furrowed slightly as he quickly stepped around her and hurried towards the backyard.

Everyone was shocked to hear this; someone dropped a teacup, and others gasped in surprise.

Xiao Qiongyu's face turned pale as she stumbled to see where Yuan Er had been taken.

"Where is the child? Where has he been taken?!" Xiao Qiongyu's lips were pale, and she was trembling uncontrollably, barely holding back a scream.

The maids quickly led her over, comforting her, "Madam, perhaps it was a misunderstanding. I just saw the young master sleeping."

Xiao Qiongyu led the maids over in a rush, only to find the side room cold and deserted, with a wet nurse dozing off in front of the cradle.

Upon closer inspection, she was found leaning against the wooden railing, fast asleep!

The nanny beside Xiao Qiongyu almost collapsed as she pulled back the blanket in the cradle, only to find a soft pillow inside.

Suddenly, Xiao Qiongyu felt weak and cold, nearly falling to the ground.

Everyone was shocked, "The young master is missing!"

...

Ying Shi chased after them, but the person was getting further away, and she couldn't see anyone along the way.

She was gradually losing strength and couldn't keep up, perhaps out of fear, even feeling a slight cramp in her abdomen. She cursed in her heart why the Liang residence was built so large, with only a few masters.

The nanny seemed very familiar with the layout of the mansion, even ducking into the stone garden through the inner gate.

Ying Shi naturally recognized the place; wasn't it where she had threatened to commit suicide last time, only to be tricked by Liang Yun?

It was eerie and strange there, not even the wind could blow in. Last time she was brave, but this time Ying Shi hesitated, she was scared, feeling a bit frightened now.

She panted, some hesitation rising in her heart, thinking whether to wait here, maybe someone would come soon...

But after spending time with the child, Ying Shi couldn't just stand by, so she steeled her heart and chased in.

Ying Shi carefully followed, quietly moving along the familiar stone path, but couldn't find the person. Just when she thought the person had left, she heard voices.

"As per your instructions, the child has been drugged and secretly taken out, but someone saw me, I must leave now..." The nanny's voice trembled, likely having taken money to do something unthinkable, now scared after being seen.

"Hmph, bring him to me." It was that all too familiar female voice.

Ying Shi recognized it immediately.

There was a rustling sound, and then the sound of a cradle hitting the ground.

"Wah wah wah!" The child in the cradle suddenly cried out hoarsely, wailing miserably.

"You little bastard, just like your mother! How dare you cry!"

Ying Shi couldn't stand it anymore and stepped forward, shouting at her, "Stop!"

She said coldly, "I've already called the guards, if you want to live, put the child down now. If Yuan Er loses even a single hair, you're dead!"

Su Mei's eyes were filled with bloodlust, vastly different from when Ying Shi last saw her.

She had grown noticeably thinner, her clothes hanging loosely on her shoulders and sleeves. It was hard not to wonder what had happened to her during this time.

Seeing it was Ying Shi again, Su Mei gritted her teeth and cursed, "Who’s sticking their nose in my business? It’s you again? If you dare take one more step forward, I’ll throw him to his death!"

Ying Shi tried to make her understand the consequences of killing the child: "What would killing this child accomplish? At most, your sister-in-law would mourn for a while. The child wasn’t born from your second brother, and he might not even be sad. Your sister-in-law and second brother are young and strong; they can have more children. Ten or eight more wouldn’t be an issue. But you, you’re the one to pity. This child is the treasure of the old madam and the ladies. If he loses even a single hair, skinning you alive wouldn’t suffice. Have you never witnessed the methods of torture? Slashing your face with a knife, cutting off your nose and tongue, gouging out your eyes—no, leaving one eye so you can see your disfigured face, tongueless, noseless, and limbless..."

But Su Mei appeared to have lost her mind, completely unafraid, only laughing hysterically and shouting, "Go call Liang Zhi! Call him here!"

"Liang Zhi is so heartless! After all these years of love, he just discarded me... It’s all this little brat’s fault! If it weren’t for this child, he wouldn’t have abandoned me! I want to see Liang Zhi, get him here now, or I’ll drop this child to his death!"

With that, she yanked Yuan Er from the cradle by his swaddling clothes, holding him in one hand, ready to hurl him to the ground at any second.

Earlier, the basket and the bedding inside had cushioned the fall, but if the child were dropped directly onto the sharp, bare rocks without any grass to soften the impact, he would either die or be crippled!

The child’s desperate wails couldn’t stir even a shred of her conscience.

"Call Liang Zhi to see me! Get him here now!"

Witnessing Su Mei’s cruelty toward Yuan Er, how could Ying Shi dare to leave?

By the time she returned, Yuan Er might already be dead multiple times.

Fortunately, Su Mei still had some lingering rationality, her hand still gripping the swaddling cloth. But the position was clearly uncomfortable; she bent over, pressing the child against the basket, pulling out a hairpin to threaten the baby. The sharp tip of the hairpin grazed Yuan Er’s tender face, likely cutting him, making his cries even more piercing.

Without thinking further, Ying Shi saw this as the best moment to snatch the child. She lunged forward with lightning speed, taking advantage of Su Mei’s bent posture, and pushed her hard, sending her tumbling to the ground.

Ying Shi grabbed the child and turned to run.

Su Mei reacted quickly, immediately brandishing the hairpin and lunging at Ying Shi, truly intent on killing.

At this point, fear was no longer a factor.

Ying Shi’s heart pounded like a drum as she ran frantically, not daring to stop for a moment. But no matter how fast she ran, she could feel the footsteps behind her getting closer and closer.

The cold tip of the hairpin grazed her shoulder several times.

The cold, oppressive wind in the passageway brushed against her cheeks.

She barely heard another set of footsteps.

Not from the person behind her.

Ying Shi didn’t even think, turning and running in the other direction.

Sure enough, after running a few steps, she spotted a figure approaching from the distance.

He was tall, standing in the narrow stone cave, making the space seem cramped.

Even though he saw her running toward him, shouting to warn him to be careful, he still walked toward her.

Ying Shi could almost see the flicker in Liang Yun’s eyes. She couldn’t run anymore, truly couldn’t. The next moment, she nearly collapsed, falling into the man’s embrace.

A sharp sound of flesh being pierced echoed, and at the same time, a heavy, muffled groan came from behind her, the grating sound reverberating through the deep stone cave.

Ying Shi’s tears welled up as she ran, almost collapsing to the ground, her vision blurry. She gasped, struggling to free herself from his embrace and turned to look back.

Liang Yun also stood up, walking toward the spot behind her.

Ying Shi trembled uncontrollably as she warned him, "She’s gone crazy, so be really careful."

Liang Yun lowered his eyelids and whispered, "Yeah, don’t worry."

He stepped forward and kicked the fallen golden hairpin away from Su Mei.

The bloodied golden hairpin clinked against the bare stone wall with a sharp sound.

Su Mei’s pupils narrowed, her eyes flashing with fear, but blood gushed from her mouth, showing she was in agony.

Maybe because men are stronger, his light kick left her in so much pain she could barely stand. Her ribs felt broken, and her mouth tasted like iron.

She couldn’t believe he was that strong. Su Mei curled up, writhing on the ground like a wounded animal, soft moans escaping her lips.

"I need to see... I need to see Liang Zhi..."

Liang Yun stared coldly, silent, as guards arrived late, gathering behind them.

He returned to Ying Shi, crouched down, and asked her, "Did she hurt you?"

Ying Shi blinked, catching her breath as if coming back to life. She felt no pain and shook her head.

"No... Luckily, I ran fast earlier..."

Then Ying Shi remembered something and quickly grabbed his hand.

Sure enough, his palm had a deep gash, blood still pouring out, staining a sleeve of his garment.

He was injured!

Suddenly, Ying Shi’s tears fell uncontrollably.

She frantically grabbed a handkerchief to press on his wound, seeming terrified of blood, fighting back tears.

Ying Shi felt guilty for him. Last time, it was also here, and he was injured because of her. Now, it was here again...

Liang Yun was filled with fear and some inexplicable anger. He wished she’d been more selfish, more cautious, than so reckless, rushing in alone.

Holding back his emotions, he picked her up and carried her out.

"What are you doing?" Ying Shi struggled somewhat embarrassedly. He was holding her, and she was holding Yuan Er, which felt really strange.

"Can you walk by yourself now?"

Ying Shi thought for a moment and shook her head.

Liang Yun looked down at the nephew in her arms, whose face was bruised and crying loudly. "He's crying loudly, should be fine," he said.

From his nephew's face, he vaguely guessed the danger of the moment.

Indeed, she had chased all the way here, knew to send Xia Yue back with a message, and snatched her nephew back from a madwoman.

She was truly an extraordinary girl.

Liang Yun had to admit, for a moment he looked at her with new respect. He ordered the guards to take Yuan Er out and find a doctor for a thorough check, but never mentioned his own injury.

Even though Ying Shi repeatedly urged him to go and treat his wound first, he didn’t pay much attention to it.

He carried her out as the darkness faded, sunlight streaming through the trees, lighting up Liang Yun’s face.

His eyes were deep, yet brimming with worry.

His arms around her trembled slightly.

Ying Shi noticed his brows furrow deeply.

She tilted her head up gently, seeing his face as if it had emerged from the depths. She couldn’t shake the feeling that Liang Yun’s mood was unusually off today.

His demeanor was icy.

Even in this crowded place, where he cared so much about appearances, he refused to let her go.

He held her so tightly that Ying Shi struggled to breathe. It felt as though she might vanish if he loosened his hold even a little.

After a moment, Ying Shi slowly regained her composure. She even dared to recall the events, her teeth chattering in fear, and began to babble to him: "That was so dangerous—that madwoman even tried to harm a baby barely a month old."

Liang Yun watched her lips move, his body still frozen.

He couldn’t bear to think what might have happened if he’d been even a moment later.

The more he dwelled on it, the more a lingering fear gripped him.

His entire body felt numb, his blood icy cold.

Liang Yun could almost hear the pounding of his own heart.

He steadied his voice: "Ying Shi, don’t put yourself in danger like that again, okay?"

Ying Shi parted her lips: "Are you scared? I didn’t want to take such risks either, but today I had no choice..."

Liang Yun’s jaw rested on her forehead as he finally conceded with a sigh.

He murmured, "Yes, I’m terrified."

He had never known such despair in his life.

"Next time something like this happens, don’t go in alone, okay?"

Ying Shi noticed the tension in his voice—he truly seemed scared.

She nodded readily in agreement.

She could feel Liang Yun’s body finally relax at her words.

"Are you worried something might happen to the baby I’m carrying?"

Liang Yun’s forehead twitched, the softness in his face fading as he stayed silent.

In the bustling crowd, nearly everyone noticed Duke Mu clutching someone tightly. He turned his broad back to the crowd, shielding the woman in his arms from view.

"Brother!"

Soon, Liang Zhi arrived, seeing this scene, he couldn’t even be shocked.

Liang Zhi had already heard the whole story, seeing Liang Yun also injured, and his sister-in-law almost harmed by the madwoman, his face turned ashen and he weakly knelt down.

"It's all my fault, I willingly accept punishment! I hope brother won’t be lenient!"

Between them, it was mutual consent at the beginning, she didn’t want to enter the mansion as a concubine, she said it so well... I had already given her enough silver to last two lifetimes, we agreed to part on good terms!

Who could have guessed she’d turn around and do something so cruel? If it weren’t for my brother’s wife, Yuan Er might not have made it!

That was just a baby—barely a month old!

Liang Zhi recalled the bruises all over his son’s body and face, and the sight of his wife fainting several times beside the child. A wave of regret and terror washed over him.

Liang Yun’s disappointment in his brother had hit its limit. If it were the first time punishing him, he might have hoped for his reform, but now?

It’s like trying to polish a turd—pointless.

Liang Yun didn’t want to let this ruin his already bad mood. Looking at the round back of the girl’s head buried in his chest, he stepped forward and carried her away from the troublesome scene.

"Take her to the back and deal with her yourself," Liang Yun murmured before walking away.

Liang Zhi was stunned, and Su Mei, who was tied up behind him, seemed to understand the meaning as well.

The once fearless madwoman was now trembling in terror.

Maybe that kick made her realize dying isn’t as simple as it seems, and the suffering before death might be several times worse than that kick.

She was terrified, sobbing and shaking her head, babbling apologies.

"I was just angry and bitter for a moment, Second Brother, I didn’t mean to harm your child... Please spare me this time, I’ll marry whoever you want, I’ll be obedient... I won’t dare to dream of anything else, and I’ll never appear before you again to bother you, no, I’ll marry far away, as you said, never to see each other again..."

Liang Zhi closed his eyes and said, "You venomous witch, if I marry you off and things go south, you’d kill their whole family?"

Zhang Ping, following orders, handed him the bow.

Liang Zhi took the bow, running his fingers along the taut string, forcing a grim smile as he stepped toward her.